Paris, an abandoned rooftop terrace somewhere.
"Miraculous Restoration."
With a faint pink glow, Ladybug transformed back into Marinette, the girl next door in a simple T-shirt and pink pants.
Her legs gave out, and she practically collapsed onto the cold patio tiles, as if all her strength had been drained.
"Tikki..." she murmured, her voice trembling with despair.
Tikki flew out of the black earring on her earlobe, which had returned to its original color.
Tikki looked at her owner, who was distraught and had red eyes, and was filled with worry.
It flew in front of Marinette and gently rubbed her cheek with its tiny body.
"Marinette, don't be like this..."
Tikki's voice was like a gentle breeze, trying to blow away the gloom in her owner's heart.
"It's not your fault. The enemy appeared too suddenly, and his power was too... too unimaginable."
"No, it's all my fault!" Marinette suddenly looked up, her bright blue eyes now filled with tears and deep self-blame.
She hugged Tikki tightly, as if grasping a life raft.
"I didn't protect him well! I was right beside him, but I did nothing! I watched him... watched him disappear right in front of me!"
Her voice became sharp with emotion, and tears finally broke free, streaming down her fair cheeks and soaking Tikki's small body in her arms.
"No! Marinette, listen to me!"
Tikki felt the intense emotional fluctuations of its owner. It struggled to fly out of her arms, its tone becoming more serious than ever before.
"Now is not the time for self-blame! The more you are like this, the more Hawk Moth might take advantage of the situation!
Think about it, if even you fall, then who will bring Jaden back?!"
"Bring back..."
These three words, like a bolt of lightning, cut through the chaotic dark clouds in Marinette's mind.
She suddenly looked up, a glimmer of hope flashing in her red eyes.
"Yes... you're right! As long as we defeat that Akumatized Person, everything will return to normal!
Just like before!
'Miraculous Restoration'... Yes! 'Miraculous Restoration' can fix everything! Jaden... Jaden will definitely come back!"
She nodded vigorously, as if convincing herself, and the despair that had almost swallowed her was finally replaced by a clear goal.
She wiped away her tears, took out a pre-prepared macaron from her backpack, and handed it to Tikki.
"Eat, Tikki. We need to regain our energy as soon as possible."
A hint of fighting spirit rekindled in her voice.
At the same time, in the shadow of another building, Adrien also de-transformed, returning to the handsome, blonde-haired, blue-eyed teenager.
"This is... awful!" Adrien plopped down on the ground, irritably running his hand through his usually impeccably styled blonde hair.
"It's more than awful, it's a disgrace!"
Plagg, the Cat miraculous, flew out of the silver ring on his finger, hands on hips, huffing and puffing as she floated in mid-air.
"Two of Paris's top superheroes, actually being played for fools by a guy in strange clothes who only raps!
The most crucial thing is, the person was taken right under our noses! Do you know, if this gets out, where will I put my cat face?!"
"Is this the time to be talking about that?!"
Adrien glared at it, pulled out a piece of camembert cheese from his pocket—his least favorite, but something he had to keep on hand for Plagg—and tossed it over.
"Jaden was sent to an unknown past, his life or death unknown! Ladybug must be going crazy by now! We have to find a solution quickly!"
"A solution? How?"
Plagg swallowed the cheese in one gulp, speaking indistinctly.
"That guy called 'Timetagger', his ability is too restrictive for us.
As long as he has pre-arranged markers, we can't even touch him. Unless..."
"Unless we can catch him somewhere he can't teleport, or we have a faster speed than him."
Adrien's brows were tightly furrowed, his brain working at high speed.
"Alright, stop thinking."
Plagg burped.
"Quickly replenish your energy, then go discuss countermeasures with Ladybug.
But I warn you, her mood right now is probably even worse than this cheese I just ate."
A moment later, on a Parisian rooftop.
"Ladybug!"
"Cat Noir!"
Two figures, almost simultaneously, leaped from different directions onto a pre-arranged meeting point—the platform of an ancient clock tower.
Ladybug's face was still covered with a layer of frost. The moment she landed, she went straight to the point:
"I don't have time for small talk, Cat Noir.
We must find that 'Timetagger' immediately and stop him before he turns all of Paris into his playground!"
Her tone was urgent and resolute, and the overflowing worry made Cat Noir feel a hint of pressure.
"I agree, but we can't just rush in like that; it would only repeat the same mistake."
Cat Noir tried to calm her down, "We need a plan."
"What plan?!"
Just then, a lively, equally familiar voice rang out from behind them.
"Hey! You two! What are you doing here?"
The two suddenly turned around, only to see Alix, on her roller skates, gliding over from the other side of the clock tower.
She was carrying a backpack, looking as if she had just come from school.
"Alix? What are you doing here?" Cat Noir was a little surprised.
"Class was too boring, so I came out for some fresh air."
Alix shrugged, as if it was the most natural thing in the world. She noticed Ladybug's extremely grim expression and asked curiously,
"Speaking of which, what's wrong with you two? You both look like the sky is falling.
Is that new Akumatized Person really that difficult to deal with?"
"It's not just difficult..."
Ladybug bit her lip tightly, every word seemingly squeezed through her teeth.
"Alix, I don't have time to explain to you. We have something very, very important to deal with right now."
"Important?"
Alix stopped her roller skates, and the smile on her face faded.
She keenly sensed that this situation seemed different from any previous one.
She looked around and suddenly noticed that someone was missing.
"Wait... Where's Jaden?"
Alix's heart sank, and an ominous premonition surged within her, "Did something happen to Jaden?!"
As soon as she heard Jaden's name, Ladybug, who had intended to turn and leave, suddenly stiffened.
Cat Noir sighed and said in a deep voice, "Just now, the new Akumatized Person, 'Timetagger', he... he sent Jaden to an unknown past."
"What?!"
Alix's eyes instantly widened, and the color drained from her face. "Sent to the past?! What does that mean?!"
As she pressed for answers, a pleasant, chimes-like musical sound suddenly rang out from the somewhat vintage-looking pocket watch on her wrist.
Immediately following, a calm and mature female voice clearly emanated from the pocket watch. The voice seemed to be pre-recorded, carrying a composed air of knowing everything:
"Ladybug, you've done very well."
These words, to Ladybug at this moment, were undoubtedly the greatest and most malicious sarcasm!
"Done very well?!"
She practically shrieked, turning sharply to Alix, her eyes looking as if they wanted to devour the sounding pocket watch alive.
"Is this making fun of me?! Is this making fun of me for not being able to protect the person I wanted to protect the most?!"
"I... I don't know!"
Alix was startled by her sudden outburst of anger and quickly waved her hands.
"This... this is my family heirloom, it... it sometimes just makes sounds on its own..."
Before she could finish explaining, the female voice spoke again:
"To find the lost lamb, you must unearth the long-sealed past. There, you will find the rabbit hole leading to the end."
After saying this, the pocket watch returned to silence, as if everything that had just happened was merely an illusion.
"Unearth the long-sealed past... find the rabbit hole?"
Cat Noir was completely bewildered. He scratched his head, "What is all this? A riddler? Is this the time for guessing games?"
"This is simply nonsense!"
Alix also found it utterly absurd. She took off the pocket watch and shook it vigorously.
"What rabbit hole, Alice in Wonderland? What's the point of such ambiguous words?
It can't be that we're supposed to find... uh... the answer to this problem, right?"
As she spoke the last part, her voice gradually trailed off. Because she saw that Ladybug, who had been on the verge of furious rage,
after hearing her words, suddenly froze as if a pause button had been pressed.
The frantic emotions in her burning blue eyes receded like a tide, replaced by a strange, terrifyingly calm clarity.
"Answer..." Ladybug repeated the word softly, her brain, under extreme pressure, began to operate at an unprecedented speed.
"Alix's watch... Timetagger... predicting the future..."
She mumbled to herself, seemingly unrelated words quickly connecting in her mind by an invisible thread.
"Someone... already knew everything that would happen today! The voice in this watch isn't mockery, it's a hint! It's a clue left for us!"
"Clue?" Cat Noir and Alix exchanged bewildered glances.
"Yes!"
Ladybug's eyes instantly sharpened. She turned sharply to Alix and asked in an unquestionable tone,
"Alix! Tell me, what is the oldest existing exhibit in the Louvre in Paris?!"
"Huh?"
Alix was taken aback by her sudden leap in logic and instinctively replied, "The... the oldest? Let me think... I think it's... an ancient Egyptian sarcophagus, said to be... almost five thousand years old..."
"Five thousand years ago..." A glint flashed in Ladybug's eyes. "That's it!"
Before Alix could react, Ladybug grabbed her arm, lifted her up entirely,
then shouted to Cat Noir, "Cat Noir! Follow me! We're going to the Louvre!"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! What are you doing?!" Alix was startled by the sudden 'princess carry' and struggled in her arms.
But Ladybug's strength was astonishing. With just a swing of her yo-yo string on a distant building,
she shot towards the Louvre like a red comet.
"Seriously... isn't her decisiveness a bit too strong?"
Cat Noir shook his head helplessly, then immediately extended his metal staff and followed close behind.
Louvre, Ancient Egypt exhibit hall.
This was the deepest, most secluded area of the entire museum.
Under the dim yellow lights, sarcophagi covered with mysterious hieroglyphs lay silently in glass display cases. Faded papyrus paintings hung on the walls, and the air was filled with the dust of history, as if even time had slowed down here.
"This is it."
Ladybug, holding Alix, gracefully landed in the center of the exhibit hall. Her gaze quickly swept over the surrounding exhibits.
"What... what exactly are we doing here?" Alix was still utterly confused.
"Looking for something." Ladybug's answer was concise and clear.
She put Alix down, then began to meticulously examine each sarcophagus and every stele like a detective.
She extended her finger, gently tapping on the cold stone walls inscribed with ancient texts.
"Thump... thump... thump..."
Dull sounds echoed in the silent exhibit hall.
Cat Noir also followed in, watching Ladybug's serious expression.
Although he didn't understand what she was trying to do, he still mimicked her, starting to tap and knock on the other side of the exhibit hall.
"Found it!"
Suddenly, Ladybug stopped in front of a huge hieroglyphic stele, almost twice her height.
The sound of her tapping the lower part of the stele was distinctly different from other places, carrying a hollow echo.
"It's hollow inside!" She turned and shouted to Cat Noir, "Cat Noir! Use your 'Cataclysm'!"
"Gladly!"
Cat Noir had long been impatient. He dashed forward, his right hand with five fingers together, and let out a low growl:
"Cataclysm!"
Black energy, representing destructive power, instantly enveloped his right claw.
He didn't hesitate, directly clawing at the stele!
"Sizzle—"
The hard stele, having endured five millennia of wind and frost, was easily torn apart like tofu under his sharp claws.
Amidst flying stone fragments, a huge, rectangular hollow appeared inside the stele.
And within the hollow, stood a... person!
It was a tall woman with neat red short hair, wearing an exquisite white headband adorned with rabbit ears, and her eyes were covered by a stylish blue visor.
She wore a blue and white, futuristic-looking, form-fitting combat suit, with flowing lines that perfectly accentuated her agile and graceful figure.
Beside her, a similarly blue and white, strangely shaped umbrella.
Just as the stele was broken open and fresh air rushed in, the woman who had been sleeping for what seemed like centuries slowly let out a long yawn.
"Ah~"
She stretched, her bones cracking with a series of pops, and then rubbed her sleepy eyes.
With a lazy, husky voice from just waking up, she said, "Phew… I've slept for so long… Has it been five minutes, or five thousand years?"
She mumbled, her gaze falling on Ladybug and Cat Noir standing outside the cave.
Her eyes lit up, and a bright, mischievous grin spread across her face, as if her prank had succeeded.
She stepped out of the stele's opening, lightly jumped down the steps, and then, with her hands on her hips,
addressed the two dumbfounded young heroes in front of her with an incredibly familiar tone, as if greeting old friends:
"Yo! I knew it, Little Ladybug and Little Cat Noir, you two would definitely solve the riddle and find me!"
"Little… Little Ladybug?" Marinette was stunned.
"Little Cat Noir?" Cat Noir pointed to himself, his face full of disbelief, "This… uh… lady, do we know each other?"
"Not yet, but we will!"
The mysterious woman waved her hand, speaking in a matter-of-fact tone,
"Alright, alright, I know you must have a ton of questions, but… wait a moment." She suddenly clutched her lower abdomen, an embarrassed and urgent expression on her face.
"Before that, I have an extremely urgent, life-or-death, critical matter to attend to!"
"What is it?" Ladybug immediately became alert.
Bunnyx squeezed her legs together and cried out in a voice that was almost on the verge of tears, "I've been holding it for five thousand years! I need to go to the bathroom first!"
With that, she vanished from her spot at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye.
A few seconds later, from the direction of the public restroom at the end of the exhibition hall, came a "bang" of a door closing, and a long, relieved sigh.
Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Alix, who was completely bewildered by everything, exchanged glances, frozen in place.
Inside the restroom, the sound of flushing water soon followed, along with Bunnyx's still vibrant voice, which penetrated the door and clearly reached the ears of the three outside:
"I know you must be very curious right now, so I'll give a simple explanation!
My name is Bunnyx, and I'm from the future. I'm a member of your future hero team!
That means I'm your partner when you grow up! That's why I call you 'Little Ladybug' and 'Little Cat Noir'!"
Her voice was filled with pride.
"Whenever you encounter super difficult problems that you can't solve, I'll appear as the team's ultimate safeguard to save the day! Just like now!
But generally, I only handle solving the problems; as for the specific process… I won't say too much, so as not to affect your growth!"
"Wait a minute!" Cat Noir shouted towards the restroom door, "You said you're from the future, so why were you trapped in a rock from five thousand years ago?!"
"Oh, that!" Bunnyx's righteous retort came from inside the restroom, "That was an accident! It's all your fault, future Little Cat Noir!
During the battle with the Timetagger, you accidentally broke my miraculous! As a result, I couldn't use my powers and was shot flying by the Timetagger, directly teleported five thousand years into the past! Seriously, when I get back, I'm definitely going to settle the score with you!"
"Future me… did that?" Cat Noir pointed to his nose, feeling his reputation being harmed.
With a "creak," the restroom door opened. Bunnyx walked out refreshed, tidying her spotless combat suit as she went.
"Phew… much better." She clapped her hands in satisfaction.
"Wait,"
Ladybug's brows furrowed tightly. She keenly spotted a huge logical flaw.
"If your miraculous was broken, then how did you… transform to go to the bathroom just now?"
This question made Bunnyx's movements visibly stiffen for a moment.
But she quickly recovered, pulling out a pocket watch-like accessory from her pocket and tossing it to Ladybug.
The pocket watch was covered in spiderweb-like cracks.
"Here, this is the miraculous that future Little Cat Noir broke."
Bunnyx did not directly answer Ladybug's question but cleverly changed the topic.
Then her gaze, like the most precise searchlight, locked onto the ancient pocket watch on little Alix's wrist.
"Where's the watch?"
The voice was light and certain, as if she wasn't asking, but confirming something that already belonged to her.
Little Alix's body instinctively recoiled half a step. She didn't understand, completely didn't understand any of this.
Why was this woman, who suddenly popped out of a five-thousand-year-old stele and claimed to be a future hero, so fixated on her family heirloom?
She lowered her head, looking at the pocket watch on her wrist that had been with her for many years.
The silver casing reflected a soft glow under the light, and the intricate gear patterns on the dial were faintly visible.
This was a treasure passed down through generations of her family, solemnly given to her by her father when she was very young, representing the family's responsibility and legacy.
Hand it over to a… a "future person" she had only known for less than ten minutes, with strange behavior?
Little Alix's brows furrowed. Her face, which was always brimming with youth and vitality, showed such obvious hesitation and confusion for the first time.
Ladybug, standing by, said nothing, but her gaze was equally sharp.
Although she didn't understand the connection, her intuition told her that this pocket watch was very likely the key to unraveling all the mysteries before them and bringing Jaden back.
Her patience was being worn away second by second. In her clear blue eyes, anxiety and inquiry intertwined, making her look like a fully drawn bow, ready to shoot sharp arrows of questioning at any moment.
"My pocket watch,"
Bunnyx saw that little Alix wasn't moving, and the smile on her lips deepened. She deliberately emphasized her words, saying slowly and distinctly,
"Or rather… 'our' pocket watch."
She extended her hand again, fingers spread. That palm, under the light, was like an irresistible invitation.
The word "our" was like a stone thrown into little Alix's chaotic mind.
She looked at the woman in front of her, who had a similar face but was distinctly different, looking at the undeniable confidence in her eyes revealed beneath the blue goggles, then lowered her head to look at the pocket watch in her hand.
Alix's heart was in conflict.
She thought for a moment, and finally, chose to trust her intuition.
Perhaps… everything she said was true.
Perhaps, this was not just a family legacy, but also a… mission that transcended time.
More importantly, this concerned Jaden.
As soon as she thought of this, little Alix's heart felt as if it was being squeezed by an invisible hand. If this watch could really help, if it could bring Jaden back… After a moment of thought, little Alix took a deep breath, as if making a decision.
She unclasped the watch chain on her wrist and carefully placed the pocket watch onto Bunnyx's outstretched palm.
The moment the pocket watch touched Bunnyx's glove, a miracle happened!
"Buzz—"
A faint but clear hum, like the ringing of an ancient bell, echoed in the exhibition hall.
The pocket watch, which had originally been just an ordinary antique, suddenly bloomed with a soft and sacred blue-white light in Bunnyx's hand!
The light was not dazzling, but it carried a warm power capable of purifying everything.
Under the illumination of the light, the future Rabbit miraculous in Ladybug's hand, covered in cracks and with chaotic energy, also began to resonate with it, emitting a faint glow.
Then, the future miraculous transformed into a streak of light and instantly shot into little Alix's pocket watch!
Immediately after, little Alix's pocket watch began to deform and reassemble in the light.
Its ancient silver casing slowly opened, and the complex internal gear structure was enveloped and cleansed by blue-white energy currents.
When the light faded, a perfectly intact Rabbit miraculous, radiating a powerful and stable aura, lay quietly in Bunnyx's palm.
"This… this is… a miraculous?!"
Little Alix was completely dumbfounded. She pointed at the brand-new accessory, her voice filled with unconcealable surprise. She never dreamed that her family heirloom,
was actually the legendary magical accessory that could grant people superpowers!
Ladybug was also captivated.
She looked at the repaired, or rather, "awakened" miraculous, and a huge wave surged in her heart.
She finally understood why the pocket watch had given a prophecy, and why Bunnyx was so fixated on it. It turned out that the source of it all was right here.
"That's right."
Bunnyx gave little Alix a playful smile, then she held up the refreshed miraculous and chanted the spell: "Miraculous Restoration."
A light even more brilliant than before enveloped her entire body.
When the light dissipated, her futuristic blue-and-white combat suit was gone, replaced by a highly individual, rock-and-street-style everyday outfit.
She was a young woman who looked older than little Alix, perhaps in her early twenties.
Her vibrant red short hair was even more unruly than in her combat form, with a few strands rebelliously sticking up.
The vintage goggles on her face were pushed up to the top of her head, revealing a pair of equally bright blue, yet deeper and more expressive, eyes beneath.
She wore a black T-shirt with a pink gear pattern, topped with a short black leather vest. Her lower body consisted of light blue ripped denim shorts with black leggings underneath, and worn-out combat boots on her feet.
Most striking were the large, colorful tattoos winding up her arms, which were adorned with black fingerless gloves. One arm featured blooming pink flowers, the other shimmering yellow fish scales, extending all the way to her wrists.
Little Alix looked at this "herself" in front of her, feeling her brain somewhat frozen.
She… looked a little familiar.
No, not just familiar—it was clearly what she would look like when she grew up! The contours of her features, the defiant spirit in her eyes, were identical to her own reflection in the mirror.
"Still don't understand?"
Big Alix—that is, Bunnyx after her Miraculous Restoration—looked at little Alix's stunned expression, hands in her vest pockets, and tilted her head, saying with a teasing, smiling tone,
"I am you, and you are me. Or, more accurately, I am the grown-up you."
"I… am you?" Little Alix murmured, but her gaze couldn't move away from the striking outfit of the other person.
So… so cool.
This was little Alix's first thought.
Whether it was the unruly red hair, or the cool vest and ripped jeans, everything perfectly hit her aesthetic sweet spot.
However… her gaze fell on the several shiny earrings on big Alix's ears, then swept over the small nose ring on the side of her nose, and finally rested on the large, colorful tattoos on her arms.
Just now, in her transformed state, she had thought those… but she hadn't expected… that they would still be there after the Miraculous Restoration!
Little Alix's heart inexplicably sank a little.
She did like cool things, liked rollerblading, liked challenges, liked everything associated with the word "dashing."
But… was this almost "rebellious" outfit really what she would choose for her future self?
A person's face appeared in her mind—Jaden.
She remembered Jaden's gentle smile, his patience and thoughtfulness towards friends, and the clean and serene aura about him.
Would he… like this type of girl?
For the first time, little Alix felt a flicker of uncertainty and… a slight resistance towards her own future.
She had a crush on Jaden. Although this feeling had never been expressed, she would subconsciously think about how she could get closer to him.
She thought she would grow into a more reliable, stronger, but still somewhat "reserved" cool girl, not… this rock musician who looked like she would ride a Harley-Davidson and race people on the streets.
She was about to say something to hide her complex emotions, but Ladybug next to her spoke first.
"The miraculous… how did you get it?"
Ladybug interrupted the "self-recognition" segment between big and little Alix.
Her focus was always on the core issue.
She stared intently at big Alix, her eyes full of inquiry and an undeniable interrogative tone. She needed an explanation.
The birth of a hero, the inheritance of a miraculous, this was no small matter.
"How did I get it?"
Big Alix, hearing this, shifted her gaze from her younger self's face to Ladybug.
She looked at this "Little Ladybug" who was still a bit naive and whose face was completely etched with "anxiety," and a knowing, yet still enigmatic, smile appeared on her face.
"Right now, you haven't given it to me yet."
She slowly said, "However, it will be soon. At some appropriate time in the future, you will personally hand it to me. Then, you will naturally know."
"The future... always the future..." Ladybug was very dissatisfied with this answer, but she also knew that asking further would yield no results.
Little Alix also recovered from her internal struggle about her future appearance.
She looked at Big Alix's flamboyant attire, then at herself, and secretly made a resolution: becoming a hero and protecting everyone sounded really cool,
But... she would absolutely never wear such exaggerated outfits in the future!
At least, not until she figured out what type Jaden liked!
"Alright, little one."
Big Alix seemed to see through her thoughts, smiling as she ruffled her hair. Then, she softly called out.
Fluff emerged from the pocket watch and affectionately nestled on Big Alix's shoulder.
"Let me see, poor little one, you must be starving."
Big Alix, as if by magic, pulled out a carrot-like energy snack from her pocket and offered it to Fluff's mouth.
Fluff happily chirped and eagerly munched on the "carrot."
As it ate, it looked around at everything with its big, watery eyes, full of confusion.
For this miraculous, which controls time yet is often confused by it,
It couldn't even tell if the meal it was currently eating was yesterday's dinner or tomorrow's breakfast.
"This... Bunnyx, must be very strong, right?"
Cat Noir, standing by, looked at the intact miraculous and said thoughtfully,
"Since it's so powerful, why don't your future selves use its power more often?"
"Because every time the power of time is used, it brings extremely serious consequences."
Big Alix explained without looking back as she fed Fluff,
"Interfering with the past, changing history, even a trivial detail, can trigger a chain reaction and lead to the collapse of time itself.
Therefore, I will absolutely not act unless it's a last resort and all other methods have failed."
"I see..."
Cat Noir listened, half-understanding, and nodded. Just then, the ring on his finger let out its final urgent warning.
"Oh, no!"
He looked at the cat paw print on his ring, which had only one bar left,
"Sorry everyone, my energy is also depleted. I need to go feed my greedy little black cat first."
With that, he bowed to Ladybug and the two Ailis, then quickly left the exhibition hall to find a hidden place to detransform.
Now, in the empty exhibition hall, only Ladybug, Little Alix, and Big Alix from the future remained.
"Alright."
Ladybug didn't care about anything else; she only wanted to know one thing now.
She took a step forward, her gaze burning as she stared at Big Alix,
"Since you're from the future, you must know how to defeat that Timetagger,
right? Tell me how!"
Her eyes were filled with an urgency that brooked no refusal.
Little Alix also looked over expectantly, her face full of hope.
Being stared at like this by two generations of "herself" and her "partner" made even the free-spirited Big Alix feel a little embarrassed.
She scratched her wild red hair, awkwardly averting her gaze.
"Uh... well..."
She let out two dry laughs,
"It's a bit embarrassing to say... I was sealed in that broken stone for too long, five thousand years! Many things... I can't quite remember..."
"What?!" Ladybug's tone rose again.
"But! But!"
Big Alix quickly waved her hand and added,
"I roughly remember a core idea! It's... we can't defeat him in this era!
Because he's from the future, we must send him back to his own time, and then let the future Ladybug and Cat Noir deal with him!"
"Send him back? With your ability?" Ladybug asked.
"Yes! With my 'Rabbit Hole'!"
Big Alix nodded, "But I can't do it alone. The only thing I'm sure of is... in the plan back then, my younger self, which is you,"
She pointed to Little Alix, "played a crucial and irreplaceable role!"
"Me?" Little Alix pointed to her nose, surprised, yet also feeling a strange excitement.
"That's right, it's you!"
Big Alix's face once again showed a confident smile,
"So, Little Alix, are you willing to fight alongside me?!"
"I... I'm certainly willing!"
Little Alix immediately nodded in agreement without thinking. At the thought of personally bringing Jaden back, all the courage and strength in her body seemed to ignite.
"Very good!" Big Alix nodded in satisfaction.
Ladybug looked at the two "Ailis" in front of her, one big and one small, both full of fighting spirit. Although she still had many questions about the vague plan, she knew this was currently the only hope of getting Jaden back.
She took a deep breath, suppressing the anxiety in her heart, and said firmly to the two: "Then let's go now and find that Timetagger!"
Their gazes met in the air, and a tacit understanding and determination, spanning across time, quietly converged in the exhibition hall.
Big Alix put the well-fed Fluff back into her miraculous, then, facing her pocket watch, recited the incantation that transcended time:
"Fluff, clockwise!"
Light shone again, and she transformed back into the superhero—Bunnyx—wearing a blue and white futuristic combat suit and holding a unique umbrella.
"Alright, Little Ladybug, Little Alix, let's go!"
Bunnyx led the way, and the three quickly left the museum.
However, when they pushed open the museum's heavy doors and returned to the streets of Paris, the sight before them made them all gasp.
The world outside had completely changed.
The originally clean and tidy street pavements, the ancient and elegant building walls, and even the benches and mailboxes along the roadside, were all covered in those crooked, ominously glowing green graffiti.
The entire city of Paris seemed to have been forcefully smeared into a bizarre and chaotic abstract painting by an invisible hand.
And the Timetagger, wearing a black hoodie and holding a spray gun, was skateboarding freely through the graffiti-covered streets, occasionally raising his hand to add a few strokes, as if admiring his "masterpiece."
"How long have we been inside...?"
Ladybug looked at the fluorescent ocean before her, her voice carrying a hint of imperceptible bitterness.
She hadn't expected that in such a short time, the enemy had completely turned this place into his home ground.
"Hey! Why didn't you wait for me... Oh-oh."
Cat Noir's figure nimbly darted out from behind the shadows of the museum's doorway. He had intended to make a joke, but after seeing the scene before him, the latter half of his sentence got stuck in his throat.
His green eyes widened slightly in surprise.
"This... Is this some modern art exhibition? It looks like a very unique taste."
He used a joke to mask his unease.
"Too late."
Bunnyx's voice was calm and grave, her eyes sharply scanning every graffiti Marc around them.
"The Timetagger has already woven a huge time net here. Now, every Marc in this area is his teleportation coordinate."
Ladybug and Cat Noir immediately understood what this meant, and both instinctively adopted a battle-ready stance.
"So... we're surrounded by one person?"
Cat Noir spoke first, tightening his grip on his metal staff, trying to lighten the oppressive atmosphere with a relaxed tone.
"No."
Bunnyx corrected his statement, with a hint of warning in her tone,
"Not surrounded in any 'place,' but surrounded in any 'point in time.'
He can go back to the moment he launched his attack, zero point zero one second before our attack reaches him. Here, he is almost invincible."
No sooner had she spoken than an arrogant voice, accompanied by a dynamic rhythm, came from the top of the fountain in the center of the square.
"Yo! Yo! Listen to my beat, don't try to leave!
Two little kids, and a weirdo from the future!
Hand over the miraculous to me obediently,
From now on, you're no longer Paris's hero examples!
Bringing them to Hawk Moth is your direction,
From now on, this city will have no more chapters for you to appear in!"
The Timetagger was standing on top of the fountain, using his spray gun as a microphone, striking comical street dance poses. His gaze towards them was full of cat-and-mouse mockery.
"You despicable guy!" Ladybug's anger reignited.
"This time, I'm definitely going to catch you!" Cat Noir also prepared to act.
However, just as they were about to rush out, Bunnyx extended her white umbrella, blocking their way.
"Wait."
Her voice was as cold as ice,
"You two stay here. You two cannot have any problems right now. Let me handle it."
"But..." Ladybug still wanted to argue.
"This is an order, Little Ladybug."
Bunnyx's tone was unchallengeable,
"To deal with a time-based enemy, you can only use time-based abilities.
You two wait here. I'll find a way to use my ability to open a 'Rabbit Hole' and send him directly into the hands of your future selves. This is the safest method."
With that, she turned and picked up the still somewhat dazed Little Alix next to her.
"Hey! What are you doing?" Little Alix protested.
Bunnyx didn't answer, but with a few nimble leaps, she carried Little Alix to the top of an ice cream truck far across the square, moving her away from the center of the battlefield.
She put Little Alix down, then looked into her eyes and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear: "Remember everything that happens here, little one. It's no different from what's in your memory."
"What memory? I don't even..." Little Alix asked, confused.
But Bunnyx no longer paid attention to her; instead, she turned to face the battlefield.
She raised the umbrella in her hand, and the canopy "whooshed" open.
"Rabbit Hole!"
She lightly called out, and a pure white, circular void with constantly rotating edges appeared out of thin air in front of her.
Without any hesitation, Bunnyx plunged into the time-space tunnel known as the "Rabbit Hole."
The next second, to the left of the Timetagger, another identical "Rabbit Hole" opened out of thin air,
Bunnyx's figure shot out from it, her umbrella like a spear, striking directly at the opponent's ribs!
"Oh-ho?" The Timetagger seemed to have anticipated this. He let out a strange laugh, and the moment the umbrella was about to touch his body, his figure "zipped" away,
Then reappeared out of thin air at another graffiti Marc several meters away, in the exact same posture as before.
"Want to catch me? Talk to me next century!"
He raised his spray gun, and a green beam of time energy shot towards Bunnyx, who had just appeared.
"Hmph."
Bunnyx snorted coldly, her body nimbly leaping backward, once again disappearing into the still-open "Rabbit Hole" behind her, easily dodging the attack.
A chase across time thus began.
Bunnyx moved like an elegant ghost, weaving between countless white "Rabbit Holes."
Sometimes she would appear above the enemy's head, using her umbrella to deliver sharp slashes;
Sometimes she would emerge from under the enemy's feet, trying to trip him.
Her movements were swift and fluid, each attack precisely aimed at a vital point.
And the Timetagger was like a digital phantom that could never be caught.
He relied entirely on the "time net" he had laid, and whenever Bunnyx's attack was about to hit, he would instantly teleport to another graffiti Marc, making all attacks miss.
The spray gun in his hand also continuously fired green energy, trying to send Bunnyx into the temporal turbulence as well.
"Bang!"
Bunnyx seized an opportunity and kicked the Timetagger in the chest, making him stumble.
However, the next instant his body lost balance, he activated his ability again, instantly appearing behind Bunnyx, and swung a punch, heavily striking her back.
"Ugh!"
Bunnyx was sent flying several meters forward, but unlike the Timetagger, she didn't have the ability to instantly adjust her state to optimal.
She could only rely on her astonishing combat instincts to forcibly twist her body in mid-air, leaping back into a newly opened "Rabbit Hole," and launching a counterattack from another angle.
The two went back and forth, their figures appearing and disappearing across the entire square, so fast it was dazzling.
"Are we just... going to stand here and watch?"
Cat Noir looked at the battle in the arena, which transcended physical rules, and said with some reluctance.
"Otherwise? Going up now would only cause trouble." Ladybug's gaze was fixed on the battlefield, her heart churning with complex emotions.
On one hand, she was anxious about Jaden's safety; on the other hand, watching Bunnyx's effortless, repeated use of her abilities, an emotion that was a mix of envy and longing quietly grew within her.
"Why... can she use her ability an infinite number of times?" Ladybug seemed to be talking to herself, yet also asking Cat Noir.
"Because she's an adult," Cat Noir answered casually.
"The power of the miraculous grows stronger as its wielder matures.
An adult can use the miraculous's power for a longer time, unlike us, who have to transform back after using one big move."
"Yes, an adult…" In Ladybug's mind, the mature and confident figure of Bunnyx appeared.
She also… also wanted to grow up quickly. If she were an adult now, if she also possessed infinite power, wouldn't Jaden have been taken away right in front of her?
Wouldn't she be able to resolve all troubles more decisively and cleanly?
Wouldn't she… be able to stand beside that person more confidently?
Just as her thoughts were racing, the situation on the battlefield changed.
"Got you!"
Bunnyx seemed to have calculated the Timetagger's next teleportation landing spot.
She opened a giant "rabbit hole" in advance, then used her umbrella as a weapon, sweeping it across and accurately knocking the Timetagger into the white vortex!
"What?!" The Timetagger only managed to let out a cry of surprise before being swallowed by the pure white temporal tunnel.
Bunnyx watched the "rabbit hole" slowly close, letting out a long sigh.
"Done. I knew you'd do that."
She put away her umbrella and turned to look at Ladybug, Cat Noir, and little Alix not far away, a victorious smile on her face.
"Alright, everyone, thank you for your help in rescuing me from that broken stone.
Now, that troublesome guy has been sent back to the future by me, and the future Ladybug and Cat Noir will handle him. I should also…"
She stopped mid-sentence. The smile on her face slowly froze.
"What's wrong?" Ladybug sensed something was amiss.
"No… no, this isn't right…" Bunnyx frowned, cautiously looking around. "This doesn't seem to be the time point in my memory. He… he didn't return to the future!"
The moment her voice fell, a cold, mocking voice sounded behind her.
"You're right."
Bunnyx spun around, only to see the Timetagger, who had silently appeared behind her at some point, his spray gun barrel glinting with a deadly green light.
"Whoosh!"
A green energy beam, at point-blank range, instantly struck Bunnyx's body.
"Have a pleasant trip… to the Ice Age!" The Timetagger showed a malicious smile.
Bunnyx's body was enveloped in green light, and she turned into specks of light and disappeared on the spot before she could even utter a complete sentence.
"No!" Ladybug and little Alix exclaimed simultaneously.
"Too much time wasted."
The Timetagger blew on the muzzle of his spray gun, as if he had just done something insignificant.
He walked leisurely, step by step, approaching the remaining people.
"Alright, little brats, game over. Hand over the miraculous to me now."
His steps were not large, but each one felt like it was stepping on the hearts of Ladybug and Cat Noir.
They knew their last trump card was gone, and now they would have to face this unbeatable enemy alone.
However, just as the Timetagger was less than ten meters away from them, the space in front of him was once again torn open by a pure white "rabbit hole."
A trembling figure stumbled out from inside.
It was Bunnyx.
Her body was covered in a thick layer of frost, her red short hair was full of ice crystals, and even her breath turned into white mist.
Her whole body was uncontrollably shaking violently, her lips were frozen purple, and her future combat suit was stiff with ice.
"You… you bastard…" She gritted her teeth, squeezing out a few words from her throat, and raised her equally frost-covered umbrella, still trying to attack.
"Oh? You can still come back?"
The Timetagger, seeing her disheveled appearance, showed an even more cruel smile instead of surprise.
"It seems the extreme cold of the Ice Age isn't enough for you."
He raised his spray gun again.
"Then…"
"Go to the Cretaceous period and say hello to the dinosaurs!"
"Whoosh!"
Another green beam shot out, accurately hitting the still trembling, tenacious figure.
This time, she couldn't even put up a fight before being swallowed by the temporal turbulence again, disappearing without a trace.
In the square, the Timetagger's arrogant words still echoed.
He hadn't even taken two steps after his "feat" of sending Bunnyx to the prehistoric era when another pure white "rabbit hole" was forcibly torn open in the air not far from him.
"Roar—!"
A deafening roar, full of ancient ferocity, came from the hole.
Immediately after, a huge, brown-scaled head, full of razor-sharp teeth, suddenly poked out of the hole! It was a Tyrannosaurus Rex!
Its cruel yellow vertical pupils fixed deadly on the Timetagger, who was closest to it.
Just as the Tyrannosaurus Rex was about to attack with its massive jaws that could easily crush bones, a disheveled figure darted out from beneath it—it was Bunnyx, who had just been teleported away.
She looked back at the prehistoric beast in hot pursuit, then quickly used the umbrella in her hand to close the "rabbit hole" behind her.
"Still want to play, little rabbit?" The Timetagger asked with interest, seeing her dusty appearance, without a hint of tension, as if enjoying an interesting play.
"Don't… call me… little rabbit!" Bunnyx gasped for breath.
Her combat suit was covered in mud and some plant sap; clearly, her recent Cretaceous trip was not pleasant.
"As you wish."
The Timetagger shrugged and raised his spray gun again.
"Next destination… a future interstellar battlefield, how about it? I heard the laser beams there are particularly pretty."
"Whoosh!"
Before Bunnyx could react, another green light engulfed her.
From the very beginning, this battle was not an evenly matched contest, but a one-sided, cruel game.
The Timetagger was like a mischievous child with unlimited toys, eagerly throwing Bunnyx again and again into the most dangerous and extreme corners of the river of time.
She appeared in a burning volcanic landscape, the ground beneath her feet scorching hot, the air filled with the pungent smell of sulfur.
As soon as she landed, before she could even take a breath, she was teleported to an ocean trench tens of thousands of meters deep, where the immense water pressure almost squeezed out her internal organs.
She escaped from the deep sea, only to be thrown into a future battlefield where an interstellar war was underway, with countless intersecting energy beams whistling past her, each one enough to vaporize her… Each time, she relied on her tenacious will and the power of the "rabbit hole" to escape back to the present in the nick of time, disheveled.
But each return added to her injuries and fatigue.
Her once pristine blue-and-white combat suit became tattered, her vibrant red short hair was soaked with sweat and matted to her forehead, her breathing became more and more rapid, and each time she opened the "rabbit hole" it took longer.
This was no longer an overwhelming defeat. This was a slow wearing down of her life, little by little, using endless time and space.
Finally, after another escape from some unknown high-temperature era, Bunnyx could no longer hold on.
Her body swayed, her knees buckled, and she fell heavily onto the cold stone pavement, her umbrella rolling to the side.
"Sorry…"
She lay on the ground, struggling to lift her head, looking at the two young heroes not far away, who were anxious due to their powerlessness, her voice as faint as a flickering candle in the wind, "Little Ladybug… Little Cat Noir… I… I have no more options…"
The light in her eyes was slowly dimming.
"Damn it!"
Seeing his companion tormented to the point of collapse, Cat Noir could no longer suppress the anger in his heart.
The mixed emotions of pity, anger, and humiliation made him temporarily forget his reason.
"Whatever! I'm going in first!"
He roared, charging forward like an arrow from a bowstring, his metal staff drawing a sharp silver arc in the air, aiming straight for the Timetagger's face!
"Perfect timing."
The Timetagger merely sneered dismissively at this furious attack.
His body only swayed slightly, then he performed several small "flash jumps" like a phantom between Cat Noir's staff shadows,
Each time appearing precisely in the blind spot of the attack, causing all of Cat Noir's attacks to miss.
Then, he seized a moment when Cat Noir's old strength was spent and new strength had not yet emerged, advancing instead of retreating, closing in.
And Cat Noir was almost in a situation of passively taking hits.
He was punched in the abdomen, his body uncontrollably arching;
He was then kicked in the chest, flying backward and tumbling several times on the ground before stopping, disheveled.
"Ugh…" Cat Noir propped himself up, feeling as if his internal organs had shifted.
But Ladybug, after her initial anxiety, watching this scene, a flash of insight crossed her mind.
She calmed down.
Why… why did the Timetagger use teleportation against Bunnyx, but only fists and feet against Cat Noir?
There's only one answer!
He can't teleport us!
Ladybug's mind raced. The Timetagger's target was the miraculous on her and Cat Noir.
If he were to send them both to some unknown time and space, like he did with Jaden and Bunnyx, how would he find two tiny miraculous in this vast river of time?
That would be like looking for a needle in a haystack! Therefore, he wouldn't, and wouldn't dare to do that!
He must take the miraculous from them with his own hands in this time and space!
This meant that his seemingly invincible temporal teleportation attack was ineffective against the two of them!
He could only rely on teleportation and combat skills. This discovery brought a faint glimmer of hope to the suffocating despair.
"Lucky Charm!"
Ladybug immediately threw her yo-yo into the air.
A flash of light, and a… red notebook with black spots, fell into her hand.
"A notebook?"
Little Alix, standing beside her, looked at the seemingly useless item with a confused expression. "What's this for…?"
"I feel… this guy's power seems to be endless…"
Cat Noir, who had been beaten back, also got up. He was panting, looking at the enemy who was approaching step by step, a hint of frustration in his voice.
"Don't make futile struggles."
The Timetagger stopped, looked at the three of them, then aimed the spray gun in his hand at the fallen Bunnyx not far away, and at the helpless little Alix beside Ladybug.
"Hand over your miraculous."
His voice was cold, devoid of any emotion.
"Otherwise, this little friend, and your companion from the future, will be teleported by me to the singularity of the Big Bang.
I guess the scenery there must be very 'spectacular'."
Although he couldn't teleport Ladybug and Cat Noir, he knew very well how to use hostages to break the heroes' psychological defenses.
This was… the final ultimatum.
Ladybug's heart sank to rock bottom. She knew that if he said it, he could do it.
Looking at the notebook in her hand, then at the glowing graffiti marks on the ground, finally, her gaze fell on the enemy who was aiming his gun at her companion.
The right place, the right tool, the right person… A bold, almost insane plan instantly formed in her mind.
She knew this was her only chance. Success or failure depended on this one move.
A look of disappointment and desolation appeared on her face, as if she had completely given up resistance.
"It seems… we really failed." Her voice sounded tired and hoarse.
"Ladybug! Don't give up!" Cat Noir shouted anxiously from the side.
"But… we can't defeat him at all."
Ladybug slowly shook her head, then looked up at the Timetagger, saying in an almost pleading tone,
"Before I hand over the miraculous to you… can you let me… write something? Just as… a final message."
"Oh? Have you finally figured it out?"
The Timetagger laughed triumphantly, seeing her like this.
"Of course. As a witness to the twilight of your heroic era, I can mercifully give you some time."
In his opinion, these two little brats were already fish on his chopping board, to be slaughtered at will.
As for causing trouble? Don't be ridiculous, they couldn't possibly pose any threat to him.
[Don't be too careless.]
Just then, Hawk Moth's cold mental link abruptly entered the Timetagger's mind.
[Those two children, especially Ladybug, are more cunning than you imagine.]
The Timetagger scoffed disdainfully in his mind.
[You're overthinking it, 'present' Hawk Moth. If these two little brats could trick me, that would truly be a pipe dream.]
He cut off the link, watching Ladybug's upcoming "performance" with interest.
Ladybug took a pen handed to her by little Alix next to her, and quickly wrote and drew some things in the summoned notebook.
Then, she tore off that page and crumpled it into a ball.
"What's the use of doing these things now?"
She sighed as if giving up, then walked over to the weak Bunnyx and helped His up.
"Use your last bit of strength to return to the future!"
Ladybug discreetly slipped the crumpled paper into Bunnyx's hand.
"There's no hope here anymore…"
Although Bunnyx was weak, His consciousness was still clear. His looked at Ladybug's resolute eyes, then squeezed the small paper ball in His hand.
Although His didn't know what the other party intended to do, in this situation, His could only choose to believe.
His used His last bit of strength to open a small "rabbit hole" and stumbled into it.
After doing all this, Ladybug slowly stood up and stood shoulder to shoulder with Cat Noir, as if ready to accept fate's judgment.
"Very good." Timetagger nodded with satisfaction. "Now, it's your turn."
His looked at Ladybug and Cat Noir in front of him and issued the final command.
"Cat Noir, to ensure safety, use your Cataclysm first.
Find a random place and use it up."
His didn't want to be ambushed by that destructive power after getting the miraculous.
"Only then can I confidently hand these two treasures over to the 'future' Hawk Moth."
"Wait!"
The "present" Hawk Moth, far away in his lair, immediately reconnected to Timetagger's mind after hearing this sentence.
"What did you say?! Hand the miraculous to the 'future' Hawk Moth?!"
His voice was filled with incredulous anger, "You should hand them to me!"
Timetagger let out a burst of unrestrained mockery in his mind.
"Hand them to you? Don't be ridiculous, you outdated villain."
"The one who sent me is the 'future' Hawk Moth."
"As for you… you'll soon be eliminated by time."
At the Louvre plaza, time seemed to stretch endlessly at this moment.
When this remark, full of contempt and betrayal, brutally pierced the "present" Hawk Moth's mind through the mental link, the air in that cold lair seemed to instantly drop to freezing point.
Timetagger's arrogant declaration was not just a provocation to a villain, but a complete negation of Gabriel's very existence.
"The future… Hawk Moth… has changed?"
Ladybug and Cat Noir looked at their enemy, who was immersed in the joy of victory, in shock. Their minds struggled to process this sudden and massive piece of information.
They had always thought they were fighting an unchanging evil, but they never expected that even evil itself would "update and replace."
"That's right, you outdated villain."
Timetagger seemed completely unconcerned about revealing more information. His looked at the two shocked young heroes, his smile full of contempt and pity, "He failed.
Although I don't know the specific details, history tells me that in a few years, his era will completely end. And a new Hawk Moth will appear."
His paused, enjoying their expressions of shattered worldviews, and continued, "And I came here under the influence of the new Hawk Moth. All right, question time is over."
His reached out, fingers spread, and grabbed at Ladybug's small, red and black spotted ladybug earrings.
"It's time to hand over your earrings to me!"
At the same time, His gave Cat Noir an unquestionable command: "And you, hurry! Use your Cataclysm!"
However, just as His was about to succeed, just as His thought everything was settled—a new anomaly occurred!
A pure white "rabbit hole" opened behind him without any warning!
"Whoosh—"
A red yo-yo with black spots, like the most precise lasso, flew out of the hole like lightning.
The seemingly soft rope drew a graceful arc in mid-air and, at an incredible angle, tightly wrapped around Timetagger's outstretched arm!
"What?!"
Timetagger was greatly alarmed. A huge pulling force came from behind him, causing his body to stumble suddenly.
Immediately following, another silver metal staff suddenly extended from the "rabbit hole," like a venomous snake striking, accurately hitting the spray gun that served as his weapon on his waist with a "clang"!
"My weapon!"
The spray gun flew out of his hand, tracing a parabola in the air.
Timetagger instinctively wanted to activate his life-saving time reversal ability, to go back a few seconds and regain control of the situation.
However, this time, his unfailing ability sank like a stone in the sea, causing no ripple.
It failed!
"You dare to trick me?!"
A voice filled with extreme anger, like the most vicious curse, exploded directly in his mind.
It was the voice of the "present" Hawk Moth!
"Don't forget, my connection to you proves that the Akuma Butterfly inside you is still under my control! What I can't get, your 'future' master won't get either!"
"You also lost my trump card!"
His was completely enraged.
His had originally thought that this "Timetagger" had traveled from the future, sent by his "future" self to assist him.
His even once believed that something special would happen today, so the fact that the other party had teleported that "trump card"—Jaden—to an unknown past at the beginning must have had some profound plan.
But now, His understood.
The future was not his.
This realization turned all his previous schemes and expectations into a pathetic joke.
Since that was the case, why not… let everything return to its origin!
"Quick! Now!"
In the real world, Ladybug's reminder sounded in time.
"Understood!"
Cat Noir already understood. His rushed forward in a single stride, precisely catching the spray gun before it hit the ground!
"Cataclysm!"
The power of destruction instantly erupted. Amidst the black energy light, the weapon, the source of all chaos, was completely disintegrated into countless tiny particles, dissipating into the air.
A black butterfly flew out in a panic.
"Goodbye, little butterfly."
Ladybug skillfully purified it with her yo-yo and then released it.
As the Akuma Butterfly was purified, Timetagger's strange attire faded away like a tide, revealing his true appearance.
It was a man with short, light reddish-brown hair, meticulously trimmed on the sides. A trace of confusion and bewilderment still lingered on his face.
"Uh… what am I doing…" The adult Chris looked at his hands and then at his surroundings in confusion, completely clueless about the current situation.
When his gaze fell upon the two seemingly unusually "petite" superheroes in front of him, His couldn't help but exclaim in surprise:
"Wow! Ladybug? Cat Noir? You… you're so small!"
In his time, this legendary duo were already mature heroes in their thirties.
"It's time to go home, Chris."
Bunnyx's voice came from the "rabbit hole" behind him.
His walked out and patted Chris on the shoulder.
Chris saw Bunnyx and instantly understood something, a look of annoyance appearing on his face: "Ah… it seems I got Akumatization again, right?"
Ladybug and Cat Noir, upon hearing the name "Chris," though they didn't say anything, immediately connected him to the little kid who always followed Nino.
So this guy was Nino's younger brother!
Just then, from inside the "rabbit hole," a familiar yet unfamiliar female voice, full of mature charm, was heard.
A graceful figure in a red polka-dotted battle suit flickered in and out of view.
"See?"
The voice of the future Ladybug, carrying a calm and confident tone born from weathering many storms, came through, "No matter when, we will always succeed."
With the voice, a hand wearing a red glove reached out from the hole and threw the crumpled paper back, landing in the hand of the "present" Ladybug.
"Wow…" Little Alix exclaimed in genuine admiration as His watched all this unfold.
His finally understood why Big Alix had said that she, an ordinary person, was the key to this event—because His had handed over the pen!
However, His still had a question,
"Um… future Ladybug." Little Alix looked up at Bunnyx and asked curiously, "When did my future self get the miraculous?"
"Hmm…" Bunnyx thought for a moment, then chuckled mischievously, bent down, and pinched Little Alix's cheek.
"When you're as cool as me!"
"Then I'd rather postpone getting the miraculous for a few more decades!"
Little Alix immediately protested, drawing a round of chuckles from everyone.
"Alright, no more fooling around."
Bunnyx straightened up, then grabbed the still somewhat bewildered Chris by the back of his collar.
"I need to take Chris home."
However, at this moment, a clear, elegant, yet undeniably authoritative male voice, like a clap of thunder, resounded over the entire plaza:
"That rabbit can leave."
"But that 'Timetagger'…"
"…must stay."
The moment the words fell, everyone's gaze was involuntarily drawn to the source of the voice—the top of the Louvre pyramid.
There, at some unknown point, a slender figure had silently appeared.
His was dressed in a perfectly tailored, deep blue tuxedo, like the night sky. The collar and cuffs of the tuxedo were embroidered with intricate and elegant peacock feather patterns in gold thread.
Behind him, there was no physical cape, but a slowly opening, giant fan-shaped screen of countless shimmering peacock feather light projections, as if made of stardust, exuding a noble and mysterious aura.
His face was adorned with a meticulously carved peacock feather-shaped mask, the same color as his tuxedo, revealing only his elegantly sculpted jawline and a pair of unfathomable black eyes that seemed to see through everything.
His simply stood there, as if His was the center of the world, and that innate, king-like elegance and intimidation made everyone feel a hint of suffocation.
"Who are you?!" Ladybug immediately adopted a vigilant stance.
Cat Noir also shielded His, his metal staff poised for action.
The mysterious young man did not answer their question.
His gaze merely swept over the future Chris, who was preparing to leave.
"My appearance seems to have surprised you all."
His spoke slowly, his voice not loud, yet it clearly reached everyone's ears.
"Then, allow me to introduce myself."
The corners of his mouth curved into a polite yet distant smile.
"You may call me…"
"…'Peacock'."
"Peacock?!"
Ladybug and Cat Noir's pupils instantly contracted!
Their gaze was fixed on the fan-shaped brooch on the young man's chest!
That shape… they would never mistake it!
That was… the peacock miraculous!
How was that possible?!
A huge question exploded in both their minds simultaneously.
Hadn't that peacock miraculous already been stolen by Hawk Moth?!
Why… why was it on this mysterious man?!
How dare His even use it?!
Was His… not afraid of the terrible side effects?!