Chapter 203: Who? Me? Its Mother?
Then, that voice, connecting with an unshakable certainty, repeated a single word.
Castorice froze, her expression a mask of incredulous astonishment. For a moment, she wondered if the sheer nervousness of the situation was making her hallucinate.
She stared at Stelle, her own voice laced with confusion and disbelief. "...Your Excellency? Lord Amphoreus... he keeps repeating one word to you... 'Mother'?"
"Huh—?!" Stelle's eyes flew wide open as she jabbed a thumb toward her own nose.
"Who? Me?! Mother?! No, Castorice, are you sure you didn't mistranslate? How long have I even been 'born'? A little over two years, at most! How could I possibly be the mother of a Titan who's been alive for who knows how many millennia?! That's taking the joke way too far!"
Stelle felt like her synthetic brain was about to overheat.
Castorice squeezed her eyes shut, concentrating, listening intently to the thoughts that echoed through the hall, growing clearer and more excited with each passing second.
"No... there's no mistake... Lord Amphoreus's thoughts are perfectly clear and firm... And, he has more to say..."
She continued to translate, her own mind struggling to process the extraordinary turn of events. "'It's Mother's aura... She has encountered Mother! Mother is missing you! Come forward, come with me, let me see you!'"
The moment her words fell, a soft yet irresistible light suddenly consumed everyone's vision. The surrounding scenery rippled like the surface of a pond, the ancient stone and decaying walls dissolving and reassembling.
In an instant, they were no longer standing in the dilapidated temple. They found themselves in a wide, magnificent corridor that radiated a pristine, brilliant light. It was a path leading into the deepest heart of that luminescence, from which a warm and powerful aura emanated.
"This is..." Phainon gripped his weapon, his knuckles white as he warily surveyed the completely new environment.
"It's the power of Lord Amphoreus," Castorice explained, her tone filled with reverence. "He has guided us to his true dwelling... or rather, the temple is responding to his will, presenting itself to us in this form."
The group proceeded cautiously along the path of light.
As they walked, Stelle's brow was deeply furrowed. Her mind raced, rapidly cycling through every person she knew.
'Who could possibly make a Titan recognize them as its mother?'she thought.'Who have I been in close contact with that could fit? Herta? Unlikely. Auntie Himeko? The age doesn't add up... Kafka? She's incredibly reliable, but...'Suddenly, a flash of pink hair and a cheerful, energetic smile burst into her mind—March 7th.'That's right! The Pink Haze Celestial Maiden! The being from the legends of Amphoreus!'
Hadn't those fanatics from the research society claimed that the Pink Haze Celestial Maiden and the Aeon-blessed Titan Amphoreus shared a deep bond?
And March's lost memories, the part of her that was sealed away...
"Good heavens..." Stelle couldn't help but mutter under her breath. "This isn't just a 'deep bond'... this is straight up being its mother?! March, oh March, what in the universe are you...?"
Castorice seemed to sense the violent fluctuations in Stelle's emotions and spoke gently. "Your Excellency, your thoughts seem to be in turmoil. Please rest assured, Lord Amphoreus is a Titan known to be close to humanity. Since he recognizes you, he will certainly not harm you."
Stelle snapped out of her contemplation and waved a dismissive hand, her expression returning to its usual confident—or perhaps, carefree—state. "It's nothing! I was just thinking about a friend... As for harming me? Heh, if I may be so bold, he'd have to be able to harm me first!"
She was quite confident in her own strength, especially the defensive power granted to her by the Path of Preservation.
Amidst their conversation, they finally arrived at the source of the light.
Floating above a massive, ethereal platform was the partial form of the Titan Amphoreus. It was not a specific beast or humanoid shape, but rather a great, swirling cluster of gentle light, a form condensed from endless eons of time. It flowed and shifted constantly, emitting an aura that was both reassuring and deeply impressive.
That warm light gently enveloped Stelle, and Castorice simultaneously translated Amphoreus's silent words. This time, the intent was filled with an unmatched anticipation and an indescribable mixture of sorrow and joy.
"Step forward one more step. Let me... and let her... see you together."
"See me? Then see me!" Stelle didn't hesitate for a second. Her guileless heart and trailblazing fearlessness allowed her to take a large, confident step forward, chin held high. "I've got nothing to be afraid of!"
The moment her foot landed, the light of Amphoreus embraced her.
Stelle felt her consciousness sway. The scene before her blurred and spun, and the sensation of her own body gradually detached, as if she were sinking into a warm, pleasant dream... In a daze, she found herself standing in a familiar place—the Astral Express.
Himeko and Dan Heng were there, but they were saying things completely out of character. A deep-seated intuition screamed at Stelle that this wasn't real. Just as the thought formed, the scene around her dissolved and reformed.
Before her stood several figures—Firefly, Silver Wolf, Blade, and... Kafka.
A strange, powerful feeling surged through her heart. These people... they gave her an indescribable sense of familiarity. It wasn't just the memory of knowing them, but a connection that ran far deeper, as if they had once fought side-by-side, entrusting their very lives to one another. A bond.
But in her memory, her official encounters with the Stellaron Hunters had been nothing like this.
"Yo, you're here?" Silver Wolf said casually, not even looking up from her game console, as if Stelle had always been a part of their group.
Firefly offered a gentle nod, her lips parting as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she simply stood by quietly, her presence a comforting warmth.
Blade leaned against a wall, his ancient sword resting in his grip. His eyes were closed as if in meditation, but Stelle could feel that he was not oblivious to his surroundings in the slightest.
What concerned Stelle the most was Kafka. She smiled at Stelle, a smile that, as always, held a gentle understanding of everything and a hint of elusive profundity. "We meet again, Stelle. It seems you've experienced many interesting things."
A torrent of questions flooded Stelle's mind. "You all...? How are you here? Is this... my past?" She had a million things she wanted to ask, a million gaps she desperately wanted to fill.
However, Kafka merely raised a single finger, pressing it gently to her lips in a universal gesture for 'secret'. "Some answers, you need to find yourself."
After she spoke, their figures began to blur and distort, like a frozen image on a faulty screen. Their movements solidified, their colors faded, and finally, they remained motionless, locked in their last poses.
No matter how Stelle called out, they no longer responded.
"Hey! Don't leave me hanging! Kafka! Silver Wolf!" A surge of anxiety and a strange, aching sense of loss washed over her.
Just then, a wave of dizziness struck her. She subconsciously "looked" out the "window" of her dream—and beheld a boundless, silent, starry sky.
And against this cosmic backdrop, an impossibly vast, silent entity composed of countless points of memory-light, as if condensed from pure ice crystals, seemed to cast its gaze in her direction. It was Fuli, the Aeon of Remembrance.
That single, fleeting glance caused Stelle's entire sea of consciousness to churn violently, threatening to tear her mind apart.
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