Super Righteous Player
Chapter 690 - 231: So she was filled with determination_1

Chapter 690: Chapter 231: So she was filled with determination_1

This was a ritual developed by the "People in the Mirror."

It is called the Reflecting Mirror of Friends.

The purpose is to use the mirror as a medium, reflecting everything from the mirror on the other side; and to convey words to the holder of the mirror on the other end... to communicate with distant friends.

It also allows the ceremony holder to block the view in one direction, if they wish.

What the ritual requires is a "Radiant Mirror Surface" made of inorganic material, clean enough.

The left eye Elle gave to Annan was a gem of pure purity—it was also a mirror surface.

When entering the nightmare, Elle had returned to her most perfect state, that is, at the moment when her left eye had not yet left her... In other words, Elle’s left eye existed simultaneously in her own eye and in Annan’s eye.

This is undoubtedly a "predestined" pair of mirrors.

If Elle opens her eyes, everything reflected by the gem in her left eye will be reflected in Annan’s eyes.

Just as the Skeleton Lord once whispered to every Purifier who entered the gallery, "I am listening"... Annan was truly and undeniably "I am watching."

If Annan could use this as a medium to communicate with Elle.

Then this infinite nightmare of eternal recurrence might have an external force intervening.

It is minuscule, yet enough to change the world.

"...But Elle does not want to open her eyes,"

Because she realized it.

If she opens her eyes, this dreamlike "nightmare" might come to an end. She would wake up... and return to a world rife with betrayers.

But...

"Do I really... have the right to refuse?"

Elle looked at the coffee with a bit of worry.

She lowered her eyes, gazing at her own sad right eye reflected in the light brown.

She understood.

About the conversation on the Dragon Well tea and Selicia... this nightmare that always cycles through the same day, where only one person remembers everything.

Living here would indeed be immensely blissful.

--A safe, thoughtless life without any pressure.

Not dramatic, but sufficiently stable and quietly happy.

It was the life Elle had once longed for in her past... yet never possessed.

As long as she gives up all hope, all resistance, she could melt into it, enjoying a life of infinite repetition that can still feel novel—even the one who must remember everything can ignore it.

If that person also abandons this mission.

Then this "Authority of Memory" will not stay with him for too long—if there are multiple people alive at the end, only one will have the authority to retain memories.

Indeed, Elle deeply longed for such a life.

To live a whole day fulfilled and joyful.

Fears she does not wish to see, experiences she does not want to go through, will eventually become an unreachable "future."

No need to regret the past, nor worry about the future, enjoy a stable "present" with an empty mind.

But at the moment she understood the nightmare.

A spark of pity suddenly arose in Elle’s heart...

Even she herself was surprised by it.

--For it was pity for the Eternal Duke.

The Country of Giants in the past... must have been like this too, right?

All giants could live carefree and relaxed. Since there was no fear of death, the lifestyle of "sacrificing the present for the future" lost its meaning.

Without striving to live as long as possible, there was no need to focus on health and retirement—therefore, there was no worry about lifestyle choices and maintaining a family. What followed was freedom at work, then a lax approach to learning, and the waste of a great deal of time.

In other words.

--All the giants chose to abandon thinking.

But if everyone does this, the country cannot be maintained. The nightmare can only remain on the same day, but reality cannot be like this—it is inevitable that some will have to pay the price for the tranquility of others.

Just like in a lab group, there are always a lot of people slacking off, and one who does the work. This "slowest, most hesitant person" often pays the price for the laziness of others.

When all giants give up thinking.

The Eternal Duke becomes the only "brain."

Others can choose to die peacefully when they can’t live on anymore. No need to care for the emotions of others, to raise the elderly or children, because everything will be taken care of by the "Eternal Duke."

...What happened in the Eternal Principality in the past, how similar is it to the current nightmare?

The difference is that now the one "bearing the memories of everyone" still has the power to forget—he can choose to do nothing and comfortably get through the day.

When the countdown ends, he can forget all his worries and return to the very beginning.

If this entire Otherworld is envisioned as a "heaven after death," then indeed it is unusually sweet.

But the problem is... it seems that only oneself truly wants to continue it.

Elle looked worriedly at the Dragon Well tea and Selicia on one side.

Their adaptation to their current life was by no means false.

...Yet they didn’t seem to be greedy for it either.

Elle held great admiration for them.

Even with such a beautiful, carefree life, they were able to deny it as "false" by their own will, and detach themselves without any attachment.

But Elle just couldn’t do it.

She coveted the warm sunlight, the fragrant, expensive drinks, the soft, sweet cakes... She also coveted the joy of solving puzzles with her companions and the relaxed, happy smiles on everyone’s faces in the streets.

"God..."

Elle sighed softly—she worried that her sigh would cause her companions to worry about her.

...Who can tell me?

Was this nightmare really born because of me?

Is this Phantom Dream solely for me, trapping others in it as well?

This nightmare that only repeats on this one day... Is it really just because I don’t want to enter the second day, to meet my mother?

The me who is enjoying all this...

Aren’t I no different from the giants of the Eternal Principality?

[Elle, open your eyes.]

A deep, gentle voice echoed in Elle’s heart.

She knew whose voice it was... It was Annan’s voice.

In the place where she died, where she was reborn—she had met that person.

Even among the many successful Cleanse gallery goers, he was the one who brought Elle to her knees in admiration. She admired the light in him... The confidence to walk forward without hesitation on any path.

But at that moment, it was the voice that Elle feared.

If the person who caused this nightmare to be born, the one who imprisoned so many innocent people in the nightmare, was herself.

Then... would Annan blame her and berate her?

But she actually preferred to be scolded. That way, she could snap out of it and charge forward with courage, following the other’s rebukes.

Elle knew very well that she was a very weak person. So weak that she must be driven by someone else to dare to act.

Because deep down, she didn’t want to hurt anyone... She didn’t even want to disagree with anyone. Twisting others’ wishes with her own will... that was truly hard to accept.

But it would be better if she considered herself a tool.

If she could give up thinking, give up worrying, and just act according to others’ wills...

[Elle, indeed I could open your eyes directly, I could even control your body to take action.]

Annan seemed to hear her voice and continued in a low tone at the bottom of her heart.

[But you must open your eyes by your own will.]

Elle was stunned.

And Annan’s voice still arose in her heart:

[I know what you are worried about.]

[But if you always dare not face your fears about the future and making choices, if you’re just drifting with the tide... then what difference does it make for you, whether in this nightmare or in reality?]

"Having the privilege to not fret about the future, about life, about reality and ideals, and to enjoy the present moment wholeheartedly, living for today... that’s the privilege of a child."

Annan said in a gentle tone beside her ear, "You need to grow up, Elle. Take responsibility for the consequences of every action, every choice you make.

"Not as someone’s dream heir, nor as a proxy for the will of others. You will pay the price for your choices—and they may be frightening to face, they may cause you pain to the point of averting your eyes.

"But that is the only way."

Those were harsh words.

Not from deep within, but resoundingly clear from beside her ear.

It was like an invisible giant hand, plucking Elle out of a world of childlike innocence and goodness—

"...No, actually, I’ve known all along."

Elle murmured, "It’s just... I always wanted to pretend I didn’t understand any of it."

She always hoped she was still a child, hoped her life could stay forever at thirteen.

But that was impossible.

—The "girl" Elle had long since died.

She calmly gazed at the coffee.

She stared at her own eyes reflected in the light brown reflection.

She had already opened her eyes by the time of Annan’s second sentence.

"I’m ready."

She whispered.

And so she was filled with determination.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.