Honkai Simulator: Start with Confessing to The Herrscher of Finality

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At present, Anti-Entropy finds itself in an awkward position, but Schicksal is even more so.

Voices advocating for war emerged from unknown quarters and grew louder with each passing day.

Within the Oceanic Branch territory, situated between Schicksal's traditional influence and Anti-Entropy, many were urging Ana to convey their desire for conflict.

"That bunch consists of fools and lunatics," Ana said indignantly. "First, they opposed Durandal under the bishop's name, and when that proved futile, they now want our Valkyries to engage fiercely against Anti-Entropy. To them, war seems as simple as eating or drinking, conveniently forgetting they won't be the ones fighting; naturally, their rhetoric sounds appealing."

Recently, life had not been easy for Ana.

Initially, due to Xia Chen becoming a Herrscher, she faced significant challenges just to stay by his side, even nearly severing ties with her family.

Then came Otto's 'incident,' where Ana supported Durandal despite differing opinions within her family. Amber and Rita advised her to act as a mediator between Durandal and the Schariac family, which Ana managed quite successfully—at least their primary concern was meeting with Otto rather than opposing Durandal.

Following that, whispers of war began to surface.

Simultaneously, calls for investigations arose—investigating Xia Chen, Durandal, investigating... well, essentially probing everything they could get their hands on. Their aim seemed clear: to overturn the existing order entirely.

Her father sensed something amiss and unusually ordered Ana to return to the Schariac household. If she couldn't trust leaving her teammates behind, he allowed her to bring the Snow Lotus Squad along.

While House Schariac lacked direct power, it still held considerable influence. Her father feared Ana might be exploited by others during this turmoil.

As Ana spoke over the call, Xia Chen was busy reviewing information about the Oceanic Branch. What concerned him most were details related to the Gem of Desire experiments.

Watching Ana express her frustration, Xia Chen sighed, "Your father is right at this moment. In Shenzhou, there's a saying, 'wisely preserving oneself.' Your father understands this principle."

"But I know that if you had listened to your father, Ana wouldn't be who she is today."

Ana nodded firmly. "Of course, as a Valkyrie myself, it's my duty to uphold Schicksal."

Although she wasn't quite sure how to begin fulfilling this responsibility.

Only now did Xia Chen understand why under Theresa's leadership, Schicksal transformed from a top-tier force to a second-rate organization.

The voices calling for Schicksal's division were always present; people simply feared Otto and dared not speak out. After Otto's 'fall,' these factions seized every opportunity to amplify their dissenting noise.

With Theresa's limited authority, handling such discord was challenging, leading her even to doubt herself...

In reality, Xia Chen began questioning whether Durandal could withstand these mounting pressures.

After all, public opinion can sometimes be more terrifying than enemies on the battlefield. Durandal has always been shielded by Rita, but now facing these challenges alone...

Xia Chen composed himself and said to Ana, "Well aware of your responsibilities, comrade Ana."

"However, what you need to do right now is comfort the person you admire, Durandal. She stands at the center of this storm. If even someone on the sidelines like you feels so enraged, imagine how overwhelmed she must feel... Durandal is the symbol of the Valkyries; we cannot let her falter."

Ana's eyes narrowed slightly. "Showing concern for another woman right in front of me? Is this your idea of emotional intelligence, Xia Chen?"

"Uh..."

Her frustration grew even more intense.

After ending the communication, Ana took a deep breath.

Despite often teasing Xia Chen for his low emotional intelligence, he had a valid point here.

Durandal was indeed the symbol of Valkyries.

While Ana couldn't gauge the exact impact rumors might have on someone's mindset, she knew it wouldn't be positive. She slapped her cheeks lightly and headed towards the Immortal Blades' training room.

Although Schicksal found itself 'forced' into war with Anti-Entropy during this period, the conflict remained small-scale. This limited engagement aimed to appease critics while also serving as a test for the Demi-God Unit series, evaluating their combat capabilities on the battlefield.

Conversely, the Valkyries stationed at Headquarters, including herself, had relatively little involvement.

The Valkyries constituted Durandal's core support base, and Amber and Rita were not foolish enough to let them leave Headquarters. Durandal may be powerful, but if her supporters were to depart due to these rumors, there was no guarantee she wouldn't follow suit.

Moreover, allowing the Valkyries to leave unchecked could lead to unforeseen "accidents," escalating the war further. Eventually, both Schicksal and Anti-Entropy would become deeply entangled.

This was precisely the scheme devised by that group.

In comparison, losing some Demi-God Units seemed like a minor setback.

As Ana arrived at the Immortal Blades' training ground, she observed Durandal intensely practicing boxing.

With each punch, Durandal effortlessly danced hundreds of kilograms worth of sandbags, creating a rhythmic pattern. Witnessing this, Ana couldn't help but briefly mourn for Durandal's opponents.

She realized that such a powerful Valkyrie didn't need her sympathy.

The sheer force and energy emanating from Durandal instilled a sense of security.

Gathering herself, Ana called out to Durandal, "Captain Durandal, I'm here."

For this period, Durandal had taken on the role of mentoring Ana until she became an S-rank Valkyrie. However, being trained by Durandal was no easy task for Ana either.

Despite the challenging nature of the training, Ana never complained to Xia Chen about it. Enduring hardship during practice was expected and understandable.

Upon hearing Ana's voice, Durandal paused momentarily, effortlessly halting the wildly flying sandbags with her hands.

Ana involuntarily swallowed, feeling intimidated.

"Since you're here, let's begin our training," Durandal said to Ana. "Today's session should be slightly easier; all you need to do is spar against me."

Ana remained silent, casting a glance at the sandbags and realizing that this training might not be as simple as it sounded.

After half an hour, Durandal had drained every last bit of strength from Ana.

Although Durandal intentionally held back, maintaining only a slight edge over Ana, this minimal advantage consistently prevented Ana from breaking through.

During their break, Ana couldn't help but glance at Durandal as she drank water. Despite being younger than herself, Durandal surpassed her both physically and in terms of strength.

This realization further fueled Ana's resentment.

If envy were a sin, Ana felt her expression would surely twist with it.

"What's wrong?" Sensing Ana's gaze, Durandal asked casually, "Do you have any questions? Feel free to ask me, it's no problem."

Ana blinked, then said, "Captain Durandal, I'd like to know how you became so powerful. Both in terms of abilities and mindset, I feel there's a significant gap between us."

"It's quite simple," replied the Head Valkyrie of Schicksal effortlessly. "Just stay focused."

Much like how she disregards external distractions around her.