Hearing the word "live stream," Fu Hua instantly perked up: "Okay!"
Her mood was excellent right now—not only had her followers skyrocketed, but she was also going to learn from Elysia how to coax girls. It was just too wonderful!
She sat down in the streaming room (since the company had fixed live-streaming days, they specially renovated a streaming room for convenience. The background was an electronic screen that would change depending on which actor was streaming.)
As soon as the official streaming channel opened, viewers flooded in.
"Is the stream about to start? Who's streaming today?"
"That last episode really moved me to tears. Fu Hua's portrayal was so well done, and the Herrscher of Sentience was just too cute."
"Yeah, yeah! I feel like this episode wasn't written by the dog director. Think about it—this episode didn't even have any knives!"
"Exactly, exactly! After watching, I thought the same. If it were that dog director, the Herrscher of Sentience and Fu Hua would definitely have to kill one of them today."
"Actually, it still counts as a knife, right? Fu Hua's thousand-year journey...finally finding a place to belong. It really wasn't easy."
"At least the ending was good! Think about Himeko's Final Lesson..."
"Damn it, I came here for the stream, not to hear you knife me again."
"..."
While everyone was discussing the episode's plot and sharing their feelings,
An extremely familiar voice suddenly sounded: "Hello? Hello? Can you hear me? Is anyone there? Hello? Hello!"
It was the Herrscher of Sentience!
Thanks to her previous acting experience, Fu Hua now played the Herrscher of Sentience with ease.
The chat exploded instantly: "It's Senti! She's actually streaming today—this is amazing!"
"Damn! I've been waiting for the Herrscher of Sentience the most. As long as she streams, I can dig out tons of secrets, hahaha."
"Senti, are you okay right now? What are your plans from now on? Are you going to fight Honkai or go after Schicksal and them?"
"Senti, can you do me a favor? Help me kill Otto—I'll send you rockets!"
"..."
Fu Hua watched the messages flooding the chat and was somewhat shocked.
When she used to stream, there were plenty of viewers too, but never this level of enthusiasm.
She quickly said: "Hey, hey, don't rush! One at a time, one at a time. Let me see which one to answer first...this one."
"Am I okay? Of course I'm fine! How many people in this world could possibly beat me? Not a single one!"
"Hmm...as for what I'll do from now on? Haven't decided yet. The world is so big—where couldn't I go?"
"Help you kill Otto? Hmm...I actually really want to, but that bastard is seriously hard to deal with. Even in the illusion, I couldn't get him. And now the old antique has taken my body back—I can't just go charging in carelessly."
She had only answered a few questions when even more poured in:
"What exactly happened to Otto and Kallen in the end? What did you mean when you said he only had one dead woman in his heart?"
"Why do you hate MEI so much? Is it because Dr. MEI is a bad person? What happened to her and Kevin in the end?"
At that moment.
Hessian and Elysia were also watching the stream.
Elysia was waiting for her to finish so she could take her out to practice coaxing cute girls.
When the two saw the second question,
They spoke in unison: "Questions like this must have come from Kevin, right?"
To confirm his guess, Hessian clicked into the viewer's profile. There were no photos or images of the person, just endless reviews of all kinds of ramen, instant noodles, cup noodles...everything noodle-related.
"No need to guess—it's definitely him..."
Elysia smiled: "Looks like he really cares a lot about his and MEI's story in this drama."
Hessian said: "It's fine...let him stew. When we get to the later episodes, it'll naturally be filmed."
As the two chatted,
The Herrscher of Sentience continued interacting with the audience and answering questions: "Oh~ You're asking about Kallen? She's dead. Died a long time ago."
The moment they heard that, someone asked: "If she's dead, why didn't Otto just die with her? It would've saved everyone so much trouble!"
The Herrscher of Sentience said in surprise: "You guys didn't know? That bastard did all this exactly to revive Kallen—human experiments, Second Divine Key experiments, all of it..."
"What?"
The entire chat exploded.
Ever since Honkai Impact 3rd started airing, Otto had been an extremely mysterious figure.
No one knew his true goal, no one understood his intentions. Everyone only knew he was an absolute villain who committed countless atrocities.
This was the first time everyone learned that
Everything he did was actually to revive a dead person?
This...was way too insane?
This...was way too ridiculous?
Unimaginable!
This couldn't possibly be something Otto would do—it didn't match at all!
After everyone's shock subsided,
They asked the Herrscher of Sentience again: "Can she really be revived?"
The Herrscher of Sentience spread her hands: "How could she? That's a dead person we're talking about—a person who's been dead for five hundred years! Even her body has turned to ashes. How could she possibly be revived?"
The viewers in the chat continued: "If she can't be revived, then why did he still do all this?"
The Herrscher of Sentience curled her lip: "Because he's got a screw loose, obviously. His head's full of nothing but a dead woman."
"Uh..."
That actually made a lot of sense.
Next, everyone asked about Himeko.
The Herrscher of Sentience directly said she didn't know—she had no memories from that period.
Through this back-and-forth Q&A interaction,
She filled in character backstories and world-building details for everyone while also leaking bits of information and guiding the discussion topics.
Before they knew it,
The streaming time was almost over.
The Herrscher of Sentience waved at the camera: "Break time's over. I've gotta get back to my journey now~"
The stream ended.
But the audience's enthusiasm only grew stronger.
Everyone was discussing the plot across all kinds of social platforms.
Even on short-video apps, aside from today's hottest clip of the Herrscher of the Void vs. Herrscher of Sentience battle, Otto compilation videos dominated the charts. Titles were almost all variations of "The World's Biggest Clown—Committing Atrocities for a Woman Who Never Loved Him," and similar.
...
In the car.
Fu Hua looked at the trending topics online and asked Hessian worriedly: "Director Hessian, is this really okay? Otto's getting absolutely trashed online right now."
Hessian shrugged it off carelessly: "What's the big deal? Before, everyone wanted to straight-up kill Otto. Now they're just cursing and mocking him—no actual danger to his life. Isn't that great?"
"Uh..." Fu Hua thought for a moment: "That...actually kind of makes sense?"
Elysia, sitting in the passenger seat, asked the driving Hessian: "Honey, since Otto was written based on you, there's definitely going to be a twist later, right?"
Hessian replied: "There won't be any twist. Otto is just a bad guy. He doesn't crave anyone's understanding, and he doesn't need any whitewashing. He is exactly who he is."
Meanwhile, Kiana, sitting next to Fu Hua, spoke up: "But...there's one thing I don't get. Director Hessian and Ellie are husband and wife, so why does Otto like Kallen instead of Ellie?"
Hearing this question,
All four people in the car—including SAKURA—immediately turned to look at Hessian.
Actually...
There had been speculation before that Hessian might really like Theresa.
The reason there was no casting couch or office romance was—Theresa's chest was too small, and he was a big-boobs enthusiast!
Now they were indirectly confirming that guess.
Hessian, unaware of this, answered frankly: "Simple reason: the role and screen time I arranged for my wife are far more important than Kallen's. You'll find out later."
Kiana pressed: "Is it the role you mentioned before—the one that'll make the whole world fall in love with Ellie?"
Hessian nodded: "Exactly."
"Impossible!"
Several people said in unison. Precisely because they were actors, they knew just how difficult it was to make everyone in the world like someone.
In this world, aside from money, there was nothing that could make absolutely everyone like it.
Hessian didn't bother explaining further: "You'll see when the time comes. Alright, we're almost at the destination."
He pulled the car up in front of a shop called "Thieving Cat's Home."
After parking,
Elysia got out first and walked confidently into the store: "Is the boss here?"
Hessian stepped inside.
Looking around carefully, the shop mostly sold second-hand goods—almost every kind of item imaginable.
"The boss isn't home~ Went out to stock up..."
A cute, childish voice came from behind the counter.
Elysia immediately broke into a smile and leaned over: "So it's little Griseo. Do you know where the boss went to stock up?"
The little girl named Griseo poked her head out from behind the counter: "Don't know...Pardofelis said everyone's gotten smarter lately, harder to pull off. She has to go farther away."
???
Kiana and Fu Hua were both a little confused.
They whispered: "Is this boss's supply chain legit? It sounds like stealing, and the store name..."
Elysia heard their conversation.
She smiled and said: "Don't worry. Little Pardofelis isn't actually a thief. That's just her usual way of teasing Griseo."
Hearing that,
Everyone finally relaxed.
After all, this was a society ruled by law. If the person was a habitual thief, it would be troublesome.
Elysia leaned closer to Griseo and asked: "By the way...little Griseo, what are you drawing?"
Griseo immediately hid the draft in her hand, blushing: "N-nothing..."
But then she saw Hessian standing next to Elysia.
In that instant.
Her face turned even redder.
??
Hessian was puzzled. A certain image suddenly flashed in his mind, and he asked directly: "You're not drawing BL, are you?"
"BL?"
Kiana tilted her head, not understanding, and looked questioningly at Fu Hua.
Fu Hua also shook her head to indicate she didn't know.
It was SAKURA who explained: "It means boys' love comics. More specifically, it's about men and men..."
Before she could finish, Kiana quickly covered her mouth: "I know already!"
Then she angrily turned to Hessian: "Director Hessian, how can you accuse such a cute little girl of drawing...drawing that kind of improper stuff?"
Hessian wasn't as naive and innocent as Kiana.
Just looking at Griseo's face, red enough to drip water, he knew he had guessed correctly.
"If you don't believe me, let her show you the draft."
Hearing this, Kiana refused to back down. Ignoring Griseo's protests, she took the draft and looked through it.
First page...
"Huh? The person in the drawing looks familiar. Isn't that Otto?"
Second page...
"This one looks familiar too. Isn't that Kevin?"
Third page...
"...This...this..."
Her face instantly turned bright red. She hurriedly shoved the draft into Fu Hua's hands.
Fu Hua was quite curious too. She picked it up, quickly flipped through, then awkwardly turned the draft over and placed it on the table.
Hessian smiled and said: "See? I was right."
Both of them stayed silent.
Finally, Fu Hua spoke: "Why...why would you draw something like this?"
Griseo said shyly: "B-because...because the Herrscher of Sentience said...Otto and Kevin are so similar. Both of them are for dead women. Since they don't have women anymore, then..."
She couldn't continue and covered her face.
Fu Hua was even more dumbfounded. How did the blame end up on her?
"I'm back~" Pardofelis suddenly rushed in carrying a big bag.
Before her voice even finished, she saw several people surrounding Griseo, with Griseo covering her face and her neck and ears completely flushed red.
She immediately shouted: "You guys are bullying little Griseo while I'm gone?!"
"Pardofelis!"
Elysia was delighted to see her and immediately leaned in: "Haven't seen you in a few days—did you miss me a little?"
Pardofelis's momentum instantly deflated when she saw it was Elysia. She scratched her head: "Even if it's Sister Ellie, you can't bully little Griseo while I'm not here~"
Elysia said gently: "How could I bully Griseo? I love her the most! Ah~ Don't get jealous—I love you the most too. See? Knowing you missed me, I came right away."
Uh...
Seeing this scene,
Kiana and Fu Hua both had a strong sense of déjà vu.
This was exactly how they had been coaxed into joining the company back then.
Pardofelis couldn't hold up against it either. She quickly changed the subject: "Why did Sister Ellie suddenly come here? Is something up?"
Elysia put on an adorable expression: "Of course because I missed you! Is there anything more important than that?"
"...Yes—" Pardofelis almost agreed instinctively, then quickly shook her head: "Ah~ No! You all came together—there has to be something, right?"
Elysia said: "Yes~ It's exactly because I think about Pardofelis every day, want to see Pardofelis every day, that I want you to join the company. That way I can see Pardofelis every single day...and even get to film with Pardofelis!"
"Ah!!"
"Film with Sister Ellie?"
Pardofelis was genuinely moved and almost agreed on the spot. But then she glanced at Griseo beside her and hesitated.
Elysia always knew exactly what she was thinking. She immediately said: "Don't worry about Griseo~ Our company has a woman who's incredibly good at taking care of people. Last week she took such meticulous care of my husband—I'm sure she'd be perfect for looking after Griseo."
Hessian, standing nearby, instantly realized she was talking about Aponia...
So...
All last week when Aponia kept trying to seduce him and he kept sneaking glances at her figure...Elysia knew about everything?
Was she jealous?
Was that why she transferred Aponia away from his side?
Hessian couldn't help but smile. Elysia being jealous was actually really cute.
"Our company can even arrange a shop for you, Pardofelis, so you can sell snacks and stuff..." Elysia looked at Griseo: "And Griseo can see the people in her drawings every day, watch their interactions—that'll definitely give you tons of inspiration for your art~"
The moment she heard this,
Griseo's eyes lit up. She was practically urging Pardofelis to agree quickly.
Hessian, meanwhile, felt a sudden chill down his spine.
Kiana and Fu Hua exchanged a glance and couldn't help but laugh together.
In this world, the only person who could truly handle Hessian was probably Elysia.
Pardofelis saw Griseo's expression and knew she really wanted to go. Plus, she herself did want to spend more time with Elysia, so she finally agreed: "Alright then...I'll listen to Sister Ellie."
Elysia showed a triumphant smile, turned back to Kiana and Fu Hua, and said: "See~ Coaxing girls is actually really simple."
Kiana said helplessly: "That's because you're Elysia~"
Fu Hua agreed: "Yes, these things can only be done by Elysia."
Elysia smiled cutely: "You're all cute girls too, you know. Cute girls are capable of anything! You can definitely do it too! Keep it up!"
Then she turned to Pardofelis: "Then we'll see you tomorrow~"
Pardofelis nodded: "Mm~ See you tomorrow, Sister Ellie."
...
The group left the Thieving Cat's Home.
Kiana and Fu Hua now fully understood what it had been like when they themselves were coaxed into joining the company by Elysia.
SAKURA, however, was still a little surprised: "You managed to sign such a beautiful actress so easily? Truly worthy of Elysia."
Hessian smiled and said: "Otherwise, why do you think the company was nearly bankrupt before?"
Hearing this, Elysia—who had been smiling—suddenly froze, her smile stiffening.