MGSFV?! Chapter 511. Kiana can cook???; The iconic moment that almost got Kevin to silence someone
Similar to the players, in the game, Raven also found Gold Serpent's "burial together" speech to be a bit... too thoughtful—beyond what any normal person could accept.
So...
"Yo... you're becoming thoughtful too, huh? When are you planning to go find yourself a mechanical girlfriend?"
She very "sincerely" suggested that perhaps he could improve his emotional intelligence by getting a mechanical girlfriend.
When it comes to sarcastic comments, Miss Raven seems just as professional—just usually suppressed by the "soul of a working stiff."
Now though...
She's not working anymore, is she?
The most carefree moment for a working stiff is the moment they quit (lol).
"..."
Gold Serpent, however, remained expressionless at her words—though to be fair, no one could ever read an expression on his face.
After all, he truly has a mechanical brain.
"Forget it. I really don't like mechanical brains that much... So if there's nothing else... I'll be going."
Seeing his lack of response, Raven waved her hand dismissively.
Gold Serpent finally reacted.
But his reaction was...
"Before the outcome is revealed... you should flee, Natasha Cioara."
"You are now an enemy of World Serpent too."
A very boring standard villain line.
[Also, the way Gold Serpent talks gives me the feeling he's about to get thinly veiled soon.]
[So many death flags.]
...
Upon hearing Gold Serpent's threats, Raven said no more. She simply looked up at the sky—which held no celestial bodies—and left.
She was heading to find Kevin to ask him something.
Though... she nearly walked in on an iconic moment, the kind Kevin might silence someone over with Skyfire (fog).
That aside.
Elsewhere, in a space only a paper-thin wall away yet impossibly distant...
Mei wasn't in a typical slumber. Instead, Gold Serpent had sealed her within her Herrscher Core using an unprecedented method.
Before experiencing it herself, she could never have imagined that the Stigmata Project could be applied in this way.
However...
Mei looked around...
Unlike the vivid amusement park dreams from before that were invaded by the imprint...
This time, it was completely blank?
[What's going on? Did it bug out? Why is everything blank? I thought we'd get to see something again this time (maybe we'd revisit Lament of the Fallen)]
[Maybe it's just as you said before—the Stigmata Project's bandwidth really is insufficient, so... the models haven't loaded in yet.]
Someone offered a hypothesis—or rather, an analogy.
[Huh? If that's the case, then the Stigmata Project is really...]
[Honestly, if that's true, humanity might sue World Serpent for false advertising. They promised sweet dreams and fulfilled wishes for everyone, didn't they?]
[First of all, don't be fooled by humanity's numbers. In terms of power... those who understand, understand. There's no way to sue World Serpent. Secondly, World Serpent never advertised that—how could it be false advertising? (lol)]
[Emmmm... can't argue with that.]
After a wave of playful banter...
As usual, other players began offering more practical insights.
[Is that really the point? Shouldn't we be focusing on the fact that—for some reason—the Stigmata Project might not even let you dream? (Which honestly isn't the worst part.)
But what if those who can't dream also can't get out of the Stigmata Project? Wouldn't that be like spending a lifetime in a pitch-black room with nothing? That's just...
And the worst part is—it actually seems possible. After all, World Serpent doesn't seem the type to just let you leave because you ask.]
[Stuck in a dark room with no hope of living or dying... that's way too... painful. Just thinking about it gives me goosebumps.]
[...] *N
...
In the game, Mei had a similar reaction when she saw the blank void.
"This clearly isn't a simple dream."
"Based on the essence of the Stigmata Project... Could it be that they don't even have enough materials to create a dream for someone anymore...?"
"My own cooking... tastes terrible..."
As Mei pondered, a voice quite similar to her own—but clearly more youthful—echoed in.
"Hm?"
She responded with a light murmur, frowning as she looked in the direction of the voice.
There, in the once-empty void, appeared... another version of herself?
This "self" was muttering about her tragic high school days, when her family fell into decline...
Mei: "..."
Was Gold Serpent really trying to break her by doing this?
This is a bit...
Looks like she's being underestimated.
"Hmph. World Serpent really underestimates me."
Without hesitation, Mei delivered a slash, dispersing the illusion.
She also swiftly eliminated the Honkai Beasts that appeared afterward for no apparent reason.
After all, those Honkai Beasts were only...
[Feels like I haven't seen these basic Honkai Beast models in forever.]
[Well, no starter village mobs would appear in later maps—that's normal for any game.]
[True... fair point.]
These beginner-level Honkai Beasts stood no chance against the current Mei.
Like mobs from the starter zone trying to fight a max-level boss—naturally crushed without resistance.
[By the way, if Mei had been this strong back then, how would the story have changed?]
[Even without Herrscher powers, after all she's been through, Mei's combat skills alone are more than enough to handle basic Honkai Beasts.]
[General Mei—now, super strong!]
Indeed.
If she had this power back then...
Even Mei in the game had a fleeting thought—
If...
[In that accident, she hadn't relied on the favor of Honkai, hadn't used the title of Herrscher to erase all threats...]
[It wasn't some light-hearted youth tale passed on indiscriminately. Through swordsmanship learned since childhood and power already rooted in human essence, she escaped with her closest friend—]
[She never became a Herrscher, and her encounter with Schicksal never even happened.]
Then the story...
Just as this thought crossed her mind, Mei's world began to change.
Dreamlike, illusory colors surged from the void, attempting to fill the blank space.
An illusion formed.
Players: What? What's happening?
The players' eyes sharpened as they watched the in-game cutscene.
Looking closely, they could discern the content of the illusion.
Hmm... it seemed...
To be the exact scenario Mei had just imagined?
But what does that mean?
With confusion in their eyes, they began to think.
In the story—
Mei: "..."
After a moment of silence, Mei quickly...
"So... this is your method, World Serpent."
It seemed she finally understood something.
Using hyper-realistic material drawn from the Stigmata Project, they let "another her" rewrite her own story.
Rather than share someone else's happiness... correcting every regret in your life by your own hand creates a far more intoxicating dream.
[Ah, I see—no wonder the world started blank.]
[A blank canvas is easiest to paint on.]
[Wait, the Stigmata Project can do this? Reconstruct a world from someone's thoughts? Simulate an alternate timeline?]
Even those players who were just mocking the Stigmata Project's "bandwidth issues" had to admit—they'd underestimated it.
It's more powerful than it seemed.
[Impressive. This may not be a luxury all of humanity can enjoy, but it's undeniably powerful.]
...
Back to the main thread.
Mei had seen through World Serpent's intentions, but since she had no countermeasures for now, she chose to adapt rather than resist.
She kept moving forward.
The illusion and the story within it continued to unfold.
At the same time... it grew increasingly real.
[That's right. Honkai doesn't vanish into thin air—but it can be completely avoided.]
[When people no longer strive to change the world, their power is instead enough to maintain their present life—especially since these two girls have always had good luck.]
[The world may be changing drastically, but that has nothing to do with them; as ordinary people, they at least have each other.]
[...]
Like a story's prologue, the subtitles appeared one after another as Mei walked, flashing silently on screen.
When the text disappeared—
The illusion had become almost fully real, and Mei stood just in front of it.
She paused to observe.
Then...
"Tch..."
Mei suddenly scoffed, clearly disdainful.
Just like how some authors end rebirth novels with "it was all a dream"—once you know everything was fake... no matter how beautiful the process, does it still matter?
"Fine."
With that thought, she reached out, touched the illusion before her, and allowed the dream to flow into her mind.
...
The game screen transitioned, beginning to show Mei—and the players—an alternate timeline.
In that alternate timeline—
Mei and Kiana had completely avoided Honkai, living a peaceful and happy life.
For example...
They could even enjoy this kind of domestic slice-of-life in Honkai Impact 3rd.
The two were in the kitchen together—Kiana chopping vegetables while Mei heated the wok. It couldn't be more heartwarming.
[Is this really something I can see in Honkai Impact 3rd? Am I dreaming...? Oh wait, I am. That's fine then.]
"Actually..."
Two light words rang out next to Mei in the livestream room.
But she waited a moment and didn't hear the rest from that certain pink-haired girl.
So Mei took the initiative: "Actually what?"
"Umm... actually, I was just saying, this part kind of reminds me of how you and Kiana are in real life..."
"..."
"There's no way... real-life Kiana's cooking is way scarier than game Kiana's."
"Huh?"
That line from Mei was overheard by Kiana beside her, who let out an obviously displeased groan.
"Mei~~~~~"
"Alright, alright, let's keep watching the story."
Elysia stepped in to mediate, gently tapping the game screen.
This version of Kiana—fabricated by the Stigmata Project—might be better at cooking.
At the very least, the worst she'd do is accidentally cut her finger.
"Ahhh... I was too careless..."
Not, say, blow up the kitchen.
"Hehe... it's fine... I can still help."
"Kiana, actually... if you didn't 'help,' we'd probably already be eating by now."
Mei's voice was full of evident exasperation.
[Huh? Why does the name tag here say '???' instead of Mei's name?]
[Also, her voice here—though loving—is still her Thunder Herrscher tone. Shouldn't it be the gentler version from before that?]
The first question is simple—because this isn't the real Mei, so it's labeled "???".
The second question, on the surface, seems like a casual one—but digging deeper, it sparks many thoughts.
For instance...
This dream version of Mei is based on the timeline where she never became a Herrscher and fled Nagazora with Kiana during their Chiyou Academy days.
So what kind of person would Mei be if she had never become a Herrscher?
What would her personality be like?
Hmm...
Perhaps the nickname "Raiden Queen" that Mei once had says it all?
Perhaps "non-Herrscher Mei" would've been a more queenly character?
But here's the question.
If that's true, why did Mei soften after becoming a Herrscher?
At least at the beginning of the main story, Raiden Mei was known for her gentleness.
She even earned the nickname "Rice Cooker Wife."
Oh, and that nickname came from her stamina stat.
If the Hyperion had served bitter melon juice meals from the start...
As mentioned earlier—
After Lament of the Fallen, someone renamed the stamina drinks and icon, tricking everyone into drinking bitter melon juice for years.
Truly heartless!!
But then again... definitely something that person would do (lol).
Ahem.
If things had started differently, perhaps Mei wouldn't have ended up with the nickname "Rice Cooker Wife" after all.
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