209. Becoming Them!
Vill-V's personality was split into 2871 parts, and her mental world was on the verge of collapse.
The id, Vill-V, had been holding Ling back, preventing him from observing the outside world.
But she herself was unaware that the other personality had committed such a crazy act.
The House of Cards collapsed with a deafening roar, the classroom was reduced to ashes, the mechanical gears ceased turning, and the eternal night sky lost its luster.
The empty, dripping sound of water in the kitchen was maddening; the space resembling the Id was now completely empty.
The room, once filled with drawings of Ling, had returned to boundless darkness; everything seemed to have vanished.
Ling walked step by step through each of Vill-V's rooms. He knew everything here, but now, everything was gone.
"Truly... my stupid sisters." Ling felt utterly inadequate as an older brother.
He had never successfully stopped her from doing anything, nor had he been able to protect her.
He was just a ghost, a ghost that had died at birth.
If that was the case, why be so cruel as to let him appear in this world, inside Vill-V's body?
He couldn't do anything, couldn't change anything, couldn't protect anything... Humanity, cities, civilization... he couldn't even protect his dearest younger sister.
At least this was only one time he could show his worth as an older brother.
"Hoo..."
Ling exhaled softly. In this place, he could feel himself having once lived in this world.
Goodbye, Vill-V. I really wanted to... hear you call me 'brother' with your own voice.
Ling slowly closed his eyes, emptying his mind.
When Vill-V became a MANTIS warrior, her spiritual power materialized, and Ling gained the same power as Vill-V at that time.
Perhaps this was proof that the two were actually 'the same person'.
Of course, to prevent Vill-V from suspecting anything, Ling never mentioned it.
Ling completely eliminated all his 'self,' something that shouldn't have existed in her body in the first place.
And only in this way could he become the real Vill-V again, become any Vill-V!
The collapsed house of cards rose again.
"This is—the Magic King of the Twilight Era!"
The burned-out classroom was transformed.
"This is—the learned and erudite instructor!"
The eternal night sky shone with even more beautiful brilliance.
"This is—the enigmatic scholar who overlooks the stars!"
The dripping kitchen was spotless.
"This is—the gourmet who has tasted all flavors!"
The mechanical gears once again emitted a teeth-grinding clang.
"This is—the engineer who creates all things!"
She, similar to her true self, once again stood at the center of the stage.
"This is—the meticulous conductor!"
A ray of light gradually shone into the boundless darkness.
"This is—the omnipotent transcendent!"
Ling restored everything around him, but his body gradually faded, beginning to transform into starlight to repair Vill-V's spiritual world.
It was as if he had never appeared, yet it was as if he had always remained here.
"One last thing... protect them for me."
Ling divided his remaining self into her final personality; she had no emotions, no talents.
She would only unconditionally protect Vill-V, as a brother's final instruction to his sister.
She quietly watched Ling dissipate, watched everything around her return to normal.
...
Kevin defeated the Eleventh Herrscher, and almost all the MANTIS Warriors perished in that attack, leaving Fire Moth with only thirteen MANTIS Warriors left.
Deepest Abyss.
"Still... unable to save Little Ling?" Aponia seemed to sense something, a tear rolling down her cheek.
Mobius came to visit Aponia, but she didn't care about Aponia's life or death; she just needed to inquire about some things.
"Aunt Mobius," Griseo called out.
"...It's Sister Mobius." Veins bulged on Mobius's forehead.
"Aunt Mobius, is there something you need?" Griseo tilted her head.
"Sigh… I came to see Aponia." Mobius wasn't in the mood to play with Griseo.
"Mama Aponia, Aunt Mobius is here to see you." Griseo tugged at Aponia's sleeve.
"Please go back, please take Griseo with you." Aponia's voice was soft, yet carried an irresistible magic.
"Mama Aponia…" Griseo seemed to know what was about to happen, grabbing her hand, unwilling to let go.
Aponia used the power of the Commandments to put Griseo to sleep, then handed her to Mobius.
"Aponia, what are you trying to do now?" Mobius resisted the mental force, but her body involuntarily picked Griseo up and carried her outside.
"I'm sorry…" Aponia didn't answer, only softly apologizing for her.
She slowly picked up the painting from the bed and quietly held it in her arms.
By the time the members of the Fire Moth returned on Mobius's orders, she was already dead.
"Aponia likely committed suicide," Mobius concluded after examination.
"This is what she was holding before she died."
Mobius handed something to Dr. Mei.
"This is... a drawing board? But why is it blank?"
"It seems only Griseo can see this. She said the painting depicts a colorful boy."
"And before this, Vill-V and Aponia had some unpleasant encounters. We can tentatively conclude that the boy in the painting is the one Vill-V often mentions."
"You mean... Ling?" Dr. Mei had also heard something about him.
Mobius nodded.
"I remember you said that Ling was Vill-V's other personality... How is Vill-V now?" Dr. Mei continued to inquire.
"She's kept herself locked inside the Helixcraft. If we couldn't detect life activity inside, we probably would have broken in already," A staff member said.
"Let's find a way to get her out. We still have a lot of work to do," Dr. Mei said, rubbing her temples.
The staff member nodded, preparing to call for Vill-V.
Mobius was also prepared to continue her experiment.
"By the way, Dr. Mobius, are you sure that no one except Griseo can see this painting?" Dr. Mei asked.
"I don't know. Perhaps Vill-V can see it, but there's no point in investigating this, is there?" Mobius waved her hand.
"It sounds like a painting in a quantum state…or rather, the existence of that Ling is in a quantum state? Can it only be seen by observing its existence?"
Dr. Mer stroked her chin, but she didn't dwell on the question.
After all, it wouldn't help the current civilization. It was better to use her limited time to solve the problem of civilization's continuation.
…