I just wanted you to make a movie: You made a Honkai Star Rail movie

But after hearing the boss’s additions, she instantly understood. Did Xia Wen... have some kind of special fetish for tormenting simple country boys?

----------------------------------

”Let a sunny and cheerful country kid experience the anger and despair of losing everything.”

”Boss, you really have given me a tough problem.”

Furina muttered softly into the phone.

”Believe in yourself!”

”You can definitely do it!”

Xia Wen entrusted this difficult task to Furina.

Just now, during the call, Furina had carefully gone over every detail in the script of the original play.

To Xia Wen, it was already one hundred percent certain that these were the real people.

It was just that their states were not identical to those of others in MiHoYo, who all perfectly matched their game states during the drama’s filming.

For example, Aglaea.

She was the Aglaea with overflowing humanity and not the Aglaea who only had a little bit of humanity left.

And Phainon still looked like a simple, honest young man.

It wasn’t that Xia Wen wanted to torment Phainon, but that when filming ”Amphoreus,” all the foreshadowing and dramatic climaxes in the early stages were tightly bound to the Phainon’s personal struggles.

A live-action drama truly tests one’s acting.

If they could use stage play rehearsals to hone their acting skills, that would naturally be the best outcome.

After giving his instructions, Xia Wen hung up the phone.

Furina stood there troubled, thinking about how to carry out the boss’s order of ”tormenting Phainon.”

”Ugh, I can’t figure it out...”

”What was that saying Boss always uses?”

”When the boat reaches the bridge, it will naturally straighten...”

”Mm, maybe after some time, Phainon will master these things on his own?” Furina shook her head and returned to the meeting room.

Facing Aglaea and the others, she coughed lightly and stammered:

”J-just now, I had a call with my... my art advisor, and he made some suggestions for the theater’s future.”

”For example, um, supporting young actors.”

”He hopes Phainon, Mydeimos, and also those young actors you mentioned who haven’t returned yet can get opportunities as leading roles.”

”Creating some shorter, more ’emotionally impactful’ stories as practice for them.”

Aglaea and the others listened attentively.

Only Phainon felt more and more uneasy as he listened.

”No, that’s not right.”

”Why are they making me the protagonist again...” Phainon quickly waved his hands with a bitter smile:

”Didn’t we agree to focus on performing The Heart of the Spring and I was Once in Arcadia? I really don’t think I’m suited for such main roles in this kind of production.”

From the bottom of his heart, he felt unqualified to take on the lead.

But the others, especially the theater owner Aglaea, clearly didn’t agree.

”Training young actors has always been part of our plan.”

”Your art advisor’s suggestion is exactly what I want to do.” Aglaea nodded in approval:

”So I propose that before we perform the two main plays, we also arrange some shorter dramas and let young actors take the leads.”

Hearing this, Phainon, who was about to ”argue back with reason,” swallowed his words.

On one hand, he was happy that everyone valued him.

On the other, he felt extremely troubled. Was this really a burden he could bear?

But what Phainon didn’t understand was that Aglaea, as the theater’s owner, had gone through countless things.

”A long time ago, before I met you all, I experienced many things,” Aglaea said calmly.

”The decline of my family, the ugliness of relatives, and even the betrayal of stage actors I once trusted deeply.”

”That made me understand one truth.”

”The most important thing is to have companions truly worthy of entrusting your ideals to.”

”You may just be starting as an actor, and your foundation isn’t strong enough yet, but your sincere heart is the most precious treasure of the Okhema Theater.”

After she finished, Anaxagoras crossed his arms and said:

”Compared to those arrogant fools, I’d much rather you become Okhema’s pillar.”

Mydeimos also nodded lightly: ”At least, I really admire your character.”

”That’s right, Phainon.”

”Even though you always say you’re from the countryside...”

”But whenever the theater and everyone faces difficulties or danger, you’re always the first to step forward.”

”That’s why everyone wants you to be the support for the theater.” Hyacine also smiled and added.

”Everyone...” Phainon opened his mouth.

He had never heard words like these before.

The refusal he wanted to speak got stuck in his throat and just wouldn’t come out.

’If... this was everyone’s wish, then he must fulfill it.’ Such a spontaneous thought rose in Phainon’s heart.

Then he nodded:

”I-I’ll work hard. Maybe I won’t do very well, but I’ll definitely do my best and never let everyone down!”

”This is the Phainon we all know.” Aglaea smiled.

Furina looked at the unbreakable friendship of the theater group, thinking how wonderful it was.

But at that moment, Anaxagoras suddenly changed the topic:

”Since Phainon has agreed, then let’s discuss what kind of role he should play, shall we?”

”Yay!” Hyacine excitedly nodded:

”I suggest we stage a tragedy where Phainon plays an ordinary man who watches helplessly as his parents die before his eyes.”

”Not cruel enough. He should be a general in an epic. During a battle, because of poor command, all his subordinates die, leaving him to live on in unbearable pain...” Mydeimos shook his head and offered his own idea.

”That’s not interesting enough. We should write a classical story where he is a scholar from mythology. Even though he finds the truth, he’s burned alive by ignorant ’gods’ and villagers, and even the truth itself is buried.” Anaxagoras stroked her chin, muttering about which idea suited her taste.

The three gradually began to argue.

”I think a tragic love story is more moving, we could use eighty percent of the play to depict the romance, then tear it apart at the end, and the pain would spread instantly.”

”Too cliché! More killing, kill, kill, kill!”

”Hmph, in my script, Phainon has a miserable background.”

”In mine, Phainon is an artificial human!”

”That’s nothing, I can even make Phainon not human at all!”

Listening to their arguments, Phainon’s mouth dropped open wider and wider, his scalp tingling.

Why did it feel like he was being thrown into three layers of torment?

Furina was even more full of question marks.

These people... They can’t all be as ruthless as her boss, right?

How was the story sounding more and more tragic?

”How about we let Sister Aglaea decide!”

Hyacine couldn’t persuade the other two, so she turned instead to support Aglaea.

Aglaea, sipping tea gracefully while listening to the debate, simply said softly: ”Why not take them all?”

”Ah?” The three were stunned.

”I think all of your stories are pretty good.”

”Since it’s for training Phainon anyway, why not let him play them all, it doesn’t matter.”

Hyacine, Anaxagoras, Mydeimos, they thought they were already good but-

”Pfft~”

”It really has to be Aglaea.”

Everyone instantly reached a consensus.

But no one noticed.

In the corner, Phainon had already quietly shattered.

”This should also... count as meeting the boss’s demands, right...”

Furnina held her head, already too exhausted to complain.

Things unfolded in a strange way, but the result turned toward what Xia Wen wanted.

Next. Everyone began intense preparations. With the injection of funds, many things became much simpler.

They only needed to fully devote themselves to rehearsals

And ticketing also began preparation.

Although everyone had strong confidence in the story, this place was ultimately a gradually declining little place.

Even if the ticket price was set low, it was hard to fill the theater.

So Furnina waved her hand boldly, directly unleashing the power of money.

No charge, free distribution. And also contacted restaurants and snack shops.

Every audience member coming to watch could get a free lunch and various snacks.

With that, three hundred tickets were quickly all ”sold” out.

As for whether doing this would be ridiculed, Furnina didn’t care, Aglaea cared even less.

What they were exploring was a down-to-earth path to bring classical art back to audiences.

At the same time, there was a huge threshold limitation.

Greece is recognized as the birthplace of drama. So here, theaters of all kinds are highly valued.

According to the hierarchy of country, city, town, each level carries weight.

This ranking is not only about status, but directly influences cultural standing.

From the Peloponnesian Peninsula to the Acropolis of Athens, those historically profound great theaters still thrive to this day.

The Theater of Dionysus Eleuthereus.

The Epidaurus Theater...

Many great ancient Greek playwrights, such as Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes, still have their works performed in those great theaters.

They are plays deeply familiar to the Greek people. And Aglaea hoped the Okhema Theater could become such an existence too.

They needed ten consecutive sold-out performances, to rise from a town-level theater step by step. Eventually to the city, then country level. In this day and age, speaking out such ambition might draw laughter.

[ T/ N: Not sure about the above para; does anyone know about this? Is it true? ]

Even a country as strong in classical culture as Greece had already seen decline.

In the past twenty years, not a single new theater, with wholly original plays, had managed to upgrade successfully from the city level.

Because upgrading was not just about selling out shows, but about how many people recognized you.

Games, TV series, mass entertainment had stolen far too much attention.

Forget attracting new audiences, even maintaining existing ones was difficult.

”These old people...”

At sunset, Aglaea watched people at the theater entrance asking about performances.

Her mind drifted back to what had happened before.

At that time, she was still in Athens.

She and a group of then ”like-minded” friends had created a new drama, and as an investor, she had successfully staged it.

It was brilliant, receiving much acclaim among younger audiences.

But a group of classicalist old people (famous people behind other theatres or old script-writers) began dragging out the classics of Euripides and Aristophanes, attacking fiercely.

Their meaning was singular. The older, the more classic, the better.

Your so-called innovations are all garbage. How could they compare to the works of the great tragedians’ of old?

That was the first time Aglaea got angry. Stubborn and pigheaded, only repeating those age old plays.

No wonder theater drew fewer and fewer audiences.

In the eyes of those old people, theater and poetry were not carriers to entertain the people, but tools to prove class, to prove superiority.

When Aglaea’s family declined, those old people even published a newspaper issue specifically to comment on the family’s downfall.

Aglaea couldn’t remember the details.

She only remembered one word.

”Serves them right.”

”Heh...” Aglaea didn’t dwell on it. She didn’t even care about those old fossils’ opinions.

Okhema had already survived. Soon, it would bring new plays back into everyone’s sight. That day would not be far.

...

Day by day passed.

Meanwhile, inside Mihoyo company.

A unique screening had just ended.

Quite a few people came out looking dejected.

Some more emotional girls were even rubbing their eyes.

”Ugh, so sad.”

”The Interastral Peace Company is really evil!”

”No, it’s the Marketing Development Department that’s trash!”

”No wonder Boothill wanted to kill Oswaldo Schneider!”

”Ahhh, I want to whack that idiot with a bat!”

”Exactly, even if he was a former Nameless, the Marketing Development Department is a disgrace to the name!”

Stelle and March 7th were chatting with gloomy faces.

They had just watched the ’personal’ biopic filmed by Boothill.

Lacking confidence, it wasn’t released publicly, but only shown in a small preview.

After watching, the two exploded with anger.

A beautiful planet, destroyed mercilessly for profit.

Those damned employees had no shred of morality. Children, the elderly. All lives were treated as trash!

”If this gets released, I think the goodwill fans only just developed for the Strategic Investment Department will vanish without a trace!” March 7th pouted.

”I already feel like hitting the IPC, let alone the fans.” Stelle shook her head.

”Oh right, isn’t Boss about to broadcast a new IPC announcement again?” March 7 suddenly remembered.

After watching Boothill’s story, she had gotten even more interested in the IPC’s content.

”Myriad Celestia Trailer: Stoneheart’s Oath Ring: Both Ends of the Scale.”

”The boss said it’s like the beginning PV of the War of the Aeons?”

After Stelle said this, March 7th’s eyes lit up instantly, and she said excitedly: ”Then let’s watch it together!”