"Cheers!" ×2
Gallagher moved quickly. In about one or two minutes, the bottle of wine with its somewhat vintage packaging had already been poured into the two men's glasses.
"Good wine! You have excellent taste. What's the name of this wine?"
As the liquor entered his mouth, a unique aroma characteristic of fine wine exploded across his taste buds. A spicy and burning sensation spread through Yun Fan's oral cavity before slowly flowing down his throat into his stomach.
In a trance, a sliver of memory from his previous life surged into his mind. Even our Mr. Yun Fan could not help but feel slightly dazed.
"This wine is called 'Clockmaker's Dream.' After Mikhail reshaped Penacony, it was a special brew created to commemorate his achievements as the 'Watchmaker.'"
Gallagher picked up the slightly vintage wine bottle and gently ran his fingers across the somewhat yellowed label. A trace of reminiscence flashed in his eyes.
'Clockmaker's Dream' was brewed by the children adopted by the 'Watchmaker.' Unlike conventional wines, this liquor was brewed using 'memetic energy' as its raw material.
Although it was called wine, it was more like a polymer of memetic energy. Because the brewing methods and processes were extremely complex, the yield was very low. At the time, fewer than a hundred bottles were produced in total.
Most of the 'Clockmaker's Dream' naturally ended up in the hands of the 'Watchmaker' himself.
The rest were distributed to the children Mikhail had adopted, or fell into the hands of some Family members and were treated as highly valuable collector's items.
"The memetic energy in your body is constantly overflowing. It seems you only have a few days left. Do you regret it?"
While the two silently savored the wine, Yun Fan gently swirled the glass in his hand and suddenly spoke up.
"Regret?"
Gallagher smiled and shook his head.
"Why would I regret it? I no longer have any other attachments. As an old dog whose fangs and claws have been worn down, it's time for me to exit the stage."
Gallagher's words were very candid. Just as he said, being able to see Mikhail one last time had already resolved all his regrets. With no more obsessions in his heart, he seemed to have no reason left to remain.
"Mr. Yun Fan, ever since I used the power of [Mystery] to seize the Family's cognition and constructed this 'human' body named Gallagher, my true physical body had already perished along with it."
"Am I not, in another sense, a memetic entity of the Memetic Domain now? At present, the fictional nature of this body has been exposed. The falsehood I constructed is gradually dissipating, and soon, I will disappear along with it."
Gallagher openly confessed everything to Yun Fan. Yes, he had long since lost his own physical body.
Because of this, the identity of Gallagher could only operate within the dream world. This was also the real reason he had refused Himeko and the others' invitation to join the Astral Express on their journey of Trailblaze.
"I plan to revive Mikhail."
Yun Fan's expression remained calm as he stated the most shocking words in the most steady tone. He had decided to revive Mikhail long ago.
Moreover, besides Mikhail, he also planned to revive Robin's mother.
Gallagher: "???"
Our Mr. Gallagher opened his mouth in disbelief. Even someone as mature as him could not help but show a look of shock upon hearing the seemingly fantastical idea of resurrection.
"I am an Emanator of [Causality], and the authority of [Causality] possesses the ability to reverse life and death. Even if Mikhail died of old age, I still have the power to bring him back to life."
Hearing Yun Fan's words, our Mr. Gallagher fell into deep self-doubt. You can revive Mikhail—why didn't you say that earlier?! If you had told me sooner, would I have chosen to reveal my identity as a History Fictionologist?!
"Then… when do you plan to revive him?" After a long silence, the mature middle-aged uncle finally spoke again.
"Hmm… Let me think. Let's do it after the 'Harmonia Grand Festival.' By then, once I have unified Penacony, I will still need Mikhail to serve as the head of the Nightingale Family."
Yun Fan pondered for a moment and ultimately decided to schedule Mikhail's revival after the 'Harmonia Grand Festival.'
After gaining experience from reviving Aventurine's sister, our Mr. Yun Fan had become increasingly proficient in using the ability of resurrection.
In terms of difficulty alone, reviving Mikhail would be far more challenging than reviving Aventurine's sister.
Although Aventurine's sister had already perished in that cruel war, with not even ashes remaining, she was ultimately just an ordinary person with relatively few entanglements and involvements in [Causality].
For this avatar possessing the power of an Emanator of [Causality], reviving her could be said to be an extremely simple matter.
But Mikhail was different. As a Nameless of the Astral Express, as the Father of Penacony, and as the 'Watchmaker' renowned across the galaxy, the [Causality] he was entangled with was far too complex. Reviving him would likely require expending a considerable amount of imaginary energy.
"Do you want to rule Penacony?"
When he heard Yun Fan say he wanted Mikhail to serve as the head of the Nightingale Family, Gallagher frowned slightly, as if he had thought of something.
"Rather than ruling, it would be more accurate to say I will bring it into my sphere of influence."
Yun Fan gently shook his head and then began explaining to Gallagher.
"I will not interfere with what Penacony looks like now or what it will become in the future, nor will I interfere with its developmental trajectory. However, there are some things I will slightly meddle with—for example, replacing all the heads of the Five Great Families with my own people."
Rule Penacony? Yun Fan would not choose to personally rule a planet. That would be too troublesome, and he had no such leisure. Moreover, for an Aeon, personally ruling a single planet was simply beneath his dignity.
Replacing all the heads of the Five Great Families with his own people and thereby controlling the Family branches on Penacony would be far more efficient than handling everything himself.
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