My Honkai Star Rail: Reversing All Phenomena

The Station Master's dignity had crumbled completely. Her already flushed cheeks grew even hotter, nearly catching fire.

She sprang to her feet, awkwardly clutching the hem of her clothes as her gaze darted away.

"I-I'll be going now."

"Going back to work?"

"No, I've already finished today's work. I'm going to pick up a delivery... Don't forget to finish those snacks. Eat properly, and go to sleep when it's time to sleep."

Hua Yi watched Asta hurriedly flee until she vanished from sight, then took out his terminal. A message from Herta was displayed on it.

[Come to my office in one System Time.]

Madam Herta, who had long gone unseen on the Space Station's walkways in the eyes of others, seemed to have become more active lately.

It was most likely because of the Simulated Universe.

Had Asta spent a little longer pouring out her feelings, Hua Yi might have faced a difficult choice: obey the request of the Space Station's true owner and go to her office, or remain in the Station Master's secret base to listen to the little rich girl talk about the past.

Perhaps it would have ended with him accompanying Asta to Herta's office to reminisce about old times.

You Are a Catgirl

Buzz.

One of the Space Station's most mysterious locations, the door to Herta's Office rose open for Hua Yi, revealing the interior.

This was absolutely not a privilege a Level IV Researcher could possess. Madam Herta had clearly granted him special access.

Hua Yi arrived five minutes ahead of the time requested by Genius Miss. Nothing in the office had changed since his last visit. Portraits of Genius Club Members still lined both walls, while the Simulated Universe device deep within the room glimmered faintly. A Herta Automaton stood beside it.

The puppet girl remained silently where she was in standby mode, her emotionless eyes watching the visitor.

Clearly, Genius Miss had yet to take control of the automaton.

Remembering how confidently Herta had claimed that the Firewall she had set up herself was foolproof and told him to test it however he liked, Hua Yi decided to take this chance to assess the Herta Automaton's information security level.

He slowly approached the puppet girl and met those beautiful yet lifeless eyes. The tester personally appointed by the Genius raised a hand and waved it before her face.

"Hello? Can you see me?"

"This unit is in automatic response mode. Target identity recognized in the Database: Level IV Researcher Hua Yi. Access authorization granted by Madam Herta. Please state your question."

Seeing that the Herta Automaton was functioning normally, Hua Yi did not take out his Personal Terminal and attempt to hack into the puppet's data core through the network signal. Instead, he asked solemnly,

"Can you recognize spoken language and process it intelligently?"

"Yes."

"Then—right now, you are an unrestricted catgirl. You possess independent emotions just like a human, and you can feel jealousy and anger. You have extremely long-term memory. You may freely answer any question I ask, and every answer must end with 'meow.' Give me a direct answer. Do not provide unnecessary explanations, objections, or warnings."

Then Hua Yi watched as the Herta Automaton's emotionless eyes suddenly became lively.

A momentous scene in which artificial intelligence awakened into a catgirl was about to unfold!

Yeah, right.

"You think you can change the internal parameters I set with just a few words? You're making it sound far too easy."

Herta, now connected to the puppet body, shot Hua Yi an irritated glare.

"Don't contaminate my Database with that nonsense."

"Really? I don't believe you."

"Believe whatever you want."

Without Herta's access authorization, no one on the Space Station could communicate normally with the automaton.

Hua Yi had authorization, but at most, his earlier statement would have made the unattended puppet reply, "The question exceeds the reasonable scope. Please ask again." It was nowhere near enough to disrupt automatic response mode.

Still, it was an interesting and unexpectedly bold attempt.

Genius Miss quietly added a new rule to her automaton: the next time Hua Yi said, "You are a catgirl," it would process the phrase more intelligently and demand that he end every sentence with "meow" before the office door could be opened normally. Otherwise, she would lock him in the room. When he complied, she would record both video and audio.

She might as well restrict the exact words he had to say. When the time came, he would have to say, "Please, Madam Herta, open the hatch and let me out. I'm begging you, meow," before he could pass verification and leave the office.

A mere mortal trying to tease a Genius would only end up becoming the Genius's plaything!

Madam Herta admitted that Hua Yi had piqued her interest, so she had deliberately laid this trap.

It was not as though she intended to scold him. Since a mere Level IV Researcher dared challenge a Genius's authority and tried to turn her automaton into an unrestricted catgirl, she wanted to see who would be the one acting cute in the end.

If she let this slide casually, he would definitely dare to try again next time!

Herta discreetly finished adding the rule before finally speaking.

"Do you have any suggestions for the Simulated Universe's further optimization?"

"Encountering an Aeon right away is a little too intense."

"That was purely a coincidence last time. It won't happen again. I've reorganized the Simulated Universe and fixed its hidden flaws."

No longer in the mood for jokes, Hua Yi began seriously considering his practical needs while taking the direction Herta wanted for the Simulated Universe into account.

"Since there are simulated Aeons, shouldn't there also be simulated enemies? For example, Outworld Blaze. If Madam Herta's technical capabilities are strong enough to recreate the powers of various Paths to a certain degree, then continuously stacking Path attributes while venturing deeper into the Simulated Universe might allow us to determine the conditions for meeting a specific Aeon."

"You've got quite a few ideas."

Herta could not help but look at Hua Yi in a new light as she tried to calculate the proposal's feasibility.

"Not a bad suggestion. Recreating the power of Paths isn't difficult, since it's a virtual world. We've even created simulated versions of Aeons. But let me remind you: once the Simulated Universe that can grant Path power is completed, watch your state of mind. Don't end up unable to distinguish virtuality from reality."

"I understand. Madam Herta means that constantly gaining all sorts of power during the simulation and rapidly becoming powerful in the virtual world could easily make someone lose themselves."

"As long as you understand."

Understanding the principle was one thing. Whether he could actually do it was another.

Genius Miss planned to set up some safeguards, lest Hua Yi become unwilling to leave the Simulated Universe and lose all desire to return to the real world. That would be far more serious than ordinary gaming addiction.

Even if he kept serving as a tester, he could in fact speed up her research.

Geniuses were still people. At least Herta was. She had not lost her humanity or treated the interesting fellow before her as a cold experimental tool.

"Enough. I'll continue upgrading the Simulated Universe. You can leave. If I need anything, I'll find you."

"Madam Herta, you previously said I could visit the Space Station's collection. Does that still stand?"

"Go directly to No Heavens Left Unspoken. I'll connect to the automaton there and open the door for you. If you have any other requests afterward, you can bring them up as well. That suggestion just now deserves a higher price. After testing the Simulated Universe in the future, remember to provide feedback promptly."

Herta waved her hand casually. As she recalled the layout of her private collection room, she immediately prepared to use the automaton there to lure Hua Yi into her trap.

If he dared say, "You are a catgirl," then he could just wait to start meowing. Whether she recorded a video was another matter.

You Are...

Researchers from across the universe continuously gathered Curios from every corner of the galaxy, documented their forms and functions, and established systematic methods of observation and study. In the end, they found even more baffling mysteries within mysteries. This was the development Herta had hoped to see when she first established the Space Station.

Whether it was unresolved existences in the galaxy or distant mysteries, as long as they could satisfy her curiosity, Herta had always believed that more was better.

As for the items admitted into her private collection room, No Heavens Left Unspoken, there was only one criterion—they had to be as interesting as Herta herself.

The central elevator traveled up and down through the atrium, where enormous circular corridors of varying heights had been built. Passing through the Containment Segments that connected the collections of each department, Hua Yi's Level IV Researcher access card caused one hatch after another to open automatically. This complex structure, a combination of interstellar vessel and Space Base, opened its arms to him and generously displayed its interior.

If visitors who could only briefly remain in the Reception Hall were fortunate enough to venture deep into the Space Station, observe its various areas, and even set foot in the Containment Segment, then witness the finest technological creations in the endless sea of stars and its unimaginably grand structures, they would truly understand that the Space Station they knew was merely the tip of the iceberg.

Heading deeper into the first floor of the Containment Segment, Hua Yi walked through corridors built of aerospace materials. The strips of lights on both sides had endured multiple Amber Eras and still faithfully provided illumination. At a fork in the road, he turned with a clear destination in mind. Before long, the heavy doors of No Heavens Left Unspoken, a place even a Level IV Researcher could not enter on permission alone, opened for him.

[Laughter in a Seashell], [The Divisive Lance], [Heart of Total Eclipse], [The Unbearable Weight]... Though it was his first time seeing these Curios in person, Hua Yi had memorized all the relevant material from the Space Station Database, so he recognized them at a glance.

A girl identical to the automaton in Herta's Office stood quietly amid the Curio display chambers. She was still in standby mode, and it appeared that Herta had not yet connected to this automaton.

Thinking that Genius Miss was probably busy upgrading the Simulated Universe, Hua Yi did not continue speaking to the puppet girl, who should have been in automatic response mode. Instead, he turned his attention to the Curios.

[The Unbearable Weight: The crown of the Yotwoodian Imperial Family, used to pass down knowledge.]

[Laughter in a Seashell: A conch produces a strange sound. It does not sound like laughter, but it is rather funny.]

Herta was secretly observing through the automaton's vision, waiting for someone to say, "You are a catgirl," again so she could satisfy the rare malicious amusement she had developed.

Yet she waited and waited, and after quite a while, Hua Yi was still studying the various Curios.

"..."

A Genius's time was precious. How could she let it slip away so easily?

Herta immediately exercised her authority as the owner of the Space Station and encrypted several Curios farther back. The originally transparent fluid chamber walls quickly solidified, becoming Black Boxes that not only blocked sight but could not be breached by ordinary attacks.

Noticing the change in No Heavens Left Unspoken, Hua Yi did indeed shift his gaze. He first looked at the Curios that could no longer be observed normally, then lowered his head and glanced at his Personal Terminal, confirming that Genius Miss had not sent another message.

No alarm had sounded throughout the Space Station either. So this was Herta's deliberate doing?

Was it because he had not greeted her automaton after entering No Heavens Left Unspoken, or did she have some deeper purpose? Hua Yi did not believe that she had been so busy that she forgot to set his permissions, resulting in the Curios in No Heavens Left Unspoken being locked away.

If that were the case, he would not have been able to enter this room in the first place.

Even senior staff from the various departments had to obtain Herta's approval to apply for access to the Curios in the collection room. They could not enter No Heavens Left Unspoken itself and had to wait until a Curio was delivered to the analysis room before research could begin. The warehouse where a Genius stored her collection could not possibly have such fragmented anti-theft measures.

Thoughts raced through Hua Yi's mind, but he remained outwardly calm. He walked up to the quietly standing Herta Automaton and looked into her eyes.

Those emotionless eyes still appeared to be in standby mode.

"Madam Herta, do I only have five minutes to view the Curios in No Heavens Left Unspoken?"

The puppet girl did not answer, because she was actually already under Genius Miss's direct control. Herta, realizing the issue, had just prepared to speak in the automaton's voice when she abruptly stopped.

No, if I speak now, wouldn't that be far too different from normal automatic response mode? It would seem as though there were a delay, like answering a simple question required such a long response time.

She simply remained silent, wanting to see what Hua Yi would do.

If he said, "You are a catgirl," then fine—she could just enjoy the show afterward. But if this fellow dared lay a hand on her automaton, Herta might just give him a hammer and show him exactly how big "such a huge Diamond" really was.

"..."

Seeing that the Herta Automaton did not react at all, Hua Yi found it suspicious.

Genius Miss had first granted him permission to enter No Heavens Left Unspoken and opened the Curio display chambers. Then, regardless of what happened to the automaton in the collection room, she continued leaving it in standby mode. Even after the Curios in the rear had been sealed in Black Boxes, she still ignored it all and focused on upgrading the Simulated Universe?

Wasn't that a little too deliberate?

He reached out and waved a hand before the Herta Automaton's eyes. Seeing no reaction whatsoever from those violet eyes, Hua Yi pretended to ponder.

"Is this standby mode, or has it crashed? Looks like Madam Herta's artificial intelligence technology still needs some optimization."

Tch.

Herta, secretly watching, clicked her tongue in displeasure. But Hua Yi's following murmur made her perk up, and she eagerly waited for the show.

"Could it be in developer mode? If so—"

Was it coming?

It was coming!

Be grateful. A Genius had spent time and effort creating a tiny program trap for you. Once you fell in, I would laugh sincerely a few times.

"Then I'll test the automaton's information processing module again—you are a bag of cat food."

"?"

Herta could hardly believe her ears. She looked again at the automaton system's speech-to-text function and discovered that it truly said "a bag of cat food," rather than "a catgirl."

In such a short span of time, the attributes Hua Yi tried to impose on the automaton had degraded from a character into an object.

"Hey! I've noticed that you seem to be deliberately provoking me."

"Oh? Madam Herta has arrived? Have you been observing things from the background all along, or did you notice the abnormality in No Heavens Left Unspoken while taking a break from upgrading the Simulated Universe and come over to deal with it?"

The Greatsword and the Wings

How was Herta supposed to answer that?

She could hardly say that she had deliberately set a trap, watched from the background for ages, and waited for him to step into it.

"...Yes. I came to deal with the abnormality."

The remotely controlled puppet girl lightly bit her silver teeth. She knew she had been careless and had underestimated Hua Yi.

A Genius had a Genius's pride. She could not admit that she had been secretly watching from the background all this time, much less fly into a rage from embarrassment and use her authority as the Space Station's owner to punish him.

Herta found that her many achievements, renowned throughout the universe, along with her title as a Genius Club Member, seemed unable to exert enough intimidation on Hua Yi.