Chapter 130: Main Story 11 Begins! Until the Deep End of the Sea!
"Seele, how is it? Are you feeling unwell?"
Su Mu stood outside the bathroom door, inquiring about Seele's condition. "You can tell me directly, you know. You wouldn't want Bronya to shoot me, right?"
Seele's voice drifted from inside: "Bronya-oneesama would never do something like that! Brother Su Mu, you're being too wicked!"
"Mhm, you sound energetic enough, so you're probably fine." Su Mu nodded.
It wasn't that he was oversensitive, but Bronya had repeatedly warned him that if anything happened to Seele, he would be held accountable. Moreover, Seele's shift in attitude just now was noticeably too quick, as if she were running away from something...
"Then I'll head back..."
Su Mu didn't have the habit of prying into people's secrets; everyone deserves their privacy. But before he could leave, the bathroom door cracked open, and Seele peeked her head out.
"?" "Brother Su Mu, can I ask you a favor?"
Seeing Seele's fragile and pitiful look, combined with her behavior just now, Su Mu reached a sudden realization.
"If it's brown sugar water, I think Kiana should have some here. I'll go brew it now and have Kiana bring it to you.... I'm really sorry, I shouldn't have made the food so spicy during your 'special time.' I'll make you another dinner."
Seele froze, then as she understood what he meant, her face turned so red it looked like it might drip. "N-No, it's not that! Just come in first..."
She reached out, grabbed Su Mu, and pulled him into the bathroom.
As the door shut, Su Mu looked at her with concern. "What exactly happened? Your face has looked a bit off for a while."
However, Su Mu realized Seele was facing away from him. Her top had been placed on the sink, revealing her fair, smooth back. She held her front with both hands, her ears flushing a deep crimson. On her otherwise perfect back, there were red marks from where her straps had been too tight. Looking at her undergarment, Su Mu saw that the clasp had snapped or come undone.
"....T-Take it off." "Eh?" "Maybe it didn't fit right.... It didn't happen when I put it on earlier...." "Mhm?" "Maybe it was because I was cleaning Kiana-oneesama's room just now...." "Wait, what?!" "Brother Su Mu, can you help me? I can't reach it alone..."
So that was it.
Su Mu had seen this trope in anime plenty of times. He had always wondered if there were really people so "gifted" that they could snap an undergarment strap in real life. Well, he didn't have to wonder anymore, given the heavyweight presence standing before him.
Phew, Seele truly did gather all the nutrition of the orphanage... He reasonably suspected that the "Duck" (Bronya) had all her nutrients drained by Seele at the orphanage, which is why her growth only skyrocketed after she left.
"Maybe I should ask Kiana to come." "N-No, don't trouble Kiana-oneesama with this.... Please hurry, Brother Su Mu, don't keep her waiting."
Su Mu nodded and stopped hesitating. Using both hands, he reattached the clasp. The entire process took only a few seconds, successfully resolving the crisis.
"Alright, that's done.... I'll go out first. Get dressed, Seele."
Su Mu didn't linger and turned to leave. He didn't notice that after he finished the task so decisively, Seele's body was trembling slightly. A moment later, she looked up at him as he prepared to open the door, her delicate face flashing with an expression of both shame and annoyance.
"You... you brat, are you... an idiot?!"
Su Mu's hand stopped on the doorknob. He turned back curiously, only to meet Seele's angry eyes.
"You... I've felt something was strange since a moment ago."
Although the Seele before him didn't change her eye color like in the game, making it hard to distinguish her from "Black Seele," her tone and movements gave her away.
Black Seele glared at Su Mu, looking as if she wanted to eat him alive. "Why are you so practiced? Just how many girls have you helped with their undergarments until now?!"
"....?"
Su Mu thought, is that hard? You just click the clasp into place and it's over. How complex could it be? It wasn't like a corset that required a complicated knot. With modern technology, clothes were designed to be as effortless as possible.
"After a development like this, why did you just help her get dressed so obediently!"
"Mhm?" Su Mu was speechless. Well, what else was I supposed to do?
"Seele.... well, to make it easier, I'll call you Black Seele. So, what do you think I should have done?"
Black Seele glared at him indignantly. "Shouldn't you have seen Seele's beautiful body, let your 'wolf nature' take over, and used this chance to stretch out your devilish claws?!"
Su Mu spread his hands. "You seem to have many misunderstandings about me. Also, praising your own body like that is a bit narcissistic, don't you think?"
Black Seele's eyes widened. "Y-You... are you even a normal man?"
Su Mu rubbed his aching forehead. "Miss Black Seele, do you have a misunderstanding of 'normal men'? Do you think normal men are criminals who attack innocent girls? Is our definition of 'normal' a bit different?"
Black Seele was fuming. "Dammit! I was waiting for you to lose control so I could come out and knock you flat! Then I could have had you rightfully sent to prison!"
Su Mu made a "Stop" gesture. "I'll pass on that. I have to work tomorrow, and I have games that aren't finished yet."
Going to jail over something like this when he had so many games to make would be a terrible trade.
Black Seele felt like she was going to spit blood. What exactly was inside this man's head? Games, making games... You bastard, is there nothing in your brain besides making games?!
A blockhead? It wasn't even a matter of being dense; this guy was planning to stay with his games for life! She finally understood why, despite Bronya's charm, she hadn't been able to take this man down. It was because he only thought about game development; the bastard never even considered romance!
Black Seele had thought her own personality was twisted, but after seeing Su Mu, she realized his "twist" was far more severe! If this continued, he'd never fall for Bronya, and she wouldn't be able to sabotage them by having him rejected... the whole plan was dead in the water, and revenge was impossible!
Guh!! This is so annoying!!
For the first time, Black Seele felt frustrated because of a man. Su Mu was different from the "bugs" that usually circled Bronya; this guy was just too special!
"Trying to take revenge on me like this only hurts you in the end.... Black Seele, if you truly care for yourself and the other Seele, don't do things like this again." Su Mu sighed and gave her some earnest advice in a gentle tone. "You're a girl; you need to protect yourself, understand?"
Looking at Su Mu lecturing her like a big brother, Black Seele's face turned bright red. "W-Who asked you! Are you looking down on me? Do you know how many annoying bugs I've beaten up for Seele since we were little? Don't get so full of yourself! You're just like the others; sooner or later I'll..."
"Mhm, mhm. Anyway, don't do it next time. I'm heading out."
Su Mu didn't stay any longer and walked out of the bathroom. After he left, Black Seele's clenched fists slowly relaxed.
"The first time.... someone has said that to me."
Black Seele found it ironic. She was Seele's other personality, the one who carried all the darkness and extremism. How many pests had she punched? She had lost count. But Su Mu treated her like a normal girl and, like a big brother, reminded her to care for herself.
It was a feeling she'd never had—a bit sweet, a bit tingly. She almost liked it... but what was it? For the first time in her life, Black Seele encountered something that left her at a total loss.
Another week passed, and the update for the new Honkai 3rd version, Cyberangel, arrived. During this time, Bronya had been swamped with personnel handovers, helping Firefly recruit many excellent single-player game developers.
Now, miHoYo's scale had expanded again. The original Honkai 3rd team alone had six hundred members. Combined with Firefly's new Titanfall team and the "Glamoth Iron Cavalry" studio—Su Mu originally wanted to call it the "Glamoth Veteran BBQ Studio" but felt it was too abstract—the total number of employees at miHoYo surpassed the 1,000 mark and was still rising. After all, miHoYo's benefits were top-tier, and with a phenomenal hit like Honkai 3rd, it was the dream destination for industry professionals.
During this period, Su Mu found himself somewhat "idle"—or rather, the trivial matters no longer required his attention. Developing from a tiny company of dozens to what it was now, Su Mu had put in immense effort to cultivate capable managers. Now, he could easily grasp the project's status through his department heads.
A single person's strength is limited—Su Mu had understood this for a long time. Even if the outside world saw him as the soul of miHoYo's rise, he knew the success was the result of every team member's hard work. It was just that the outside only saw his name. Because of this, Su Mu never mistreated the managers working under him. He saw their efforts, even if the fame went to him.
Quite a few things happened during this time. First, Kevin Kaslana visited the company, proposing a collaboration with Honkai 3rd to release branded instant noodles. miHoYo didn't refuse and immediately finalized the deal.
"Making instant noodles must also keep up with the times. To run a company well, one cannot be stagnant; one must constantly innovate..." Watching Kevin discuss management philosophy while slurping noodles, Su Mu found it hilarious. Well, here it is: the Signet of Instant Noodles. No matter the cost, instant noodles shall conquer humanity, right? Of course, Su Mu knew Kevin was only this friendly because of Elysia and the others. It was normal; people are interconnected. If everyone around you praises someone, you'll eventually see them as outstanding too.
Whew. Su Mu leaned back in his chair, letting out a long breath. From tomorrow, he wouldn't have to go to Kiana's house; Sirin's trip was over, and she was coming home tonight.
Come to think of it, Bronya had been incredibly busy lately, for some reason. Either it was meetings or various errands, and the people "bothering" Bronya most frequently were Elysia and Carole. Consequently, for those two weeks, Su Mu and Seele had gone to Kiana's together after work, buying groceries and discussing dinner plans.
In the mornings, because Bronya sometimes had to travel for business and Seele didn't have a car, Su Mu would pick her up for work so she wouldn't have to suffer on the subway. They were seen entering and leaving the building together so often that the front desk girl at the Arc City Commercial Building even teased them: "Oh, Director Su, are you dating? Your girlfriend is too cute! You're a lucky man!" Every time that happened, Seele would lower her head, blushing.
Su Mu felt a bit strange, noticing that his alone time with Seele had spiked in the last half-month. But he didn't overthink it; as long as the "little devil" Black Seele didn't come out, Seele was like a little angel. Having a little angel around wasn't bad. Since her "lecture," Black Seele hadn't shown up, and he didn't know if she had taken his words to heart.
Occasionally, Bronya would see them laughing and chatting. Seeing Seele amused by Su Mu's humor, Bronya would ask: "Oh? When did you two become this close?" But before she could get an answer, she'd be called away by Carole.
"Hum-hum, hum-hum-hum~♫"
By the way, for some reason, Elysia had seemed exceptionally happy every day lately. She would often hum while passing by Su Mu, give him a meaningful glance, and then skip away like a pink butterfly. Su Mu had no idea what she was so happy about.
As the maintenance end-time drew near, Su Mu opened Bilibili and entered Senti's stream. Since Senti was in her "rising phase," he had to keep an eye on her. Plus, her streams were genuinely fun; her storytelling style reminded him of a street-side narrator—she was incredibly eloquent.
"Aya! Welcome 'Old Captain' to this heroine's stream!"
After much nagging, Su Mu had finally given Senti his private account ID, though he made her promise not to reveal it. He didn't want to wake up to a comment section full of "I'll kill you ten thousand times over, Su Mu."
"Ahem! This viewer named Old Captain must be another poor soul tortured by the Old Thief's Honkai Impact 3rd, right? Don't worry! This heroine is here to punish the wicked and uphold justice!"
With that, Senti brought out the sandbag with Su Mu's masked photo on it and delivered a flying kick. Su Mu's mouth twitched. That kid is definitely doing it on purpose! Fortunately, the skit didn't last long. Once maintenance ended and the servers went up, Senti dropped the sandbag and eagerly opened the game.
"Honkai 3rd, launch!!"
Amidst her exaggerated performance, the elevator went up, the doors opened, and the bridge with Fu Hua's Azure Empyrea appeared!
"Without further ado, fellow heroes, the new main story for Honkai is here! I've been waiting for half a month; I nearly grew mold waiting! Today, Senti will take you all to see what's at the bottom of this Sea of Quanta!"
Senti decisively opened the stage, launching Main Story Chapter 11—[Until the Deep End of the Sea]. The chapter picked up from the end of the previous one, starting with a monologue from Bronya recounting what had happened. After jumping into the Sea alone, Bronya met a boy in a strange place. The boy called himself Joachim. He told Bronya that this was the crack between reality and possibility, a space of perception and existence—the entrance to the Sea of Quanta. Joachim had been guarding this giant labyrinth to stop lost souls from wandering in.
Immediately after, a swarm of Quantum Shadows attacked, putting Bronya into a tough fight. These shadows were projections of Bronya's own consciousness; as long as she was in this space, she would constantly see visions from "deep in her heart." Normal weapons couldn't hurt these shadows, but Project Bunny possessed a power capable of fighting them—a power also originating from the Sea of Quanta. However, at this point, Bronya didn't fully understand Project Bunny.
[Project Bunny was a gift from Seele to Bronya, right?]
[So Seele obtained this power from the Sea and turned it into Project Bunny for Bronya?]
[The foreshadowing was laid way back then... Having power against the Sea of Quanta, this really is the Duck's home turf!]
The viewers were getting excited; they hadn't expected Project Bunny to hide such a massive piece of lore. However, for Bronya to proceed into the Sea, she had to pass a trial. Under Joachim's guidance, she traveled to "another world"—and when she woke up, she found herself facing the Class Monitor... and Murata Himeko.
Bronya realized she had come to a completely different world. Everything here was gentle. The Class Monitor was there. Himeko-sensei was there too. And Bronya had fallen asleep during Himeko's English class.
[Holy crap, Auntie Himeko?]
[No way, no way? NO WAY??]
Himeko's reappearance caused the chat to skyrocket. The impact of Final Lesson felt like it had happened yesterday. Just seeing Himeko appear made many viewers' eyes water.
[But this Himeko looks like the young one from 'Popsicle Cyclone'.]
[Wait, if you're gonna stab me, don't use Himeko! Su Mu, what's the meaning of bringing her out again!]
[Does anyone remember Su Mu saying in a stream that Himeko would return in a 'special way'...?]
[Does 'special way' mean getting stabbed again in Midsummer Night? Or being an NPC in another world? Heh! Is she gonna show up in a flashback kill next?]
[The Old Thief's heart is dead set on our destruction!]
Amidst the discussion, Bronya participated in combat training and sensed subtle differences in this world's Fu Hua and Himeko. She needed more info to confirm the situation, but in the next History class, an unexpected person appeared on the lectern. That blonde woman in a military uniform, looking heroic... wasn't that Cocolia?
END OF CHAPTER
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