On the roof of the Stellaron Train's Observation Car, Kiana's expression was dazed. She slowly released her hands, which had been locked in a death grip on the gray-haired youth's collar.
In that instant, she felt an overwhelming sense of powerlessness and exhaustion.
It was a weariness that seeped into both her body and her spirit.
Ling Ke, however, remained exceptionally patient.
Well, Schrödinger's patience, anyway.
He casually straightened his wrinkled and disheveled clothes, speaking in a slow, unhurried tone. "Kiana Kaslana, Miss Sirin wasn't wrong about one thing just now..."
Kiana looked at him blankly, waiting for him to continue.
"Don't assume everything in this world will go your way."
Ling Ke's voice remained steady and measured. "I thought you would have understood that profound lesson by now."
"Yes, back when Murata Himeko fell into the Imaginary Space..."
"Enough."
Kiana stumbled back several steps, her face contorted in terror.
A powerful premonition seized her.
She had to escape.
Otherwise...
"Heh heh~"
A slight smile played on Ling Ke's lips. "You certainly have a personality... Oh well. I'm in a good mood right now, so let's call it a whim..."
"!!!"
Before he could even finish his sentence, Kiana retreated even further.
That familiar opening...
He was probably about to force another "choice" on someone.
Kiana's breath hitched.
Fear drove her to turn and leap off the Stellaron Train.
From Ling Ke's perspective, the white-haired girl who had once vowed, "I don't want to dwell on the past; I'll spend the rest of my life running," had just landed on the snow and was now sprinting frantically away from the Stellaron Train, away from him.
Witnessing this abrupt scene...
"Am I really that scary?"
Ling Ke touched his face, a playful look in his eyes.
Trailblazer "Caelus" wasn't exactly unattractive.
Of course, he knew perfectly well why Kiana had fled in terror.
Or rather, what drove her to run were the agonizing decisions she would be forced to make.
Therefore...
Snap~
Ling Ke raised his right hand and snapped his fingers.
"!!!"
Kiana, her pupils trembling in shock, reappeared before him.
It was like a modded version of PUBG, where Ling Ke had forcibly teleported a specific character to his location.
With this ability, even an Aeon would be trapped, unable to escape as long as they remained within the domain of the Imaginary Tree.
Kiana, naturally, was no exception.
"You..."
"I was feeling unusually benevolent, and you just ran off like that. I'd be quite hurt, you know."
Meeting Kiana's trembling gaze, Ling Ke tilted his head slightly. "And you, why are you so jumpy? I'm not some kind of demon."
"I've already told you I have no grudge against you. I won't force you to 'lose' something, like I did when I questioned Raiden Mei."
"On the contrary..."
He spread his hands. "Weren't you just begging me to help Raiden Mei?"
"Fine. I'll even grant you the privilege of 'gaining' something, with more options to choose from."
"So..."
"No, don't."
"Choose, Kiana..."
"No..."
Ignoring Kiana's terrified refusal, Ling Ke continued speaking as if to himself. "You now possess a privilege, granted by me: the power to resurrect any one person, or to restore any one person to their true self."
"I..."
"Be quiet and listen to me finish."
Ling Ke suddenly raised his right hand and pinched Kiana's cheek. "I'm rarely this patient. Don't test me by wasting it."
"..."
Kiana stopped struggling.
She knew it was useless.
All she could do was submit to his whims.
She had to accept his "kindness," his "gift."
The next moment, she heard the bad news.
"First, I forgot to tell you earlier..."
Ling Ke's eyes narrowed as he delivered a line that the Herrscher of Dominance should have uttered long ago: "Murata Himeko is already dead."
"..."
"That's right. Before I utterly destroyed your era, back when I was still just the Herrscher of Domination, I had already claimed the Gem of Haste from the Imaginary Space. The very gem that was supposed to remain with that woman."
"In the end, not even her bones were left."
"Clearly, that was the price she paid to save you."
Kiana's body began to tremble again.
Tears streamed from the corners of her eyes.
At this moment, her mental state was already incredibly fragile...
Yet Sirin cooperated perfectly, making no attempt to seize control of the body.
She was "watching the show."
And enjoying it immensely.
Just then...
"Honestly, I admire people like her who keep their word."
"She said she would protect you all, and she didn't break her promise, even at the cost of her own life."
"So..."
A smile spread across Ling Ke's face. "Now tell me, what do you wish to 'obtain'?"
"Who do you wish to 'save'?"
Long ago, before his transmigration, Ling Ke had been deeply moved by a line from a fantasy story called Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion.
"Goodwill forced upon others is no different from malice."
Indeed, he hadn't taken anything tangible from Kiana.
On the contrary, he was about to offer her a grand gift, free of charge.
A gift... that if a certain blond man in a pure white clown mask... Otto Apocalypse... were here, would make him ecstatic, even causing him to bow down in immediate worship.
People say: a broken mirror cannot be mended; spilled water cannot be gathered.
But for Ling Ke (God), such feats were as easy as reaching into his pocket.
And so...
"Have you decided?"
Ling Ke waited patiently. "Will you resurrect Murata Himeko, or restore Raiden Mei to her true self?"
"I can even offer you more choices, ones you might not have thought of just yet..."
He now resembled a chillingly composed salesman, presenting one "product" after another.
"For example: Cecilia Schariac?"
"She could give you the motherly love you've always craved."
"Or perhaps..."
Ling Ke grinned, baring his teeth. "Bronya Zaychik."
"Your former enemy turned friend."
"!!!"
Kiana's head snapped toward Ling Ke. "Bronya, she..."
"Is dead!" Ling Ke said nonchalantly. "Not long ago, she fell to Kevin Kaslana's sword."
"Don't worry. While I can't guarantee I've never broken my word, I do try to be a man of my word."
He shrugged. "So, even if it's a former enemy of mine, if you choose her, I'll ensure she benefits."
Speaking of which, when Ling Ke had earlier mentioned the new Herrscher of Thunder's consciousness and whether it was the so-called "Raiden Queen," he had sworn he would never let something so disgusting happen.
But now...
"That's why I said I can't guarantee I've never broken my word."
"Even if the person involved is myself."
Ling Ke was surprisingly brazen about it.
His current thinking was simple: "Who cares? As long as the 'Script' is interesting."
"Besides..."
He looked at Kiana before him. "I'm not disgusted by this at all!"
Of course, Kiana had no way of knowing Ling Ke's inner thoughts.
She was already too overwhelmed to think.
Who to choose?
No!
Strictly speaking, the question was: Who to abandon?
Teacher Himeko, who had sacrificed her life to save her?
Mei, whom she cherished more than anything?
Mama Cecilia, the mother she longed for in her dreams?
Bronya, who had long since become her dearest friend?
"I... I really..."
Kiana was on the verge of breaking down.
She truly couldn't choose (couldn't bring herself to abandon anyone).
Ling Ke stood nearby, saying nothing more.
Just then...
Voom~
As Kiana's emotions surged violently, she... of course, didn't undergo Herrscherization.
Instead...
"Oh, wow~"
Ling Ke exclaimed with a deliberately flat, almost wooden tone as he witnessed the sudden phenomenon.
Four familiar figures abruptly materialized around Kiana.
One with a fiery aura.
One with waist-length purple hair.
One as gentle as water.
And one more...
"Idiot Kiana."
The gray-haired girl (Bronya), not fully solidified and radiating a pure white, soul-like glow, deadpanned, "Why are you agonizing over such a question?"
In that moment, Kiana froze completely.
She stared blankly at the faces beside her... faces she refused to forget.
They were all smiling at her.
The gentle, white-haired figure (Cecilia) said nothing.
But she pulled Kiana into a warm embrace, cherishing this special daughter of hers.
This simple gesture alone brought Kiana immense peace.
Beside them, the purple-haired girl (Raiden Mei) nodded slightly. "No matter what you decide, I will support you."
"I will stand firmly by your side."
As her voice faded...
The fiery red figure smiled dotingly and offered encouragement. "Remember our promise, Kiana...?"
"Teacher Himeko..." Kiana murmured.
Her voice gradually merged with the other's as they spoke in unison:
"We will turn this imperfect story..." "Into the one we've always dreamed of!"
As the words echoed...
After enduring so many twists and turns, Kiana finally, belatedly, realized she had been a Pathstrider all along.
She had stepped onto the Path of Remembrance, recording everything.
She could also replicate it all.
At this moment, the four figures briefly generated by her Memory Replication ability dissolved around her.
They transformed into countless motes of light, swirling around the white-haired girl in a breathtakingly beautiful display.
With this...
Kiana finally found the courage to face Ling Ke.
And Ling Ke... he was now watching her with keen interest. In fact, he had been observing the entire, utterly absurd transformation that had unfolded in such a short time.
"As expected of the 'protagonist,' I suppose?"
He knew well that mere words would seem pale and inadequate.
Language was not omnipotent.
It could hardly describe the... frankly baffling metamorphosis that had just occurred.
But the fact remained: it had happened.
Just a moment ago, Kiana had been on the verge of a complete breakdown, ready to shut herself off from the world.
Then, a series of "memories" flashed by... physically manifested, no less.
And just like that, she had pulled herself together.
And just like that, she'd grown yet again.
Even now...
"Have you found your answer?" Ling Ke asked with a light chuckle, deliberately adopting the grand, theatrical tone of an old general on stage.
Hearing this, Kiana nodded.
Then, with unwavering resolve in her eyes, she delivered her answer, word by deliberate word: "I choose..."
"To resurrect Sirin!"