Honkai Impact: Grandma Pine Sparrow is still chasing me!

Chapter 32 Negotiations Fail: Expert Walter?

"My goodness, you went out to pick someone up and brought back a Herrscher? Dear Principal Theresa, are you considering buying a lottery ticket?"

After luring Sora into what appeared to be a perfectly normal solitary confinement room and making her wait a while, Theresa and the other teachers who had come with her urgently discussed countermeasures.

Although the two big men among them seemed to be the type who couldn't even kill a chicken... It's her fault for not explaining clearly; she should have called over the Valkyrie teacher.

"Don't joke around at a time like this. How was I supposed to know that the person I brought back would be a Herrscher!"

"The Lawgiver? Who is the Lawgiver?"

Welt was slightly surprised. Logically speaking, Kiana shouldn't have been found to possess the core of the Herrscher of the Void by now. Isn't the change in history a bit too drastic?

"Professor Bai, how come your family member is a lawyer?!"

"No, Qiong is not the Herrscher the headmaster mentioned. I—cough cough cough…I am absolutely certain of this."

Oh, it's not Kiana, it's Sora. Oh well... wait, when did Sora become a Herrscher?

"Headmaster, could there be some mistake?"

Seeing Welt's incredulous expression, Theresa understood. After all, who would have thought that the new male student would be a Herrscher?

After all, he's not a Valkyrie, so it's understandable. But since he's scared, we should quickly come up with a reason to send him back.

"Professor Welt, don't panic. You should go and inform the students and organize them to leave the campus and go to the base. In case the Herrscher really goes berserk on campus, this way the students won't be harmed."

"No, no, no, Principal, I think you've really made a mistake."

Pushing up his glasses and composed himself, Walter regained his resolute expression.

"I think so too. Maybe there was a small accident? After all, this person doesn't look like a Herrscher at all!"

"Yeah, how could that weak kid Qiong possibly be a Herrscher?"

Theresa looked incredulous at what the sparrow and Arvit had said.

"Ms. Maria, Alvette, are you serious?"

Theresa could not understand their statements.

You're one a Valkyrie sent by a grandfather, and the other an elite of the Undying Blade. It's one thing to not be worried about St. Freya having a Herrscher, but why are you...?

Well, after all this time, only a few people like Himeko believed it. It's not April Fool's Day, and she doesn't know how to joke! Theresa thought that it seemed she still had to produce that report.

"See for yourselves!"

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"Hello, Sora. I am Himeko Murata, St. Freya's teacher."

"Cough cough cough! This concubine is not that concubine, this concubine is not that concubine."

Looking at the dome, Walter coughed wildly and mumbled something incoherently.

"Professor Walter, what's wrong?"

"I am fine."

"Hello, Himeko-neechan!"

"You have such a sweet tongue, I really like you."

Although I didn't understand what Lao Yang was trying to say, it's always good to call her Himeko-neechan first. This approach should work pretty well on girls; at least Alvit and Himeko both fall for it—but what's going on now?

Considering Bai Ji's attitude, Walter Squirrel's and Aylvit's support, and the fact that Sora hasn't done anything wrong so far, Theresa finalized her plan after a brief moment of thought: send someone to negotiate with Sora.

But who should go? First, Bai Ji is out; he needs to avoid suspicion. Then, Song Que and the passing-by Alvito are out too, since they're Otto, or rather, from headquarters. Also, Himeko must go; she's Theresa's right-hand woman and friend. Furthermore, someone who showed goodwill from the start needs to be brought along. Other teachers are out of the question—how many Valkyries and Herrschers have a blood feud? Even teachers without a clear stance would likely feel genuinely resistant. So, the only option is Welt Yang, who initially showed goodwill towards Sora and is exclusively affiliated with St. Freya, to accompany Theresa and Himeko to the conversation. The rest of the teachers are on standby.

"Sister, I have some questions I'd like to ask you."

"Okay, okay, I will definitely answer all your questions to the best of my ability!"

Completely ignoring Welt's frantic hints, Sora grinned and acted like a sycophant towards Himeko. However, she didn't say what Welt had feared: "Himeko, you're here too."

"Um... Himeko-neechan, what do you want to ask?"

"Don't worry, we're just chatting." Himeko found a stool and sat down, patting the seat next to her, gesturing for Theresa to sit down as well.

As for Walter? He was already sitting to the side, chin in hand, his glasses reflecting the light—who knows what he was thinking? Either his brain was overheating from working its CPU, or he was already drenched in sweat.

"How old is this year?"

"I'm a little younger than all of you..."

A finger that Qiong extended.

"I am one year old this year."

"..."

Theresa and Himeko exchanged glances, while Welt raised his head. Although he no longer had the initiative to ask questions, it was always good to listen.

"Little brother, be honest."

Forcing a smile, Himeko continued negotiating. But she saw Sora shake her head with a serious expression.

"Himeko-sensei, I'm not lying."

Himeko and Theresa clearly didn't believe that Sora said she was one year old. What one-year-old is that big? Even a Herrscher wouldn't be that big!

But the sincerity in her attitude didn't seem fake, and Theresa suddenly regretted not installing a lie detector here.

I'll install one in a few days!

"I heard you have amnesia, right?" Theresa said thoughtfully. "But I asked Kiana about it, and you told her about your 'complicated' family situation, but it seems to be inconsistent with the facts?"

Qiong blinked.

"Really? Headmaster, do you think I told the truth?"

Welt and Himeko exchanged a glance. What did Kiana say?

"Theresa, what did Kiana say?"

"So, the Qiong family has a younger sister, an older sister, a stoic uncle, a mother who loves makeup, and a cat. But after he was born, his mother entrusted him to an aunt's care. The uncle and aunt who cared for him also took care of two other children: a boy who likes to play with spears and a girl who understands 'swords' and 'arrows.' But this doesn't match up with what Teacher Bai said at all... Teacher Walter, are you even listening?"

This time it was Walter's turn to be shocked. His eyes widened as he stared at Sora in disbelief. "You just blurted out everything you should and shouldn't have said?" Luckily, Sora hadn't mentioned a single name, otherwise Walter would have had to explain even more. He might have ended up revealing everything about the future, aliens, and even the Star Train to gain Sora's trust, but that would have drastically increased the chances of him leaking information to Otto…

Who knows if Otto, upon learning of this strange event, will feel threatened or discover a way to revive Kallen, thus causing trouble for everyone.

However, for now, as long as it's categorized as Qiong being "mentally ill" or "mentally deranged," it can be dealt with, thankfully.

"Maybe it's just the fantasy of a chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) kid?"

Walter hoped to use this excuse to brush it off.

"Uncle Yang, you..."

"Uncle Yang? Are you two that close?"

Ji Zi was quite puzzled. Logically speaking, they had only known each other for a short time, yet they were already addressing each other as uncle and nephew.

"Ahem... Well, Bai Ji and I are like brothers. He's a little older than me, and Qiong calls me Uncle Yang, which was my request. That's all."

Although they sensed Welt's unease, Himeko and Theresa believed it was normal to react to a Herrscher. Some less-than-ideal Valkyries would have been trembling with fear, right? It was remarkable that Professor Yang, an ordinary person, possessed such "courage." Naturally, neither of them said anything.

"These things are not important. Let's ask about something important."

Walter tried to take control of the conversation.

"Sora, let's not beat around the bush. The headmaster brought you here because he's worried about 'that thing' in your chest. He said it's a super-sized bomb 'enough to destroy everything here.' Tell us about it, and what are your thoughts?"

"Professor Walter, you're too direct!"

Theresa and Himeko were shocked by Yang's half-hearted statement; aside from saying that the thing on his chest was the Herrscher core, he really said everything! This could easily provoke the Herrscher to become emotionally agitated and go berserk, right?!

Walter Young, are you an expert at breaking down negotiations?

Regardless of Theresa's thoughts, Walter's "radical action" did indeed achieve its purpose: to make Dora understand that the reason for this conversation was that Theresa and the others were afraid that he, carrying the Star Core, would become a time bomb.

However, Qiong thought a little further: Or perhaps, they believed that the Star Core was not a Star Core, but rather the core of a Herrscher?