After receiving the gifts,
Guinaifen instantly transformed from a timid ordinary person into a fearless Galaxy Bat Warrior.
Confidently, she strode towards the door.
In the corridor.
It wasn't exactly a den of dragons and tigers.
Though the atmosphere remained eerie.
She spotted Firefly!
At Firefly's feet.
Lay a motionless member of the Dreamjolt Troupe.
"Great, great..."
"So easily, I've reunited with Firefly!"
"Don't worry, Miss Firefly, from now on, I'll protect you all the way!"
Meanwhile, in the live stream.
Several players noticed something amiss.
...
"Did Firefly take down a meme by herself?"
"It seems Firefly has some combat skills."
"Earlier, when we were about to solve problems with the bat, Firefly mentioned that bats were inefficient. Looking at this... maybe Firefly is actually a master?"
"Haha... could it be that Firefly will become a Destruction DPS when she enters the gacha pool?"
"With Firefly's innocent, dazed look, maybe she scared the meme to death."
...
After meeting Firefly.
Firefly analyzed, "No matter what, we must still be in the dream, not somewhere else, and certainly not reality... I can't mistake the unique texture of memory particles in the air."
"But this place is so different from the sweet dreams I know—claustrophobic... secluded... unsettling... and these floating words, you can see them too, right? Such a place couldn't exist in Penacony under the Family's governance. So, is it a dream bubble...?"
"No, wait—remember what your friend said before we lost consciousness—the true Dreamscape..."
[Is this the Family's secret...?]
"I can't be sure, this discovery is too sudden. But no matter what, the Family must be hiding something about the truth of the Dreamscape..."
"And you noticed it too when you woke up, the clocks and ticking sounds everywhere... My intuition tells me that the secret hidden here is probably related to that mysterious Watchmaker."
"If it points to the Watchmaker's legacy—it's closely related to everyone currently in Penacony's dream..."
"Let's go... Whether to uncover the truth or to leave this place, we must move on."
Soon.
They arrived at a room with Firefly.
Here, one could scale walls through [Dream Bubble Charging].
The room's map also became three-dimensional.
During the exploration.
They were still accompanied by the floating words of a little boy.
[Why did you come here specifically?]
[Mikhail, you seem troubled...]
[It's so dark here...]
[Mikhail?]
[Are you leaving?]
[Don't go, okay?]
[At least take me with you, please...]
[Okay? Please...]
Firefly wondered, "Since earlier, these words keep appearing and disappearing, are they someone's thoughts? And who is Mikhail..."
"I seem to sense the emotions within them... Confounding... fear... sadness... and a faint, almost imperceptible..."
"Resolve to face death..."
On the Astral Express.
Himeko focused on the text that appeared in the plot.
Occasionally frowning.
Then showing a contemplative expression.
She was continuously speculating based on the information from these maps.
Taking advantage of the host's exploration of the map.
Himeko began, "The name of this map is 'A Child's Dream.' According to Firefly, these words represent the inner voice of this child..."
"And this 'child,' if nothing unexpected has happened, should be the hotel bellboy—Misha."
Old Yang's expression turned serious.
He spoke up, "I just verified with the family."
"The family's manager stated that none of their major branches have a member named 'Misha.'"
March 7th was instantly shocked.
"Huh!?"
"So... Misha is actually a non-existent person? A character fabricated by Yu Ling?"
Old Yang shook his head, "No, Yu Ling wouldn't do that."
"There's another possibility—"
"This Misha, just like the Origami Bird and Clockie, can only be seen by the Trailblazers."
"Think about it carefully. In the storyline, aside from us Trailblazers, no one else has interacted with Misha."
March 7th took a deep breath, "Hiss... the more I think about it, the creepier it gets!"
"Sister Himeko, Uncle Yang, I'm glad I'm watching the storyline with you guys. Otherwise, I wouldn't have noticed so many details..."
Stelle spoke up, "So, Misha has some deep connection with Mikhail?"
Pom-Pom was full of anticipation.
And a bit nervous.
Watching everyone express their opinions and supplement each other's speculations.
Getting closer and closer to the answer.
They really wanted to know.
What happened to that young, confident Mikhail after he got off the train?
On this planet?
At that moment.
Stelle suddenly had a realization.
She shouted, "I got it!"
Everyone immediately turned their gaze to Stelle.
"They both have the surname 'Mi'..."
"Misha is Mikhail's grandson!"
Himeko: "..."
Old Yang: "That possibility can't be ruled out."
Everyone continued to watch the storyline.
The space in the scene was more like a grand hall than a room.
In the center, there was a huge fountain.
Little Gui went through a lot of trouble to find the exit.
Before entering the next space.
In front of the gate, there was a reward for successful exploration—[Precious Loot].
[Obtained item: [Grand Duke's Robe of Grace]]
She clicked to check it.
And was instantly delighted!
"Wow!"
"I got a CRIT piece!"
"The substats have CRIT Damage, ATK, and speed!"
"This is god-tier!"
"How did this even happen?!"
...
"The Grand Duke's burial shroud."
"Duke Inferno dropped a Relic."
"Miss you, Duke."
"Penacony is littered with Duke's Relics, lol."
"My boy Jing finally has a new compatible Relic to wear."
"No DEF, lacks survivability, recommend dismantling it."
...
Little Gui immediately excitedly enhanced the newly acquired CRIT piece.
Straight to level 15!
Full of anticipation, she looked at the Relic's full potential!
But the result left her utterly dumbfounded.
"Huh?"
"DEF out of nowhere, maxed out!?"
"Wait...!"
"Is this how you enhance substats?!"
"Even if you spread it out evenly, I could still use it!"
"Ahhhhh, whoever said it lacked DEF in the comments, come out!!!"
Seeing the barrage filled with "Feels good" and "Thank you, Little Gui,"
Little Gui's mentality completely shattered.
She sighed.
Sincerely advising the family in the live stream, she said, "Sigh, everyone, please don't get addicted to gambling for Relics."
"We are story enthusiasts."
"I don't care about double-crit Relics or perfect substats, really."
"Let's keep pushing the story forward."
"I have a feeling that something major is about to happen in the upcoming plot…"
Entering a new area.
It was a low and narrow corridor.
Firefly's voice rang out: "Dire Straits… but we made it."
"But the Family promised the public that the Dreamscape was absolutely safe…"
...
The Reverie Hotel.
Lobby.
The players gathered here to watch the live stream couldn't sit still anymore.
They stood up one after another, denouncing the Family!
"There's actually such a dangerous and eerie place in the Dreamscape!?"
"How much has the Family been hiding?"
"I'm going to sue you for false advertising in the Interstellar Peace Court!"
"The Family's management needs to come out and give an explanation!"
"Refund, refund!"
...
The Alfalfa Family.
The patriarch, Old Oti, was sitting on the sofa.
Drinking while watching the story unfold.
At that moment.
An assistant approached.
Presenting a financial report in front of him.
"Sir, this is the latest Penacony financial report."
"Due to the story progression in Honkai: Star Rail, our currency exchange rate has dropped by several percentage points, and both market management and auction transactions have been impacted to varying degrees…"
As the economic pillar among the Five Families.
The impact of the story on Penacony's wealth was particularly significant to them.
Now.
Even someone as optimistic as Old Oti couldn't let out his usual "Hohohoho" laughter.
This story.
Was undoubtedly a major blow to Penacony!
Old Oti waved his hand.
"I understand, let's not worry about these things for now."
"Right now, Penacony is on the brink of collapse. I don't know what the patriarch of the Oak Family and that Dreammaster are plotting…"
"At a time like this, when the very foundation of Penacony is shaking, thinking about exchange rates and profits is meaningless."
"If things go wrong, the entire Family's management might be ousted this time…"
Behind his sunglasses.
Old Oti showed a trace of worry.
When it came to business battles, he still had some strategies up his sleeve.
But in the face of such overwhelming circumstances.
All he could do now was—
Watch the story unfold.
And silently pray!
"Sigh, Watchmaker, why did you have to leave behind an inheritance…"
"Penacony can't handle so many forces from across the universe."
"Everyone, please be careful."
"Don't let Penacony collapse… Ding."