The nursing home in Twilight Street was a sight completely different from the chaotic street itself.
When ordinary people mentioned Twilight Street, they thought of the Three Nos: No government, no order, no economy—a hotbed of crime fostered by history and its residents, no less challenging than Kosma's hometown.
But only those with a clear understanding of themselves and Twilight Street knew that warmth existed here, like scattered starlight in the deep night.
Pardofelis's impression of the nursing home was two-fold: First, the people inside were good people. Second, the nursing home was quite spacious for sheltering from the rain...
"There are more people than the last time I came." Pardofelis silently sneaked into the nursing home. She leisurely padded along the rafters like a real cat, looking down, and counting on her fingers. "Maybe I should just bring him over directly…"
There were mostly elderly people and children. Pardofelis saw mostly patients who couldn't care for themselves, and she thought that the elderly and children had slightly weaker resistance, which was why they were prone to illness.
Wandering around, Pardofelis came to a place she hadn't been to before. Thinking of scouting all the way through, Pardofelis pushed open a half-closed door and slipped inside.
"…"
As soon as she entered, Pardofelis was shocked by the atmosphere of the room.
The seventeen o'clock slanted sunlight from the stained-glass window spread its arms to embrace the small world. Quiet dust drifted in the light and shadow before settling. Four wine-red sandalwood pillars stood solemnly at the four corners of the room. The semi-circular structure of the room was magnificent and sacred, like the low whisper of a deity.
The orderly rows of seats were empty. A single person knelt in the center of the room, hands clasped before her chest. The colored light fell upon the nun's headpiece, making her close her eyes and pray with greater piety.
Just looking at her back, one could feel the holiness.
So this was the prayer room?
Pardofelis had some knowledge of such things. The person kneeling was probably the nun of this nursing home.
Though she didn't understand why one had to kneel to pray, Pardofelis thought the scene was beautiful and soothing.
Since she had already scouted the path, it was time to leave.
"Click."
"Hey, Aponia, come here."
A man holding the doorknob coarsely called out to the nun with no hint of respect.
But the nun quietly opened her eyes, showing no offense or anger. After rising and dusting the hem of her skirt, her ethereal voice sounded, "Kalpas, is something the matter?"
"Hmph, someone else…"
The nun followed the man out of the room. After the sound of the door closing, the room was empty.
Pardofelis held her breath and carefully closed the window. Only after making sure no one had noticed her did she turn and leave swiftly.
Memory is the foundation that shapes a person; past experiences often determine future life.
The memories hidden in the deepest part, even if the person themselves can no longer recall them, still influence their decisions.
The reason why this memory was hidden might have been due to trauma, or perhaps… it was artificial.
Lin opened his eyes in this distorted space. He couldn't remember when he had last been here, but he had indeed left his marks here, so that he could find the right path later.
"Darling, look at our child, he's not crying or fussing, is he?"
"Yes, we [buzz—]! His eyes are intelligent and clear, and his appearance, even freshly born, is so gentle and perfect!"
"Let's give him a name."
Lin stood beside the couple. He couldn't recall their appearance. In the fragmented space, all he could see was the "father" picking up the silent infant and looking at his child with the expression of… someone looking at a work of art.
They were excited, but that excitement was not about the birth of a tiny life. It wasn't even about the birth of their own offspring.
"Your homeland is Shenzhou, so I'll give him a Shenzhou-style name… Alright, you shall be called…" Under Lin's gaze, the "father" curled his lips and smiled at the child who knew nothing. "'Zero,' how about that? A name full of symbolic meaning, a name that fits intuitive thinking."
"You are humanity's new beginning. This name will surely be a great name recorded in history."
At this time, "Zero" didn't understand the meaning of his father's words, but he saw the person holding him smile, so he smiled back.
However, his innocent smile shocked the man.
"You… why are you smiling?"
After a moment of brief surprise, what followed was the man's disappointment and alarm.
"How can you smile! You are [buzz—]! How can you smile like me, like those ordinary people!"
"Darling!"
Lin watched coldly as the "mother" stopped the "father" from throwing the baby on the ground, but not out of maternal love. She earnestly recounted their hard work to the man and promised that Zero would meet their expectations later.
But Lin didn't understand those words.
Lin understood the meaning of every single word, but when combined, Lin could only make out the extremely rational terminology of a scientific researcher.
Thus, Zero was born into this family. The first thing the "father" taught him was not to call "Mother" or "Father," but to never show any expression from then on.
Any expression similar to that of a normal person was a blasphemy against that perfect face.
An atheist treated his child as a deity, going mad for it.
Zero grew up day by day, exhibiting learning abilities far beyond the ordinary. This delighted the couple. Their gaze towards the child became increasingly gentle, joyful, and increasingly… respectful.
Until one day, the man woke up from his sleep and came like a zombie before the sleeping Zero, staring at him with bloodshot eyes.
"What is it, darling?" The woman asked after waking up, seeing the man standing blankly.
The man turned his head and spoke in an indescribable tone—
"This child, when he grows up… will he love humanity?"
He muttered, shouting like a madman, "What if he despises humanity? What if he harms the humans we love? Wouldn't we just have created a monster?"
"He is different from ordinary people; he will definitely look down on those normal humans. Rather than letting that happen, it's better if I now…"
The woman screamed in terror, "No!"
The scream woke Zero. He sat up in bed, strictly following his father's teaching, not showing any expression.
Exquisite, cold, rational, like an inorganic object.
The woman smiled tremblingly at the man, blocking the child, "No, darling, our child won't do that…"
"Because he can still be changed. A tiny, insignificant change."
She walked out the door and returned shortly with an object.
A medical electric saw.
"A child's memory and consciousness are very easy to change. Let's use the method we are best at—on the brain…"
The "mother" smiled gently, full of love for her child, and started the electric saw.