Chapter 119 - 118: The Company Panics! Launching a Counter-Smear Campaign, Kafka Becomes Collateral Damage!

Outside Qlipoth Fort: Aventurine adjusted his hairstyle. Pumon shook its head and gazed at him smugly. "Sigh..." Aventurine let out a breath. "I can't win against you." Casually reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a gold coin and tossed it to Pumon. Instantly, Numby lunged forward, snatching the coin with its mouth before swallowing it whole! With an unsatisfied look, it continued staring at Aventurine. "Just like your master—insatiable, aren't you?" Aventurine prepared to make his escape and left a few messages for Topaz: ["I won't be involving myself further in this mission. Initially, I thought there might be some benefits to share, but now it seems inevitable that I'll get entangled..."] ["Higher-ups want me to head to Penacony as soon as possible, since Honkai: Star Rail's storyline clearly indicates that's where they're headed next."] ["To avoid any unforeseen complications, I'm departing ahead of time."] ["Wishing you all the best."] After sending these, Aventurine put on his sunglasses and boarded his spaceship under the escort of staff members. Inside the ship, he found a rare moment of leisure and began browsing videos. Due to his recent focus on "Honkai: Star Rail," most recommendations were related to the game. Previously, his feed had been filled with character guides, plot analyses, map easter eggs, and such. But today's content seemed unusually different. Don't Be Fooled by "Honkai: Star Rail"! Meet the Real Kafka—A Highly Dangerous Saboteur! Why I No Longer Recommend Anyone to Play "Honkai: Star Rail"... Following Silver Wolf, Two More Stellaron Hunters Join the Card Pool; Feathered Spirit Suspected of Collaborating with Them! Skimming through these videos briefly, Aventurine sneered. "Heh, is the Exploration Department that desperate?" "They're already launching their counter-propaganda strategy and trying to sway public opinion." "These posts... just more of the same old marketing tactics." "Just this? Even without Feathered Spirit intervening, players will likely explode with outrage on their own." "Another good show coming up." Silver Wolf rested his legs on the windowsill, leaned back in his chair, and comfortably navigated through screens with ease. Initially appearing disinterested, he suddenly flashed a grin of keen amusement, as if stumbling upon some juicy gossip. "Ha ha ha..." "Kafka, you're about to get caught in the crossfire this time." "The Exploration Department hired a wave of internet trolls to smear 'Honkai: Star Rail.' Care to guess who their primary target is?" Kafka's eyes narrowed slightly, playing along, "It couldn't be me, right?" "Spot on, it's indeed you!" "They must be truly desperate at the company." Kafka glanced out the window, her reflection visible against the backdrop of the dark starry sky. "I certainly don't need them to tarnish my reputation." "For the next act, I'll take center stage myself." She unlocked her phone, composed a text message swiftly, and set its destination: Feathered Spirit. "How about an impromptu performance?" The anonymous message seemed somewhat cryptic, but the system flagged it as important. Lin Yu pondered briefly and quickly deduced its source. "Must be from Kafka." Using Eyes of Inquiry to confirm, his suspicion proved accurate. "An impromptu performance?" Lin Yu was about to reply, asking for more details on this spontaneous act. Suddenly, he had a thought and canceled sending the message. "That's right, let's try out this new ability." He activated Dreamlord mode. Meanwhile, in another room, Kafka sat after sending the message. A wave of unprecedented drowsiness suddenly washed over him. Closing his eyes, he nearly fell asleep instantly. Silver Wolf glanced at Kafka beside him, noticing his even breathing—a clear sign that he had drifted off. With a soft sigh, Silver Wolf remarked, "So even you get tired sometimes." "Young ones sure have it easy, falling asleep just like that." At that moment, within the Dreamscape: Kafka realized she was on an island floating amidst clouds. Observing her surroundings filled with surreal sights, she pondered thoughtfully. A figure materialized before her. "It's you..." "Feathered Spirit?" Excitement flickered across Kafka's face. Had the enigmatic game developer finally agreed to meet her this way? Despite it being just a dream, it represented a significant step forward. "Yes, it is me." Lin Yu's voice resonated coldly yet with authority. Externally impassive, internally he felt a slight thrill. This complete control over the Dreamscape space was truly remarkable! Everything was subject to his will. Although still using his own appearance, he had subtly altered some details. For instance, his eyes now featured a golden rim around the pupils, maintaining a bright glow at their center. Even a casual glance exuded an awe-inspiring presence. His long, pale hair draped down to his waist, gently swaying with the misty breeze. He hovered slightly above the ground, suspended effortlessly in mid-air. Coupled with a simple yet majestic white attire, even Aeon would feel inferior upon seeing him! Lin Yu was quite satisfied with this persona. "You... surely don't look like this in reality, do you?" Kafka asked tentatively. "This is my controlled Dreamspace; everything here is subject to my will." "For instance, like this." With a casual wave of his hand, Kafka's original black coat and suit instantly vanished. In its place appeared an exceptionally stylish professional attire. Examining her new outfit, Kafka smiled slightly. "It suits me well." Getting straight to the point, she asked, "Since you're willing to meet this way, I assume it's because you want to hear about the 'impromptu performance' I mentioned?" "Hmm," Lin Yu responded succinctly, maintaining his aloof demeanor. "It's quite simple. The company aims to tarnish my reputation as much as possible before my card pool release, hoping to impact Honkai: Star Rail's popularity and character sales." "But I intend to make them hoist themselves on their own petard." Lin Yu's gaze turned slightly somber. "I already understand your intentions." He raised his hand, revealing a golden orb of light within his palm. "Here are your character data for when you officially debut." "When the time comes, you can introduce yourself accordingly." Kafka grasped the golden orb firmly, raising an eyebrow. "Thanks." "It's time for me to wake up now." Lin Yu turned around and waved, adding, "Now we can be considered friends with aligned objectives, right?" "Next time, could you change your appearance?" Kafka requested. "This form really puts some pressure on me." Lin Yu responded enigmatically, "This is my true appearance." "I believe you," Kafka replied. With that, she leaped towards the clouds ahead, hoping to wake up by experiencing weightlessness at high altitude. However, this was Lin Yu's controlled Absolute Dreamland. Not even experiencing weightlessness or attempting suicide would wake one up from it. The golden orb merely contained Kafka's skill descriptions and numerical values. Once Kafka's card pool went live, these details would naturally cease to be secrets. Nevertheless, Kafka planned to simultaneously start streaming when her card pool launched, personally introducing her character's abilities! Self-promotion at its finest! Honestly, Lin Yu also eagerly anticipated the impact of this approach. "It should create quite a stir, I imagine." "Next, I need to prepare for Penacony's preview show." With a snap of his fingers, he abruptly ended the Dreamscape. As Kafka continued plummeting, unable to wake up on her own, she felt puzzled and bewildered. Until she heard a crisp sound of snapping fingers. The space before her eyes rapidly shattered. Only then did she realize: "He has complete control over this Dreamscape..." "The Feathered Spirit truly is extraordinary." As the surrounding space disintegrated, Kafka leaned back. Simultaneously, her consciousness returned to her body, lifting her head. She blinked. Then, she tossed the golden orb to Silver Wolf. "Hey, can you analyze this data stream for me?" Without hesitation, Silver Wolf loaded it directly into her operating system. However, just two seconds later... Her eyes widened with disbelief! "This is..." "Your character's skills and stats?! But this role hasn't even debuted yet. How did you obtain it?" "I had a dream featuring Feathered Spirit," Kafka said with a smile. "What?! Feathered Spirit actually appeared to you in a dream?" "Darn it! Why didn't he contact me directly?" "It seems I need to clear Chaos Recollection sooner, so as the top player on the server, maybe he'll reveal himself to me too!".