Honkai Simulator: Start with Confessing to The Herrscher of Finality

That very evening, Rita scheduled rest periods for every member of the Immortal Blades. With three consecutive days off, they could venture into European cities without their weapons—a clear opportunity for relaxation for these young girls, most around sixteen or seventeen years old.

However, Xia Chen was an exception.

On the second day, he was scheduled for training with Durandal.

Everyone received vacation time, including Durandal. Yet, she chose to dedicate her personal time to train briefly with Xia Chen, clearly indicating her high regard for him.

After all, Durandal's assessment of Xia Chen was based on comparing him to herself.

In reality, over the past three months, Xia Chen's shooting and physical fitness skills had consistently ranked among the top performers within the Immortal Blades. The only limitation was his compatibility with Honkai Energy, preventing him from matching Durandal and Rita.

"I don't know what happened to you, but today you seem significantly more spirited than before."

At that moment, Durandal wore minimal protective training gear as she observed Xia Chen, her gaze filled with subtle approval.

Her keen perception detected a newfound sharpness in Xia Chen compared to previous sessions.

Naturally, Xia Chen aimed to conceal the System's involvement. "I guess facing our captain makes me a bit nervous," he replied.

"A moderate level of nervousness indeed aids concentration." She nodded and abruptly gave an order, "Look at me and attack!"

Initially taken aback, Xia Chen quickly reacted.

Before, he might have hesitated due to Durandal's authority.

After all, she was his superior.

But now...

Having faced Finality itself, there wasn't much left for him to fear.

Within just three seconds, he pulled the trigger, firing directly at Durandal.

A hint of admiration flashed in Durandal's eyes before she swiftly retaliated against Xia Chen.

Agilely dodging the bullet, Durandal swiftly closed the distance, aiming to strike Xia Chen's wrist.

Naturally, Xia Chen couldn't afford to get hit by her; this woman could effortlessly send an Emperor of Honkai flying with just one kick. Even if it didn't kill him, it would surely leave him severely injured.

Under extreme pressure, he decisively evaded, attempting to fire a second shot. However, Durandal did not give him that chance.

Her foot was now mere centimeters away from Xia Chen's waist, leaving him frozen and dare not move.

How fast!

Before he could react, she had already closed in on him.

Xia Chen was no longer an ordinary freshman without any combat experience. Three months of rigorous training had positioned him among the top ranks within the Immortal Blades.

Yet...

The gap between them was immense.

And this was without Durandal donning her armor or utilizing any auxiliary functions.

A hint of bitterness crossed his face as he recalled everything he witnessed during yesterday's simulation:

Durandal's overwhelming presence didn't quite match that of the MANTIS fusion warriors from the previous era. Yet, even those fusion warriors were virtually insignificant before Finality.

"I lost."

"You've done remarkably well."

Durandal took half a step back, cracking her joints slightly before saying evenly, "After my command, you fired without almost any hesitation. You're only the second person to do so."

"Was the first Lady Rita?"

"That's correct." Durandal did not deny it.

"Just based on that alone, your future achievements may extend beyond being just an A-rank Valkyrie. Remember, even with my limited talent, I believe you will surpass me."

Xia Chen remained silent, unsure how to respond.

Limited talent? Was she referring to becoming Schicksal's S-rank Valkyrie at age 14 and cleansing Honkai across various regions?

Indeed, according to Durandal's registered age, she was only 15 this year. Of course, even if she were actually two years older than her listed age, it wouldn't change the outcome.

However, Durandal genuinely believed her talent was modest.

Who could reason with such humility?

"I think Lady Durandal might have a slightly nuanced misunderstanding about talent," he braced himself and cautiously said, "After all, most people cannot achieve what Lady Durandal has accomplished."

"Is that so?"

In matters like these, she remained quite naive.

"All right, I didn't come here to chat during your training. Apart from your commendable courage, everything else was rather messy in our brief encounter just now." She began her critique, "Your grip on the gun is unstable; even recoil causes your wrist to waver. Additionally, your judgment lacks decisiveness. If you had fired three consecutive shots, it wouldn't have been as easy for me..."

Durandal wasn't exactly an ideal teacher. In her eyes, everyone's abilities were often compared against her own standard.

This wasn't Xia Chen's first time receiving such criticism, and he listened patiently nonetheless.

Honestly, his mindset had changed somewhat. Without the simulator, he would likely only pretend to listen and brush it off superficially.

After all, Durandal couldn't be present for every one of his training sessions, and his performance within the Immortal Blades squad was considered quite good—excluding Durandal and Rita, of course.

But now, having experienced Finality's power, he wouldn't miss any opportunity to improve himself.

After all, in Post-Honkai Book, Honkai was merely sealed on the moon, and who could predict if a Finality might still emerge from there?

"Alright, as I mentioned earlier, let's start with a training session to correct these issues."

"Yes ma'am."

Xia Chen promptly began his exercises.

Durandal was quite satisfied with Xia Chen's responsiveness.

In truth, being the only male among the Immortal Blades, it was impossible for her not to pay attention to him. When he first joined, he could be considered a complete novice. If not for his A-level compatibility with Honkai Energy, akin to that of a Valkyrie, their paths may never have crossed.

However, within just three short months, Xia Chen had progressed significantly.

To claim this improvement without hard work and dedication would be dishonest.

Yet Durandal couldn't determine whether his efforts were driven by her influence or his own desire to excel.

"Well, no matter; we only have two days left anyway." She shook her head, deciding not to dwell on it further. As Xia Chen trained, she also joined in alongside him.

"Physical endurance, shooting accuracy, reaction speed..."

Durandal pointed out numerous flaws.

Xia Chen didn't resent her high standards because every issue she highlighted was indeed his weakness. Compared to this young captain, he struggled to find any strengths at all.

Despite that, driven by the need to enhance his abilities and survive, he pushed himself relentlessly.

"Your breathing is becoming erratic; you should take a break first."

A voice reached his ears, and unknowingly, Xia Chen had been training for two hours straight.

"Your physical fitness still falls short," Durandal remarked with slight frustration. "Just running fifteen kilometers shouldn't exhaust you like this. How can I trust you to undertake long-range missions against Honkai Beasts?"

"But it's barely acceptable for now. Next, I'll teach you about marksmanship. By the way, have you heard of the Kaslana Gunmanship technique?"