"So that Captain, like Kalpas, just wants to join a family, huh ♪~"
Elysia tilted her head slightly, sighing softly, then turned to look at Kalpas with a curious glint in her eye.
"So, Kalpas, what are you planning to do? Don't tell me you're going to look for Luo Mo? Want to take me with you? ♪"
"Drawing pulls."
"Hmm? You can draw Pulls without going outside, can't you?"
"My luck isn't great. Maybe going outside will help improve it a little."
Kalpas replied in a low voice. In his hand was a phone, showing a Luna's banner interface.
Looking closely, he had about thirty draws left—obviously not the best luck lately.
But at least it was probably still better than Fu Hua's.
"Hmm... maybe. But something like this really isn't about superstition,"
Elysia said with a slightly embarrassed smile, unconsciously touching her cheek. Her eyes shimmered with a bright glow.
"How about this? Want me to try for you?"
"You?"
Kalaps's voice remained low, but he seemed to be considering it seriously. Then he handed the phone over.
"Let's give it a try."
"Drawing pulls isn't as simple as flipping your hand, but if it doesn't work, we still have Eden. My dearest Eden~"
Elysia laughed brightly, full of confidence as she accepted the phone.
"Kalpas, do you think the Ferryman's way of doing things is right? When he suddenly announced that the Captain had always been his original intention, I actually gasped! But honestly, his evaluation of the Captain was quite accurate."
"He never learns how to give up. At the moments when we all thought we should, he kept holding on... That's really admirable ♪~"
As Elysia's finger swiped across the screen, she chattered excitedly to Kalpas.
Confessing to someone else for them? That was a good thing in her book. She loved sharing her feelings—especially with friends like these.
Being together in a large room like this… was something they hadn't even dared to dream of before.
"Compared to the Ferryman and the Captain, I'm more curious about that Guy in the next door and how he's connected to the two of them.
That game, at least in terms of the main plot, didn't really make mistakes..."
Kalpas added thoughtfully.
He watched closely as the other party pulled pulls. This was a crucial moment he'd been waiting for.
That pink-haired girl should have better luck than him—at least in theory.
"Luo Mo… Right, we still have a real-life Captain in this world," Mobius rested her chin on one hand, her snake-like eyes narrowing slightly.
"Who knows what'll happen next? But who knows, maybe it's worth taking a look at the world outside…
Oh, and Elysia—don't let Kalpas pull any more cards."
"Huh?!"
Elysia looked down at the screen and quickly offered an awkward apology to Kalpas.
With an expressionless face, Kalpas glanced at her, clearly feeling he had trusted the wrong person.
He took back his device and walked away, returning to his room.
Short-lived. He had worked hard to prove himself… only to fail.
Elysia looked slightly embarrassed.
But there was no time to dwell on that now—her curiosity was piqued by Mobius' words.
"So, Doctor, are you planning to go to the Infinite World to complete your Delysia Project?
If so, you should really be careful…"
"…I told you, that has nothing to do with me."
Mobius raised her brows slightly and added with faint amusement: "But if it's to study a silly little creature like you, I am a bit interested."
---
Meanwhile, in Theresa's villa
Theresa was wrapping up one of the side events.
Though the main storyline was over, in this oceanic city, there were still plenty of side missions left to explore—and many unopened treasure chests waiting to be found.
At this moment, on the screen, Luo Mo had logged into his own account.
He had been immersed in the story mode before, and hadn't paid much attention to the ship's theme or the character gallery.
Of course, his ship's name—"Cutest in the World Luna"—was enough to make Kongming squint with laughter. He was quite proud of it.
Contrary to what Kiana and the others had expected, he hadn't fully collected all the characters.
In fact, there were still several units in grayscale, showing he hadn't pulled them yet.
"Boss… You mean your account isn't fully S-ranked? And wait, wasn't your username last time 'Ellie's #1 Devotee' or something like that?"
Kiana cried out in surprise.
"You said it yourself—that was last time. Of course I had to change it. As for not having all the characters... It's not that I don't want them, it's that I just can't get them.
I always rely on fate. If a character makes me spend too much and I still don't get her, it just means fate hasn't arrived yet."
Luo Mo sighed helplessly.
When it came to gacha pulls, he never wanted to admit he was unlucky.
Sure, his results were clearly worse than Kiana's, but at least he could still compare himself to Fu Hua.
Also—please stop looking at him like he's some toxic male character.
The name he chose during the story segment also had its own meaning, okay?
"Huh? Let me see who you're lacking chemistry with... Hmm...
Raven? You didn't get Raven? Isn't she just an A-rank Valkyrie?
Also, Herrscher of Thunder, and Silverwing: Rebirth…
Looks like you and I, the great Kiana, have a real bond. You've got all my armors pulled!"
Kiana's competitive spirit surged.
She shot a glance at Mei and Bronya, placing her hands on her hips, unable to hide her glee.
Looks like she and Luo Mo had some real fated connection!
"…You didn't pull any of Bronya's evolved forms.
This must mean you're hiding some kind of unspeakable motive. Otherwise, why would you max out every strong class rep but skip Bronya entirely?"
Bronya spoke with conviction—though her face remained completely expressionless.
"Ah… But all of the heroic versions are complete, Boss."
Mei smiled awkwardly.
She felt like she'd been influenced by the other two.
Why did she suddenly care whether her armors had been pulled or not?
Now her heart felt strangely tight. The fact that Luo Mo didn't have her pulled… it stung a little.
Like being the housewife who was left out.
"I already told you—my luck is bad. If even the last ten pulls didn't give me anything, I'd rather save them for the next banner."
Luo Mo said with weary resignation.
He swiped to the current banner, trying to defend his case.
"Here, let me show you all my luck. Luna banner—I believe in our destined bond!"
"Human—please don't—!"
Luna tried to dive in and stop him.
She'd seen him pull before, and if… if she didn't appear immediately—wouldn't that mean their 'destiny' wasn't that great?
Even just a little psychological reassurance would be fine…
In her heart, she had zero confidence she'd come out in the first ten pulls.
"Hmph! I'd also like to see whether you two really have that mythical kind of bond."
Kongming lit. "Let's See" intercepted halfway.
If she remembered correctly, his previous banner had just been reset.
Technically, this should be a fresh pool.
"Alright then, here goes."
Luo Mo gave the Luna character a side glance—her eyes filled with both hope and dread.
Kongming clung tightly to her, and for some reason, this stirred something calm within his heart.
Drawing gacha is supposed to be a fair and equal endeavor for everyone—thus, the real battle begins now.
As the others, including Kiana, looked on with anticipation, the first ten-pull brought nothing.
Then, on the second ten-pull, a streak of golden light flashed—Luna emerged in a radiant glow.
[Bound to humanity... To protect... to safeguard...]
The soft, fragile voice echoed beneath the moonlight. She patted her petite chest, her heart thumping rapidly as if she'd just emerged from an emotional trial of love between her and her Human companion.
Still, standing before so many people like this, didn't it also prove her emotional bond with Human?
For a moment, Luna felt incredibly lucky.
"So early already?" Seele said in surprise, her tone full of disbelief. Knowing Luo Mo's terrifying past gacha record, she found this outcome hard to process. Was it rigged?
"Even if your luck this time is better than usual, boss, you're still miles behind me!" Kiana added, full of confidence. In this domain, she had the utmost authority.
With full belief in her luck, she casually waved her fingers—initiating her ten-pull.
Double yellow lights appeared simultaneously.
"Huh?! What's going on—where did my luck go?!"
Faced with this situation, Kiana suddenly doubted everything. This was completely different from how her pulls usually went! What had happened!?
Of course, Luo Mo wouldn't reveal that he had secretly capped the probability of getting more than three golds per draw. That would be too broken. This pull? This was part of his plan to siphon Sirin's salary back via gacha.
"Didn't go full pay-to-win for a 3S? That's too bad. If it were me, I'd definitely…"
"Sigh. Old stubborn one, why don't you just splurge a little?" said the Herrscher of Sentience, her tone full of mock pity. Clearly, she wasn't as rich as the others, so she merely patted Fu Hua's shoulder in support.
Fu Hua's shoulder stiffened. Clearly, she wasn't in the best mood either.
Facing the Herrscher of Sentience's irreverent words, Fu Hua took a long moment to consider before responding in a softer tone.
"Senti, I'm just not good at these games. Look—even the game company boss can't guarantee pulling golds. It's better to save smartly."
She attempted to guide her companion back to the "right" way of thinking.
"Heh, I guess that does make some sense. But thinking about handing my hard-earned salary to Luo Mo still feels off..." the Herrscher rubbed her forehead, as if waking up from a weird dream.
Luo Mo's brow twitched. He wanted to object—Don't say it like that, I didn't actually take that much... Honkai 3rd was already chasing live service content, and he was still burdened with running a giant place like St. Freya...
Things were not looking good. The dream of buying back St. Freya felt farther than ever.
"Still... fine, consider it like a ticket fare. Maybe I'll join them in seeing the World beyond someday."
Senti waved it off carelessly. Yet her eyes brightened even more as she stared at Luo Mo. The world outside in the Sea Quanta felt vast and mysterious—she wanted to go see it for herself.
"You're getting on the ship too? Then things are gonna get noisy again," Bronie asked curiously. Given the Herrscher's useful powers—but also her chaotic personality—could the ship even handle her?
Would they even make it halfway before something exploded?
"Honestly, I just want to build a makeshift van. Who doesn't want to see another world? I bet everyone here has thought about it," said Senti openly.
Her eyes locked on Luo Mo again, and soon, half the room turned to look at him too, their eyes filled with quiet longing.
If they hadn't known about it, maybe they could've ignored it. But with such a chance so close by, how could their hearts not be stirred?
"It's all up to the Captain to decide," said Irene with a calm smile, arms folded.
"Let's wait until after we've defeated Honkai," Luo Mo shrugged with a smile. "If we don't win—then we'll die trying, and won't need to think about all that stuff."
"Eh? According to past data, almost all the Herrschers are on our side now. Is there even a real risk of losing?" Seele asked, confused.
"Even if they're all Herrschers, some can solo three opponents... while others get one-shot by a mecha…"
He paused, realizing he might be referring to the same person. But hey, just because they share the same title doesn't mean their power levels match.
Still, that wasn't something to worry about now.
Rubbing his hands together, Luo Mo smiled.
Maybe… Luna really was his lucky charm after all.
And now that she'd been pulled—there was no reason to stop trying.
Afterward, Luo Mo continued drawing characters and had perhaps the most satisfying gacha session he'd ever experienced. At a far lower cost than expected, he successfully pulled the full Luna set. Feeling elated, he couldn't help but change into the new outfit and test it out in some challenge stages.
This test caught Kiana's sharp eyes, and she asked in astonishment:
"Boss… something's not right. Boss, how does Luna have a skin? And this skin of yours… where did it come from?"
Kiana stared wide-eyed at the screen — a white cat-eared girl, dressed in a pure white outfit, with a blooming red rose on the left chest. But what caught her attention the most wasn't the gorgeous costume — it was the diamond ring glittering on the character's left ring finger!
A diamond ring on that finger… The only time she'd seen one was on her mother, and even that was rare. The meaning was too obvious…
"Oh no, you found out," Luo Mo said with an awkward smile, scratching his head. "This is a skin I had custom-made for my personal account."
'Still flaunting... If he really didn't want us to notice, why show it off so blatantly? Damn it… I want one too…'
Kongming gritted her teeth silently and sneakily reached behind Luo Mo to pinch the sensitive spot on his waist. Instantly, the smug smile on his face twisted in pain, and he took a sharp breath.
Of course, part of him had been performing, but he wasn't immune to Kongming's sneak attack either.
Luna stared at the screen, eyes wide with shock. Her gaze kept shifting between the outfit and Luo Mo, unable to hide her overwhelming joy. She gripped his hand tightly. If there weren't so many people around, she might've jumped up and kissed him right then and there.
Was this a surprise gift?
Wait, no… could this be a proposal…?
No, no! It's just a game… But in Honkai 3rd, if a skin exists in-game, that often means the Human has also given something in real life, right? Right?
And that ring — in human culture, that only means one thing…
Luna blushed deeply, her face glowing as she looked at the screen again.
Kongming cleared her throat, looked straight ahead with a serious expression, and said:
"Mr Assassin, I want one too. A set just like that. Even if it only appears on your personal account, I'm fine with it."
She didn't say more. Her eyes, crystal clear, locked onto him. Just like earlier Luna, she gently shook his arm with a hint of charm.
"Captain…" Irene simply said softly, and then silently looked at him, her gaze filled with expectation.
Luo Mo snapped out of the joy that Luna had brought him. Without even thinking, he immediately understood the situation.
So… had he just gotten a little too smug earlier?
He reflected deeply and, seeing Irene, Kongming, and even Theresa slightly pouting, he nodded.
"Alright. Custom skins — totally possible. But you'll need to submit the request to our in-house artist, Griseo."
He agreed readily, and only then did the pressure on his waist finally ease.
...
"Luna skin?" Curious players crowded around again. After all, technically speaking, Luna had just been released, so it shouldn't have any skins yet.
"This one… Ah, this one's really beautiful," Seele gasped, covering her mouth.
"That's not even the point. The important part is the ring…" Bronya noted seriously. "Have they already reached that stage…?"
"Let's check the skin description… It might not be what we think… r-right…?" Kiana opened her eyes wide and read aloud.
Normally, Honkai 3rd's skin descriptions are poetic or mysterious — rarely direct.
But this time, it was very different:
[Oath Under the Moonlight · Together for Life]
"I vow to be eternally loyal to you, whether in prosperity or adversity, in wealth or poverty, in health or illness."
"I vow to love and cherish you forever, through hardship or joy, sorrow or celebration, failure or success."
'Yes, I do.'
(T/C:Pfffffffft!)
"Ahhhhh!!" Bronie shrieked after reading it. Even someone from another world could understand the meaning. Maybe the words vary by world, but this was as obvious as it gets.
"P-Proposal?! Human… are you… I…!" Luna's face flushed red like fire.
"Calm down! It's just a skin description!" Kongming took a deep breath, trying to regain composure.
She had a brief moment of feeling like she was just an extra in someone else's love story. Everything was going so fast… They were just getting along, and now suddenly this?
Her nose felt sore. This emotional rollercoaster…
"Boss, when will that skin be sold?" Kiana grabbed Luo Mo's sleeve, urging him.
Luo Mo glanced at her sideways, saying nothing.
He didn't believe she couldn't understand what he meant.
"It's obvious," Irene chimed in with a knowing smile. "Captain meant it's for his use only, not for public release. Otherwise, that Luna over there…"
"I-I don't mind… Only for you to see is fine. N-no need to sell it," Luna blushed and muttered.
"Aww, come on, boss! You see, I don't have any ulterior motives! Just give me a copy on your account?" Kiana pleaded.
"Maybe Mei can have a matching one too…" Luo Mo mumbled.
Mei: "!!!"
"Only on my account!" Kiana immediately shouted defensively.
Mei looked away shyly. Matching outfits… was he talking about wedding dresses?
She was embarrassed, but if it was just Kiana, she might be okay with it.
"Matching outfits? Make one for me too," Himeko laughed. "I've always been curious how I'd look in something like that. Though I guess… that's still a long way off."
"And for Old-Timer Fu Hua! she— Ow! What was that for?!"
Herrscher of Sentience was about to nominate Fu Hua when she got a swift chop to the head. She looked pitifully at Fu Hua, who replied expressionlessly:
"I'm not taking part in something like this."
"You blushed! Old-Timer, you blushed just now, didn't you?!"
"I did not."
"You clearly— Ow! Quit hitting me!"
Fu Hua remained calm as she bonked her again. The Herrscher of Sentience pouted, but didn't fight back.
"Agh, I'll remember this," Kongming muttered, jotting something down. "On this day, Mr Assassin owes me one wedding skin. I'll collect later."
(Image: Fu Hua's outfit)