"Ah... Is this really a good idea? I'm part of the special program?"
Wende, with the word "exhausted" written all over his face, stared at the system's light screen and grumbled helplessly.
He'd been put through the wringer all night long! Couldn't they just let him take a break and rest for a bit?!
But obviously, the system screen wasn't going to talk back.
"Hey, let me ask first. The people I'll meet in the special program... they're not the actual characters, right?"
Wende thought back to the miHoYo special programs he used to watch. The voice actor guests they invited... they shouldn't have any connection to their roles in-universe, right?
What if the guest on this special program livestream was that crazy woman...
He was afraid a 12+ rated stream would instantly turn into an R18+ one, and if his luck was bad enough, they might have to add a 'G' for gore.
[The special program livestream will only feature voice actors from reality. Characters from the proper universe will not appear.]
The system panel replied with no emotion.
"I see... Then... can I ask a question? Who's my voice actor? You're making me go in person... Am I voicing myself?"
Wende pointed to his own face, looking at the system screen with a big question mark over his head.
[...]
The system screen did not answer.
"Fine, I didn't expect you to answer anyway."
Wende shrugged and tapped the teleport button on the system screen.
---o---
Reality
Not a single moment was spent mourning the passing of Version 1.1... for the 1.2 Special Program livestream was about to begin!
It was rumored that this 1.2 version was extremely mysterious. Many prominent leakers seemed to have evaporated into thin air right after coming into contact with information about it, disappearing from the public eye.
The only clue for speculating about Star Rail's 1.2 content was a character-up banner image that had been leaked during the closed beta.
However, that image had lost all credibility after Wende's surprise "airdrop" backstabbed everyone's plans in Version 1.0. It was only after the Version 1.1 character banner predictions came true that the players dug it back out of its grave.
"Alright! I'm Jimi! And welcome to this...!"
The Star Rail special program's mascot was using a voice as boisterous as a lottery announcer for the dead to tell the audience about the brand-new content of Version 1.2.
"There are five people..."
As thick clouds gathered in the livestream and Jimi shrieked, a pair of amber pupils, brimming with killing intent, suddenly materialized in the mist, staring daggers at the players watching the screen.
"And three must pay the price!"
[Thanks, going to change my pants.]
[You'd better have been scared shitless.]
[?]
[It's Brother 5-3's voice~ Ah~]
[What the hell is a "Brother 5-3"?!]
[Hello, I am a sentient workbook.]
[Only a sentient college entrance exam workbook could be this insane, right?]
[? A mere workbook! I'm going to copy you!]
[Give me the answers! I'm going to copy the hell out of him!]
"Waaahhh! Guest! Is it really okay for you to make an entrance like that?!"
Jimi hid under the desk, looking in terror at the deranged Blade.
"Hmph..."
"Blade" shot Jimi a contemptuous glance, then pulled a pair of sunglasses from his pocket and put them on.
"Oh my, my, this is quite..."
Nearby, "Kafka," wearing a pair of round sunglasses, watched with a smile as Jimi shrank under the desk, leaving only the tip of his chicken-tail feathers visible.
[MMMMMMMMMM!]
[KAFKA! KAFKA! KAFKA!]
[Itō Shizuka! I've loved you since the day I was born!]
[Ah~ Wifey! Wifey!!]
[Where's Himeko?! Where's Himeko! There's a bad woman here!]
[Dammit, where is my Yifu! There's a bad woman trying to snatch your kid, Dad!!!!]
[Whatchu say? You got a problem with that?]
[Yifu: Ghost!]
[I'm happy to be lost in her beauty!]
[Woof woof woof! (Hands Kafka a leash)]
[Outrageous.]
[Tch, you guys are like this over just one Kafka? Aren't you going to explode when Wende comes out?]
"So... what are you guys doing?"
Wende, having just walked into the special program studio, looked at the people who appeared to be "Blade" and "Kafka," and the chicken hiding under the table, with a look of utter confusion.
The moment Wende appeared, the entire livestream chat instantly exploded.
[WTF!!!!!!]
[Hey you, the guy who just commented! Did your mouth just get consecrated or something?! I love you!! Yifu! I revere you!!!]
[Bu piao ling... (begins chanting)]
[It's... it's him... the man who can be my Sworn Father! And also my mother!]
[Look, everyone! That's my wife!! My husband has finally shown his face!! Yifu!! Is Male Mom finally getting a 5-star?!]
[It's hard to imagine a single person being an entire household register, but he did it.]
[I used to guard the leaks with my life... until they sent out Wende...]
[He's so gentle!]
[Kafka! Your days of monopolizing custody over Stelle are over!]
[Kafka is crying and throwing a tantrum because her child was taken away, boo hoo hoo, how pitiful.]
[YIFU! YIFU!!! FOR YOU! FOR YOU!!! When the moonlight~ shines upon my face~]
[The composition of you people is a bit complicated.]
[sobs We made it! We finally made it! It wasn't easy!]
[I came.]
"Let's welcome the performance actor for Blade and the voice actor for Kafka! And, a product of President Bronya's latest black-ops tech from Anti-Entropy, with an AI-generated voice... WENDE!!!"
Jimi's impassioned words inadvertently revealed a major piece of information.
[WHAT!! My Yifu is voiced by an AI!]
[Does that mean we don't have to worry about him having a scandal?]
[miHuyou! Forever a GOD!!]
[I suggest you release the source voice data for Yifu! Don't make me get on my knees and beg you!]
[Isn't the user above me the author of that Luocha vs. Wende fic?]
[My god, striving for perfection, are we?]
[No wonder there was never any info on Wende's voice actor, so it's an AI! And there's not a single hint of it being AI, the voice acting is completely indistinguishable from a real person! That's terrifying...]
[As expected, Yifu is perfect. Even his voice is flawless!]
[Indeed, he is worthy of being the Trailblazer's official Sworn Father!]
"This..."
Listening to Jimi's grand introduction, Wende couldn't help but stare toward the front of the livestream...
He had already recovered from the shock of being identified as an AI voice. The explanation was brilliant, even impeccably so.
But...
Wende's gaze fell upon the live comments...
That's right... he could see the live comments...
The comments from the real-world audience...
Hiss!!!!
Could... could he leave right now?
Wende looked at the dense screen of comments, each and every one of them a different flavor of what could only be described as "going feral," and for a moment, he felt his brain begin to tremble.
Especially some of those comments that, at a single glance, were clearly from the "blue-pupil" tier. They made him unconsciously...