Those comments, Xiyue brushed aside.
Reveal too much and what would be the point of streaming at all?
So she carried on to the next chapter.
She couldn’t wait to stream the Elysian Realm!
Chapter 2, Voice in the Dreams.
It opened with a CG worthy of an animated film.
miHoYo’s art team really is world-class.
You can curse miHoYo’s planning, curse its operations, even curse Da Wei, but you cannot curse its art!
To the sound of Himeko’s lovely, mature voice, the story recounted what happened after Kiana’s return.
“Meanwhile, the once-a-year Valkyrie Exams were drawing near.
The mood in the classroom grew tense, and the daily extra drills were no longer ramped up.
To pass the exams, the whole Academy was steeped in a busy atmosphere.”
A CG of Fu Hua, red-rimmed eyes and all, working a punching bag flashed by, and the attentively watching Elysia noticed, murmuring almost without thinking.
“Hua?”
“This is Hua?”
Mobius, who’d been sleeping on Elysia’s thigh, was startled awake by that exclamation again.
She was about to glare at Elysia when she suddenly noticed she was pillowed on Elysia’s thigh, felt its softness, and slowly closed her eyes again.
After last night’s high-intensity experiments, she could barely hold up right now.
And once more Elysia handed Xiyue a heap of Shock Value.
Elysia came back to herself and shook her head.
She didn’t think this person who’d appeared was the Hua she knew.
The air about her was similar, but she didn’t quite believe they could live into the next century.
Probably, like Mei and Himeko, just someone who looked alike.
When Kiana had watched Bronya turn into Black Nucleus, her eyes were full of worry.
Even knowing it was a livestreamed game, her body couldn’t help wanting to go help Bronya.
Though Bronya was always sniping at her, only people who were close traded jabs like that.
After all, the first time she met Bronya, Bronya had been so very, very fierce.
But seeing everything turn out safe in the end, the worry Kiana had felt settled down.
Because with Mei and the others around, she didn’t need to think about anything.
She could empty her head and spend each day happy and carefree.
But when a comrade ran into danger, Kiana was still plenty dependable.
Kiana caught the key words.
“Valkyrie Exams.
So that means the mission to the Selene is about to begin?”
At that, she also remembered Himeko telling her last night to prepare well these next few days, that a mission would be handed to her.
By the looks of it, the story in this game was what she’d live through in the future.
At the thought, a resolute look came into Kiana’s blue eyes.
“This time, I won’t let Mei and Bronya fall into danger!”
Then, seeing her own Auntie on the stream, Kiana suddenly had an idea.
Her eyes gradually narrowed, and a brilliant smile spread across her face.
“If I learn what’s on the Valkyrie Exam through the stream and prepare early, won’t I come out first place?!”
“Then who’d dare call this young lady Dummy Kiana anymore, heh heh.”
“This young lady is so clever!”
And just as Kiana sank into her fantasy, the game’s story rolled on.
The first to appear was Theresa in a nun’s habit, running into Kiana as she tried to skip class.
Seeing her own Auntie, Kiana’s face filled with panic.
“Theresa~~”
The silver-haired little girl in the nun’s habit scolded Kiana.
“On Academy grounds, don’t call me by name, and don’t call me Auntie.
Address me respectfully as Principal, understood?”
Xiyue noticed the stream’s time was almost up, and turned to the comments.
The comments, meanwhile, were in another uproar over Theresa’s appearance.
Raven looked at that vast Academy, and at the gems on Silly-resa’s nun habit, and let an envious expression cross her face, saying through gritted teeth.
“These damn rich people!”
Kitty Snuggles: This adorable little loli is actually the principal of a whole Academy, unbelievable!
Miss Pink Elf♪: But she really is cute~ The children of the future’s academies are all so good-looking~
Chlorinated Kiana: A tiresome little bug.
For the Queen, the sight of Theresa flashed up an image in her mind she’d rather not recall.
Xiyue watched the comments shower Theresa with praise, and joined in, praising her lavishly.
“Theresa is the cutest in all the world~”
Having said that, a certain puppet-show Theresa surfaced in her mind: dressed in a little pink skirt, wearing pink bunny ears, a pink wand in hand, chanting magic at a crowd of puppets as she pranced about.
The strength of miracles becomes the stars; magic of light gathers in my heart.”
“TeRiRi, transform!”
Picturing that scene, Xiyue couldn’t help laughing out loud, then turned around on reflex, found that the Oath of Judah wasn’t there, and broke into a beaming grin.
Her heart gave a little flutter: once Theresa joined the stream, she absolutely had to be the first to recite that transformation chant.
After all, who could resist a 47-year-old magical girl~
Kitty Snuggles: The cutest in the world?
Then why does Kiana call her Auntie?
Miss Pink Elf♪: The cutest in the world~ Then Elysia must surely be the most beautiful in the world~
Xiyue didn’t notice the comments this time.
She was busy wearing that doting auntie grin as she worked through the story.
Kiana, seeing she had remedial lessons, instantly drooped, and then she remembered she still had to go to Xiyue’s place that afternoon for academic tutoring.
Kiana’s eyes went hollow and vacant in a flash, like a salted fish (scratch that), a Paramecium that had lost its dreams.
“Remedial lessons?
Does a genius like this young lady really need remedial lessons?”
In the story, Kiana folded her arms, the picture of righteous indignation.
But before she could get smug, Theresa knocked her right back down to size.
“Quit talking tough.
The Kaslana family’s tradition of dummies really has reached new heights with you.”
Then came some background exposition, and after that the story of Fu Hua showing up to tutor Kiana, warm and low-key, and it only reinforced everyone’s image of Kiana as a lovable little dummy.
Fu Hua walked Kiana through how the Honkai types counter one another, then asked.
“Kiana-san, the type matchups, did you get them down?”
But Kiana didn’t let Fu Hua down.
With perfect righteous confidence, she declared.
“Hmph hmph, no need to write them down.
This young lady is the Ultimate type.
I counter every type there is.”
There was actually some truth to that line: in the Queen’s version, PSY counters MECH, and the Queen counters everything.
But all of that was in the past.
Hearing Kiana, even Fu Hua couldn’t help pressing a hand to her forehead, and she pressed Kiana further.
“Kiana-san, answer my question: what are the countering relationships among each of the types?”
No Exams Thanks: Obviously, it’s Kiana counters everything!
Then the in-game Kiana’s answer was, as ever, not one to disappoint.
“Obviously, Sword beats Axe, Axe beats Lance, and Lance beats Sword!”
…
Watching Kiana and Fu Hua interact, Xiyue felt her eyes go a little misty, because scenes like this had become hard to see ever since Final Lesson.
Holding back the emotion in her heart and the tears in her eyes, she turned to her audience and said softly.
“That’s all for today’s stream, everyone.”
“See you all tomorrow!