"Miss Fairy."
Hokuto had no choice but to remind Elysia. He hadn't expected such a strong player reaction right at the start of the interlude.
"The story's only just begun."
"If it starts like this, there's definitely going to be emotional damage later."
Even so, Elysia still wanted to keep watching. She wanted to see what would happen to Kiana.
Naturally, the players felt the same.
She continued pushing the main story.
Kiana's memories unfolded in the game.
Theresa, Mei—their faces appeared one by one.
Then came Sirin's beguiling voice.
"Those friends who claimed they'd bring you home—once they see your true self, would they still want to approach you, hold you close?"
"In their eyes, the girl named Kiana no longer exists."
"The only way to save you now… is to destroy you."
As if to prove Sirin's words—
Right after she spoke, illusions of Mei and Theresa began attacking Kiana.
Elysia didn't even react in time and was caught in one of Mei's full combo strings, knocked to the ground.
Mei's voice was filled with sorrow: "Kiana, I'm sorry…"
But her strikes held no hesitation.
Likewise, even though Theresa's voice trembled with struggle, she still brought down her Oath of Judah.
It seemed to reflect the turmoil within Kiana.
It seemed to highlight just how dire her situation had become.
This stage was brutal for players.
Even Elysia nearly wiped due to her early hesitation.
After finally defeating the illusions of Mei and Theresa—
Sirin summoned an illusion of Fu Hua, and began "helping" Kiana voice her grievances against her.
"She's treated you like a monster from the very beginning—constantly watching you, guarding against you. In the end, she ruined your life and handed you over to Overseer Otto. Hahaha! To her, you were always prey."
"Look! She's here to hunt you again~☆"
As Sirin's words faded, Elysia was already prepared for battle—
But to her surprise, Fu Hua didn't attack Kiana.
Instead, she tried to persuade her: "Don't listen to her, Kiana! Don't let her twist your thoughts!"
That single line added a sliver of warmth to an otherwise ice-cold scene.
But it didn't last long. Fu Hua soon vanished.
The next to appear—was Otto.
The screen showed Otto conducting cloning experiments in a lab, attempting to resurrect the Second Herrscher. His test subject: K423.
Thanks to Sirin's manipulation, Kiana saw the moment of her own birth as K423.
And learned a piece of the truth.
She—was just a clone.
"This isn't real!"
Kiana, who had been holding on with sheer willpower, could no longer maintain her composure. Her emotions surged violently. She was on the brink of collapse.
Losing all reason, she lashed out at the illusionary clones swarming her, attacking with savage instinct.
The mocking laughter of the Second Herrscher echoed through the air, circling like a murder of crows around someone on the verge of death.
The story grew so suffocatingly heavy that even players felt breathless.
The number of viewers in Elysia's stream had doubled since she started—but the number of live comments had plummeted.
Everyone was silent. It was just too much.
They saw no hope. They couldn't imagine how Kiana could possibly escape her inner torment.
Her identity, her bloodline, her name—none of them truly belonged to her.
Until—
Someone appeared to cut off Sirin's laughter, pulling Kiana out of that despair-filled space.
"It's Hua!" Elysia's eyes lit up. "Hua's always quiet, but she shows up when it really counts. I knew she was dependable."
[Class Rep! Truly the Fu Push-Up Immortal!!]
[Damn, this is the first time a story's ever made me this tense.]
[This must be the part where Kiana defeats the Herrscher of the Void with love and justice, right?! It has to be! (panicking)]
The story continued, switching to the outside world.
But the dialogue between Kiana and Fu Hua didn't go the way players imagined.
First, Fu Hua sternly lectured the girl clutching her head in pain.
Then came Kiana's sharp accusations—her emotional outburst against Fu Hua.
Kiana's pitiful, pained expression, and Fu Hua's speechless, wounded look—
Made players feel an ache that was impossible to place.
If miHoYo's earlier stories stabbed you openly, this one was a silent blow that left you internally bleeding.
Especially the next scene: Kiana's staggering, lonely monologue.
"The girl walked aimlessly, looking for a place to escape it all."
"At twelve years old, 'she' awoke for the first time, causing massive destruction. Since then, the girl had been running, never daring to stay in one place too long, never daring to get close to anyone."
"Until she met them… Mei, Bronya, Theresa… those encounters made her feel the warmth of a home, made her want to stay."
"Unknowingly, fragmented neon lights began to flicker in her vision. The sounds of people and food broke her train of thought. She trembled like a frightened animal."
"She realized she couldn't stay here. She had to get away from the crowd… but her legs disobeyed her. Like a moth chasing firelight, she kept walking forward."
This segment—
Gave Kiana more depth than ever before. Her struggle, her helplessness, her longing—were laid bare before the players.
That fragile image of her made people want to reach into the game and hug her.
"Mr. Otto, is Kiana okay?" Elysia asked.
To the viewers, she was asking about the Kiana in the game.
But Hokuto knew—she was asking about the Kiana outside the game.
That segment had devastated even the players. Let alone Kiana herself.
"She's okay." Though she was depressed for several days after recording the lines.
"I really want to hug her."
[Ugh, I want to hug Buggy too, my poor Buggy.]
[I feel like I'm watching my own daughter getting hurt.]
[Buggy is my daughter. Draw your blades!]
[+2, let's fight it out!]
...
[??? You people are nuts!]
As always, the viewers in the stream never disappoint.
Elysia perked up. "I believe in Kiana! She won't be beaten like this!"
"Even if she's just a moth chasing firelight—so what if she's a Moth to Flames!!"
"Kiana! You can do it!"