The Herrscher of Sentience has been getting more and more love from players lately.
No matter how you look at it, that's a good thing.
Only with this kind of emotional investment will players truly struggle with the upcoming "pick one of two" story choice, and sincerely wish for a perfect, happy ending.
Only then will they feel a genuine sense of catharsis and fulfillment when Kiana rescues the class monitor in Wings of Reawakening, transforming this imperfect world into what everyone hopes it can be.
And naturally—those players now swearing up and down that they'll "stab Fu Hua in the next chapter" will be caught off guard... yet joyfully so.
They'll get metaphorically slapped in the face, and through tears and a hand over their cheek, sincerely cry out:
"Kiana, you did amazing!"
When that time comes...
Hokuto, standing off to the side and thinking of this happy future, had a blissful smile on his face.
"Hokuto, your expression."
Kiana's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
Along with Kiana, a few others nearby were watching him too—Mei, Bronya, Raven, Sora...
"What about my expression? Is something wrong with it?"
Hokuto raised a hand to touch his face, using his fingers to forcibly suppress the smile creeping up his lips.
"Heh... this is the same face you made when you wrote my 'island villa' into the script."
Raven crossed her arms, her face calm, but her voice unmistakably laced with unresolved resentment.
"Didn't you say you didn't mind?" Hokuto asked.
"..."
"I don't mind."
Raven tilted her head back, looking at the ceiling, forcing herself to sound strong:
"I really don't mind, not even a little."
Sora, standing beside her, gently tried to console her.
"Teacher, at least Boss Hokuto paid you quite a bit. Even though everyone online now calls you 'Island-Bomb Raven,' at least the money was decent."
"So... try to think positively, okay, Teacher?"
Raven: "..."
She clutched her chest—yep, another dagger straight to the heart.
Sora, you really are my best student.
Sensing the tension thickening, Hokuto quickly spoke to defuse it:
"No worries—worst-case scenario, we give Mei a similar nickname. Slip a meme into the game, and players will shift their attention. They won't focus so much on 'Island-Bomb Raven' anymore."
Mei: ???
Why did she get dragged into this?!
Rice Cooking lady, servant of pots and pans... did she need another meme?!
She was a walking meme already!
"Oh?"
Mei was speechless, but Raven suddenly perked up.
She'd been with miHoYo long enough to be on familiar terms with everyone, and she got along best with Mei.
And that sisterly bond was often expressed through...
"Well, giving Mei a nickname? I'm interested. Let me brainstorm. No one else better touch this—I'm claiming it."
That signature plastic sisterhood.
"If you're volunteering, I definitely won't compete with you."
Hokuto chuckled. Sure, he could generate as many memes as he liked—but wasn't it more meaningful when they came from the characters themselves?
For instance, if Raven personally coined "Red Electric Dragon"...
That's what we call emotional value.
Just like when Theresa invented Starlit Astrologos, or when Fu Shibao authored The Shenzhou Sword Chronicles...
Of course Hokuto was pleased by those things.
As he thought about all this, Hokuto turned his gaze back to the livestream screen.
On screen, a flood of comments was rolling by—all thanks to the Herrscher of Sentience's earlier line:
"I'm your master, after all."
[HoS (taking over): I am Fu Hua!]
[Class Monitor: Oh no, I'm just a substitute now.]
[Fu Hua: I'm not the real one? Who is this? Was my account hacked?]
[Crimson Impulse: What happened to my body after I left? Why's it moving on its own?!]
...
The comment section was lively, and the story continued.
Wearing a 'confident' and 'healthy' smile, the Herrscher of Sentience explained to Fu Hua that she was her clone and hoped Fu Hua would return to her original self.
But Fu Hua remained unmoved.
She countered:
"The moment Otto killed me, I activated Fenghuang Down's zero-output function and transferred my consciousness into a single Feather."
"Hm?"
The Herrscher of Sentience blinked, scratching her head:
"That does sound familiar... though I remember it as..."
Fu Hua gave her no time to think.
She continued:
"That body was abandoned. It had no soul inside."
The Herrscher of Sentience's expression darkened as she pressed her:
"What are you trying to say?"
At that moment, the dialogue box name switched—she was no longer Fenghuang Down, but Fu Hua.
Fu Hua looked straight at the Herrscher and asked:
"If I'm here... then who are you?"
With that, players finally pieced everything together.
Fu Hua's body had been healed by Otto, seemingly giving rise to a new consciousness—
And that consciousness had been chosen by the Honkai to become the Herrscher of Sentience.
No wonder the official account said, "Fu Hua will not become a Herrscher."
So that's what they meant.
Immediately, the players became excited.
If that's the case... then doesn't that mean we now have two Fu Huas in Honkai Impact 3rd?!
Double Fu Hua! Double the fun!
Especially when both the class monitor and the Herrscher are this cute!
Soon after, the Herrscher of Sentience and Fu Hua flew into the clouds together.
They strolled through the mist, walking the path to Mt. Taixu.
As they walked, they talked—like old friends reunited after a long time.
And maybe they truly were.
After all, only the Herrscher of Sentience—who carried all of Fu Hua's memories—could completely understand her.
And thanks to their differing personalities, they offered different takes on the same events.
Everyone watched as, in the story, the Herrscher and Fu Hua discussed Kevin, Otto, the Seven Disciples, and the companions at St. Freya Academy.
In a way, the Herrscher voiced what many players had long wanted to say to Fu Hua.
She vented about everything.
And those players who, just one chapter ago, had been saddened by the class monitor's past—
They finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Catharsis.
Protecting humanity is noble and all, but class monitor—can't you think of yourself once in a while?
Why listen to Otto? You can make your own decisions!
...
It must be said—players were really warming up to the Herrscher of Sentience.
Straightforward, sincere—
In short, adorable.
After her monologue about Fu Hua's past, the two of them arrived at Mt. Taixu.
She wandered through the mountain paths, occasionally awakening Feathers, absorbing their strength and memories—
And then revealing complicated, indescribable expressions.
"Ugh... another one from Otto."
As the words fell, memories surged in.
The scene shifted—
Outside a dark prison.
Otto's voice rang out:
"Fulfill our marriage agreement. You know I... I won't let you die."
In the depths of the darkness, just out of reach, was Kallen Kaslana.
This part of the story picked up where Otto's memories left off.
Five hundred years ago, the gravely injured Kallen had been captured and imprisoned by Schicksal.
Otto kept urging her to complete their marriage pact—
That way, she could be saved.
If Kallen didn't love him, Otto said he'd let her live freely, and the marriage would just be for appearances.
But Kallen, who had long seen through Schicksal's darkness and ambition, refused.
She would rather die.
Otto's humbled demeanor before Kallen shocked every player watching.
This... was Otto?
One of the Three Overseers? Schicksal's Overseer?
They couldn't believe it.
That Otto could be this emotionally vulnerable.
[Wait—did Otto go evil just because Kallen died? Is that why he turned into this big villain? His image is starting to get really weird.]
[Actually, I think it makes him feel more real. Otto was once cowardly and desperate. He hated his own powerlessness. Then, from that despair, he grew, fought, and rose from someone who couldn't do anything... to the Overseer of Schicksal.]
[Didn't Otto say that classic line too? "I can't do anything"?]
[I'm starting to question what Otto's true wish really was.]
The more they learned about Otto, the more players saw him as a whirlpool of complexity—
A man shrouded in mystery, drawing them in deeper.
But... in truth, Otto was simple.
Far simpler than anyone thought.
He spent his entire life just trying to do the most selfish thing a person could do.
No matter how many times Hokuto updated the main story, he found himself always looking forward to the next one.
The players' future reactions were just too addicting.
Of course, what he really couldn't wait for—
Was the day little Shi read his casual remark about "getting dumb from fifty thousand years of memory"... and realized it had come true.