The scene before them was so horrifying that it made several of them feel as if they had arrived in hell.
But since they were already here…
Even if it really were hell, even if the Titan stood ahead, there was no reason for them to stop.
Stelle steeled herself and stepped forward, with Castorice following closely behind.
They hadn't taken more than a few steps… when they were blocked by wandering souls. It was two children, a boy and a girl, their faces smeared with dust and dried blood.
Yet they seemed completely unaware of it.
With the innocence unique to children, they chatted with each other.
"Mommy told us to go ahead first, but she's still not here yet."
"One, two, three... I don't even know how many days have passed since then."
"Perhaps Mommy will be back once you finish counting the days on all ten fingers."
"One, two, three... It's been much longer than ten days since we left Mommy."
The two children repeated this conversation over and over. Their expressions and mannerisms were so vivid, just like when they were alive.
And precisely because of that… their words made the viewers' scalps tingle.
Something must have happened to them. Perhaps a natural disaster or perhaps something man-made.
Their mother told them to hide first, promising she would return soon… but she never did. The children waited in torment, counting days on their fingers, imagining their mother's return.
Maybe it hadn't even been long… before they, too, died in some accident. And even at the moment of death, their lingering obsession was still waiting for their mother.
But what kind of mother would abandon her children? So most likely… she had already died as well.
With just a few lines… a tragedy was etched deeply into the viewers' minds, filling in the full picture and weighing heavily on their hearts.
Fortunately… the souls they encountered afterward were not quite as heavy. Many had also died tragically, but either on the battlefield or by accident.
There were no more stories that cut quite so deeply.
Stelle and Castorice walked on, taking everything in.
A sense of doubt couldn't help but arise in Castorice's heart. These souls, whether in speech or expression, were far too vivid.
They looked almost alive. In this realm where life and death were twisted together, it was simply too strange.
Just as Castorice was thinking… Stelle suddenly nudged her with her elbow and subtly gestured forward.
Following Stelle's gaze, on a ruined street not far away stood two souls even more vivid than the others.
"But master... Did that lady really lie to us?"
"The centurion personally instructed us to inlay the inscription into his shield."
"But now she's taken it away..."
A young apprentice scratched his head as he spoke.
Opposite him, the older blacksmith master said calmly, "My child... that shield can never be cast, and there's no need for it anymore..."
The apprentice froze. The blacksmith also seemed to glitch, his expression stiffening unnaturally.
"Come, child, what is the name of that centurion again? Actually... Never mind, forget I said that."
"I'll wait with you for her to come back. When that happens, you'll be able to keep making shields."
After saying that, the two stared at each other, falling into an eerie silence.
Stelle and Castorice were confused, but made a note of "that lady" mentioned in their words.
At first, both of them assumed it was just another lingering obsession left behind by the souls before death.
Until they passed several more spirits and were about to climb the steps to higher ground, when a half-transparent soul beside them suddenly stared at them and said weakly:
"Do you... want to buy any fish?"
Mem was startled. "Huh? He can see us?"
Before Castorice could respond, the bearded fish vendor frowned and sighed.
"Wait... More living people?"
"I'm not selling my fish to... living people. You lot are too... shameless. Buying fish without paying... If I ever see her again, I will... I will..."
As he spoke, even he forgot what he was about to say, freezing in place.
But Castorice had already realized something.
""More living people"? So that means he's seen other members of the living apart from us?"
Realizing this, she immediately stepped forward, intending to question him.
However… the confusion in the merchant's eyes deepened, just like the other souls they had seen before.
He fell into a "frozen" state, repeating his words over and over again. Castorice felt a pang of sadness. These souls were clearly trapped in a loop.
Thanatos had rejected them, leaving them unable to rest even in death.
And looking across this city of the dead, there were not just hundreds, but thousands of souls, packed densely beyond measure.
Those who muttered about selling fish or forging iron were one thing.
But the most painful were those children still waiting for their parents, and those who relived their final moments on the road.
Day after day, they endured the fear and terror they felt before death. This was far more cruel than any punishment.
"…Rest in peace…"
Unable to bear it, Castorice clasped her hands before her chest and softly sang a song to give them peace.
With her special ability, she gently guided the souls toward release.
And seeing all of this, the viewers could no longer hold back. What they witnessed made them instinctively uncomfortable.
….
: This is just too tragic.
: They can't even find release in death, eternal suffering.
: This place really is hell.
: Thanatos… no, after Polyxia became the Titan of Death, how did things end up like this?
: From earlier information, it seems the Death Titan had already gone wrong from the very beginning.
: Compared to the traces other Titans left in Amphoreus, the Death Titan barely interfered with reality.
: So all of it piled up here…
: Castorice is too kind… honestly, she shouldn't be held back by these souls. The root of the problem isn't here.
: But there's no helping it, this is who she is!
: Beautiful and gentle Castorice! I love her so much…!
...
The comments scrolled past.
And just as one of them said… Castorice also knew, she could save one person, but not everyone.
She raised her head and said to Stelle, "Stelle, I'm afraid we'll have to pick up the pace. The aura of death here is far too strong. I have a feeling… Thanatos is probably hiding here."
"I really can't bear to watch these souls in such misery. They… they wander even after death, unable to find peace. And they're even being deceived by that other living person, trapped here, suffering endlessly!"
As her words fell, a voice suddenly sounded behind Castorice.
"Hey, if something is done out of goodwill, are you really gonna call it "deceit"?"
Cipher instantly appeared behind the two of them, curling her lips into a grin, her tail swaying lightly.
"Wait a minute... Lady Cipher" Castorice froze for a moment, then suddenly recalled the earlier conversation. Her eyes widened in shock. "Could it be that... You are the living being that those souls met...?"
Cipher nodded as if it were only natural. Not only did she admit it readily, she even said proudly, " I couldn't take their behavior anymore, so I stole some things here and made up some lies there... Just trying to give them something to look forward to, you know?"
"..."
"…"
Stelle and Castorice were completely speechless. And the audience… was struggling even harder to hold it together.
After all, the scene in Styxia was far too cruel. Yet at the same time, Cipher's overly cheerful behavior and words created a strong comedic effect.
So, morality and humor started clashing. Wanting to laugh, but it feels disrespectful to what just happened.
But if one doesn't laugh, it feels like a waste of the absurdly funny performance the catgirl just delivered.
Of course, as natural enjoyers of chaos, the audience ultimately failed to hold back.
…
: Damn hahahaha! I seriously can't with Cipher anymore. At least show some respect for the dead, sis.
: Now this is what you call a dark joke.
: I didn't laugh earlier, but this one got me.
: I'm placing a cyber wooden fish here, massive merit points earned.
: I thought the atmosphere was supposed to be super depressing, and then this happens. Can't take it seriously anymore.
: Every time Cipher shows up, I laugh.
: She's a full-on chaos gremlin!
: Got it, Cipher is basically the comic relief! Every appearance is just to mess around and entertain us!
: Gotta admit, it works really well!
: No way Cipher isn't related to "Joy." I don't believe it.
: Stuff like this? Only a Joy-walker could pull it off.
…
The heavy, oppressive atmosphere was completely tangled up by Cipher's interference.
At that moment, who knows how many people lost a huge amount of "digital merit."
On screen, after her brief silence, Castorice asked, "So, Cipher, you came back… just to deceive these souls again?"
The catgirl rolled her eyes cutely and pretended to be wronged. "What else am I supposed do? You can see the mess this place is in. These poor souls are denied by the nether realm, so now they're stuck in a few brief moments of their life, unable to move forward or back."
Just like before, beneath her seemingly mischievous behavior, Cipher casually dropped important information.
"I just discovered some stuff before I left, and I reckon you should know about it."
"It's about that boy who defied death... I found traces of him here."
Defied death?
Stelle and Castorice immediately thought of someone.
"Lord Mydei...?" Castorice asked in surprise.
Cipher waved her hand dismissively.
"Oh right! That's his name! Well, now you know. As for whether that info is actually useful, that's for you lot to figure out."
"...So long, Princess Homebody! So long, Gray Mystery!"
And just like that, Cipher disappeared.
The two, already used to her behavior, weren't surprised. But the help hidden beneath her words and actions… the audience saw it clearly.
…
: Tsk tsk, not just a chaos gremlin, she's also a classic tsundere catgirl!
: Let's go!!
: She's like a mood booster! Not only entertaining us, but also secretly helpful, and with tsundere traits too!
: What do we do… I think I'm starting to like Cipher.
: Totally normal reaction.
: Seriously, you guys, why do you fall for every new character?
: You love the guys, you love the girls, just universal love at this point?
: Can't help it, that's just how we Star Rail viewers are.
: But it also shows how well Amphoreus' characters are written!
: Everyone has such a distinct personality, it's easy to like them!
: I just realized, in this episode, Cipher is completely in control, no one can mess with her. A peak "satisfying" character!
: Oh, you're right! Could it be that MiHoYo knew the earlier stories with Mydei and Trianne were too heavy, so they deliberately gave us something satisfying?
: Who still dares to say Star Rail isn't a power fantasy!!
: Haha, I knew it, the developers definitely have the guts for this!
: Good, keep this pace! Let everyone relax a bit!
…
As the audience discussed in the barrage, they suddenly realized, since the start of this episode, there hadn't really been any especially heartbreaking or tragic moments.
Even knowing that Anaxa would die, because of his personality and the way the story was handled, the audience only felt shock… and even a bit of exhilaration.
And every time Cipher appeared, she brought something entertaining.
In such a short time, she had already delivered moments like blackmailing a demigod and absurdly funny scenes.
There was no sense of impending tragedy at all.
For a moment, the comments was filled with praise. Everyone was saying Mihoyo had "turned over a new leaf."
On screen, with the key information Cipher provided, Castorice and Stelle's thinking immediately opened up.
Mydei was someone who refused death. The fact that he appeared here already explained a lot.
For example… this place was undoubtedly the closest place to death.
And since Mydei was destined to return to the world of the living, they could find him, follow him, and naturally locate the gap in this realm of death.
With a plan in place, the two immediately took action.
Styxia had been flooded by the River of the Dead, turning into a desolate death shore.
Even demigods found it troublesome, but among those present, there just happened to be someone who perfectly countered this situation.
She had an indescribable connection with Oronyx.
A being favored by Time Titan.
Exceptionally gifted.
A once-in-a-millennium rarity in Amphoreus.
And that is… Mem!
The camera froze on Mem.
This pink creature was floating in midair, neck stretched out, arms hanging down, drifting lazily through the sky, looking utterly bored.