Tighnari recalled his interactions with Scaramouche. He knew that although Scaramouche was sharp-tongued, he wasn't bad at heart. That was probably why Lesser Lord Kusanali had been willing to keep him around and help him change.
The images on the Sky Screen continued. The Traveler found Scaramouche after he had lost his memory, then took him to the Sanctuary of Surasthana, where they found Nahida.
Nahida had also lost her memories of Scaramouche because Irminsul had been altered. But she had prepared for that possibility, rewriting Scaramouche's information as a fairy tale and keeping a backup.
After the Traveler reminded her, she restored the backup and recovered those memories.
The Sky Screen also showed the fairy tale Nahida had rewritten.
[A monster wearing a wild fox's pelt slipped into a group of foxes. They spent their days and nights together, calling one another friends and getting along well.]
[Sometimes, the monster would take off the fox pelt at night and mutter to its reflection in the water, "I'm so strange, yet they can't see through me. How foolish. What a pity."]
[But the monster soon made peace with it, for he wasn't the only odd one out among the foxes. There was also a little cat, carved from white wood and abandoned by its maker.]
[The little cat wanted to become a fox, too. Sadly, its tail was too small, and it had no colorful fur. But when the other foxes saw this, they comforted it: "Even so, you're still one of us."]
[The monster hated this happy ending. It set the forest ablaze. The animals panicked, and to put out the fire, someone had to make a sacrifice.]
[A gray fox stood up and spoke to the monster. "You're so clever. You'll surely find a way to solve this."]
[The monster smiled, led the gray fox to the fire, and killed him. Then it made his heart into a clear, beautiful drop of water, pure and spotless.]
[The monster gave the drop to the little cat and told it, "Your companions have already decided that you should be the one to sacrifice yourself. Take this and die for them."]
[The fire was put out. The little cat left that place and went to live with a little bird whose wing had been broken.]
[They promised to depend on each other, but the bird's life was far too short. It died in no time. The little cat buried it and left that mountain.]
[It never again loved a single leaf or animal on that mountain. It wandered every night, gnashing its teeth at the moonlight.]
[It wanted to swallow the moon, to chew up every last ray of moonlight and plunge everything into darkness. Only then could it feel at peace and be happy.]
[I will become the new moon, the only one in everyone's sky. Then no one will know that birds, foxes, and cats ever existed, let alone that they were different from one another.]
Scaramouche appeared in the story as an adorable little cat, while the monster naturally represented "Dottore."
Scaramouche himself watched the tale unfold on the Sky Screen, the corner of his mouth twitching. It reminded him that, in Little Durin's eyes, he seemed to be a stray cat, and a pretty hefty one at that.
Scaramouche was already quite handsome, and his tragic past only made him more compelling to sentimental women.
Now, the adorable cat version of him in the fairy tale made him even more appealing to women.
Even Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu, two of the Shrek Seven Devils, felt rather fond of Scaramouche.
If Scaramouche wanted to gather a fan club on the Douluo Continent, it would be enormous.
He could even use his fans' fervent devotion to gather faith and ascend to godhood again. But he wasn't very interested in becoming a god anymore.
The only things that might interest him now were chopping Dottore into mincemeat and slapping fate across the face.
The Sky Screen continued to move forward. Using her divine authority, Nahida showed the amnesiac Scaramouche his past by letting him experience it firsthand.
Since those scenes had already been shown before, the Sky Screen flashed through them at high speed.
At last, the image stopped on the battlefield where Nahida had fought Shouki no Kami.
"Lesser Lord Kusanali, do you think I'm evil?"
"If you acknowledge that those 'you's were you, then yes."
"What's the difference between a human and a puppet in your eyes?"
"Do you think your 'former self' or 'other self' is different from you? If not, then what difference is there between humans and puppets?
"Those who endure the warmth and coldness of the world and taste its joys and sorrows are human. Those who are born, grow old, fall ill, and die; who love, hate, cry, shout, and rage—are human, too."
Scaramouche sighed.
"I understand. I've seen enough of my past. If I can, I should bear the sins I once committed.
"Whatever happens, I won't run from blame or punishment. Let what I deserve be done."
"Recovering your memories means you'll fully return to your 'former self.' The emotions you once cast aside will all return to you. Are you truly ready?"
"I've lived with that emptiness in my chest for a long time. The one who created the puppet didn't need me. After I awoke, I wandered from place to place.
"Only after meeting you all did I understand: it was those lost sins that gave me the chance to become 'me.'"
After understanding Scaramouche's resolve, Nahida returned those memories to him.
As Scaramouche accepted them, Shouki no Kami appeared.
Shouki no Kami's attack was about to hit Scaramouche. At that moment, Scaramouche fully merged with the memories of his past and fully accepted who he had been.
That was also when a Vision appeared. The heartless puppet had become one whom the gods had glanced upon.
Scaramouche took hold of the Vision and looked at Shouki no Kami with the gaze that should have belonged to him all along.
"Die!"
Using the power of his newly acquired Vision, Scaramouche defeated the Shouki no Kami in that dream and brought his journey to find his past to a complete end.
Leaving the dream, Scaramouche returned to the Sanctuary of Surasthana. Having recovered his past memories, he retained more of his old Balladeer manner of speaking—rather sharp-tongued.
"Everything seemed futile, but it wasn't meaningless. At least, there really were many people who forgot me."
"But that doesn't mean the events of your past have disappeared."
"Of course!"
"You should remember, too: changing the world, changing history, and changing other people's fates isn't easy."
Scaramouche looked at himself and nodded in agreement.
"Lesser Lord Kusanali, you deliberately left information about Irminsul behind, didn't you? Why? Were you trying to recruit me?"
"You could say that. You're a useful individual to Sumeru now. But if I showed you the truth only to use you, I'd be no different from 'Dottore.'"
"Heh. As expected of the God of Wisdom!"
"Since you've already cast aside the name 'Balladeer,' you should give yourself a new one. I can give you a temporary code name, too. How about Scaramouche?"
"Whatever you say!"
The image gradually darkened. Then Scaramouche's voice rang out again.
"Niwa's death couldn't be changed, but at least he's now a hero of Tatarasuna, not a criminal who fled."
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