By the time Yvette left the Soulfire Cathedral, it was already past ten o’clock at night. The main doors of the church were closed, forcing her to exit through a smaller door. As she walked past several assistant priests in black hoods who nodded in greeting, the cool night breeze greeted her as she stepped into the small square outside the church.
Ultimately, she accepted the request from soul memorial priest Hoyle Cors. On one hand, he appeared genuinely earnest, leading her to believe he might not necessarily be one of the corrupt insiders colluding with the human traffickers. On the other hand… his offer was indeed quite substantial.
Originally, the mysterious figure known as the “General” from the Ghost Hand Society had remained largely in the shadows, so there was little reward placed on his head by the federation. Even if Yvette managed to find and kill him out of mere curiosity, she would only profit from any loot and would not receive any additional earnings.
Now, however, if she could indeed capture the General, that would mean 500,000 credits—a considerable amount of money, enough to allow her to purchase a 160,000-spec Magical Terminal.
By the way, that 160,000 spec was the technological limit of the origin civilization. This limit wasn’t due to an excess in rune point caching but because the elemental chips had reached their peak. Without breakthroughs in manufacturing technology, the 160,000 mark would remain the cap for personal terminals for many years to come.
Naturally, someone might wonder why, since 160,000 was the ultimate limit for advanced chips, the origin civilization had even larger-scale super-large magical techniques, or even million-level techniques. How could these be utilized?
For that, one needed large-scale casting units constructed from sophisticated magical machinery.
Furthermore, this fundamentally represented a different concept compared to Yvette’s approach in the realm of elemental magic. Their paths were somewhat parallel: it was a layering combination involving one strategy after another ultimately utilizing numerous practical mid-range chips instead of high-end ones, thereby achieving effects comparable to million-level spells.
It just goes to show that there’s truly nothing new under the sun.
…While she had accepted the commission to investigate the Ghost Hand Society and the General, Yvette was in no rush. The deadline given by Hoyle was two years, which felt overly generous. After all, she could only stay in the dreamscape for six months.
Returning home, Yvette sent emails to several detective agencies, commissioning them to investigate near the two slaver-operated industrial parks for any unfamiliar faces or unusual occurrences, with a compensation of 10,000 to 30,000 credits.
Of course, this wasn’t a case of layers of outsourcing; she would conduct her own investigation as well, but having extra hands would always prove beneficial.
The next morning, after waking up, Yvette bought a motorcycle for transportation and drove to the outskirts of the two industrial parks situated in an area known as Dodan Town.
After inquiring around Dodan Town for a while, she found no information about the Ghost Hand Society; it was evident that the local populace was tight-lipped regarding matters related to human trafficking, not spilling a word even for money.
However, one piece of information caught her attention—two small girls had indeed been seen lingering in Dodan Town a couple of days earlier but had quickly left, heading towards the neighboring Shalin Town.
Interestingly, during the time they were in town, there had been incidents of mysterious disappearances involving two young locals who were known for their mischievous behavior.
Though the two events seemed unrelated, the fact that they occurred within the last couple of days and bore no connection to the Ghost Hand Society was brought to her attention by a local mom at the village entrance, who spoke in a thick accent.
It seemed highly likely that Zero and One were currently in the neighboring Shalin Town, drawing much closer to her… Yvette’s heart stirred as she considered a question she hadn’t thought of before.
—What identity would she assume to approach Zero and One?
Certainly, clarifying this question required her first to determine the purpose of her contact with them.
The answer was clear: it was to uncover the secrets of the original host, understand the host’s personality, and learn about their life experiences.
Thus, stemming from this foundation arose another crucial condition—her appearance must not disrupt the host’s life within the dream.
If she declared herself the future Zero and Zero believed her, then her subsequent actions would directly influence Zero’s choices. This potential butterfly effect could ruin the timeline of the dream world, preventing her from ever witnessing her true past.
Therefore, she had to find an identity that allowed her to serve as an observer without affecting the life trajectories of both girls.
It clearly pointed to a specific role!
That’s right!
She would become Zero’s unknown older sister from this point on!
…
In early May, the rainy season in Shalin Town arrived earlier than usual.
Initially, it was just sparse raindrops tentatively tapping on the mud roads and metal roofs of the town, but soon, a downpour came crashing down like a dam break, soaking the eaves of the simple houses, while dark clouds pressed down on the bamboo-woven walls.
The river swelled, swallowing half of the stone steps. Cheap neon signboards were engulfed in water, turning the murky surface into a bizarre oil painting. The sounds of rainstorm alerts and expired advertisements buzzed in her ears, only to suddenly stutter under a crackling electrical noise.
In a narrow alley by the roadside, Lianna Renee squatted, silently watching the rain. She seemed to enjoy this torrential downpour from the safety of her sheltered vantage point, and began to hum a tune, her sweet voice resembling summer’s breeze chimes.
Minutes rolled by, perhaps longer; she stood up and returned to the alley’s end, which opened into a yard surrounded on three sides by a makeshift corridor with a tiled roof, while only the central area remained completely exposed to the sky, getting hammered by the rain.
Standing under the eaves, her gaze unconsciously drifted out to the muddy depression in the yard. Suddenly, the soil beneath began to surge, and a grotesque giant worm burrowed its way up. With its fierce maw open, it revealed a silver-haired little girl, who stepped out with grace and ease, looking nothing like a creature of the earth.
A bluish wind spiraled above her head, shielding her from the deluge, ensuring not a single drop of rain dampened her apparel.
Then, the silver-haired girl walked forward and gently embraced Lianna, nuzzling her cheek affectionately. “I’m back.”
Lianna’s body tensed visibly, and she anxiously said, “Yvette… what have you gone out to do this time?”
“You should be able to guess.” The silver-haired girl smiled slightly, her crimson eyes reflecting a meaning unbefitting her young age, and she cheerfully remarked, “As I said, I won’t let anyone who dares to hurt you go unpunished, even verbally.”
“Don’t say that, Yvette… you’ve already killed many people, and you’re going to fall into darkness…” Lianna shook her head vigorously.
Just the other day, in Dodan Town, two youths had made lewd remarks and ogled the two girls. Yvette had taken them down silently and fed their remains to the monsters underneath.
Now, in Shalin Town, a local boy of about five or six had mocked her inability to speak Rustbone’s dialect, and Yvette killed him too, turning him into monster fodder.
If this continued, wouldn’t she end up feeding the whole world to the creatures she cared for?
“There are so many people in this world; what does it matter if a few die?” The silver-haired girl’s lips curled into a slight smirk, carrying a hint of disdain.
That disdain was clearly not directed at Lianna; so who was it aimed at? Perhaps at the world itself?
Noticing the hint of fear in Lianna’s gaze, her eyes immediately softened, like the setting sun cloaked by clouds. She held Lianna’s hand and assured her, “Don’t worry; I won’t destroy this world. It will evolve into the kind of world you wish for… I promise.”
“You’re already lost in your power, Yvette. You can’t continue like this.” After a long period of silence, Lianna said softly.
“I haven’t… Sigh, even if I say it, you wouldn’t understand.” The silver-haired girl sighed, saying, “Then, if you think I should spare those who shouldn’t die, can I let them go?”
“It’s not just about that… I believe our power should be used for more righteous purposes. What do you think, Yvette?” Lianna replied.
“Here we go again?” The silver-haired girl’s gaze inadvertently drifted toward the alley entrance, her tone suddenly turning light-hearted, as if she had transformed entirely, “Where’s Firefly? Did it go out to get us food? Why’s it taking so long…”
“Don’t change the subject.”
“Ah, there’s a guest coming~”
“Still changing the subject!” Lianna exclaimed in frustration.
“That’s not true, Lianna. There really is a guest~” The silver-haired girl pointed toward the narrow alley entrance. But as soon as she noticed the guest’s face, one that closely resembled her own, albeit more mature and distinctly feminine as if it were just a few years older, both of them were exceptionally beautiful.
She froze for a few seconds, and a playful expression suddenly crossed her face, as if she found this development quite amusing.
Tilting her head, she smiled charmingly at Lianna, “See? I didn’t lie to you.”