"Later, I tried using Discipline to change humanity, thereby altering their paths. But I failed—human nature does not change."
"In the end, I wanted to make humans isolated individuals, unable to influence one another. Even if the outcome was inevitable, they could at least live in happy self-sufficiency. But I failed—humans cannot bear solitude."
"At that time… I had almost given up all hope. Like you, I could change nothing."
"But… Miss Mei, you too have passed between life and death, yet you did not realize… that when that moment arrives, humans will always… attain enlightenment through life and death."
Mei asked: "You… found a new direction?"
Aponia replied: "Correct. Before the shadow of death covered everything, I thought… there is still one direction I have never tried, only because it is utterly impossible."
"If in some world I became the heavens and earth, becoming fate itself, would I still be so powerless?"
"Even if everything is already predestined, I will still pray for you…"
"This last chance… please withdraw now."
Mei instantly sensed the killing intent erupting from Aponia.
She swiftly placed her hand on her longblade, signaling her resolve.
Aponia let out a faint sigh: "Miss Mei, since you insist…"
"Then allow me to sever this misguided path… completely."
This battle could not be avoided!
Mei activated the power of her Herrscher core, directly entering her full Herrscher of Thunder state.
"Tempest! Submit to me!"
With a fierce shout, Kukikara appeared, carrying thunderous breath as it pressed fiercely toward Aponia.
Facing the Herrscher's full-powered strike.
Aponia maintained her praying posture. A golden barrier enveloped her, completely withstanding the overwhelming thunderous breath.
She slowly rose, and behind her appeared light shadows resembling butterfly wings.
Mei immediately felt a heavy blow to her spirit. Her entire body grew dazed, and even her charged iaijutsu slash veered off course.
This was the power of a psychic-control-type MANTIS!
If this continued, she would surely be no match.
At that moment, Griseo's painting appeared, rendering the entire cathedral in entirely new colors. The flowing hues drifted and circulated, rapidly absorbing and weakening the mental force in the area.
This gave Mei a chance to catch her breath.
Though her help was unexpected, it still wasn't enough…
Raven's voice suddenly rang out: "Then… you must have missed me quite a bit?"
"Raven?"
Mei was somewhat surprised.
Raven said: "Sorry, I finally convinced Klein."
"…Mm… mm…"
Beside her, one could clearly hear Klein's muffled whimpers as she was bound and gagged.
Raven said: "Remember this, young lady—this time… you owe me another favor."
With her help, Mei clearly felt her body become much lighter, while Aponia also seemed to have suffered some kind of attack, her expression growing even more grave.
Seizing the opportunity, Mei unleashed a storm of ferocious attacks.
With Kukikara's coordination and the assistance of the two, they finally forced Aponia into a corner.
"You've lost, Aponia."
But the next moment, everything around them shattered…
Aponia, just as she had appeared at their first meeting, knelt on the ground praying: "Mei, welcome in person to the Deep."
Mei's heart jolted: "Everything just now… didn't actually happen?"
Aponia said: "I told you—I will not harm you."
Mei asked warily: "That anger just now… was also just your pretense?"
Aponia said: "How could I lose composure toward you like that?"
"But… that was not an illusion. It was the true future."
"Now draw your weapon and come toward me—everything you just saw will replay. If you wish to experience it again, I won't stop you."
"…" Mei did not draw her weapon. She only said: "In other words, I still fell into a trap."
"With such a simple method, you avoided all possible accidents… You win, Aponia."
Her expression was grave.
In the battle just now… she had indeed expended corresponding power.
Even if it was just an illusion, it had been far too real. If it happened again…
Aponia said: "Please don't say that, Mei… We did not come here for victory or defeat."
"Those arrangements truly exceeded my expectations."
Mei asked: "…What do you mean?"
Aponia said: "That painting that appeared in the sky just now—it was Griseo's work, wasn't it? Using that method to infuse part of yourself into the battle—was that your plan?"
"…"
Mei said: "That wasn't a plan. It was an accident. I… simply fulfilled a promise to her. I only realized what was happening when I saw it."
"It was just a series of coincidences. Missing any one link, the situation earlier would not have occurred—I am not someone capable of calculating to that extent."
Aponia said: "Is that so? Then that's good."
"Defeating me… even killing me, would be no issue. But if you were deliberately using that child…"
"Even if it goes against my own heart, or her expectations… I would have no choice but to eliminate another Herrscher for the sake of future generations."
"You see—now that you've told the truth, doesn't stopping you become much simpler?"
Mei's heart jolted: "You?!"
Aponia said: "Just a joke. Please rest assured. You should understand—we have never been enemies from beginning to end."
"I know you still have doubts, but… I do indeed possess that extraordinary gift. However, as you thought, the prophecy about you was merely a test."
"The end is near, Mei. Can you tell me—why are you so determined to step into it?"
Mei said: "…At least when I set out, I still doubted the authenticity of the prophecy."
"But at the same time, I also confirmed one other thing—when Elysia told me about your past experiences."
"—Even if you can see the predetermined outcome… the process can still be changed."
Aponia asked: "In your view… the result is not important?"
Mei replied: "I believe it can be changed."
"Even if it cannot… then I will decide for myself the process that leads to that result."
"My companions and I… for a very long time, we were caught in certain schemes, manipulated in the shadows by others."
"Being arranged by others… is no different from being arranged by fate, in my eyes."
"There are too many outcomes we cannot change, but before that, there are just as many things I can still do."
"And because of that, the outcome will take on an entirely different meaning."
Aponia smiled: "Mei, do you know? Once… someone said exactly the same words to me."
"At that time… she too rushed toward a predetermined end without hesitation."
"From beginning to end, I could not see her fate."
"So I thought there had been a turning point—that she had achieved what I could not, in a way I did not know."
"But as you see, the outcome did not change. That once-glorious civilization cannot even find its ashes now."
Mei asked: "So… you chose to continue seeking answers in this Elysian Realm?"
Aponia shook her head: "No. I chose to engrave every moment of that person's life that intertwined with mine, using the gift heaven bestowed upon me."
"I recorded every instant of her life that crossed with mine, and in the long passage of time, I carefully leafed through them—"
"I saw how she lived, how she fought, how she walked through mud, how she crowned herself with thorns… attending her final banquet in new attire."
"In her life, I discovered things I had once overlooked."
Mei asked: "What were they?"
Aponia recalled the scene: "Just like you and I now—that day, she stood before me and told me of her fate that would dissipate ten days later."
"And fourteen days later, the new clothes Eden prepared for her would be finished—she still had genuine joy and anticipation in her eyes. Sixteen days later, Kevin's birthday would arrive, and she would softly sing a lullaby, leaving him her final gift."
"Then, she said those words."
"You understand now, Mei. You… all of you… ultimately made the same choice."
"Even if the future cannot be changed, I will decide for myself the process that leads to that result… How admirable."
"But when that true helplessness descends upon you, will you still be able to say it so calmly?"
"I don't know… but before that, please continue forward. Rather than discussing these unconfirmable things with me, you should… go meet your own kind."
As her words fell.
A staircase forged of light gradually appeared, extending to the door at the center of the cathedral.
Mei glanced at the door.
And continued asking: "My own kind…"
"That person… is your companion during these ten days—the one who guided me onward at every perfectly timed moment in this trial."
Aponia nodded and said: "Mm, just as she said—Mei will not disappoint anyone."
"All that you have sought along the way, the meaning of the Elysian Realm's existence here, the secret guarded by the true Deep… the location of the Thirteenth Herrscher—you now have the qualification to go there."
Mei was shocked: "The Thirteenth Herrscher…"
"…"
"Qualification… everything you did before—was to help her test me?"
Aponia said: "I have my own selfish motives, but that is all. I have been waiting for someone like you to arrive, and now I have gotten my wish."
"Go. She is waiting for you."
"…"
Mei turned around but did not immediately take a step.
"May I ask one more question, Aponia?"
"Please do."
"When we fought earlier… the words you spoke—were they truly from your heart?"
"That kind of… hatred."
"…" Aponia fell silent.
After a long time, she spoke: "If I give you an affirmative answer… it might make you lose trust in the Flame-Chasers."
"But… consider it thanks on behalf of Griseo."
"Yes, I have always been pessimistic toward humanity. In my view, some people being erased from the world is their rightful end."
Mei said: "But you have never committed any subjective evil."
Aponia said: "I am different from you, Miss Mei."
"Her departure… indeed made me realize the significance of the process, but as I once proved—humanity cannot be changed."
"Even now, I still place greater importance on the outcome."
"However… this does not conflict with the protection I have given to everyone."
"To embrace while harboring denial… is still an embrace. I am no exception—I simply do not hide it."
"In my eyes, what are heroes? Noble ones who must sacrifice their lives for the survival of the vile."
"Even knowing that among those they protect exist beings they despise—and who despise them—they must still step forward."
Mei understood her words: "You seem very dissatisfied with this?"
Aponia said: "Because I am no hero. I simply… occasionally believe that everyone deserves to be saved."
"Alright, please depart soon."
"Do you remember the possibility I mentioned earlier? Since the moments I preserved… the only thing in this place worth passing down is about to see the light again…"
"Then this Elysian Realm… must also meet its final fate."
"Let us… part for now."
"Before me, no creation existed in the world. If there is anything eternal and undying, it is sinking within my body. Open that final door… noble and pure soul."
Mei stepped onto the staircase and crossed the threshold.
As the light faded, the scene before her cleared, and that familiar voice rang out: "You've finally made it here. Then, allow me to reintroduce myself."
"Second of the Flame-Chasers, Elysia inscribed with Ego—and my other identity, you must have already guessed it, right?"
"But…"
"Hi."
"How does it feel?"
Elysia's figure appeared before all the viewers watching the TV.
In this moment.
Viewers across the country were all stunned.
In the chat groups.
"Herrscher? Did I see that right? Elysia is actually a Herrscher?"
"No way… what the hell is going on with this plot? Fu Hua said before that there were no Herrschers fighting for humanity in the Previous Era."
"Thirteenth Herrscher! It's the thirteenth! Haven't they always said during the livestreams that there are only twelve Herrschers?"
"What's happening? Did I miss something earlier? Or skip an episode?"
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! How could Elysia be a Herrscher? How could Fire Moth possibly let a Herrscher join?"
"Something's off. This is all information I've never heard before. Did the dog director swallow the book?"
"Swallowing the book is impossible. Didn't you see? They said this is Fire Moth's dark side—the secrets they hid?"
"Then what's going on? Elysia can't be an artificial Herrscher, right?"
"This is explosive. I told you Elysia didn't seem like a good person."
"It does feel strange. This plot seems a bit disjointed? Feels like there's hidden context."
"Have you all forgotten what Mobius said? Elysia is a betrayer. She must have done something outrageous after becoming a Herrscher."
"No way—if the plot were that simple, the dog director wouldn't be the dog director."
"This just got interesting. Now nothing can be said for sure. Keep watching."
"…"
The chat was exceptionally lively. Almost all viewers were shocked by this revelation.
Even inside the company…
Those actors who had already read the script were deeply shaken.
The feeling conveyed by the TV was something the script could never provide.
But now, no one spoke.
They all knew these people would die. What they cared about most now was… whether everyone's deaths were related to Elysia.
They all glared fiercely at Hessian, meaning: if the plot has Elysia killing them, they'd chop him up directly.
Hessian paid it no mind.
Pretending not to notice, he continued watching the TV.
On the TV.
Elysia said to Mei: "Welcome to the deepest secret of the Elysian Realm preserved within the Deep—the world of Elysia's mind, composed entirely of Elysia's memories, fully recreating everything Elysia ever loved in her life."
"As you can see, it is like the condensation of all beautiful things—a peaceful and eternal dreamlike paradise, the flawless utopia standing at the end of all ideals."
"I wonder if the name 'Eternal Paradise'… sparks any curiosity in you?"
Mei asked: "Eternal Paradise… this is your memory space?"
Elysia smiled: "Aren't you excited? Among the successors, you are the first to come here—and the first to behold the entirety of Elysia's true heart."
"Mei, it's okay to look even happier…"
Mei said: "To be honest, I don't feel much reality to it. Coming here to learn the truth—with my understanding of you, I'm afraid it won't be that simple, right?"
"Oh my!" Elysia said: "How could you think that? Who turned you into such a person?"