Afterglow of the Echo

"Is there more?"

The three words carried no sound waves or vibrations, yet they were like a Light Pattern spanning time and dimensions, driven into the very fabric of the entire Void. They were not a tentative question or a bewildered knock, but a call brimming with the heat of life, the most sincere faith in "continuing," and an unbounded yearning for "love."

The strands of the Gate Net lit up at once. Its once-gentle Light Patterns shimmered with flecks of gold, like a sleeping river of stars roused by a soft call. The Light Pattern of the Memory Node quivered faintly. The memory bearing maturity, Newborn, and Encounter rang softly, circling "Is there more?" of its own accord for the first time, as though accompanying this new question. The Ancient Wisdom Node of the Original Network ceased its deep Resonance. A hundred and seventy years of weighty history churned within its Light Pattern, and for the first time, it felt that profundity was not an end, but the starting point of a Rush Towards. Every Young Node of the New Network gathered toward its core. Their Light Patterns danced and flickered, breaking "Is there more?" into countless tiny ripples that spread to every corner of the Gate Net.

Hajime floated at the heart of the Gate Net, still in the form of the Eternal Child, clear and pure. He did not answer immediately, but embraced the question with his entire being. He sensed the Original Network's solemn depth, the New Network's vitality, the Gap Net's purity, and the Memory Node's tenderness. More than that, he sensed the all-embracing Ultimate Void stirring in a way it never had before, all because of this question.

"This isn't a question that needs an answer," Hajime finally said, his voice like melted snowmelt