Mister Zero, Her Story: Chapter 82 – “Hope”
The alarms abruptly stopped.
Like the sudden fear before, all anomalies vanished in an instant, without a trace.
As if everything they had experienced was just a collective illusion.
Was the crisis… truly over?
No one knew for sure, so Yan City remained on high alert.
The civilian evacuations continued. Thankfully, as a relatively new mega-city, the memory of the hardships during its pioneering days was still fresh in the minds of its citizens, preventing widespread panic and chaos.
In older, more established mega-cities, the mere threat of a disaster could cause widespread panic.
Meanwhile, Lin Cheng and Rhine returned from the “Ember’s” space.
The unconscious Qin Wen was taken for treatment. Her consciousness had suffered severe trauma, the lingering influence of the “Witch of Envy” clinging to her soul.
Even Yan City’s best hospital could only stabilize her condition; they couldn’t, and didn’t dare, awaken her.
As for the Sword Saint Sect Master, Lin Cheng and Li Ping were too busy to notify him for now.
Upon leaving the “Ember’s” space, Lin Cheng immediately summoned all the Yan City higher-ups.
He also invited representatives from the other mega-cities that had sent aid, including the Holy Knight-Captain, representing “Noah,” for a secret meeting.
The Holy Knights usually only answered to the Noah Holy Church, dealing with disaster-related matters, rarely interfering in secular politics.
Meanwhile, Rhine and the remaining Dawn members hurriedly left Yan City.
A force composed entirely of “Ruin” and “Peril” level ability users couldn’t be easily stopped, unless Yan City was willing to pay a heavy price.
But they couldn’t afford such a gamble, having just faced a war and now another major disaster.
Yan City could only focus on its own survival, settling the score with Dawn later.
Unnoticed, from the quiet beginning at dusk, when Dawn launched their attack, to now, an entire night had passed.
The first rays of dawn broke through the darkness, a new day beginning.
One night.
Just one night.
Yan City’s core district was completely deserted, only a path of destruction cutting through it, an eerie silence, yet everything else seemed normal.
The Ember Furnace still stood tall, its shadow stretching across the land under the faint sunlight.
Everyone in the secret meeting stared at the Ember Furnace, waiting.
Waiting for the dawn… or perhaps… for another disaster.
…
Within the chaotic void.
Here, time and space had no meaning.
Someone could be lost in the void for an instant, yet centuries would pass in the real world.
Someone could wait in solitude for millennia, yet only a few seconds would pass outside.
This chaos was amplified within the void’s turbulent currents, everything a jumbled mess, defying all logic and comprehension.
The desolate void shimmered with a purple hue, flames descending from the sky, monstrous roars echoing, then instantly transforming into flying flesh and grotesque growths.
Here, a physical body might remain intact, but the mind and soul, unable to withstand the chaotic onslaught, would drag the body down with them.
No matter how powerful, any living being who entered the void’s turbulent currents would be annihilated, body and soul.
But Luo Yan… was an exception.
Within the turbulence, she saw nothing, her vision a blank canvas, not even darkness.
But then… something appeared.
A pair of crimson eyes materialized, a graceful figure gradually solidifying, its form indistinct.
She had finally arrived, yet she was trapped in the endless void.
“Long time no see… no, we’ve been meeting constantly,” Luo Yan exhaled, looking up at the alluring figure, the embodiment of all seductive fantasies. “—’Witch of Envy’.”
The Witch of Envy’s black pupils slowly turned, fixated on Luo Yan.
She looked at Luo Yan calmly, and unlike her frenzied followers, Luo Yan saw a terrifying gentleness in her eyes.
…Similar to Mrs. Natalie.
This thought startled Luo Yan.
The Witch of Envy seemed to be scrutinizing her, but Luo Yan felt… as if she was looking through her, at someone else.
Finally, she spoke.
“Still struggling?”
Her voice was soft and gentle, filled with a sorrowful lament.
But it shocked Luo Yan.
“That’s… Mrs. Natalie’s voice…” Luo Yan tried to see the figure clearly, but its form was shrouded in an ethereal mist. “Could Mrs. Natalie be the Witch of Envy? No, that’s impossible…”
“Even though your efforts have failed, Luo Yan, you still try to salvage this?” she continued. “You’ve already seen the truth, yet you refuse to join us…”
Although the Witch of Envy had spoken her name, Luo Yan knew she wasn’t talking to her, but to another “Luo Yan.”
…A savior who could no longer speak.
The Witch descended, her movements graceful, and stood before Luo Yan.
Her terrifying crimson eyes, now soft, met Luo Yan’s icy blue gaze. She finally looked directly at Luo Yan, then, a flicker of long-buried resentment appeared in her eyes.
“Why do you exist?”
“Why do you refuse to leave?”
“Why… as civilizations rise and fall, as eras end… do you remain?”
“Why…?”
Luo Yan blinked. “…Are you talking to me?”
The Witch of Envy’s barrage of questions stunned Luo Yan. She had intended to drag the Witch into the void to fight, to prevent irreversible damage to Yan City.
Since her awakening, the Witch of Envy’s influence and the disasters she caused hadn’t ceased.
The best way to end this was to eliminate the source.
One’s sacrifice had given Luo Yan this chance, and Absolute Death and “Luo Yan’s” plan had made it possible.
But now… what was happening?
“Of course, you are our god,” the Witch of Envy’s eyes flickered with mockery. “The ‘Malicious God’ who imprisoned the entire world—”
“The root of all disasters… is your existence.”
She finally shed her ethereal form, appearing in the void’s turbulence in a form comprehensible to mortals.
Just as Luo Yan had anticipated, her face was identical to Mrs. Natalie’s, but she wore a crimson strapless gown.
Intricate, otherworldly patterns adorned the long, flowing skirt, small ornaments hanging from its folds, which, upon closer inspection, were crimson eyes.
There was no wind in the void, yet the crimson skirt fluttered, the eyes clinking together, a seductive, mesmerizing sound.
Although her face was identical to Mrs. Natalie’s, the terrifying crimson eyes gave her a different, more sinister aura.
Unlike her followers, the Witch of Envy wasn’t frenzied or distorted, not a grotesque monster.
She was the embodiment of seduction and allure, yet also gentle and serene, a lingering mist in her clear eyes.
Witnessing such a being, it was difficult to imagine that she was the “Witch of Envy” from the “Malice of All Worlds.”
Compared to a demon, she seemed more like… a goddess from religious texts.
“I… am called the ‘Witch of Envy’ by this era’s civilization,” she said softly. “I’ve had many names, ‘Witch of Malice,’ ‘Demoness of Envy and Defilement,’ ‘Terror of the Shifting Eyes’…”
“But these are not my true name.
“My true name is—”
The Witch of Envy uttered a series of strange syllables, unlike any human language, yet strangely harmonious.
A conceptual being’s true name was different from a mortal’s name or title. It contained their essence, their totality, completely unmasked.
Luo Yan had never heard such sounds before, but she instantly understood the meaning of the Witch of Envy’s true name.
—”Hope.”
Incredibly ironic.
As a member of the “Malice of All Worlds,” one of the culprits behind the world’s destruction, the most terrifying Primordial Demon, the Witch of Envy’s true name was… Hope.
She represented hope.
“Luo Yan—I shall address you by that insignificant mortal’s name,” she looked directly at Luo Yan, a hint of sorrow in her misty eyes. “My name is ‘Hope’ (true name), yet I cannot resist the endless despair you bring to this world…”
“…It sounds like… I’m the one destroying the world,” Luo Yan frowned slightly.
“No, how could that be… Luo Yan, you’re not ‘Destruction’ (true name). His descent… is the true destruction of the world,” the Witch of Envy sneered.
“His appearance brought countless ‘Divine Descents’ over millennia, even the strongest world will, the ‘First Ancestor’ (true name), couldn’t escape destruction, left to watch over a desolate, extinguished world, for the sake of a laughable, pathetic ‘God Slaying’ plan.”
“And you… merely imprisoned us.”
“…Merely.”
The Witch of Envy’s mockery was evident, but even stronger were her helplessness and sorrow.
Her gaze never left Luo Yan, as if cherishing every moment.
“How fortunate I am… to be the first to converse with a god,” a faint smile appeared on the Witch of Envy’s lips. “After all these cycles, through savagery and civilization, you have never appeared like this before.”
“…I don’t understand what you’re saying,” Luo Yan said helplessly. “Even if I was a god in a past life… aren’t I just a human now?”
She had undergone a thorough examination upon arriving in Yan City, even her soul and consciousness.
She was a living being, albeit with some anomalies, but all within the realm of human understanding.
…Except for everything related to the void.
“When you finally understand… it will be the arrival of true disaster,” the Witch of Envy chuckled softly.
“Do you remember ‘Ghost Town’? Aren’t you curious why you appeared there, and why Mrs. Natalie looked exactly like me?”
“Why?”
Luo Yan blurted out.
“Because Mrs. Natalie was my first follower. She possessed a Demonic Offering closest to my essence, although it has been corrupted over time, leaving only a twisted fragment of my will,” the Witch of Envy explained.
“Luo Yan—the other one, she declared war on the ‘Malice of All Worlds.’ Using the traitor Absolute Death’s power, she forcibly imprinted herself upon our memories and our source of power.”
“But… even she didn’t expect that the mark she left, meant to defeat us, would become your chance to escape. And so, a girl named ‘Luo Yan’ appeared in Ghost Town.
“As for why ‘Ghost Town’ reappeared in the real world… I don’t know, but anything I don’t know… can only be related to ‘Absolute Death’.”
Luo Yan was silent, recalling the “Ghost Town” files. The first record was from centuries ago.
The same time as the “Witch of Absolute Death” war.
She had never considered a connection between the two, but now… it seemed more than just a coincidence.
“I don’t trust anyone, not Luo Yan, not Absolute Death, not you,” the Witch of Envy looked at Luo Yan calmly. “I resent Absolute Death’s betrayal, I’m angered by Luo Yan’s actions, and as for you… I only feel fear.”
“When Absolute Death betrayed us for this era’s civilization and for Luo Yan… allowing this doomed civilization to continue… your appearance in this form was inevitable.”
“Rejoice, yes, Luo Yan, Absolute Death, you haven’t failed yet, although it is but a temporary reprieve before the inevitable.”
“When everything reaches its end… we, and this world, will lose all hope of escape.”
“—This is… a god’s… prison of despair.”
The Witch of Envy raised her hand, her slender finger pointing at Luo Yan, her voice filled with defiance.
“Remember, Luo Yan, Absolute Death, I will not surrender.”
“I will disappear, but ‘Hope’ (true name) will remain.”
“Civilizations may fall, eras may end, but this world… will never give up its struggle.”
As her words faded, the figure, identical to Mrs. Natalie, the “Hope” known as the “Witch of Envy,” vanished into the chaotic void, in her most beautiful form.
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