The underground has no dawn; light comes only from various illumination devices.
Before the time Leon had specified, a faint light source slowly emerged along the dark path leading to the mechanical settlement.
A petite figure holding a spotlight stepped out from the darkness.
From a distance, she spotted the Trailblaze team, leaning against the faint glow of Boulder Town.
March 7th's eyes lit up. "Clara's here! Awesome!"
Per her agreement with Leon, if Svarog was willing to talk, Clara would come here.
Leon, whose vision was less affected by the darkness, caught Clara's expression and sighed inwardly.
As expected, it wouldn't be that easy.
Stelle: "Finally, you're here! But why no robots guarding you?"
Clara: "I sent Perkins and the others to find parts. Besides, this path isn't dangerous…"
Not wanting to dwell on it, Clara got straight to the point.
"I'm sorry, everyone. Mr. Svarog… he's not too willing to meet you."
March 7th's smile froze.
Stelle took it better, having noticed Leon's calm expression earlier, mentally prepared.
Are robots really people?
It's a pseudo-question.
She'd seen inorganic life with human emotions, like Herta's puppets.
But Svarog clearly wasn't that advanced—or rather, he couldn't grasp human nature or thoughts.
Stelle: "Chill, March. We didn't expect a robot following preset directives to change its mind easily."
Clara's small face was heavy with guilt.
"I'm really sorry. Clara couldn't convince Mr. Svarog."
"Other than me, he… doesn't trust human emotions…"
Leon: "No need to apologize. You've done what you could."
"There's… there's one more thing I haven't done…"
Clara's face showed hesitation, but after a few seconds, she clenched her fists, mustering courage to speak.
"I want to take you to see Mr. Svarog directly!"
Going behind his back?
The Trailblaze team quickly exchanged glances.
Stelle: "Is that okay? Don't force yourself—we have other ways to meet Svarog."
Clara: "But… that way would definitely lead to conflict, right?"
The trio fell silent, tacitly confirming.
The most straightforward method: force.
The world's on the brink of collapse—who cares about formalities?
Even without the Trailblaze team, once Wildfire's pushed to the edge, they'd clash with Svarog anyway.
Clara, though young, wasn't clueless.
"Rather than watching everyone fall into irreparable conflict, Clara would rather go against Mr. Svarog's orders…"
"Because, because…"
"Because Clara doesn't want to see Mr. Svarog get hurt, or anyone else get hurt."
"With me there, Mr. Svarog probably won't attack you right away."
Clara's small face radiated a resolve beyond her years.
Stelle instinctively placed a hand on her head.
"So even after Svarog rejected you, you still chose to come find us."
"Mhm."
Clara nodded firmly.
"After hearing what Brother Leon said, Clara thought about it for a long time…"
"People have always been fighting, just to live well."
"But choosing to stay in the underground, the end result is still inescapable doom."
"Clara thinks Mr. Svarog's calculations can't change people's future—or even his own. He'll die too."
"Sister Natasha once said the blue sky above is beautiful. Clara's never seen it, nor has Hook…"
"Over a month ago, Hook told me she's really curious about the blue sky Sister Natasha described, wondering how beautiful it is."
"Since the Fragmentum and monsters will eventually swallow the underground, why… why still…"
Clara bit her lip, her frail frame trembling slightly under her oversized coat.
"Why stay here waiting to die, right?" Leon finished for her.
"Mhm… Clara wants more people to live!"
Clara clasped her hands tightly at her chest, looking up at the Trailblaze team with resolute eyes.
"Like Brother Leon said, I don't want to see everyone quietly waiting for death. I'd rather give everything to fight for an uncertain future…"
"Big brothers and sisters, Clara trusts you. I believe you're the variable to break Mr. Svarog's calculations."
"Please stop the Fragmentum's spread, destroy its source, and let more people see the blue sky…"
Clara repeated her core wish, the purest prayer from deep within her heart.
For this prayer, she was willing to "betray" her family.
For her, reaching this point clearly took more than just mustering courage.
Wanting more people to live—how could that not include her family?
"…"
Leon gazed at Clara, his thoughts drifting far away.
In the very beginning, he was an actor.
To gather faith, he walked a path with an unknown end.
Gradually, the actor became immersed in the play.
As years flew by, he could no longer tell if his life was within the play or if his life was itself a play.
Was he an actor, or… his truest self?
Nearly two thousand Amber Eras had passed.
Aside from remembering why he started this journey, everything else was gone.
But at this moment, in Clara, Leon saw his former self.
Perhaps back then, he was no longer a pure actor.
Life is like a play, but isn't a play also life?
In the game, the camera slowly pulled back.
Stelle, seen only from behind, still had her hand on Clara's head, while Clara looked up at Leon.
Without clicking the screen, the two, spanning a vast age gap, held their expressions unchanged.
The frail white-haired girl's trembling plea carried unshakable resolve and courage.
It was the purest longing of a teenage girl.
All she wanted was for everyone, struggling through tough days, to see that blue sky not even in their dreams.
[Clara, little angel, too kind!]
[Waifu, waifu, waifu!]
[Chill, now's not the time to simp. Clearly not the vibe.]
[Notice Leon's expression? Feels like it's full of stories.]
[Like he's recalling the past—maybe some lost memories?]
"The people you care about, and this world, will definitely survive."
Leon's expression softened, extending his pinky to Clara.
"I promise you. Let's pinky swear."
Some pasts can't be fully left behind just by changing identities.
If the heavens were meant to be heartless, why would they bestow compassion on the world?
This was both a promise from a Nameless on the Path of Trailblaze to a girl who cared for all beings and the mercy of a former Emanator of Tianmin.
For some reason, many empathetic players, like Ah Xian, a diehard Leon fan, sensed a radiance in him.
Beneath that radiance lay a profoundly distant past.
It sparked an urge to dig deeper.
"Clara, take us to see Svarog."
Leon hooked Clara's cold little pinky.
Clara's face showed no more hesitation.
"Okay!"