MGSFV?! Chapter 483: Otto's Grave; Divine Insect Splits Mountain!
[You all actually don't understand at all, do you? (points fingers)]
[We can tell—you're not calm, just pretending to be composed. (serious)]
[You're overthinking it (sunglasses)(sunglasses)]
Just like the viewers in the livestream room. Some people's anxiety shows up immediately. Others, even though they're anxious deep inside, show nothing on the surface.
Durandal was undoubtedly the latter.
Thus, Kiana merely glanced toward Durandal's long golden hair, pausing briefly at a small strand of white. That was the regression phenomenon that occurred after Durandal awakened the Kaslana Stigma... Now, it had become a detail that subtly hinted at certain key information.
But... Now wasn't the time to dig into that. Rescuing Dad was the priority.
After a short silence— "I understand, Durandal. Thank you for being willing to tell us this. As for the rest... let's leave it for later?" "Mm."
[That's it?]
[Cut off right there!?]
[Now I'm getting anxious.]
The players had undeniably been baited hard by the writer.
[Strongly condemn!!]
"Ah~~ Everyone, calm down..." Surprisingly, Elysia, who should have been the most anxious, looked the calmest.
"...This is kind of like how Durandal didn't say anything back in Kolosten, right? Kiana probably also considered the fact that they still have battles ahead and didn't want to affect Durandal's state."
"Even if they haven't truly acknowledged each other yet, you can already feel their deep sisterly bond," Hokuto added beside her.
"Yes, that's exactly it."
[Miss Fairy knows how to ship—pulling sugar even from the corners.]
Thanks to Elysia's lead, the tone of the chat shifted once again.
["Deep Sisterly Bond"]
[Guys, I'm shipping with Miss Fairy now.]
[Still, I hope we get some direct sugar later—stop making us dig for every crumb.]
...
Under Elysia's practiced control, the livestream's mood gradually calmed. Of course, how long that calm would last was uncertain. Because coming up next... were bombshell after bombshell. Some things already felt predictable.
So just bring it on already.
Back to the main story. After savoring the emotional nuance of the scene, Elysia lightly tapped the game screen to continue the story.
After agreeing to "talk later," Kiana and Durandal stood before the spatial rift Theresa had escaped from. Their teammates silently took position behind them, ready to assist.
Focusing her mind, Kiana extended the Herrscher of the Void's power through the spatial ripple, seeking the endpoint called the "Stigma Space."
And as she acted, a flood of surreal and bizarre visions surged through her consciousness. Illusions detached from logic and alien to the known world came pressing in like mountains, like oceans.
Dangerous? But... She was no longer who she used to be. And she was no longer alone!
The others' powers followed behind her— Sumeru Seed condensed the illusions spanning three thousand worlds. Vishnu the Dream-Eater erased the chaotic mirages one by one. The stories representing the logic of civilization helped her draw a rainbow bridge across yesterday...
The team's strengths synergized under Kiana's control, converging into one. They wiped away the illusory distractions and accurately pinpointed the Stigma Space hidden in the unknown.
"Found it!"
Kiana used her power to knock forcefully on the "gate." But a sudden surge of suction came forth. It pulled her—and Durandal—both inside.
...
The game screen transitioned appropriately. They arrived in a crimson desert.
[This place again?]
[Otto's grave (lol)]
[Every time I see this place, I think of when Otto did his "grandpa crossing the street" here.]
[Overseer Otto, please lead us into the Imaginary Tree again!]
Compared to players with PTSD-level familiarity with this scene, Kiana looked slightly confused and murmured, "This is...?"
"This is the region where Kaslana's Stigma Space and the ordinary Imaginary Space have merged. Back in Kolosten... this is where Otto exiled me."
Fortunately, Durandal—who had been here before—was beside her, so they weren't totally blind.
"So this place is still a distance from the true core of the Stigma Space..." "Yes. And what I need to do now is... follow the Dream-Eater traces Overseer Theresa left not long ago..."
Since they had a goal, action became simple. Durandal took out the Sumeru Seed, detected the traces Theresa had left, then she and Kiana followed them one by one.
Soon, they saw a spatial rift at the end of the path.
"As expected." "At the end of this road... is..."
Is what? Durandal didn't say. But that sudden, vague comment was very intriguing.
[What is it? Is it our father?]
[So curious—Miss Fairy.jpg]
Kiana: ? Facing Durandal's sudden vagueness, Kiana slowly typed out a question mark in her heart.
"Forget it—for now, ensuring Siegfried's safety is more important."
[Still calling him 'Mister'?!]
[Dudu, aren't you usually direct? Why are you so... sigh, I guess it's understandable.]
[Rare to see Dudu act bashful and unsure.]
If outsiders passed by the livestream room, they'd probably think the godlike chat audience was more anxious than the characters.
But actually, Durandal only appeared unbothered—her actions were very honest.
Which showed when... she said, even more eagerly than Kiana: "Let's go, Kiana. Let's move." "Mm."
As Kiana nodded—the players all sat upright, instantly alert. Clearly, the crucial moment was about to arrive...?
Two suddenly appearing choices interrupted their thoughts:
[Follow Kiana's thoughts]
[Follow Bianca's thoughts]
"Choices? Two?" Elysia didn't choose immediately. She instead asked Hokuto, "Will different choices lead to different results?"
"Of course they will," Hokuto replied, one-to-one.
"Hearing that... now I want to see both of them even more." Elysia hesitated, staring at the two choices on screen.
"..." Hokuto soon gently reminded her—if you want to see both, there's an easy and practical method.
"...Just watch one first, then quit and reload the other, right?" "Ah? Right."
With that remembered, the rest was easy. Elysia first followed [Kiana's thoughts], then exited and reloaded to follow [Bianca's thoughts].
She watched both.
So what were they both thinking about at this time? Hmm... Let's just say—not surprising for sisters. They were both contemplating the same question:
What does "father" mean?
Different people might have vastly different answers.
For the girl named "Kiana"— "Father" once meant her entire world. Toast pizza, cup ramen, birthday cake... and of course, her own name. Her life seemed to truly begin with that one word: "Kiana."
But for the girl once named "Kiana" and now called "Bianca"— "Father" was a rather vague concept. She had never regained her memories... her past life felt more like a scene she watched on a movie screen.
But even so—a father is still a father.
Just like what was said in the Kolosten chapter before... Bianca's thoughts on her present and past self: "Though she's no longer quite 'her,' she still remains her."
It's not hard to understand. Even a regular person—without memory loss—how much can they remember from before age 8? You are already vastly different from your 8-year-old self. But can you say you're not the same person as the 8-year-old you?
The answer is obviously no.
...
"To both Kiana and Durandal, a father is an incredibly important existence." "Of course. He's family." "Family. Family."
Saying it twice, sometimes just repeating that word can bring a smile to someone's face.
"Yeah. He's family." "So... Kiana, Bianca—you must bring Siegfried back safely~!"
After watching both reflections, it felt like some deep emotion had been kindled. No matter what lies ahead, they must overcome it!
With great anticipation—click again.
Dun~~ A soft sound rang out.
"Hmm?" That sound... could it be... "Did we enter a cutscene?"
Indeed, this was a cutscene transition. The screen first darkened, then slowly lit up.
The opening scene: Kiana and Durandal broke into a frozen landscape—the Kaslana Stigma Space. In the distance, a strange tower-like structure floated in the sky. And their goal—Siegfried Kaslana—was imprisoned there.
"This is..." "Yes, the true Kaslana Stigma Space." "Dad is in there?"
Kiana gripped her greatsword tightly. Durandal, however, stepped forward first.
"Let's go! We'll rescue Siegfried."
[...]
Although it wasn't exactly the right time... they still really wanted to complain—'Siegfried... mister'?
...
Kiana and Durandal exchanged a glance, then flew off in opposite directions toward the floating tower.
But this space seemed to detect their "malicious intent." Intense frost gathered—ice spikes flooded the air like a swarm of bloodthirsty insects.
The sheer killing intent chilled the skin.
But the two facing this danger were seasoned veterans. Even in the face of overwhelming offense, they precisely found the gaps in the attack.
"Flamescion..." "Origin..."
Grasping the right moment—the sisters launched a combo move.
Firelight, flames, energy, torrent... The entire space trembled under their fierce assault.
But... When the barrage finally landed on the floating tower—a flash of an invisible barrier dissolved the attack without a trace.
Honestly, this felt just like when a fire god ultimate hits a fire-immune slime. "I admit your attacks are strong, but if I'm "immune," what can you do?"
Durandal stepped up!
"Don't panic."
[Don't panic! Sis has got this!]
"The rules of Stigmata... must be surpassed by Stigmata!"
Defeat magic with magic.jpg
She raised the Abyss Flower in her hand, stabbed it into the ground, and chanted aloud—
"In the name of [Shaniat], I command—" "Oh white flower blooming in the abyss, unleash your full power."
[That's not just Abyss Flower... that's Shaniat's—Cecilia's power!]
[In a way, Mom came to save Dad too.]
Next— The power of Shaniat's Stigma radiated with unprecedented brilliance through Abyss Flower.
Countless green tendrils like mist, like silken ribbons, spread outward from Durandal, then encircled the floating tower.
Crack—crash~~ The Kaslana Stigma's defense was assimilated effortlessly by the power of the Shaniat Stigma.
"Kiana, now!" "Got it."
Kiana nodded firmly, leapt into the air, and her greatsword burst into eternal flames.
Several lines of inner monologue floated across:
Dad, this flame...
[Go, Kiana!]
[Once there was Chen Xiang splitting the mountain to save his mother—now there's Kiana splitting the tower to save her father!]
...was lit by you.
[With this flame, even the uncuttable shall be severed!]
A flaming blade cleaved through the towering symbol of Stigma—a violent explosion followed.
All that remained in their vision—was radiant light.
[What happened? What happened? What happened?!]
[I'm so anxious.]
Players flooded the chat with comments, but never looked away from the screen for even a second.
A long pause. So long, they started wondering if the writer was going to end the chapter here in a "despicable, shameless, nasty" cliffhanger.
Finally— The white light slowly faded.
Within the shattered tower, a weak Siegfried slowly opened his eyes.
Durandal and Kiana stood before him, smiling warmly.
Kiana, her eyes slightly tearful, said softly— "Dad, welcome home."
And the most poignant moment— Siegfried momentarily hallucinated, seeing younger versions of Kiana and Durandal reaching out to him.
[Two little ones! That hit me right in the heart.]
[Both your daughters came to take you home. (tears)]
[How wonderful. Just wonderful.]
[I'm too old for this kind of sweetness.]
[Ah... come to think of it, I started playing Honkai 3rd in my freshman year... now I'm almost graduating.]
"This kind of sweet scene... is real? Thank you, writer." "A family must be together." "A family must be together??? You can't say things like that!" "...Don't be scared." "The more you say that, the more scared I am."
Hokuto: ...
Hokuto: Can't there be just a little more trust between people? Everyone: That applies to everyone except you. Hokuto: ?
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