"Well…"
Hokuto clearly couldn't answer Kiana Kaslana's question perfectly, so he decisively chose to change the topic.
He put on the air of a boss and addressed the girls.
"Rita, give Elysia a little tour around miHoYo."
"Bronya, Seele and the others should be arriving soon, right? Check with them."
"Alright, alright. Let's get started. We've got a lot to do today."
Under his direction, everyone at miHoYo Studio began to get busy.
Even though Theresa had a lot she wanted to say, there was no chance to say it now.
Her expression shifted several times before she turned and left, seemingly deep in thought.
Rita had already approached Elysia and offered a graceful smile: "Miss Elysia, please follow me. I'll show you around."
"Hi there, just call me Elysia."
Elysia's gaze settled on Rita, her eyes sparkling. "It's such a pleasure to meet you, Rita!"
Though she had mentally prepared herself, miHoYo really was heaven!
So many adorable girls!
And they were all characters from Honkai Impact 3rd, her current favorite game.
Without a doubt, happiness was doubly boosted~♪
"After I finished the latest story chapter, I've grown to like you more and more, Rita. Ah, not that I didn't like you before—it just keeps growing~~"
"I'm honored to receive such praise from Elysia. It seems my work has been well recognized," Rita replied with her usual smile.
"Of course! After all, Rita is such an excellent girl~~"
Elysia gave a playful wink. "Who wouldn't love a cute girl?"
"Indeed. Someone like Elysia… is impossible to dislike. No, rather, it would be more accurate to say—you leave people enchanted." Rita seemed very sincere.
"Ara~~"
Elysia raised a finger to her cheek. "You're really good with words, Rita~~ That's kind of cheating~~ But it only makes me want to know you better~♪"
"..."
Back and forth the two went.
Hokuto stood nearby, observing silently.
He had often imagined, even before transmigrating, what kind of spark might fly if Rita and Elysia ever met.
Unfortunately, in the game, it seemed they never had the chance to meet.
But now, in another world, he was seeing this scene play out for real.
In a way… it was deeply satisfying.
But before Hokuto could enjoy the moment any further—
Elysia and Rita suddenly redirected their firepower.
"Boss, congratulations on recruiting another beautiful girl into Honkai Impact 3rd." Rita offered a graceful, complimentary smile.
"Hokuto~ I heard from Rita that more people are on the way. Can I stay a little longer?"
Elysia clasped her hands together beside her face, tilting her head. "I promise I won't disturb your work~~ Pretty please~~"
The two of them flanked Hokuto, one on each side.
Elysia to the left, Rita to the right—it was a very particular sensation.
Just… a bit awkward?
After all, these were the only two characters in his past life's game who had maid skins.
...
...
Hokuto accompanied Elysia on a brief tour of miHoYo.
Soon, the people who had appointments with miHoYo began arriving one by one.
Elysia's eyes sparkled with excitement.
"Liliya and Rozaliya are both so cute! And Rozaliya has pink hair—it's like we're sisters!"
Elysia stood at the door of the voice booth, watching Liliya and Rozaliya recording lines inside.
If she hadn't promised Hokuto, she might've snuck in already.
Sigh~~
"Oh well, I'll just wait till they're done. I'll still have a chance."
She couldn't miss this rare opportunity to be around so many adorable girls~~
Just then, she saw Hokuto sidestepping away from the booth and heading toward the door.
Elysia was just wondering if Hokuto had come for her when a soft sound of footsteps came from behind.
Tap—tap—
And two girls talking.
"So annoying. Why'd they have to call both of us? I heard they only needed one voice. Seele, couldn't you have come alone?"
The first girl's voice clearly carried impatience.
Then came a gentler, more timid voice.
"Seele, it was Bronya-nee who said Hokuto-oniichan needed two Seele…"
"Oh? Hokuto-oniichan? You're already that close with that man?" That 'Seele' clearly latched onto the wrong part of the sentence.
Seele timidly replied, "That's just basic manners."
"So you're saying I'm impolite—"
"Aww, such cute twins!"
Elysia turned around and saw one girl with shoulder-length black-blue hair, ocean-like eyes, porcelain skin, and a seemingly frail, easily bullied look. She wore long blue-striped socks and a short skirt.
Beside her stood a girl who looked quite similar but had red eyes and wore deep red thigh-high socks and a short skirt.
"Hmm… they must be twins, right?"
Elysia examined them more closely and began to hesitate. Though the two looked alike, they weren't identical.
Or rather, the differences were actually quite noticeable.
"Who are you?"
The 'Seele' who had been complaining just now stepped forward and shielded the other Seele behind her.
"I'm Elysia~~"
"Elysia onee-san."
"Sigh~~"
"You don't even know who she is and you're calling her onee-san?" 'Seele' was stunned. Seele really was a worry.
"It's basic manners…"
"You're saying I'm not—"
"Excuse me, ladies."
Just as the atmosphere grew increasingly strange, Hokuto's voice cut in.
He wore a calm and gentle smile as he looked peacefully at the two Seele.
In truth, he was shocked. Even though he had mentally prepared, seeing Seele's personality split in person…
He still… wasn't sure if he should be excited or bewildered.
"So you're Seele and 'Seele', right?"
"That's me." Seele quickly bowed. "Nice to meet you, Hokuto-oniichan. My name is Seele."
After introducing herself, she looked at 'Seele'.
"Seele~~"
The pressure now shifted to 'Seele'.
Her expression twisted briefly before she put one hand on her hip and replied, "Hi, I'm also Seele. Mm, though there's not much to distinguish us… But don't call me Seele with an 'l'. If you do… you can guess the consequences."
"I'll remember, and I'll make sure everyone else gets your names right too."
Hokuto smiled and ushered the two Seele into the voice booth.
Once they were inside, he turned to Elysia.
"Fairy lady~ Why don't you come in too?"
"Can I?"
"It wouldn't do to keep you standing outside forever."
"Then I won't hold back~~"
Elysia stepped lightly into the voice booth with Hokuto.
And there she saw Himeko standing at the mic for a sound test.
She was pleasantly surprised: "Does this mean Himeko will be resurrected in the new story chapter? That would be amazing~~"
"Well…"
Hokuto thought for a moment and picked up a script from the nearby bench to hand to Elysia: "If you don't mind spoilers, you can take a look."
"Uhh, then just a little peek?"
Elysia carefully lifted the script's corner.
Einstein brings the humanoid machine back to the Hyperion, intending to use its processing system to restore the unit's data.
Just then, Cocolia contacts them, asking the Hyperion crew to assist in relocating the Desire Gem, which has caught Schicksal's attention.
But midway through the call, the Hyperion is hacked by Gray Serpent.
Only with the feather left by Fu Hua's Fenghuang Down does Bronya manage to escape Gray Serpent's influence.
After a vote, the Hyperion team splits into two groups—one to assist Cocolia, the other to return to Anti-Entropy HQ with the machine.
Shff~ shff~
Though she said she'd read only a little, Elysia quickly found herself captivated and unable to stop flipping through.
She saw Bronya reach Cocolia's location, where much unfolds. In the end, Bronya leaps into the Sea of Quanta in search of the Desire Gem.
Then, in the labyrinth at the Sea's entrance, Bronya encounters a boy named Joachim, who leads her into a bubble universe.
"You've reached Stage One," Hokuto commented from the side.
"Stage One?" Elysia blinked, confused by the joke.
"Just something I said. Don't mind it—go on."
"Mmhmm…"
Elysia nodded and kept reading, finally reaching the scene where Himeko appears.
Bronya awakens to see Himeko and Fu Hua—both long dead in the current timeline—looking at her with concern.
"Himeko and Hua are alive? But… something feels off," she murmured, puzzled.
Hokuto answered her doubt: "Because those Himeko and Fu Hua aren't real."
"..."
Elysia understood.
"Hokuto, seriously… how could you deliberately bring out Teacher Himeko and Hua like this…"
To bring back two dead characters, first making players excited and full of hope—only to reveal they were fake.
That… takes a decade of brain damage to write something like this, right?
"..." Hokuto held his tongue.
If she couldn't handle this, what about the upcoming Meteoric Salvation?
And then Everlasting Flames… where Kiana and Himeko say goodbye?
Would players come at him with knives?
Hmm… Maybe he should start preparing?
"Hokuto~~"
"Ahem, if you keep reading, Otto dies."
As always, Hokuto found the perfect way to shift the topic.
"Huh?"