The player figured they might be a little "sick."
Every time they saw Elysia, emotions surged out of control.
Sigh~~
How to put it… Hopefully they'll recover later.
Although… according to Hokuto's experiences in a previous life, this kind of "illness" usually only gets worse.
Anyway, let's not dwell on that.
Back to the story.
Elysia teased Hua in a playful tone.
If it had been someone else—say, Mobius—she might've rolled her eyes before reluctantly offering a few words of "comfort."
But Hua simply and sincerely apologized.
"I… I'm sorry. I didn't think it through."
That instead made Elysia feel a little embarrassed. "Haha, okay okay, I won't tease you anymore. Mei isn't here—she's probably in the depths of the Elysian Realm undergoing a trial. You'll have to wait a bit for her."
Hua blinked, slightly surprised. "How did you know I was waiting for Mei?"
"I just guessed~ Didn't expect to hit the mark so perfectly."
Elysia flashed a dazzling smile, clearly delighted that she had read Hua's mind.
Then again, someone as straightforward as Hua was probably easy to read, right? Was it really worth getting so happy over?
If Elysia heard that question, maybe she'd respond like this...
When something makes you happy, you should be really happy about it~~
Mm, that was probably Elysia's secret to joy.
It was precisely because she embraced every day with sincerity and passion that she could touch nearly everyone she met—without exception.
Back to the point.
After confirming Hua was here for Mei, Elysia earnestly asked Hua to talk more with her.
Because at this stage, the other Flame-Chasers in the Elysian Realm still had mixed feelings about Mei. There weren't many who were willing to open up to her.
"Mixed feelings?"
Hua asked, confused. "Is it because the truth she's pursuing is too deeply hidden?"
Elysia admitted frankly, "It's because of her identity. Her identity as a Herrscher."
"Herrscher…" Hua murmured. "Even I find it difficult to casually say we could 'coexist peacefully.'"
"'A Herrscher has never fought for humanity. She's no different.' — Kevin once said this to me, right after… that battle against the Seventh Herrscher."
[A Herrscher born to destroy Honkai definitely has something to say. Right, Miss Herrscher of Sentience? (doge)]
[Please address her as the great Miss Herrscher of Sentience.]
[Coexisting peacefully: refers to phone-scamming a Herrscher.]
[Old fossil, old fossil, you'd better let Mei know what you've been up to outside.]
[This feels like a FLAG. Wild guess: there's gonna be drama in the future. Maybe Paramecium vs. Kevin.]
That line—"Herrschers never fight for humanity"—was full of holes from the player's point of view.
After all, the Hyperion was practically run by Herrschers now.
If you're not a Herrscher, do you even have the right to fight the Honkai these days?
Wouldn't you agree, someone who likes drinking bitter melon juice, and whose short videos got hijacked by her grandpa—current captain of the Hyperion, Theresa Apocalypse?
Theresa: ????
And since the topic came up, the livestream chat was predictably flooded with Honkai scholars analyzing the whole situation.
[It's normal for Kevin to think that. After all, the Herrschers of this era and the previous one only look similar. At their core, they're fundamentally different.]
[Yeah, the Previous Era conducted tons of experiments to seize Herrscher powers. The conclusion was that the cores could only be used to forge Divine Keys. Seems like the environment of this era really is different.]
[Speaking of which, could it be because someone from the Previous Era—like Mobius, MEI, or Vill-V—did something back then?]
Gotta admit, the chat always exists in a superposition of guessing correctly and missing the point entirely.
They got close to the truth, yet missed the one person who actually made it happen—ironically, their favorite character at the moment.
...
Back to the plot.
Elysia heard Hua quote Kevin.
She kept smiling, but beneath that smile was a faint, barely noticeable hint of concern.
"After all, no one's come face to face with Herrschers as directly as Kevin and the others."
"The more you win against the Honkai, the more Herrschers you encounter—and the more you encounter Herrschers, the more you fear them. It's inevitable. After all, the existence of a Herrscher signifies the beginning of loss…"
"But to me…"
Hua pondered aloud, "A Herrscher is a position, not an identity. If we define it purely by power, then as MANTIS, we're not much different from Herrschers…"
"It's only those who betray humanity's legacy—those who seek to overturn all with the power of destruction—who should be feared. Mei obviously doesn't fall into that category, so I've never seen her as a Herrscher."
When Elysia heard that, the concern in her eyes melted away, and her smile became even more radiant.
No one would be more touched by Hua's words than her.
If not for the place they were in, she probably would've hugged Hua right then and there.
That's why… she loved everyone so much~~
"I know~ Everyone thinks the same. We're companions first—everything else comes second. I've always believed that."
Hua and Elysia's conversation about their views on Herrschers—that was the core memory Hua held dear.
Now that it was over...
Mei and Pardofelis had to continue forward.
But Pardofelis lingered behind, reluctant to leave Elysia. "Miss Elysia…"
To be honest, it wasn't just the in-game cat girl who didn't want to leave.
Even the players felt the same.
But no matter how they felt, the game had already transitioned to a new scene.
As if to say, the Elysia just now—was only the Elysia from Hua's memory.
The real Elysia… was already gone.
[Her voice still lingers, her smile still vivid… sob sob sob.]
[Is Elysia only allowed to exist in memories now? Writer! I can't accept this ending! Give Elysia back to me!!]
[Memory? Hey, what if—since the Flame-Chasers are all memory constructs, can't they just pool their memories of Elysia and recreate her?]
[Hmm, in theory, the same applies to the rest of the Flame-Chasers too.]
[Great, instead of spamming "Elysia didn't die," you guys are straight-up dreaming now. Give it up. We can't beat the scriptwriters.]
Clearly, most players now saw that whole "what if" theory as nothing but a wild fantasy.
What is this, fusion summoning?
Like this story Leave a review ; it would really help me out a lot.
Want to Read Ahead in Advance?
Join my Patreon!
+75 Chapters
Support me in
Patreon.com/BestElysium