Memory Corridor

Klein froze for a moment when he first heard the news. After thinking it over, he found it perfectly reasonable and asked curiously:

"How much did it go up to?"

"If it follows what I remember, then 5,500 pounds." Neph shook her head. "But things have changed now, so I'm not sure whether there'll be any discrepancies."

Klein drew a breath and exclaimed:

"He's worth so much-hiss, at this rate, I really can't guarantee I won't fall for him-hey, what's with that look? I mean the bounty! The bounty!"

Neph shook her head in disappointment, provoking Klein into glaring fiercely at her.

As Neph's smile blossomed, he realized his efforts were futile and couldn't resist threatening her:

"Keep that up, and I won't show you the mural I saw in Kalvetua's hiding place!"

"A mural?" Neph paused.

"Yes." Klein nodded. "I think history should count as a kind of memory too? At least the history book you recited really was, as you said, something like a 'history of the future'-"

"You're right." Neph tilted her head. "If this world has memories, then history should be its memory, shouldn't it? Hmm?"

Come to think of it, I remember this grayish-white fog looking quite similar to the Historical Void... hmm, the original novel really was rather vague in its descriptions of the Historical Void...

Neph looked around at the churning grayish-white fog, a thoughtful expression crossing her face. Seeing this, Klein asked:

"What is it?"

"I'm not too sure." Neph shook her head. "I'll tell you once I've figured it out."

Klein didn't press further. He smiled and said, "Let me show you a mural."

Without waiting for Neph's response, he conjured up its contents.

It was the surviving half of a mural, depicting a confrontation between two figures:

Looking down upon