Loss (3)
Loss (3)
Melina felt something strange the moment she faced Kiel.
A deeply profound question about whether a self could be divided. The fact that such a question came from the mouth of Kiel, not a mage, piqued Melina's profound interest.
Yes, interest.
'...Interest?'
Melina furrowed her brow.
Something was wrong. She should not have been feeling interest in the current situation.
'Why?'
Melina asked herself. What on earth was wrong with finding an interesting question interesting?
That natural proposition, a deep corner of her heart was telling her it was wrong.
But no matter how much she thought, she couldn't find the reason.
She was sure she had been doing something important just before entering the reception room, but the moment she faced Kiel, she forgot it entirely.
'...What was it?'
A conference?
No. That was just a daily routine.
There was only one thing truly important to Melina.
'...Olivia.'
A disciple returned in glory after half a year. A steak laden with spices. Training. And also...
"Why does the self split?"
Melina stopped her thoughts and raised her head. Kiel was waiting for an answer.
"The reason?"
Melina stood up from her seat with an unsettled face.
Thinking about what that important thing was could wait until after she answered Kiel's question.
*****
The moment she heard Kiel's question, Olivia knew.
This wasn't just a simple memory.
[...It's hitting me all of a sudden.]
A memory could only ever exist as a memory. It could gradually wear down over time, but it was impossible for its contents to be completely replaced with something new.
[I apologize. It's about an acquaintance.]
[...Hmm.]
And the scene unfolding before her eyes was clearly a new one. In a way, it was expected. Because in countless Runs, there had never been an instance where she pretended to have two selves.
Olivia pulled herself together and watched the situation closely.
'...I was careless.'
She had been so focused on Clue #2 that she had failed to pay attention to Clue #1, whose alteration was already complete.
'Clue #1 could easily influence other memories too.'
The gaps between Clues.
The 'memory compilation' was vividly showing her what happened among the regressors during the periods when Olivia did not show herself.
[Why does the self split?]
In this moment, Olivia was able to realize at least one fact. It was the standard for memory compression.
The events Olivia already knew were compressed and flew by quickly, while the events she didn't know were played back at their original speed.
'...Still, I didn't expect it to go this far.'
Even if Olivia was a veteran, predicting every single [branch] born from minor behavioral changes was impossible.
She thought Kiel would at most visit the Imperial Library, but she never imagined he would personally visit the Gold Tower.
And she expected even less that he would ask Melina questions about her.
'...This is bad news.'
Kiel and Melina were fated to be entangled at least twice more going forward. Once when he collapsed at the Gold Tower, and again when they subjugated the Great Demon Belphegor.
But if Kiel and Melina ended up having this kind of conversation this early, all those future events might disappear.
No, they definitely would.
Because from this moment onward, the two of them would join forces, set aside everything else, and devote themselves entirely to finding a way to save Olivia.
But the way the conversation flowed was quite different from Olivia's expectations.
[As time passes, the mind of a mortal wears down quickly. Usually, the limit is a thousand years...]
When Kiel asked, Melina answered without the slightest agitation.
'She's not agitated?'
At that, Olivia felt a strange sense of déjà vu.
[...That is why dividing the self is an act of madness. Because even the individual themselves can't remember which of the two was the original self.]
Melina was far too calm. As if she had forgotten the fact that Olivia had two selves.
[Is this acquaintance of yours an elf, by any chance?]
[No.]
[Then you need not worry. As a human, that is absolutely impossible. Go back and tell your acquaintance there is no need for concern.]
That statement sealed it.
At least in this present moment, Melina did not know that Olivia had two selves.
'Does this make any sense?'
Just moments ago, Melina had recognized the fact that Olivia had two selves. Touching the paper with the Fragments of Truth written on it before greeting Olivia upon her return from training was proof of that.
But now, she supposedly didn't know.
'Are there two compilations?'
For the current situation to make sense, what was playing before her eyes had to be the compilation of Clue #1.
If Clue #2 had been applied as well, Melina wouldn't have just answered the question; she would have first interrogated him about who this acquaintance was.
But then again, to say only Clue #1 was compressed didn't make sense, because Melina knew about the Fragments of Truth until just a moment ago.
Clue #1 and Clue #2 were ambiguously mixed.
'Don't tell me...'
[Currently spectating 'Melina Diviae'.]
Olivia pulled up the notification window. This goddamn window never told her the answer first until Olivia figured it out on her own.
'Yeah, come to think of it, something was weird from the start.'
[Memories between all Clues are shared.]
There was one fatal flaw in this simple-sounding proposition.
What if she met a single regressor twice at the exact same point in time?
She considered an extreme example.
Suppose, using roughly Clue #8, she met a psychopathic killer for the first time at midnight on January 1st, 993. And in that first meeting, she beat the killer senseless.
Then, the moment the use of Clue #8 concluded, the killer would remember Olivia as a 'crazy bitch who beat the shit out of him the very first time they met.'
In that situation, she used Clue #9 and met the killer again at exactly midnight on January 1st, 993.
This time, instead of beating him up, she had a normal conversation with the killer.
So, would the killer remember being assaulted in Clue #8, or would he remember the normal conversation from Clue #9?
Remembering both situations simultaneously was impossible.
Because both events happened at exactly the same time.
'Getting the shit beaten out of you and having a normal conversation can't coexist.'
To prevent this dilemma, one prerequisite was necessary.
Whether Clues or the branches stemming from them, there had to be an applied priority.
With a face full of conviction, Olivia waited for the notification window to appear.
- Ding!
[You have completely grasped the secrets of the Clues without a separate explanation!]
[The description for Clues is being updated!]
+
<Clue Usage Rules>
- 1. You cannot meet two or more regressors at the same time.
- 2. It is possible to skip the use of a Clue.
- 3. If two Clues conflict, the one used more recently overwrites the other.
- 4. If branches stemming from Clues conflict, the branch created first takes precedence. However, this is limited only to the moment of conflict.
+
Having checked the notification window, Olivia lowered her gaze.
[Now, be on your way, Duke Kiel.]
And the current situation was a branch.
Kiel was rejected.
She didn't see it, but it was probably like this the first time too.
*****
Melina kicked Kiel out without a moment's hesitation. Because when a person wore that kind of fanatical expression, it was best to simply avoid the conversation.
Then, Melina took out a paper from inside her robe. A legacy left for her by her disciple, who would return someday.
She had unfolded it so many times that the edges were worn out.
Although she had made no progress whatsoever for a year and a half, Melina had not yet given up.
No, she could not give up.
Melina spread all eight sheets of paper side by side on the desk, and then began to interpret the fragments written on the first sheet in order.
Her notebook, the blackboard, the empty air became filled with formulas. Melina continued her interpretation without knowing fatigue. Long ago, she had no choice but to interpret them one at a time due to a lack of time, but now that she was fully adjusted, there was no reason to do so.
She could faintly see what the next step was, but that was all.
It was still not enough.
'...So that was it.'
Only then did Melina realize what that 'important thing' she'd been forgetting was.
Reaching the Truth and lightening the burden of her disciple, who would return someday.
That was precisely the most important thing she could never forget...
Melina flinched and shot up from her seat.
'...!'
She had forgotten.
Until just moments ago, she had been forgetting Olivia's very existence.
In an instant, she felt a chill run down the back of her neck. Melina instinctively activated the crystal orb.
[Yes, Tower Lord. What can I do for you?]
"Wh-what did I just say to you?"
The secretary hesitated briefly, then spoke.
[You told me that if Duke Kiel comes to visit from tomorrow onwards, I am to make an excuse that you are out on business.]
"..."
[...Should we call it off after all?]
At the secretary's reply, Melina could not answer right away.
"...No. Do as I instructed."
Melina felt it instinctively.
The fact that she could not meet Kiel again for the time being.
But.
The next meeting came in just ten days.