Sky Striker Princess, but the swan song of Valkyrie.

To better distinguish what each person said, she created a device that differentiates different sounds and marks them with different colors.

And she remembered that the orange-yellow timbre she marked referred to…

"Ugh, I can't handle Ms. Sakurai at all. It's probably better to come out and hide for a while. *gulp gulp*"

Just as Lingyi was pondering, a girl with flaxen hair walked into the dressing room with a tired look on her face. She complained about something, found a place to sit down, and started drinking a can of milk.

[Hibiki Tachibana, why is she here!?]

In an instant, alarm bells rang in Lingyi's mind, and all sorts of warnings were activated. In that instant, she thought of many possibilities that might have led to the current situation, and then immediately rejected those possibilities one by one.

If Hibiki Tachibana, whose protection level has been significantly raised, were to appear here, it would mean that government officials are also very likely in the vicinity.

But that shouldn't be the case. Both he and Chris had disguised themselves, and coming to this place was entirely Chris's spur-of-the-moment decision. Logically, their whereabouts shouldn't have been predicted.

[Calm down, calm down. Right now, at least in this locker room, there's only Tachibana Hibiki here, and she hasn't discovered my identity yet. There's no need to overreact.]

Before long, Lingyi calmed her mind down and began to try to understand the situation.

In short, first, deploy several reconnaissance floating units to conduct a deep scan of this area...

With that thought in mind, Lingyi began to manipulate the screen in her hand with a serious expression, starting to call up the spare floating units, wanting to use them to scout the place first.

Previously, because she didn't think there would be any major danger in just soaking in a hot spring, she didn't make any particularly detailed plans for the area.

[It's not a big problem. As long as we haven't attracted attention yet, and we're just ordinary tourists, we shouldn't be noticed anything amiss. But just in case, we should try to leave this dangerous place first. Once we're out of here, we'll have a lot more options, no matter what we do.]

While operating the tablet, Lingyi began to think about how to maximize her own interests while ensuring her safety.

As long as it hasn't attracted attention yet.

Lingyi thought of it.

"What's wrong, Rokuyo? Why do you look so serious?"

Just then, Chris, who had finally adjusted her mindset, felt a little uneasy about Zero's suddenly serious expression, so she naturally asked him this question.

"Oh, is anyone else here?"

Her words also caught Tachibana Hibiki's attention, and it became clear that a new guest had arrived at the women's changing room of the hot spring.

"Hello, are you here to enjoy the hot springs too? My name is Tachibana Hibiki, what's yours?"

Then, perhaps out of intuition, or perhaps out of her personality, the flaxen-haired girl naturally greeted them.

"Tachibana... Hibiki, wait, isn't that..."

Upon hearing the girl's self-introduction, Chris paused for a moment, then instantly recalled the mission objective that Zero had mentioned to her before, and reflexively wanted to say something.

嘭一

In a flash, Lingyi shielded Chris with her body, burying Chris's face in her chest to stop her from saying what she was about to say.

[Calm down, Chris. We absolutely cannot reveal our identities here.]

Zero activated telepathy and began explaining the current situation to Chris. Fortunately, despite what had happened before, Chris did not remove the telepathic communicator.

[What's going on, Zero? Why are our mission objectives spawning in front of us like a mechanic-based reward monster?] 柒栮s=an'龄斯疚衫是

Although Zero's actions were a little... well, Chris, who understood the importance of things, didn't care about that and instead asked Zero about her current situation.

P.S. I don't know how many people will read this, but I'll create a group anyway: 789213906

Chapter 46 Choice (4k)

[I don't know. I completely don't understand why Tachibana Hibiki would be here.]

Lingyi thought to herself, and she could tell from her voice that she was a little nervous.

【What should we do now, Lingyi? Should we arrest her right here?】

Chris asked, both nervous and excited.

If she could bring Finney's goal back now, her and Finney's dream would definitely take a big step forward.

No, not now, at least not now, it's too dangerous.

However, Zero quickly rejected Chris's approach as a "reckless" plan.

[The situation is currently unknown. We don't know how much combat power the enemy has deployed here. It's best to use low-cost methods to conduct small-scale probing first.]

Lingyi explained.

Since Tachibana Hibiki has appeared in this place, then considering the worst-case scenario, there are probably four or five mid-to-high-level combatants and a hundred miscellaneous soldiers lurking around her now.

Furthermore, Hibiki Tachibana herself is not an inanimate object like Durandal, but an individual who can unleash unknown power and possess unknown resistance capabilities at any time by using the holy relic fused within her body.

In the complex environment and unknown intelligence of the hot spring town, capturing an individual with unknown protective forces and unknown resistance capabilities is a risky plan that would require Zero to be out of her mind.

Anyway, I'll try to get Tachibana to comply first. Chris, you can go do something else for now.

While communicating with Chris telepathically about the action plan, Zero loosened her embrace, which she had just used to stop Chris's impulsive outburst.

Okay, I understand. Oh, right, Lingyi, this date absolutely doesn't count. Don't forget to make it up to me next time.

Yukine Chris agreed to Zero's request, and made this emphasis during their telepathic communication.

Don't worry, Chris, you won't suffer any losses.

Lingyi reassured him in the telepathic communication, then turned around, holding her tablet, and faced Tachibana Hibiki.

"Um, what were you guys doing just now?"

Seeing the girl in black with gray hair turn around, Tachibana Hibiki asked with some confusion, not understanding why they reacted so strangely when she simply greeted them.

"Just now? Oh, well, she wasn't feeling well just now, so I massaged her a little to relieve it."

Lingyi pursed her lips and spoke in a steady tone the fresh, newly made-up reason she had just come up with.

"Hey—she's not feeling well. Is she sick or injured somewhere? Do you need my help?"

Seeing that the other party did not seem to be lying, Tachibana Hibiki had no doubts and immediately accepted Rei's explanation. At the same time, as always, she seemed to have triggered a switch and began to ask Rei if she needed her help.

"No, thank you for your concern, but it's just a minor health issue for her, nothing serious. I can take care of her on my own."

Faced with Tachibana Hibiki's enthusiastic offer of help, Rei glanced at the tablet computer that Hibiki was holding like a drawing board, and calmly declined.

"Oh, that's good."

Hearing what Lingyi said, Tachibana Hibiki felt relieved and put the little incident from her mind.

"Hmm...Speaking of which, you're Tachibana Hibiki, right? Did you come looking for us earlier because of something?"

After dealing with Hibiki Tachibana's past questions, Rei breathed a sigh of relief and then steered the conversation in another direction.

At this moment, thanks to Lingyi's timely repairs, the crisis of their identities being exposed has been basically resolved. As long as they disguise themselves as ordinary tourists, they will have virtually no risk of being exposed, or if they are, the risk will be very small.

Fortunately, if this had been exposed, the costs of subsequent reconnaissance and the intensity of the battle would likely have increased significantly.

Lingyi thought with a lingering fear.

If the connection between Rokuyo's identity and Zero were exposed here, not only would the risk of discovering the surveillance units he set up that afternoon increase dramatically, but it might also lead to the conclusion that he was the target of his mission to capture Tachibana Hibiki.

If that's the case, Zero might have no choice but to fight a life-or-death all-out battle against the Second Section's defensive fortifications.

Even in a full-scale battle like this, Lingyi didn't think she would be the loser, but since she could complete the mission more easily, she didn't want to make things any more difficult for herself.

"Ah, I just saw you guys came to soak in the hot springs and wanted to say hello, hehehe."

Completely oblivious to Rei's inner thoughts, Tachibana Hibiki continued to chat happily with Rei, who in a sense was lusting after her body.

“Oh, I see. By the way, since you’ve mentioned your name, Tachibana, let’s introduce ourselves. I’m Rosé, and she’s Christina.”

Rei politely explained their fake identities to Hibiki Tachibana.

"Oh, it's Rouge-chan and Chris-chan."

Upon hearing Rei's self-introduction using her pseudonym, Tachibana Hibiki habitually used an affectionate term of endearment.

"Ah, wait, why did it suddenly fast forward to Chris-chan?"

Hearing Tachibana Hibiki's words, Rei didn't react much, while Chris almost couldn't hold her breath. This way of addressing someone as "something-chan" right off the bat was way too familiar.

"Well, I felt that Christina was a little too long, so I simplified it a bit. Ah, so Christina-chan, don't you like it?"

In response to Chris's question, Tachibana Hibiki explained with a sheepish smile.

"Of course I care, you baka..."

"It's nothing, Tachibana, don't worry about it. It's just one of Christina's habits."

Chris, there's no need to argue with her over such a trivial matter. What you need to do now is minimize your presence and avoid drawing their attention.

Just as Chris was about to say something, Zero stepped forward, shielding Chris behind her, and said this to Hibiki Tachibana, while simultaneously comforting Chris in her mind.

Although she didn't think the two of them would be exposed, she was afraid that saying too much would lead to mistakes. If Chris was allowed to act freely, who knew what trouble she would cause herself? So the best option was for her to be in charge of external communication and to silence Chris.

Okay, I understand. I'll be patient.

Knowing that now was not the time to throw a tantrum, Chris suppressed her dissatisfaction with Hibiki Tachibana under Rei's comforting words.

If you're feeling really unwell, Chris, you can change your clothes and soak in the hot spring for a while.

If you're worried that the undergarment is too embarrassing, you can find a cubicle to change. I've already unlocked your straitjacket; you can take it off easily.

Also, please pay attention to the procedures and taboos when soaking in hot springs, and be careful not to cause any unpleasantness that might attract attention.

【If you don't want to go to the hot springs, Chris, you can buy some snacks at the shops outside. I've put your credit card in your clothes; you can find it if you look around.】

The money in your card is enough to empty the store, so don't worry too much about spending; just buy whatever you like.

Also, if you're going out, remember to be natural and don't talk too much to others. If you really can't, just stay silent and act aloof.

Before Tachibana Hibiki could respond, Rei quickly explained everything that needed to be explained to Chris in order to minimize the risk of an incident.

Okay, okay, Lingyi, I understand.

Listening to the endless stream of instructions coming from her mind, and touching the hard, four-cornered card in her pocket, Chris responded with a bit of a headache.

"Never mind, I'm going out to buy some things. I'll be going now."

In the end, Chris decided against soaking in the hot springs and instead took her credit card to a nearby store to buy some snacks.

After this incident, Chris completely lost interest in soaking in the hot springs. She didn't want to leave behind the memory of soaking in the hot springs alone during her first hot spring trip.

"Eh, Chris-chan?"

Watching the red-clad, white-haired girl's retreating figure as if she were fleeing, Tachibana Hibiki couldn't understand why she had suddenly left like that.

"Don't worry about it. She's just not good at dealing with people like you. She doesn't mean she dislikes you."

Zero explained Chris's behavior.

"is that so."

"Oh, right, judging from your age, Tachibana, you should be in school right now. I don't think today is a school holiday. Why are you here soaking in a hot spring?"

After getting Chris out of the way, Zero began to multitask, using the equipment to survey the entire hot spring town while trying to find out why Tachibana Hibiki had come here through conversation.

"Well, for various reasons. If I had to give a reason, it would be something like, my workplace organized a team-building activity and they included me."

After hearing what Rei said, Tachibana Hibiki nervously explained why she had come here.

"Is that so? It seems that your boss at work is a pretty good person. By the way, what do you do for a living, Tachibana? Are you a cashier or a sales clerk or something?"

[That means she was brought out by Section Two. Whether her claim of a team-building activity is true or not, it indicates that this area is probably already swarming with Section Two members. No wonder my operation in Lydian went so smoothly before; when I set up the surveillance units there, most of Section Two's premises were probably already deserted.]

While dealing with Tachibana Hibiki, Rei made this speculation in her mind.

Meanwhile, the autonomous floating unit she had previously operated to conduct reconnaissance had already transmitted the image information it had detected in the vicinity to her tablet computer.

After quickly scanning the images, Lingyi spotted many familiar faces, which further confirmed her guess.

"Um, well, I guess it's a cleaning job... right?"

On the other side, when faced with Zero's question, Tachibana Hibiki paused to think for more than ten seconds before answering with an uneasy expression.

"I see. Is it a job like a cleaner? I didn't expect you, Tachibana, to be working at your age. That's really impressive."

Seemingly oblivious to Tachibana's somewhat prolonged contemplation, the girl in black with gray hair smiled and praised Tachibana Hibiki.

"Haha, it's really nothing special. After all, well, my abilities at the company aren't exactly top-notch, and there are more capable seniors than me."

Touching the back of her head, Tachibana Hibiki chuckled awkwardly. She was a little reluctant to continue the conversation because she had to lie due to the confidentiality agreement, but she was really not good at lying.

[If I had known it would turn out like this, I wouldn't have mentioned that I was working. Making up lies is exhausting.]

Hibiki Tachibana thought with some regret.