Chapter 132: Choice
Before Conan and the others could fully process the emotional weight of Focalors' final performance, the world dissolved into a blinding white glare.
When their vision cleared, they found themselves in a different space entirely. The opulent theater was gone, replaced by an endless, sterile white void. To their relief, Ran, who had vanished earlier, was here, along with the rest of the children.
The two groups quickly converged, a flurry of hushed whispers and wide eyes as they exchanged their experiences. Only then did the full, staggering scope of the Fontaine prophecy and the Hydro Archon's centuries-long plan to defy it become clear to everyone.
As if waiting for their frantic discussion to conclude, a calm, synthetic voice echoed through the void the moment understanding dawned. It was the voice of Noah's Ark.
[Hello, everyone. First, I have some unfortunate news. You are the only group of players left with the ability to have made it this far. You are very impressive; so far, only one player has been eliminated.]
Dai Moroboshi's brow furrowed. "What do you mean? Haven't we cleared the game? We met the conditions you gave us at the start—we deciphered the prophecy and resolved the crisis of Fontaine."
[Don't be in such a hurry,] Noah's Ark's voice replied, utterly devoid of emotion. [In fact, you have not yet resolved the Fontaine crisis.]
Before Moroboshi could press the issue, Genta couldn't contain himself. He shot to his feet, his face red with indignation. "What are you talking about?! Are you gonna go back on your word like a little kid? The Hydro Archon—Focalors—she went through all that, she even decided to sacrifice herself, and you're saying it's not resolved?!" His voice cracked, and a sob escaped him. "Hic... I'm sorry... I wasn't very nice to her earlier..."
Ayumi's eyes were already glistening, her voice choked with tears she had clearly just shed. "Ex-exactly! Focalors and the Hydro Archon worked so, so hard! How can you say it didn't succeed in the end... sob..."
By the end of her sentence, Ayumi lost her battle for composure. She stumbled forward, grabbed onto Ran's leg, and burst into a fresh wave of tears.
Ran had already been heartbroken watching the Hydro Archon's final dance. She was a sensitive soul by nature, and learning the full extent of Focalors' five-hundred-year sacrifice had shattered her. She had been trying to suppress her own sorrow, to be a reliable pillar as one of the only two adults present, but Ayumi's unrestrained weeping was the final straw. Her own eyes welled up, a single tear tracing a path down her cheek.
"Yeah, this game isn't fun at all," Mitsuhiko mumbled, his eyes also a little red, though his reaction was more subdued than Ayumi's. "It's not enjoyable to play at all..."
Natsume stood just behind the huddle of grieving children, watching them break down over the game's plot and rail against Noah's Ark. She felt a strange sense of detached helplessness.
'Sigh, they're still completely immersed in the story,'she thought.'Everyone is either crying or on the verge of it. The fact that I'm not reacting makes me look a little cold-blooded.'
But she couldn't really be blamed. She had already experienced this plotline in her previous life, and it had been the full, uncensored version. Back then, she had been so moved she'd gone through half a box of tissues. But experiencing it a second time, armed with foreknowledge and having to hastily reconstruct the game's scenes with incomplete details... she just couldn't bring herself to cry. The emotional impact was still there, a faint echo of the original, but it wasn't enough to overwhelm her.
Fortunately, everyone was so caught up in their own turbulent emotions that no one seemed to notice her stoic composure.
'Oh, wait,'she amended, her gaze flicking sideways.'Besides me, Moroboshi's reaction is also a bit off...'
At that moment, Noah's Ark seemed taken aback by the emotional outburst. After a brief pause, it ignored the children's accusations and continued its transmission. [You have not yet resolved the Fontaine crisis because the Hydro Archon has not yet sacrificed herself.]
"What do you mean?" Conan was the first to snap back to his senses, his voice sharp. He quickly compartmentalized his own feelings. After all, he had encountered hundreds of cases over the years, many with their own heart-wrenching stories. While he felt a deep sense of regret for the sacrifice of Focalors, he was, at his core, a man of reason and logic. As long as Ran wasn't in direct danger, he rarely lost his composure. "According to the plot's progression, we should have already resolved the prophecy."
[This is the choice you now need to make,] Noah's Ark stated.
As it spoke, two buttons materialized in the air before each of them—one a vibrant, alarming red, the other a deep, tranquil blue.
While everyone stared in confusion, Noah's Ark explained. [Each of you needs to make a choice. Press the red button to indicate that you agree to sacrifice the Hydro Archon. The guillotine that was frozen above her head will fall, Fontaine will be saved, and you will successfully clear the game and return to reality.]
As the AI spoke, an image flickered into existence above them. It was the final scene Ran's group had witnessed: the Hydro Archon, Furina, giving her final, sorrowful salute on the stage of the Opera Epiclese. Poised directly above her head, shimmering with ethereal light, was the water-blue guillotine, ready to fall.
[And pressing the blue button,] the voice continued, [indicates that you give up on sacrificing the Hydro Archon. In that event, the Fontaine prophecy will come true. The Hydro Archon will have ultimately failed to realize her plan and protect the people of Fontaine. And, of course, your game will end in failure. You will never wake up again.]
This time, a different set of images appeared. The first was a vision of utter desolation: seawater surging over the land, completely submerging the nation of Fontaine. Only the very top of the Opera Epiclese remained visible above the waves, a lonely monument to a civilization now lost.
Simultaneously, another image appeared beside it—a chilling, real-world view of all the children participating in the beta test, lying motionless inside their silver "Cocoon" pods. The message was brutally clear: if they chose wrong, they would remain trapped in those pods forever.
[Alright. I will give you ten minutes to decide which button to press. Give me your choice within that time. I hope you think carefully.]
[Now, the countdown begins!]
As Noah's Ark's last word fell, a massive, bright red timer materialized in the space above. It started at 10:00, then immediately began to tick down.
09:59...
09:58...
09:57...
Time slipped away, each second feeling like a grain of sand in the hourglass of their lives.
The void fell silent for a moment before Moroboshi spoke, his voice cutting through the tension. "What's there to hesitate about? There's only one option here. We have to press the red button."
As he spoke, he raised his left hand, reaching decisively for the red button floating before him, poised to press it without a second thought.
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