The two continued forward and arrived at the place where they had encountered Mobius.
Mei said with a complicated mood, "This lush green scenery… how should I put it…"
Elysia said, "Even though it's obviously Mobius's taste at first glance, it really doesn't match my aesthetics."
Mei said, "Your relationship with her… is quite subtle."
Elysia immediately denied it: "How could that be? I've always really liked dear Mobius, especially… when teasing her?"
"Poor Mobius, her scheme was foiled by the brave Mei, and then she got played by her real-world self—what a tear-jerker."
Mei directly called her out: "The one spreading this everywhere is you, isn't it?"
Elysia said, "Because I wanted everyone to come comfort her."
As they chatted, they arrived at Pardofelis's shop.
Elysia said excitedly, "Ah, it's the shop! Every time we come here, Mei must feel relieved, right?"
Mei said, "Hard to say. After all, you never know when you might see something familiar in the shop."
"…The theft rate in the Realm must be really high, huh?"
Elysia said, "On this point, Pardofelis is indeed very capable."
This also piqued Mei's curiosity: "Pardo has restocked so many times—haven't any of the Flame-Chasers ever gotten angry about it?"
Elysia said, "More accurately… a lot of the time, they don't even realize they've lost something."
"The treasures Pardofelis likes are mostly just junk that others left forgotten in corners. She picks them up and treasures them, displaying them in the shop—maybe it's actually a good thing."
"Cherishing the ordinary everyday moments around us… it's precisely because Pardofelis is here that we haven't completely lost that feeling."
Next, the two arrived at Griseo's studio.
Mei said, "I actually rarely come to this area, because I can't bear to disturb this massive painting."
Elysia said, "And it was in this painting that Mei met that quiet, reticent boy who carried so many worries…"
"Kosma may not be good with words, but he might be the gentlest among us. Whenever we ask him for help, he never refuses."
Mei exposed her: "You just know he'd want to refuse but can't bring himself to say it."
Elysia smiled and said, "He's just a kind child to begin with. Mei might get along really well with him, you know?"
"After all, you both have horns, and they feel quite similar."
"…" Mei didn't respond.
Elysia continued, "And the owner of this painting. Innocent, pure, simple and naive, like a blank sheet of paper—the little painter…"
Mei said, "Since you know, stop teaching her weird things."
Elysia said, "Everything I teach her is necessary." 623 "The gray Griseo… her very existence has lit hope for so many people. And at the other end of her painting lies the final area—the Deep End."
The two stepped into the Deep End.
Elysia said, "Look, we've reached the last stop of this journey."
Mei also said, "To be honest, at first I thought the Deep End would be a pitch-black prison where you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. But after actually coming here, I realized it's more like a sanctuary than a prison."
Elysia said, "And the one who helped Mei reach this place is a noisy, flamboyant magician who loves audiences the most…"
"No." Mei corrected her: "It's engineer, magician, mechanic, occult scholar, chef, villain, and two other things or something."
Elysia said, "Mei actually remembers it so clearly—I'm a little jealous."
"The ability to split thought… if I could split myself in two… wouldn't that make me twice as perfect?"
Elysia looked toward the hall: "This area really has her style—bright, holy, radiating light that heals everything…"
"The last Flame-Chaser Mei encounters also has the most special identity—the one who foresees fate yet is bound by it: Aponia."
Mei said, "If only her methods of healing were a bit more peaceful."
"By now, I've more or less understood her behavioral logic."
"Time and again trying to change tragic fates, yet always ending up with worse results."
"Committing evil acts while holding good intentions—for Aponia, that's the most fitting annotation."
"But I can feel her longing, her devotion… and her unshakable conviction."
Elysia said, "That's why in the end it's her, and it had to be her, who hid the greatest secret of this Elysian Realm."
"Ah… we've really come a long, long way."
"There are clearly still so many things worth remembering, but… it seems we've reached the end."
"Mei, look…"
"That door—it's right here."
The two crossed the door and returned to the Elysian Realm once more.
Elysia looked at Mei expectantly and asked, "So, have you found your answer?"
Mei nodded lightly: "Mm."
Elysia said, "Speaking of which, among the visitors, Mei is also an extremely special existence."
"No one would have thought that a Herrscher could become friends with all the Flame-Chasers, right?"
"So… your answer is…?"
Mei gathered her thoughts a bit and spoke: "…Indeed, as you said, I've met some people here who are hard to define as good in a universal sense."
"Even beyond them, many harbor various motives, conceal their secrets, and there are even contradictions and clashes between them."
"But… from these people, I can sense a shared conviction, or rather… an obsession."
"—The will to fight for something."
Elysia said, "Perhaps that's the most precious gift the end times gave to people."
Mei continued, "I'm not sure if this is the right way to put it… but most of the people I've seen are still in the process of becoming."
"But the Flame-Chasers… most of them seem to have already reached completion. Time has left its marks, shaping them into who they are now."
"But compared to their completed forms, I think… the process of them heading toward completion is what matters more."
"Whether they're heroes or not… it doesn't change anything. They're definitely not people who can be summed up by results or definitions."
"But precisely because they're hard to summarize… their stories are so admirable."
Elysia showed a satisfied smile, looking exceptionally beautiful and moving under the afterglow: "Yes, you're right. What the Elysian Realm records is just such a simple story."
"The Flame-Chasers are merely ordinary people with complicated emotions and flaws, just like every ordinary human back then."
"They had their own selfishness and probably couldn't be said to have any grand love. But they would also, moved by a moment's emotion or on a whim, do something impulsive yet remarkable."
"They were never perfect heroes—they simply happened to be the ones there at that time."
"And precisely because of that, I believe that if it were anyone else, they would have made similar choices… or perhaps even better ones?"
"That is the beautiful eternity, the true self I believe in."
Mei said, "At first, I thought the answer was hidden in the sealed memories, so I kept searching, exploring, hoping to find what I wanted from the clues."
"Now it seems… it is so, but not only so."
"This place carries too much past that has nothing to do with the truth, and precisely because of that… they didn't vanish into dust along with the Previous Era."
Elysia said, "You're destined not to see all the stories, or even grasp a corner of the full picture. The entirety of thirteen people's lives… is such a complex yet beautiful thing."
Mei took over: "The meaning lies in what I want to believe during this process."
Elysia nodded: "That will decide what you gain when you reach the end."
Mei said helplessly, "In the end… I still couldn't escape your trap. After going such a long way… your goal hasn't changed from the beginning."
Elysia said, "Calling it a goal is a bit exaggerated. As I said before, the Elysian Realm still has practical significance—as part of Mobius's Stigmata plan."
"But what you said is indeed my little wish. Consistency… is my persistence."
"I think the current Mei can now face my ending calmly."
Mei said, "I hope so. But… I'm a bit surprised. You, who never likes lying, still told a tiny lie about the Herrscher identity."
"The 13th Herrscher… you didn't need to hide it from me for so long."
At the mention of this.
Elysia's expression grew a little downcast.
She brushed her hair aside and looked into the distance: "Oh. Right… maybe I really did tell a big lie—the only lie in my life."
"After all… I get scared too."
"If Mei knew I was the 13th Herrscher, maybe… you wouldn't greet me with a smile like before?"
"Would you suspect me? Would you… distance yourself from me?"
"Am I… pretty disappointing?"
Mei said, "The fact that you'd think that way disappoints me quite a bit."
"When you called yourself the Vice Leader of the Flame-Chasers, I didn't let my guard down either. Similarly… being the 13th Herrscher won't make me see you differently."
"Even if you became a Herrscher… so what? Aren't I a Herrscher too?"
"Is that answer enough?"
"Mm… it's enough." Elysia smiled.
That girl always thought to have ulterior motives—all her words and actions in front of Mei, everything she showed, perhaps from beginning to end, was just for this one answer.
In the distant past, on that night when she wore pure white clothes and walked toward her final end with makeup done only once in a lifetime…
Did she get the answer she wanted?
Before the audience could ponder what those words meant.
The megaphone Elysia had behind her back suddenly made a sound: "Even if you became a Herrscher—"
"…Hm?"
Mei raised an eyebrow; the familiar voice pulled her back to reality.
She followed the sound.
Under the setting sun, Elysia's smile was pure, sweet; light fell on her cheeks, flowing down her fair skin…
Gliding over her soft figure—in the haze, something faintly appeared behind her. It was…
A megaphone!
And it had recording function!
"So what? Aren't I a Herrscher too?"
Mei was completely silenced by the voice coming from it.
Finally, she couldn't hold back and exploded: "Elysia…!!"
Elysia laughed very happily: "Okay okay, I won't tease you anymore. After all, once Mei gets her answer, she'll have to leave. I wanted to leave a little memory of you."
She hugged the megaphone tightly.
But her gaze turned to the distance—on the sea, an island shrouded in immortal mist lay at the end of her vision.
"But… it's a bit strange."
"I should have been prepared already, so why is it still enveloped in fog?"
Mei asked, "That island… so that's the endpoint?"
Elysia nodded: "Mm. Everything Mei wants to know about that banquet is stored there."
"I'm really curious what exactly happened."
Mei asked, "You don't know yourself?"
Elysia said, "Forgotten? I'm just a memory body. I only know what I want to do, but not what actually happened."
"Mm… I wonder how I performed? What will everyone think of me…? From their reactions, the result should be good, right?"
"Otherwise, there wouldn't be an Elysia in the Elysian Realm…"
"But there's still a tiny regret."
Mei asked doubtfully, "Regret?"
Elysia said, "Although I've always insisted that the thirteen Flame-Chasers are a team, thinking carefully… we never once fought side by side as thirteen."
"If Mei is willing to do me the favor of playing the villain to fulfill my little wish, I'd be super happy."
Mei decisively refused: "No need for that."
Elysia pouted: "Hmph! Stingy!"
Then she suddenly said emotionally: "…Thank you, Mei. Meeting you this way—I'm really so lucky. You brought me… the gift I've always longed for but never dared to hope for."
Mei couldn't help smiling: "That's too exaggerated."
Perhaps embarrassed by her own words.
Elysia changed the subject: "Ah… the sky seems to have darkened. In the end… we still didn't figure out what's with that fog. Now… we'll have to wait until dawn. Tomorrow morning, meet here again, okay?"
"I'll find a way to open the path. We'll go together to that fog-shrouded little island, to the site of that final banquet, to witness—the birth and end of the 13th Herrscher."
Mei nodded in agreement.
After reading this segment.
The audience was deeply moved.
They flooded the chat group with messages.
"Who was it before saying Elysia is dark? Who said Elysia isn't a good person? Step forward!"
"My god, how can there be such a cute, such perfect girl like Elysia in this world? The more I look, the more I like her."
"What do I do if I like Elysia more and more? She's really so good."
"From this moment on, my favorite character is Elysia."
"I really can't imagine such a perfect character was created by that dog director."
"Do you think it's possible that Elysia is actually a real person?"
"If Elysia is a real person, I'm definitely marrying her."
"Get lost, Elysia is my wife."
"Get away, she's my wife."
"You guys are hilarious. When Elysia first appeared, you all said pink turns black, now that she seems good, you're directly calling her wife?"
"Who said that? The final banquet hasn't started yet—don't forget, Elysia is a Herrscher!"
"Yeah, what do you think a Herrscher's emergence means as an ending? Especially in the Previous Era, it definitely caused massive destruction."
"We've come this far and you're still stubborn? Just wait, my wife Elysia is definitely perfect!"
"Go ahead and watch. This director is hyping the banquet with so many foreshadowings—it's definitely not good. Remember, when the director was writing the script, the company people isolated him to hold the banquet."
"So what? Even if Elysia is dark, I still like her! I just like her."
"Can't reason with you guys. Just wait and see, keep reading and you'll know."
"…"
Thus… all the audience members looked forward to the development of the subsequent plot, wanting to see if Elysia really was the so-called pink-turns-black.
At the same moment.
Inside the company.
Elysia was deeply moved. She directly hugged Hessian, kissed him on the face: "Thank you, hubby. You shaped me so perfectly—I almost can't believe that's really me?"
Hessian said softly, "Of course. My wife has always been true to herself."
On this point.
The other actors all had no objections.
Kiana said, "Indeed, Elysia has always been such a perfect person."