Becoming a Cosplay Big Shot in the World of Honkai Impact 3rd

"What in the world are these things?"

Li Pu felt a bit dizzy from the sudden influx of information. He pressed his temples, trying to make himself a little more comfortable. "Drawing characters is drawing characters, why are there suddenly so many missions?"

"What is all this?"

Drawing characters was expected. What wasn't expected was the sudden appearance of three missions.

Facing the three missions, Li Pu, who hadn't even figured out how to use the characters yet, felt genuinely bewildered.

"System, explain to me what a character is!" Li Pu said, having cleared his head a bit. "What does it mean to use a character? What can these characters do?"

If he had to say, this was the first time his system was actually functioning properly.

Before he found a job, he had been carrying out his initial transmigration missions.

Other than being able to check mission progress, this useless system couldn't do anything else.

Just as it felt like it was getting on track, he was bombarded with so much information that he felt flustered, not knowing what was what or how it was all connected. What did it mean to become the King of Understanding? What was the mission "No one understands King Arthur better than me"? What was he supposed to do for "A real man lasts five minutes"?

The most crucial thing was that, although he felt there would be some immediate benefits from drawing characters.

But how were these characters supposed to be used?

Li Pu truly didn't know.

"King of Understanding, huh..." Li Pu grumbled. "There are still many things I don't understand. System, explain to me what a King of Understanding is?"

"King of Understanding is exactly what it sounds like," the system explained truthfully. "It means achieving a state where no one in the world understands XXX better than you. If you achieve that, you are the King of Understanding."

"The King of Understanding mission is for you to learn what needs to be learned, to reach the point where I understand better than others."

"The way to use characters is 'equip.' A more common explanation is 'transform.'"

The system continued to explain characters to Li Pu: "Through a special action, 'equip' the character. After 'equipping,' you can gain the character's related 'skills,' 'memories,' etc. However, 'skills' and anything that surpasses your own physical fitness and abilities are only effective during the time you are 'equipping' the character."

"Any character you draw will be rated based on your level of understanding of that character."

"Taking Artoria Pendragon as an example."

"Your level of understanding of the character is 'Slightly Understand.'"

"Below 'Slightly Understand,' the character's rating is A."

"A-class characters have significant restrictions. They can only be equipped for five minutes, and there is a 24-hour cooldown period after each use."

"At the same time," the system continued, "due to the low rating, in A-class state, you can only unleash 20% of the character's combat power."

"To upgrade a character, to understand a character well, you can obtain related character equipment through draws or by crafting it yourself, understand the character's persona, study the history of the character's prototype, or cosplay the character. You can also improve by reading the character's memories in first-person and role-playing, or by using side quests to briefly travel back in time and interact directly with the character."

"Simply put, it's about increasing the degree of 'understanding' in 'I understand this character very well.'"

"By upgrading from 'Slightly Understand' to 'Understand a Little,' you can upgrade the character to S-class, extending the equipment time, shortening the cooldown period, and increasing the combat power unleashed."

"And so on, the highest level being 'No one understands her better than I do.'"

"The character level will be EX, allowing for permanent equipping and unleashing 1000% combat power."

"Regarding permanent equipping, the system needs to issue a warning." The system's voice suddenly became serious and filled with a sense of threat. "Do not let anyone know that you can equip characters."

"Otherwise, the character will turn into a 'skin.' 'Skins' have no effect, regardless of whether you understand them or not."

"And it's a permanent, mandatory binding."

"So please be careful not to expose it."

"You are responsible for the consequences of exposure."

"Oh, I get it now," Li Pu said, finally understanding the gist of it. "Exposing something like this? How could that happen? Since this is the King of Understanding system and a King of Understanding cultivation mission."

"Then, as the King of Understanding, I won't be humble. No one in this world understands how to hide my identity better than I do."

"So, how do I equip a character?"

"'In the name of the Moon, I shall vanquish you.'" The system's voice suddenly changed slightly, as if it were holding back laughter. "If you don't understand, I can send a video to your phone."

"You can rewatch it. By the way, you need to be full of emotion, stay in character, and immerse yourself in the role."

"King of Understanding system, any action or emotional understanding that is not precise, or expression that is not conveyed properly."

"Will prevent transformation. Please practice more."

As soon as the system's voice fell, the atmosphere suddenly froze.

"In the name of the Moon, I shall vanquish you"? How could he not know that? Li Pu wasn't afraid of being laughed at; this was something of a dark past from his childhood!

Not the anime itself, but something else.

What happened in childhood was in the past, and now he had to do it all over again...

"Can we discuss this?" Li Pu stammered. "This... transformation thing, can we change it? Change the way of equipping."

"Of course," the system said sincerely. "There's also the Balala the Fairies style, the first-generation Moe King's Tarot card style, the Pretty Guardian style, the Mermaid Melody style, and many other alternative options."

"You can also choose one you like. The King of Understanding system will still provide personalized and humanized service."

"You call this humanized?" Li Pu blurted out almost involuntarily, but immediately changed his tone. "Can we... can we change it?"

"Change it to something less complicated, something more manly?"

"St. Freya, run naked for a lap." The system blurted out, then immediately corrected itself, "No, I didn't say anything just now."

"Since you drew a beautiful girl, you must transform like a beautiful girl."

"If you don't even understand beautiful girls, how can you be called the King of Understanding?"

"That makes so much sense, I can't refute it at all." Li Pu felt like he was about to be convinced by the system... not! How could he be fooled so easily?!

"There must be another way, right?" Li Pu shouted loudly, "My ears aren't deaf, and my memory is good. You must have mentioned another way just now, right?"

"I did," the system said frankly, "Run naked around St. Freya for a week, if you're willing."

"I respect you as a man, so I can give you a special privilege."

"If you're not willing," the system said, as if biting down and refusing to let go, "Wait until you draw a male character."

"You can get new equipment options!"

"At least for now, you can choose this or pick one from the alternatives!"

Chapter 4: This is a True Man's Mission

"Scrub scrub~ scrub scrub~ ooh ooh~"

It wasn't a particularly pleasant tune, but it was passable. Of course, it wasn't very loud either, at most it was just a slightly louder hum.

Li Pu, carrying his bucket and mop, walked down the corridors of St. Freya Academy, singing his song with apparent abandon, but he soon stopped.

"Are they in class?"

Li Pu pricked up his ears to listen.

It was the sound of reading aloud. It seemed to be class time, which was why he was the only one in the hallway.

His actions just now didn't seem very appropriate.

Li Pu shut his mouth, finally realizing that his behavior was a bit out of line. This wasn't just any public place. This was a school.

The noise he had made wasn't suitable for here, nor was it very welcome.

He closed his mouth but was soon captivated by the atmosphere, causing him to stop in his tracks and pause his work to gaze at where he was standing.

"This place really has a strong European style," Li Pu said, looking at the corridor. "It's truly a building full of Romanesque style."

"It feels like I can experience the atmosphere of a foreign land without leaving home."

"This is truly 'Jing Luo Kuang Xi' (a term for enthusiasts of Roman culture being overjoyed)."

As if entering a museum, art gallery, or some historical exhibition hall, every part of this place exuded a strong, calm, and grand artistic aura.

Li Pu became a little engrossed, forgetting about the work in his hands.

However, his true thoughts weren't on the work he was doing.

The place was already quite clean, not dirty, and there wasn't anything particularly needing to be cleaned.

Instead, the artistic atmosphere was very strong. It was simple yet not plain, everywhere revealing a low-key luxurious decorative style and this foreign cultural atmosphere, which was truly captivating. At this moment, there were no people in the corridor, only the sound of reading aloud and the teacher's lecture.

This strong scholarly and artistic vibe was truly irresistible.

But Li Pu quickly snapped out of this uncontrollable daze. He looked at the mop in his hands, then at the bucket, and then at the gray work uniform he was wearing.

If there was anything discordant about this place, it was probably just him.

Even though the working people are the greatest, this outfit...

"Sigh, I'm clearly very talented. I don't discriminate against any job, but being a cleaner is still using a sledgehammer to crack a nut, isn't it?" Li Pu lamented his situation, unable to contain his inner thoughts, "Perhaps I should find myself some work, better, stronger, and more talented work."

"I can't be a cleaner forever, can I?"

The work wasn't what he liked, and it was far from what he had imagined. It gave him absolutely no motivation.

Even though it was a job, even though he knew slacking off on the first day of work wouldn't be good for his future development. Even though he knew he had to work hard and be serious. Even though he had read a lot of motivational advice, even though he tried to encourage himself.

If he wasn't happy, he wasn't happy. If he didn't have the energy, he didn't have the energy.

"No, I have to find a way!"

Li Pu pulled himself together. If he didn't want to be a cleaner forever, he had to find a way to create a path for advancement.

"This is a girls' school, so there might not be many suitable, respectable jobs for me..."

Li Pu's mind wandered, his thoughts drifting as he wondered if he could find a little room for advancement.

He crept closer to a classroom door like a thief and peeked inside.

It really felt like being a thief, furtively glancing and not daring to look too long. He just swept his gaze over and quickly looked away, but this glance suddenly gave Li Pu an idea.

"I need a space to showcase myself," Li Pu suddenly felt more ideas forming in his mind.

"From the current signs, this isn't the Changkong City from Honkai, nor is this a place where Valkyries are trained."

"In that case, as a retired cook, my skills should still be somewhat useful here, right?"

"Perhaps I'll encounter some good fortune here."

Before his transmigration, Li Pu was a retired cook. But as a cook, Li Pu was by no means bad. Firstly, he joined the army after college, and secondly, although he was in the cookhouse, he didn't slack on any of his tactical skills.

Furthermore, he studied computer engineering in college, so fixing computers, networks, and writing small programs were all within his capabilities.

Even though he hadn't done anything productive for over a thousand days since his transmigration, it didn't mean his workload had decreased.

"Can't say for sure. I could go check the cafeteria first. They should be starting to prepare ingredients soon."

Li Pu made up his mind and decided to head to the cafeteria. His plan was to first see if he could get a job as a cook, then a head cook, and finally, see if he could get a position in logistics management.

If he could eventually land a role like head of logistics management, that would be absolutely fantastic.

After all, the logistics department was known to have quite a bit of "grease" to be had.

As long as he could get some sort of official position in logistics, he could be sipping his wine, enjoying his snacks, and feasting on canned beef. Life would be incredibly pleasant.

With that thought, he immediately set off towards the cafeteria.

As for this place, it was quite clean anyway, and the assignment didn't specify that he had to clean here. Going to the cafeteria was a perfectly reasonable excuse.

Carrying his bucket, he walked out of the teaching building. The cafeteria wasn't located with the teaching building.

St. Freya, the school, occupied a vast area. It was large enough for St. Freya to lavishly separate all its facilities, including teaching buildings, administrative buildings, art galleries, libraries, electronic libraries, dormitories, dining halls, and bathhouses! Yes, bathhouses, complete with hot springs, not just ordinary bathrooms, and so on.

To get from the teaching building to the dining hall, one had to pass through the outdoor sports field and the swimming complex.

St. Freya's swimming complex wasn't just a single venue. It had both indoor and outdoor swimming pools. Li Pu hadn't been inside the indoor ones yet and couldn't see them.

The outdoor area looked somewhat like a medium-sized water park.

Furthermore, the outdoor swimming pool also had a separate changing room.

This changing room happened to be on Li Pu's path.

Passing by, he saw students already swimming, seemingly in a swimming class with a teacher giving instructions nearby. Li Pu didn't dare to look too much; this was a domain for girls.

For the sake of his future, it would be better for him to avoid unnecessary trouble.