Chapter 151

No matter how good the intentions, the Precepts brought Apponia only pain and sin.

She tried time and again to change the fate of those suffering, but in doing so, she caused even greater suffering.

Before Apponia understood this, she was too deeply mired in sin to extricate herself.

In the scene, Raiden Mei walks step by step toward Apponia, her face filled with vigilance.

Didn't you say you'd never do that again?

Reaching Apponia, Raiden Mei sighed and asked helplessly.

"Since you accept that the outcome is already predetermined, why don't I prune some of the extraneous parts?"

Apponia slowly approached Mei: "Come, please hold out your hand."

Soon, a ring of cool touch slowly nestled onto Mei's fingers.

It was an exquisite silver ring. It looked quite ordinary, without any precious gemstones or masterfully engraved designs.

It's just like ordinary goods at a street stall.

But when it sat in Raiden Mei's hand, it felt so heavy to her.

"What's this?"

"A symbol."

Apponia explained.

"When I first received the Precepts, each time I used this ability, I would bestow such a ring upon the recipient. The corresponding Precepts would also be worn on it."

What's the point of this?

Upon hearing the word "Precepts, "Mei felt the ring's weight increase even further, far beyond what a small finger should bear.

"I also value rituals very much."

Apponia quietly observed Mei's fingers and rotated the ring to a suitable position.

"Each Precepts is also a mark placed upon me, a kind of reminder. But as the world declines, the Precepts are used more and more frequently... and I sometimes find them troublesome."

"..."

Mei remained silent.

At the same time, I'm also curious about how many people Apponia has imposed Precepts on, that even giving away a ring would be such a hassle?

"And this one? Does it also have Precepts engraved on it?"

"No, I'm not going to impose any real Precepts on you, Mei. It's not good for someone who needs to continue existing in reality."

Apponia shook her head.

"As for this ring, I made it when I was imposing Precepts on myself, but the constraints of that time are also my blessings for you now."

According to Apponia, this was not Precepts, but rather an expression of goodwill toward her.

But Raiden Mei, remembering her unreasonable abilities, couldn't help but sigh.

"I still can't refuse, can I?"

"If Mei wants to, you can try. This isn't a threat; I mean it sincerely."

"All right."

Left with no other choice, Raiden Mei had to accept the ring.

But then she looked at where the ring was on her finger and felt speechless again.

"Then, may I give you some advice, Apponia?"

"Um?"

"Some traditions didn't exist in your time, but... next time you give someone something like this, don't wear it on this finger."

Raiden Mei shook her finger meaningfully before leaving helplessly.

The video ends here.

Kiana: "So you've given away a lot of those rings before. Well, that's alright."

Knowing that things weren't as she thought, Kiana felt a huge sense of relief, but she still harbored resentment about Apponia putting the ring on Mei's finger.

I haven't even given Mei a ring yet!

Raiden Mei: "Apponia, take my advice, don't give away your rings so casually anymore... at least not to people in the group."

Taking into account the cultural differences between Previous Era and Current Era, Raiden Mei still tried to make her argument more rigorous.

Apponia: "Is this a sincere suggestion? I've taken note."

Elysia: "Wait a minute! I... I... I'll be so happy if you give me a ring, Apponia!"

Apponia: "Then let's wait and see. Surprises... are always saved for later."

Lowering her head, Apponia picked up the coin in her hand.

[Apponia uses the Life Coin.]

A flash of light appeared in the Death Space, and the next second Apponia was back in the base of the Previous Era.

It wasn't the [prison] she was familiar with, nor was there a public trial. Before Apponia lay only stacks upon stacks of documents, a dizzying array of information.

Apponia: "The Fire Moth has changed a lot from what I remembered."

Elysia: "Of course! This is Eden's and my masterpiece! Apponia, you really should check out the Fairy Amusement Park; you'll be amazed!"

Raiden Mei: "Elysia, aren't you just wasting the budget?"

Eden invested a huge amount of money, not to mention the projects at Vill-V and the production of Su's Honkai Energy Serum, you could even understand it if they used it to build a cat shelter for Pardo.

But Elysia, that Fairy Amusement Park of yours is truly something to complain about.

Elysia: "I'm doing this so the children can play and have fun. How can you call it wasting money on children's things? Don't you think so, Cosmo?"

Cosmo: "... The children... are very cute."

Elysia: "Sakura, what do you think?"

Sakura: "Rin really likes your amusement Elysian Realm."

Chapter 249 What are the stories the children in the sanatorium like to hear called?

But Sakura didn't like it at all. No matter how beautifully it was decorated, or how harmlessly the pink atmosphere was presented, it was still the base of the Fire Moth.

While Sakura was playing with her younger sister, her mind was filled with thoughts of the laboratory in the base below, but she couldn't tell her sister.

Ling had a great time, but her older sister was terrified.

Elysia: "Mei, look, both of those honest and loyal Flame-Chasers say my amusement Elysian Realm is great."

Raiden Mei: "..."

Apponia: "Really? I'll go check it out."

Inside the base, Apponia smiled; she could easily guess why Elysia had built that amusement Elysian Realm.

Those children who are deeply tormented by the Honkai Disease.

She was worried that they might cause the same tragedy that had happened at the nursing home, but Apponia trusted that Elysia wouldn't do anything she wasn't sure of.

Filled with anticipation, Apponia slowly walked out of the room.

"Please tell me, where is the Fairy Amusement Park?"

Before leaving, Apponia stopped a staff member and politely and kindly inquired about her destination.

"It's right outside the base's surface; you can take the elevator up there in ten minutes."

Thank you.

The staff lowered their heads, speaking timidly.

Apponia's question nearly scared him to death.

The staff member next to them, who was not very perceptive and had just been promoted, didn't quite understand.

"Shouldn't we have urged the congresswoman to go to work? Why did we just let her leave?"

The man glanced at the new colleague, looking at him as if he were an idiot.

She remembered that this person seemed to have been transferred from one of the other councilors, which explained why he didn't know the rules here.

"If I were you, I wouldn't ask such a stupid question."

"Why?"

"Would you like to try being given Precepts to work overtime all the time, without a break all year round, day and night?"

"This... is it that serious?"

The newcomer swallowed hard, his eyes filled with fear as he looked at Apponia's retreating figure.

The higher-ups at Fire Moth are too vicious. They're already working themselves to the bone, day after day, and now they're even targeting their employees.

Apponia: "I think I just heard someone say that I'm going to use Precepts to force them to work overtime?"

It's obvious without even thinking that this is a rumor, and that some unscrupulous person is fanning the flames.

Elysia: "Huh? There's such a thing? Those subordinates are going too far. Why can't they trust Apponia?"

Pardofelis: "Exactly! That's utterly inhuman!"

Apponia: "... Never mind."

Regardless of who it is, given the current organizational structure of the Fire Moth, the one who could stir up trouble for her must be one of those thirteen people.

Elysia: "Apponia, I'm more concerned about your condition than that. Back in the past, has your ability to glimpse fate been restored?"

In the Death Space, Apponia cannot glimpse her destiny, but if she returns to the normal world of the Previous Era, it is unknown whether her abilities will be restored.

Elysia was a little worried.

Apponia: "Fate... it's no longer what I knew; it's become blurred, indistinct."

Apponia: "I came into this world with the help of the power of Imaginary, like a boulder falling into a lake. With every move I make, a huge wave will be stirred up on the originally calm surface."

Apponia: "These changes led fate to different outcomes."

Elysia: "So, you can't see your destiny anymore?"

Upon hearing this news, Elysia breathed a sigh of relief, proving that her strategy and her guess were correct.

Apponia: "I can still see the threads of fate, but I cannot grasp its intricate trajectory. How can mortal eyes possibly perceive how many stars lie beyond the heavens?"

You can still glimpse the threads of fate, but you cannot see its trajectory.

It's basically useless.

"How long ago was the last time you felt like you were back on land?"

Thanks to her unique abilities, Apponia quickly arrived at the amusement Elysian Realm. Stepping onto the solid soil, she could feel the wind of freedom.

She is no longer in prison, nor is she a criminal who has committed heinous crimes.

Starting over, the feeling of not being bound by fate because you can't see it, gave Apponia an unprecedented sense of novelty.

"Let me look for those poor children..."

Apponia walked into the Elysian Realm, carefully calculated its size, and surveyed its comprehensive range of facilities.

No wonder some people say Elysia wasted the budget.

"Sister Apponia, flowers~"

A little girl walked up to Apponia and offered her a bunch of wildflowers.

Apponia recognized the little girl; she was one of the children at the Dusk Street Sanatorium. Usually, she was very quiet when Apponia told stories.

"Good boy."

Apponia picked up the flower; it still smelled of earth, clearly having been picked recently.

Don't you play with the other children?

"They're all so childish. What's so fun about roller coasters? It's much better to listen to Sister Apponia tell stories."