In a space resembling the Dewlight Pavilion...
Black Swan, veiled in purple gauze, smiled faintly. Her slender fingers tapped lightly on the table. However, all the cards on the table had been pushed aside. At the center of the table, a phone rested on a stand, playing Fu Xuan and March 7th's companion mission—[Total Recall].
"Trying to recover your mories, huh...?"
"What a sha, Miss March 7th. You don't realize what those mories truly an."
"The mokeepers of the Garden of Recollection would never allow those mories to be made public."
"But..."
"If Yu Ling insists on revealing them, even the Garden might not be able to stop it."
A card in front of her suddenly emitted a faint blue glow. Black Swan flipped it over.
"Hmm, as expected... The ti has co."
---
Astral Express, Observation Car.
Faced with a mirror that had abruptly appeared, Stelle licked her lips and placed her hand on its surface.
The next second, a girl wearing a hood and face covering stepped out from the mirror.
"You're the [ssenger], right?" Stelle asked proactively.
After all, in the ga, she was always the one who guided them into the [Forgotten Hall]. They were practically old acquaintances by now.
Stelle had assud this was just a ga chanic for unlocking high-difficulty challenges, but she never expected the sa thing to appear on the real train.
However...
The girl wasn't as lively and mischievous as she was in the ga, asking things like "Do you wish to enter the Forgotten Hall?"
Instead, her voice was cold as she said, "Apologies, but you'll need to [disappear] for a while."
Stelle was stunned.
"Huh?"
"You're not following the script!?"
Yet, before she could react, a blinding light suddenly flared around her, swiftly engulfing everything...
---
On the other side of the Observation Car...
Pom-Pom, who had been sweeping the floor, abruptly looked up in alarm.
"There's sothing strange on the train, Pom!"
Without wasting a second, the tiny conductor grabbed the broom and dashed toward March 7th and the others, who were engrossed in the ga's story.
But after only two steps, Pom-Pom suddenly froze in place.
"I... What was I about to do again?"
Glancing at the broom on the floor, the conductor mumbled, "Oh right, I need to finish sweeping, Pom..."
The trio imrsed in the story didn't seem to notice anything amiss. Only Welt Yang glanced up at Pom-Pom. Seeing the conductor resu sweeping, he dismissed his concern and returned his attention to the ga.
---
The scene had now shifted to Belobog's Goethe Hotel.
Fu Xuan suddenly asked, "By the way, Miss March, have you ever wondered why your mories are sealed?"
"Sotis, to escape pain, people deliberately erase extre mories."
"Have you noticed? In your mories of the Luofu, everyone you et subtly—or not so subtly—tries to dissuade you from continuing your search."
"It's almost as if your subconscious is speaking to itself. Of course, it's also possible that an external force has interfered with your mind, leaving behind suggestions to prevent you from recalling sothing."
"So I must ask you again—do you truly wish to continue exploring these mories?"
March 7th replied, "If you say my mories might've been tampered with, then isn't that all the more reason to investigate? We can't let whoever sealed my mories get away with it!"
Watching her in-ga self brimming with confidence, March 7th felt she couldn't lose to a fictional version of herself. She silently psyched herself up.
It's just a ga storyline! Besides, I've got Hiko and Mr. Yang with ... Wait, and who else?
Huh? Why am I overthinking this? The priority is finding the source of interference in this scene!
---
Heading to the hotel lobby...
In this scenario, Gepard had taken on the role of a security guard, indicating that the distortion's origin was nearby.
The mory-version of Gepard spoke: "Is there sothing you need, Miss March? If not, please refrain from disturbing security personnel."
"Also, allow to remind you—what's past is past. Dwelling on it is aningless. The only thing we can do is move forward."
March 7th pouted and pressed onward.
At the front desk, the manager had been replaced by a smirking Sampo.
"Long ti no see, March! Welco to Sampo's Grand Hotel!"
"It used to be Goethe Hotel, but now it's mine! Old Goethe was getting on in years, too frail to manage such a big business, so he handed it over to and retired to enjoy his golden years!"
"Now, don't get the wrong idea—there was no shady business involved! Just a smooth transfer between two gentlen, a passing of the torch!"
"See, both Goethe and I chose to embrace the future instead of clinging to the past. You should do the sa, March."
March 7th shook her head.
Aside from the last line feeling a bit forced, the idea of Sampo swindling the Goethe Hotel out from under its owner was totally in character for him.
...Actually kinda makes sense!
However, Sampo wasn't the source of interference in this scene.
---
Approaching Bronya and Seele...
March 7th initiated a conversation with Seele.
"Hey, long ti no see!"
The mory-version of Seele responded: "March 7th? It has been a while... How has everything been since you left Belobog?"
"The Express doesn't look back. It moves ever forward, toward the other end of the cosmos. That's its destiny. Just like us—we can't turn back ti."
"March, don't dwell on the past. It'll only bring you harm. Trust on this."
Fu Xuan couldn't help but interject: "Why is everyone in your mories trying to stop you from rembering? Things are getting stranger by the minute..."
March sighed. "Yeah, it's weird... But we'll figure it out one step at a ti!"
Clear the interference.
[Battle Start!]
Fu Xuan's energy was fully charged. March 7th eagerly tapped her ultimate skill.
Just then, Hiko stood up.
"My coffee should be ready. March, hold on—I'll go grab it."
"Hurry back, Hiko! I'll clear these enemies fast so we can move to the next scene!"
"Don't worry."
Yet, Hiko never returned.
Now, only March 7th and Welt Yang remained, continuing the story. Neither seed to notice the anomalies creeping into the train... nor the fact that their group was shrinking, the air growing colder by the minute.
March 7th scratched her head.
"Mr. Yang, next should be Herta Space Station, right?"
Welt nodded. "Chronologically, yes. The Space Station cos next."
March 7th felt both excitent and nervousness. "I think... this might be the final scene."
"Once we go further back, we'll reach the mories I lost, won't we?"
She touched the Space Station's display, triggering the next cutscene.
[Do Not Look Back]
[March 7th, don't look back. Keep moving forward.]
"Ugh! This prompt again!"
"Wait... why did I say 'again'?"
March 7th suddenly covered her mouth in shock.
"Mr. Yang... did we forget sothing?"
Welt adjusted his glasses, his sharp gaze scanning the carriage.
Pom-Pom had finished cleaning and was now holding a pair of scissors, presumably to trim the potted plants. Nothing seed out of place.
Welt relaxed slightly—until he suddenly tensed again.
"Where are Hiko and Stelle?"
March 7th thought for a mont. "Didn't they say they were tired and went to their rooms?"
"Oh, right."
"Mr. Yang, focus! We're about to reach the Space Station. I'll need your help figuring out the interference source!"
---
What March 7th and Welt Yang didn't know was...
In the Passenger Cabin...
Every windowpane began emitting an eerie blue glow as figures clad in attire similar to the [ssenger] erged from the glass.
In an instant, a group of mokeepers from the Garden of Recollection had assembled.
The lead [ssenger] spoke gravely:
"Everyone, the situation is dire."
"If her past is exposed through that ga... it will unleash an unimaginable [catastrophe]."
"Before things spiral beyond control, we, the mokeepers, must take drastic asures."
To be continued...
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