MGSFV?! Chapter 389. The Rise of "Ship-Possession" Culture
Sensing something wasn't quite right, the players focused even more intently on the unfolding story.
Unfortunately...
The writers clearly had other plans.
I know you're eager, but hold your horses—
Let's first check back in with Mei and Raven.
Players had no choice but to suppress their emotions and keep watching patiently.
The screen cut back—
To the edge of the Sahara Desert, where Mei's "tailing" mission was proceeding in an orderly manner.
Calling it "tailing" was a stretch—
She was just walking alongside Raven.
She said she'd tail openly, and openly she did. If she acted sneaky, she wouldn't be the Herrscher of Thunder.
"Raven, are you sure someone from World Serpent needs you to deliver... a smartphone in this place, where even the signal is unstable?"
"Here."
Raven tossed her a sealed box.
"You figure it out."
Mei didn't hesitate—she immediately activated her Herrscher power to inspect the device.
Even Raven was caught off guard.
Using her Herrscher authority without hesitation, just to scan a normal phone?
Then again, it wasn't totally unreasonable.
This was a "special" mission assigned by World Serpent—caution was fair.
Still...
Raven sniffed the faint scent of ozone left in the air—
Proof the Herrscher of Thunder had used her power.
She couldn't help but mutter:
"...Honestly, I kinda get how Kosma felt now."
[Kosma: ...Whatever.]
[Sudden knife from a fallen brother.]
[Does Raven even know what happened in Elysium Everlasting? If Mei told her the whole truth, what would she even say? 乆乆乆]
[Wait, you guys are trying to possess Raven too? Your obsession puts even Kevin to shame.]
[I'm obsessed? Don't act like you don't wanna possess anyone. I just saw several familiar names in chat who recently possessed streamers together.]
It was true—
Since Elysium Everlasting ended, players were increasingly obsessed with watching new players dive into Honkai Impact 3rd.
Especially those emotional (tear-prone) streamers—
Every time they went live, flocks of like-minded viewers gathered from all over,
To savor that bittersweet "flavor" and relive those shared emotions together.
And of course—
No one understood this better than Hokuto, the Head Possessor, the source of "Ship-Possession" culture.
Even Elysia had taken note of this peculiar joy within the community.
She'd once chatted with Hokuto about it—
"Ahem. So, dear writer, what are your thoughts on leading the rise of 'ship-possession' culture?"
"...Isn't it romantic?
When a total stranger, who has nothing to do with you, experiences this story and ends up feeling the same emotions you once did—
Doesn't that make you feel something?"
"...Romantic?"
"Yes. Whether anyone else believes it or not—I do."
"..."
——
Back to the story.
Seeing Raven's awkward expression as she handed over the phone, Mei saw through her hesitation.
"You don't seem too opposed to me learning certain things."
Raven shrugged.
"Who knows? Maybe we just got used to each other over the past few months. Enemies fated to meet, or something like that."
But then...
She suddenly fell silent.
After a long pause—
"Mei..." she softly said.
Something in her tone told Mei Raven had more to say.
And she did—
But her next words far exceeded Mei's expectations.
"I'll just say it.
The Stigmata Project... you could say it's already complete."
Players: HUH?? What?!
The Stigmata Project is just... finished??
[It's complete?!]
[I still don't even understand what the project is, and it's already over?!]
[Kevin: While Raiden Mei was still immersed in Elysium Everlasting, we moved quickly to surprise her.]
[Has it begun? It's already over!]
Clearly, most players were completely blindsided.
But some began analyzing—
[Actually... based on Kevin's attitude earlier, it felt like the project would accelerate.
He knew Finality was coming—
No way would he procrastinate like a student on the last day of summer vacation. He'd have to plan buffer time.]
[So honestly, it makes sense that it's already done.]
"Ah, that makes sense..."
Elysia nodded in agreement with the chat.
"Thank you all for your thoughtful input. You've answered a lot of my questions."
Mei: "Elysia..."
But before Mei could speak, Elysia interrupted:
"Sigh, I thought I could handle it alone...
But I really do need everyone's help with analysis."
Mei: "...You gave up fast."
She expected Elysia to at least try to resist.
"I mean, it's not like I'm a 'Honkai scholar' streamer or anything."
Elysia showed zero shame.
She even added—
"Besides, I think I've been through this before... learn from your mistakes, right?
Like how Mei doesn't want her horns touched twice—Elysia won't trip on the same stone twice either~"
Mei: "...
Can't you pick a better metaphor?"
"Mhm~♪"
"...
Fine. Just continue the story."
"Okay okay~ I won't tease you anymore, Mei."
——
Back to the game.
Most players were shocked by the Stigmata Project being finished.
So was Mei.
She looked incredulously at Raven—
The same Raven who claimed to be "professional," yet just leaked classified info to a former World Serpent member.
"...What did you just say?"
"I said—
I don't know the exact details,
But everything I'm doing now feels like the final phase of the Stigmata Project."
"To be honest, when they told me, I was shocked too...
Probably looked just like you do right now."
Mei furrowed her brows.
"That's just... strange."
Yes—
Strange.
Mei and Raven were both World Serpent operatives.
If a massive operation had taken place, they should have known.
But instead—
The project was completed without them even noticing?
[Sure, Kevin probably ensured the project advanced rapidly. But after Arc City, wasn't he just sitting on a throne being cool? When did World Serpent move?]
[Flip the logic—
It would've been weirder if they didn't do anything. They must've been working secretly all along.]
"This is the blind spot in our perspective," Raven said.
"Blind spot?"
Mei guessed—and teased:
"What? Did Jackal give up human experimentation? Did Gray Serpent turn to charity?"
Raven shook her head and answered plainly:
"It was Feathered Rabbit."
"...Feathered Rabbit?"
The name sounded familiar to Mei—but only vaguely.
And Raven didn't know much either.
Instead, she took Mei to see what Feathered Rabbit had actually done—
She merged ordinary human dreams with the Stigmata space.
Altered reality.
Caused human bodies to disappear and become part of the project.
"This is..."
Mei was stunned.
A real, physical human being—
Vanished, due to a seemingly magical technology?
She was only in Elysium Everlasting for 100+ days, right?
How did the world develop such absurd black-tech in that time?!
The players felt the same.
How did the world change this much since Elysium Everlasting ended?!
"You're a Herrscher. Maybe you can verify it for yourself," Raven said.
"Verify??"
Mei snapped back:
"I'm the Herrscher of Thunder, not the Herrscher of Sentience."
[Wouldn't this be more in the Herrscher of the Void's domain?]
[No—you're the Herrscher of Reason.]
[Bronya: You better have a good reason.]
[KnowGem: Meow?]
[Herrscher of Sentience would probably just punch someone. Not sure she'd be useful here.]
[??? Who's slandering me?! I'm telling you now—it'll be me who saves the day in the end.]
Some were very confident.
And honestly...
They were kinda right.
In-game—
Raven responded to Mei's complaints with one line:
"Is that so? Well, if you won't follow, I'll just go ahead."
Then she took out her phone, swiped twice—
And a space gate appeared.
Why "familiar"?
Because after Raven stepped through—
"Didn't you say you wanted to follow me?
This gate lasts ten minutes.
If you want to come... be my guest."
Mei stood before the gate.
Not long ago—
Dozens of such gates had filled her everyday life.
In that journey to the past,
They had stood silently,
Like eyes watching the joys and sorrows of fifty thousand years.
But now—
This new "gate" gave off a different feeling:
Emptiness.
[Elysium Anchor?]
[Hidden blade incoming? Don't pull this on me, MiHoYo.]
[Relax. You know how these writers are. This is par for the course.
BTW, is it just me, or has "emotionless" been showing up a lot today?
It's probably foreshadowing. Maybe Kevin won't stay cold at the end—he'll finally express the feelings he's buried.]
[Are you imagining Kevin sobbing on his cool throne now? 23333]
[Sobbing with style. (doge)]
Mei pulled her drifting thoughts back in.
Her gaze firmed.
"Whatever happens—standing still achieves nothing."
Maybe...
She was thinking of those words:
'Move forward, guided by your heart.'
She stepped through.
"World Serpent... let me see what you're really trying to do."
Actually—
World Serpent was strange.
You could call them mysterious—
They always pulled off shocking things.
But also... not that mysterious.
Their "classified" info? You could just walk up and see it.
No one stopped you.
Frankly—
It was weird.
Maybe...
This was Kevin's version of generosity?
Go ahead. Stir up trouble if you want.
I'll step in if it matters.
——
Back to Theresa.
Turns out—
She wasn't in danger (yet).
She contacted Einstein for help analyzing the Hyperion's shifting trajectory.
But the results...
Showed nothing abnormal.
"Strange... even the autopilot system checks out.
What else could be causing the ship to keep veering off course?"
"Could the propulsion system be mechanically faulty?"
"Unlikely. Remember, Theresa—
The Hyperion's core propulsion has already been fully upgraded to programmable soulium.
If something were wrong, I'd have detected it instantly."
[Wait—when did this happen?! The Hyperion got that much of an upgrade?!
When did they even get enough soulium?!]
[Speaking of soulium...
I'm not the only one thinking this, right?
I know it's kinda a dark joke, but...]
[Melt the leftovers of Grandpa. (wrong)]
[Otto boarded the Hyperion too. Where is he? In the reactor. (sad)]
[I didn't think I'd still be getting hit by hell jokes after Elysium Everlasting...]
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