Mister Zero, Her Story: Chapter 81 – The War’s End
Meanwhile, outside the Ember Furnace, in Yan City.
The alarms, which had blared repeatedly, sounded again, signaling another appearance of the “Witch of Envy’s” consciousness.
But this time, it was more intense, more persistent.
A primal fear gripped everyone in Yan City, panic spreading rapidly.
The Holy Knight team, having finally arrived, knelt beside Elise, but her gaze was fixed on the Ember Furnace.
The fear she had once been subjected to resurfaced, but her expression remained calm.
“Saint…”
The Knight-Captain said nervously.
Even he, a veteran of countless missions against Devil’s minions and Apostles, had never felt such a powerful demonic aura.
It was beyond human comprehension, a primal, instinctive fear.
“Call me Elise. I am not a Saint,” Elise whispered, her gaze still fixed on the Ember Furnace.
The resurgence of this fear brought fleeting glimpses of erased memories.
In these memories, a small figure overlapped with the girl she had recently met.
Their faces were identical, but they were completely different.
“Luo Yan…”
Elise murmured, then closed her eyes. “After this is over, I want to meet her in ‘Noah’.”
“Yes, but… why?”
The Knight-Captain had, of course, heard of this mysterious girl who had played such a crucial role in Yan City’s defense.
But was that really enough to warrant a personal invitation from a Saint to “Noah”?
“Just follow my orders, Knight,” Elise said calmly.
“Very well,” the Knight-Captain hesitated, then asked, “Shouldn’t we do something?”
Yan City seemed to be facing a greater threat than Dawn’s invasion, a threat from a Primordial Demon.
This was an enemy of all humanity; they should intervene.
“No, it would be pointless interference,” Elise said. “And besides, she has already resolved it.”
…Did this look like it was resolved?
The Knight-Captain, listening to the still-blaring citywide alarm, felt his eyelid twitch.
“If you truly want to do something, then save people,” Elise glanced at the Knight-Captain, whose anxiety was barely concealed by his helmet. “Use your strength to evacuate the civilians in Yan City’s core district, maintain order.”
This order seemed strange. These Knights, even the weakest among them, were elite “Ruin” level ability users, usually on the front lines.
Rescuing people… wasn’t their usual task.
But this was the Saint’s command…
The Knight-Captain sighed.
“As you wish, Saint.”
“Call me Elise.”
This Fourth Saint, “Illusion,” still enjoyed playing roles…
“…Yes, Lady Elise.”
…
Meanwhile, hearing the alarm, Li Ping knew that those inside the Ember Furnace had encountered the Devil’s minion.
Although he didn’t know what was happening inside, he had to handle the situation outside.
“Everyone, evacuate the core district immediately.”
Li Ping issued the order. All troops and personnel began to retreat.
The civilian evacuation had already begun, and although it wasn’t complete, two-thirds of the population had already left the core district.
However, if a Primordial Demon truly descended, they might need to evacuate even further.
The arriving reinforcements joined the evacuation efforts, and even a few Dawn teams, after some hesitation, led by Grifres, began assisting the civilians.
…This scene was strange. These reinforcements and Dawn teams, originally meant to fight each other, were now working together to save civilians.
Even in the New Era’s history of “internal conflicts,” such a scene was rare.
Even during cataclysms, both sides usually continued fighting, humanity’s internal struggles no less destructive than natural disasters.
Of course, this temporary ceasefire didn’t mean they would forgive Dawn.
But a disaster was imminent, possibly even the descent of a Primordial Demon, a “Cataclysm” level event.
And if not, it was at least “Destruction” level.
A “Destruction” level disaster could wipe an entire continent off the map.
If it fully erupted, not just Yan City, but the entire region, would be threatened.
Both Yan City, the other mega-cities sending aid, and even Dawn, understood the gravity of the situation.
And so, a rare display of human unity unfolded in Yan City, even the arrogant Holy Knights joined the evacuation efforts.
…
Back inside the “Ember’s” space.
Even Yan City, outside, felt an uncontrollable fear, and Lin Cheng and Rhine, inside, were even worse.
A pair of eyes seemed to be slowly opening in their vision, malevolent black pupils twitching restlessly. This terrifying scene appeared after Luo Yan finished her prayer.
Their feet were rooted to the spot, a voice screaming in their minds to escape.
But at the same time, these eyes held a strange allure, a desire to embrace them, to surrender.
Such a bizarre thought, appearing while they were still conscious, amplified their terror.
This fear was independent of their strength. Even Rhine, far stronger than Lin Cheng, was just as terrified.
However, this didn’t mean they were weak.
On the contrary, even while facing this, even with Luo Yan subtly shielding them with her aura, they still maintained their sense of self and their rationality. Their willpower was incredible.
And this was all because Luo Yan had completed the prayer.
“What… are you doing…?”
Lin Cheng, realizing the meaning of Luo Yan’s words, his voice trembling, forced the words out through gritted teeth.
Rhine stared at Luo Yan’s back and said, each word deliberate,
“You… are not… the Eldest Mister…”
“I’m not One,” Luo Yan glanced back at Rhine, nodding apologetically. “I’m sorry, but she’s dead.”
“You dare desecrate the Eldest Mister’s remains…”
Rage burned in Rhine’s eyes, but the fear kept him rooted to the spot.
Both their minds were in turmoil, but they shared the same question.
What was she planning?
Why had she stopped “Qin Wen’s” prayer, only to continue it herself?
Did she want the “Witch of Envy” to descend, or was she trying to prevent it?
Her contradictory actions confused them, but they didn’t have time to think.
As the eyes in their vision solidified, terror consumed their minds, paralyzing them.
This was the terrifying power of a Primordial Demon; even the thought of escape was suppressed by fear, let alone resistance.
However, Luo Yan was completely unaffected, even though she was closer to the eyes, as if they shared a common origin.
“But… I’ve seen the truth.”
Luo Yan took a step forward, standing before the Ice Coffin.
The coffin slowly opened, revealing the slumbering silver-haired girl within.
Seeing herself from this angle… was strange.
But Hua Qiling and Qin Wen had been right.
She… was beautiful.
Luo Yan opened her arms and gently embraced the body.
Just like One had embraced her.
Cold lips met, and a chilling wind swept through the Ember Furnace, momentarily dispelling the intense heat.
And freeing Lin Cheng and Rhine from the grip of fear, allowing them to move, albeit stiffly.
Before their eyes, the bandaged girl dissolved into shimmering particles, leaving behind a faint, pale blue mist.
Then, a small, white hand emerged from the Ice Coffin, gently cupping the mist.
—”Dream Eater.”
This was the Demonic Offering of the “Witch of End,” a dream, a dream from which one could never awaken.
The silver-haired girl sat up in the Ice Coffin. Luo Yan was back in her own body.
She had seen everything One wanted her to see.
Now… it was her turn.
The pale blue mist enveloped Luo Yan, her long silver hair tinged with icy blue, shimmering.
She opened her eyes, her crimson eyes now faintly blue, her form becoming translucent, as if she were no longer part of this world.
—She was in a dream.
For some reason, this strange yet undeniable thought crossed both Lin Cheng and Rhine’s minds.
“Qin Wen can still be saved, take her outside,” Luo Yan looked at Lin Cheng and said calmly, then turned to Rhine. “Perhaps… Dawn… should walk its own path.”
This was One’s final message to Dawn, relayed through Luo Yan to Rhine.
Rhine was silent for a moment, finally understanding what had happened.
Had Miss Luo Yan and the Eldest Mister… made a deal?
But…
What was Luo Yan planning?
This question resurfaced, but Luo Yan didn’t answer.
She summoned a spatial spear, her gaze cold as she looked at the solidifying crimson eyes in her vision, a sneer on her lips.
“…Failure?”
“No, this isn’t failure.”
Behind her, countless figures seemed to stand.
A small, dark figure, a tall, silent figure, and several small, yet resolute, figures…
They were all living beings.
This was their defiance against fate.
She was their defiance.
Why had Luo Yan completed the final prayer?
Because only then…
“Could I drag you out… and beat you up…”
She swung the spatial spear, and a rift opened, revealing the chaotic aura of the void, even more violent than the void Lin Cheng and Rhine had experienced.
Because Luo Yan had opened the rift directly within the void’s turbulent currents, a forbidden zone for all living beings.
Even spatial ability users, even those capable of void traversal, avoided it, including One.
Only Luo Yan could enter such a place unprotected.
She would fight the Witch of Envy, carrying everyone’s hopes, and end this nightmare called “Envy.”
The spatial rift closed, the terrifying aura of the void and the fear of the “Witch of Envy” dissipating.
Only Lin Cheng and Rhine remained, standing silently, and Qin Wen, lying unconscious on the ground.
“So, you came to Yan City to retrieve the Eldest Mister’s remains?” Lin Cheng finally broke the silence, looking at Rhine. “And the Eldest Mister… is our ‘Yan City’s’ Ice Coffin Weapon?”
Having witnessed the previous scene, even Lin Cheng could guess who had been in the Ice Coffin.
“…Yes,” Rhine didn’t deny it.
But even if Yan City had known beforehand, they wouldn’t have handed her over.
She was their weapon, their protection against disasters.
But now…
“Heh, in the end, both the ‘Ice Coffin Weapon’ and the Eldest Mister’s remains you sought… are gone,” Lin Cheng chuckled wryly, lifting the unconscious Qin Wen onto his back. “Leaving only… a mess to clean up.”
Rhine, recalling Luo Yan’s cryptic words before she left, also chuckled softly.
“But we still… haven’t found our answer.”
Dawn had lost Mister, but they had also lost their direction.
Perhaps, after this war, Dawn’s continued existence… was uncertain.
And Yan City had also suffered heavy losses: the Ember Furnace damaged, the “Ember’s” energy depleted, a tenth of the core district destroyed, and countless casualties, both ability users and civilians.
The war had ended silently, but both sides… had gained nothing, only lost.
Was Dawn right?
Or was Yan City right?
Perhaps both, perhaps neither.
They had acted according to their own beliefs, their own choices.
This wasn’t about right or wrong.
Because this… was war.
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