[Sweet sweet sweet sweet sweet—nothing is sweeter than Honkai Impact 3rd!]
[As expected, just listen to the BGM. Thank you, miHoYo, for feeding me sugar. I'm very satisfied. Let's go even harder next time.]
Some players pounded their keyboards with ten thousand degrees of passion, laying bare their emotions.
They hoped miHoYo would keep it up.
Hokuto observed from the side, his expression unreadable.
Because...
Up next was Everlasting Flames.
And Everlasting Flames was definitely not one of those small stabs.
In a way, Final Lesson, Meteoric Salvation...
Everything about Kiana's growth so far was building up to Everlasting Flames.
What moves people isn't just tragedy—it's the beautiful things revealed through the story: the trust to entrust one's life, the courage to sacrifice oneself.
Even if that resonance might just emotionally break the players.
Because unlike Final Lesson, Everlasting Flames had been brewing for a long time.
At that thought—
Another idea suddenly flashed across Hokuto's mind.
Yes, Everlasting Flames had become a milestone in the Honkai Impact 3rd storyline.
If it were just released as a normal main story update... something would feel missing.
What if...
He had a new idea.
Meanwhile, the excited players had more or less calmed down.
Many suddenly recalled their previously confident predictions.
Those players who had meticulously analyzed and concluded that Fu Hua was definitely going to get stabbed this time... now felt a little embarrassed.
But... why?
Holding their slightly stung cheeks, they weren't the least bit upset—in fact, they were overjoyed.
The more their faces stung, the happier they got?
They even sincerely praised the scriptwriters, begging them to hit harder next time?
Once again, players recalled the terror of being at the mercy of the writers.
[They actually gave us sugar! Honkai Impact 3rd really gave us sugar! It was so sweet! (Even though it hurts.)]
[Wait... everything those people said earlier was true? The scriptwriters were honest too? I got slapped in the face but I'm laughing?!]
[Laughing through the pain... this feeling is just... I'll never randomly set flags again!]
[Do Honkai Impact 3rd players really never lie to each other?]
[Of course! Someone made a promise on the official forum... you better not lie to us, we're watching you (lol).]
[...?]
Players who had already finished the storyline ahead of time finally saw the reactions they'd been waiting for.
Everyone felt a rush of joy.
Class Monitor saved! Watching others be wrong! Double the fun!
As expected, the fun of Honkai Impact 3rd wasn't just the game or the plot—it was also the off-screen "mind games" with other players!
Many players seemed to gain a deeper appreciation of the game's true way to play.
Lastly, there were a few other scattered comments.
[This chapter was so good—not just Fu Hua, but Kiana truly came to understand Mei. So now it's time for Kiana and Mei to reconcile, right?]
[Honestly, I really want to bring up "Mei in World Serpent" here, but considering the mood... I'll pass.]
[Seriously, are none of you going to ask about the Herrscher of Sentience? Class Monitor's fine, but what about Sentience?!]
...
"Sentience?"
Fu Shibao, still immersed in the aftertaste of the short film, snapped back to reality.
Even though she got absolutely wrecked in the short film...
That was just her going easy on the old relic! Otherwise, with the way that relic looked—sickly and weak—could she really have been a match for the great Herrscher of Sentience?
As expected of her, the martial virtue-abundant Herrscher of Sentience.
In short—defeat with honor, and no rebuttals will be accepted!
Back to the main topic.
Fu Shibao asked Fu Hua:
"Old relic, if I'm not mistaken, there's an extra CG that follows the short, right?"
An additional CG following the short—that had sort of become a Honkai Impact 3rd tradition.
Though she only knew it featured a scene of Sentience and Fu Hua parting ways.
Back when it was dubbed, she hadn't been able to make it—so Fu Hua ended up doing both voices herself.
Fu Hua thought for a moment, then nodded lightly:
"Mm, there is. If I remember right, Sentience ran away from home."
"What do you mean ran away from home?! Sentience was yearning for freedom—venturing out to see the world, okay?"
Fu Shibao argued earnestly, trying to justify the Herrscher of Sentience's runaway behavior.
Fu Hua tapped her temple, clearly holding something back.
The players, overhearing their conversation—even though they were still hyped from watching Dustborn—didn't forget to follow up on important developments.
[The follow-up plot is done, right? Hurry up and serve it already!]
[Urgent, urgent, I'm super urgent! But this time, I trust the scriptwriters!]
[You guys change stances real fast.]
The players were anxious.
But Fu Hua couldn't meet their demands—after all, she didn't have the CG video file.
She instinctively glanced at Hokuto and noticed that, at some point, he'd already walked over to the streaming zone.
Hokuto stood off-camera, and his voice came through:
"It's getting late. That's it for the morning livestream."
"This afternoon's stream will be even more exciting—the Honkai Impact 3rd movie and the continuation of Dustborn will all be shown."
He paused, then turned to Fu Hua and Fu Shibao, smiling as he waved:
"You two must be tired—say goodbye to the viewers and go take a break."
Fu Shibao didn't actually feel tired at all.
To be honest, livestreaming seemed kind of fun.
The chat was pretty pleasant too.
But...
She glanced at Fu Hua, who had clearly spent a lot of energy concentrating on the game earlier and now looked a bit worn out.
So she said goodbye on behalf of the silent old relic:
"Alright, alright, we're heading off. The old relic and I are a bit tired."
With that, she pulled Fu Hua and walked straight out of the stream area.
The stream was still running—just with no one in front of the camera.
The two Fus stepped outside.
Hokuto was already waiting for them.
"Where's everyone else?" Fu Hua asked.
"They went to change outfits for the Honkai Impact 3rd anniversary short film shoot..."
Ding! Ding! Ding!
As Hokuto responded, a metallic clatter echoed from nearby.
It was getting louder.
Soon enough—
A brown-haired girl wearing a blue cap with the "Ele.me" logo and a yellow vest with the "Meituan" logo pushed in a cart covered with a white cloth.
"Excuse me~ Is this miHoYo studio?"
Hokuto looked at the bizarrely dressed Pardofelis, visibly confused:
"Pardo? Why are you here?"
He glanced at the cart.
"You're delivering food? I don't remember ordering takeout."
"Well... obviously someone asked me to."
Pardofelis stood straight, made a show of coughing with her fist to her mouth, and declared theatrically:
"Ahem! Now, presenting the greatest magician of this century—the mistress of the Helical Workshop..."
"Uhh..."
She stalled—forgot her lines—then stealthily pulled out a cheat sheet from her sleeve for a peek.
"Mistress of the Helical Workshop, she who gazes down upon the stars..."
Even though Pardofelis hadn't finished, Hokuto already got the idea.
So this was...
A magic performance by Vill-V?
While Hokuto was still pondering, Fu Shibao had already lost her patience.
What's with all this weird showboating?
She walked up and yanked off the cloth covering the cart—
But the result wasn't what they'd imagined.
The cart was simply filled with all kinds of exquisitely arranged food.
Looked... normal?
"Why'd you lift it?! Crap, Vill-V said if it was opened early, she'd dock my pay!"
Pardofelis winced, clutching her heart at the thought of losing her hard-earned cash.
What bad intentions could a cat ever have? She just wanted to make a little money.
And as Hokuto confirmed there was nothing unusual on the cart, he instinctively took a step back.
Based on his knowledge of Vill-V—
There was no way it was that simple.
Sure enough—
A booming voice rang out:
"Skyfire! Unsheathed!"
"!!!"
Knight Moonbeam Kiana, Crimson Mei, Chariot Bronya...
And a whole mob of other girls rushed out.
Trailing behind them were Kevin and Su.
Especially Kevin, wielding a foam replica of Skyfire and swinging it around wildly—he looked extra paramecium-brained.
Hokuto: "..."
Kevin, what the hell are you doing?!
Once everyone was in position—
Bang!
A soft sound came from somewhere.
"Dun-dun-dun~~"
Vill-V threw her arms open, striking a pose full of confidence and excitement to grab everyone's attention.
"The Grand Magician appears! Did you all enjoy this surprise warm-up?"
"...I don't think you call that a surprise. It's a shock." Hokuto couldn't help but quip.
Vill-V really was just like her in-game self.
Less about giving surprises, more about giving scares.
Still, she knew her limits and wouldn't actually cause trouble.
"Looks like you're still not satisfied." Vill-V winked and removed her hat.
"In that case, I'll personally present a truly shocking magic show!"
"The Grand Magic Show—officially begins!!"
She struck another confident pose—
But seemed unaware that ever since she appeared, Fu Hua had been quietly moving to the entrance to open the main doors of the miHoYo studio.
If you hadn't forgotten—
Before the anniversary stream began, Elysia had whispered something to Fu Hua. The two had made a secret agreement—details unknown.
Fu Hua opening the door was the signal to Elysia:
Vill-V has appeared.
"Vill-V! That's far enough!"
The next moment—
As if waiting all along, Elysia led the rest of the group charging in from outside.
She stood in the center, with Griseo on her left and Kosma on her right.
Eden and Aponia wore complex, hard-to-describe expressions.
Eden was worried about Elysia.
Aponia was worried about Griseo.
If Griseo hadn't wanted to come today, Aponia probably wouldn't have either.
"Griseo, Kosma—ready~ go!"
When it comes to surprises, leave it to Elysia~♪
Elysia raised her right hand, clenched her left into a fist, then slowly lowered her right while suddenly raising her left to form a parallel line.
Griseo and Kosma mirrored her movement perfectly.
Elysia & Griseo: "Henshin!"
Kosma: "..."
Everyone: "..."
The air inside miHoYo completely froze.