Aglaea then led Stelle into the Chrysos Heirs' exclusive bath.
The decoration of this bath was even more luxurious than the one outside.
Aglaea strolled inside at an unhurried pace, her right hand occasionally reaching out to lightly brush the flowing water.
"Take a seat, Stelle. Make yourself comfortable."
Aglaea's elegant voice rang out softly.
Paired with her graceful demeanor, no matter how many times the audience heard it, they were still unconsciously drawn in by Aglaea's presence.
This woman was truly, damnably charming!
As Stelle listened, she also curiously surveyed the luxurious bath.
Marble within the pool had been sculpted into sofa-like seats, arranged around a stone table at the center of the room.
One could easily enjoy a bath while reclining comfortably in place.
Plants were arranged around the sofas as decorations.
Water streamed forth from the mouths of various animal sculptures embedded in the surrounding walls.
"I'm really getting spoiled." Stelle thought happily.
As she was enjoying everything, Aglaea's alluring voice suddenly sounded beside her ear.
"Please close your eyes."
The sound had clearly been specially tuned, and as it reached the audience's ears, it felt as though Aglaea's voice was brushing directly against them.
Making many people's hearts itch, their faces flushing red. But this was only the beginning.
On screen, Stelle shrank her neck slightly, asking, "Close my eyes again?"
Aglaea spoke again, "I won't force you, but... people hope to regard one another with bare honesty when they enter a bath. Are you willing to trust me?"
Hearing Aglaea's lines, both male and female viewers were completely fired up.
But just then, the screen suddenly went black.
All that remained in everyone's ears was the sound of flowing water, along with the voices of Aglaea and Stelle interacting.
"...Thank you. You can also move a little to your left. The water is warmer there."
"Now place your left hand onto the bench. Lift your arm up with your palm facing forward, and part your fingers slightly..."
Aglaea's words were always gentle and refined, carrying that perfectly sensual tone, never forceful, yet unmistakably directive, making it impossible not to obey.
At that moment, the audience didn't know what was happening behind the black screen.
Everyone assumed that Stelle was getting into the hot spring with the beautiful Aglaea and enjoying herself.
"Yes, you're doing great. Alright, it's about time I formally introduce myself: I am Aglaea the Goldweaver, dressmaster of Okhema and one of the Chrysos Heirs of Amphoreus. The trust placed in me is how I came to lead the Chrysos Heirs in our mission today."
"My duty may be to weave lavish robes, but I most enjoy coming to these baths in my personal time. Garments are shields after all, hiding both our bodies and what we truly think ..."
"This place though, is where we can drop our cloaks of pretense, for the waters shall bring us closer together."
The comment section instantly exploded!
....
: No, why is there a black screen?!
: Holy shit, this intensity?!
: Ssshhh, wait, does this mean?!
: Hold on, is this really Honkai Star Rail?! I panicked and checked the site name!
: Oh my god, Aglaea is way too seductive, and not in an intentional way! It's pure mommy energy!
: Damn it, why is this a black screen?!
: Who is this black screen even trying to protect?! We're all gentlemen here!
: This is outrageous beyond reason!
: Hurry up, skip ahead, I want to see them in the bath!
....
The comments flooded in wildly.
Amid the audience's excitement and anticipation, the black screen finally disappeared.
"Look, we are joined together now."
Aglaea said softly.
The darkness representing Stelle's vision gradually lifted.
But what appeared before her was not the scene everyone had imagined.
Instead, it was Aglaea's perfect, refined face, wearing a calm and confident smile.
She extended her jade-like right hand, golden threads flowing from her fingers, tightly winding around Stelle and binding her firmly in place!
The audience who had been expecting all kinds of inappropriate scenes were completely stunned!
Not because the scene differed from their imagination. But because it was even more exciting!
....
: PFFT!!! This, this is even more stimulating!
: Holy shit, bondage play?!
: Who knew Aglaea had this kind of skill?!
: Looks like getting tied up is unavoidable now!
: This is absolutely unhinged!
: So this is what she meant by "getting closer" on a physical level?!
: Wuwuwu, she's so beautiful, I'd gladly be tied up too!
: You people are ridiculous! I'm dying laughing!
: What is going on with this episode, it completely awakened our inner madness!
....
All kinds of unhinged comments filled the screen.
On screen.
"Wha... Is this some kind of trap?"
Stelle felt the golden threads binding her habd, deeply frustrated.
Damn it! She'd fallen for a beauty trap!
But Aglaea, at this moment, spoke with complete candor:
"A trap? Of course not."
"Please think of it as a ritual."
"The golden threads of Mnestia entwine us, capable of sensing even the slightest quiver. We are bound to speak the truth to each other this way."
The golden threads sounded like some sort of detection mechanism.
Yet the audience remained skeptical about whether it truly worked on both sides.
"You will learn the truth about this world from me, and in return, I ask for you to promise me something."
"Fulfill this pact between us, and you can expect your journey on Amphoreus to be free of troubles."
As Aglaea spoke, the confident curve of her lips slowly settled.
Her expression turning slightly solemn. After hearing this, Stelle finally understood Aglaea's intent.
Her earlier feeling while listening to the sprite's tale had been correct, much of that spoken history had been deliberately obscured.
What Aglaea wished to reveal now was the truth buried beneath the dust.
"I agree." Stelle gave her answer after only brief thought.
Whether for the sake of trailblazing, or given her current situation.
She had no reason to refuse. Aglaea nodded in satisfaction, then began to recount the truth hidden beneath the history of Amphoreus.
And this truth was far crueler than anyone was willing to imagine.
The prophecy was real.
And its cause is not merely that Strife Titan.
All the titans of Amphoreus have already gone mad or are standing in opposition to humanity.
Some unknown force altered most of them, driving them into madness.
This phenomenon, was named as Black Tide.
No one knows the origin of the Black Tide, and no one understands how it works.
They only know that no living being in Amphoreus can withstand its assault.
Now, the Black Tide has swept across the world, and all other places have sunk into eternal night.
There is no longer any absolutely safe place in the world. Only Okhema, under Kephale's protection, retains the last trace of light.
The Chrysos Heirs gathered here are Amphoreus' only hope. People hail them as heroes, as protectors, and as deliverers ...
...They are counting on them to vanquish the Titans, reclaim their Coreflames, topple them from their thrones, and take their authority for ourselves.
When all the Coreflames are gathered, the miracle of creation will manifest, and the shattered world will be reborn.
In a simpler way, this is Amphoreus' Flame-Chase Journey - "a band of heroes dedicated to slaying the gods and reclaiming the twelve Coreflames for the world to start over anew."
After explaining the truth of this world to Stelle, Aglaea said, "With the end times before us, we are expected to lead all of our people toward the summit. Okhema needs as many allies as possible, to aid us in the upcoming battles."
"You may be just the "reinforcements" that the Chrysos Heirs have been waiting for."
After hearing this, Stelle took a moment to process it all.
Aglaea had originally thought Stelle would at least discuss it with Dan Heng.
Instead, she saw Stelle speak without hesitation.
"Saving the world is what we do best."
"If Amphoreus is truly facing such a predicament, then the Express will definitely lend a hand."
After Stelle finished speaking, Aglaea could still feel her resolve.
"You must have been blessed by many miracles to say that with such unwavering confidence."
"And I may be getting ahead of myself, but for Amphoreus, I am willing to take a chance on you."
"I have laid my heart bare, and in return, I just want you to make a single promise."
"Promise me to never tell the people of Okhema about the worlds beyond the sky, no matter what may happen."
At that, Stelle agreed.
This conversation, aside from the initial ambiguous atmosphere, had to be said to contain an overwhelming amount of information.
The frenzied audience also quieted down as they processed it.
At this moment, the barrage was filled entirely with discussions about the truth.
....
: I didn't expect Amphoreus' situation to be even worse than we thought.
: So it's not just that Strife Titan, other Titans went mad because of this Black Tide too?
: The end times is real, and it's even more hopeless than imagined. It's not one mad Titan, but almost all of them?!
: Damn, this Black Tide is seriously terrifying.
: So the mission of the Chrysos Heirs is to be godslayers. No wonder Phainon said that was their duty.
: Is this the main storyline of Amphoreus, collect twelve Coreflames and recreate the world? It's tragic, but strangely romantic.
: No wonder Director Xia said this would be a different kind of romantic story.
: But that also means twelve Titans.... That's basically twelve final bosses, right?
: Just a single incarnation of a titan already looks insane. A complete Titan with full power, how hard would that be to fight?
: The difficulty of this mission feels absurdly high.
: But that's the meaning of Trailblazing, isn't it? Encounter, understand, and then lend a hand!
: This Black Tide is really mysterious.
: Didn't Black Swan say there are three Paths entangling Amphoreus?
: The most visible one so far seems to be the power of Remembrance, like the pink creature we met after landing, and the display of Oronyx's divine power.
: Could this Black Tide be the third Path?
: No idea. Still too early to tell.
: But what's strange is that we haven't seen much manifestation of the Path of Erudition yet. Maybe the Black Tide is related to Erudition.
....
This Trailblazing journey, as the truth was unveiled, only grew more confusing.
The audience firmly remembered that there were three Paths here.
But aside from Remembrance, the manifestations of Erudition and the other Path remained unclear.
And moreover, Aglaea revealed the truth to Stelle, yet the agreement she sought in return was merely to not tell the citizens about matters beyond the sky.
At first glance, it seemed like a simple concern that such knowledge might affect the people's mindset.
But upon closer thought, this unremarkable agreement concealed many deeper implications.
After that, the meeting between Aglaea and Stelle came to an end.
As compensation for this sudden encounter, Aglaea granted the two of them unrestricted passage rights throughout Okhema and personally planned to prepare gifts for them.
"As much as I am interested to hear your story, I'm afraid I've already taken up too much of your time ... Mr. Dan Heng's worrying has created ripples in the water."
With the meeting concluded, Stelle returned to look for Dan Heng.
Outside the bath, she finally found Dan Heng pacing about.
After confirming that Stelle was fine, he listened as Stelle recounted everything Aglaea had told her.
Dan Heng remained silent throughout, only furrowing his brows after hearing the entire account.
"It is indeed strange." Dan Heng pondered, recalling their first impression of Amphoreus as a whole.
"Promise not to tell her people about our interstellar voyages... I didn't expect that to be her only concern. Though this is consistent with how Phainon was acting when we were at the Abyss."
"Something is definitely off about this world. Even on a planet as isolated as Jarilo-VI, the people still had an understanding of space, and even Paths and Aeons."
"The sky above Amphoreus, though, is more like ... a prison. They clearly have advanced technology, so who could imagine that even discussing what's beyond the sky would be taboo?"
At this point, Dan Heng paused, looked at Stelle, and asked seriously,
"Do you remember the mass of chaotic matter concealing Amphoreus from the rest of the universe? I can't help thinking that someone is intentionally keeping Amphoreus hidden. Their Titans could also be related to some Aeon."
Dan Heng recounted what he thought.
Yet based on the truth they had learned, he made a staggering judgment.
The audience was utterly shaken. Artificially sealing off an entire planet?!
Just how overwhelming would that power have to be!