Time passed quickly. Preparations for the new update were proceeding smoothly. Bronie and Kasumi had already gone over the script—though this version had its own story, clearly it wasn't the main focus of this update.
Kasumi and the Hacker bunny had planned to add an A-rank Valkyrie into the gacha pool, but the true spotlight was on a certain someone... the one mature Luna.
The main story didn't change much, but the event update came first.
This event update surprisingly included some additional character development inside the plot.
Standing in the moonlight's center, she no longer looked like the girl people remembered—fragile, needing protection. Instead, she had grown up. She had become mature.
Wearing a black gothic-style dress paired with a blood-red hair ribbon, decorated with black and red rose patterns on the skirt, she radiated an aura of elegance and temptation. Her right hand gently lifted the hem of her dress—graceful and relaxed, like a refined noble lady.
Sharp fangs peeked from her lips, her eyes glowing crimson with a wild, obsessive smile—signs of how much she had changed in both appearance and heart.
A pair of crimson ruby earrings hung on her ears, and a confident smile curled at the corners of her mouth.
She was no longer the powerless little girl she once was. She had become independent. She had become unhinged. She had become someone even she never imagined becoming...
....
"Under the crimson moon, the vampire has finally returned... just as we hoped."
"The long wait has changed her form, but not the burning longing in her heart."
The in-game character preview made players tremble a little with anticipation.
How long had they been waiting... and how long had it taken for the little vampire to finally grow into what they hoped for?
No one could answer that. But with every voiced line she spoke—each one full of warmth and emotion—players could feel her fiery longing... and the lingering feelings she still held for that person from the past.
She was still a vampire—hating the daytime, hating the sunlight, hating the morning...
----
This was a magical world.
Under the dark and stormy night sky, the moon cast down its gentle light.
With short white hair and pink eyes, a young girl with bunny ears—clearly a Magical Girl—rushed through the streets in the evening breeze. Her ears swayed as she ran, occasionally glancing behind, clearly evading someone chasing her.
She had just exchanged information with an ally, though the other party didn't seem too interested in her invitation.
She was still searching for clues in the Demon King's castle. Even though the Demon King had reportedly been defeated several years ago, she refused to believe it.
She continued the search and even posted anonymous requests online.
As a wanted person, she had to erase her tracks every time she investigated. She even bought out every blush product in the city to hide her traces. But still, she refused to give up her stubborn belief.
But right now wasn't the time to think about that.
The only thing that mattered was escaping the hunters chasing her.
At that moment, someone in a white hood passed silently beside her. No ripple, no sound—it was as if she appeared from thin air. Only a flicker of awareness and the swirling twin ponytails dancing in the breeze hinted at her presence.
"Trackers."
Two drone-like mechanical eyes hovered and scanned ahead, locking on to the enemies in pursuit.
"Hey, Miss Teriri, don't worry. We're here."
The hooded figure slightly lifted her hood. Her gray eyes glanced calmly at the pursuers, a faint shimmer of tears in her gaze. Compared to the people chasing them, she looked more like the real hunter.
A battle was about to erupt—though the one who arrived was none other than Bronie, the Hyperion hacker.
However, the expected combat didn't actually break out. Instead, the scene suddenly shifted—into a cheerful, casual mini-game interface. Each character came with unique abilities to play with.
----
In Theresa's Villa
Spring sunlight slowly filtered through the crystal glass, landing softly on her body, bringing a comforting warmth.
This villa had been redecorated by the great architectural master Vill V. Now it carried a bit of futuristic flair—modern, sleek, and perfectly tailored for lazy people. The convenience factor had been dramatically improved.
Of course, the redesign came from a small trade she made with Luo Mo.
The reason everyone gathered here today wasn't just because of a game update... Though that was one reason, the more important matter clearly involved the two new friends from World Serpent:
Misteln and Prometheus.
They hadn't come just to study abroad and play around. They also brought the core of the Herrscher of Rock with them.
World Serpent wasn't lacking in secure facilities—but this place offered a better choice. Yes, Kevin had entrusted this core to the heroic ones remaining here.
Schicksal didn't really know the exact details of how it all happened, but based on data, the Herrscher of Rock's host hadn't suffered any fatal danger.
Naturally, this wasn't directly related to everyone here.
Prometheus was probably sent as part of Kevin's plan. Misteln, however, had come of her own free will. She also relied on the tech-sharing agreement with the Flame-Chasers, which let her more easily control the overflowing Honkai Energy.
Otherwise, she'd still only be able to appear in certain time-limited story events.
"Ugh... should we call this a sudden genre shift?"
"One moment we were being hunted by the Big Bad Witch, and now it's all cutesy chibi models?"
"And this cheerful game format... it's kinda boring~"
Despite her grumbling, Kiana was clearly enjoying the mini-game. Her hands worked with full enthusiasm.
For her, the game's difficulty was just right—not too easy, not too hard.
"Ah, I'm actually more curious about the plot in this one. The script has some flavor, too. Ugh, it's annoying... some of the voice lines even feel like they're mocking us. And they just randomly hired a VA without even asking me!"
Bronie scowled slightly.
The explanation they gave?
"The voice doesn't suit the character of Bronie."
Who could accept that?
And then—adding insult to injury—they gave her a runner-up prize in a voice actor contest. What a cruel joke.
But Bronie didn't really care that much anymore.
In fact, judging from the number of characters appearing in the event, the plot must be interesting. Three different versions of Theresa appearing at the same time? That definitely grabbed attention.
"Hmm... Human must be acting out of kindness, letting us take longer breaks or something?"
Luna's soft voice replied while touching her ear.
"Maybe that's true for you," Bronie folded her arms, pouting,
"But for us? Nah. He probably just wants to see us embarrass ourselves."
She shot a side-eye at Luo Mo, patting his shoulder.
"You've said everything already. What else can I say?"
"Stop thinking everyone around you is out to get you. Ever think maybe I'm just trying to hit deadlines?"
"Everything's going smoothly. Some parts can use synthesized voice lines now. We've already wrapped up the core mission tasks."
Luo Mo glared back at her with feigned annoyance.
Of course, he didn't deny enjoying watching everyone fumble now and then... as long as it didn't interfere with the mission.
"Ugh... humans in this world are such a headache."
A gray-haired mechanical girl gently patted her head and sighed visibly. She floated half a foot off the ground and looked incredibly similar to Bronya.
"Stop saying 'this world' all the time, Prometheus," Misteln smiled.
"You've been here long enough—you should be blending in already."
Compared to Prometheus, Misteln had adapted much better. She even got along surprisingly well with the mechanical duck, to the point where people sometimes felt like they were talking to the same person.
No longer just data, no longer just frustration—they'd become a team in their own strange way.
"Huh? You didn't know?" Prometheus tilted her head.
"The human who's the biggest headache here... is you."
She said it in her usual emotionless, flat electronic voice, stabbing Misteln with pure honesty.
Misteln blinked, then laughed so hard her shoulders shook.
"Even if others don't like hearing it, I actually enjoy that kind of praise~ Want to guess why?"
"...Humans really are impossible to understand," Prometheus closed her eyes and sighed again.
"So," Luo Mo cut in, "You two came here just to drop off the Herrscher core and sightsee a little?"
He frowned.
"Since when did we get so chummy with World Serpent?"
"Since when were Schicksal and World Serpent ever not connected?" Misteln replied smoothly.
"Besides, the Supreme Commander said we could come to help with some voice-over work, didn't he?"
She placed her finger to her lips, hiding a sly smile behind sharp eyes that said she understood far more than she let on.
"Ah... yeah, I think he did mention that," Luo Mo muttered, rubbing his forehead as vague memories surfaced.
Back then, they had lacked a lot of resources. Everything was still in development, and they needed as many crystals as possible. Now, Stigmata collection was nearly complete. What remained felt important—but maybe not essential.
At this point, increasing or decreasing a few crystals didn't matter anymore. He was more inclined to focus on regular gacha pools and make sure he had more Stigmata in hand.
If he got enough of them, maybe they could even start a global Stigmata enhancement project... though that still seemed far-fetched.
Ultimately, it all depended on how well Kiana and the others performed.
This time, nearly all Herrschers were on humanity's side.
As the founder of AI Hyperion, Luo Mo was thrilled. He credited Theresa entirely, saying none of this would've happened without her guidance and support. He, as St. Freya Academy's liaison, could only admire her dedication—willing even to become a Herrscher herself.
"...Why are you looking at me like that?" Theresa narrowed her eyes.
"You've got that look again, like you're scheming something."
Before Luo Mo could respond, Misteln chimed in again.
"Of course, I also had my own reasons for coming... I wanted to check on some old friends—see how they're living."
She tilted her head, frowning slightly, unsure of the proper term to use. But eventually, she stopped worrying about titles altogether.
Luo Mo nodded. He had a good idea who she meant.
She often hung out near Bronya's voice booth, or chatted with Cecilia. Cecilia was clearly shaken at first by how similar Misteln looked—but she quickly accepted her.
Misteln's affectionate behavior made Luo Mo feel like Kiana had gained another big sister. Technically, she was a part of Cecilia in a way, right?
Nothing wrong with having an extra daughter.
Prometheus, on the other hand, didn't get along with Bronya quite as well. Despite Misteln's efforts, they were both cold types. Not exactly compatible. How to fix that?
And more importantly... they just weren't close.
"Oh ho... and here comes the classic magical girl line again," Bronie muttered.
"But really—since when did being a Magical Girl become a real job?"
"They still have to go to school, get good grades, write a thesis... Why does it all feel so off?"
"Aren't magical girls supposed to awaken powers through destiny or something, transform, and casually one-shot monsters?"
"But now? She's buying gems, crafting potions, worrying about test scores... I mean, judging by how awkward she gets when grades come up—her report card probably isn't looking great!"
Kiana adjusted her imaginary glasses and declared her conclusion.
Her tone was clear, confident, and full of experience—born from years of being a terrible student.
"What's that got to do with me!?" Theresa's face turned red.
"Besides—when it comes to Valkyrie knowledge, I'm top-tier, okay?!"
Inside the screen, she swore she saw a vision of herself scolding Kiana back in the day...
------
With Bronie's help, the battle naturally ended very quickly.
Those hunters could only retreat in vain.
After the misunderstanding was cleared up, Teriri learned that Bronie was actually the one who had accepted the commission. She seemed quite surprised by this but still expressed her thanks.
And when Bronie found out that Teriri was actually a Magical Girl, she was also very surprised—because, in her impression, someone who wielded magic shouldn't be in such a sorry state while being chased down.
Tilting her head, she took a moment to understand how Magical Girls functioned in this world. Then she raised her hand and asked, with innocent confusion, a soul-deep question:
"Aren't Magical Girls supposed to casually throw out flashy special moves? Like, you know… 'Magical Girl Teriri—Invisibility! Launching! I've got you now~!' or something like that?"
She held back a smirk at the corner of her mouth and silently waited for the blushing "Magical Bunny" in front of her to answer.
"Magical Girls are not like that!"
Teriri shouted back in embarrassment and anger. It was precisely because of people holding such misunderstandings that magic was becoming stranger and more distorted over time.
She then continued on, explaining the curriculum of magical studies and the conditions required for graduation.
Bronie began to feel a bit of a headache. To her, this felt like pure studying—it had nothing to do with the kind of over-the-top fantasy magic she had imagined.
But still, if Teriri hadn't been so angry just now, she really wanted to ask whether Magical Girls could actually fly or turn invisible.
Don't get her wrong—she was totally asking for a friend. A real friend! Absolutely!
Even though their initial meeting hadn't been flawless, she still managed to gain Tokubetsu Rere's trust fairly easily, which made her breathe a small sigh of relief. They agreed to meet again tomorrow.
Bronie nodded and didn't dwell on it too much. She turned toward the darkness and said with a small laugh,
"Speaking of which, compared to Teriri, you actually fit my image of a Magical Girl more."
"Witch... and Magical Girl—they actually share a few similar meanings."
A blue butterfly danced from her fingertip, glowing faintly under the moonlight. Irene gently brushed her fingers across her lips, not denying the teasing remark. Instead, she let out a soft chuckle.
"Well, at least we've completed the first step of making contact."
"Is the reason you're talking so much tonight because of that one line she said—'Go outside the wall and see'—and it made you think of yourself?"
The witch smiled like that, watching the clearly disgruntled Hacker before her. Then, from her fingertip, a blue butterfly flew forward, scattering a trail of dazzling light along the path.
In the end, everything dissipated into the night like fine dust.
The night passed quietly like that, leaving behind a tranquil darkness.