Black Swan's voice sounded through the black screen!
"Countless shooting stars streak the sky tonight ... If you can pick the right one, it will carry your wish to thousands of distant worlds."
"You're feeling very relaxed now, aren't you? So then..."
"It's time to tell you a little bedtime story."
-------------------------------
Generally speaking, the scene that appears after the end of the credits is usually a small easter egg.
At this moment, many viewers who had not yet left the screen were staring blankly.
They didn't think Black Swan's statement would be particularly explosive.
Probably just some easter eggs about Planet Edo?
"Let me get straight to the point: The Crew was defeated in the battle against Sunday. Everyone in
Penacony failed, and no one survived."
But at that moment—
Black Swan's words dropped like a bombshell.
...
: WTF! WTF! WTF!
: Aaaaaaaah!!?? Wait, what?!
: How is this an easter egg?! This is clearly a bombshell!
: What does this mean, the previous ending was fake and no one survived? Everyone failed?!
: Damn! If this is true, then the whole wish-fulfillment thing is going to unravel in a much deeper way!
: I knew it! I knew something felt off! How could miHoYo just give us a half-baked ending?
: When I heard what Black Swan said, I exploded! Damn it, miHoYo, you really know how to keep it under wraps!
: I'm shaking with excitement right now, guys, I swear! Is this really the third ending?!
: Was this all part of your plan, miHoYo?!
: I need to get my friend back right now — he went out for a smoke because he didn't want to see a lame ending! He missed it big time!
...
The viewers still in front of the screen were beyond thrilled!
This is exactly why they watch Honkai: Star Rail — the eternally unpredictable and brilliant storytelling!
And while the live comments were exploding—
Black Swan continued to unleash high-density information.
At this moment, the screen was surrounded by solid ice.
It represented the frost of memory.
And in this surreal scene, Black Swan sat before a long table.
While shuffling the cards at hand, she said:
"But don't panic. The truth, as horrifying as it may be, is not yet irreversible."
"There's still a glimmer of hope, and that's precisely why I'm here."
"Next, I'll use this empty light cone that carries all your memories to relive everything that happened before."
"And when this story reaches its end, I'm sure someone as clever as you will notice that..."
"There's a major flaw in the story you have experienced, yet within that flaw lies a glimmer of hope."
After Black Swan finished speaking, the 'Light Cone' in her hand glowed.
Fragments of memories from different times were broken down into scenes, scattering around Black Swan.
It seemed like she was speaking to the Express Crew.
But in reality, viewers could also perceive the memories through the screen.
So it felt more like another fourth-wall break by Star Rail.
Scene after scene flickered before the camera:
The Express had just jumped and the encounter Stelle and Acheron in a dream — although it was confusing, the location-based exploration still revealed clues.
Below, the Express Crew had just arrived at the Reverie Hotel, met the doorman Misha, and clashed with Aventurine, the IPC representative. Fortunately, Miss Acheron passed by again, helping the team escape in time.
And in the dream, they saved Firefly, toured Penacony together, encountered Firefly disguised as Sampo, and unexpectedly entered a child's dream.
These memories—
Unfolded the entire Penacony journey of Stelle.
After falling into the Child's dream, they met "Death", faced the challenge from Aventurine, and eventually uncovered the truth and used the alliance's token to defeat Sunday.
"Thus ends the dreamlike and turbulent journey through Penacony. Surely you've noticed it by now, right?"
"Among these pieces of information, there is a fatal flaw — hidden within these memories."
Black Swan rested her chin in her hand, leisurely looking at the camera.
It looked like she was waiting for the audience's answer.
...
: What does this mean?! The foreshadowing is in these memories?
: Is there something weird we missed that caused the fake ending?!
: I'm still dazed — damn, Star Rail really has guts! They actually aired a fake ending…
: My brain is mush right now — I feel like a clown, being played by miHoYo, and I can't even see where the flaw is!
...
The audience was shocked, delighted—
But also deeply confused.
Many were still processing the fact that they had just seen a fake ending, completely unable to comprehend it.
But the flashing memory fragments on screen kept reminding them:
If you want to keep your intelligence intact, you have to use your brain and think.
...
: Black Swan laid it all out — she's hinting that the flaw is in these memory clips.
: I still think the most suspicious is the hint from Acheron at the beginning in the dream — that foreshadowing hasn't been explained yet.
: Firefly is also highly suspect. Her motives are unclear. Could it be that from the start, she deceived us?!
: Firefly and Robin's fake deaths are in these memories too — what does that mean? Are the "fake deaths" fake?
: Aaaah! I can't tell! I really can't tell!
: Friends! I just had a realization — remember that lyric from "Sleepless Night"? "Memory is the prologue of a dream!" It fits perfectly here!
: The scene when we first met Misha at the hotel!
: I think it's Huohuo — her mysterious button still hasn't been used yet!
...
With Black Swan's hint, the viewers all started picking the scenes they thought were the most suspicious.
And on screen, after a brief pause, Black Swan re-examined the memory.
"You think it's Sparkle?"
"Heh. That masked fool did leave a message for you all."
"Be sure to distinguish the line between reality and illusion."
Black Swan reached out and crushed Sparkle's memory fragment in her hand, speaking slowly:
"Unfortunately, this flaw has nothing to do with the masked fool."
Then she turned her attention to the memory fragment belonging to Acheron.
"The IX never glances at anyone — so how could she grasp the power of the Nihility?"
"Haha, that answer is cute. But the ironic thing is — Miss Acheron has indeed walked far down the path of Nihility."
The memory belonging to Acheron shattered once more.
And next came the image—Misha, Gallagher, and the two humble ones, Firefly and Robin faking their deaths.
"Indeed, their deaths were not in line with our initial assumptions, but at this point, this fact does not conflict with the information we currently know."
"As for Gallagher's identity as a History Fictionologist, although that's the case, he never lied to you. Besides, death and slumber have always gone hand in hand, haven't they?"
Memories shattered one by one under the Black Swan's narration.
Just like the final moments in a detective novel, where the detective starts to unveil the truth.
There were no exaggerated visuals.
But it made the audience fix their eyes on the screen, unable to look away.
In the end.
When all the memories were crushed by the Black Swan, only one remained.
It was a memory about Misha.
"Hehe, little Misha. Perhaps now we should call him the Watchmaker."
"He was a memory of Dream bubble, yet left the Dream bubble due to his desire for 'Trailblaze,' and even began a great adventure in Penacony."
"While Misha is a rather special Memory Zone Meme, and he was granted power by the Trailblaze... there are some essential laws that can't be overturned."
"... A life born in the Memory Zone could never manifest in reality."
"So then, look—how did he appear in The Reverie Hotel in reality and meet you?"
As the Black Swan spoke, the audience's eyes widened!
Their chaotic minds began to clear, and their own theories started to form.
"The answer is simple - He is the one fatal variable that contradicts all our known information. This means that you, who wholeheartedly believe in this memory..."
"Are still trapped in the Dreamscape at this very moment."
Just as they made their guesses, the Black Swan confirmed it, bringing the true truth before the audience.
…
: Holy shit!!!
: Got goosebumps all over!
: Who would've thought there'd be such a twist?! The foreshadowing was planted in the first scene of the first episode!
: And actually, all the information was there! We just didn't realize it ourselves!
: Now it makes sense why after that Sunday boss fight, everything went too smoothly like a bad ending!
: Because everyone is still in the dream! While dreaming, the brain naturally soothes and adapts itself!
: I knew it! How could The IPC suddenly have a change of heart? Even the Genius Society came to help Penacony—it's all because this is a 'beautiful dream'!
: Not to mention this dream has Sunday's interference! What he wants is to trap everyone in the dream!
: So Acheron rushed the Express Crew into jumping? To verify whether they were still in the dream?!
: Damn! Now that you mention it, even the theme song "Sleepless Night" was foreshadowing this! My god!
: I'm done. My brain is overloaded, but even in overload, I finally understood what that "bad ending" was about. From now on, I'll stop criticizing Honkai: Star Rail's plot. It's just on another level!
: "Memory is the prologue of dreams"—this lyric carries so much weight, it's crazy!
: The details… the foreshadowing from the first episode… even the theme song is full of hints, yet not one of us saw it coming! This skill is freaking incredible!
: Just moments ago I was doubting MiHoYo's writing—I'm such a damn fool!!
: All eyes on me—I'm declaring it now: me, who once doubted Honkai: Star Rail's writing, has now officially been slapped in the face by the actual ending!
: Bro, no need to go that far!
…
When all the details were spoken through the Black Swan's mouth, everything connected.
Viewers who figured it out felt as refreshed as eating a popsicle in the heat of summer—shivering with delight.
What shocked them the most was that the clues weren't only dropped in episode three, like some lazy patchwork twist.
It all began before Penacony even started.
From the theme song, the trailers, to the first episode, the groundwork for this false ending had already been laid.
The entire MiHoYo team never leaked a thing, preserving the shocking experience for the audience.
So much so that the viewers wondered—how on earth did they manage to keep quiet until the 3rd episode?!
At this moment, on MiHoYo's official streaming platform, traffic was surging nonstop.
Viewership, which had started declining when the end credits rolled, was now spiking back up with crazy momentum!
And the comments from this new wave of viewers were hilarious:
…
: Damn it! HoYo! You tricked me out of my underwear! I came back only to see "you're still dreaming right now"—missed all the great stuff before that!
: At least you saw that line. I came back to see Black Swan grinning at me like a troll—missed all the context!
: Shit! We all watched episode three! But because I didn't see the last part, I lost a whole billion bucks worth of experience! Aaaaah!
: Say no more—get me a time machine!
: So it's not a bad ending, right? A fake ending? That works!!
: I'm so mad! This is a fake ending unlike any other! A global top-tier series used a fake ending to deceive its audience on first release, and I missed the experience?!
: Hahaha, serves you right for bailing as soon as the credits rolled!
: Thank you all—those of you who missed the final twist. You made our viewing experience that much better!
: Seeing the unprecedented fake ending = +100; knowing that fellow fans missed out = +10,000.
: You people laughing at us—go to hell!
: Aaaah! I'm such a fool!
…
For the audience, episode three's experience was truly one of a kind.
And for this group of viewers, they only rushed back after hearing the news, already spoiled and missing that historic moment.
Spoilers plus the regret of missing out— one can imagine how the poor (unlucky) souls (fools) must've felt.
But regardless, these emotions would all become ingredients in episode three's legacy, and episode three itself— an eternal, unforgettable scene in the history of visual storytelling!
And under the barrage of comments, on screen, Black Swan's monologue had ended.
With Pom-Pom's countdown to the jump, The Express tore through the fabric of the universe and vanished.
While Stelle kept her eyes shut.
Robin, Firefly, Acheron, Sunday… The faces that appeared in Penacony flickered through her memory.
And when she opened her eyes again, she wasn't on The Express.
She was sitting on the couch in a hotel room.
Just as Black Swan had recounted.