Chapter 199: Auntie Mei with a "Homely Wife" Vibe! A Story Set Eight Years After the Honkai Disappeared?
"Thanks to [I am Queen Mei's Dog] for the superchat: 'Is the Honkai Impact 3rd account with the Higokumaru avatar actually the official one? Why did the blue checkmark disappear?' Regarding this, I believe spaghetti should be mixed with No. 42 concrete... Just kidding, Higokumaru drew it on himself, so it has a blue checkmark now!"
"Thanks to [President Kiana is the Cutest in the World] for the superchat: 'Why didn't President Kiana come to the stream this time? I want to see her!' Well, President Kiana is currently working in the customer service department... 'Gold-star Customer Service Xiao Qi, happy to be of service!'"
"Thanks to [Old Thief I'm Going to Make You Fly] for the superchat: 'Old Thief, when are you going to die?' Barring any accidents, I should be alive for the next fifty years."
Su Mu replied to several superchats with a smile. He had long since become unshakeable in the face of the players' reprimands and insults; he even found it a bit dull. Sigh, isn't there anything more stimulating?
"Director Su's psychological resilience is truly top-tier."
Carole silently gave him a thumbs-up in her heart. Currently, more than half of the bullet chats in Ai-chan's room were "kindly" asking if Old Thief Su Mu had eaten today, if he was healthy, or when he would "kick the bucket"... But clearly, this had zero effect on Su Mu. Looking at his smiling face, Carole even wondered if he might be a bit of a masochist.
Mhm, could it be... Director Su actually has a submissive streak?
Su Mu met Carole's strange gaze and asked curiously, "What's wrong?"
Carole shook her head. "Nothing, nothing! I just didn't expect the special guests for this stream to be us and Mei-senpai..."
As Bronya's junior, Carole naturally knew Mei, though their relationship wasn't as close as the original Trio. Still, they were friends. However, this was Carole's first time doing a gameplay preview stream, and she couldn't help but feel nervous. Originally, she thought this should have been given to Elysia since she had more experience. But Su Mu said that since A Post-Honkai Odyssey featured Carole's plot, she had to be there for the best effect.
Of course, Carole had designed her own move set for APHO. But as the saying goes, knowing the design doesn't mean you can play it well—just like the author of a reading comprehension passage doesn't necessarily know the "deep meaning" behind a sentence they wrote. Moreover, APHO's difficulty was indeed higher than the base game. With the addition of the aerial combat system, it wasn't very friendly to "clumsy-fingered" players.
That didn't mean it was unplayable; at most, the way one defeated enemies might be a bit ugly. It was like Devil May Cry—you could clear it with stylish aerial combos, or you could clear it with "unga-bunga" spamming. You might look silly on the ground, but the pro would ask: "Who are you trying to impress with those flashy moves?"
To accommodate casual players while still catering to high-skill enthusiasts, Su Mu specifically designed difficulty settings: Easy, Normal, and Hard. Enemy HP and ATK would scale accordingly. The difficulty could be adjusted at any time, with dynamic suggestions based on the player's combat performance, so there was no need to worry about the game being too hard or too boring.
APHO's combat style differed from the base game, which was why Su Mu held this special stream to demonstrate the gameplay of the new open world. And the APHO that had undergone technical iteration featured upgraded graphics compared to his previous life!
Carole impatiently logged into her account and opened A Post-Honkai Odyssey! After briefly introducing the interfaces and mechanics, she clicked on the gameplay overview. It briefly introduced the background of the story.
[This is the eighth year after the "Honkai" disappeared from Earth...]
[With the assistance of the international charitable organization, Schicksal, Earth's civilization has gradually recovered from the terrible disaster.]
[Those who once overcame countless hardships alongside this land have matured from innocence... continuing to fight for this beautiful world they love so dearly.]
[After the Honkai, a "City of Rebirth" and "Golden Fountain" arose with incredible speed—St. Fountain.]
[It is located at the southernmost tip of Africa, nestled against Lion's Head Bay on a flat coast surrounded by the mountains of the Cape of Good Hope.]
[A seaside town that appears normal at first glance, yet hides a world-shaking secret unknown to outsiders... a new story begins here.]
This brief introduction was like a stone casting a thousand ripples, causing the audience to collectively type question marks.
[Eight years after the Honkai disappeared? Does that mean the current civilization actually succeeded in defeating it??]
[So, this is a story set after the main plot of Honkai Impact 3rd?]
[Humanity truly won? Does that mean Kevin's wish was fulfilled?]
[Holy crap, I'm starting to panic! Don't suddenly tell me Kiana is dead or something... if that's the ending, I'm never letting Old Thief Su Mu off!]
[Probably not. Look at the intro; the Trio should still be alive, otherwise how would they 'continue to fight for this beautiful world'?]
[Good lord, so the Old Thief didn't lie to us? The ending of Honkai 3rd is actually a happy, grand reunion?]
Amidst the chatter, Carole clicked on the "Base" function, which was marked with a red exclamation point. Inside a room, Raiden Mei sat on a chair with her legs crossed. However, her appearance was somewhat different from what the audience remembered—she was more mature, radiating a strong "homely wife" vibe.
"Wow! Mei-senpai looks so good!"
Carole stared unblinkingly at the in-game Raiden Mei. This mature, elegant version was a feast for the eyes. Of course, as the combat designer, Carole had already seen the model... but streaming is about the effect, and a little acting is only natural.
Su Mu smiled. Of course she looked good. The technical capability of this world had seen a comprehensive upgrade compared to his previous life; even the texture of the black tights was infinitely close to reality... Su Mu had specifically applied for a patent for that technology! With all these technical enhancements, how could "Auntie Mei" look anything but stunning?
[Whoa! Grown-up Mei hits different!]
[she was already a 'Yamato Nadeshiko,' but now she's a mature Big Sister!]
[I love mature Big Sisters! LOVE THEM!!]
[Eight years after the Honkai ended? Should we be calling her Auntie Mei now?]
[Lightning Burst Warning!]
[Kurikara Warning!]
["Storm, submit to me" Warning!]
An avatar frame for Mei popped up in the game, informing Carole that she only needed to click the bubble above her head to talk. Once she did, the APHO plot unfolded.
[You stand at a height, watching a massive object floating in the distance.]
[(What on earth is that?)]
[The sunset dyes the sky a deep crimson, and rays of light flicker at the edges of the strange floating object.]
[In a daze, you feel as if it possesses its own life. Red light flows like blood surging through its veins.]
["Thinking about the mission?"]
[A familiar voice comes from behind.]
At this moment, two dialogue boxes popped up, and the "Evaluation" system appeared on the interface. Choosing specific options could raise or lower the evaluation value, which would affect certain side stories later. However, there was no need to worry about missing content; APHO functioned like a visual novel, allowing players to backtrack to branching paths and experience different dialogues.
["Mhm, we'll discuss it together later. For now, I have a simple task for you."]
["Here, you write the codename for this mission and sign here—give yourself a codename."]
After Mei's line, a prompt to enter a codename appeared, which would affect how other characters addressed "you" in future dialogues.
[A name? Whoa, brothers, I have a bold idea!]
[Hey! I have one too!]
[I have to use 'I am Mei's Dog' for my codename!]
[Pfft! Seriously, brother? You can pick any name or title, and you have no more ambition than that!]
[Heh! Mine is better! I'm 'Auntie Mei's Leash,' so I can separate Auntie Mei from her dog!]
The chat went wild. Carole cast a pleading look at Su Mu, asking what name or codename she should pick.
Su Mu thought for a bit. "How about 'Captain's Ghost' (Jian Chang)?"
Carole looked confused. "I know what 'Captain' (Jian Zhang) means, but what is 'Captain's Ghost'?"
Raiden Mei also looked at Su Mu curiously, waiting for an explanation.
Su Mu let out a sigh, his gaze turning deep. "The ultimate destination of all Captains is to become a ghost. When you reach my age, you'll understand."
Carole didn't know where to start roasting that. Raiden Mei hesitated as well; after all, she was older than Su Mu—how was she supposed to "reach his age"? Was she going to age in reverse?
In the end, Carole thought for a while and typed "Su Mu" as the codename. This made Su Mu choke.
"Wait, hold on? Why use my name?"
Carole blinked. "Is there something wrong? Codenames can be anything, right?"
Su Mu gave a bitter smile. Carole, oh Carole. Do you realize that by using this name, the video site will be flooded tomorrow with videos of 'Su Mu' being pummeled by monsters in APHO? Don't underestimate these players; they'll do anything!!
After confirming the name, Carole learned the details of the mission from the dialogue with Mei. On April 13th—fourteen days ago—Welt Yang arrived here at the invitation of the St. Fountain government for a "business trip." Schicksal satellites captured a man resembling him getting off at Saad Station, after which he went missing. Squad 3's mission was to find Welt Yang and return him safely to Schicksal HQ.
[Old Yang is missing?]
[So our mission is to find Old Yang?]
[Wait, a man that big can actually get lost? Is this the power of the First Herrscher? That's pretty funny!]
[Hold on, didn't the Honkai disappear from Earth? Old Yang probably isn't a Herrscher anymore, right?]
[I always thought Old Yang looked like a mentor figure who would die fighting the Honkai... I didn't expect him to survive!]
[Heh, Old Yang survived being slashed like that by Kevin in the Sea of Quanta. Are you questioning his survivability?]
[Am I the only one wondering why they need to bring Welt back to Schicksal HQ? Did Anti-Entropy and Schicksal collaborate? No way? Old Yang's father was killed by Otto!]
Raiden Mei provided more info about Welt in the dialogue.
["He is the Second Herrscher of Reason, the former Sovereign of Anti-Entropy. After the Great Eruption ended, he retired and is now a producer and concept designer for the animation company E.T. Studio."]
["I haven't seen Mr. Welt in years, though the Doctor mentions him often."]
["...When I first received this mission, I was optimistic."]
["Mr. Welt often went missing in the past, but he always returned safely. He can't stay still; even when fighting the Honkai, he always appeared on the most dangerous front lines."]
["Though he is a Herrscher, he is our very reliable comrade and partner."]
["But... after arriving in this city, I discovered things might not be as simple as I imagined."]
Mei's lines gave Carole a strange expression. Since she primarily handled combat design, she hadn't looked into the plot much. This was her first time seeing the full APHO story...
"Uh, Mei-senpai's line is definitely roasting Mr. Welt's tendency to do 'Welt-ups' (Yang-wo-qi-zuo—a pun on sit-ups and Welt constantly 'dying' and coming back)."
Raiden Mei paused. "What are 'Welt-ups'?"
Carole explained seriously: "It refers to how Mr. Welt always manages to escape danger. Every time you think he's dead, he suddenly pops up from somewhere else..."
[Genius!]
[Whoa! 'Welt-ups' fits Old Yang way too well!]
[My first thought seeing that word was that Old Yang himself had arrived. It's too accurate!]
The audience roared with laughter at Carole's remark. The atmosphere inside and outside the stream was instantly filled with joy!
END OF CHAPTER
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