[Goodness, knees have finally been attached.]
[Honkai Impact 3rd characters have knees now!!]
Players were spamming the screen with comments while fully immersed in the open-world experience.
Once Elysia discovered that Valkyries could jump, she stopped walking properly and began bouncing forward continuously.
Following the quest marker,
She hopped forward while defeating wandering Honkai Beasts and listening to Dr. Tesla's always-entertaining sarcastic commentary.
She was thoroughly enjoying her exploration of Kolosten.
Even though much of the dialogue was just dry exposition, she didn't feel bored at all.
Unknowingly, Elysia wandered into a certain street.
Suddenly, a man's distant cry for help echoed out.
"Vera! Where are you?! Vera!—Damn it, what are these things?!"
"That voice? Otto?" Elysia froze mid-movement. "Otto is calling for help?"
The viewers were just as confused, and all eyes were instantly locked on the story.
Elysia followed the voice and took out the Honkai Beasts along the way.
Eventually, she reached a ruin of broken walls and collapsed buildings—
A blond man appeared in front of everyone.
That's right, it was Otto!
But he looked rather disheveled, and his expression and demeanor were completely different from the Otto everyone remembered.
He seemed... a bit inexperienced?
In-game, Durandal, Tesla, and Theresa stared at this Otto in stunned silence.
Of course, they were veterans who'd seen it all—
They quickly composed themselves and began probing to find out exactly what kind of Otto this was.
After a round of dialogue, they learned that this Otto was from five hundred years ago.
And this Otto, untouched by the erosion of time, calmly accepted the truth about his future sins—
He even said that if he had the chance to go back, he would resign from his position as Overseer of Schicksal.
His ease and detachment stunned the players.
It also sparked curiosity—
If Otto had never inherited the role of Overseer, what kind of world would it have become?
You could say, the entire story of Honkai Impact 3rd would've gone down an entirely different path.
"Has 'Otto'-san ever considered making a spinoff exploring this possibility?" Elysia asked from the side.
"That kind of content isn't something that can be made in a short time."
Hokuto thought about it seriously before answering. "With miHoYo's current production bandwidth, there's no room for it right now."
"I know 'Otto'-san has a lot to work on, but the capable should do more," Elysia said with a playful smile. "After all, players' desires can never be satisfied~~"
"..."
"Don't worry, everything that should happen will happen. I've already created a new folder."
Hokuto pitched a dream to Elysia and the viewers.
The story continued. Durandal suddenly had an idea and asked Tesla to perform a scan on Otto.
They discovered puppet threads wrapped around Otto's body.
This discovery thrilled Tesla.
She began testing whether those threads could help pinpoint the core of the Herrscher of Domination.
Meanwhile, Theresa forwarded the important discovery to Hyperion.
But once they connected the comms, they found out that Schicksal researcher Nagamitsu had already relayed that same intel to Hyperion.
Nagamitsu even claimed to be a Tesla fan.
"I really am a fan of yours, Senior Tesla! Long live the Tunguska explosion!"
Wow—
That's gotta be a hater in disguise, right?
[Tesla, I'm your biggest fan! (pounces)]
[...Confirmed: Tesla's number one anti-fan.]
[LOL even the Lobster Doctor was left speechless.]
After exchanging a few words with her "idol," Tesla and the team prepared to collect data from key locations to find the Herrscher of Domination's core.
Once the plan was laid out, everyone was about to move out—
Kiana suddenly said she wanted to join the mission too.
Soon after, Theresa and the others regrouped with Kiana, and Nagamitsu used a game analogy to explain her understanding of the Grand Overseer's plan.
While the Doctors in the group obviously understood, Kiana said this:
"I don't really get it, but are you trying to say—our world is so stable that no force can interfere with the flow of time?"
Even Theresa looked at her in disbelief.
What the heck—
Is she worse than a paramecium now?
The players were equally stunned.
["I don't really get it, but—"]
[Paramecium is the translator miHoYo sent to help us understand, huh? But why her? miHoYo's so sinister!]
[I can't believe I'm dumber than a paramecium.]
A lot of viewers were dazed, their brains overloading.
Fortunately, many 'Honkai scholars' in the chat had been carefully analyzing the story and could explain further:
[Nagamitsu basically means that in the real world, time travel isn't possible, but the Imaginary Tree surpasses the boundaries of this world.]
[So... does that mean the Imaginary Tree can help Otto travel through space-time?]
And in the story, Kiana—the "translator"—confirmed this theory.
She said… she got it again.
"So you actually mean... Otto plans to use some function of the Imaginary Tree to live his life all over again?"
Nagamitsu thought for a moment and replied: "Maybe calling it 'live again' isn't quite accurate—it's kind of the opposite in meaning… but for ease of understanding, sure, let's go with that."
In other words, Kiana didn't fully grasp it, but she wasn't too far off either.
And then Otto suddenly spoke.
"I see. If I really had five hundred years, maybe such a change could happen in me too."
Otto was always clear-eyed about himself.
At this moment, the idea of reviving Kallen was already starting to form in his mind.
"If that person had lived for five hundred years, then his obsession must've been ten times—no, a hundred times stronger than mine."
At this, Elysia—though she hadn't followed the earlier parts—completely understood.
"That makes sense. For most people, losing a loved one fades with time. Memories get washed away eventually."
"But Otto wouldn't forget, would he? It would only grow deeper, more painful… and that's why he'd become more desperate to revive Kallen."
Theresa chimed in: "Basically, he's like that five-thousand-year-old frozen popsicle. Totally unhinged."
Kevin: ???
"I think it can be phrased more romantically," Hokuto interjected.
"These five hundred years… Otto lived them for Kallen."
"..."
Many people disliked Otto—
But they were willing to accept what Hokuto said.
"I understand Otto… but I don't agree with Otto," Kevin added.
"Even though you and Otto are probably the same kind of person?"
Kevin paused, then calmly replied:
"Kevin doesn't need to agree. He only needs to defeat Honkai."
...
After talking with this completely different Otto, Theresa and the others began gathering data in Kolosten.
This marked a segment of free exploration for the player.
Elysia even ran into "Susannah needs something," which added several twists to the whole journey.
It also taught players a few profound—both good and bad—lessons:
Not all Valkyries under Schicksal are blindly loyal warriors.
Some Schicksal Valkyries may not be loyal, but that doesn't mean they're smart.
Some Valkyries under Schicksal were never meant to be "Valkyries." They're better suited as "mascots."
That's how hair-pulling Susannah was for the players.
Just as everyone was getting deeper into the exploration—
Durandal received a call from Amber.
The real Otto wanted everyone to gather at the cathedral to obtain the Herrscher of Domination's core.
Theresa, worried that Otto might target Kiana, didn't let her come.
So in the end, Theresa and Durandal brought the Otto from 500 years ago and headed for the cathedral.
In front of the cathedral, they saw a statue of Kallen.
The old Otto began explaining the impact of Kallen's death.
There was a hint of sadness in his voice—
It reminded players of the recently concluded event and stirred sorrow in their hearts once more.
"She wasn't a fool. It's just… when someone truly tries to change the world, they'll realize how insignificant their strength is."
"During the days of her second imprisonment, she despaired. She rejected every escape plan and wished only for death."
"Perhaps, in her eyes… that was her final protest against a world that was neither fair nor just."
Just then—
A voice abruptly cut in—Otto's voice, without a trace of sadness.
"Perhaps. But the reason a Saint is a Saint… is because the spiritual strength she represents is far greater than she ever imagined."
Otto's words held multiple meanings.
But the players couldn't fully comprehend them yet.
Instead, they were annoyed that he interrupted the emotional moment they were just getting into.
[Old Otto's voice sounds so sincere. New Otto's voice feels so fake!]
[Yeah, I can tell which Otto it is just by closing my eyes and listening.]
[That's what good voice acting does.]
[Didn't expect miHoYo's voice actor to be this good.]
"'Otto'-san, everyone's praising your voice acting."
"I simply did what I should. Everyone—including you, Elysia—I hope I can deliver that same experience to you all."
...