Honkai: Star Rail – Banner Character, Delivering Knives to the Player [28]

Cocolia… Cocolia…

"Who… no—what are you?"

An ally… an ally who has guided Guardians through generations.

"An ally? What do you want?"

To rebuild this dying world… to help you… fulfill your wish.

“This part is the same as the beta. But what about after?”

Ah Xian explained the beta storyline to her viewers.

"In the beta, Bronya showed up to arrest the Astral Express crew. I wonder if it’ll play out the same way in Lingzhou’s route."

Lingzhou: "Wake up, someone’s here to pick us up."

The dark screen brightened slowly, mimicking eyes blinking open to an unfamiliar ceiling.

The camera panned, revealing Lingzhou and March 7th standing nearby.

March 7th: "You sure sleep like a contented little kitten. Hurry up and get ready!"

Stelle: "Did I sleep until noon?"

March 7th: "No, it's still early morning."

Already? Visitors this early can’t be good news.

"If they're here to arrest us, should we put up some token resistance?"

Stelle swung her baseball bat casually onto her shoulder.

Lingzhou chuckled softly. "No need. We have an acquaintance leading them."

"Gepard?" Stelle guessed.

"It’s Bronya. She’s already heading upstairs."

"Wow, she's really in a hurry," March muttered, not doubting Lingzhou for a moment.

Within ten seconds, a polite knock echoed at the door.

Very courteous for someone arresting ‘criminals.’

Lingzhou gestured for Stelle to hide her weapon and opened the door calmly.

"Good morning, Commander Bronya."

Bronya stood stunned, caught off guard. She’d prepared herself mentally for hostility or confusion from the trio—but Lingzhou was utterly calm, without a hint of surprise.

"You… knew I was coming?" Bronya asked instinctively.

Lingzhou smiled gently. "To be precise, we suspected the Silvermane Guards might come to arrest us."

His bluntness made Bronya momentarily lose her bearings.

If you knew… how can you act so calmly?

"Should we assist by putting on handcuffs ourselves?"

Seeing Bronya's stunned silence, Lingzhou offered this with perfect sincerity.

Bronya stiffened, thoughts racing wildly before finally responding.

"That won't be necessary. Since you won't resist, come with me."

"I assure you, you'll face no harm until the Tribunal reaches a decision."

[Bronya escorts you back to yesterday’s interrogation room…]

In the scene, the trio sat together opposite Bronya. No one spoke; the atmosphere was oddly tense.

Several times Bronya opened her mouth to speak but stopped herself.

Ah Xian laughed out loud.

"Anyone watching might think Bronya’s the one being interrogated. We hardly look like suspects at all."

[Look, Stelle’s even smiling.]
[They’re as comfortable here as if they’ve come home.]
[Everything’s going exactly according to Lingzhou’s plan. Can you really call it an arrest if you walk in willingly?]
[Cocolia’s obviously framing us—she’s definitely the villain here.]
[Must be corrupted by the Stellaron.]

"Bronya’s probably having an internal struggle," Ah Xian commented, amused. "The facial expressions are pretty vivid; you can see her confusion clearly."

Lingzhou finally broke the silence.

"Commander Bronya, if something's unclear, please feel free to ask."

Bronya took a deep breath. "Start by explaining your true intentions in Belobog. Everything, clearly."

① "What exactly did Cocolia tell you?"
② "Before confessing anything, shouldn’t you clarify the charges first?"
③ "We're harmless Nameless merchants. What ill intentions could we possibly have?"

Caught off guard by Stelle's counter-question, Bronya frowned.

"The Supreme Guardian claims you infiltrated Belobog intending rebellion."

March 7th narrowed her eyes thoughtfully. "Anything else?"

"Nothing more," Bronya shook her head.

Stelle: "She gave you no actual evidence that we’re plotting?"

"No…" Bronya grew increasingly conflicted.

On her way back, she'd asked Cocolia when to begin the interrogation.

Cocolia’s response had been blunt: lock them in the maximum-security prison and await further instructions.

This is wrong.

As Stelle said, there had to be evidence to arrest someone properly.

But now, there were neither witnesses nor physical proof—not even evidence that their identities were fake.

"I need a moment."

Without waiting for their reactions, Bronya hurried out.

"Bring them some hot tea and fulfill any requests for food."

"Until I return, let no one else speak with them," she instructed the guards firmly.

"Understood, Lady Bronya."

Is this really how suspects are treated…? The guards exchanged puzzled looks but obeyed.

"Bronya’s surprisingly considerate in Lingzhou’s route, though it feels a bit sudden," Ah Xian remarked thoughtfully.

"They barely met briefly at Qlipoth Fort. It feels odd she'd go so far for strangers."

Mid-comment, Ah Xian suddenly froze.

She saw a highlighted comment in chat.

"I missed a storyline?"

"And it’s hidden?"

Quickly finding a video to catch up, she discovered a missing hidden plot triggered by thoroughly searching the trash cans—one that led Bronya to interact closely with them earlier.

"No wonder Lingzhou called Bronya an acquaintance. They've literally been here twice."

But the activation condition was absurd: who would rummage through every trash can during a main quest?

[Switching to Bronya’s perspective…]

[Bronya feels uneasy about arresting the trio without evidence, so she seeks answers from Cocolia.]

Entering Qlipoth Fort.

"Mother," Bronya greeted respectfully.

Cocolia turned, frowning. "Why return now?"

Bronya: "I want to know what evidence we have that those outsiders infiltrated Belobog."

"I’ve explained already—they fabricated their merchant identities, trying to undermine the Architects' control."

"You haven't answered my question about the decisive evidence," Bronya pressed stubbornly.

Cocolia’s face darkened. "You don't need to worry about it. I have my own sources."

"But for the Tribunal to sentence—"

"Enough! You've grown too bold lately, Bronya! As a soldier, your sole duty is obedience!"

Cocolia interrupted sharply, her tone harsh.

"You must obey the Supreme Guardian and eliminate any risk to Belobog at its root."

"I'll give you the evidence when the trial begins. Dismissed."

Bronya clenched her fists, deeply conflicted, but eventually bowed her head in defeat.

"Yes, Supreme Guardian…"

The use of her official title privately was a clear sign of Bronya's dissatisfaction.

Chat erupted in anger.

[Cocolia’s completely shameless!]
[She obviously plans to execute us directly at the trial—she's fully corrupted by the Stellaron.]

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This is a fan translation of 崩铁：卡池角色，给玩家发刀 by 三十度幻. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!