Honkai Simulation, why is it always me who becomes the Herrscher

Someone from behind urged him forward.

He couldn't see them, only hear their voice.

After a moment's hesitation, he strode forward.

Running towards a future that would not be interrupted.

"One minute remaining."

"..."

The music remained unchanged, and all beings continued to move forward.

Even with 001's constant countdown, the rhythm of this symphony did not quicken.

Because, it was enough.

"10, 9..."

The music ended, the people dispersed, the world fell silent, and it had journeyed from the past to the future.

Ye Chang'an pulled at the corner of his lips, a faint smile gracing his face, his bloodied expression obscuring the countenance that had once captivated all beings.

He didn't know if the other end of the world was functioning normally, he could only pour all his might into sending them his blessings.

[My last strength...]

In every record player of the new world, he placed a record of Chang'an Melody.

"1, 0"

"Pop~" Like a shattered bubble, everything in the old world vanished.

The simulation ended, and everything was cleared.

Only Ye Chang'an, a person who did not belong to the old world, drifted in the starry sky, witnessing the new world settling steadily into the orbit of the old world.

[So the starry sky outside the simulation is real.]

The System's limits seemed unable to contain the concept of the universe.

He wanted to laugh.

"You just destroyed a civilization, and the Cocoon of the End has been activated."

001 spoke softly, and then a white light shot out from the moon, enveloping the entire new Earth.

Human civilization failed its trial, and the Cocoon of the End initiated a restart.

The authority of time.

But the authority of time could not erase the world Ye Chang'an had recreated using his authority; it could only rewind within a limited scope.

That scope was Ye Chang'an's age.

24 years and 111 days.

The new world still existed, and it had a future beyond this point.

"..." Ye Chang'an was speechless, wanting to laugh but unable to.

Because he was being reclaimed by the Cocoon of the End.

The Cocoon of the End's restart would reclaim all Herrscher cores, and he himself was a Herrscher core.

He wanted to resist, but he had no strength.

—So, this is my death.

The withered branches forked

A single leaf awakened it

The sea's nutrients replenished

The tree's gaze awaited its bloom

Elysia, Elysia

The world awaits your embrace.

001: "The moon and stars bring the daughter of God, she wishes to be a companion to man."

"Who is God, and who is man?"

"They are both him, the one who was forgotten."

But, 001 still remembered him.

Remembered him who, with a mortal body, wielded divine power and turned falsehood into truth.

Remembered him who, with music and a faint authority of Knowledge, sent all beings from the past into the future.

The Cocoon of the End Chapter 1: What Lies Beyond the End of Death?

What does it feel like to be reclaimed by the Cocoon of the End?

Ye Chang'an didn't know.

He had passed out halfway through.

After an unknown amount of time, his consciousness gradually returned.

His five senses began to revive, and he became aware of his body, as well as a warm touch beside him.

—Where is this?

He didn't know. He tried to feel around, his arms and fingers slowly moving.

He touched smooth skin and a slightly rising chest.

—Huh? A chest? And these little things…

He jolted awake, his eyes snapping open to see a sleeping red-haired girl.

Eden?

No, it wasn't.

Distant memories resurfaced, and he recalled the eight years before entering the simulation.

"Damn, it's Su Mei."

He swore in shock, because the girl sleeping next to him was Chi Yuan's second disciple, Su Mei, who had come up the mountain the same year as him but was three years older.

"This is impossible!"

001 had explicitly stated that he had left the simulation and could not return to Tai Xu Mountain.

So this must be a dream.

But Su Mei shouldn't appear in his dreams either.

Ye Chang'an couldn't figure it out. Wanting to confirm, he pinched Su Mei's face hard.

Then Su Mei woke up, her delicate eyebrows furrowed as she glared at him.

"What are you doing?"

"...Does it hurt?" Not knowing how to answer, Ye Chang'an chose to ask a question.

Then Su Mei pinched him back forcefully.

"You tell me if it hurts?"

Okay, it hurt a lot.

Ye Chang'an was now sure this wasn't a dream, but the certainty only made him more confused.

What would it feel like for someone who had chosen death to not actually die?

It was very complicated.

As his expression shifted unpredictably, Su Mei reached out and touched his forehead, asking with a hint of concern, "Chang'an, are you alright? Do you still have a slight fever?"

She felt the temperature on his forehead, which seemed normal, and breathed a sigh of relief.

"It seems you're fine now, you really scared me."

"...Do I have a slight fever?" Ye Chang'an asked, wanting to understand his situation.

"Of course, when I found you, you were unconscious, your breathing was almost gone."

Su Mei recounted what had happened that day, which for Ye Chang'an was twenty-four years ago.

At that time, after activating the System and starting the simulation, he was on his bed in his room. He had fallen asleep as soon as the simulation began.

Normally, he would wake up after the simulation ended normally, just like waking up from a dream.

But he hadn't woken up the next morning because he had left the simulation and become a living corpse.

Su Mei came to call him for a meal, but he wouldn't wake up. When she touched him, she panicked.

With Lin Zhaoyu and Chi Yuan away from the mountain, Su Mei was the eldest child on the mountain and was responsible for taking care of the younger children, who were around seven or eight years old.

But Su Mei, only eleven years old, didn't know how to treat an illness no matter how smart she was. She thought that since Ye Chang'an had a slight fever and low body temperature, she should try to warm him up. So, she gathered all the blankets she could find and covered him.

But blankets alone weren't enough, so she pulled in a few of her younger sisters to warm the bed with him.

Now, on Ye Chang'an's other side, a pair of twins and Cheng Ling Shuang, a child only seven years old, were sleeping.

A true "sleeping under the same blanket" situation.

"It's good that you're okay. If something had happened, I'm afraid Senior Sister would have gone crazy."

Su Mei mumbled, and Ye Chang'an sighed wordlessly, getting up and out of bed.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm feeling a bit stifled, just need some fresh air."

Ye Chang'an agreed, putting on his shoes and preparing to leave. He took one step and immediately tripped.

Thump~

Seeing him sprawled on the ground, unable to get up, Su Mei was speechless. She put on her own clothes and shoes and helped him to his feet.

"I'll take you out. You've been unconscious for two or three days and haven't eaten anything. You won't be able to walk."

She was quite kind, and Ye Chang'an didn't refuse, offering his thanks.

"Huh? You're thanking me? That's really unusual."

Su Mei was surprised, finding Ye Chang'an's gratitude strange.

After all, she had come to the mountain when she was three years old and had watched Ye Chang'an grow from a baby into the man he was now. She knew him pretty well.

If she had to give a general assessment, it would probably be – a natural little hooligan.

He lacked manners and always loved to take liberties with people. Not many of the girls on the mountain had escaped his groping.

As for Immortal Chi Yuan... are you sure Chi Yuan counts as a girl?

In short, Ye Chang'an used to be a little rascal, always talking and laughing, often scratching people, and frequently being stubborn and refusing to admit fault.

Su Mei had never seen him be polite.

Of course, they didn't dislike his impoliteness. Having grown up together since childhood, maintaining actual politeness would have made them feel distant.

At least, she felt Ye Chang'an was being quite distant towards her now.

"There's nothing unusual about it. Please help me to the courtyard and let me sit down." Ye Chang'an shook his head, unwilling to say more. After reaching the courtyard and sitting down, he asked Su Mei to get him something to eat.

"Tsk, so strange. Why does Chang'an feel like a completely different person?" Su Mei muttered as she went to prepare food. Ye Chang'an didn't hear her, and even if he had, he wouldn't have cared.

Looking up at the stars in the night sky, Ye Chang'an's eyes were filled with complex emotions, his gaze flickering.