Project St. Freya.
Just as the name implies, it was a highly irresponsible project born from a sudden, impulsive brainwave Otto had after learning about St. Freya Valkyrie Academy from the original timeline.
Its core objective was to establish an institution dedicated specifically to training combat personnel and specialists, creating a standardized curriculum for anti-Honkai operations.
It was an inevitable progression. Once fighting the Honkai became humanity's primary directive, all sorts of training organizations and institutions—both legitimate and sketchy—were bound to spring up like weeds after a rainstorm.
This ranged from the word-of-mouth survival tips traded among mercenaries, all the way up to Fire-Moth's massive, official military training initiatives.
However, word-of-mouth training often led to severely distorted and inaccurate techniques, while large-scale official military drafts would place unbearable pressure on human civilization, yielding incredibly inconsistent combat power.
A foundational screening method was absolutely essential. For instance: measuring Honkai adaptability, combat aptitude, and...
Age and height?
It should have been a simple task. All they had to do was draft a standard set of basic recruitment requirements to solve the inconsistency issue.
So Otto enthusiastically started his research, crunched the numbers, and looked at the results.
Oh ho.
The optimal age for utilizing the Key of Genesis was between 9 and 14.
The optimal age for cultivating Honkai adaptability was between 10 and 16.
The absolute best window to exponentially increase anti-Honkai combat efficiency was between 8 and 17...
What perfect data. It was practically begging Kallen to spin her mop handle into a lethal weapon.
If Otto genuinely dared to post those recruitment standards on Fire-Moth's public board, Kallen would be dragging Siegfried and Kiana along to tie Otto to a burning stake the very next second.
The fact that Bronya and the other kids were already in Kiana's squad was the result of extreme measures during desperate times. They were either the best available options when no one else was around, or they were directly tied to the crisis at hand.
Setting aside those extraordinary circumstances, applying these standards to recruit ordinary, innocent children?
Sister Kallen's fists were just as hard as her Kaslana willpower.
Since recruiting kids and throwing them onto the front lines after a brutal boot camp was officially off the table, the alternative was "Project St. Freya."
Training them at the most optimal age was still completely necessary. It was the unavoidable path humanity had to take to survive; it could not be shirked.
But if this world was truly so pathetic that it needed to subject a bunch of children to brutal military training just to cling to survival, then was such a civilization glorious, or just incredibly sad?
Sending children straight to the slaughterhouse—even Otto couldn't stomach that.
After all, right now, he was just a terribly overworked guy with a penchant for dark humor who was slowly going insane from overtime. He hadn't yet become the monstrous clown willing to sacrifice everything just to resurrect Kallen.
Fortunately, the "old guard" still had enough gas in the tank to shield the kids, allowing them to undergo their anti-Honkai training in a peaceful environment until they were mature enough to step onto the front lines.
They didn't need to face those horrors when they were at their most vulnerable. They could shoulder that responsibility only after they had grown strong.
And Bronya's group was the very first batch of students for this initiative. Their responsibility was to build this project—which held the key to humanity's future—from the ground up.
They needed to figure out what kind of training was appropriate, what knowledge was effective, and what practical exercises could maximize combat power without the risk of premature death.
Aside from Bronya's experimental batch, all future students would be admitted on a strictly "voluntary application" basis.
Fire-Moth would screen out inherently talented children from the general population, and then ask for their consent.
Are you willing to join the St. Freya Branch? To fight your whole life for the future of humanity, for your friends, your family, and everything you hold dear?
Are you willing to follow in the footsteps of your predecessors, to take up the burning torch, and ignite the next sun for civilization?
Coupled with a heavy dose of pro-civilization indoctrination from a young age, Otto believed that during the chuunibyou-prone years of 8 to 12, very few kids would be able to harden their hearts and reject an invitation like that.
Hm? How could enrollment be considered kidnapping?
Otto, at least, felt zero psychological burden.
As for the mandatory, nationwide screening of all children...
Let's just call it the Spiritual Root Awakening Ceremony!
...
"You're totally treating Fire-Moth's management like a video game, aren't you?" Shu sat across from Otto, staring deadpan at the man who had just proposed the absurd name.
"Give it a normal name," Shu said, clearly expressing his stance against anything that sounded like it belonged in a trashy xianxia novel.
Otto huffed in displeasure, waving a hand dismissively as if the naming process was beneath him.
"Does the old timer have anything to add to this plan?" Otto smiled at the young man across from him, who looked twenty-one at most. He found the situation slightly amusing. "For instance... does the old timer want to retire right now, and use this recruitment drive to find kids to fight in his place?"
"Absolutely unnecessary, you primate. Either way, I'm not retiring until the day Kallen plants you in the dirt for doing something evil."
Otto: "..."
"Don't tell me your evil deeds are getting exposed tomorrow."
"Won't you help your poor friend? Cover up my sins and wallow in the mud with me?" Otto smiled carelessly, completely devoid of sincerity.
"Why the hell would I save you? Just go ahead and die right there." Shu immediately raised a middle finger, completely unfazed by Otto's provocation.
Otto had fully expected this reaction. In fact, he was quite happy to see Shu's look of utter disgust.
But a performance required commitment; he still had to react appropriately to Shu's rejection.
"How truly heartbreaking. Such a heartless abandonment."
"Alright, that's enough," Shu sighed, waving his hand helplessly. "So what exactly did you mean by assigning Theresa to run this project? Are you seriously just trying to complete the 'St. Freya' set bonus?"
Otto fell uncharacteristically silent for a long moment, prompting Shu to fall silent as well.
No way... did I actually guess it?
"Perhaps... I am merely cultivating Theresa, so that when the day comes for her to inherit my position overseeing Fire-Moth, she'll be better equipped to handle everything?" Otto finally said, his tone genuinely serious for once.
Shu was just about to nod in relief when Otto followed up with his next sentence.
"However, your reasoning seems much more fitting than mine. Yes... completing the set bonus. That makes perfect sense."
"Sense my ass!" Shu finally cracked. "I told you to stop treating such critical matters like a damn management sim!"
"Work-life balance, my friend! It truly is fascinating, watching all of Fire-Moth grow under my hands, evolving from a mere front organization into the thriving behemoth it is today."
"Tell me, my friend, do you not feel even the slightest bit of pride?"
"What does Fire-Moth's progress have to do with me? It's not like I'm involved in the management or anything."
"Oh, my God, your role is far more magnificent than mere management! You should view yourself as the king of the gods sitting atop Mount Olympus! Merely gracing us with your presence is an honor in itself."
"You detestable Uncle Apocalypse, if you use that damn theatrical localization tone on me one more time, I'm going to..." Shu was losing his mind. His sense of second-hand embarrassment simply wouldn't allow him to continue this deranged conversation.
"Fine... I surrender." Having thrown in the towel, Shu decided to cut straight to the chase and ask the question he cared about most.
"Did you bury any landmines in this project?"
"Well... I can guarantee on my honor, Shu, that I absolutely will not compromise anyone's safety or well-being in this endeavor just to secure a personal profit." Otto's expression sobered up slightly.
"Second question." Shu reached out and gently placed a fiery red feather—one that seemed to exist slightly out of phase with reality—on the desk between them. "Did you use any linguistic traps, logical misdirections, or montage-style omissions in your explanation just now?"
"No." Otto genuinely felt like there was something wrong with his head right now.
Any normal person, when aggressively questioned and openly threatened like this, would feel a surge of anger. Whether that anger stemmed from the fragile dreams of their youth, or the hard-earned dignity of adulthood.
In short, a normal person being interrogated at gunpoint would not feel amused.
And he definitely wasn't a masochist.
Which made it incredibly strange. Why was he entirely willing to accept such blatant suspicion when it came from Shu?
Hah, isn't the answer obvious?
"Really no traps?" Shu narrowed his eyes. Although he had placed Fenghuang Down on the table, it was ultimately just Kiana's Kallen-esque warning—reminding Otto that he had the means to verify.
Shu didn't have the creepy fetish of casually reading people's minds and completely violating their privacy over every little thing.
That kind of mindset—treating people like objects to be scanned—was something Shu felt he could never develop, not in this lifetime.
"Well... I prefer to call those little maneuvers... 'supplementary items for personal amusement,' added under the strict condition that they do not interfere with the project's core objectives."
Right. Shu forgot he shouldn't treat this guy like a normal human being.
Not only was Otto completely unapologetic about smuggling his personal agendas into official plans, he looked positively thrilled about it. It was like he had been eagerly waiting for Shu to ask, just so he could excitedly unpack all his clever little schemes and show them off.
No wonder Otto hated every Kaslana except Kallen... Those meatheads with 'Justice' permanently bolted into their brains simply couldn't appreciate his brilliant little intricacies.
"You know, for a project like St. Freya, the biggest concern isn't how to train them, but how to ensure the majority of them actually stick it out.
"Regarding training methods, we already have plenty of successful precedents. Whether it's the Key of Genesis, MANTIS surgeries, or even Edge of Taixu, we have myriad ways to forge a capable warrior.
"And as for protecting these children, I'm not worried at all." Otto shook his head gently, smiling. "Shu, I know you will definitely protect these kids. I have absolute faith in that."
Shu gave a small nod in acknowledgment.
"Therefore, with all the external training conditions perfectly met, the only variable left to consider is... how do we ensure these selected children immerse themselves entirely in the agonizing process of self-improvement?"
Otto leaned back lazily in his chair, letting out a long sigh.
"After all... they are just children... and a child's nature is to be curious, and to instinctively avoid pain.
"Before we can mold them into qualified anti-Honkai warriors, the trials they must endure will be dozens of times harder, and dozens of times more exhausting, than traditional compulsory education.
"Externally, all we can do is provide them with the best nutrition and medical care, ensuring their bodies don't suffer permanent damage from the intense physical strain.
"But their minds... how do we treat those? How do we maintain the willpower they need to keep walking this path?"
Shu frowned slightly. He was starting to understand Otto's point.
"You're talking about... academic burnout?"
"A brilliantly concise summary, my friend." Otto clapped his hands in genuine admiration. "That is the absolute greatest hurdle we currently face.
"In an environment saturated with exhaustion, pain, and crushing pressure, how do those children push themselves to reach their theoretical peak state by the time they graduate?
"If this torment shatters their fragile, black-and-white worldview, how do we ensure they still hold love in their hearts, rather than festering resentment toward the agony they've endured?
"Sigh... Shu, this isn't something that can be solved with simple ideological education. A public service announcement or an impassioned plea to save the world—those are too abstract, too distant for a child.
"Sure, they might proudly declare, 'I am the successor of Fire-Moth,' and casually display a sense of duty when they still have the energy to spare.
"But when true, crushing pressure crashes down on them like a tsunami, that tiny spark of conviction will be instantly snuffed out. They'll be too busy drowning to think about anything else.
"So... within this training, within this education that will define their futures, what must you do to ensure their hearts remain forever pure?
"How do you guide them to prematurely reach a state of enlightenment that many spend their entire lives failing to grasp—
"Knowing one's destiny?"
Shu took a deep breath, then slowly exhaled.
Otto always managed to hand him the most impossible questions. But... honestly, perhaps because the concept was so incredibly abstract, Shu actually didn't feel too much pressure, despite knowing how thorny the issue was.
Knowing one's destiny... essentially achieving Kiana's 'unity of knowledge and action.'
Maybe they didn't need to reach Kiana's literal level of sainthood, but they at least needed to know what they were doing, know what they were capable of, know what they had to do, and understand the consequences of their actions.
And the ones required to comprehend all this were a bunch of young children whose frontal lobes hadn't even fully developed?
No matter how he looked at it, it was just too difficult...
"Perhaps..." Shu aggressively racked his brain for a solution, eventually arriving at one that was just a tiny bit unethical.
"Could we trick them into doing it?"
"For instance?" Otto leaned forward, looking at Shu intently.
"For instance... setting up a ton of competitions, various novel events, and highly appealing activities... basically using a child's inherent curiosity as a guide to lead them down the path?"