My Game Studio is Full of Valkyries?!

"What's wrong, Kiana?"

After finishing her chat with Elysia, Mei turned and asked Kiana.

"N-Nothing."

Kiana kept tapping through the game screen.

"I will always be here, lighting the path ahead for you."

Right after Elysia said this line, the Signet selection screen popped up in-game.

The Signet of 「■■」.

Kiana casually selected one of the effects, and Elysia's voice came through again.

"Have you heard the saying—'Only choices under pressure reveal a person's true self'? They also determine who she will ultimately become."

"This is my Signet —the imprint of Elysia's soul—the proof of who I am."

In the game, Elysia's words felt vague. Like she said a lot, and yet... nothing at all.

As if one were listening to a speech, and all they got was a speech.

Kiana paused while watching the story and pondered aloud:

"What is Elysia's Signet, really?"

"I'm curious about that too," Elysia chimed in beside her.

"You don't know?" Kiana was surprised.

"Nope."

Elysia sounded visibly troubled.

"No matter how much I begged Mr. Otto, he never let slip a single detail."

"Dare I ask... what exactly do you mean by begged...?"

"Well, I told him that if Elysia's curiosity didn't get satisfied, I'd turn from Miss Pink Elf into Miss Faded Elf. And even that didn't make him flinch!"

Elysia sighed dramatically:

"Sigh~~ Mr. Otto truly is a man with a heart of stone~~"

"..."

Just turning pink into faded... how is that even a big deal?

Kiana didn't get it at all. She immediately regretted asking and changed the subject.

"By the way, why is Boss hiding Elysia's Signet? Is he planning something major?"

"Who knows."

Plenty of viewers were analyzing the same thing.

They increasingly felt like there was something off about Elysia.

Kiana and Elysia discussed for a while but reached no conclusion, so they moved on.

"In time, you'll understand. There's no way you'd bear to miss out on me."

In-game, Elysia said a bunch of cute yet mystifying lines to Mei.

At this point, players were totally unable to grasp the deeper meaning of what Elysia said.

Only after finishing the Elysian Realm story and looking back at these lines—

Would those lively and sweet quotes become daggers stabbing their hearts.

And then...

They'd regret ever doubting her.

After the dialogue, Kiana entered a new gate.

Cleared a wave of enemies, and suddenly—

A dialogue box popped up.

The character on screen—

"Squad leader!" Kiana whispered.

Though she had expected this, the sudden appearance still surprised her.

Fu Hua's calm voice slowly flowed in:

"Nice to meet you, successor. My name is Hua. This is the Signet of [Vicissitude]... I will help you understand it."

The look she gave Mei was completely that of a stranger.

Which made sense—

This was Hua from fifty thousand years ago.

"...Squad leader?" Mei murmured.

Since the battle with Schicksal—since Kiana awakened as the Herrscher of the Void—

Mei hadn't seen Fu Hua again.

Now, seeing that familiar face again...

She was reminded of the days at St. Freya.

Those were truly light and happy times.

She even used to worry about Kiana's grades...

Hua: "Hmm?"

Mei: "..."

"It's nothing. I should have known. Thank you for your help.

We... will probably meet again, right?"

She meant seeing the Fu Hua of reality again.

Even the viewers watching this felt a pang in their hearts.

"Mei, I don't know when you and Kiana will be able to reunite again..."

Kiana whispered with emotion.

But the Hua in the Elysian Realm misunderstood her meaning.

"At the very least, you must survive until that day.

This place is far more dangerous than you think—

You must not let your guard down."

Though the two were talking past each other, their words oddly aligned.

The next moment—

The Signet of [Vicissitude] appeared.

Kiana skimmed it and picked an all-damage bonus right away.

Just as she finished selecting Hua's Signet, Elysia's voice returned.

"So? Compared to everyone else's Signet..."

She glanced toward the direction Hua had left and lowered her voice:

"...Don't you think mine's better?"

Seeing Elysia act like that, Mei stayed frosty:

"...You don't have to keep following me."

With that, Mei resumed clearing the map—

Like a player eager to skip the tutorial after mastering the mechanics.

Later, Mei encountered Kevin, Sakura, and [Phyllis' Shop].

After clearing the stage, she returned to the Elysian Realm.

And the story returned to the tutorial segment.

Naturally, the guide was still the adorable and charming Elysia.

She led Mei in exploring the Elysian Realm.

Right now, both for players and Mei, the Elysian Realm was like a fog-shrouded mystery.

Step by step, this exploration gradually cleared the fog—

As they discovered new, intriguing systems, players became more and more drawn to the Elysian Realm.

At last—

No matter what mood you had going in—

Talking to Elysia always brought a smile.

After the tutorial, Mei set off once more.

Kiana was having a blast controlling her Signet-enhanced Herrscher of Thunder.

This roguelike mode really had great replay value.

It was easy to imagine many players getting hooked on the Elysian Realm.

Before she knew it, Kiana had cleared the stage again.

The story resumed.

During the run, Mei obtained something strange—

A glass-like stone on fire.

She brought it to Elysia in the lounge.

Through Elysia's explanation, the [Remembrance Vessel] was unlocked.

With the [Remembrance Vessel], players could have additional dialogue with the Flame-Chasers,

And learn about their pasts... and the pain they carry.

Of course, perhaps to throw players off—

The stories introduced via the [Remembrance Vessel] often started out lighthearted.

For example, Kevin's [Rumor: Deep Chill]

Was about how he suddenly becomes super popular every summer.

You'd just be laughing at that...

And the next story would catch you off guard with a gut-wrenching twist.

But Kiana, unaware of this setup, had already been captivated by the Flame-Chasers' stories.

After unlocking a few using accumulated Flames, she was determined to keep grinding the Elysian Realm.

Just as she exited the game interface—

The device for accessing the Elysian Realm began to act up.

Fierce, blazing flames surged—

Trying to chase after her, dragging her back into the world of memories.

Mei and Elysia both noticed.

After another signature quip from Elysia—

The sunny, fiery boy Kalpas appeared.

His first line?

"I have no interest in remembering the names of the soon-to-die!"

And in battle, he kept taunting Mei:

"Herrscher, is this all your power amounts to?"

"Show me your true strength—prove you're even worth being beaten!"

...

A classic case of a berserker who drank the wrong medicine.

Anyone meeting Kalpas for the first time would probably think he's completely insane.

Let's be honest—

There's likely no one who comes away from first contact thinking Kalpas is nice.

In the end, after a fierce battle, Kalpas exited dramatically with a cringey one-liner.

Mei returned to Elysia.

There, Elysia revealed something shocking:

In the Previous Era, there had never been a Herrscher like Mei—

One who retained human emotions.

Hearing that, the livestream's "Honkai scholars" perked up.

Elysia's words seemed to confirm a long-standing theory—

That Herrschers with humanity only began appearing in the current era.

So the question was—why?

Could the answer lie within the Elysian Realm?

While the Honkai scholars pondered deeply, Kiana and most viewers kept watching the story intently.

To help Mei get along with Kalpas, Elysia gave her a book:

"...『100 Questions on the Kalpas Mask: From Beginner to Master』... author: Elysia?"

"A friendly guide to help anyone bond with Kalpas, even from zero knowledge!

Easy to follow, instantly usable.

In Flame-Chasers HQ, it's a must-read alongside the Survival Guide!"

"With this, you can confidently strike up conversation!

If you fail... don't worry, I also offer after-sales service."

[It should be called 『100 Questions on the Kalpas Mask: From Beginner to Burial』]

[Survival Guide? Sounds more like Mortality Manual.]

[Truly, the depth of Flower Language never ceases to amaze.]

[Honestly... if this were real, I'd actually want to read it. It is about Kalpas, after all.]

...

Elysia blinked as she read the comments.

Truth was—she had written that book.

If Kalpas didn't mind, maybe she could ask Hokuto to release it as official merch.

As Elysia plotted in secret, Kiana, still playing the Elysian Realm, curiously unlocked "Remembrance of the Mad King."

Let's just say—she wasn't annoyed by these extra stories at all.

Quite the opposite—she was fascinated.

Because every Flame-Chaser...

Had such distinct personalities.

You couldn't help but want to know more.