Livestream:
Xia Linxi practically pressed her entire face against the screen:
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! What a magnificent face! Holy crap, do you see this?
That face, those lips, that sharp jawline. He looks so brooding even with his eyes closed!
What a divine sight! And he's even pinned to a cross with a spear!
Holy crap! Husband! Husband, could you be an Emanator of Idrila from Honkai: Star Rail next door?!
And he's wearing the battle-damaged outfit too! Do you see that? There's a six-pack hidden under those rags!"
Comments:
[Oh no, the loli streamer's horny again...]
[You really can't criticize this one. This scene looks so divine. He's practically my husband!]
[Wait, aren't you a guy, the one above?]
[?]
Billy's mechanical pupils contracted. Looking at the extraordinarily handsome black-haired young man on the cross, he seemed to lose his speech module for a moment.
His usually chattering mouth fell silent for a long while before he finally voiced his bewilderment:
"Hey, hey, hey? Who's this? There was a handsome guy on a cross hidden in the Hollow?
We fought for our lives and nearly got surrounded and killed by Ethereals, only to run into something this ridiculous when we ducked into a safe zone?"
He chattered on for a while, but Nicole, beside him, gave no response.
The pink-haired girl stood rooted to the spot, as though all her strength had been drained away, utter shock surging in her eyes.
She stared at the figure on the cross for a long time, murmuring almost unconsciously, her voice as soft as the wind:
"Lord Dragon Emperor..."
Livestream:
"Lord Dragon Emperor? All right, all right, he's definitely a new character. I never saw that name in the closed beta!
But the new character is husband material! Nice work on that, miHoYo!"
Comments:
[Oh no, why are tears coming out of the corners of my mouth?]
Those simple words, carrying memories buried for years, pierced straight through Nicole's mind. Countless images came surging back like a tidal wave.
Her memories went back many years, to when Nicole was still young, innocent and naive, growing up in an orphanage in New Eridu.
The orphanage had taken in countless homeless orphans, and everyone struggled with poverty and want.
Shortages of food, clothing, and supplies were the norm, and life was hard and impoverished.
Just when everyone thought life would never change, that they would keep scraping by in poverty, a light suddenly shone into that bleak world.
It was one day long ago that the orphanage received an honored guest no one had expected.
A mysterious, important figure donated an enormous sum to half the orphanages in New Eridu, enough to completely change the fate of every orphan.
The dilapidated orphanage was repaired, all the missing supplies were replenished, and the children could finally eat their fill and dress warmly, no longer forced to freeze through the winter or suffer in poverty.
It was a scene Nicole would never forget for the rest of her life.
The black-haired man had come to the orphanage in person. He stood tall, with an extraordinary bearing, his eyes and features gentle yet composed.
The elderly matron was moved to tears. With trembling hands, she clasped his hand tightly and thanked him again and again.
The unparalleled expert showed no trace of haughty arrogance. His eyes curved in a gentle smile as he patiently responded to the old woman's gratitude, his warm manner easing everyone's unease.
Young Nicole squeezed in at the back of the crowd and stole a glance at him from afar.
That single glance stayed with her for life.
Most of all, his clear, majestic golden eyes were dazzling, instinctively inspiring awe, yet full of gentleness, without a trace of hostility.
From that day on, his image took deep root in Nicole's heart.
He was powerful and majestic, able to command the winds and clouds and overawe all quarters; he was gentle and kind, compassionate and protective of the weak.
He was a light in the darkness, salvation in desperate straits, the greatest blessing that all the orphans at the bottom of society would ever receive.
She committed to memory the title that resounded throughout New Eridu-Void Hunter, Dragon Emperor.
Anby, beside her, had excellent hearing and caught every word of Nicole's quiet murmur.
Even she, usually calm and detached, showed clear surprise. She asked softly:
"Lord Dragon Emperor? But... a year ago, it was announced throughout the city that Lord Dragon Emperor had sacrificed himself in the Hollow disaster. He died a long time ago."
The words exploded in Nicole's ears like thunder, instantly pulling her out of her dazed recollection and back to reality.
Nicole abruptly came to her senses. The bewilderment faded from her eyes, replaced by absolute certainty and heartache.
She shook her head hard, her voice trembling slightly but utterly resolute:
"Impossible! There's no way I could mistake him!"
"He's the benefactor who changed the fate of every one of us orphans. He's Lord Dragon Emperor, the man I've remembered all my life!
I could mistake everyone else in the world, but I could never mistake him!"
Billy, usually so talkative, looked more serious than ever.
He lowered his head, reviewing all the clues, and said gravely:
"Something really isn't right. A year ago, the authorities made a huge announcement about Lord Dragon Emperor's death. The whole city mourned, the whole nation paid tribute, and everyone believed he had sacrificed himself."
"But now, Lord Dragon Emperor, who should have been long dead, is nailed to a cross in Crete Hollow...
This whole thing is strange from beginning to end."
Anby's gaze was cool, her calm mind piecing together the answer closest to the truth.
She looked at the spear piercing his body and slowly spoke the cruel truth, her voice steady and cold:
"Lord Dragon Emperor probably didn't die in battle. Someone probably plotted against him and deliberately murdered him."
"Even after killing Lord Dragon Emperor, his enemy was still afraid and didn't dare let him rest in peace.
They deliberately used this spear to bind his body and seal away every trace of his presence, making everyone believe he had already perished."
At those words, Nicole's eyes instantly reddened.
Overwhelming heartache and anger swept through her. Unable to hold back any longer, she rushed up to the cross without a thought and gripped the icy spear tightly with trembling hands.
The girl's voice was choked with sobs, but utterly determined:
"He's a hero who protected New Eridu! A benefactor who saved countless people! I won't let his body be left out in the wilderness and humiliated like this!"
"I have to take him back!"
Anby looked at her stubborn figure and sighed softly, saying nothing more.
She turned to Billy beside her and gave him a slight nod.
"Help her."
Billy understood at once. Without further hesitation, he strode forward, his mechanical arms tensing as he exerted force.
The three of them worked side by side, bracing against the spear and doing everything they could to pull out the weapon binding the Dragon Emperor.
The spear had been driven in deep, and the resistance was greater than they could have imagined.
The three pulled with all their might, exhausting tremendous effort before finally extracting the spear completely from his body with a dull tremor.
The instant the spear came free, the entire world suddenly changed.
The golden barrier surrounding them instantly collapsed. Its brilliant light, like fireflies returning to the sea, flowed along the young man's skin and into his wounds, merging entirely into his body until it vanished from sight.
Livestream:
Xia Linxi was already staring dumbfounded, still unable to recover from the conversation between Billy and the other two:
"Wait, wait, wait... There's a lot of information in those few lines! Let me sort this out...
Lord Dragon Emperor was announced dead a year ago, but now Nicole and the others have found him in a Hollow.
Holy crap, could he be a top-tier big shot? Nicole only gave us his name and didn't add anything else. It's a little hard to guess!"
Comments:
[What? There's actually a hidden story behind my husband's death? Who would frame such a handsome man?]
[666, still claiming anime men as husbands, I see... You're always claiming random men as your husbands. He's obviously my husband, okay?]
(Nicole's memories can't be seen by the streamer or the viewers. They were written this way to help the plot unfold.)