My Game Studio is Full of Valkyries?!

Some time later, inside the streaming area.

"Elysia, do you need a bit more time to rest?" Himeko asked with concern.

Elysia looked at Himeko, not expecting that she, who had just been emotionally overwhelmed by the line "Murata Himeko is already dead," would now be comforted by the real Himeko.

"No need."

She took a deep breath and shook her head. "I want to get to the next chapter right away."

As she spoke, she couldn't help but sigh.

"Good thing 'Mr. Otto' didn't cliffhang it here. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to sleep tonight."

[That's the last shred of Otto's conscience.]

[The one thing worth praising is that he doesn't end on cliffhangers.]

[Heh, he only spares us cliffhangers so he can stab us harder with consecutive knives, and you're thanking him? (I've seen through it all)]

Hokuto, who was chatting with Rita, glanced at the bullet comments.

He mentally noted it down: I'll have the Herrscher of Corruption cliffhang you all for a month.

Naturally, the players had no idea what Hokuto was thinking.

Once Elysia opened Chapter 25 of the main story, Set Tomorrow Ablaze, everyone snapped to attention.

The livestream, which had been flooded with comments,

and screens filled with gritted teeth and clenched fists,

suddenly fell silent.

The scene shifted from the theatre to the Salt Lake Base, where alarms were blaring.

Viewers were oddly relieved to see that it didn't pick up from the theatre scene directly—

They weren't mentally prepared to face the full truth just yet.

At Salt Lake Base, the Dolls made a comeback.

Multiple mechs suddenly went rogue, plunging Anti-Entropy headquarters into chaos.

Bronya and Fu Hua rushed to the vault and rescued the scientists.

Soon after, Theresa and Seele arrived, asking about Kiana's whereabouts.

Eventually, the group discovered a Doll in Kiana's bedroom.

At the same time, Dr. Tesla observed that hosts of the Herrscher of Dominance were suddenly going berserk all over the world.

Dr. Einstein deduced that the Herrscher of Dominance had returned—

And Kiana had likely been captured by it.

It was a serious situation.

The Herrscher of Dominance was composed of numerous entities.

Each one individually was weak, but together they could form coordinated groups and work from the shadows.

Meanwhile, Mei—still with World Serpent—continued her campaign against the Herrscher of Dominance.

She found Jackal, and from her, obtained a few key pieces of information.

The Herrscher of Dominance couldn't seize the full powers of a complete Herrscher.

For example, it couldn't take Mei's Herrscher of Thunder abilities.

It could only steal powers from someone like Bronya—who had yet to fully master hers.

That's why, when Mei entered the Legion Theatre before, the Herrscher of Dominance had dispatched a "big-brain" Doll.

The goal: bait Mei into using her powers, then make her stop using them out of suspicion.

That was their whole strategy.

This twist in the story caught Elysia off guard.

She hadn't expected that Mei's first encounter in the theatre was a "you thought I was in the basement, but I was actually in the stratosphere" situation.

"Good thing Mei's smart too. Didn't get tricked by the Herrscher of Dominance."

"Sigh~~ Sometimes I feel like Mei's better suited to be the Herrscher of Reason. She's always so analytical."

Elysia murmured.

"Elysia, when you say it like that..." Kiana looked like she wanted to say something but hesitated.

"Aiya."

Elysia quickly covered her mouth. "I meant Mei might be a better fit than the Herrscher of Thunder, not that Bronya isn't suitable."

"Bronya just needs a little more time to grow. She's got a promising future."

"Mm..."

The story continued.

With concrete intel from Jackal, Mei decided to re-enter the Legion Theatre.

Jackal led Mei to a massive device—her recent research product based on the Herrscher of Dominance.

Using a Dominance Core, the device connected in reverse to the Herrscher's network, allowing them to forcibly initiate the theatre scenario from the outside.

Elysia—and the players—got excited watching this.

The gloom from the earlier bad news was even starting to lift.

Because Kiana was in the Legion Theatre right now!

If Mei entered too...

Would Kiana and Mei reunite!?

Heck yes—KianaMei shippers rejoice!

However—

As Mei and Jackal were preparing to activate the system,

the Herrscher Cores powering it began to fade.

To avoid missing the window, Mei forced the device to start and barged into the theatre before the cores vanished.

Inside, Mei immediately rushed deeper in.

Soon, a Doll appeared to block her path, saying she wasn't welcome.

But Mei didn't care.

The Doll then tried to rattle her by saying Kiana had also been drawn into the theatre—

and that Mei was powerless to do anything now.

But Mei's heart didn't waver at all.

"Hmph. So this is the worst you can throw at me? It's not much."

"To this day...

Without me by her side, she's still able to stand strong.

And without her beside me, I'll still keep walking forward without hesitation."

"Because I know the choices she'll make, and she understands the decisions I carry in my heart.

This has never changed, no matter the distance or what sides we stand on."

"It's because we believe in each other that we can walk the paths we've chosen.

Even if we part ways, it's only to reshape this imperfect world toward the future we hope for."

"Our journey will cross again one day.

And what I must do... is meet that day in the best form I can."

[Mei, you're amazing! My HP bar just got refilled!!]

[Memorize every word of this speech. Full marks required.]

[Mei just keeps getting cooler. General Mei in command! I'm officially joining Team MeiRider!]

[Team MeiRider? I, a loyal member of Team RiderMei, object!!]

...

After such a long stretch of emotionally intense story,

and following Mei's flood of "sweet nothings,"

most viewers had fully recovered their emotional HP.

"Kiana~~"

Elysia looked over with unveiled curiosity.

"If you had to choose, would you join Team RiderMei? Or Team MeiRider?"

Kiana: "..."

"I don't want to choose either."

"Sigh~~"

Elysia sighed dramatically at her answer.

"If Kiana doesn't make a move, weird new factions are going to start popping up~~"

"What's... that supposed to mean?" Kiana asked, confused.

Elysia held up a finger and wagged it playfully.

"It means... once Elysia enters the game, we might get a Team ElysiaMei!"

Even though the Elysian Realm wasn't in development yet,

it was already set in stone that Elysia would meet Mei someday.