Despondency / That's All

"The act of modifying memories in the world of consciousness is personified as 'injecting with a syringe,' which means that close contact is still required to do this."

"But when Qianqi and I went to investigate the hospital, we learned some information from that person."

"'At that moment, it was like you were suddenly stung by something, and then you just walked away on your own, not responding even when your friend called you.'"

Lin's tone was frighteningly calm. He seemed to have no emotional fluctuations, just like a precise machine, completely indifferent.

He stroked his chin and explained the two in detail, "It is true that speaking or writing 'keywords' will result in being 'watched,' but the Herrscher of Binding actually marks all those who speak about the truth of the world of consciousness. It can take action against those who are 'marked' at any time, rather than appearing immediately, creating the illusion that they will appear as long as the keywords are spoken."

"I learned this through 'May' and the fact that Kevin and I had our memories altered at the hospital."

Lin doesn't know what happened at the time, but based on the existing information, it's possible to deduce the approximate events and the two's plan, such as... "Mei" and Lin agreed to say the "keyword" at different times and locations.

"What those people saw was that my memories were suddenly altered. No one touched me along the way, and I didn't say any 'keywords,' so there's only one explanation: Kevin and I had already talked about it on the way to the hospital."

"Lin... you're looking for me so late... hmm?"

Just then, Kevin walked over, completely bewildered. Seeing that there were actually three people present, he looked at Lin with even more confusion, wanting to ask him why he had called him out so late at night.

"Kevin, when we went to the hospital to look for 'the other me,' did I say anything strange along the way?"

"Strange thing...you asked me...wait a minute." Kevin was about to complain about something, but suddenly his eyes widened and he murmured, "Back then in the car, you really did talk to me about the 'world of consciousness' and repeated it three times."

But Kevin didn't pay special attention to this unusual behavior at the time, and Lin explained that he was just recalling the game's settings.

"Then, I went to the hospital, and then I disappeared for a while."

"Um, you said you needed to go to the bathroom..."

The final result was that "Mei" was killed and Lin's memories were altered.

"My memories were altered without any contact, I suddenly disappeared, and... you..."

Qianqi pieced these clues together, and a bizarre conjecture came to mind. She no longer fearfully distanced herself from Elysia, while Elysia calmly looked at Lin.

"It's me."

Lin nodded.

The Herrscher of Binding nodded.

Chapter Sixty-Four: Loneliness

"I see..."

The gray-haired girl sat at the breakfast table, slowly chewing her breakfast while organizing the information she had deduced.

Because she ate quietly, as always, without even making a chewing sound, they didn't notice the light flickering in her eyes.

"But now that I know so much information, I'm sure I'll be targeted. Let me think... will I run into them as soon as I step outside?"

Even though she thought about the possibility of encountering the mastermind behind the scenes as soon as she stepped out, Qianqi calmly ate her breakfast. After all, there was no use in being anxious, so it was better to calm down and think about what to do.

Since we cannot change the outcome, we should think about how to convey a message to Lin under these circumstances.

"Would the mastermind know what I'm thinking? No... they wouldn't have any chance at all."

All thoughts must revolve around the idea that "there is still hope." If there is no hope from the beginning, then no amount of thinking will help.

We must not give up hope and thought; these are everything that humanity depends on for survival.

The worst-case scenario is that the mastermind behind it all will be able to intuitively sense her level of knowledge about the truth.

But this raises another issue: since she can recover her memories through her own notebook, the memories of those around her won't be altered as well. So, completely erasing her memories might actually alert her.

This has happened once before, and she believes the other party won't make the same mistake a second time.

Qianqi's brain is like a rapidly spinning turbine, constantly proposing possibilities only to be rejected by herself.

I can't stay home for too long, how much time is left before school starts...?

Qianqi glanced at the time, then got up to get her schoolbag and notebook.

Since it's certain that the other party won't erase all her memories in one fell swoop, the only possibility is that they've modified her memories. She knows best how to make someone believe a lie: tell a fact from a different angle or mix a small part of the lie into most of the truth.

Her memories of the truth could very well be altered to create misleading narratives that appear similar but are actually entirely different.

Is there a way to convey this to Lin without using any keywords, yet still get his attention?

If I can't explain it over the phone, and using a laptop will definitely get me discovered, then...

When she saw a concert announcement on her phone, a brilliant idea struck her. She rushed back to her room, hacked into a system that sold Eden concert tickets, and sent a ticket to Kevin's address, which she had investigated previously.

We have no choice but to take a gamble.

If what the insiders see outside Changkong City is nothingness, then what about these NPC-like people? They should be able to have normal memories of the outside world; in Kevin's eyes, he should have just gone to a concert.

After doing all this, Qianqi got up, picked up her schoolbag, took a deep breath, and rushed out of the house.

"This is the moth that chases the flame..."

Even though she had already learned about the Fire Moth from information given by others, Mei was still surprised when she saw Lin join the Fire Moth.

Is this the organization from the Previous Civilization that fought against the Honkai?

It wasn't a three-way power struggle between the civilization she lived in— Schicksal, Anti-Entropy, and the World Serpent— where they were scheming against each other and fighting independently. Rather, it was humanity's last line of defense, uniting the world's power to fight against the Honkai.

Of course, Mei could also sense that even though the Previous Civilization only had one Fire-Chasing Moth, the human world was not entirely peaceful.

"Your civilizations have all been influenced by the Fire-Chasing Moths. The World Serpent goes without saying, and both Schicksal and Anti-Entropy developed through the technology and knowledge passed down from the Fire-Chasing Moths. Even the birth of your human civilization is closely related to the Fire-Chasing Moths."

"Of course, that's all in the future. Even if we say so many good things about the Moth of Fire... hehe, those achievements may not necessarily belong to this organization."

Mei was very concerned about what the girl said. Did the fact that the merit did not belong to the organization mean that it belonged to some people in the organization rather than all of them?

"Lin's first mission after joining the Firemoth was a near-death experience, but it was also this mission..." The girl suddenly stopped, realizing she had let something slip, and smiled brightly at the puzzled Mei, "But it was also this mission that made him famous, and it was through this mission that Elysia got to know her."

I had a feeling that what she was going to talk about wasn't this.

Mei's senses were incredibly sharp. She frowned, but didn't press the matter, because she knew it would be pointless. The girl was very thoughtful, and she would most likely not get anything out of her by forcing her to reveal anything, especially since their relationship was only superficially cooperative.

We could only hint at it indirectly later.

"What kind of mission is it?" Mei asked, softening her tone.

"The Second Honkai War".

As the words fell, the scene before her eyes changed again. In the ruined city, a man wearing a helmet was fighting against a monster from the highest heavens and the deepest hell. The terrifying size difference between them, as well as the intelligence and bizarre abilities displayed by the Honkai Beast, made Mei's heart clench.

Even knowing that Lin would win in the end, the scene before him made him feel like a small boat in raging waves, ready to be capsized at any moment.

"Don't worry. Don't be fooled by the fact that Lin's strength is as small as an ant compared to an elephant. You should have fought Lin before, right? Strength isn't the key to victory."

Upon hearing this, Mei recalled several battles with Lin and his clone-like entities, battles that were almost always bloody, cunning, and chilling.

"Don't let him get a chance, otherwise..."

The girl smiled sweetly, but Mei still saw a strange and cold glint in her eyes.

"In short, he ultimately accomplished an almost impossible task single-handedly. In my opinion, this Companion Honkai Beast from the Second Honkai War was even more difficult to defeat than the Herrscher of the Void herself..."

"..."

"Next comes the part you've been most looking forward to. That's right, Lin and Elysia meet for the first time since the Second Honkai War."

Mei stared speechlessly at the bouncy girl's retreating figure. No matter how you looked at it, it seemed like she was the one who was more excited.

Mei was indeed very interested in the relationships between these people from the Previous Civilization, not so much because she was gossipy, but because... they gave her a very subtle feeling.

"Elysia met Lin for the first time under the pretext of delivering a medical report, and then... as you know, she is very interested in all abnormal things, and at that time, a man who wore a helmet and never showed his true face and single-handedly defeated Emperor-class Honkai Beast was the most abnormal existence."

"Hehe, she then put her relentless pestering skills to use. Even a rock would have a piece of its skin peeled off if she pestered it."

"Speaking of which, there's an interesting story. From what I know of Lin's memories, Lin actually had some special feelings for Elysia back then."

Mei stared wide-eyed at the helmeted man in the video who was treating the pink-haired girl extremely badly; he didn't seem to have any special feelings for her at all.

The girl watched all this with a laugh, but a hint of loneliness involuntarily crept into her expression.

Chapter Sixty-Five: That's all

As the chilling "It was me" was uttered, Lin's left eye turned an eerie rainbow color.

A rainbow and a black hue, like incompatible water and fire, appeared so strangely on one person's face at the same time.

"I'm curious, you left that syringe without me even noticing," Lin said, but his tone was completely different. His Prismatic Eyes and black pupils were not in unison, as if two people were each controlling one of his eyeballs. "I clearly destroyed it."

"That wasn't left by me, it was left by Elysia."

Lin recalled the Déjà vu something while looking for concert tickets at Kevin's house, and the possibilities that came to mind after finding the notebook and syringe when he returned home.

The Herrscher of Binding should have gone to Elysia on the night he lost his memory to destroy the syringe in her possession. It was an important tool that Lin and "Mei" planned to use to help Lin regain his memory after he lost it, so the Herrscher of Binding would definitely have found a way to destroy it.

But this raises a question.

Was the syringe He destroyed real?

What to do? I can't find Lin...

Elysia rushed to the school anxiously. She had to quickly hand the syringe to Lin; they were only one step away from the truth.

But halfway through, she suddenly stopped, her face darkening as she pondered the words of the person who had given her the syringe.

Why... should it be given to Lin after he loses his memory?

No, the question should be, why did Lin lose his memory?

Because... someone wants to harm Lin.

The Herrscher of Binding in our memories is the true culprit hidden among everyone, and when, how, and in what form he will appear is unknown.

Elysia realized that if she rashly went to find Lin, something irreversible might happen.

What should I do?

What Lin said today also bothered her, "Another self," "dreaming"—aren't these all characteristics of having memories implanted? Was Lin reminding her then?

Dream...

"Are you curious about what I dreamt about? Here's a hint: it's related to a cold, aloof person~"

"The Snow King?"

The conversation with Lin came flooding back to her mind. Suddenly realizing what had happened, Elysia changed direction and headed back to the street where she had walked with Lin before, and went straight to the milk tea shop.

At the entrance, a person dressed in a white mascot costume was standing at the shop entrance, but instead of actively greeting the curious children, they just stared straight at her.

"You..."

"Pink hair... did you bring the things?"

The person dressed as a mascot whispered something to Elysia, which surprised her greatly.

But soon, Elysia realized that this was Lin's arrangement. Without hesitation, she handed the syringe directly to the Snow King and left without looking back.

"That's really strange. Why would it be okay to just hide this thing under the floorboards? Oh well, as long as they pay, it's fine."

The person in the mascot costume muttered something under their breath, then went into the store to change into regular clothes, picked up a key, and sneakily headed towards Lin's house.

After thinking for a long time, Elysia secretly took out a syringe from the hospital, added some dyed water to it, and then went to the Chienyu Academy.

Whether it's to seek the truth or to lower the guard of the Herrscher of Binding, the pink-haired girl believes she must appear before him.

"No, since you are one, how could He not discover your plan?"

At this moment, Qianqi stared at Lin, whose pupils were the opposite color and whose facial expression was also divided in two, and shouted coldly.

"... Since I was verifying that He was someone I had absolutely no idea about before, including His existence and actions," Lin said calmly, leaning against the wall and waving to everyone, "Is it strange that He didn't know about my arrangements when He was not 'watching' me?"

It has been repeatedly emphasized that this is a world of consciousness.

Even though many abstract concepts are made concrete, the world of consciousness itself is like a dream with regularity and rules, which is absurd and unreal beneath a normal appearance.

Only after fully realizing that the two are one can they simultaneously appear in one body.

Now, from the first battle of consciousness, to the damage to consciousness and loss of memory, and then to the cooperation of the three consciousnesses of the same person, with the help of Elysia and Qianqi, the ending has finally changed...

Really?

"So what if they find me?"

Lin's left cheek held a hint of mockery amidst its indifference.