Chapter 290 Interlude Paradise of the Past: The Death of the Traitor

"Ah-Miss Mei, you look a little tired. Why don't you come here and rest for a while?"

As Mei walked out of the star gate, she heard a lazy but loud voice.

She turned her head and saw Eden leaning against the exquisite sofa, raising a gorgeous wine glass to her.

"Hmm!"

Mei covered her forehead, and felt dizzy from time to time. Her body was too tired to muster any strength, but she was still a little hesitant. The "Paradise" behind her was like a whirlpool full of huge temptations. She voluntarily threw herself into this dangerous whirlpool just to learn more precious truths in the abyss below.

But human power is limited. Even if a Herrscher can survive only by relying on Honkai, he will still feel tired physically and mentally.

"Let's take a break, Miss Mei. You have been exploring the paradise for more than 200 hours without rest."

"Has it been so long..."

In the paradise of the past, Mei could only feel the passage of time, but she didn't know exactly how long it had been.

She thought she had only persisted for two or three days, but it had been almost ten days...

After hesitating for a few seconds, she finally walked slowly to the rest area, sat down next to Eden a little distance away.

But at the same time, her hands on her knees clenched into fists-why couldn't she persist a little longer? Obviously, if she persisted a little longer, I could learn more about the truth, the truth about the so-called betrayer!

"Don't blame yourself for this, Miss Mei."

Mei looked up in astonishment, only to see Eden squinting his eyes drunkenly and smiling at her.

"Eden...how are you..."

"How do I know what you're thinking? Miss Mei, is that what you want to ask?"

"Yeah."

"Hehe..."

Eden chuckled and gently placed the jeweled wine glass on the table, without even making the sound of a hard object colliding.

"First of all, I certainly couldn't have spent the past 50,000 years in a daze. I also learned a lot of psychology from Su and Aponia. Secondly...

"Miss Mei, maybe it's a bit offensive to say this, but the demeanor you show in many cases is very similar to Mikael."

"Mikael? "

The figure reappeared in Mei's mind, and his image was constantly changing. Until now, Mei couldn't determine whether he was on the side of good or evil.

Or, the goal of looking for Mikael - what exactly does this madman want to do? It is one of the reasons why she entered the paradise of the past, although it is not the main reason.

And although Mikael knew this, he still brought her here without any scruples...

"Huh..."

Mei took two deep breaths and reminded herself in her heart:

"All these impressions are of Mikael 50,000 years later. What Eden said should still be him 50,000 years ago... But what happened later that made him become... Well, I think I can probably guess some. "

Eden didn't seem to notice Mei's contemplation. She took out a shiny gem from somewhere and pointed it at the chandelier above her head. In an instant, the light was folded into countless pieces along the facets of the gem.

She said to herself:

"You are all the kind of people who want to do things the best in the shortest time... well, similar to perfectionists. But at the same time, you know very well that you are not perfect...

"Hahaha, I said too much. However, if Mikael saw your situation, he would definitely comfort you like this-"

"Wanting to do the best in the shortest time is one of human instincts. Impetuousness may be included in the bad nature of human beings, but in the final analysis, for you, you are eager to pursue beautiful things, which is not a bad thing. However, pay attention to rest occasionally.

"Or it could be like this: Don't deliberately pursue the so-called final result. The result is not completely meaningless, but it is not the whole meaning. Every road you walk and every footprint you leave determine what you can finally gain, which is something that a solitary result cannot give you. "

This time, it was Eden's turn to stare at Mei in amazement until her cheeks turned red.

"It seems... you have had more contact than I thought."

"Yeah..."

Mei sighed, it was hard not to miss those days.

"Speaking of which, Eden, why does Mikael rarely appear in the memories from your perspective? It seems that after you officially joined the Fire Moth, he rarely had contact with you."

"Huh? Hehe...hahaha!"

Eden suddenly covered his mouth and chuckled, which made Mei feel a little puzzled.

"Maybe, it's because I have a particularly good relationship with Ellie. "

This is a question sentence full of declarative tone. Mei even ended the sentence with a period in her mind. Obviously, Eden knew this fact very well. The question sentence was not so much out of uncertainty as it was a kind of teasing.

But Mei still didn't quite understand the connection between the two.

In response, Eden chuckled twice and asked slowly:

"Miss Mei, if your friend named Kiana saw the photo of Ai Li touching your corner last time, what would she think?"

Mei silently covered her hot cheeks and kept silent.

"What if it's a different situation? If it's Kiana who's teased by Ai Li, how would you feel, Meiyi?"

"It's different, isn't it..."

Meyi still wanted to make a final struggle:

"Kiana and I have a strong trust, and I won't be jealous because of this kind of thing."

"Oh? Doesn't Mikael have this kind of trust in Ai Li?"

"..."

"Besides, even though it's called trust, it still feels a little uncomfortable, right?"

"...Then he..."

"Puchi... Meiyi, boys are like this, sometimes they are so mature that it's scary, but in essence, they seem to never grow up."

"Is that so?"

Meyi fell into deep thought, she felt that what Eden said made sense and was worth pondering.

But the next second, Eden laughed again:

"Hehe, sorry, Mei-san... Well, actually I was just joking before."

"Huh?"

Seeing that Mei still didn't understand, Eden supported his chin with his hand and continued to explain with a chuckle:

"Hehe, Mei-san, if Kiana's intimate partner is not Airy, but that Bronya-san, or Hua-sorry, I'm still used to calling her that. Would you still feel uncomfortable?"

"I think... not."

Mei felt that she had captured something in her thoughts, but she couldn't put it into words.

"In fact, you still can't trust Airy from the bottom of your heart, right? But for Bronya-san and Hua, you regard them as your most precious companions, even family members, so you have a heartfelt trust in them, right?

"That's it-the people who can appear in the paradise of the past are at least the same relationship to Mikael as Bronya-san and Hua are to Mei-san, so what I said just now was just a joke. After all, the atmosphere here is a bit heavy because of the reasons that everyone knows, and I don't want you, Miss Mei, to be infected by this atmosphere. "

"Ah this..."

That's right, after all, Ellie seems to have a close relationship with everyone, and apart from Eden, Apolonia is the same, but I haven't seen Mikael avoiding the latter all day.

"So, what is the relationship that makes Mikael rarely appear in front of you?"

Although I know that this question has nothing to do with what I want to explore, I can't help but the gossip fire in my heart is burning, and I can't stop for a while.

"Logically speaking, Eden, you are the most normal... at least one of the two people who get along best I have seen in the paradise of the past life-the other is Paduo."

In fact, Desdobia is also normal and easy to get along with, but she always sticks with Kosmo. Sakura... Sakura appears too few times. It is said that she will stay in the [hub] of the paradise most of the time-Mei added silently in her heart.

"Hmm? Hahaha, thank you for the compliment, Miss Mei. However, I can't give a clear answer to this question. If I have to say it, maybe Mikael is not very good at dealing with women like me? "

"Is that so? I feel that he...at least among all the male warriors of the Fire Moth, he is very good at communicating with people."

Mei wanted to get to the bottom of it, but looking at Eden's appearance, I'm afraid she can't explain it completely, right?

However, others may be hesitant about other "truths", but you may learn a lot from Eden.

"By the way, Eden, I have some questions about this paradise. Can I ask you directly?"

"Of course."

Eden nodded happily:

"However, the help I can provide to Miss Mei is limited after all. What you really want to know, you still have to rely on yourself to get it."

"I understand. "

Mei nodded vigorously, and Eden took a sip of wine, indicating that Meiyi should ask directly if she had anything to say:

"Eden, I want to know... Which of the two plans for the paradise of the afterlife do I see now?"

In fact, as long as she continues to explore along Sakura's engraving, she will get the answer to this question.

But she still asked it in advance, on the one hand because she really wanted to find the answer urgently, and on the other hand because... she was unsure.

"Hmm? Hehe... Miss Meiyi, you actually have the answer in your mind, right?"

"Indeed."

Mei placed her left hand across her chest, supported her right elbow on it, and held her chin with her right hand.

"Mikael's plan should have succeeded in the end. After all, if it was the [Data World] plan, you should be the creation of data and should not be able to touch me."

Unexpectedly, Eden laughed again, "So Miss Meiyi made her judgment based on this point? ”

Eden can use this to imagine how deep the psychological shadow of Alicia has left on Mei.

“In fact, memory is a very special thing, and its technical threshold is higher than that of the fusion warrior itself. Even if the [Data World] solution is finally adopted, we can also exist in a nearly physical way in the Paradise of the Past. ”

This means that Mei, at least in terms of the conclusion, guessed right.

“But if that’s the case, what’s the meaning of the plan proposed by Mikael? If the meaning of the Paradise of the Past is just to ‘leave proof of existence and light the way forward for successors’ like now, it seems that the first solution is also feasible, right? ”

"That's not something I know. Maybe you can ask Mei? But she may not know clearly."

"Don't you even know Mei?"

What exactly does Mikael want to do?

This problem has almost become a nightmare that plagues Mei Yi all the time.

At first, she could make some rough guesses based on common sense, but the deeper she delved, the more information she mastered, and Mei found that she was gradually lost——

Too much information was like a thick fog blocking her path to seek answers, constantly trying to lead her astray.

What was even more unimaginable to her was that the other "heroes" in the paradise did not have a unified and clear answer to the question of what Mikael was going to do.

Even Mei couldn't explain clearly.

But at the same time, even though they didn't know what Mikael was going to do, they trusted him unreservedly.

This is consistent with the attitude of what they call "family".

but……

As far as she knew, Ying Jie was still active outside, and their attitudes towards Mikael were extremely polarized.

Especially Kevin, whom he had just met not long ago, directly called Mikael "the traitor". It is said that the squad leader's memory loss is also related to Mikael. What on earth is going on?

She moved her lips, wanting to ask this question directly, but something suddenly burst into light in her mind, throwing her question directly to the back.

She failed to grasp the light at the first time. When she came to her senses, another question came out of her mouth:

"Eden, if the Last Paradise is implemented according to Mikael's plan, then Sakura..."

"Huh?"

Eden was probably drunk. She shook her head and her speech was slurred:

"Miss Mei, I'm sorry, did you ask me something just now? Oh, by the way, Miss Mei, you are thirsty after talking so much. Do you want a drink?"

"……I……"

Looking at the wine cup handed to her, Mei Yi hesitated - Eden is a memory, so this wine...

But if that's the case, why can I smell alcohol from so far away?

Mei Yi felt that her thoughts seemed to have taken a big step forward, and she was only one step away from the inspiration that just flashed in her mind. However, Eden's wine cup had already been pushed in front of her, and she didn't know whether to take it or not. Pass.

"Oh Eden! You're drunk again!"

A touch of pink flew from the slanting thorn, which was just the right amount of relief for Mei Yi.

"Eden, you are so partial! What year is this bottle of wine from... Let me think about it... Oops! You shared such a good wine with Mei Yi, but I was left behind!"

Ai Li drank all the wine in the glass, and then continued to complain:

"Besides, Mei Yi isn't old enough to drink yet! Eden, you can't bring up a bad child!"

"hehe……"

In response, Eden just slumped on the back of the sofa, didn't say a word, and just kept chuckling.

"Okay, Eden is drunk again, let her have a good rest... Let's go over there and talk."

Ai Li took Mei Yi's hand and gently pulled her to the empty information room on the other side.

"Don't mind me, Mei. Eden is like this sometimes. He gets drunk while drinking."

Mei Yi frowned secretly, she felt that things were not that simple - it was not so much that Eden was drunk, but rather that she was using drunkenness to avoid Mei Yi's problem.

Why?

Ai Li stood aside, quietly looking at Mei Yi's expression, and then smiled slightly:

"Okay Mei! Don't frown all day long! If you leave traces of wrinkles between your eyebrows, it won't look good!"

"So, Alicia, what happened in the twelfth collapse? Why is it that even Eden keeps it secret from me?"

"well……"

Ellie sighed heavily:

"It would be annoying to break the casserole and ask the truth like this! Mei, you should be glad that you are asking about Eden and not an irritable type like Qianjie or Mebius, otherwise..."

"So what happened?"

Meiyi's curiosity about this originally stopped there, but after being teased like this by Aili, she got out of control.

Or maybe, this is what Ellie wants to see.

"Anyway, it's best not to mention the 12th Honkai Impact to other heroes. Uh-huh! But I'm different. If Mei really wants to know, I can't tell you, but you have to give me some little information. A small reward!”

Her gaze moved up, finally stopping at the corner of Mei Yi's head.

"Alicia, you clearly already..."

"Oh! One time is not enough for this kind of thing!"

"..."

Mei Yi glanced around quickly. The entire Golden Courtyard hall was quiet. Even the two Kleins were not there. I wonder what the heroes and warriors were doing? Velvet's workshop was also quiet and silent, which made it easier for Eden to rest on the sofa opposite...

But... her drunkenness shouldn't be entirely fake, right? She should be asleep now, right?

Mei Yi looked away with a guilty conscience, and by the way confirmed that Ai Li had not done anything inappropriate this time, she finally sighed resignedly:

"You touch it."

…………

"Actually, there is not much I can tell you. There is not much to say about that matter. But the 12th Collapse is indeed an extremely important matter for us and the entire civilization. It is also an unbearable tragedy.”

"Tragedy?"

Mei really wanted to ask this question, but seeing the sad look on the always carefree Ai Li, she wisely chose to press her lips tightly and not make a sound.

“That tragedy, the tragedy of erosion, both the process and the result, showed us the fact that the world cannot be saved.

"For the heroes and warriors, their greatest pain in that incident was not the unbearable sacrifice they witnessed, but the fact that they lost what they were fighting for and the meaning of fighting for it - That's right, it's all of us, not just one person.

"Or, to put it another way, we were abandoned."

After saying this, Ai Li remained silent for a rare moment.

Mei Yi only felt that her corner had been touched in vain.

In terms of universal rationality, Ellie did answer her question, but equally in terms of universal rationality, she answered nothing.

In fact, Mei Yi just asked her a question, and she did answer the question, but it just left a big mystery for Mei Yi.

no!

We can no longer be led by the nose like this!

Be proactive and take the initiative in the conversation!

Meiyi took a deep breath and threw the "bomb" in her hand:

"So, does this matter have something to do with the 'betrayer'?"

"Um?"

Ai Li narrowed her eyes. Almost as soon as Mei said the word "betrayer", Ai Li responded.

"What is a 'betrayer'?"

"...Sure enough, this word doesn't seem to be popular in the promised land."

"Oh? Then you have to pay attention, Meiyi."

Ai Li patted her shoulder, lowered her voice and said seriously:

"Don't mention things outside, especially things about Mikael and Ying Jie, in the paradise! Even if some Ying Jie asks, you'd better pretend you don't know anything."

"Why?"

"Lelele——"

Ai Li's serious expression suddenly disappeared, she stuck out her tongue playfully, and then pointed behind Mei Yi:

"In short, all you need to do is ask him all your questions! Okay, I'll take Eden back first!"

Mei turned her head, and Mikael was standing in the middle of the hall, silently looking at the slowly rotating star gate, as if he was watching the empty light pole of the second floor window with no lights.

Ellie walked up to him in two or two steps, and the two whispered something. Mikael poked Ellie's cheek with his finger. Everything was just like what she saw in her memory.

But in the eyes of a third party, Mei Yi, something seems to be different.

On the one hand, she felt that Mikael almost regarded this Ellie as the real Ellie out of love for others. But at the same time, she felt that this Ally didn't seem to be very important to Mikael.

It is not surprising that these two completely opposite attitudes appear in him at the same time. After all, he seems to be like this towards everything in this world.

Then, Ellie probably mentioned her, and Mikael turned his head like a hawk and stared at her.

"Boom!"

Even though they had looked at each other countless times, Mei Yi could not help but hear her own heartbeat - strangely, this sound was incredibly powerful and loud, as if a drum was being beaten in her ear.

In the blink of an eye, Mikael was already standing in front of him.

"Oh, you actually come to the Paradise of the Past? I heard from Hua that you rarely come here since it was completed."

"If we use the 50,000-year timeline as a reference, I really haven't come much."

Although Mikael's words were plain, Mei always felt that there was some indescribable emotion in them. She once felt that it was sadness or confusion, or simple determination, or all of these mixed together.

In fact, she still can't figure out any of Mikael's thoughts.

But at the moment when Mikael spoke just now, although Mei could not put his thoughts into words, that tone successfully made her think of something——

It's like a messy tidal flat after a flood, like a courtyard that has been deserted for countless years and has been overgrown with weeds and greenery. It also seems like... empty, eternal silver-white rocks hanging in the sky at night, forever indifferent and affectionate. The moon looking at the earth.

Inexplicably, Mei Yi felt a faint fear.

That shouldn't be a reflection of the gap in combat effectiveness, but... forget it...

So even her words became hesitant:

"That...the so-called 'betrayer'..."

"If you think I am, I am."

"..."

Mei Yi was speechless, while Mikael closed his eyes briefly.

When he opened it again, the silver-gray eyes seemed to have regained some vitality, and even his tone had a little more emotion:

"Thunder and Lightning Meiyi, you must have met all the heroes, right?"

"Um."

"Ling has a saying, 'We can't choose how to be born, but we can choose how to die.' Have you heard of it?"

"Um."

"Want to know the death I once envisioned for myself?"

"Uh-huh???"

Meiyi didn't understand why Mikael would talk about these topics out of nowhere.

It was as if he was just chatting with her casually, but these were all he could say.

But soon, Meiyi understood - Mikael's words were not inexplicable, but simply because he needed a receiver to receive his words.

He could choose other heroes, who would naturally understand his language, but perhaps what he wanted was not to be understood.

No matter what Meiyi thought or speculated, Mikael continued to talk to himself:

"I want to split my body into two halves, one half will be crushed and scattered in the universe, and the other half will be buried on the moon, and it must be on the moon, facing the earth. Like this forever."