MGSFV?! Chapter 466. Eyes Opened Wide; So This Is All the Herrscher of Reason Amounts To
[1904]Grey Serpent's suggestion that Mistelin observe the Herrscher of Reason…
what his motives were, no one could say for sure.
But after learning the truth about the Herrscher of Reason, Mistelin didn't develop any kind of kinship or shared sentiment.
On the contrary—
Realizing the vast difference in how society treated her and him, Mistelin cast a critical eye upon the Herrscher of Reason.
Why?
A sentiment that, while not morally justified, made perfect emotional sense.
Both she and the Herrscher were born of the sacrifice of tens of thousands.
So why was he allowed contact with others, revered as a hero—
while she could only be shunned as a monster?
Thus… a one-sided grudge was formed—
Herrscher of Reason vs. Mistelin.
[Now that Mistelin is secretly observing the Herrscher of Reason… does that mean she witnessed the moment Bronya became the Herrscher of Reason?]
[Wait—I just remembered! Back in the Sea of Quanta arc, Grey Serpent told Bronya, "You've always been in the Serpent's eye."]
[Is this... that foreshadowing being fulfilled?]
[Mistelin was watching you all along.jpg]
Players with good memory quickly recalled that old line from earlier chapters.
Although, according to Hokuto, it wasn't so much memory as repeated memeing.
Isn't that the same thing?
Hokuto: ...
Ahem.
Jokes aside, the players' discussion even reminded Hokuto of debates back on the official forums.
For instance, the theory that World Serpent wanted to brainwash Bronya—rebuild her in their image.
Looking back now, the "rebuild" part may be a stretch...
But as for World Serpent wanting to take Bronya?
Yeah, totally possible.
Even if Mistelin had no such desire, Kevin—
well, you know.
Bringing a "Herrscher of Humanity" home was Kevin's biggest pre-Stigma-Plan dream.
Too bad things didn't go smoothly.
Herrscher of Reason? Brainwashed by Welt—couldn't bring her back. So he stole the motorcycle.
Herrscher of the Void? Captured—then rescued mid-delivery by an amnesiac old war buddy. Fumble.
Herrscher of Sentience? Not even worth trying—she and Qianjie would've blown up the Elysian Realm on day one.
So Kevin's logic went:
"Can't find a Herrscher? Fine. I'll make one myself. You're up, Mei."
Thank god Mei showed up—
otherwise that ice block never would've fulfilled Elysia's dream.
...
While Hokuto was drifting off in thought again—
The players, excited over the callback to the "Serpent's eye" line, quickly branched out with more speculation.
[So… given how judgmental Mistelin is toward the Herrscher of Reason,
what would she think upon seeing Bronya—Alexandra's daughter—become that very Herrscher?]
[We may never know what Mistelin would have felt… after all, she's already dead.]
[???]
The livestream "puppets" were doing their best to act serious again.
Appreciate the effort. (fog)
Jokes aside, their message was right.
We really can't know what Mistelin might have thought.
Because she was no longer Mistelin—
she had been transcribed into Hokuto.
"Mistelin... so that's the ending she reached after all…"
Elysia's voice trembled with unspoken emotion.
"Do you think it's not right?" Hokuto asked, reining in her scattered thoughts.
"..."
Elysia didn't answer directly.
Instead, she said:
"But it was Mistelin's choice.
The choice she believed to be right…"
"A woman with nothing left to live for, unable to die,
whose very presence accelerated the birth of Honkai—
and who viewed the Herrscher of Reason with such deep resentment…"
"If she really did meet Bronya…"
"You're not suggesting that this was Mistelin's 'gift' to her little niece, are you?" Hokuto interjected, eyebrow raised.
[The relationship between Hokuto and Bronya is really starting to get complicated.
Mistelin counts as Bronya's aunt—but what about Hokuto, the one transcribed from her?]
[Can't untangle it. Don't try.]
[At this moment, we invoke the one perfect answer in Honkai Impact 3rd lore.]
[What is it? (curious)]
["You don't need to understand Honkai that clearly.jpg"]
[...(Brilliant.) Can't argue with that.]
In the end, Elysia didn't answer Hokuto's question.
She simply tapped the screen—
and let the story move forward.
After Grey Serpent told Mistelin to go "investigate the Herrscher of Reason,"
players were itching to know what came next.
Would Mistelin challenge Welt to a duel?
Honestly, with her current personality, who could say?
So were we about to witness Stigma vs. Herrscher?
The writer's answer:
No.
Special move: Cliffhanger Slash!
The flashback ended abruptly.
Players: "...?"
But the abrupt cut wasn't just for the audience.
Even the one watching that memory was caught off guard.
Hokuto: "...?"
She looked around—
still inside her constructed mindscape.
But being so familiar with this chapter of history,
she knew very well there were still postludes and untold fragments.
[So you won't let us see it, but you will tell us there's more? Are you taunting us?]
[Now I really want to know.]
[Why are you able to send voice chats? Stop channeling Fairy Miss!]
Elysia: ?
...
"Did the memory space get broken from the inside?
Was it the Herrscher of the Void? …No, that's not it…"
[Wait—Herrscher of the Void has that kind of power?!]
[You forgot already?! (Mei_Pointing.jpg)]
Hmm…?
Hokuto glanced over—
The two who'd stepped out earlier were now back.
Back to the game—
In response to Hokuto's musings,
a beam of deep crimson light streaked from the Herrscher core, forcibly fused by the Stigma Plan.
Then—
"...Hm?!"
"I see now…
That's a pretty bold move."
It must be noted:
at this point in the script, the name used is Hokuto, not Mistelin Saniyat.
Hokuto looked up.
Cracks began to spread across the imaginary space—
Crack~~
With a crisp shatter—
Bronya broke free of Hokuto's blockade,
returning to the real world.
"Welcome back, Bronya Zaychik."
Hokuto smiled, seeming genuinely pleased at her return.
"At least you yourself didn't disappoint me."
Bronya, however, remained wary.
"As I suspected…
The Herrscher of Reason's core now belongs to you—
no, to the Stigma Plan."
Previously her license was revoked.
Now, even the motorcycle's gone.
Poor Bronya.
But sometimes you must lose to gain—
maybe without her bike, Bronya would realize she could pilot a Gundam.
"And are you deliberately emphasizing the distinction between me and the Herrscher of Reason?"
"...Correct.
My praise is for you personally, not the Herrscher of Reason.
Besides, you don't bear that title anymore, do you?"
"Bronya's goal remains the same—to reclaim the power of the Herrscher of Reason."
She answered with conviction.
"However… continuing to wrestle with you in this form,
Bronya knows she can't win."
"If this were a chess game, the most rational move would be to destroy the board entirely."
[Action inspiration: Qianjie.]
"If that's not yet possible, then she must resign and fight on new ground,
to avoid wasting time."
[Bronya becomes French now, huh?]
[Daily French Roast (1/1)]
[Didn't she flip the board to save Astrea, too?]
[I like this method. Very Bronya.]
...
In short—
Bronya severed her connection to the core,
escaping Hokuto's trap at the cost of becoming "ordinary."
Really?
Even if true, Bronya wouldn't care.
As we've just seen—
She was an ordinary person,
who walked all the way to where she is now through her own power.
Even knocked back to square one—
she could rise again.
As she once said:
"If a person cannot accept the idea of losing something,
then they do not truly have the capacity to possess it."
Hokuto watched Bronya's expression.
She could more or less guess what her "little niece" was thinking.
So she said—quite sincerely:
"I've always wanted to help you.
Truly…"
However—
From the omniscient player perspective,
Bronya—who had no idea about Mistelin's history with her mother—had no reason to trust Hokuto.
After all—
Even grade schoolers know not to believe strangers.
"I don't believe you.
Nor can Bronya understand…
why you're so obsessed with the Herrscher of Reason."
No, Bronya—
She's not obsessed with the Herrscher of Reason.
She's obsessed with you.
At least, that's what players were thinking.
But what Hokuto actually said—
"If I said…
it was because of jealousy?"
Bronya: "...?"
"The first Herrscher of Reason, Welt Joyce—
he was similar to me.
But he was admired by many,
even became a spiritual symbol."
Sound reasonable?
It did sound convincing.
"—Completely unlike who I used to be."
Wait—hold on.
It made sense when Mistelin said this.
She had every reason to feel jealous of the Herrscher of Reason.
But Hokuto?
Hokuto didn't go through what Mistelin did.
"I hate the curse placed upon me since birth.
I want to understand…
how someone like me could transcend that kind of deathless suffering,
mend their broken wings in hell, and fly again."
[...]*n
[It sounds plausible—but considering that this is Hokuto, not Mistelin, it doesn't quite feel sincere.]
[It's more like she's quoting a passage from the "Mistelin" storybook, narrating the heroine's inner monologue.]
Given the earlier scenes...
Like Elysia guessed—
Maybe Mistelin's final act, her final choice,
was a gift to her little niece.
Even if Mistelin was jealous of the Herrscher of Reason,
she wouldn't necessarily be jealous of Bronya.
So…
It's only natural that players began to question Hokuto's sincerity.
Which raises the question:
[But why would Hokuto hide the truth like this?]
[It's World Serpent. That's standard procedure. Everyone loves being cryptic.]
[World Serpent: Average Mobius Enjoyers.jpg]
[Careful. If you meme too hard, Mobius might show up herself.]
Mobius: "Klein, prepare some consent forms for new test subjects."
Klein: "Right away, Doctor."
...
"Now... do you understand?"
After listening to Hokuto's monologue,
Bronya furrowed her brow and asked.
"Yes. I understand now.
And because I understand…
I'm disappointed.
It may be offensive,
but this is how I truly feel—"
She paused, clearly shifting tones.
Everyone braced themselves—
What was Hokuto about to say?
After a moment of silence—
She spoke in the calmest tone imaginable.
"The Herrscher of Reason… is nothing special."
[???]
[???]
[???]
What—
what did we just hear?
"The Herrscher of Reason is nothing special"?
Now that's a bold statement.
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