Seeing that both objectives were related to Yae Sakura, Theresa was the first to break the silence.
She tugged at Yae Sakura's sleeve and looked up, whispering, "Yae Sakura-oneesama, can you tell us what happened? What occurred in your past? Knowing this is very important for us."
"Yes, Miss Shrine Maiden, you might not know, but this is the first time we've unlocked a special mission."
"Before, they were all normal missions, like Skyfire Meteor, Sinners Song, and Final Lesson. The reason your Sakura Samsara has these restrictions is likely because it's inherently special. If completed, will there be even more special rewards?"
Kiana nodded as she speculated. Although most of what she said was nonsense, the words "special rewards" firmly caught Yae Sakura's fox ears.
"Special reward... Rin?"
Yae Sakura looked around at everyone blankly, feeling as if she were in a dream.
All of this was a dream, another joke of the Honkai. Once she woke up, everything would become an illusion.
She would still be the one who had nothing, the shrine maiden forgotten by the world for five hundred years.
But suddenly, Theresa quietly hugged her, warming Yae Sakura with her small body.
"Theresa, you—"
The sudden tenderness awakened the conflicted Yae Sakura, who called out softly.
"Don't be afraid, Yae Sakura-oneesama. We are always by your side. After you go in, we will be watching you the whole time," Theresa said in a gentle voice.
"I understand."
Yae Sakura came to terms with it, patted the smiling Theresa's small head, and looked up to face the curious crowd.
She let out a soft breath and said calmly, "This might be something that happened in the past."
"The past? It's really the past?" Kiana marveled, then remarked casually, "But previous missions were all about the future, and those could be changed. Can the past be changed too?"
"That's way too outrageous; even movies wouldn't dare to film that, hahahahaha... What do you guys think?"
Kiana laughed, trying to liven up the atmosphere, but she suddenly felt a deathly silence.
It was as if time had been paused for everyone. All of them held their breath and stared intently at Kiana, making her skin crawl.
"Why are you all looking at me like that? Laugh!" Kiana blustered.
But no one could laugh, and no one could calmly accept this.
Change the past... there wasn't a single person who didn't want to change the past!
No matter how powerful a person was—even someone as strong as Otto, who had lived independently for over five hundred years—they still had a past they wanted to change.
So many regrets!
So much hatred!
So much loss!
All of this was built on the foundation that the past cannot be changed.
If there were a medicine for regret in this world.
Even if the next second after taking it was death, most people would probably swallow that poison without hesitation.
But what if those regrettable things could be changed?
When the possibility of this scenario was placed before them, even Fu Hua, who had lived for an unknown number of years, could not keep her heart calm.
Not to mention Bronya, Mei, and the others; their breathing had long since quickened, and a strange light shone in their eyes.
"Idiot Kiana, did you just say that the past can be changed?" Bronya asked suddenly.
"Eh~ why are you obsessing over that one sentence? I was just making an analogy—" Before she could finish, Kiana suddenly realized something and said in shock, "Do you guys really think the past can be changed? Time paradoxes, I know about those."
"But if the Challenge Space can let us know the future in advance, why can't it take us back to the past and change what happened then?" Bronya added. "This, this... This lady can't answer that for you. Don't think too much for now, otherwise it'll be bad if you end up regretting it later."
Kiana scratched her head. Unable to explain clearly, she simply dropped the subject and offered advice instead.
"Let me explain first. This mission is indeed related to me. I will tell you everything about my past."
Yae Sakura explained slowly.
Listening to her voice, everyone's mood settled down.
After all, changing the past was still just a speculation. It wouldn't be too late to get excited once Yae Sakura's special challenge was successful.
An hour later, after hearing Yae Sakura's story, everyone was deeply shocked!
Among them, Kiana was the most teary-eyed; she couldn't stand sentimental stories.
According to her, Yae Sakura was born in Yae Village in Shinano, Japan, a village formed by a tribe with the surname Yae.
Within the tribe, her family possessed the bloodline of shrine maidens and could communicate with the gods.
Although Yae Sakura was a shrine maiden, in the patriarchal society of that time, her actions were always controlled by her family. Faced with immense power and ignorant villagers, Yae Sakura had the heart to resist but no power to change anything.
When Sakura was young, she had a younger sister named Yae Rin, who had been frail and sickly since childhood.
In the 7th year of Bunshō, the village suffered a long drought. The villagers believed the sacrifice from the previous ritual hadn't been a virgin, so they requested another sacrifice using the shrine maiden bloodline.
Yae Rin was chosen, and the one selected to preside over the ritual was none other than Yae Sakura!
She was naturally unwilling to let her sister become a sacrifice, so she secretly planned to escape with Rin.
In Sakura's plan, the two would find a doctor to cure Rin's illness, and they would watch the cherry blossoms together, spending the happiest days of their lives.
However, the moment the ritual began, Yae Sakura dropped the blade in her hand and grabbed Rin to run, only to find that Rin could no longer run—
Rin's tendons in her wrists and ankles had long since been severed; she could no longer stand and was in critical condition.
Before Yae Sakura's despairing eyes, the Head of the Yae Family took the knife from Sakura's hand and completed the sacrifice.
As heavy rain roared and thunder crashed, while the villagers rejoiced, Sakura felt her own powerlessness. She developed despair and loathing for the world, creating a void in her heart that allowed the Honkai to take advantage.
This was the beginning of the tragedy... Later, it wasn't until she met the drifting Kallen that she entered a period of time that was less painful.
Afterward, through various events, the end was Yae Sakura falling into slumber along with the Twelfth Herrscher, Higokumaru, entering the Sea of Quanta, until the Honkai erupted again five hundred years later, and she happened to encounter Theresa who was heading to Changkong City.
"What a tragic past... Yae Sakura, don't worry, we will definitely help you."
Such a desolate story made even Tesla unable to help but feel compassion.
"Yeah, maybe if the challenge is successful, you'll get an unexpected reward, like being able to see Rin's soul again or something," Kiana added in agreement.
After a brief discussion, everyone decided to let Yunduo go.
After all, she had never failed a single challenge.
And so, holding Yae Sakura's hand, a flash of white light appeared, and the two figures vanished from outside the space.
Yunduo heard the mechanical voice in her ear.
"Act 5 Special Challenge: Sakura Samsara, officially activated!"
"Challengers: Yunduo, Yae Sakura!"
"Objective 1: Save Yae Rin!"
"Objective 2: Redeem Yae Sakura!"
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