In the game, Kiana's monologue wasn't over yet.
Staring at the ruins of Changkong City, her voice turned hoarse:
"This is where it all began…"
"Three years ago, I ran here, fought here, moved forward toward the future, and met Mei and everyone else… I made a wish…"
"A wish to fight for all that is beautiful in this world…"
At that, Kiana finally smiled:
"That was my original resolve. And now, I can still walk down the path I chose for myself."
"Thinking about that… makes me a lot less afraid…"
Watching this, both the audience and Himeko felt a pang in their hearts.
The Kiana now, compared to before… was almost heartbreaking.
Even the usually rowdy Kiana in real life sat quietly, staring at the game screen.
On-screen, after hearing Kiana's confession, Mei's tone was tinged with sadness:
"You really… haven't changed at all…"
"No matter what your name is, no matter what your identity is—you are you. You're my most important partner… our most important partner!"
"We'll always be with you, so don't try to carry everything alone anymore… okay?"
…
[Wuwuwu~~ Kiana…]
[It's just a simple line of dialogue, but… why does it hurt so much inside…]
[Can't put it into words, huh? That's the brilliance of MiHoYo—making ordinary dialogue resonate with players…]
[Cry! Everyone cry!!]
[For all that is beautiful in this world!!]
…
The chat was ablaze. Meanwhile, in the game, Kiana and Mei encountered a gravely injured Benares on their way back.
Under Mei's worried gaze, Kiana approached and gently touched its wounds.
"So strange… looking at it, I feel… nostalgic somehow…"
Kiana didn't know, but the players did—this must've been Sirin's consciousness influencing her.
To Mei's surprise, after Kiana healed Benares, the Judgement-class Honkai Beast didn't attack them.
Instead, it kept following them.
And then… they actually brought a Judgement-class Honkai Beast back to the Helios battleship!
…
Tesla: "…"
"I mean, stray cats and dogs I can understand, but I've never seen anyone bring home a Honkai Beast before! And a Judgement-class one at that!"
Her temper only flared more the longer she spoke:
"First it was a cybernetic man, then a refugee girl, now a Judgement-class Honkai Beast… what's next, bringing a World Serpent executive over for a house party?!"
At this, players burst out laughing.
The gloom from the emotional gut-punch earlier lightened a bit.
Just like during Last Lesson, when Himeko saved Tesla, the fake-loli's flustered tantrum made people laugh despite the tension.
[Hahaha… Tesla broke on the spot]
[Bringing a dragon home, huh? Not bad]
…
Still, Tesla wasn't truly angry.
Once she got Kiana out of the way, she went with Mei to consult Dr. Einstein.
From Einstein's explanation, they learned that Kiana's "illness" was untreatable.
Inside her were three Herrscher cores, constantly eroding her body—while Sirin's consciousness lingered, ready to seize control at any time.
The chat turned bleak.
Both Himeko and Kiana, engrossed in the story, wore solemn expressions.
They knew Kiana wouldn't die—not yet, not for a long stretch of the story.
What they wondered was—how her condition could possibly be alleviated.
…
The story moved to Raven's adopted little girl, and Raven's conversation with Mei.
Raven's character had been fleshed out in Chapter 16.
Her hatred for the Herrscher of the Void wasn't baseless—it was because the little island she bought, along with the children's home on it, was destroyed by the Herrscher.
That scene had left a deep impression on players.
The way Raven reacted—crying, wailing, rolling around on the bed—had been both tragic and comical.
Now, after the little girl bid Mei farewell, Raven appeared again, giving Mei a message:
The World Serpent had a way to save Kiana!
If Mei wanted to save her, she had to strike a deal with them.
The thought unsettled Mei.
She remembered Tianqiong City all too clearly.
In her eyes, World Serpent was even more dangerous than Schicksal.
But… They were the only ones with a method to save Kiana.
Carrying that turmoil, Mei returned to Helios.
The perspective then shifted back to Kiana and Tesla.
From their talk, it became clear that Kiana knew her body was failing.
But she hadn't told Mei—she didn't want to worry her.
What Kiana didn't know was… Mei already knew.
And when she learned the truth again from Tesla, she also chose to hide it from Kiana.
Neither wanted to burden the other.
The players couldn't help recalling the sweet scenes between the two earlier.
So warm, so heart-melting…
But looking back now, knowing what lay behind those forced smiles, how bitter must their hearts have been?
This unexpected knife made the audience's lips twitch bitterly.
Damn it, damn these MiHoYo writers. Truly ruthless.
…
And then, Kiana's conversation with Tesla revealed the true reason she came to Changkong City.
Not for nostalgia of her old school life.
But because the Honkai energy here had surged abnormally.
She came to resolve it.
Her method?
To absorb all of that Honkai energy into herself.
As she put it—
Before she died, she wanted to use the last of her power to do something meaningful.
Just like Teacher Himeko!
That way, she wouldn't have failed Himeko's final wish…
And her only request was that everyone from St. Freya stay far away from her.
She was terrified of losing control—and hurting them again.
The more players saw, the more their hearts ached for this matured Kiana.
They begged—no more knives, please.
"So, until the Herrscher of the Void issue is completely resolved, I want them to stay away from me…"
Tesla's expression hardened: "You know they'll never give up on you."
"Yes!" Kiana's voice trembled:
"When I saw Mei in Tianqiong, she had changed so much…"
"She looked so haggard, so exhausted. She tried to act fine, but I could see through it instantly."
"She finally found companions, a home, the things she once lost and yearned for so badly…"
"But I… I destroyed it all with my own hands."
Her voice cracked, almost breaking into sobs:
"In endless nightmares… I see her chest torn open bit by bit, a blood-soaked gem falling into my hands…"
"I see her breath fade, her body collapsing into a pool of blood…"
Tesla quickly cut in: "That was the Herrscher of the Void!"
"I know…" Kiana's tears finally spilled. "I know… and that's why I can't accept it…"
"Even after everything, they still trust me. They'd still protect me at all costs… But when that time comes, how many more of those who love me will I hurt?"
…
[Stop the knives already~~ we're losing it]
[Wuwuwu~~ first time she's choked up, and it completely broke me QAQ]
[Otto, die already!!]
[Otto, show us your HP bar!]
[Petition for an Otto boss fight!]
…
Meanwhile, the real Kiana, playing the game, couldn't hold it in.
Sniffling, eyes red, she clung to Himeko's arm:
"Wuwu~ Boss is too cruel… why treat Kiana and Mei like this…"
Himeko composed herself, then gently patted her head, smiling:
"The boss is right over there. If you want revenge, go beat him up."
"I can't beat him, wuwuwu~~"
Himeko chuckled behind her hand:
"Then bite him. That's the one thing he's afraid of~"
The viewers roared with laughter.
[Kiana~ go beat him up, bite him!]
[Kiana, we'll cheer for you!]
[Crowdfund a hit on Otto!]
[Boss may be innocent, but… here's a monthly pass from me, go get him!]
[100 flowers, beat him up!]
[I'm not broke, just stingy, so here's a few rating tickets—Kiana, charge!]
…
Bronya also found the barrage amusing.
She snuck a glance at Mo Li, who was intently playing Keqing in Honkai 3rd on his phone.
On impulse, she sent a comment herself—forgetting she was logged into MiHoYo's official account.
[Beat him!!]
…
The moment that bright, distinctive official account border appeared, the viewers lost it.
[An employee slacking at work, calling to beat the boss hahaha…]
[Screenshot taken, this one won't be forgotten without 300 crystals]
[Rebellion! The boss must have seen this!]
[300 crystals for collective amnesia!]
[300? Not enough. At least a ten-pull!]
The flood of comments naturally caught Bronya's eye.
For some reason, she panicked.
Thinking fast, she sent another:
[Already discovered it—docked her a day's pay]
The barrage exploded even more.
The screen was filled with [Hahaha] and [We don't believe you, send crystals!]
…
After that little interlude, Kiana pushed on with the story.
The next cutscene was Otto's self-indulgent explanation of "Honkai."
The Imaginary Tree. The Quantum Sea.
Each branch, a world…
The concept fascinated the players.
At last, Otto and Kevin's deal was struck.
Their meeting place? Changkong City.
Because activating the Second Divine Key required massive amounts of Honkai energy.
And right now, Changkong City was the perfect site.
The catch—Kiana and Mei were right there.
Viewers grew nervous.
…
The game switched back to scenes of Kiana and Mei together.
Their interactions felt like nothing had ever happened.
Kiana looked healthy again.
Mei was once more that gentle homemaker, cooking for her.
She served Kiana a plate of bell pepper curry.
Kiana gobbled it up noisily, praising Mei's cooking—while pretending the peppers were spicy.
But that silly girl didn't know—bell peppers aren't spicy at all.
The omniscient audience grew suspicious.
Then they remembered—in Chapter 14, when Jackal experimented on her, Kiana had said she didn't feel pain.
And spiciness is a form of pain.
Meaning… Kiana had completely lost her sense of pain.
Perhaps even her sense of taste…
"Idiot…" Mei's voice trembled, tears dripping into the plate:
"Bell pepper curry… could never be spicy…"
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