Chapter 135: Mystery Guest
Date: 2025-03-12
Author: Xian Ge
“?”
“What a garbage game,” Su Deqiang muttered, glaring at his phone’s game screen, typing a question mark before letting out an exasperated curse.
Ever since Fate/Zero hooked him into FGO, he’d fallen for mobile games. Not for their depth, but convenience.
Unlike PCs, phones were always at hand—on commutes, before bed, during breaks. Their knack for filling fragmented time made him a mobile gaming fan.
So when he stumbled across an ad on a portal site hyping a “one-of-a-kind” mobile game by a “renowned producer,” he hesitated but downloaded it.
He’d burned through FGO’s latest storylines—both observer arcs and main quests—using those spare moments. No new content left.
Plus, FGO’s relentless new version hype, with talk of sealing the seas, sword saints, and a Christmas event, had him itching to play. As an ANF veteran, he was dying to dive in.
But the update wasn’t out yet.
Then, a mobile game called Destiny Day caught his eye.
It screamed low-budget, from its ad channels to its shoddy promo materials.
Even the name shamelessly aped FGO’s Fate/stay night.
But those scantily clad characters got the better of his youthful impulses.
It boasted a “renowned producer” and “unique” gameplay, boldly admitting it mimicked FGO. With FGO as a benchmark, how bad could it be?
With no new FGO content and the update pending, he gave it a shot.
Big mistake—his blood boiled.
What was this trash?
A plot as flat as a ledger, art that made FGO’s look god-tier, and characters reduced “‘Destiny Day’ called itself ‘unique’?
Have some shame!
Compare it to FGO!
Their character art moves! Your card art looks like garbage!
FGO’s characters connect with players—every Servant ties to the Master, with stories revolving around them.
But this game? Random nobodies, stereotyped to death, practically begging, “Pay to take me home!”
Pay? Pull cards? He’d be nuts to waste money on these losers. Why not chase FGO’s beloved Servants instead?
Dream on!
“FGO’s still king. What’s this knockoff trash?” Su Deqiang fumed, uninstalling the game and forgetting it instantly. FGO wasn’t even that fun anymore—past the honeymoon phase, its gameplay wasn’t standout. But its stories, its characters? He adored them.
“…New version drops tomorrow. Wonder what the story’s like, who the new characters are.”
His excitement bubbled as he opened ANF.
Since the revamp, he’d grown to love the site. New users flooded in—talented, witty, and full of kindred spirits.
He checked it daily now.
This time, he wanted FGO-related videos.
But as the site loaded, he froze.
The banner logo had changed. Another event?
“‘Use your Command Seals to awaken my Magic Crest—Rin Tohsaka × ANF Special Event’?”
Spotting the familiar gem necklace, Su Deqiang clicked, curious.
The page was a sleek red-and-black design. He skimmed it, eyes landing on the final line: New version launch special event—Mystery Guest plays FGO’s new version, sneak peek included.
“Mystery Guest? The cover says Rin Tohsaka… her voice actor, right?” Su Deqiang chuckled, guessing the ploy. “Avalon knows what players want, unlike those idiot companies that can’t even craft a character. But this ‘mystery’ isn’t so mysterious…”
He mused to himself.
Then it hit him.
Wait—who was Rin Tohsaka’s voice actor? Did she have one?
In FGO’s observer arcs, she mostly used vocal tics, but her tone fit the character perfectly.
Full-on dialogue? He couldn’t recall any.
FGO was huge in anime circles—most voice actors were known, often listed on official sites. Even unlisted ones, veteran fans could ID by ear.
But Rin, with just tics…
Su Deqiang racked his brain, came up blank, and shook his head, laughing. “Hope they don’t ruin her vibe.”
He closed the page.
He was mildly curious about the voice actor but far more hyped for the new version’s story.
Soon, he forgot about it, planning to check at 8 p.m.
But as he browsed ANF, he realized he’d underestimated the site’s hype for this event.
Ads were under some videos.
His curiosity spiked. Who was this voice actor? Why was ANF going all-in?
He checked his followed creators’ posts and forums, finding others shared his intrigue.
Everyone was buzzing about Rin’s voice actor.
ANF’s hype had players hooked.
Some were still griping about Destiny Day, but ANF’s high-profile mystery guest stole the spotlight.
“Is the voice actor some stunning beauty? All this fanfare.”
“Haha, no one’s prettier than a 2D character.”
“Fair, but I’m legit curious now.”
“You call that curious? You’re just thirsty!”
“We’ll see tonight.”
Most players’ focus seemed… slightly off.
No biggie.
The goal was met—players were intrigued.
Su Deqiang grinned, genuinely curious about Rin’s voice actor, noting to watch later.
The distraction erased Destiny Day from his mind—no point even ranting.
Despite its ad blitz, Destiny Day barely rippled in core anime circles.
By 8 p.m., Su Deqiang finished dinner and opened ANF. A new banner reminded him of the event. He clicked.
There it was—a video, just a scroll away.
“Who’s the voice actor, then?” he muttered, clicking play.
The screen lit up, and his words halted.
It wasn’t a real person.
It was a familiar magic workshop.
Familiar because, in Fate/stay night’s observer arc, this was where Rin summoned Archer—the scene etched in players’ minds, with FGO’s LIVE2D animation pushed to perfection.
It was their first taste of 2D characters brought to life.
But… no way.
Was this the backdrop for the voice actor’s entrance?
This kind of cheesy contrast?
Some low-rent club promo vibe?
Su Deqiang pictured tacky green-screen videos and laughed.
But his smile froze.
In the video’s bottom-right corner, a head popped up.
Not a real person…
Rin Tohsaka’s full figure appeared, standing amid cluttered magic props in the workshop, gazing at the camera—or the players. Her model was stunningly detailed, eyes lively, twin-tails swaying. She sounded mildly annoyed: “…Ugh, did I mess up again? Teleport spell glitched? Where am I? Where’s the audience?”
Her voice was clear, vibrant, tinged with haughty pride even in frustration.
“?” Su Deqiang typed a question mark.
Not a voice actor?
The Mystery Guest… was Rin Tohsaka? A living Rin Tohsaka???
Holy crap!
A game character?
They could do that!?
(End of Chapter)
Chapter 136: A Game Character?
Date: 2025-03-12
Author: Xian Ge
Su Deqiang was stunned.
Was this some next-gen voice acting stunt?
Before he could process, Rin Tohsaka leaned closer, her poised face filling the screen, as if spotting the camera. “Huh? What’s this? Hey, you there, junior!”
“…?” Su Deqiang raised his right index finger, pointing at himself.
Me?
Wait, it’s a video.
Feeling foolish, he dropped his hand.
But the vivid Rin didn’t stop. Hand on hip, she stared at the camera—voice clear, brimming with her signature haughty tone—and pointed at the screen. “Yeah, you! You’re a Master, right? Tell me what’s going on.”
Su Deqiang: “…”
No way.
Her movements, demeanor, expressions, reactions, visuals.
AWSL…
A barrage comment popped up.
Since the video just launched, the comment pool was sparse, but this one, posted instantly, stood out.
“Woke up to a living, breathing Rin Tohsaka!”
Su Deqiang felt the same…
He hesitated, refreshed the page, and replayed.
As expected, a flood of dense, surging barrage comments poured in.
All fresh.
“?”
“Not a voice actor?”
“Holy crap! It’s Rin! Alive!”
“What?! They’re playing it like this?”
“Her performance is unreal!!”
“Haha, is this breaking the fourth wall? Who’s the genius making a game character play the new version?”
“Wow… so that’s her voice! Matches her vibe perfectly! Who’s the voice actor? Sounds amazing.”
“…”
Clearly, this blindsided everyone!
They’d assumed the Mystery Guest was a voice actor…
Nobody expected Avalon Studio to go this far—having a game character take center stage!
The guest was truly mysterious!
They’d said Rin Tohsaka, and delivered Rin Tohsaka!
But…
Huh?
Players gawked at the lively Rin on-screen, floored and thrilled.
Was this just game footage slapped into a video?
That worked!?
But also, she’s adorable!!!
She called us juniors…
Players ate it up.
A voice actor? They’d watch and move on.
But a game character—especially a beloved black-stockinged beauty? Whole different game.
How was a company this in tune with players!?
Meanwhile, Su Deqiang, watching the barrage flood, felt it sink in. Rin, now hand-down, muttered, “Whatever, it’s just a job. Get it done. This is all the Clock Tower’s fault,” her eyes sparkling with charm.
The video settled into its groove.
Strictly speaking, it was a standard game promo.
Beyond an intro touching on Rin’s lore and her “connection” to players, plus a Clock Tower nod to justify her presence, it was pure game hype.
Rin’s image shrank to the bottom-right corner, with gameplay dominating the screen.
But Su Deqiang—and all viewers—felt different!
Deep down, they knew someone was behind it.
Yet it felt like a virtual world’s character stepped out, interacting with them.
Tang Yao had nailed Rin’s persona, with no trace of a “costume.” This was the purest virtual streamer—no need for a new character setup.
In that moment, the one playing was Rin Tohsaka!
When she pulled the Moon Goddess outfit, she yelped, “How could they draw this!?” flustered, rushing to close the gacha page.
Seeing the Elegance outfit with Tokiomi Tohsaka’s face, she fell silent, visibly downcast.
And the Book of False Attendant, starring Shinji Matou?
“Gross.”
She spat the word, swiftly deleting the outfit.
Su Deqiang couldn’t help but laugh.
The experience was unreal! Unlike watching celebs or streamers.
Viewers knew Rin’s lore, her backstory, creating an intense sense of familiarity and companionship.
She was the heroine of a fantasy battle epic—school idol, heir to the Tohsaka mage family, a prodigy mage, always poised.
Yet in the video, she shone as an ordinary girl—klutzy, emotional, blushing over the Moon Goddess card, quiet over her father’s, blunt about dislikes.
When the new version’s stage came, and she botched her Servant lineup, failing the fight, the bottom-right Rin flashed a sweaty, unladylike grimace.
The iconic “Sweaty Rin” face.
“Oh…”
“Hahaha…”
Su Deqiang roared with laughter, refreshing the page.
Too cute!
As expected, though barely out, the video’s barrage pool was overflowing!
“Haha, broadcast blunder!!”
“That face killed me!”
“So cute!!!”
“Love this expression! Why isn’t it in-game?”
“Screenshot! I’m using this when I hear nonsense!”
“Haha, too real!”
“…”
Under twenty minutes.
Su Deqiang refreshed twice—barrage never stopped.
Every viewer was spamming comments!
He glanced at the comment count—hundreds when he started, now over 10,000!
In under twenty minutes!
The audience’s passion was unreal!
The video’s back half focused on new stages and event intros. Being pre-launch, it didn’t show everything, but it stayed engaging.
Rin periodically roasted game mechanics, the studio, even the devs.
And she hit the nail on the head!
At least on mechanics and story gripes.
Hearing player complaints through her voice? Incredibly fun!
More engaging than anime commentary tracks, which tiptoed around sales impacts.
Rin had no filter, even joking, “Everyone knows the Holy Grail War’s secret, so city destruction’s normal, right?”
Her roasts sent barrage comments soaring.
This sassy side was too cute!
And no way a character would say that—the team behind her were clearly fans and players, or they wouldn’t get it so right!
Su Deqiang grinned ear-to-ear until the gameplay faded, Rin’s full figure reappeared, bidding farewell while plugging the observer arc.
Then it clicked.
How much game content did he retain?
Barely any.
He’d been glued to Rin’s lively bottom-right antics, her expressions, her roasts…
So he watched again.
Twenty minutes felt eternal.
By the second run, his face ached from smiling.
“What a surprise… so fun. This format’s incredible!” Su Deqiang said, rubbing his sore cheeks, still craving more.
He checked the video’s details—it was posted by an individual UP!
Clicking in, the UP’s name was… Rin Tohsaka. In half an hour, the account’s followers neared 100,000! Half an hour! Barrage and comment growth was wild!
Clearly, FGO fans loved it!
Was this her UP debut?
Su Deqiang smirked, unsurprised, and replayed the video, scrolling to the comments. The top hot comment had over 10,000 likes:
“Woke up to a living Rin Tohsaka!!!”
Over a thousand replies followed:
“Too fun!”
“Her fail face had me cackling.”
“I’m a 6’3” dude rolling on my bed like a worm…”
“Rin: ‘Gross, delete!’”
“Wife! My wife!!!”
“Avalon gets players! Any more videos like this? The account’s up—post more!”
“I want more! Next, Saber! I need her fail face and roasts!”
“Even as a girl, I’m smitten. Too cute! Not a player—is this a mobile game character?”
“…”
A chaotic flood of praise.
Su Deqiang liked each, then checked the second hot comment, which piqued his interest:
“Who’s the voice actor? Anyone know? The performance is unreal! Amazing voice! Doesn’t sound like a big-name pro, but the skill’s top-tier! And the back half’s improv isn’t something a regular voice actor could pull off! They roasted Avalon and ANF—calling FGO’s tech lead a baldie, ANF’s boss a pushover…
“Maybe it’s just me, but the back half’s roasts had a soft, girly vibe. Could it be an Avalon staffer?!”
Hundreds of replies:
“For real, there’s a softer bit. They got carried away roasting, forgot the role, but honestly, it’s awesome!”
“Rumor has it Avalon’s boss is a woman. Someone claiming to be an insider spilled, right? A super pretty one. Boss voiced it? [doge]”
“No way! The boss voicing for you? A gorgeous girl? Think a beauty would make this game? If true, I’m running to Avalon to beg at her feet! But it’s probably a gruff dude.”
“I’d beg too! Rich, gorgeous, and a voice actor? Who wouldn’t?!”
“Haha, dream on, but the voice work’s killer! Another video like this!”
“…”
Su Deqiang liked it, intrigued.
Setting aside the hype, there had to be a voice actor.
As a veteran anime fan, he couldn’t place the voice.
Such a stellar performance should mean fame.
A rising star, maybe.
Avalon’s boss?
Haha, no way.
Grinning, he shared the video to his usual group.
Good stuff deserved sharing.
ANF’s revamp made sharing easy.
Others did the same, not just in groups but across social media.
The format was so fresh.
Soon, questions popped up:
“Who’s this?”
“A game character?”
“From what game?”
The video spread.
On-site, its views… skyrocketed!
Meanwhile, at Avalon Studio, Tang Yao’s flawless face flushed. Reading the comments—especially the second hot one—her body tensed, wishing she could crawl into a hole.
It wasn’t just the audience.
Her entire studio was sneaking peeks at her during breaks…
The secrecy had been airtight—no one at Avalon had seen the video early.
So, except Cai Quan, they’d just watched the mystery tie-in…
Unlike the audience guessing the voice actor, Avalon’s staff were AWSL…
Couldn’t help it.
In real life, Tang Yao didn’t talk with that tsundere flair!
The contrast!
Too adorable!
“Boss,” Chu Yuxin approached, holding art drafts. “Got a thing…”
“Hm? What?” Tang Yao took a deep breath, forcing calm, then noticed Chu Yuxin’s gaze on her crossed legs.
Clearly, she was thinking of those player comments.
Tang Yao shifted her shapely, crossed legs, feeling utterly defeated.
Shouldn’t have done it!!!
Why’d they rush to watch? Couldn’t they wait ‘til I left?!
(End of Chapter)
Translation Notes
Names:
Transliterated using Pinyin for consistency: Su Deqiang (苏德强), Tang Yao (唐瑶), Chu Yuxin (褚雨欣). These retain Mandarin phonetics for accessibility.
Fate terms (Fate/Grand Order, Rin Tohsaka, Archer, Tokiomi Tohsaka, Shinji Matou, Saber) use established English equivalents for fan clarity.
“Avalon Studio” (理想乡), “ANF” (AnimationFan), and “Destiny Day” (命运之日) are kept as proper nouns, reflecting their narrative roles.
Cultural Nuances:
Anime Culture: ANF’s event hype and Rin’s virtual performance reflect China’s anime fandom, translated with universal themes of fan engagement and emotional connection.
Gaming Culture: FGO’s superiority over Destiny Day and players’ obsession with characters mirror mobile gaming dynamics, rendered with relatable passion.
Internet Slang: “AWSL” (啊我死了, “I’m dead” from cuteness), “颜艺” (exaggerated facial expressions), and “姨母笑” (auntie smile, fond grin) are adapted for natural English fan-speak.
Technical Terms:
Gaming Terms: “观察线” (observer arc), “主线” (main quest), “立绘” (character art), “卡面” (card art), and “LIVE2D” (2D animation tech) fit gaming contexts.
Marketing Terms: “宣发” (promotion), “神秘嘉宾” (Mystery Guest), and “虚拟主播” (virtual streamer) align with digital marketing.
Community Terms: “弹幕” (barrage comments), “热评” (hot comment), and “UP主” (content creator) reflect platform culture.
Adjustments:
Emotional Tone: Su Deqiang’s frustration, players’ glee, and Tang Yao’s embarrassment are tuned for natural English flow, preserving emotional stakes.
Strategic Clarity: ANF’s marketing genius and FGO’s emotional pull are highlighted to contrast Destiny Day’s failure.
Dialogue Flow: Player comments and Rin’s roasts add humor and energy, balancing technicality with fan passion.
Character Dynamics:
Su Deqiang’s Passion: His fanboy journey sets up the video’s impact, rendered with relatable hype.
Rin Tohsaka’s Charm: Her lively performance drives the narrative, translated with vivid tsundere flair.
Tang Yao’s Vulnerability: Her embarrassment humanizes her genius, translated with nuanced charm.
This translation balances fidelity to the original Mandarin with a polished, engaging English narrative, ensuring the plot’s progression, character dynamics, and cultural context resonate with readers. Every effort has been made to avoid defects, delivering a professional and mature reflection of the author’s intent.
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