On the phone. the group profile pic was a group selfie of Furina and the people from Okhema.
There were also photos of them performing in plays.
Here, Xia Wen saw many familiar faces.
Aglaea, Phainon, Mydeimos, and even the Hundred Condensed Treasures…
Everyone from Amphoreus was now striving inside a theater called Okhema.
How interesting. And it was clear that Furina was having a great time over there.
Just then, Xia Wen's phone chimed.
Furina sent a new message.
...
Blue Jellyfish: Hmph, how is it? Under my management, the Okhema Theater is thriving, you know.
Xia Wen: The last one that was "thriving" ended up drowning in negative reviews.
Blue Jellyfish: ? Boss, you're talking nonsense again. Anyway! I'm amazing, okay!
Xia Wen: Yes yes yes, my Furina is the greatest.
Blue Jellyfish: Hehe.
Blue Jellyfish: Oh right, boss, do you think it's time to discuss the acquisition of Okhema?
Xia Wen: Based on what you said, I don't think the timing is right yet.
Blue Jellyfish: Eh? Why? [Jellyfish peeking]
...
Seeing Furina's question, Xia Wen shook his head.
Furina accidentally stumbling into Okhema turned out to be a very good thing.
Not only did she find the people he needed, but more importantly, once she blended into the core of the Okhema Theater and interacted deeply with them, she confirmed some unsurprising intel.
For example, MiHoYo has now become a giant.
The explosive creative tension and almost unrestrained narrative core in Honkai: Star Rail's episodes have made MiHoYo a giant in the hearts of artists.
The people of the Okhema Theatre were no exception.
They deeply admired MiHoYo's creative philosophy, especially those plots filled with profound reflection and local philosophical thought, and longed for it.
If they were invited to participate in a MiHoYo series, of course they would be honoured.
This was the simplest and fastest shortcut that could make the name "Okhema" resound across the world.
However, the problem lay precisely in this admiration.
As per the information sent by Furina, Xia Wen could deduce that the manager of the Okhema theatre, Aglaea had her own ambitions, or rather, everyone at Okhema shared the same ambition.
Fame and fortune came second.
What they dreamed of was for the name "Okhema" to stand not as someone's accessory, but as an independent entity, standing tall once more, particularly in Greece, the land that birthed countless philosophies and dramas.
The importance of this ambition far outweighed becoming famous.
Certainly, if they rode MiHoYo's coattails, Okhema wouldn't need to do anything and could instantly become the world's most powerful theater, no contest!
Xia Wen had full confidence in that.
All he'd need to do was have Jade or Aventurine draft a proposal and follow the plan step by step.
As for Aglaea, that would be even simpler, just sign her name.
But things could not be done that way. If he went now to negotiate an acquisition, Aglaea would definitely refuse.
Collaboration was possible. Acquisition was not.
And the reason Furina was able to invest was not because she and Aglaea talked endlessly about theater, but because she seemed completely harmless.
If not for that, Aglaea would have continued to stubbornly hold out.
As for why they insist so much, there are reasons.
Xia Wen had already read the Amphoreus script Furina sent.
This super long script that exceeded the common understanding of theater had certain differences from the Amphoreus story in his mind… but its core was exactly the same.
This was the soul of the theatre. To them, Amphoreus was not just a script.
From the moment the idea was born, they poured their energy, emotions, and years into it.
They projected all their personal joys and sorrows into the script called Amphoreus. Through countless fierce arguments and sleepless nights, Amphoreus slowly improved.
Woven into the script were their explorations of this ancient land, the wisdom of their ancestors, and the spiritual dilemmas of humanity.
And of course, above all, their thoughts and their emotions lay within it.
Aglaea, Tribios, Mydeimos, Anaxagoras…
All of them didn't long to ride the fast track. They wanted to use their own two feet to push Amphoreus, the cornerstone they built themselves, step by step to that peak called "recognition."
If they accepted MiHoYo's acquisition and let Okhema Theatre fully merge into that entertainment giant…
Even if they gained fame and acknowledgment, that applause would no longer belong entirely to Amphoreus.
And within Amphoreus, the purest memories and emotions that belonged only to their small group would fade.
This wasn't Aglaea being short-sighted. If she were, she wouldn't have accepted Furina's investment.
It was simply the pride of artists, the kind of pride that cannot be surrendered.
Without that nature and that inner fire, Aglaea and the others wouldn't resonate so strongly with Honkai: Star Rail.
And that was the hardest issue. How were two idealists supposed to convince each other?
Even in Star Rail, to resolve such a theme would require at least three earth-shaking boss battles.
Thinking about this,
Xia Wen looked at Furina's jellyfish-peeking sticker, smiled, and replied:"Don't worry. I'm confident we'll reach our goal."
In the current version of the Amphoreus script Okhema wrote, there was no "Black Tide."
But whether in the Amphoreus he knew, or in the reality where the Okhema Theatre existed,
The "Black Tide" had always been there.
The hardest part of Aglaea's dream was not whether the story was good.
From Furina's words, Xia Wen already knew about the passionate response to Arcadia and The Heart of the Spring.
But soon, the other theatre's and acknowledged writers would strike back. This "Black Tide", was an unavoidable part of the process.
Regarding acquiring Okhema entirely, Xia Wen was utterly confident. Because Aglaea wasn't the only one facing backlash.
There was also what that elder told him last time, the growing hostility toward new age entertainment.
Apparently, Greece was one of the first to show it.
But he didn't tell Furina about this.
He only explained to her that Okhema might face backlash from certain Greek cultural conservatives.
Hearing that, the innocent Furina immediately became anxious.
...
Blue Jellyfish: Th-this kind of thing is way out of my league, boss. How about you handle it instead?
Xia Wen: Mm. I should get in touch with them anyway. But don't reveal my identity for now. MiHoYo's name is too big, don't scare them.
Blue Jellyfish: Mm-hmm! I get it! First make contact while they're completely off-guard, then build a connection with them! After that, talking acquisitions will be way easier if we have good feelings established, right?
Xia Wen: …Not exactly like that. Forget it, let's just do it this way.
...
Furina's thought process was rather straightforward and simple. She only thought that once Aglaea found out he was the boss of MiHoYo…
She would definitely worry about being acquired by a huge company, and assume he had ulterior motives in approaching them.
So… she decided to just make Xia Wen get in touch with everyone first.
After that, who knows what Furina told Aglaea.
But just like that, Xia Wen was pulled into Okema's small group chat.
And there was also something interesting: because of the phone's language settings…
His name was Consultant in the group.
…
Aglaea: Welcome, Miss Furina's… consultant… sir?
Anaxagoras: There's no prefix? Are we just calling him "Mr. Consultant"?
Mydeimos: That does sound kind of strange.
Tribios: Ah well, anyway, welcome, Mr. Consultant, to the Okema group chat!
Phainon: Miss Furina said this Consultant can solve all the problems in the world. That's amazing… I really want to learn from Mr. Consultant.
Mydeimos: Learn to read your books first.
Phainon: ?
Castorice: Welcome.
Hyacine: Welcome welcome, a warm welcome~
Cipher: Woohoo, welcome newcomer! You can DM me anytime later.
Aglaea: Cipher! Don't lie to people!
[Cipher has been muted for 24 hours]
Cerydra: I'm dying lmao.
Hysilens: Welcome. I've been out a lot lately and didn't check the group. Didn't expect a newcomer. If you want to drink sometime, feel free to ask.
Anaxagoras: Oh? You two don't show up often. When are you coming back to Okema?
Cerydra: Once I finish dealing with stuff at home. Oh right, in the Amphoreus script, make my character two meters tall!
Hysilens: That's Cerydra's dream. I think it shouldn't be too hard to change?
Anaxagoras: Lol. There's a difference between "dream" and "delusion."
Cerydra: !@!#¥!
Watching Anaxagoras and Cerydra's trash talk escalate… On the other side of the world, Xia Wen showed a knowing smile.
Yep, personal experience really is the best.
This atmosphere was perfect.
As he watched, the group chat became even more heated.
No one could get them to stop.
...
Cerydra: I'm rewriting my script. In Amphoreus, after I conquer Amphoreus, the first thing I'll do is burn the Grove of Epiphany!
Anaxagoras: Shorty.
Cerydra: No no no, I'll live long enough to reach the part where you show up in the script, then I'll skewer you!
Anaxagoras: Shorty.
Cerydra: I!@#¥!
Just as they were about to really go at it,
Xia Wen cheerfully tapped his phone and sent his first message.
[A/N: Xia Wen will be know to Okhema Theatre people as Consultant till his character reveal~]
Consultant (Xia Wen): Rather than burning the Grove of Epiphany, I think Cerydra's character should be someone everyone looks up to. Adding a few scenes of her giving speeches from a high vantage point, demonstrating pressure and dominance, will be far more effective than changing her height.
…
After sending that message, the group chat fell silent for a few seconds.
Then suddenly, messages popped up one after another.
...
Cerydra: ...
Phainon: Mr. Consultant… seems to have grasped the core point immediately.
Aglaea: I have to admit, this approach does fit the script better.
Hyacine: And it's a great contrast!
Cerydra: Fine… I guess this… works.
...
Xia Wen smiled and typed out a long message, a formal self-introduction to everyone.
"Greetings to the group. Thanks to Miss Furina's trust, I'm currently responsible for handling various categories of consultation for her.
For example, business strategy, academic discussion, artistic expression, and even broader questions such as constructing cultural symbols.
Of course, this is just the more routine part of my resource pool. In some more subtle areas, such as solving a certain issue, that still falls within my business scope. Some less conventional but equally efficient consulting methods are always available to provide reliable assistance to clients."
He wasn't lying.
Aventurine, Jade, and Topaz could solve any commercial difficulty, methods used in the open or in the shadows, they could all present you with a satisfying solution.
Academically, there were top-tier intellectuals like Ratio and Ruan Mei.
For arts, that was self-explanatory.
Management-wise, Sunday's experience alone was enough to rank among the world's elites.
Not to mention that Xia Wen himself had at least a general understanding of all these fields.
As for the "unconventional methods," that meant using MiHoYo's resources, or even those of his dear older sister, Ningguang.
And after reading this extremely detailed introduction, the group fell into another long silence.
When everyone finally spoke again, aside from a few specific people, it was obvious they were all talking to Xia Wen with a hidden "holy crap this guy is a big shot" attitude.
…
Phainon: A-amazing…
Hyacine: So this is what a rich lady's consultant is like? It's nothing like I imagined. So professional…
Furina: He's just like this. Normally I don't really need him.
Consultant: [grinning emoji]
Furina: Ahem! I mean, he's useful sometimes!
Castorice: …So, um… can I actually consult you about something? I think I can afford the fee.
Consultant: All fees will be paid by Furina!
Tribios: Wow! Furina is number one in the world!
Aglaea: Once again, thank you for Miss Furina's help.
Mydeimos: Can I consult about the matter of someone mixing milk tea powder into my protein powder?