Ding.
The clear chime of wind drifted away on the breeze as the old train from bygone days began its journey.
It was dusk, the setting sun painting vast swathes of the distant sky gold. Seated on the roller coaster, Mei had a panoramic view of the entire town. Yet, she was in no mood to admire the scenery, her gaze unconsciously drifting to her side.
A rich floral fragrance filled her nostrils, and the gentle evening breeze seemed to carry a bright smile. Every sign hinted that Elysia was right there.
But that was the extent of it. No matter how Mei tried to sense her, the distance between her and Ely felt as vast as the boundary between life and death. Even right beside her, Ely could only be remembered, never touched.
The Elysian Realm is built upon human cognition. Clearly, Mei's inability to fully manifest the real Elysia stemmed precisely from her insufficient understanding of her.
Realizing this, Mei felt a pang of self-blame. If only she had understood Elysia more, known earlier everything she had done, perhaps the current situation would be entirely different.
The roller coaster slowly rolled past the initial stage, carrying a regretful Mei towards the ascent. The track climbed steeply, so much so that by tilting her head slightly forward, Mei could see the dazzling, star-filled sky.
Myriad stars twinkled, magnificent beyond compare. As they climbed higher, the stars seemed almost within reach. Subconsciously, she reached out, wanting to touch the celestial dome.
In an instant, white streamers of light burst from her hand, drifting towards the starry sky. Mei paused, realizing only then that the Obsidian Concord mark on her arm had activated at some point and, following her gesture, was gradually detaching itself.
The light surged upward, chasing the stars. Before her eyes, white ribbons linked star after star, ultimately forming two peculiar constellations.
"The white Lamb spirit, the black Dire Wolf."
"Stars and Moon twin-born, bright as luminous jade. Wolf and Lamb walk together, forever by your side."
Gazing at the two intersecting constellations in the sky, Mei murmured, "So this is the Twin Jade – Ren."
As the roller coaster reached its peak, Mei's vision returned to normal. Just as she looked up to see the constellations again, she found they had suddenly vanished, replaced by a single, bright shooting star.
The star fell, as if responding to someone's expectation. Wolf and Lamb walked together, escorting the girl into the mortal realm.
The moment the shooting star landed, the park's fireworks rose serendipitously, blooming into countless sparks across the sky.
Shining like myriad stars, brilliant as scattering blossoms, they illuminated Mei's eyes and, simultaneously, the smiling face of the person beside her.
"Miss me, Mei?"
"Mm, welcome back, Ely."
Flowers bloomed like brocade, just as when they first met.
...
"Oh my, oh my, looks like I still had to borrow his memories."
"Sorry."
"Why apologize?"
"If only I had discovered your secret earlier..." Mei reached out, trying to touch the figure beside her, but her fingertips passed right through without resistance.
Yes, although Ely had returned to the Elysian Realm, she was still just an incomplete phantom. Even with Ren's memories added, it wasn't enough to depict the complete Elysia.
"It's not your fault. After all, my story is so long. Even if I told it to you non-stop for a whole year, I couldn't guarantee you'd understand all of me."
"Of course, if Mei wants to listen, I don't mind telling you. But we don't have much time left now, so let's keep it brief."
The roller coaster track was long, but it had an end. Seated together, they began this not-so-distant journey.
"First, about this enemy, the Herrscher of Corruption. Her data has already covered the entire Elysian Realm, so eliminating her by force is almost impossible. Unless you have a way to kill all her clones instantly."
"The Anti-Kevin Armor Model 666? Lecturer Vill-V mentioned it to me. She said you have the key." Discussing serious matters, both consciously set aside idle chat.
"That's right. When Vill-V first told me it was a device that could delete the entire Elysian Realm with one command, I was quite startled."
"Delete... including you?"
"Of course. No matter how real I seem to you, I'm still just data simulated by the Elysian Realm. Unless..."
"Unless?"
"No, pretend I didn't say anything."
Unless I rely on the power of the Stars and Moon once more.
Changing the subject, Ely continued, "As you can see, I'm incomplete right now and can't activate the key. But don't worry, I've entrusted two friends. They will help you complete the plan."
"Is... there no other way?" Mei's voice was a little dry.
Although she had only been in the Elysian Realm for about a month, the distinct personalities of the Flame-Chasers had left a deep impression. Even though some weren't friendly, seeing them die one after another still affected Mei deeply.
Moreover, aside from Pardofelis, Ely was the friend she had spent the most time with and grown closest to. Only upon her departure did Mei realize the indelible mark Ely had left on her memory.
Only by witnessing death firsthand could one understand its weight. If possible, she didn't want this friend to leave.
"Mmm-hmm, perhaps there is, if you can persuade that guy," Ely said jokingly.
"That guy? Ren?"
"Ren... is that his new name? I'm used to calling him Ren, though. After all, initially, he was no different from an ordinary boy."
Mentioning Ren piqued Mei's curiosity. "I'm a bit confused. What exactly is your relationship with him? Before I entered the Elysian Realm, he gave me that crystal flower, but he didn't mention much about you in his words, and didn't even seem to know your true personality very well."
"Because our meeting happened a very long time ago. So long ago that I hadn't yet set foot on this planet, hadn't even awakened my self-awareness." Ely gazed into the distance, a hint of nostalgia in her eyes.
"Mei, you've seen the picture book I left, right?"
Nodding slightly, Mei recited the line from it, "'Stars and Moon sent forth the Daughter of God; she wished to become humanity's companion.' That describes you, right?"
"Mm." Pausing briefly, Ely began to weave the tale.
"A long, long time ago, through a twist of fate, the eternal Imaginary Tree gave birth to a cluster of newborn consciousness. It was weak, ethereal, understanding neither life nor the world, nor the meaning of its own existence."
"It simply drifted around that boundless Tree, aimlessly, waiting for its energy to deplete, to wither away with the other branches."
"But it was lucky. During its long drifting life, it accidentally discovered a boy beneath the Tree."
"The boy cried constantly for some unknown reason, seemingly burdened by endless sorrow. This sorrow was so intense that even 'it' was affected, subconsciously choosing to draw near."
"For the ethereal 'it', sorrow was an emotion never experienced before. So, it quietly stayed near the boy, secretly observing his every move."
Ely reached out her hand as if trying to grasp the starry sky.
"Gradually, 'it' learned the boy's name – Ren."
"'It' didn't know what the name represented, but it wanted a name of its own too. Yet, besides the boy, there were no other intelligent beings under the Tree."
"So, at a certain moment, 'it' gathered its courage and appeared before the boy."
"The boy was startled by its appearance, puzzled by its form of existence, yet surprisingly didn't drive it away. However, he didn't immediately agree to its request for a name."
"Although it didn't get a name, 'it' wasn't sad, just stayed by the boy's side as before."
"Unexpectedly, the boy, who previously only knew sorrow, gradually began to show more emotions. Perhaps knowing there was a listener present, he started telling his story."
"The boy came from a world called Earth. There was no overflowing Imaginary energy, no all-annihilating Sea of Quanta. He could have lived an ordinary life, until one day, a peculiar energy appeared within him."
"He called this energy Honkai Energy."
"The Honkai Energy spread rapidly, destroying his world in mere months. However, as the first chosen existence by the Honkai, his power was comparable to a god's."
"He exhausted all his power to forcibly reverse time, rewinding the world to before the Honkai descended."
"Yet, no matter how many times he rewound, he couldn't change the fate of destruction. He was like a star in the sky, only able to watch the world's trajectory unfold."
"Until he met... his own Moon."
"The moonlight was brighter than the stars. Though it couldn't encompass the world, it could illuminate the boy, lead him out of darkness, give him the courage to try again."
"Did the boy succeed in the end?" Mei asked curiously.
"He didn't say explicitly, but I guess he probably did."
"Of course, whether he succeeded or not wasn't important to him. The reason he came under the Tree was because, at the end of the story, his Moon disappeared."
"Like a shooting star, suddenly appearing in his world, then quietly vanishing."
"To find his Moon, the boy, in the identity of [Origin], made a pact with the Imaginary Tree, praying for the Tree to grant him the power to transcend time and space, to travel across other worlds. The price was that he himself would eventually return to the embrace of the Imaginary."
"From then on, the boy gave up his godhood, gave up his own world."
"He broke off a branch from the Imaginary Tree, infused it with all his power, and forged two stars. Then, using his own name [Ren] as a vessel, he carried the power of the two stars."
"One is Star, one is Moon; together they form Ren (珏)."
"As the condensation of divine power, Star and Moon possessed the ability to traverse time and space, and could sense each other no matter how far apart."
"Carrying Ren (珏), the boy came under the Tree, observing the branches of the Imaginary Tree for countless years, just to find the world where his Moon existed."
"It was then that he encountered 'it'."
Finishing the boy's story, Elysia sighed softly, then shook her head slightly, smiling at Mei. "I'm sure you've already guessed that the cluster of consciousness was me. But for the sake of storytelling, let's stick to the third person."
"'It' was born from the Imaginary, arguably a child of the Imaginary. After hearing the boy's story, 'it' developed a strong curiosity about the real world."
"To the boy, the world was sorrowful. But as the listener, 'it' could see that when the boy described the little moments spent with his Moon, his face was clearly filled with a happy smile."
"So, 'it' made a request to the boy, asking to enter the real world. To challenge the boy's conclusion that 'the world is sorrowful', 'it' made a wager with him."
"'It' would measure the world with its own body, touch the mortal realm with its own hands, see with its own eyes, hear with its own ears, and feel with its own heart."
"And so, the Stars and Moon sent forth the Daughter of God. And based on the story in the picture book, she chose a name for herself – Elysia."
"Little Ely traveled the entire world, just as she said, perceiving the world with her body and soul. Although she encountered many unpleasant things during her journey, when she reached the end and looked back, the world was so captivating in her eyes."
"She finally understood why the boy hadn't given her a name. Because a name is a reflection of a person, and only by living one's own life can one bestow upon oneself a true name."
"Elysia deeply loved this world. For its sake, she wished to become humanity's companion, embracing human civilization. She joined the Fire Moth, became a warrior, fighting alongside them against the Honkai."
"Then why do you call yourself a Herrscher?"
"Long before the Honkai arrived, I came to this world. To the world, I was the first Herrscher – the Herrscher of Origin."
"But that's just a self-proclaimed title. I came to this world relying on Ren's power. If we're being precise, he, as the original god, is the only one who can be called Origin."
"Of course, I don't think he'd care about such minor details." Ely looked towards the distant Ferris wheel, winking playfully, as if greeting someone.
After the brief aside, Ely continued her story. "I made a wager with him, to prove the world was worth saving. But as you know, the Honkai in our era was too powerful. Even I could only watch helplessly as civilization perished."
"What was even more despairing was that, according to Dr. MEI's calculations, the world we lived in was actually one with a predetermined script. No matter how much we struggled, we couldn't escape the strings of fate."
"Herrschers couldn't possess self-awareness, only endlessly causing destruction. Except for me, the outsider, being destroyed by the Honkai was the predetermined ending."
"Yet, I loved this world so deeply. I loved my friends, loved humanity."
"Loving it so much, yet unable to hold onto it... I understood why Ren felt such sorrow. So, I made the same choice as him."
"As the Herrscher of Origin, I made a deal with the Tree, using myself to sever the strings of human fate. The price was returning to the embrace of the Honkai."
"Before that, I entrusted my friends to create this Elysian Realm, to record everything."
"This is my most satisfactory work. Unfortunately, even it couldn't escape the fate of destruction in the end."
Hardly had her voice faded when violent explosions suddenly erupted from the amusement park. Monsters previously hidden throughout the town seemed to receive some command, swarming towards the park.
"The Herrscher of Corruption found us," Mei's heart sank.