Helentine: Lacrimosa

Lacrimosa's Secret 1

Among desserts, Helentine's favorite is lemon macarons. Intense sweetness is certainly pleasant, but Helentine always notices the tartness within. Life is like a lemon. Sometimes, you savor the bitterness just to taste that hint of sweetness that follows.

Lacrimosa's Secret 2

Despite her reserved exterior, Helentine has a deep love for blues rock and synth-pop. In this era, the energy and vitality found in that music are feelings she holds dear.

Lacrimosa's Secret 3

Helentine is quite fond of spiders. She admires the way they approach everything with order, precision, and efficiency. She used to share this fondness with others. But after having to explain countless times that "spiders aren't insects, they're arachnids," she decided it was easier not to bring the topic up herself.

Lacrimosa's Secret 4

Helentine has a hard time saying no. She takes every request for help seriously, even if it means taking on the work of several people herself.

Lacrimosa's Secret 5

After becoming a diplomatic advisor, Helentine took a colleague's advice and began logging her first impressions of everyone in her notebook. But as she got to know people better, she found that nearly everyone's true personality differed greatly from that initial impression. So she came up with a simple solution: she dedicated a separate page to each person, tracking their minor changes piece by piece.

Lacrimosa's Secret 6

Helentine can memorize even the most tedious diplomatic protocols, yet the unspoken rule of "always engage in conversation at social gatherings" took her a long time to learn. She never felt out of place when left alone at banquets, but everything changed when she caught the murmurs of the crowd discussing her.

Lacrimosa's Secret 7

Helentine occasionally volunteers at the Cemetery of the Unreturned. As an advisor to the Military Strategic Diplomacy Division, she feels it's her duty to give a proper farewell to those who fell in battle. Or perhaps, she simply believes that by doing so, she might finally learn to accept the departures in her own life.

Lacrimosa's Secret 8

Waking up each morning, Helentine often finds herself staring blankly into the mirror. She can't help but wonder if, in some fleeting split second, the reflection looking back at her would make a different movement.

Lacrimosa's Secret 9

In moments of exhaustion, Helentine would wonder: Must she always be as exceptional as everyone expects? But after sharing her burdens with the Gray Raven Commandant, the doubt faded. Ordinary or extraordinary, her life is hers—but for now, she simply wants to try a little harder.

Lacrimosa's Secret 10

When Helentine took over the Spelmin family and audited its assets, she uncovered a manor once reserved for high-society gatherings. Its underground media museum has since become her private sanctuary for prized relics—including the coat the Gray Raven Commandant draped over her shoulders.

Lacrimosa's Secret 11

Helentine has always yearned for Route 66 of the Golden Age—that legendary highway where her road-movie fantasies come alive. Tucked inside her notebook is a travel guide for the journey. She hopes that once the Punishing Virus is over, she can hit the road with the Commandant, driving through every city marked on the map.

Lacrimosa's Secret 12

After wrapping up Deviant Love, Helentine made a copy of the film reel and buried it beneath the plane tree together with the Gray Raven Commandant, with a promise to dig it up together someday. A promise, and a keepsake.