"Disguise the truth?" Bronya's gaze cleared. "You mean…
Use one lie to cover another? If we do this… I…"
Seele stepped in front of Bronya. "Just do it!"
Seele's words undoubtedly gave Bronya immense support.
Bronya herself knew that from now on, she would be the "Supreme Guardian."
Heavy is the head that wears the crown.
From this moment onward, she had to abandon naivety.
Fortunately, Seele gave her tremendous courage.
Bronya looked apologetically at the trio. "Mother sacrificed herself to 'preserve' Belobog."
Everyone present fell into silence, except March 7th, who seemed utterly confused. "Huh?"
Bronya continued solemnly, "From the travelers who descended from beyond the sky, she learned the secret of the 'Stellaron.' She also knew that the first Supreme Guardian, Alisa Rand, failed to destroy the 'Stellaron.'
Yet she still chose to challenge this force far beyond human comprehension. Supreme Guardian Cocolia sacrificed herself to dispel the shadow looming over Belobog."
Bronya exhaled deeply, then finally looked toward the camera. "From now on, this is the 'truth.' What do you think?"
March 7th still couldn't grasp the situation. "Why do we have to lie? I… never mind, I don't really get it. But… I understand where you're coming from."
Caelus smiled bitterly. "After everything we did to break the lies before…
Now we have to weave a new one. It's cruel, but it's reality.
Still, the old lies were meant to conceal, while this new lie is meant to bring hope.
I agree. Let's go with this."
Bronya finally relaxed, then turned to Seele. "I'm sorry, Seele. This secret… I'll need you to guard it with me… until the end of our lives."
Though this segment was entirely dialogue-driven, forming a stark contrast with the boss battle that had just taken place, the actors' masterful control over the nuances still left the audience in awe.
The performances of the five characters sparked another heated discussion in the bullet comments:
[Holy crap, this dialogue scene is deep!]
[Bronya's micro-expressions when looking at the Trailblazer her acting is insane! A single glance perfectly captures her growth!]
[This is an underlying theme the entire second season is Bronya's coming-of-age arc, and her acting is flawless.]
[That conflicted expression of 'knowing it's impossible but doing it anyway' her emotions are spot-on.]
[It's hard to believe that just three minutes after an epic boss fight, we get such an incredible dialogue scene, yet it doesn't feel jarring at all.]
[Bronya's pain hurts me so much… Thank goodness she has Seele supporting her, or I can't imagine how heavy her burden would be.]
[I thought this was just a hype story, but then they hit me with this miHoYo is insane! The writers are geniuses!]
Later, just as the group was about to leave,
Bronya staggered, nearly collapsing perhaps due to the earlier possession and the intense battle, her body was already weakening.
Luckily, Seele caught her in time.
After a brief exchange, the trio volunteered to deliver the news of the "Stellaron's" sealing to the Underworld.
At the same time, Caelus told the two that he had been "glimpsed" by the Aeon of Preservation—Qliphoth.
Without further delay since this wasn't the immediate concern the three quickly headed to the Underworld.
There, they spread the news far and wide.
Natasha, the miners, Goathi from Goethe Grand Hotel…
Most importantly, the members of the Mole Gang—
Especially "Our Role Model," the future Sigma male Julian,
And his boss, the Pitch-Dark Hook the Great.
Lastly, Clara and the big boss, Svarog.
The journey was uneventful, filled only with social interactions.
A minor subplot was woven in: the "Stellaron's" influence on Jarilo-VI was deeply rooted, and recovery would take time.
Soon after,
The trio received word from Bronya that the blockade between the Overworld and Underworld would be lifted entirely, and she would officially assume the title of "Supreme Guardian" that same day.
...
After some trivial conversations, Caelus arrived before the operator controlling the passage between the two zones.
"Ready to take the cable car back to the Overworld?"
Caelus didn't speak, only nodding slightly.
"Hey hey hey brothers, sisters, uncles, aunties, boys and girls! The passenger cable car is back in service!"
The screen faded to black.
When light returned, it revealed the blue sky of Belobog's Overworld.
Hook, Clara, Julian… The children finally saw the "big blue roof" called the sky.
After seven hundred years, this place had finally welcomed "rebirth."
Then, the scene shifted to Belobog's central square. The progress bar was dangerously low, and the "Next Episode" button had already grayed out.
The audience knew it was time to bid farewell to Belobog's story after all, "Trailblazing" never ends, and the future always lies at the next stop.
On-screen, Bronya dominated the frame, delivering an impassioned speech about Belobog's return to hope…
"Lady Bronya!"
"Lady Bronya!"
"Belobog shall never fall!"
"..."
With everything settled, the trio informed everyone they had met along the way of their impending departure.
Finally, Caelus returned to the Goethe Hotel where it all began.
"Tonight, I can finally sleep in peace!"
But no matter how much he tossed and turned, sleep wouldn't come. His gaze drifted toward the wardrobe.
Caelus examined the wardrobe closely by all accounts, it was a perfect wardrobe.
And it had a smell.
A tantalizing smell that made him want to crawl inside.
"I'm going in!"
The screen plunged into darkness, leaving only Caelus' voice.
"I have merged with the most perfect wardrobe in the universe!
The night has given me dark eyes, but I believe just hold on a little longer, and something even more exciting will happen. Guaranteed to be wild!"
"Tap, tap, tap…"
Footsteps echoed in the hallway. Caelus recalled the first time he stayed at the hotel—how he'd been declared a criminal the very next day.
"The Demon of Goethe Hotel!"
The footsteps stopped, replaced by knocking and a voice. "Room service. Is anyone there?"
"Right into my trap. All hotel demons love disguising themselves as 'room service.' How unoriginal!" Caelus muttered under his breath.
"Uh… I'm coming in?"
"Perish, hotel demon!" With a "BANG!" Caelus burst out of the wardrobe.
"AHHHHH!!! A GHOST! A GHOST!!!"
Seeing the "demon" had been vanquished, Caelus smirked, casually picking up a "valuable item" left behind.
A subtitle appeared: "Commendation of High Morality."
[???]
[Does the writer have some kind of mental illness?]
[Wait, Caelus is memeing too? Feels out of character!]
[My take: Caelus' acting isn't convincing, but Stelle would've nailed it this bit suits her more naturally.]
[Whatever, the second season was solid overall. If they wanna go wild at the end, fine.]
Yet.
It wasn't over. Sampo appeared on-screen,
This time, he was facing a television, seemingly conversing with someone unseen.
"Yeah, it was a real close call! Luckily, Sampo here had a flash of inspiration why play the protagonist when I can just be the masked jester, right?
...
Now, it's time for my curtain call."
Suddenly, Sampo looked directly into the camera as if speaking to the audience.
"This story is dedicated to you, dear viewers I do hope you found some joy in it?
If not, well… Sampo's heart will break."
"SEASON 2 END!"
[Wait, that's it?]
[It's over?! Why does Sampo feel like he's breaking the fourth wall?!]
[This is creeping me out… I always knew Sampo wasn't normal. You can't just break the fourth wall and be a regular character!]
[Usually, fourth-wall breaks feel jarring, but in Honkai: Star Rail, it doesn't? Why?]
[Kinda like Deadpool?]
[No it's because everyone knows Belobog is real, and Sampo exists there. What we're seeing is another real world, so it doesn't feel out of place.]
"Sigh…" The young man set down his phone.
Luckily, it was a day off he'd spent nearly nine hours binge-watching in one go.
Dawn had already broken.
A familiar emptiness washed over him like the feeling after finishing.
For a moment, he'd lost all sense of purpose.
"But… something feels off. Why is my phone making noise?"
He picked it up only to see March 7th on the screen.
She was holding a camera, pointing it at herself.
"Hey everyone! This is our filming set! Let me show you some behind-the-scenes footage!"