The scene shifted.
A highly sci-fi and lavishly produced battleship — the Hyperion — made its appearance.
"Hyperion orbit adjustment complete."
"Relay signal tracking stable."
"The ship has entered lunar orbit."
"Main engine shut down."
The sci-fi battleship orbiting the Moon left many viewers staring with wide eyes.
Although it wasn't their first time seeing it, every viewing still felt incredibly sincere and unbelievable.
This really is a TV drama?
Yet it was precisely because of this that Honkai Impact 3rd was able to quickly become a nationwide hit, with its influence continuing to spread.
The scene changed again, and a petite, adorable white-haired, blue-eyed loli appeared.
Or rather, it was the return of the Academy Principal, Theresa.
"Well done, Ai-chan."
Theresa smiled and praised, "Connect me to the command center at the Salt Lake Base."
The battleship AI, Ai Hyperion, immediately responded: "Understood, Boss!"
Once the communication connected, a familiar voice came through.
"Hi, Principal."
It was Kiana's more mature voice.
Theresa asked in slight confusion: "Kiana?"
Kiana chuckled: "Hehe, surprised, right?"
"I actually just finished breakfast and saw Dr. Einstein preparing to take over Dr. Tesla's shift at the command center."
"So I tagged along."
The next moment, Kiana's voice switched to Einstein's:
"Hello, Lady Theresa. It seems everything is going smoothly."
Theresa nodded: "Yes, thanks to you. Before departure, I really didn't expect this."
"You even installed a gravity simulation device on the Hyperion."
Einstein replied: "You should thank Bronya for that."
"She helped Dr. Tesla develop a system that uses the Elysian Realm replica to provide localized gravity."
Kiana scratched her head: "Hmm… so even in space, it can feel like riding an airplane?"
Theresa crossed her arms: "I'd say it's even smoother than the old Hyperion when it flew in the atmosphere."
"I slept very well last night. In a daze, I even felt like I was back in the faculty dormitory at St. Freya."
Einstein chuckled lightly: "Thank you for the praise, Lady Theresa."
"Although the predecessor of Anti-Entropy, Schicksal's North American Branch 410, was founded by Miss Nancy Edison with a focus on civilian applications…"
"This is indeed our first attempt at developing civilian functions for the Elysian Realm."
Kiana pinched her chin: "The Elysian Realm… Bronya told me it played a very critical role when Anti-Entropy broke away from Schicksal."
"Right, Doctor?"
Einstein didn't answer immediately. Instead, she said something seemingly unrelated: "Walk the path of freedom, then visit Lexington at midnight."
"—Indeed, without the Elysian Realm, even if Anti-Entropy could still be born, it would never have grown to today's scale."
"Although during the years we fought against Schicksal, Anti-Entropy's guiding principle could be summarized as…"
"The best threat is no action."
"But such effective deterrence undoubtedly had to be built upon victory in the first battle."
"At the very least, we had to make Schicksal at the time genuinely believe that they did not have the ability to start an all-out war and destroy us."
Kiana suddenly understood: "So that's why there's the old story of Mr. Welt having to use the Herrscher of Reason's power to disguise his activities."
"Deceiving that Otto wasn't easy at all."
Einstein corrected her: "It should be said that it was thanks to Professor Planck's skill."
"That Anti-Entropy was able to gradually gain a firm foothold in those extremely difficult circumstances back then."
"Perhaps that also caused us at the time to develop a certain dependence on the Professor…"
"So much so that after her sudden passing, Anti-Entropy's management became quite chaotic for a while."
As she spoke, Einstein suddenly remembered something and said to Theresa over the comms:
"Sorry, Lady Theresa. I accidentally started talking about these old memories and almost strayed from the original topic."
Theresa didn't mind: "It's fine. Hearing the Doctor analyze this history from Anti-Entropy's perspective is also very educational for us."
"Whether it's the Herrscher of Reason or the Herrscher of the Void, both Authorities possess rich and colorful possibilities."
"If we can merge the experiences of Anti-Entropy and Schicksal, we should be able to further enhance the team's strength."
Einstein also acknowledged: "Indeed, just like the Elysian Realm mentioned earlier."
"Miss Nagamitsu is very interested in it, and we are happy to share information with her lab."
"Jointly exploring the future possibilities of the Ninth Divine Key."
Kiana chimed in at this moment: "So… that means we might get to see a different Elysian Realm soon?"
Einstein nodded: "It's possible."
"And with the progress of the audience collaboration project, the level of cooperation between all parties has been steadily improving."
"As for the vision, I believe we will eventually have the chance to realize Miss Nancy's once-envisioned Moonlight Throne Project."
"So, Kiana, this is a rare opportunity. Would you like to watch our space performance?"
"According to the schedule, today we will be drilling deep-space bombardment and extravehicular combat."
Kiana sounded interested at first: "That sounds pretty fun."
"Mm, but I still have to attend Valkyrie mobile tactics training later, so I probably won't be able to watch the whole time."
As she spoke, Kiana made a face as if she had the chills, looking exactly like a reluctant student being forced to go to school.
Theresa added at this moment: "Oh, is it Durandal?"
"I heard she's been taking you to various systematic Valkyrie trainings lately and has even made a very strict training plan."
Kiana scratched her head: "Yeah, Schicksal's strongest Valkyrie…"
"She really is a very good and very powerful person."
"But how should I put it…"
"It would be better if the training volume wasn't so terrifying, haha!"
By the end, Kiana gave an awkward laugh, as if she had returned to her old St. Freya days.
The audience outside the TV also smiled knowingly, finding this slice-of-life plot quite entertaining.
At least after the Elysian Realm arc, they didn't have to worry about getting stabbed again.
"Hahaha, Kiana is still the same. Even becoming the Herrscher of Flamescion couldn't change her habit of slacking off."
"I can actually understand Kiana. Having a sister like Durandal would be scary just to think about!"
"Dumb goose is actually fine, she's just too serious. I think I could handle it!"
"Kiana, dumb goose, Mei, Bronya, Seele… you are all my wings!"
"…"
Regardless, the plot on TV continued.
Theresa pouted: "What are you laughing about? That's Durandal we're talking about."
"I suggest you give up on that slacking idea!"
The two continued chatting about daily life until Schicksal's Hestia landed on the Salt Lake Base tarmac.
Kiana waved goodbye to the others, and the atmosphere was quite harmonious.
Theresa couldn't help but say with relief: "It's really nice."
Einstein also nodded: "Yes. Compared to half a year ago in Nagazora, she's practically a different person."
Theresa spoke in a worldly tone: "The growth of the young is just that fast."
"In the blink of an eye, they might mature to the point where even their parents are shocked."
"Speaking of which, Ai-chan, how are the preparations for the exercise going?"
Ai-chan immediately answered: "Hyperion is ready at any time."
Einstein then repeated the exercise plan once more.
Simply put, it was to test the Hyperion's unmanned upgrade system and accumulate data and experience along the way.
After listening to Einstein, Theresa said directly: "Then I'll start straight from the extravehicular combat segment."
"Ai-chan, please make the necessary preparations for the two subjects later."
Einstein said thoughtfully: "It seems Lady Theresa is in quite high spirits."
Theresa crossed her arms: "Seeing the younger generation continuously improving…"
"As their seniors, we naturally don't want to be left far behind, right?"
Einstein agreed: "Indeed."
"As the saying goes — the old man chats and shows youthful vigor."
"Who among us isn't still young?"
As soon as these words came out, the audience outside the TV nearly spat out their drinks, not knowing how to even complain.
"Clearly two beautiful girls, yet acting all old and worldly. I'm dying."
"The best part is that mindset of refusing to admit they're old. It's way too realistic!"
"Hahaha, is this the taboo of a woman's age?"
"Theresa is forever 18. I will always love the Principal!"
"…"
Fire Moth Interstellar Entertainment Company.
Many actors were also laughing so hard their stomachs hurt, including Tesla.
"Hahaha, I can't take it anymore. 'Who among us isn't still young?' My stomach hurts from laughing."
Tesla glanced at Einstein beside her and mercilessly mocked her, nearly rolling on the floor.
Laughter was indeed contagious, but the others were more polite.
At most, their shoulders shook a little without making any sound.
Under the quiet gazes of Einstein, Theresa, and Durandal.
Hessian, who was watching TV while playing on his phone, suddenly looked up and said without hesitation: "SAKURA, remember to protect me."
He had a strong feeling that some commoners wanted to harm him!
SAKURA didn't answer. If not for her bodyguard duties, she would have wanted to hit Hessian herself.
Stabbing people with knives was one thing, but joking about a woman's age? Was that allowed?
On the TV.
Einstein explained that only Herrschers, MANTIS, and Stigmata Awakened individuals possessed the ability to engage in agile combat in outer space.
Although the technology in Honkai Impact 3rd was quite advanced, and Honkai energy was said to be omnipotent, widespread individual outer space combat was still far from being realized, nor was it necessary.
After the performance training ended.
The returning Theresa sighed: "Ah, sure enough, the inside of the cabin is still the most comfortable."
The dangers of outer space weren't just zero gravity; the extremely low temperatures also needed to be overcome.
Even with thermal radiation devices, comfort was out of the question.
"Ai-chan, is there any bitter melon juice left in the fridge?"
Ai-chan immediately replied: "Of course there's plenty, Captain Theresa."
"However… just now, we encountered some issues during navigation."
Theresa asked: "Issues?"
Ai-chan immediately provided the data: "Please look here."
"The Hyperion's actual heading has been continuously deviating from the theoretically predicted natural heading since this morning."
"At first, this deviation was very slight, almost indistinguishable from normal natural fluctuations."
"But in the last half hour, look at the rightmost end of this chart—"
"This deviation has begun to show systematic behavior, and the deviation value itself is getting larger and larger."
Theresa asked: "Are you saying… this deviation is affecting the Hyperion's normal cruising?"
Ai-chan answered: "Currently, I can resolve this issue by manually correcting the heading."
"However, if it continues, it will pose a safety hazard."
"In the worst case… the Hyperion could even fall into an extremely dangerous situation."
"…"
...
Before Theresa could respond, the scene on the TV shifted to a desert.
At the edge of the Sahara Desert, Raiden Mei's tracking plan was proceeding in an orderly manner.
Seeing Mei caused many viewers to immediately think of the Elysian Realm arc, and their expressions instantly became depressed.
For example, a certain gray-haired, golden-eyed girl was sitting in a beverage shop mooching off the free big-screen TV.
When she glanced around, she found that most of the customers were just like her.
Seeing Mei reminded them of the Elysian Realm, which then reminded them of Elysia and the Flame-Chasers.
Oh no.
Some guests even had their eyes turn red quickly and took out tissues to wipe their tears.
"Damn dog director, just you wait. I've remembered this grudge!"
"That damn dog director, you really are a dog! Stabbing is one thing, but the aftereffects are still this strong!"
"…"
Listening to the cursing voices around her, the gray-haired golden-eyed girl (Star) instantly felt less depressed.
This was also why she liked mooching off public TVs outside.
When she herself got stabbed, seeing others unable to handle being stabbed made her feel inexplicably much better.
Most importantly, she had added the real Elysia as a friend!
Thinking of this, Star's originally aloof face suddenly revealed a sleazy, infatuated smile.
Add her as a friend today, meet her in person tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow secretly take Elysia home…
Sleazy Star clearly didn't realize that stealing someone else's waifu carried considerable risks.
...
Back to the TV.
Mei spoke at this moment: "Raven, are you sure that in a place where even the signal is problematic…"
"There's someone related to World Serpent who needs you to deliver… a phone?"
Raven didn't hesitate and directly tossed the phone to Mei: "Here, you can check it yourself."
The phone hadn't even had its packaging opened, which made Mei even more curious:
"…What exactly is in this box?"
Raven replied indifferently: "Who knows? If you're asking for my opinion…"
"I think it really is just a phone. It could be delivered by a regular courier."
"What, you want to open it and check?"