Honkai Star Rail: Developing Mobile Games on Xianzhou

"What?!"

"Just like that, it's over!?!"

"How could it be completed so quickly?!"

Inside their hotel room, March 7th stared at her phone with a look of disbelief, as if about to burst into tears.

The bottom-left corner displayed the reward claim notice, confirming that the quest had indeed concluded.

"I thought no matter what option we chose, Feathered Spirit would provide further developments..."

Looking back now, they realized there was no way to resume the conversation with Kafka.

Silently observing you, without uttering another word.

Stelle sympathetically patted March 7th's shoulder. Then, taking a deep breath, she began her own Kafka companion quest within her account.

March 7th, speaking from experience, warned Stelle, "You must choose wisely."

"Who knows, helping her might reveal secrets about your past or something similar."

"Hmm," Stelle nodded, her expression unusually serious—even more so than during main quests!

Seeing this, March 7th decided not to disturb her further. She stepped onto the balcony alone, closing the door behind her.

Opening Little Gui's live stream, a flurry of comments scrolled across the screen. Clearly, many players, like herself, had curiously chosen the previously rejected option only to find it abruptly ending.

In haste, they flocked to Little Gui's channel, lamenting:

"I never expected it to just end like that!"

"My character hit the rebellious phase; even Mom's words fell on deaf ears."

"Refusing the Demon Exorcism? Harsh much?"

"Missed both the PV event and now Kafka's storyline—I don't want to live anymore!"

"I didn't expect it to end just like that!"

"The child's rebellious phase has arrived; they won't listen to Mom anymore."

"Is Mara-Struck really so severe?"

"Missed the PV event and now Kafka's storyline too. I don't want to live on!"

"Who would actually refuse to complete tasks with Ka-mom?"

"Seriously! How could you bear it? Even with my three accounts, I couldn't bring myself to abandon Ka-mom and Bladie here."

Inside the room,

Stelle had already realized the significance of choices within this quest.

At that moment, she couldn't afford to focus on immersion or gameplay experience.

Her plan was to observe Little Gui's selection first and then deduce the correct option based on the outcome!

Of course.

***

Here, "correct" meant choices that would benefit Stelle personally, aiming to extract as much information from Kafka as possible.

Soon enough,

the Truth Game with Kafka began.

According to the rules, each response must contain one truth and one lie.

Kafka posed the first question.

"How do you perceive me?"

[Tell the truth.]

[Lie.]

Stelle didn't rush to choose between these options but instead looked at Little Gui's selection first.

In the live stream:

Little Gui chose [Tell the truth].

Then followed it with [I like you].

Kafka smiled faintly.

"See... just like this. It's quite simple, Stelle."

"You truly hide your thoughts well."

"But, our Truth Game must pause for now, Stelle."

"The Cloud Knights have arrived, and I need your help to deal with them."

Upon seeing this,

Stelle impatiently clicked her tongue.

This Truth Game seemed like a golden opportunity to uncover crucial information about Kafka!

Why were they interrupted before even completing the first round?

Apparently,

Little Gui was also displeased.

"Darn it! We were having so much fun. Who dares to interrupt my game with Mom?!?!"

Faced with the approaching Cloud Knights, Little Gui immediately resorted to fists over words.

While Little Gui engaged in battle,

In Stelle's first response using her account, she chose to lie, and as expected, this led to encountering the Cloud Knights.

Despite making a different choice, combat was still triggered.

After defeating the enemies,

Kafka remarked, "See? This is the nature of the future. It may appear infinite with countless possibilities, but what is destined to happen will inevitably occur. The conflict here was unavoidable because other outcomes simply do not exist."

"The Truth Game continues—it's your turn again, Stelle."

Little Gui opted for a question about the protagonist—"[I]".

A delighted expression instantly crossed Stelle's face!

Yes!

This was precisely the information she sought. If Kafka provided two distinct answers, one would undoubtedly be true and the other false.

With that insight,

she could at least begin unraveling her origins. By combining it with the second question to eliminate the false response, she might finally learn her true lineage from Kafka's own words!

But the challenge lay in determining which answer was truth and which was deception!

Meanwhile, Kafka posed his second question:

"Do you wish to see me again?"

At this moment, Stelle could choose to cheat or follow the rules strictly.

Given the significance of the question related to her past, anxiety surged within her, feeling like her brain CPU was working at full throttle!

"Uh..." She pondered intensely, beads of sweat forming on her nose.

Finally—

"March, quick, help me figure this out!"

Holding her phone, March 7th wore an expression of "I knew you'd need me."

Five minutes later.

"I've got it! I deduced the answer!"

"This response must be true!" March 7th's eyes sparkled brightly.

As self-proclaimed Detective March 7th, she finally regained her confidence amidst this question-and-answer session. She began to list the correct answers systematically.

Meanwhile, Stelle's breathing accelerated.

Any person with amnesia would likely find it hard to remain composed when faced with such revelations, and she was no exception.

Moreover, Kafka's responses were increasingly explosive!

Phrases like "[created by the Aeon deity]", "[a unique vessel]," and "[you are my child]" left Stelle stunned!

She briefly wondered if she truly possessed the innate protagonist halo.

Soon, March 7th presented the genuine answer before them both, as they solemnly read together:

[Who was I before?]

"You were created as a vessel for the Stellaron. From your birth, your destiny has been to receive it at the Herta space station. My responsibility was to protect you until then, teaching you basic knowledge, understanding, and combat skills."

"The reason you don't remember is because before executing the Herta Plan, I made you forget."

["Why am I able to contain the Stellaron?"]

"Because you were specifically engineered to serve as its container. Your body has been transformed by the Aeon's power, making it immune to contamination even upon contact with the Stellaron."

"In essence, one could say you are the unique 'vessel' for the Stellaron."

["What is our relationship?"]

"One day, Elio entrusted you to me. He said that if events unfolded according to his foresight, ultimately, you would change me, and I would change you."

"In other words, we are each other's destinies."

As long as Kafka didn't violate any rules, these responses confirmed the true facts she knew!

After reading through them,

Stelle and March 7th fell into a brief silence.

Stelle seemed deeply shaken.

Glancing between herself and the window, she momentarily didn't know how to react.

March 7th exclaimed, "Kafka was always protecting you, teaching you basic knowledge, cognition, and combat skills?"

"So you're also a Stellaron Hunter!"

"Let me quickly check Interastral Peace Corporation's bounty list—see how much you're worth!"

Thanks to March 7th's antics,

Stelle's lingering confusion and sorrow instantly dissipated.

She swiftly snatched away March 7th's phone.

"Heh heh heh, since you've discovered my true identity, I must silence you now!"

A pillow fight ensued within the room.

After several minutes,

Stelle and March 7th, covered in feathers, collapsed onto the sofa, exhausted.

"Sigh..."

"Thank you, March 7th. Now, I have a rough understanding of my past."

"But I am who I am! The time spent with you, everyone on the Astral Express, it's all real!"

"I'm the Trailblazer, Stelle!"

"Just like in the game—you have to forge your own path and reach that ending with your will!"

March 7th gave her a thumbs-up.

"Not bad! Now you're starting to feel more like the protagonist!"

"By the way, when will Feathered Spirit reveal my backstory too?"

"I'm quite curious about my past as well..."

Upon hearing this,

Star immediately stood up and declared resolutely, "Right now, I'll send a private message to Feathered Spirit, asking him to include a quest for recovering your memories in the next update!"

"After all, I am the protagonist of Honkai: Star Rail! It's been so long, yet he hasn't even paid me for my appearances!"

"He owes me this much respect!"