Elysia couldn't help feeling a little confused.
"Hmm... I don't remember ever giving you that book 'One Hundred Questions About the Masks of Kalpas: From Beginner to Master,' Hokuto."
"How did you manage it?"
Hokuto thought for a moment and replied,
"Probably because Kalpas is a kind and gentle person. People like him, and people like me—kind and sincere—tend to resonate with each other."
"Oh my, Hokuto, you think so too? Kalpas is indeed a kind and gentle person."
"We really do speak the same language, Hokuto."
The two of them chatted away about Kalpas.
And Kalpas, who was standing nearby, was...
Kalpas: ??!!
His expression was... well, hidden behind his mask, so no one could see it.
Elysia soon shifted to the next topic.
"I didn't expect the two of you to get along so well~~ I was actually worried and rushed over~~"
Then she peeked into the room, smiling with crescent-moon eyes:
"Hokuto, are you home alone today?"
Hokuto nodded.
"In that case, why don't you... come over to my place?" Elysia suggested.
"Umm..."
Hokuto hesitated. "There must be a lot of people at your place right now, right? Is it okay?"
"No problem at all, come on, come on! A bunch of people you know are there—it'll be fun with more people!"
Elysia trotted behind Hokuto and enthusiastically pushed him forward.
Kalpas stayed behind, glanced at Hokuto's open door,
and—very politely—closed it for him.
Hokuto was pushed all the way into Elysia's home.
And the moment he stepped in, he saw a room full of familiar faces:
Kevin, Su, Mobius, Vill-V...
Some were sitting, some standing.
Some chatting, others goofing off.
Everyone wore different expressions.
The sight felt strangely familiar to Hokuto.
In that moment of daze, something stirred deep in his memory—
[It's okay. If you don't want to move forward, just pause for a bit.]
[Then take a look beside you. Look behind you...]
[See? We're always here.]
"..."
"It's nice... that everyone's here."
"Hokuto, don't just stand frozen at the door~~
Ah! Are you shy? Aww, now that's rare~~"
Elysia's voice came from behind Hokuto.
She gave him a gentle push, and he took a few steps forward—
Entering everyone's view.
...
...
Naturally, the new Honkai Impact 3rd event wasn't just played by Elysia and friends.
Countless other players also couldn't wait to jump into The Day You Vanished with the Stars.
And of course—
They lost their minds.
Because in the deluxe Hokuto-edited version of The Day You Vanished with the Stars,
the gameplay started to resemble a GALGAME.
Choosing the wrong option led to new death scenes for Starlit Astrologos.
Forcing you into another loop.
And the number of Starlit Astrologos death scenes Hokuto prepared...
cough cough—let's just say finding the true ending amid countless deaths was not easy.
This adjustment left a deep impression on players.
The story gained more weight—more depth—
But also became noticeably harder.
From a profit standpoint, it wasn't very ideal.
After all, Honkai Impact 3rd is a mobile game—not everyone is a hardcore player.
Still, Hokuto wasn't worried.
No matter how complex the setup, the true ending of The Day You Vanished with the Stars was fixed.
So long as one player cleared it,
It was equivalent to all players clearing it.
Worst case?
He'd make a burner account and leak it on the forums himself.
But before anyone found the true ending,
the official Honkai Impact 3rd forums were filled with posts like—
[miHoYo, you heartless devs!! Give me back Starlit Astrologos!!]
[miHoYo, just how many death scenes did you write for Starlit Astrologos?!]
[This event clearly had an exploding budget—I've seen so many different CGs—but... my Starlit Astrologos ahhh!!]
[No matter what it takes, I will save Starlit Astrologos!]
Naturally, tons of industry insiders, rubberneckers, and chaos lovers swarmed to the forums.
Some malicious rivals probably even snickered in private:
"This small studio suddenly got cocky and flew too close to the sun. Hokuto's overreaching.
Time for them to crash and burn."
The forums boiled with discussion—
And it was only getting worse.
Then, a new post appeared.
[Weaklings Who Can't Break the Loop Don't Deserve to Bring Starlit Astrologos Aboard!]
The overflowing chuunibyou energy—
The mockery—
It lit a fire under every player who had already lost their minds over the event.
They immediately clicked the post, ready to brawl with the poster for 300 rounds.
But as proper Honkai players,
They naturally decided to read the post first—
To roast it systematically, point by point, until the author had no comeback.
They clicked in—
Eyes sharp with concentration, more focused than if they had just found a hundred yuan on the street.
The poster's username?
"PoliteExplodingFist"?
What kind of name is that?!
Someone grumbled internally and kept reading.
"How to unlock the true ending of The Day You Vanished with the Stars?"
"Ha? There's a true ending? I thought The Script Writer just lost it and wanted to punish society?"
Just from the intro, they wanted to start flaming.
But they held back—
Brows furrowed, patience forced.
They kept reading.
And slowly—
Their moods shifted from nitpicking to scoffing to—
"Where's my phone?!"
"Why?"
"I need to play Honkai Impact 3rd!!"
"Didn't you say you were quitting?"
"Quit my a**! I need to get Starlit Astrologos aboard!!"
Some players, after reading the post, immediately picked up their phones to replay the event route.
Others commented:
[The stuff in this post has to be real. There are even CG screenshots of the true ending.]
[I tried it—the poster is right!!]
[OP is amazing! Hokuto is amazing! This ending... I genuinely respect it. Thinking back, even the Captain was amazing!]
[Thanks to the OP's guide, I finally saved Starlit Astrologos.]
[I was wrong! I misunderstood miHoYo. This event's story pulled me in so deep, I actually feel proud to be the Captain!!]
As more and more people saw "PoliteExplodingFist"'s post—
More and more players reached the true ending—
And felt proud of the Captain's choice.
The forum's mood flipped in an instant.
All that pain and struggle turned into a strange, euphoric joy.
The longer you endured the endless loops,
The deeper you resonated with the later story.
Players unanimously hailed The Day You Vanished with the Stars as
miHoYo's strongest and most perfect event conclusion ever.