Chapter 168: Chapter 168. “It’s All Otto’s Fault”?
As expected.
Afraid of being abandoned, Otto chose to ignore ethics and conduct live experiments on dying patients, pursuing results at any cost.
Unable to tolerate the crimes of Schicksal, Kallen decided to become the Night Raven, carrying out justice as she saw it.
But lies will always be exposed. After repeated missions, Kallen finally uncovered the truth about the human experiments.
And in a moment of crisis, Otto's true identity was revealed.
Before Schicksal's endless ambition, individual will was insignificant. Kallen was imprisoned.
Cold iron bars separated the two childhood friends.
But the distance between their ideals was even greater.
[That's so you, Honkai Impact 3rd. A sprinkle of sweetness, then the knife. Just as you start to taste the sugar, it stabs you.]
[Sugar-coated glass shards—our signature Honkai flavor! (teary-eyed)]
[Feels like this Otto and Kallen... simply lacked the power to change Schicksal.]
[Right now, Otto is still too weak compared to Schicksal.]
Otto and Kallen fully diverged in their paths. Otto also understood by now that he was powerless to stop Kallen's resolve.
All he could do was silently accept it—and quietly help her escape.
When the uproar from Kallen's jailbreak with the black box died down...
Otto remained alone in Schicksal, continuing his research and experiments.
Hokuto interspersed the narrative with many of Otto's memories of Kallen.
For example—
Otto building a "plane," recalling their days together.
Otto wondering what would've happened if he had left with Kallen back then (the priest route).
...
Players watching all this wore increasingly twisted expressions.
miHoYo! Why add so many painful details?!
Wasn't the knife sharp enough already?!
That kind of life continued for Otto for a long time.
Until he heard Kallen was in danger at Yae Village. Upon learning this, he immediately sent the Oath of Judah to Kallen—saving her life.
The Yae Village arc was always a messy part of Honkai's earlier story.
Standalone, it was fine. But fitting it into the main plot felt awkward.
So here, it was only briefly mentioned.
Players didn't pay it much mind.
They were more focused on the fact that, due to the events at Yae Village, Kallen was seriously injured and brought back to Europe by Schicksal for judgment.
They already knew how this storyline ended from previous chapters.
Kallen died.
Many players took a deep breath—
Trying to brace themselves, to keep from getting too emotional.
It was their last sliver of pride!!
But reality is always harsher than they expect.
Otto tried countless methods, but before the will of the Church, it was all futile resistance.
On the day of execution, with no way out, he followed the instructions of his sister—Risa—and released Honkai Beasts at the execution grounds.
He hoped to use the chaos to rescue Kallen—but still underestimated her resolve.
In the end, Kallen Kaslana lost her life protecting the people.
[Did the Honkai Beast Otto released kill Kallen?!]
[Isn't that basically Otto killing her himself? Indirectly killing his own Saint?]
Just thinking that—
Even though players had tried hard to prepare themselves...
At this moment, they still couldn't breathe. Still broke down.
The sweeter the earlier scene of young Otto meeting Kallen was, the more painful it was now.
[I thought Schicksal killed Kallen, and that's what turned Otto into what he is... I didn't expect this. The truth is even crueler than I imagined.]
["It's All Otto's Fault"—can't blame him entirely here, but still...]
[Didn't expect that line to turn into a knife! (crying)]
[It was sweet... but now I'm in tears. miHoYo, you've done it again... I'm crying my heart out.]
The players were heartbroken not because they forgave Otto—
But because this Otto, from this point in time, hadn't yet committed all those future atrocities.
They were even hoping for him to succeed. So maybe the world would follow a different path.
Elysia hoped for that too—a better ending.
But...
There are no ifs.
This event was merely an echo of the past. Everything had long been set in stone.
Losing his beloved turned Otto's world gray once more. He chased after Kallen's shadow in frustration.
Desperately trying to reshape this imperfect world into what she would have wanted.
He used his intellect to rally revolution, and his hands to sweep away corruption.
The people praised his great achievements. The warriors admired his cunning.
When the rebellion he led finally overthrew the corrupt Schicksal after fourteen years and ended Overseer Theresa Shaniat's tyranny...
Otto could only ask himself—
"Is this... enough?"
He stood alone in the main hall of Schicksal Cathedral. Outside, the crowd sang and danced, celebrating the people's victory.
They praised him.
Called him a success. A great man. A hero.
No one saw him as weak anymore.
No one saw him as a clown.
...Except himself.
Otto closed his eyes.
He knew—in this moment—
He was the only loser among them.
The story cut off abruptly.
But players, piecing together everything from other parts of the plot, now completely understood:
Everything Otto did in the main story—his ultimate wish—
Was to resurrect Kallen Kaslana.
His one true love.
He wanted to remake this broken world into the world she had dreamed of.
[Now I get it… why Otto inspired Ragna.]
[Only Otto Apocalypse knows—that on this day of triumph, he alone is the failure.]
[So Otto wants to revive Kallen? Can that even be done?]
[In Honkai's worldbuilding, probably. Honkai can do anything.]
[Suddenly remembered "Inheritance"—didn't Otto get crucial data from Su's leaf?]
"But... would Kallen be happy?"
"After everything Otto's done to revive her—wouldn't she suffer even more in this world?"
Elysia softly muttered to herself. With no guest present on today's stream, no one answered her.
But her concern wasn't unfounded.
After all, Kallen left Schicksal because she couldn't bear to witness its inhumane experiments.
And now Otto, to revive her, has harmed so many.
Even if the Kaslanas aren't the sharpest tools in the shed... ahem... they truly love this world.
If Kallen came back, wouldn't she slap Otto first, beat him up, then take her own life?
However, perhaps Otto had long considered this.
His plan to revive Kallen was perfect—
A world where none of those sins ever happened.
And the cost?
Only the life of one fool, burdened with all the world's sins.
...