The end of the labyrinth

The charms Neph had made were not meant to back up memories, but to "reinforce" them-they would give the memories the ability to leave traces even after being erased, preventing Klein from forgetting everything completely.

That was no guarantee, so Neph had another step planned. Once Klein had used the charms to "reinforce" his memories, she told him:

"Now let's make a proper backup.

"Hmm, since you have your own materials, we'll use those. First-"

She gave Klein a rough description of the ritual. Having studied rituals extensively, Klein compared it against what he knew and nodded. Only then did Neph explain the most crucial part:

"During the ritual, you need to focus and recall your life-"

By the time they were ready, the sky was still shrouded in night. Klein asked Neph:

"How are we supposed to get there? Are we really just jumping into the sea?"

"Actually, at first I wondered if it might be on the seabed," Neph replied vaguely. "But it seems-Klein, haven't you noticed?"

"What?" Klein froze for a moment.

"My laughter just now didn't wake anyone," Neph said, shaking her head as she turned and headed outside. "The ship is very quiet. There isn't a single sound. And the sky-no, look at the fog instead. Don't you think the fog here, or rather the air, seems to have frozen in place?"

Klein followed her out of the cabin. The Black Death stood motionless in the darkness. Looking around, he said in realization:

"You mean we've already entered the place you're looking for?"

"Yes." Neph turned back and smiled at him. "This seems to be the first layer of the Memory Corridor."

"I don't seem to sense any danger...?" Klein asked hesitantly. "Speaking of which, are the others still on the ship?"

"That's why I