After a spell of dizziness, the four found themselves on a rooftop, where a small stone marker stood conspicuously before them. "Buried here are secrets The Family tried to conceal, and a long, romantic story." Dahlia looked at Robin. "Unfortunately, most of it has nothing to do with us."
"Boreklin Tiernan... I remember that name. An admirable Galaxy Ranger. When Penacony suffered a Swarm Disaster in the past, he risked his life to protect the sweet dream." A note of respect entered Robin's voice.
"That's why we had to come here. We suspect that after the Dream Master turned his back on The Family, he went over to Propagation." Firefly spoke their suspected truth one word at a time, startling Hanxing. Propagation? The very thing that destroyed the Glamoth Republic? But since he could not reveal his identity, Hanxing had to keep the words to himself.
"...How is that possible?" Robin sounded doubtful, but Dahlia immediately followed up. "What we call history has long since passed, but people's memories have settled within the Memory Zone... If we can find the right method, we can pierce through time and dredge the past from chaos."
With that, Dahlia walked to one side and reached out, sensing something. The surroundings suddenly darkened, and a man appeared before them, along with a suit of armor lying on the ground. It was easy to tell that the armor shared the same origin as Firefly's Sam.
"This is... Memoria?" Robin sounded puzzled. Firefly sighed softly and looked ahead, her voice somewhat subdued. "Every disaster caused by the Swarm comes with countless victims. Some names are remembered, but others... are not only forgotten, but betrayed." Just then, the events in the Memory Zone began to play out again:
"What... are you doing? I'm not your enemy..." The voice from the armor was barely audible, as if its wearer's life was nearing its end. "Indeed. Whether yours or mine, our only enemy is that abominable fate." The man's voice was full of chill, sounding utterly cruel. "Then why... why..." "Calm yourself, child. Struggling will only add to your pain. The blow I just dealt you was dishonorable, but it did not miss-in this place and at this time, your death is certain."
"But I... was clearly... helping this place fight the Swarm Disaster." The voice from the armor held a trace of resentment. "Indeed. The Swarm ran rampant, and a member of the Glamoth Iron Cavalry passing through here entered the battle without asking for anything in return. That is truly admirable. But have you considered why the Swarm Disaster grew even worse right after that?" "Could it be..." The wearer of the armor seemed to have guessed something.
By now, Hanxing had formed a few guesses about the situation. When the Swarm Disaster struck, this member of the Glamoth Iron Cavalry in Penacony had fought back against the Swarm, only to be stabbed in the back and killed by this man. And this man was probably the so-called Dream Master, Gopher Wood.
"The Iron Cavalry, born to eradicate the Swarm, are actually Pathstriders of Propagation." The Dream Master's words were shocking once again, especially to Hanxing. If the Glamoth Iron Cavalry were Pathstriders of Propagation, that meant Firefly also walked the path of Propagation. But why, when Yan Bai had looked at her using Harmony's power, had Firefly appeared to be a Pathstrider of Destruction? At the thought, Hanxing could not help activating his Harmony ability and looking at Firefly. The mark of Destruction still floated above her head, leaving him confused.
"Propagation never seeped into the sweet dream. You brought it here. And only your death can remove it." The Dream Master's voice remained devoid of emotion. "How... could..." The voice from the armor took on a pleading note. "But I... can leave, and never... come back here."
"I can't die... I don't want to die... I..." As the voice from the armor grew weaker, the Dream Master turned away. "That is precisely why I said the blow was dishonorable. I probed your secrets for the sake of the sweet dream; but I struck you down out of selfish desire, after glimpsing eternity."
"11:45□ Paradise will eventually fall into the sorrowful mortal world. Once dawn rises, it must crash into the daylight. How could anything golden retain its brilliance forever?" The Dream Master's words were somewhat hard to understand. He slowly lowered his head:
"You will become my darkest crime, and also the beginning of a great undertaking." He raised his head again and spread his arms:
"I will use your remains to lay the foundation for the Eternal Paradise."
As Dahlia withdrew her hand, the four returned from the memory to reality in an instant. "You're quite familiar with Memoria. You should be able to tell whether this memory was fabricated." Dahlia turned to look at Robin, whose face was full of shock.
"Lay the foundation for the Eternal Paradise, that..." Robin sounded incredulous. She glanced at Firefly, whom Hanxing had already been watching for some time.
"She was trying to escape her own fate then." Firefly's voice was noticeably more subdued. The last time she had spoken in that tone was when she talked about Entropy Loss Syndrome. "But when she found the Swarm on Penacony, she didn't stand by and do nothing. Even though she still died fighting the Swarm, that wasn't fate catching up with her again."
Firefly fell silent for a moment, then her voice took on a note of resolve. "It was her own choice, because she had a conscience and knew compassion, just like anyone else."
"...Was she your friend?" Seeing Firefly's sadness, Hanxing's heart ached for her, but he did not know how to comfort her. "Yes. And often, she was even more like who I used to be." Firefly sighed softly. If Hanxing had not appeared, perhaps her fate would have been no different from that of the wearer of the armor.
"I know this won't help, but... I'm truly sorry. Whatever the Dream Master's purpose, he had no right to make anyone sacrifice their life." At this crucial moment, Robin finally chose to stand with Firefly. "I promise you, when everything is over, whatever the outcome, I'll tell people what she did-she deserves to be remembered by the sweet dream."
"Thank you." Firefly nodded and smiled in gratitude. "But there's something I don't understand. Even if the Dream Master wanted the power of Propagation, there are plenty of remnants of the Swarm in the galaxy. Why did he have to kill her?" Robin pondered the question. Her conscience made it hard for her to accept such a thing.
"That's why we came to you." Dahlia looked at Robin. "The Harmony Festival is about to begin. Whatever the Dream Master's purpose, it can't be a coincidence that he's pushing all these plans forward now. And he chose you to sing for Harmony. Whether you know it or not, you must be crucial to it."
"I see..." Robin showed her understanding, and Dahlia proceeded to lay out the entire plan.
"You want me to serve as a 'catalyst' to dredge the 'past' out of the Memory Zone?" Robin was somewhat puzzled. "What do you need me to do?" "I need to temporarily take one of your memories. Once it stirs up the Memory Zone, I can follow the flow of Memoria and burn a passage through it to dredge up scenes from the past again." Dahlia paused, emphasizing her next words. "Whether it succeeds or not, I'll return your memory to you intact."
"Let a cremator handle my memory?" Although Robin had prepared herself, she was still somewhat wary. "I also think it's a lot to ask. If you think it's necessary, you can use Tuning to leave a safeguard in our consciousness, to make sure we have no ulterior motives." Firefly was always so considerate, but Robin declined:
"There's no need. Let's begin." Robin paused. "'If you are harmed, may that harm not cause you to fall'-that is a blessing that has long been passed down in The Family. I don't want all trust to be built on mutual threats."
"So this is the bearing of a great star? You've made me aspire to it a little, too." Dahlia smiled. Then her purple eyes turned red, and violet flames burned invisibly through the memory.
"Done-and we're in luck." Dahlia sounded a little more relaxed. "Oh? What's this? A piece of oak, already rotted through by borers?" "Did you find something?" Hanxing looked at Dahlia, whose eyes had returned to normal.
"This time, I'm afraid we've uncovered a 'disaster.' See it for yourselves." A massive portal appeared in an instant, but a hostile, familiar female voice came from behind them:
"Nothing but lies, dear."