Chapter 225: Aponia's Secret
Kids, I won against the big boss with my elbow! man!!! ...
[Aponia used her abundant life experiences to argue for the authenticity of her prophecy, but how could Mei submit to fate? Their exchange ended unhappily.
Afterwards, Mei returned to the hall where Elysia looked at her with an incredulous expression:
"I truly never expected... that you could walk out of there on your own."
"I've been waiting here the whole time, ready to rescue you from Kalpas's hands."
"...You knew everything?"
Mei was somewhat surprised.
At this moment, Mei realized her plan was destined to fail from the start - she had always been within the fate prophesied by Aponia. Even if Aponia hadn't appeared, with Elysia present, she still wouldn't have been in any real life-threatening danger. After waiting a while, Mei found Raven again. After speaking with Raven, Mei began to suspect that Aponia possessed some special quality within the Elysian Realm. So whether for the prophecy or for the truth, Mei had to truly venture into the Depths. After bidding farewell to Mei, Aponia found Su. Su had been observing Aponia's current behavior and hoped she would stop her present attempts. "The future... should be left to the future itself."
Su wished this, but still felt some confusion.
As fellow mental perception-type MANTIS warriors, why did Aponia have such strong control over the Elysian Realm? Aponia sighed with emotion: "Indeed... Su, nothing escapes your eyes."
"But you see, it's not that we built this place together - I... am the [Elysian Realm] itself."]
[Kiana]:'So Mei's plan failed from the very beginning?'
[Eli-o]: "No matter how tortuous the process, whether Aponia personally saved her or Elysia rescued her, the final outcome remains unchanged. This... is fate."
[Bronya Rand]: "How terrifying. I wonder if Miss Mei will ultimately be able to transcend fate."
[Honkai Star Rail - Void Archives]: "If we're just talking about survival, then Mei certainly did emerge alive from the Elysian Realm."
[Raiden Mei]: "But... I'm curious, what did Aponia mean by that final statement 'I am the Elysian Realm'?"
[Black Swan]: "It's possible the Elysian Realm facility was built with Aponia as its core."
[March 7th]: "Could it be that the Elysian Realm is built upon Aponia's body, or that Aponia's true form directly merged with the Realm?"
[Stelle]: "Good guess, but maybe don't guess next time."
[Afterwards, to learn the truth about the 'Decree', Mei once again became the Elysian Realm detective, subtly probing for information from various Flame-Chasers.
From Greya, Mei obtained a painting and learned that the painting of Elysia's heart was pure white without any shadows. After investigating for some time, Mei directly approached Vill-V. From the Great Magician Vill-V, Mei learned some essential nature of the 'Decree'. From Sakura, Mei learned what it felt like to be subjected to the Decree and discovered that Vill-V was the only Flame-Chaser who broke free from the Decree through her own power, forever hiding the part of her spirit that received the Decree. Mei directly found Vill-V again and questioned her about the Decree, but Vill-V claimed she couldn't remember. Even when Mei reminded her that as a memory spirit she couldn't possibly lose memories, she still refused to speak. During the investigation, the tenth day was approaching. Raven bid farewell to Mei, as she had a mission with Gray Raven ahead, and Mei was about to face the prophecy.]
[Raven]: "Time to work again, future me."
[Qingque]: "Getting caught slacking off by your superior and being told to work properly - I understand this, I understand it too well!!"
[Fu Xuan]: "And you have the nerve to say that?"
[Asta]: "But judging from Mei's investigation, she's more inclined to believe Aponia's prophecy is a phenomenon forcibly achieved through the [Decree] rather than being the actual future."
[Kafka]: "Prophecy itself is an extremely rare ability. Even in our universe, prophets are few and far between. It's understandable that Mei doesn't believe it."
[Stelle]: "Prophets? They're pretty common. Like March 7th's miraculous mouth..."
[March 7th]: "You shut up! Who are you calling a jinx!?"
[To confront Aponia directly, Mei went straight to Vill-V and laid all her cards on the table, revealing all the intelligence she had gathered in the Elysian Realm.
As the builder of the Depths, even if Aponia held absolute dominance in its construction, Vill-V's perceptions would still be incorporated within it. And this was the key to entering the Depths through Vill-V! Regarding Aponia's purpose, Mei speculated: "In this ten-day prophecy, Aponia has a [companion]."
"...Uh, you're not going to... accuse me, are you?"
Vill-V had some self-awareness about her reputation. "My only purpose in coming to the Elysian Realm is to reach its deepest parts and obtain the true [secrets] of MOTH."
"Aponia appeared during my advancement, and everything she's done has been to prevent me from [going deeper]."
"I have reason to believe that something exists in the Depths that would drastically change my journey."
"And Aponia's [prophecy], I suspect its true function is... to divert my attention from this point to herself, while that secret that could change everything remains hidden from the world."
Then, Mei came to a realization on her own: "To summarize, I have come before you—someone who is not constrained by Aponia's power and whose consciousness must contain the deepest depths."]
[Vill-V]: "Brilliant, truly brilliant deduction. I never expected a visitor to piece together so much from the clues here."
[Raiden Mei]: "So... Aponia's actions were really just a way to use prophecies to conceal an even greater 'secret'—one that could overturn everything I thought I knew?"
[Theresa]: "So, who is it? Hasn't Mei already uncovered everything about the Elysian Realm?"
[Stelle]: "Could it be the highest secret related to the Honkai?"
[Sparkle]: "Oh my~ Have you all forgotten about a certain girl? A mysterious pink-haired one—Elysia, of course!"
[Sparkle]: "Although Elysia seemed to have told Mei everything, there was absolutely no information about her own identity or background~"
[Sparkle]: "Don't forget, Mobius once referred to Elysia as the 'traitor'—why is that, I wonder? So hard to guess!"
[March 7th]: "N-No way... Could the true secret of the deepest depths be the fact that Elysia betrayed them!?"
TL/N : would take a break from uploading chapter for a few days since I'm moving into another place.