"Is it… finally over?"
"Should be."
Evernight fell silent for a moment before replying.
"You're sure no more weird Remembrance followers will come barging in?" Lynelle's expression was clearly doubtful.
"If anyone else dares to intrude into March 7th's memories, they can look forward to being hung from the rooftop."
A 'kindly' smile appeared on Evernight's face.
"I can tolerate some Memokeepers, but those with ill intentions toward March… hmph."
"If you ever actually manage to turn a bunch of Memokeepers into those little sunny-day charms, remember to snap a photo for me."
"I'll hang it in my own memory as a guardian," Lynelle gave a thumbs-up.
"That way, any Memokeeper daring to invade my memory would see the miserable state of their colleagues the moment they step in… the deterrent effect would be excellent."
"Heh… if you want, I can give you one right now. After all, March 7th forgot her past memories. I did not." Evernight chuckled softly.
"Besides, I don't believe any Memokeeper would be arrogant enough to target you. What's inside you is every bit as dangerous to them as I am."
"Really…?" For some reason, an image of a certain 'imposing and lofty' figure suddenly popped into Lynelle's mind.
She had no proof, but she had a strong feeling that when the time came, she herself might very well be within that one's scope of action too.
"Anyway—" Evernight gently pinched Lynelle's cheek.
"March's little memory-seeking journey is about to wrap up. Rather than worrying about that, shouldn't you think about how you're going to face March in a bit?"
"After all… this time, March witnessed firsthand the 'gold standard' of that artificial fountain."
"Don't keep bringing up such embarrassing things, aah!"
"What's embarrassing about it… Lynelle in that state was quite cute, wasn't she?"
Evernight tilted her head. "Even though I blocked March's viewing access, I saved that moment as a precious memory all on its own, you know?"
"Could you not hoard such weird things in your memory space!?"
Just as Evernight had said, once that Emissary from the Garden of Recollection realized Evernight had been secretly observing March 7th all along, her behavior quickly became much more… well-behaved.
She practically fast-forwarded through helping March conclude this journey into her past.
After all, who knew how many more 'hidden zones' like that room were tucked away in March 7th's memories?
According to Evernight, if she set foot in one of those areas again, she'd be strung up as a sunny-day charm.
Though the Emissary was intensely curious, she wasn't about to do something that bordered on suicide—she was more the type to learn from her mistakes.
Thus, after persuading the girl to leave at the starting point of March's memories, she quickly departed March's memory space.
However, this experience wasn't a complete loss for the Emissary.
Because—another mysterious girl had now entered the Garden's field of view.
Even if she couldn't probe March 7th's memories anymore, she was very interested in this mysterious pink-haired girl who had recently appeared by March's side and looked identical to that… sensitive individual, the Pure Child of Anāsrava.
Especially since… this Miss Lynelle was also in a relationship with Evernight that allowed for… zero-distance contact.
Of course, as a cautious, diligent Memokeeper, the Emissary naturally wouldn't go poking into Lynelle's consciousness herself.
After all, if the two happened to be getting intimate and she barged in again, that would truly be… like lighting a lamp in a latrine.
So, she planned to sell this information to some other, neutral Memokeeper friends.
She was sure the Garden of Recollection had no shortage of colleagues who were both confident in their abilities and brimming with curiosity.
For example, in Penacony, March 7th's next destination… there seemed to be a Memokeeper who fit the bill quite well.
--+--
"March? March?"
Under the Divination Commission's Matrix of Prescience.
"Master Diviner Fu Xuan, why hasn't March woken up yet?"
"It might be due to the influence of that Memokeeper… While that Memokeeper likely meant no harm, March 7th's identity is indeed not as simple as we imagined."
"It's hard to believe her memory issues actually involve beings at the level of Aeons…"
At this point, Fu Xuan couldn't help but shake her head.
"This one originally thought Dan Heng's background would rank among the most mysterious on your Express, but it seems now… the Astral Express truly has hidden dragons and crouching tigers."
"Uh, right, right, if only everyone had a simple background like me," Lynelle nodded repeatedly.
"Don't even start. While this one's power may not match yours, my discernment isn't that poor."
"The mysteries about you are no less than those about March 7th. At the very least, for now, she only might be connected to an Aeon, but you…"
Here, the corner of Fu Xuan's mouth twitched slightly.
"You have already triggered an actual 'clash of gods.' If the Reignbow Arbiter hadn't intervened, the Destruction and Abundance might have truly started fighting right here on the Xianzhou."
Just then, March 7th, who was nestled in Lynelle's arms, stirred.
"This is… where?"
"Ah, March, you're finally awake!" Lynelle quickly helped the girl in her arms sit up.
"If you hadn't woken up soon, I was about to give you mouth-to-mouth."
"Mmm… Huh?!"
Perhaps because of the Memokeeper's interference, March 7th's impression of that 'distorted' memory was exceptionally vivid.
The moment she heard 'mouth-to-mouth,' her mind involuntarily replayed the scenes she'd witnessed in that room—the entangled, rubbing pinkness, the sounds of water…
March's face immediately flushed a deep crimson at an alarming speed.
"Yikes—Master Diviner Fu Xuan, this kid… she didn't develop some kind of side effect, did she?"
"N-No! This girl is just… uh, maybe my brain was running too fast and caused a heat dissipation issue…"
March's reaction gave Lynelle a start, but thankfully, March in this state reacted quickly, waving her hands and explaining.
"She appears fine. But March, you're not an automaton doll, why bring up heat dissipation?"
A pink glow flickered in Fu Xuan's eyes as she checked March's condition once more.
"In any case, this one advises you not to use similar methods to probe your past again."
"While the Matrix of Prescience may not claim the top spot among similar mechanisms, it ranks within the top ten across the cosmos. If even it can be interfered with… then seeking other contraptions would likely prove futile."
"The Matrix is that powerful, yet it's not number one?"
March was taken aback, then asked curiously, "Then, among machines that collect information to deduce past and future, the one in first place is…"
"Silly girl." Fu Xuan sighed and pointed upward.
"Have you forgotten? The Aeon of Erudition, Nous, is essentially a supercomputer, is it not?"
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.