"Alright, time to keep pushing through the main story."
Elysia said this as she tapped open the dialogue box.
The story resumed.
As Kiana spoke to Seele about Sirin and the safety mechanism, suddenly, the Anti-Entropy mechs on the street outside went berserk and began attacking civilians.
Seele and Kiana immediately rushed out to save them, and thanks to their efforts, the strange riot was successfully stopped.
Among the people they saved was a cute little girl who expressed her heartfelt thanks to them.
Although it was a perfectly normal gesture, to Kiana, it was immensely precious—like all her efforts were finally being acknowledged in that one moment.
Players watching this part of the story felt healed.
The tension and release—miHoYo really knew what they were doing.
After the girl gave her thanks and said goodbye to Kiana and Seele, the two of them began investigating the cause behind the mech rampage.
They eventually found a mascot costume beside a wrecked mech, and inside it was a strange apartment number plate.
Kiana planned to ask the local supervisor about it.
Meanwhile, Seele, who stayed behind, once again sought out "the other me."
Seele: "You're unusually quiet today."
Veliona: "Isn't that exactly what you wanted? So I wouldn't disturb you and your new—friend."
With just one exchange, everyone watching could feel the jealousy practically overflowing from the screen.
Veliona wore an unmistakable expression of I'm-so-sour-please-come-coax-me.
Seele didn't quite understand what was going on, but she wasn't old-fashioned either.
She immediately started offering kind words and successfully soothed Veliona.
After that, Seele returned to reality and contacted Kiana, who reported that the situation was dire and that they urgently needed testimony from someone on the scene.
Seele volunteered herself, determined to find and question the person who had been in the mascot suit.
As for that person's name, Kiana had already learned it from the supervisor—"John Doe."
The moment that name appeared, players with a god's-eye view immediately understood.
What just happened—was all part of the new Herrscher's plot!
And now they were worried. Would Seele be okay going after a Herrscher all by herself?
Although Seele wasn't exactly weak in terms of combat power among Valkyries, damage output is one thing—storyline is another.
No matter how high your DPS, you can't stop a scripted death!
[If nothing unexpected happens, then something's definitely about to go wrong.]
[New Herrscher's on the move, and Seele just walked straight into it... This should be fine... cough cough, looks like Veliona's gonna need to save the day. (I'm saying this just to jinx it.)]
[The more I play Honkai Impact 3rd, the more I realize—nobody is ever 100% safe. Every new scene has me on edge.]
[I wasn't even worried... until I saw you all freaking out. Now I'm freaking out too.]
...
And so, players watched anxiously as Seele, following a series of clues, arrived at the address of John's apartment.
But just as she was about to enter, she was suddenly ambushed by a mysterious mech.
After a fierce battle, Seele managed to defeat the mech with difficulty, entered the apartment, and discovered a damaged doll.
Before Seele could investigate further, the landlord suddenly appeared and told her that John had passed away a month ago.
"You were actually here looking for that kid? Sigh, what a pity... that child passed away a month ago."
???
"That doesn't make sense!"
Elysia, who had been seriously following the story, immediately spotted the flaw.
"'You all'? But there's only Seele there! That landlord is suspicious!"
"And John is already dead? Then who was handing out flyers on the street just now?"
The entire plot was beginning to feel eerie—indescribably so.
Some of the more timid players even started backing away from their screens.
"John is the new Herrscher, and that landlord must be one too. It fits my earlier theory—the new Herrscher is a group."
Mobius began analyzing the plot for Elysia again, though her tone was as sharp as always.
"Elysia, if you'd ever taken my analysis seriously, you wouldn't be so jumpy right now."
"Don't say that~ Of course I keep Mobius in my heart~~"
"..."
In-game,
Seele continued investigating and discovered a ticket in the broken doll's hand.
At the same time, Veliona heard a strange voice.
That voice mocked her, saying that one day, Seele would abandon her.
Veliona put on a facade of indifference, but inwardly, she was deeply troubled.
That taunting voice reminded her of a painful memory.
It was... from when she was first born.
Players recognized this scene—it was a callback to the official Azure Sea Arc comic released by miHoYo.
But this time, it was told from Veliona's perspective, re-enacting Seele's kidnapping and her rescue by Bronya.
She had been born from the negative emotions that Seele had been forced to endure.
She possessed immense power.
But... the first time she appeared before Seele, Seele had been terrified.
"Demon... don't come any closer, stay away!"
That line had been spoken without thought by Seele, but Veliona had never been able to let it go.
[Who is this? The new Herrscher? That passive-aggressive tone is so annoying!]
[Right? The new Herrscher is giving pure villain energy.]
[You know, passive-aggressiveness depends on who says it. When it's Miss Snake-Snake, it doesn't sound grating.]
[Of course! If someone else used Miss Pink Elf's tone, trust me, you'd find it unbearable. It's all about personality.]
[Your whole argument falls apart—there isn't a second person in this world who can speak like Miss Pink Elf.]
...
"Sigh~~"
Elysia responded happily, "It makes me so happy to receive everyone's recognition~~"
"Ugh, Elysia, every time it gets to this point, you puff up like a pufferfish."
Before the viewers could even speak, Mobius couldn't help herself.
"Sigh~~ Mobius, how could you compare a cute girl to a pufferfish? That's just rude."
Elysia sighed gently, "It's like... if I called you 'Green Snake-Spirit Lady,' you wouldn't like that, right?"
"What kind of weird nickname is that?"
"Exactly! Compared to that, 'Miss Snake-Snake' is way cuter."
Mobius: "..."
"Hahahaha~~ Mobius, so even you get tongue-tied sometimes."
There were a lot of things Kalpas disliked—but watching Mobius get roasted absolutely wasn't one of them.
Seeing Mobius at a loss for words, he was practically—
Kalpas's thoughts trailed off there.