Honkai: Star Rail – Banner Character, Delivering Knives to the Player [17]

The sequence where the Astral Express arrives on Jarilo-VI played out just like in the closed beta.

Ah Xian wasn’t really paying attention to the visuals.

Her curiosity was focused on one thing: with the addition of new character Lingzhou in the launch version, who would now be assigned to the Trailblaze team’s first expedition?

Himeko: “This time, I’d like you and March to handle the Trailblazing mission.”

① “No problem, I’m ready.”
② “Just the two of us?”
③ “I just came into existence, and I’m already getting paired up with March? Isn’t that moving a bit fast?”

Here we go!

Ah Xian perked up instantly.

The changes to the storyline had begun. She instinctively picked option ③.

March 7th: “Hey! Can you dial back the judgmental tone? Don’t go underestimating me!”

She glared at Stelle, completely exasperated.

Stelle just shrugged, smiling wordlessly.

She’d already seen March’s special brand of “enthusiasm” back on the space station.

If it were just the two of them, it was probably a good idea to have emergency evac protocols ready...

Himeko smiled gently. “Relax. Of course I wouldn’t send just the two of you.”

March 7th: “Then who else is coming?”

Himeko: “Dan Heng or Lingzhou. I’m giving the newcomer a special privilege this time—you get to invite your companion. Of course, they have the right to refuse.”

The camera cut to Dan Heng and Lingzhou.

Dan Heng: “No objections here.”

Lingzhou: “If we both decline, I suppose that means you or Welt will have to go instead?”

Himeko: “Correct.”

Everyone turned to look at Stelle.

① “Choose Dan Heng.”
② “Choose Lingzhou.”
③ “Too bad I can’t go alone…”

Seeing that last choice pop up on the right side of the screen, Ah Xian broke into laughter.

Solo Trailblazing Jarilo-VI? Yeah, no way that was happening.

Chances were, they’d all end up going together anyway.

Still, it didn’t stop her from wanting to see what kind of banter she’d unlock with option ③.

She did not expect the protagonist to speak up.

Stelle: “A shame that Nameless don’t follow the lone wolf creed. Otherwise, the people of Jarilo-VI would soon witness the glory of me—Lone Wolf · Trailblazer · Stelle!”

March 7th: “Lingzhou, you better give her a check-up. Make sure she’s not possessed or something.”

Lingzhou: “Relax. No signs of possession.”

Stelle’s face shone with conviction, March’s with pure disbelief, and Lingzhou’s was entirely deadpan.

Their banter made a lot of players laugh out loud.

Himeko: “Alright, focus up. You’ve already met Dan Heng and Lingzhou back on the station. They’re both calm and capable—you can trust them.”

“Okay, slight spoiler from me,” Ah Xian said to her chat. “In the third beta, you didn’t get to choose—March and Dan Heng were the defaults.”

“Now that we’ve got an open choice in the live version… do we really get different story paths depending on who we pick?”

“Because if it’s just cosmetic—same lines, same outcomes, no changes—that’s gonna feel super lazy.”

[No way. If that’s all they did, the devs are asking for backlash.]
[Why even add a choice if there’s no difference?]

“Exactly. So I’m picking Lingzhou to see how the dialogue changes. I doubt the main plot branches too much, but we’ll find out if there are flavor differences.”

Stelle: “Lingzhou, my good brother—it’s gotta be you. You wouldn’t turn down a fellow newbie, would you?”

Lingzhou bowed slightly, graceful and composed.

Lingzhou: “An honor, my lovely lady.”

Himeko: “You’ll have a clear goal: locate the Stellaron that brought calamity to Jarilo-VI and caused a space distortion. Lingzhou will seal it temporarily so it can be brought back to the train.”

Stelle: “Got it. But wait—why aren’t you two coming?”

Himeko: “Unless it’s urgent, someone needs to stay behind. Otherwise, Pom-Pom would get lonely. Besides, after Nanook gave us that glance, we might attract the Antimatter Legion again.”

Welt: “Guess it’s not our turn this time.”

Himeko: “Exactly. The young ones should go out and stretch their legs. It’s how bonds are forged. Alright then—feel free to chat a bit more before you go. Once you're ready, take the shuttle and begin your journey.”

---

Of course, in the real Astral Express, there was no actual “choice.”

Once Himeko suggested sending Lingzhou, Dan Heng nodded in agreement—clearly feeling no need to join.

Lingzhou was the train’s doctor. That much was true.

But no one had ever said a doctor couldn’t fight.

Dan Heng had never seen Lingzhou in full combat, but he could sense it—the man wasn’t ordinary.

And after everything that happened during the last Trailblazing mission, there was little room for doubt.

March noticed Stelle looking hesitant and gave her a confident grin.

“Don’t be nervous! Lingzhou and I are Trailblazing veterans. Stick with us and you’ll be eating good and living comfy in no time—uh, assuming Jarilo even has anything tasty.”

“From the look of it, that place is all snow. I’d be happy just finding sashimi-grade fish.”

Stelle sighed.

“Yeah… It looks freezing. And I’m a delicate girl who’s not built for the cold.”

“Relax. You’ve got Trailblazer power shielding you. Not like you’ll turn into an adorable icicle.”

Lingzhou snapped his fingers and turned with a grin.

“Follow me.”

“Where to?” Stelle asked instinctively.

“To the shuttle, obviously. You weren’t planning to just open the train door and jump, were you?”

March gave her an exaggerated side-eye.

“Uh… no, not at all.”

Stelle followed the two of them to the docking carriage at the rear. The shuttle stood waiting—sleek, polished, impressive.

Lingzhou didn’t say a word. He just opened the hatch and strolled aboard.

Stelle trailed after March—until March suddenly stopped, and she bumped right into her.

“Ow! Why’d you stop all of a sudden?”

“…I just remembered something…”

March swallowed hard, pupils trembling slightly.

“What?”

“Actually… never mind. You’ll find out soon.”

Stelle almost rolled her eyes at the suspense, ready to make a snarky comment.

But it turned out March wasn’t lying.

She found out very soon.

...

Timestamp: less than ten seconds after shuttle undocking.

An alarm blared through the cockpit—screeching warnings of imbalance and loss of control.

The entire shuttle tilted violently, turning into a streak of light as it plunged toward Jarilo-VI.

It skidded across the planet’s frozen surface for a terrifying stretch, nearly slamming into a mountain face.

When the doors finally opened, March and Stelle stumbled out, dazed and nauseous, the frigid wind helping to bring them back to their senses.

The thing March had wanted to say—but hadn’t?

Now Stelle understood.

She had been trying to warn her:

Lingzhou doesn’t know how to fly a ship.

March clutched a chunk of frozen stone for support, hand on her chest. She opened her mouth and built a rainbow bridge.

“Uuugghhhh…”

“Who the hell gets motion sick from a shuttle ride? That’s so lame,” Stelle muttered, trying to stay cool—but her stomach surged like a ruptured dam.

There was no stopping it.

“Uuuuuuurghhh—”

Thus, rainbow bridge number two was born.

Meanwhile, Lingzhou crouched near the undercarriage, checking the shuttle for damage. When he confirmed everything was intact, he let out a quiet sigh of relief.

Then he glanced over at the two bent-over girls huddled together, and rubbed his nose awkwardly.

“So young and already getting shuttle-sick? You should’ve said something. I’ve got medicine for that.”

---

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!