"Time can be manipulated too..."
Ch'en repeated those words, finding them somewhat unbelievable. To most people, time moved in a purely linear fashion, like a blade that never paused, evenly cutting through everything in the world.
"What exactly is that?"
"Fate."
That was another concept that defied common sense. In Terra, almost everyone fought against their predetermined fate. If they did not want to die in humiliation, they had to burn like wildfire until nothing remained but a pile of ashes.
"A person can only choose one kind of fate."
That was what Hoshino taught her.
"Look at that blue-haired Sankta. She can manipulate time, yet she never stays in one place for long. She does not hate anyone's affection, but she never actively seeks it out either."
"Are all long-lived races like that?"
For some reason, Ch'en felt that the answer was right before her eyes, and she could not help growing tense.
"No. Only young long-lived ones are like that. Loneliness has not had the chance to break her yet. Heh heh heh, did you see that noisy, lively bunch from Penguin Logistics? Her anchor is among them. A ship sails across the sea, and only an anchor can keep it from losing itself in the currents."
"Do you have an anchor too?"
"No."
Ch'en suddenly looked up. The priestess's lively eyes glimmered with soft light. Rather than matching her outwardly imposing presence, they revealed an overwhelming exhaustion. "Still, you have quite a bit of potential. Keep working hard... Anyway, don't become one of the long-lived. Over endless years, kindness is like patterns written in sand—fragile beyond measure. Even the most intimate lovers will someday turn against each other."
"Turn against each other, and then what?"
"Then comes endless war. But eventually, they get tired. Exhausted long-lived ones