Valkyrie Smash

Chapter 365: Please stop.

When she saw the phone handed to her, Juni didn't hesitate to take it.

"Finally!" She raised it over her head and exclaimed. "I was so worried!"

After the momentary celebration, she brought the device close to her face and began looking through it. A few seconds later, she moved it away and stood still, as if she saw something that stunned her.

"I-Ingri~~d! What should I do!? Nana already knows!"

"Oh, you're done for," Ingrid replied

As soon as the phone was in her hand, a message was delivered to it. The sender was Nana. Despite already being busy with the press conference, she still kept an eye on Juni and Ingrid ever since they left the hotel. That turned out to be the right call as she was quick to notice when Juni's phone got stolen, allowing her to hide anything they didn't want outsiders to see.

Her first thought was to factory reset the device just to be sure, but then she noticed something strange prompting her to leave it as is and see what happened.

After a few seconds, Juni slumped her shoulders and turned to Rollo, speaking in a defeated voice. "Here. She wants to talk to you."

The boy was quite confused. He remembered seeing the name Nana in the messaging app so he guessed she was another Valkyrie. Was she going to reprimand him for what he did? Or are things going to get much worse than that?

As soon as he took the phone from the depressed Juni, its screen lit up and a face appeared on it. A beautiful woman with silver hair stared at him with cold eyes and Rollo couldn't help but swallow. She was a Valkyrie, there was no denying that. The question was what kind of trouble was he going to be in.

"Rollo Romanoff, born on December 15TH 2020 to a supposedly ordinary couple of Russian origin. All three were in the first wave of refugees that arrived at what would later become the Third Settlement. Both parents lost their lives in a Calamity raid on March 14TH 2030. You were moved to an orphanage in the First Settlement, but less than a month later you ran away."

Hearing his entire past, including his last name, being recounted right in front of him, Rollo realized how much he was screwed.

"The Resistance has been looking for you, Mr. Romanoff. You-"

"Please stop!"

A sudden burst cut her off, startling those watching from the sides. Setsuna looked up at him, her face still pale after everything that happened. Juni seemed a little confused. Ingrid, on the other hand, kept her distance and observed with great interest.

After a moment of silence, the silver-haired beauty on the phone closed her eyes and nodded. "Understood. I won't say more than this. In return, I expect you to pay us a visit in person very soon."

The boy kept his silence for a while before asking a question. "Could it wait until after the upcoming event?"

Nana didn't answer right away, and when she finally did, her expression looked a lot more troubled than before.

"Unfortunately, that is not possible."

There was another moment of silence. Rollo lowered the phone and turned to face the broken window. He then shifted his gaze to Setsuna who still looked terrified. She clearly had something to tell him, but the words had trouble leaving her mouth. Giving her a reassuring smile, he held the phone and faced the Valkyrie again.

"Give me until the end of the day." He said. "I still have matters I need to resolve."

He stared the Valkyrie in the eyes, refusing to budge in the slightest. After a few seconds, she finally seemed to give up as a sigh escaped her.

"Understood. However, we will have to take the appropriate measures to ensure that you keep your word. Is that acceptable?"

Rollo got a really bad premonition.

"W-what kind of measures?"

"Please return the phone to its owner."

Her tone left no room for discussion so he reluctantly did as he was told.

"Juni. I want you to stay there and keep an eye on him, and when he's ready, bring him back with you."

"... eh?"

Juni was confused by the order, not understanding where it came from.

"Though you got permission from Doctor, it doesn't change that you acted with complete disregard to your position. Not only that but you lost an important piece of military equipment because of your negligence. That said, I'm willing to overlook your mistake as long as you complete this task successfully."

The tall girl seemed to regain some liveliness. "Really?"

"Stay on guard. Do not disappoint me."

With that, the video call ended. There was silence in the old attic. Juni stared at her phone for some time and then raised it into the air, her joyful aura lighting up the space.

"Hooray!"

She began hopping around for some reason, which was quite a surreal sight to Rollo, and even more so to Setsuna who had yet to understand what was happening.

"To think you really were hiding something."

The voice startled Rollo, causing him to jump a little. At some point Ingrid had moved to his side, doing so without his notice. She pulled her hoodie down then removed her sunglasses and mask, finally revealing the beautiful face hidden beneath them.

"R-R-Rollo!" With a shaking finger, Setsuna pointed at the dark-haired girl. "A V-V-V-Valkyrie! It's a Valkyrie!"

He thought he already figured it out, but when his eyes landed on her he felt like his heart was about to stop.

"Hm? What's this?" With a smug grin, Ingrid leaned toward the boy, bringing her face dangerously close to his. "I see you've noticed. That was pretty quick."

Even with such a cutie an inch away from him, Rollo felt nothing but absolute horror.

He recognized that face. He had seen it just the day before, during the award ceremony. She was there, always in the back, right behind the crimson hair of the otherworldly queen. Her name was never mentioned, but there was no doubt about it. She was a Nephilim, and one of the queen's four guards at that.