Sky Striker Princess, but the swan song of Valkyrie.

I don't understand why Chris was so resistant to using the magic bow before, and I especially don't understand why that resistance has inexplicably disappeared now.

Looking at the 'Ichaival' warning displayed in front of her, Zero couldn't help but let her thoughts wander.

[Never mind, that's not important. Now that Chris's resistance to using the magic bow has disappeared, let's consider the future training based on the premise of using the magic bow.]

Now, let's think about how to get out of this situation.

Suppressing her pointless doubts, Lingyi turned her attention back to the present.

At this moment, under the unique ranged firepower of the magic bow, the range in which a person can move has been reduced to a very small area.

At the same time, the airspace observing the surrounding environment was also warning Zero that a large number of rockets were flying towards her from behind the smoke screen of the previous attack.

[Hmm... with this level of firepower suppression, it seems there's no way to achieve a flawless victory using only equipment within the rules.]

After analyzing the current situation, Lingyi quickly realized this fact.

After all, she was a magic bow focused on firepower output, and she wasn't very good at dealing with such overwhelming firepower. She couldn't achieve a no-damage clear with just a flash sword.

[It seems Chris won this training match. After all, I don't want my injury to affect my work efficiency later.]

Seeing the ever-growing number of missiles attacking from all sides, Lingyi quickly made a decision.

......

"Whew, whew, ha, did we win?"

With the twin machine gun half-held in her hand, Chris bent over, panting as she surveyed the battlefield.

To demonstrate her strength, she unleashed almost every attack she could muster, leaving her body momentarily exhausted.

"No, I need to pull myself together."

Chris straightened up, trying to rouse herself.

"We cannot relax for a moment until we have truly seen victory."

Chris thought to herself.

This was a lesson she learned from when she let her guard down after her attack created smoke and dust, only to be ambushed and stabbed in the back by Lingyi under the cover of the smoke and dust.

"The right choice."

Just as Chris was warily watching the thick smoke from the explosion caused by her attack, a familiar voice and feeling came from behind her.

The next moment, Chris reflexively turned around, swept her leg to attack behind her, and retreated while the machine gun on her arm began to spin.

"Alright, don't get so worked up. You've already won this battle, Chris."

However, the attack missed, and the same voice came from behind Chris, just as it had come from in front of her.

[How could it be so fast... Wait, Lingyi said I won?]

Chris was initially surprised by Zero's speed, which was significantly faster than before, before she realized what Zero had said.

"What?"

Stopping her attack, Chris turned around and subconsciously asked him a question.

"Yes, because it was indeed difficult to dodge your firepower just now, Chris. In order not to affect the work later, I used equipment that was not agreed upon."

Turning around, Chris heard Zero's explanation and understood why Zero had said that.

Behind Zero, a pair of white, wing-like weapons were attached, with conical thrusters on the weapons emitting blue and white flames.

Clearly, in order to dodge Chris's overwhelming attack, Zero used equipment restricted by the rules: the Sky Blade Hawk Thruster.

With the help of the Eagle thrusters, Zero not only escaped the bombardment zone, but also habitually circled around to Chris's back.

"Is that so, um..."

After understanding Zero's reasons for doing so, Chris's doubts were dispelled.

"...Ugh, that."

Then, the shame she had suppressed earlier welled up from the bottom of her heart.

[Looking back now, what have I done?!]

Chris blushed as she looked at the red magic bow armor on her body.

Thinking about it carefully, before the battle she said she didn't like using the magic bow, but in the end she used the magic bow to win the battle.

"Ugh, there's a limit to how stupid you can be."

Looking down, Chris probably wanted to crawl into any cracks in the ground, but unfortunately, the sturdy training room that Zero had personally built was so smooth that it reflected her face.

"What's wrong?"

Seeing Chris's behavior, Zero was somewhat puzzled.

"Zero, you know, don't you think what I did is ridiculous? I said those things before, but I did the exact opposite?"

Faced with Zero's question, Chris, feeling ashamed, asked in a voice barely audible.

"Ridiculous? Before? Ah... Chris, you mean, oh, is that so?"

Noticing Chris's words, Zero thought for a moment before realizing what was bothering Chris.

"I see. So, Chris, you felt ashamed because you made promises you couldn't keep?"

Lingyi nodded and said in realization.

"Hmm... Ah, yes, that's it. Isn't it ridiculous how I acted before?"

After her secret was revealed, Chris blushed and began to despair, wondering where she should move to.

"..."

"Excuse me for being frank, Chris, but I don't see anything funny in your actions."

After a moment's thought, Lingyi said this.

"Are you trying to comfort me? There's no need. I know how foolish I was before."

Chris was still somewhat self-pitying.

"I was just stating the facts. Whether you, Chris, ultimately choose to use the magic bow or the snake armor, it has no impact on me."

"My job is to think about how to accomplish tasks based on existing resources. Changes in the nature of resources only determine how I should use them."

Slowly shaking her head, Lingyi maintained her usual calm expression as she explained this to Chris.

"...Really?"

Looking at Lingyi's expression, Chris realized that the other party did not seem to be deceiving her, and Lingyi really did not care about her behavior.

P.S. Good morning.

Chapter 136 Beginning Stealth

What's wrong with me? This strange feeling inside me.

In response to what Lingyi said, Chris should normally be thankful that her embarrassing behavior went unnoticed.

However, despite Lingyi's perfectly reasonable answer, she felt a little uneasy.

Since a certain day, Chris has felt that something about Zero has changed, and as time goes by, this change makes Chris feel increasingly uncomfortable.

Am I overthinking things? Maybe I am.

No matter what, Lingyi is much better than me. If she can't solve a problem, I probably wouldn't be able to either.

After thinking for a moment, Chris put this strange feeling back into her mind.

"What's wrong? Do you have any other questions?"

Seemingly noticing Chris's dazed expression, Zero asked.

"It's nothing, since you said so, Lingyi."

Shaking her head, Chris's blush gradually faded, and Lingyi's calm response eased her inner turmoil somewhat.

"Well then, that concludes today's training. Now that you've decided on the main relic you'll be using from now on, Chris, I'll devise a training plan based on your choice... Hmm?"

Seeing this, Lingyi nodded and prepared to end today's training, but at that moment, her attention shifted slightly.

On the screen in front of her, a warning of enemy invasion popped up. She instinctively opened it and saw the scene outside the defensive perimeter she had set up.

In late spring and early summer, dense thickets cover the entire mountainside, creating a lush green landscape in this sparsely populated area.

"Ogawa, are you sure this is the direction?"

Looking out at the seemingly empty land, Feng Mingyi asked the person beside him.

At this moment, beneath the lush greenery, Kazanari Tsubasa and Ogawa Shinji, under the cover of the dense forest, were observing in a certain direction.

“That’s right, Tsubasa. On the night Tachibana was captured, the fluctuations of Gungnir’s relic were detected from a location in this direction.”

Leaning against a tree, Shinji Ogawa answered Tsubasa Kazanari's question.

As an organization specifically responsible for heretical technologies, Section 2 has always been sensitive to fluctuations in relics and noise, and its related detection devices operate almost around the clock.

Therefore, they were able to detect the violent waveforms released when Tachibana Hibiki went berserk in time, although because most of the detection was only within the city, they could only vaguely detect the direction.

"In other words, at some point along this line, there is a stronghold of Zero, and Tachibana is very likely being held captive at that stronghold?"

With his eyes fixed on this direction, Kazemikaze tried to find clues in the seemingly empty landscape.

In her field of vision, she did not see any strongholds or other buildings; the scenery was perfectly harmonious, just like an ordinary, uninhabited, desolate mountain.

"Yes, after detecting the fluctuations of the artifact, Section Two set up a monitoring network around this area, which confirms that the other party has not moved."

Shinji Ogawa confirmed Kazanari Tsubasa's statement.

Although they failed to detect the enemy's stronghold, they did do something.

Over the past three weeks, they have quickly organized a team to monitor and cordon off the mountainous area, and any suspicious activity will be detected.

Therefore, they can at least be assured that the other side did not take advantage of this time to move the location of their stronghold.

"Since that's the case, then there's nothing more to hesitate about."

Having considered this, Kazami Tsubasa, dressed in her uniform, began to prepare for action.

Although her Ame no Habakiri had been taken from her before, she still had a well-trained body, and as long as she didn't encounter noise, she still had a certain combat ability.

"Wait, Yi, calm down. Don't be too impulsive. It's impossible that the other side didn't set a trap."

Shinji Ogawa, who was standing to the side, wanted to calm down the slightly impatient Tsubasa Kazanari.

"We've wasted too much time. We must locate the location as quickly as possible and bring Tachibana back."

Faced with Shinji Ogawa's advice, Tsubasa Kazanari seemed a little anxious.

In fact, her injuries had almost healed a week ago, and theoretically they could have started the rescue operation before that.

The reason the operation has been delayed until now is due to a series of other unexpected events.

Two or three weeks ago, unexplained chaos began to emerge within the Japanese government. Various political forces and opposing institutions inexplicably became active, constantly engaging in open and covert struggles, turning what was originally a relatively stable environment into a mess.

In this environment, the Second Section, as a government agency, was not spared either. It was overwhelmed by the countless internal government chaos and immersed in phone calls and meetings every few days, leaving it with no energy to organize a rescue for Tachibana Hibiki.

This situation persisted until recently, when, thanks to the efforts of Commander Kazami and his team, Section Two managed to extricate itself from this political quagmire, freeing up time to rescue Tachibana Hibiki.

"If we delay any longer, it would be terrible if something unexpected happened that prevents us from carrying out the operation."

Thinking of the chaotic second lesson that had given her the creeps, Feng Mingyi felt even more anxious and began to slowly move towards her target.

She didn't know how long this stability would last. If she didn't seize the opportunity now, and something similar happened again, the rescue might be delayed again.

"I know you're anxious, Yi, but the opponent is not an easy opponent to defeat... What are these?"

Following closely behind Kazanari Tsubasa, Ogawa Shinji wanted to say something, but suddenly, he noticed something was wrong.

"Why would something like this suddenly appear?"

Feng Mingyi also stopped. The reason she stopped was that after she crossed a certain boundary, a low wall made of barbed wire appeared in the place in front of her that was originally empty.

On this low wall hangs a sign that reads, "Private property, no entry allowed. Violation will be subject to consequences."

"It seems to be a warning from the other side; there should be a high density of defensive facilities behind this."

Shinji Ogawa realized the significance of the sign and the barbed wire.

This serves both to prevent accidental entry by ordinary people and as a warning to any invading enemies. If they are ignored and continue to advance, there may be even more aggressive defensive structures.

“But we can’t stop here. Let’s proceed carefully, Ogawa.”