Pseudo-Herrsher

The school-turned-forest shook and thorny vines slowly grew and covered the entire Senba Academy as if to prevent Kouro and Theresa from entering.

"Hmm... Looks like this Pseudo-Herrscher isn't very friendly." Kouro muttered with a calm expression.

Theresa focused on looking at the Honkai Energy fluctuation chart in her hand before saying, "Judging from our current situation, this Pseudo-Herrscher's actions can already be considered friendly. The fact that she did not attack us directly confirms that."

Kouro who heard Theresa's words just stared at the thorny vines as big as his thigh.

"Should I just burn it?" Kouro asked while taking out a fire grenade from his pocket.

Theresa gave him a long look before answering, "Hmm... I don't know how you got it, but it doesn't seem like a bad idea, it's just that we have a limited number of fire grenades."

"Oh... As for the number, I can handle it." Kouro then proceeded to take out a few fire grenades from his shirt pocket.

Staring at the dozens of fire grenades that Kouro took out made Theresa dumbfounded instantly.

"...Kouro... Are you planning to burn down the entire school building!?"

In addition to being surprised by Kouro who seemed to have some kind of dimensional pocket, Theresa also caught another important detail.

Judging from his preparations, Kouro had most likely known from the start that Pseudo-Herrscher had plant-related abilities.

Although she was very curious about it, Theresa refrained from asking because she knew that everyone had their own secrets.

Kouro and Theresa, instead of using their weapons to cut the vines, they both used the Fire Grenade as a means to open the path.

That was because Kouro wanted to see how Pseudo-Herrscher would react if they used such means first.

Theresa, who knew Kouro's plan, was also curious.

"You can't use all these firework grenades carelessly, Kouro!"

"Alright, alright." Kouro replied while putting back the fire grenades, he only left 5 fire grenades to use.

He picked up one of the grenades and retreated a few meters with Theresa also following him.

Feeling that he was far enough away, Kouro released the safety lock of the grenade and aimed it at the vines in front of them before throwing it.

*Boom!!!

The impact of the explosion, plus the smoldering embers, blew up the entire vine and set the surroundings on fire.

After confirming that most of the vines had been reduced to ashes, they did not enter Senba Academy immediately but waited to see Pseudo-Herrscher's reaction.

After a while, they still did not see any reaction from the other party which most likely meant one thing.

Pseudo-Herrscher was not an aggressive person.

Kouro and Theresa exchanged glances and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Let's go in," Theresa said.

Kouro followed behind Theresa while observing the academy's surroundings vigilantly.

The inside of the academy was not much different from the outside, other than the vines around were smaller in both quality and quantity.

"...Very quiet." Kouro commented, he realized that there were no sounds of insects, Honkai Beasts or even Zombies around or inside the academy.

He also sensed that a pair of eyes had been watching them since the two of them entered the academy.

Theresa was currently busy focusing on the map that showed the location of Pseudo-Herrscher, then she suddenly raised her head and looked towards the building in front of them and said.

"Kouro, Pseudo-Herrscher is inside the building right in front of us."

Hearing Theresa speak, Kouro stopped observing his surroundings and followed the direction of Theresa's gaze, he raised an eyebrow when he saw that the building in front of them was already filled with plants and vines.

"Isn't this the school building for first-year students?

Does that mean Pseudo-Herrscher is someone who is also the same age as him?

"What's the plan, Theresa-san? Are we going to go straight in or should we wait for reinforcements?" Kouro asked.

Theresa lowered her head and looked at the Honkai Energy concentration fluctuation chart, after thinking for a moment she raised her head and looked at Kouro.

"We'll go straight in."

"Alright."

Kouro suddenly remembered something for a moment and stopped Theresa.

Kouro then took out the anti-radiation mask that he had prepared and stored in Inventory before giving it to Theresa.

"We don't know if there are any poison traps inside, better to be careful than sorry."

Theresa stared at the mask before taking it, after putting it on, she saw that Kouro was already inside the building behind her.

"Come on in, I'm already starting to feel that Pseudo-Herrscher presence."

After saying that, Kouro walked forward while following his enhanced senses.

"Wait for me." Theresa ran forward, following Kouro while staring at her virtual map.

The two of them walked slowly while taking in their surroundings that were already overgrown with vines and thorny roots.

Kouro could feel the presence of someone very strong above him, which meant Pseudo-Herrscher was probably on the top floor.

After climbing the stairs to the second floor and walking slowly in the corridor, they finally arrived in front of a classroom door that had a [1-2] mark on it.

Kouro could feel a very strong presence behind this door.

*Beat!*

*Beat!*

His heart for some reason started racing, he didn't know if this was because of the tense, gripping atmosphere or because of enthusiasm, but this caused his purple eyes to shine brightly.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Kouro finally looked at Theresa who also looked at him before nodding to each other.

Kouro stepped forward and slowly opened the classroom door.

The problem was, either because the door hinges had been damaged or due to external influences, the door became stuck so Kouro needed to use a little force to open it.

*Squeak!*

Kouro was sure that with such a loud sound, Pseudo-Herrscher must have noticed the two of them.

Hence he paused for a moment and scratched his head awkwardly, Kouro tried to ignore Theresa's angry glare behind.

Not wanting to serve Theresa's anger, Kouro quickly racked his brain before suddenly coming up with a 'brilliant' idea.

He was then seen knocking on the classroom door before shouting loudly.

"Excuse me, Miss! There's a package delivery!" Kouro called out as naturally as possible as if he was a normal delivery boy.

Theresa stumbled and looked at Kouro with a blank expression before shouting, "You dare to act silly in a stressful situation like this!".

Even so because of Kouro's silliness, Theresa's tense body relaxed slightly, she took a deep breath and prepared the [Oath of Judah].

Kouro knocked on the door again and said, "Miss! I will open the door, if you are changing, please let me know immediately."

Seeing that Pseudo-Herrscher on the other side did not answer and did not even move according to his senses, Kouro slid the door casually.

*Squeak!*

Kouro entered first, followed by Theresa behind him.

"What...!" Theresa exclaimed in shock at the sight in front of her.

She saw a young girl kneeling staring at Kouro with a blank stare.

The girl was wrapped in vines that moved slowly towards Kouro as if an extension of the girl.

Theresa then turned to Kouro who was staring straight at the girl without moving, unfortunately she couldn't see his expression as Kouro was currently wearing a mask.

From Kouro's reaction, Theresa knew that hd recognized the girl who had turned into Pseudo-Herrscher.

Feeling that there might be something the two of them wanted to talk about in private, Theresa excused herself and waited while keeping an eye on Kouro's safety.

As if waiting for Theresa to leave, Kouro then said in a voice that was deep and contained a hint of sadness.

"I really didn't expect that we would meet again under these circumstances, Ayame..."