Live Stream Honkai Impact 3rd, I Choose to Expose Kiana in Arc City! Chapter 14

"Two identical Kianas?" Seele froze at the sight of two figures on the screen who shared the same face, wore the same combat suit, and wielded the same weapon.

She couldn't grasp the design intent behind this game. Was it hinting that Kiana actually had a twin sister?

"Is this another illusion created by that mysterious person?"

"This? An illusion is just a projection based on reality, after all."

Beichen answered Seele's question rather implicitly.

Whether she understood or not was another matter entirely.

In truth, the enemy's name had already revealed plenty of information about the game's plot.

And Archbishop Otto in the live stream was fully aware of all this.

But he hadn't said a word yet? Hah, probably still reeling in shock on his own.

Beichen controlled the trial character Kiana as she fought against the endlessly spawning enemies.

Even though he was only using the most basic Valkyrie armor, White Comet, the combat still felt smooth and natural. He quickly took down two enemies and reached the final stage of the level.

And there, the mysterious enemy finally revealed her true form.

Of course, her name still showed as "???" at this point, effectively hiding her identity.

But such concealment was meaningless to Beichen and Otto.

After all, both of them had seen the Herrscher of the Void up close; they could recognize her without needing it spelled out.

"Streamer Big Brother, is this okay? That mysterious one feels really tough to deal with..."

In the live stream, Seele judged purely by instinct that the enemy labeled ??? was no ordinary foe.

"Oh? Haha, don't worry. The difficulty of story stages isn't that high."

Beichen charged forward with the trial character Kiana, skillfully using her abilities to fight Sirin while explaining:

"Besides, Kiana isn't that weak."

After a fierce and satisfying battle, one of Sirin's health bars dropped, and as the color of the HP gauge changed, She spoke a thought-provoking line.

[Do you think you can escape me? For the rest of your life, I will appear, again and again, in your deepest nightmares, until one day... you can no longer bear it...]

As her voice faded, the game screen gradually went black...

And when the scene reappeared, Kiana saw many people before her: Mei, Fu Hua, Theresa...

The three of them looked at her with worried expressions.

Behind them was a halo of light like the sun—this was the main control room of the Moonlight Throne, the ship Kiana and the others had arrived at not long ago.

In this eerie atmosphere, Rita's voice slowly rang out.

[It seems that Kiana's fainting and sleepwalking, like Bronya's, are both effects of the Moonlight Throne's engine energy. This ship's engine is truly bizarre. Regardless, my mission here is complete. I will now return to headquarters to report.]

As her voice played, the camera focused on a bewildered Kiana.

She lay in Mei's arms, showing no fear, nor mentioning anything from her dream just now.

She only mumbled drowsily, [Mei... I'm hungry~]

[Then let's go back. I'll cook for you!]

Behind the two clinging to each other, Rita's eyes gleamed sharply, and her inner monologue was delivered as a voiceover.

[Observation record report, number 105-K423. The subject's physical ability and combat power have shown significant growth compared to the past. However, the specific state of personality replication still requires further observation.]

[The Archbishop's plan is about to enter the executable phase.]

[Everything... is within his grasp.]

With that, the CG ended, and the stage completion screen popped up.

Chapter Two's story was over.

Beichen stretched, then glanced at the time...

"It's already this late? How about we stop here for now? I'll continue in the evening."

Seele was the first to agree: "Okay! See you in the evening, Big Brother! Make sure to stream—I really want to know what happens next!"

Even though she wasn't the one playing, watching the story on screen somehow made her feel like she was inside St. Freya Academy.

To her, this was a pretty interesting game.

But to Otto in the live stream, what game was this even broadcasting?

It was practically just a screen recording from a camera, wasn't it?

"...I'll be here in the evening."

Otto felt that what he was seeing had already exceeded the scope of his understanding.

So he decided to figure out this game—what exactly was going on here.

As the two parted ways, Elysia and Hua also bid their farewells one after another.

Once the system showed the live stream audience count at zero, Beichen shut down the broadcast.

[Congratulations to the host for completing the live stream.]

[Based on the popularity of this live stream, the host has received 3600 Crystal as a reward!]

The moment the stream ended, the system's prompt sounded.

Looking at the newly credited 3600 Crystal, Beichen felt all his fatigue wash away, replaced by anticipation for the next broadcast.

But before that... he should head to the Staff Canteen and grab a meal.

It was only now that Beichen remembered he hadn't eaten breakfast before coming to work.

He'd been streaming while doing maintenance, and now it was lunchtime without even a sip of water...

And here I was telling Captain Durandal to take better care of herself, but I'm this harsh on myself.

Beichen chuckled, then put down his tools, ready to head to the Staff Canteen to solve the food problem.

Once at the canteen, Beichen glanced at the menu of delicious dishes and casually ordered a few of the most expensive items.

Things like King Crab, Australian Lobster, Abalone—basically, anything he thought was good, he ordered one of each.

Even among the Valkyries who came to the canteen for meals, few ate as lavishly as he did today.

So, many people couldn't help but glance over curiously when they saw Beichen being so extravagant.

At a nearby table, two Immortal Blades Members quietly asked the person beside them, "Vice Captain Rita, isn't that man the one from earlier..."

"Oh?"

Rita turned her head, following the member's gesture to look over.

Today, she wasn't wearing her usual maid outfit but had changed into another Valkyrie battlesuit—Luna Kindred.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing... nothing. Just wondering why he suddenly became so flashy."

Hearing her subordinate's muttering, Rita glanced at Beichen again, somewhat puzzled.

Chapter 21: Rita's Face Turned Pale in an Instant!

Rita recalled that she had seen this man yesterday too and had even suspected him of being an Anti-Entropy spy.

Other than that, there was virtually no connection between them.

"He's just learning to treat himself. No need to pay him any mind." She turned back, lecturing gracefully.

But just as she was stealing a glance...

Beichen suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. Following the source of that sensation, he found Rita staring intently at him!

What... is going on?

I was especially careful to hide my identity during the stream, barely revealing any personal information.

There's no way she could have found out from Otto about my streaming...

So why is Rita staring at me?

Whatever the case, let's listen in on what they're saying...

Beichen turned back, focusing intently as he pricked up his ears to eavesdrop on Rita and the others' conversation.

"But... I still feel like that man is suspicious. Vice Captain, shouldn't we investigate him more thoroughly?"

"Heh, what's this? The latest cold joke?"

Rita elegantly mocked a paranoid member.

In her view, that man was just one of many temporary workers at Schicksal.

Such temporary workers were a dime a dozen; if more were needed, just commission an agency to put out ads and recruit from society.

And what was so unusual about him?

"By comparison, we should be more concerned about Captain Durandal. Was she distracted during training today?"

"Well... the captain arrived later today, and she still seemed a bit absent-minded."

Just as the Immortal Blades Member was feeling uneasy, Durandal's voice suddenly sounded beside their table.

"Are you talking about me?"

"Eh!!!"

The two team members beside Rita froze the moment their captain appeared.

Talking behind someone's back, only for the person in question to show up?

How awkward was that!

Fortunately, the vice-captain they relied on remained perfectly steady.

"Not at all. We were discussing topics related to girls."

"...What did you say?"

"Hehe, Captain Durandal, have you ever thought about what kind of person you'd choose if you were to pick a partner? These two were just clamoring to go investigate that man over there~"

Rita smiled as she deftly changed the subject. Her words mixed truth with falsehood, and falsehood with truth, easily misleading others.

But she knew her captain's character well.

How she would answer next...

"A Valkyrie of Schicksal should focus on improving her strength. So you were chatting about idle matters just now? Sigh, don't drag irrelevant ordinary people into this."

As expected, when asked about such a topic, Durandal didn't even blush.

At the same time, being earnest and polite, she waved at the three before slowly walking away...

By the time Beichen came to his senses, the Valkyrie had already reached his table.

"Hm?"

"Apologies. I'm sorry for my teammates' rudeness."

Durandal spoke slowly, her tone polite but not humble, neither domineering nor overly deferential.