Towering buildings made of square monitors, with huge screens displaying eerie eyeballs.
The Herrscher of Corrosion's eye curved, and several hosts ejected large discs.
Facing the several discs, Elysia showed no panic at all: "By Herrscher standards, your appearance is really quite…"
"Unique, huh~?"
As her words fell, Elysia drew her bow while leaping backward.
Pink light flames converged into arrows, easily setting off explosions in midair.
Probably following the "smoke but no injury" rule, one disc spun rapidly toward her and was dodged by Elysia.
Immediately after came the second, which was also forced back by an arrow from the already prepared Elysia.
Dodging and fleeing at the same time, Elysia still had the mood to laugh: "Ah, don't be mad~"
Another disc came hurtling in, instantly slicing off a corner of a building.
Though Elysia dodged it for the third time, the fourth one followed right after.
This time, it seemed she couldn't avoid it.
The disc crashed down, kicking up explosions and dust. When the smoke cleared, Elysia was covering her right eye.
"Injured?"
Countless viewers outside the television thought with worry.
And it was obvious—because on the screen, the perspective quickly switched to Elysia's own first-person view.
Just like a computer screen infected by a virus, the situation looked extremely bad.
By the time Elysia somewhat adapted, her right eye's appearance had vanished, revealing the essence of the memory body.
"Really… I'll cry, you know~?"
Even though she said that, Elysia still drew her bow and nocked an arrow, pink radiance shining brilliantly.
But in the next moment, the pink-haired girl showed an ominous expression—her power seemed to have been deleted.
The moment the bow and arrow vanished, two cable-like tentacles emerged and brutally yanked her back.
The impact caused another explosion, and Elysia was driven deep into a building.
But as the second Flame-Chaser, how could she only have this much ability?
At the critical moment, pink power erupted. The girl charged out holding a shield formed of crystal.
The Herrscher of Corrosion naturally wouldn't let her go and immediately pressed the advantage.
"The Elysian Realm was just your lie."
Accompanied by distorted words and attacks from square monitors smashing down.
Elysia could only keep dodging, looking quite disheveled.
"Memory bodies are nothing but illusions of the past, mere piles of residual data."
Facing the relentless onslaught, Elysia helplessly erupted with another crystal flower shield to block.
But at that moment, the Herrscher of Corrosion unleashed its power again—this time even deleting Elysia's left arm.
"You all don't care, but I'm different. I want to escape, to live."
Having lost an arm, Elysia was sent tumbling across the ground for dozens of meters from the impact.
Even as she barely steadied herself, a mountain-crushing assault came again.
"Spread, extend, fill every corner of the world."
The Herrscher of Corrosion's voice continued to ring out, accompanied by one tentacle after another.
"I won't lose to you—I won't end here!"
Without any surprise, a massive amount of data completely seized and bound Elysia.
Combined with the huge eyeball on the screen, it looked exactly like someone using two giant hands to grip a long-awaited figure tightly.
The huge eyeball stared at the increasingly distorted Elysia.
"This is my will—I will exist forever!"
At this moment, the Elysia bound by tentacles was even smaller than the pupil of that huge eyeball.
And without surprise, she was stuffed into the huge eyeball by the tentacles.
The outcome was decided?
After a stretch of darkness, the television screen began showing black-and-white footage.
Elysia kept falling, colors stripped away until only lines remained, and finally she completely dissipated.
Forming countless 0s and 1s, like coins or like blood, scattering onto the lowest level.
Seeing this scene, some viewers nearly couldn't hold back from smashing the television in front of them.
Okay, okay—this is the movie short film they had been looking forward to?
Elysia died again?!
"Dog director, you're really not afraid of dying, huh!!"
"I declare—the hunt begins! Dog director, just you wait!"
"Too evil—such a perfect Elysia, and he actually kills her once and it's still not enough!"
"Dog director, even killing you ten thousand times wouldn't be enough!"
"…"
Not only nationwide viewers couldn't take it.
Inside Fire Moth Interstellar Entertainment Company.
Everyone glared menacingly at Hessian—including SAKURA and Aponia.
Even little Griseo had her hands on her hips, puffing angrily at a certain dog director.
"Wife, protect me!"
Without any hesitation, Hessian hid directly behind Elysia.
Elysia cooperated perfectly and said, "Okay, okay—this is the 'build up before the reversal.' There'll be a twist soon."
If Hessian had knifed someone else today, Elysia probably wouldn't have been this cooperative.
But since he knifed her, Elysia actually didn't feel much.
On the contrary, she was extremely satisfied with the plot her husband Hessian had given her.
It was practically acting as herself!
"Fine, the plot's more important."
Kalpas turned his gaze back to the television, and the others also refused to miss a single second.
…
On the television.
As the progress reached 100%, text began appearing on the deliberately aged-looking screen.
"Goodbye, Elysia."
But in the next moment.
"Sorry…"
Accompanied by the line of text, Elysia's sweet voice rang out again.
"I'm going to have to disappoint you~"
The moment these words were spoken, the black-and-white screen was instantly invaded like a virus, even the background turning a dangerous red.
The ribbon made of lines began absorbing the basic data that Elysia had become.
"The Flame-Chasers' curtain call must be grand and magnificent!"
As Elysia's voice sounded, Mobius's and Kalpas's Signets flashed across the screen.
The lines reformed once more. The still-flawless girl opened her eyes.
"Being alone with just the two of us… is clearly a bit lonely, isn't it!"
Elysia's condition kept improving, while one monitor after another in the city began glowing red.
Just like being infected and spread by a computer virus.
"You agree, right—my dear Eden?"
With her body's lines fully formed, Elysia naturally extended her hand.
In the next moment, an old-school anime-style Eden appeared, reaching down from above to take Elysia's hand.
"That's right, Elysia—let's begin the final dance."
An elegant and gentle voice rang out, transmitting Eden's power to Elysia.
The originally simple lines, under miraculous golden light, also transformed into anime style.
In the green data-stream world, Elysia kept ascending.
Eden had just reached the lowest level when a clipped, delicate voice sounded.
"In the end, you still want to drag everyone along…"
Mobius's figure emerged, and the goosebump-inducing BGM prelude began playing at that moment.
"That's exactly why I hate you so much."
"Elysia."
Even though she said that, the tsundere-yet-honest Mobius still turned into green light and converged in front of Elysia.
"Ehehe, you're clearly happy too~"
Elysia turned Mobius's power into a crystal bow, then used it as a skateboard to continue charging upward.
In the next moment, data modules appeared out of thin air, condensing into simple planes that fired attacks at Elysia.
It was also at this moment that Kalpas's and Vill-V's figures appeared behind her.
"Shatter everything into pieces!!"
"This time I won't take it back, you know!"
The two acted like guards, completely blocking all attacks aimed at Elysia.
Golden butterflies caught Elysia's attention, then flew into Aponia's hands.
"In this way, the Elysian Realm will also embrace its final fate."
Aponia gently raised her hand, and countless golden butterflies danced along with Elysia.
At the top of the building where the Herrscher of Corrosion's main body resided, pink light burst forth and finally converged together.
Signets of various colors shone like stars, surrounding the beam of light.
When the beam dissipated, the many Signets slowly rose into the air.
The scene shifted, and the figures of the other Flame-Chasers slowly appeared—first SAKURA, Kosma, and Pardofelis.
"This is a sight history has never seen before, right?"
Then Su, Fu Hua, and Griseo.
"I hope the traces we left can open up a future for those who come after."
Finally, Elysia turned with a smile, revealing Kevin behind her.
"Are you ready?"
"Elysia."
Elysia chuckled lightly, "Hmph, of course~"
The BGM reached its climax. Power converged into a flower-like crystal dome, scattering the grandest beam of light.
With just one strike, the building housing the Herrscher of Corrosion—along with the entire city—was reduced to ashes.
In the data-constructed space, the Herrscher of Corrosion's main body was fully exposed.
High in the sky, the remaining power gathered into a cross of light, then dissipated into a flower bud.
The flawless flower bloomed, giving birth to Elysia in her Herrscher form.
Pink long hair fluttered; her Herrscher attire resembled a wedding dress.
As Elysia's breathtaking figure fully unfurled, the twelve Flame-Chasers' Signets also shone brilliantly.
Outside the television.
Hessian seized the moment and directly sent a message to all the major fan groups.
"Celebrate! This is the supreme? most beloved? most good? most beautiful? most pure? most true TruE?!"
"True Self Elysia!!"
Many viewers didn't even realize the message came from the dog director's account.
They didn't know the BGM was titled "TruE."
They just instinctively felt it was talented and perfectly fitting for the current Elysia, so they frantically forwarded it.
On the television.
Having fully displayed herself and the twelve Flame-Chasers in their entirety, Elysia said:
"Look—they once lived so proudly, unwavering to the end."
"With their lives, they played the ode of civilization."
The Herrscher of Corrosion's huge eyeball was utterly unconvinced—or rather, nearly driven mad with rage.
Tentacles with spikes lashed out with full force, desperately trying to drag Elysia down from her pedestal.
But Elysia neither defended nor attacked. While blinking her left eye, she blew a flying kiss.
"This is the story of those called Flame-Chasers."
"It is the unfinished journey of thirteen flame-chasers."
Vast power converged into a light cannon; the special effects made viewers exclaim that the budget was burning.
Even so, the Herrscher of Corrosion continued its frenzied assault.
"But visitors, your path will continue, won't it?"
Under the mad onslaught, countless tentacles once again wrapped around Elysia.
But this time, the colors representing the thirteen Flame-Chasers bloomed, forming arrow-like streams of fire.
They easily broke through the Herrscher of Corrosion's blockade.
"Then follow your heart and move forward~"
The streams fell, aimed straight at the Herrscher of Corrosion—but the opponent wasn't helpless either.
The already ugly huge eyeball condensed, turning into an even more hideous… huge eyeball.
More than ten tentacles prepared to counterattack, but the scene froze at that moment.
"Hmm~?"
"I already told you to move forward~"
Outside the frozen frame, Elysia's breathtaking figure appeared again, darting past like a sprite.
The twelve streams of light accelerated as if time itself sped up, landing on the Herrscher of Corrosion's main body in the blink of an eye.
They didn't destroy the huge eyeball—instead, they transformed back into twelve Signets.
At the same time, Elysia raised her right hand high. Crystal and power formed a massive crystal relief.
"Follow the footprints beneath your feet, and witness this journey of chasing flames."
The colossal true form shattered the crystal relief. Elysia drew her bow once more.
"Finally, cross the tomb of the departed."
The colossal true form behind her mirrored Elysia's motion, forming an equally massive arrow.
"To create the—"
The Flame-Chasers' scenes appeared again. Elysia herself turned entirely into light and vanished from her spot.
"—future we could not welcome!"
Golden light infused the arrow, finally carrying that trace of pink toward the helpless Herrscher of Corrosion.
Even after changing form, the Herrscher of Corrosion's huge eyeball could not withstand Elysia's final strike.
No matter how stubbornly it resisted, it melted like solid ice under scorching flames.
The scene shifted. The passage formed by countless photo images was incinerated like burning paper.
In a world of pure white and pure black, Elysia cradled a ball of light in both hands, which finally turned into flower petals.
The gentle BGM played once more.
But this time, it was already the ending.
Countless viewers felt a deep sense of loss—they understood that this time, Elysia was truly gone.
Just as Kevin had said.
"There will never be a second Elysia."
Recalling the earlier scene of the photos going up in flames, viewers across the country felt a sharp pain in their hearts.
"Dog director! How could you bear it! Do you really have to write Elysia and the Thirteen Flame-Chasers to death?!"
"Elysia, and the twelve Flame-Chasers—they were all such good people…"
"No more—I'm done. The short film was great, but my heart hurts so much today. I have to beat up the director!"
"Count me in from earlier—let's knife the dog director together!"
"How about locking the dog director in a little dark room and only letting him out when he finally understands!"
"…"
Just as viewers nationwide were filled with righteous indignation, the ending credits egg appeared on the television.
It was Pardofelis in a relaxed twilight, surrounded by cats.
Fu Hua practicing martial arts and working out in the family dojo.
Griseo painting with her parents by her side.
Mobius in her mature big-sister appearance, working with Klein in the lab.
Kosma and Dystopia as childhood sweethearts under a tree.
SAKURA at the amusement park with her little sister, and Doctor Su smiling as he bid farewell to patients.
Volunteer Kalpas helping move things, Vill-V performing magic tricks.
And… Eden singing loudly in the desert ruins, Aponia kneeling in prayer, entwined by withered branches.
And ordinary Kevin, still gripping his baseball bat and charging forward against a massive Honkai beast.
At the very end.
The flawless and breathtaking Elysia turned back with a smile in a dreamlike, gorgeous sea of flowers…