The Herrscher of the Void took one step after another toward the heavens.
With each step, a black halo formed beneath her feet, and the sense of oppression steadily intensified.
Accompanied by the majestic track Befall, everyone's emotions surged to a peak—
Then came the release.
The Queen thrust both hands downward with force, and countless Honkai beasts, responding to her command, poured out from innumerable portals.
They charged wildly ahead, clashing in chaos against Anti-Entropy's Titan mechs.
High above the skies, the Queen began her chant.
[Humans, your very existence is a mistake.]
[War, deceit, envy, greed—you took everything from me! Today, I will devour it all!]
[Because I… am the Honkai!]
A declaration both powerful and confident.
Even knowing the Herrscher of the Void was a villain, the viewers still felt electricity course down their spines, enthralled by her overwhelming charisma.
On the battlefield, facing such numbers of Honkai beasts, the Titan mechs of Anti-Entropy moved into action, all locking onto the airborne Herrscher of the Void.
Load—fire!
A barrage of firepower fell like meteors toward the Herrscher.
And yet—
The Queen only sneered coldly, raised her right hand leisurely, and snapped her fingers.
Snap—
The music halted. Then burst back again.
The most magnificent, dazzling scene unfolded.
Countless teleportation portals opened before the Queen, devouring all the falling artillery.
Having done this, she slowly clenched her hand.
The portals surrounded all the Titan mechs.
Then—the artillery that had been absorbed surged back out!
Deafening explosions erupted. Blazing flames turned the entire battlefield into a sea of fire!
In the final seconds of the CG, Benares descended from the skies and landed behind its Queen.
Endless Honkai beasts followed.
That last sidelong glance from the Queen burned itself into the hearts of every viewer.
The CG ended.
The livestream room was dead silent.
Then—and only then—a thunderous roar erupted.
[I need to log in and blow up that banner RIGHT NOW!!]
[Heaven gazes down upon the impure world—long live the Queen, resounding without end!]
[I've always been rational, but this time I'm all in! The Queen is invincible!]
[Side note—didn't the story mention Titan mech production costs a fortune? Isn't Anti-Entropy going bankrupt from this battle?]
[Reasonable analysis: Anti-Entropy is a named faction in the plot. It's unlikely they'd go bankrupt over something like this.]
[Hey hey hey, we just watched that insanely epic CG and you two are calmly debating logistics?!]
"What a thrilling short film~~ I thought Honkai Impact 3rd had already reached its peak, but it turns out… it's only just begun."
Elysia didn't rush into the next main story stage. Instead, she savored the CG she had just watched.
She didn't hold back in praising and expressing her love for Honkai Impact 3rd.
As a full-time streamer, it had been a long, long time since she'd played a game that made her feel this immersed and this full of wonder.
[Hahaha~~ Is the fairy lady turning into a Queen simp again?]
"Mm… well, I do love cute girls, but in terms of the story, I still hope Kiana can defeat the Herrscher—humanity triumphing over the Honkai."
The eyes of Elysia's pink fairy avatar turned into sparkling stars.
"That's the brightest radiance~ the most beautiful hymn~~"
[Ooooh! Fairy lady speaks so beautifully!]
[Fairy lady's words really warm the heart! Hahaha~~]
[Hearing her say that, I kind of get why Hokuto-san said Honkai Impact 3rd is a game that warms people's hearts.]
"Um…"
"Mei, is there something you want to say?"
Mei's voice sounded hesitant. "Chapter 9 coming up… it should meet your expectations. Maybe even more spectacular than the Queen's descent?"
"Even more spectacular?!" Elysia was slightly shocked.
To her, the Queen's descent already felt like the absolute peak.
She couldn't imagine what kind of story could surpass it.
"Mm… when everyone recorded Chapter 9, we were more emotional than for any of the previous ones."
Mei spoke of things only internal miHoYo staff would know.
Everyone cried while doing the voice recordings.
"Really? Now you've made me look forward to it even more."
"Right~~ if they have to defeat such a powerful Herrscher~~ the battle must be really intense."
"Well then~ let's dive into the next story stage~ ♪"
...
Viewers in the livestream were overwhelmed with emotion by Queen's Descent.
But among them, a small number stayed composed.
Two of them were the very same girls who had been calmly debating Anti-Entropy's budget.
"Ein, this miHoYo actually put us into the game!" Tesla, in her red twin-tails and crossing her long pale legs, pointed at the stream, visibly excited.
Hokuto had previously asked Theresa, and upon learning she didn't recognize "Nesthead" and "Lobster Doc"—a.k.a. Einstein and Tesla from Honkai Impact 3rd—
And given that in this world, Tesla and Einstein were historical figures—
He figured the worldline might've erased their existence entirely.
He never found voice actors for them either.
In the end, he decided to use text-to-speech synthesis for the two scientists.
Einstein, with soft light-colored curls and a pretty face that would've been perfect if not for her messy hairstyle, took a sip of yogurt.
"Tesla, I think it's just a coincidence. We're not celebrities. Making us into characters wouldn't attract more users—in fact, it might even tarnish miHoYo's image."
"Well… yeah, that does make sense." Tesla tugged at her twin-tails. "But it still doesn't sit right."
"You were obviously happy when you found out we were in the game. Logically speaking, this looks like classic tsundere behavior…"
"NESTHEAD! Shut up!"
But Einstein showed no sign of stopping.
"My hypothesis is: you think Honkai Impact 3rd is perfect in every way—except for one small flaw: the synthesized voices used for us."
"That minor flaw wouldn't matter normally, but after watching Queen's Descent and realizing how much care miHoYo poured into the game, you now feel that single imperfection is too regrettable…"
"What are you getting at?" Tesla frowned.
Einstein picked up her phone and opened a travel booking app.
"I'm booking two plane tickets to Linjiang."
She knew that miHoYo Studio was in Linjiang.
"You're planning to go, aren't you?"
"Who said I—ugh… Ein, this is the most frustrating part about you!"
Tesla shot Einstein a fierce glare, then turned her head back to stare at the livestream again.