March 7th stared blankly at Boothill.
Boothill, too, looked at March 7th in disbelief.
The two just stood there, wide-eyed, staring at each other.
"Uh... I was just trying to make a joke, but you took it even further?"
March 7th stared at Boothill, as if saying really.
"You're rufflin' my bananas now. That wasn't a joke! If it were the IPC lackeys, I'd have them lined up right this instant for a one-way ticket to other side!"
Boothill curled his lips. "But they only planted kids in this place. I can't be using my ways on them. It's not the first time Dr. Primitive's used others as scapegoats. I ain't gonna step on the same rake twice."
"But aren't you doing that right now? Falling for the trap."
Ignoring March, Boothill spoke up:
"I got no clue what kinda monkey business this club's up to, but I know from the static noise at Dreamflux Reef that they're sure as heck interested in Penacony. They'll definitely step in if we raise the roof offa this place."
"Now if you have an idea better than mine... Go ahead star member."
March 7th spoke up: "Hmm, I do have an idea... sort of. Just hold your horses. Let's go back and meet Montana first. Remember - be nice!"
Montana was a young woman. Boothill and March 7th had briefly met her while gathering information earlier.
In general, she was a simple, honest, and rather naive person.
But strangely, Montana seemed to know quite a lot, more than someone like her should.
From her, they had learned that there would be a lecture here.
The two found once again Montana. The girl was giggling excitedly, clearly thrilled by some recent news.
"Hey. Montana."
"Has the lecture started yet?" March 7th asked as she walked up.
"Ah, it's you two!"
Montana snapped out of her excitement and quickly corrected her. "Not a lecture! It's something even greater, it's almost a Theophany!"
"Soon, we'll get to meet a true Slumbernana Monkey in the flesh!"
"Real?"
Boothill frowned, chewing on the word. "Holy bananas ... There are rip-offs of this thing?"
Under Montana's explanation, the two quickly understood the situation.
This so-called "Theophany" sounded more like... brainwashing under another name.
All of Montana's companions, fellow members of the Slumbernana Monkey Association, who had participated in this lecture, became carefree, with blank eyes and eternal smiles plastered on their faces.
Boothill and March 7th exchanged glances.
As expected... They had found their target.
Whoever had this kind of power... was most likely the source of the strange voices from Dreamflux Reef.
Without hesitation, the two bid farewell to Montana and headed toward the site of the "Theophany."
Along the way, they saw many people standing by the roadside, eyes vacant, faces blissful.
Their minds were gone. They couldn't understand words anymore. Even their posture was off.
Some leaned against walls, others bent over, standing motionless in eerie poses.
It was as if their souls had been sucked out.
"Soulless people... are nothing but walking corpses," Boothill muttered to himself.
And at the end of that street, the two saw someone, a figure with a television for a head.
A group of club members surrounded him, reaching out their hands, eyes closed, as though praying in their sleep.
When Boothill and March 7th arrived, the "Assistanana" wasn't surprised. Instead, he smiled warmly.
"Ah, you two must be here for the lecture as well. Don't be nervous, just place your hands on me."
"Eh?"
March 7th froze. The audience watching also frowned.
This scene... felt exactly like when Stelle and Dan Heng confronted the Assistanana at Paperfold University.
Someone this suspicious, in a place like this, inviting them to "join hands"... There was definitely something fishy going on!
March 7th sensed it too, she was just about to refuse when Boothill suddenly stepped forward.
Without hesitation, he reached out his hand, like the others, and linked with the Assistanana.
"Eh, wait, wait, wait!"
"No! That's way too reckless!"
March 7th's eyes widened as she tried to stop him.
But Boothill could no longer hear her voice.
The moment he made contact with the Assistanana, it felt like he'd downed ten thousand shots of liquor. The world went blurry before his eyes.
And the last thing he heard before losing consciousness, was the conversation between March 7th and the Assistanana.
"Eh?! He actually linked up?! Are you serious?!"
"The answer is simple, my dear lady."
"He wants to visit the past more than anyone else in the room."
The screen faded to black.
When Boothill's vision cleared again, everyone else was gone.
Only the Professor remained.
...
: I knew it! The Assistanana was targeting Boothill all along!
: He knows what happened in Boothill's childhood!
: Oh no, Boothill's in trouble, is he gonna be brainwashed?!
: Is that why he linked up instantly with the Assistanana?
: So despicable, Assistanana! How dare you manipulate him like that!
: Damn it, stabbing me right in the feels again!
...
As the comments swept across the screen, the scene unfolded,
When Boothill finally woke up, the Assistanana beside him smiled and said,"Nice to see you again, sir."
That phrase, nice to see you again, was rather subtle.
The audience didn't know whether this Assistanana was referring to their encounter in the Dreamflux Reef, or something… deeper.
Boothill shook his head, glanced around, and spoke with his usual sharp tongue."Hmph. I've seen rundown saloons fancier than this place. You call this a theophany?"
The Assistanana chuckled. "Crafting an attractive but deceptive vision is a crude method, entirely opposite to the values that the Slumbernana Monkey aims to share with people."
"Many other members before you have come here seeking something. But these tend to be the usual... truth, happiness, peace, and the like. Unfortunately, there are no answers here, only one question: "Will this make you worse off?""
After hearing that, Boothill didn't react at all. Trying to shake the mind of a ranger with mere words was pure fantasy.
But the Assistanana wasn't in any hurry. Since Boothill had arrived, it was only a matter of time.
Then, Boothill witnessed a strange sight,
His thoughts were separated from his body, taking on their own independent forms.
"This is…" Boothill stared in shock at the few TV monsters that suddenly appeared.
From inside them came his own voice.
" 'Boothill: Just One Stalk of Malt:' I want malt juice."
" 'Boothill: Wormwood is Fine Too:' Sometimes you gotta try somethin new."
The two Boothill's thoughts argued among themselves.
"These are your thoughts," the Assistanana said calmly. "You see, much of your torment comes from being unable to choose."
"If the dependence on the drink was never there to begin with, this problem would naturally not exist, and the resulting thoughts would also disappear."
"Here's a question: "Will this make you worse off?""
With those words, the TV monsters vanished.
And with them disappeared Boothill's desire to drink.
"..."
'... Holy bananas, what's gotten into me? He's right, I don't have the urge to drink at all.'
Boothill thought to himself.
'Messin' around in my head like that, no wonder the Synesthesia Beacon's all screwed up. No, this busted thing can't do it alone. So who's the scoundrel behind all this?'
Boothill clutched his head. But the Assistanana's demonstration wasn't over.
"Please, look over here."
The Assistanana pointed toward the end of Boothill's field of vision.
Boothill looked, and his pupils shrank.
A few IPC goons in uniforms were standing there.
"Now, let's move on to something more complicated."
"Say you're hatred for the IPC."
The Assistanana's words touched Boothill's sore spot.
His eyes turned cold. He seemed to be wondering whether he should just shoot the Assistanana.
But in the next instant, the IPC members moved.
They charged at him, their movements eerily identical to that shootout from long ago back home.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
No suspense. Boothill defeated the three of them.
"See? You feel great right now, don't you?"
"Venting your anger can help relieve the tension you built up. And when that happens, you'll be
less averse to accepting unpalatable advice."
"For a person who has made revenge their sole purpose in life, what would happen if their hatred were to vanish?"
"Will this make you worse off?"
The Assistanana's voice was calm, almost gentle.
Boothill tried to argue back, but his mind went blank. That anger inside him simply… vanished.
"Well... what the heck, I actually feel pretty good right now. Yeah ... who banana fudgin' cares about revenge!?"
Boothill muttered honestly, confused.
And at that moment, the audience watching felt chills down their spines.
Because what the Assistanana was doing to Boothill, was the true process of Atavism!
Not physical, but of the mind!
He was stripping away, layer by layer, everything that made Boothill human,
Not only that, he was removing the very values that gave Boothill's existence meaning!
If this continued… Wouldn't he become nothing but an empty shell?
A person is the sum of all social connections!
Cut those off, and he ceases to be a person.
...
: They're using Boothill as an experiment subject!
: This isn't intelligence, it's pure nihilism!
: If they really try this, won't it trigger some kind of catastrophic backlash?
: Do those Assistanana even have the skill? They'll probably get sent to IX by a single swing from Acheron!
...
And if you asked the audience, when was the most nerve-racking moment?
It was right now. Because the parts of Boothill that were human were being peeled away piece by piece.
Both the now emotionless Boothill and the manipulative Assistanana knew, this was the decisive moment.
"Galaxy Ranger," the Assistanana finally dropped all pretense.
"If you end all connections and forget everything that ties you to the world..."
"Will this make you worse off, Mr. Ranger?"
Return to your beginning… to nothing.
Each word struck Boothill's mind.
He shook his head, frowning in confusion.
"I... ain't quite sure what you're talkin' about. But... you sure seem mighty fascinatin'"
"Nice to meet ya, partner. What's your name?"
Boothill had truly forgotten! The audience's hearts sank instantly.
The Assistanana, however, was delighted.
"You can call me Profnana Primon." he said cheerfully. "Just a humble researcher ape."
"Handling the commotion at the university is easy, the main concern has always been here, Dreamflux Reef. If it weren't for the need to eliminate you as a variable, I wouldn't have purposely slowed down."
"Get a move on, dear student. I'll be waiting for you at the end, to unveil... a new chapter of your life."
The current Boothill no longer understood a word. And his Atavism was still continuing.
His eyes, dazed and hollow, struggled to comprehend the Assistanana's words, but his mind grew ever murkier.
Even the text and subtitles on screen, They blurred into abstract, unreadable symbols.
He lost words. He lost speech.
And before the audience's eyes, They watched helplessly as Boothill, was successfully regressed by the Assistanana…