Click.
The sound of the door opening was decisive, without a hint of hesitation. However, the person entering noticed the girl sleeping with her head under the blanket and subconsciously slowed their movements.
Elysia quietly pulled the blanket open a tiny crack. Through the gap, she saw Lin close the door softly and walk toward her bed.
Lin sat on the edge of the bed. The soft mattress dipped, and Elysia felt the breath of the person beside her.
What is he suddenly do-doing?
Lin didn't seem to realize the girl on the bed wasn't actually asleep yet. Whether it was from the stuffiness under the blanket or the illusion of a rising body temperature, she felt the surrounding air get much warmer.
Sitting by the bed, Lin was like a pine tree in a windless forest—quiet as always. He sat with his chin propped on his crossed hands, a thoughtful color flashing deep within his pupils.
Next followed an agonizingly long silence. In the quiet room, even a slight movement of the blanket would make a sound. Elysia felt incredibly uncomfortable but didn't dare turn over.
Pat.
Suddenly, a hand was placed on the blanket covering Elysia. She almost cried out, but fortunately, the hand was only resting on her shoulder as she lay on her side.
Why is this guy getting touchy-feely? He usually doesn't approach so abruptly...
"There is an opera called Der Freischütz (The Freeshooter). A demon gave a mortal seven magic bullets that never miss. But they signed a contract: the victim hit by the seventh magic bullet would belong to the demon."
"To marry the woman he loved, the mortal used the magic bullets in a shooting competition, hitting six for six. The woman's father demanded he shoot a passing white dove. But the mortal knew it was the incarnation of the woman. Yet, the bullet had been fired; the woman fell at the sound."
"In the end, his soul fell to hell. The magic bullet took her life and took the mortal's humanity with it. He became the new demon."
"..."
A steady voice told a short story, but Elysia didn't understand why he would tell such a tale at this moment.
As for the purpose of the story, likely only Lin himself knew.
"I don't know where I should go. Whether they left me behind, or I left them—it is now completely unknown."
"Gray Serpent was right. Humans always hope for others to make decisions for them."
If there was one person who hoped for him to stay, Lin might truly stay in this world where he originally didn't exist.
To stop considering the old world, to stop considering the root cause of the Honkai, to truly become an ordinary person, and live the life Ato wanted him to live.
His own wishes and the entrusted hopes of others—Lin could no longer distinguish between them. Just as he couldn't distinguish if the one inside the Pseudo-Herrscher Core was the Herrscher's consciousness or his own.
The first half of Lin life was that of a puppet made of others' wishes; the second half was the same.
The room was quiet. He had been talking to himself. Perhaps he wanted to say it to someone, but more likely, he was saying it to himself.
"...You changed the ending of that play, didn't you?"
A muffled voice came through the thick blanket.
"..."
"I have a good friend on the internet. She likes watching plays and told me the ending of Der Freischütz. At the end, the huntsman who got the magic bullets fired the final shot, but the bullet turned and hit the person who tricked him and wanted to use him as a substitute. He eventually married the forester's daughter."
Lin turned his gaze, staring at the movement under the blanket.
"Maybe I remembered it wrong."
"You remembered it wrong," the muffled voice stated firmly.
The two shared another period of silence before continuing the conversation: "Do you want someone to make a decision for you?"
"I don't know," Lin answered honestly.
The girl sighed. "I want to ask you two questions. You can't lie."
"Okay."
"First: is your first kiss still there?"
"..."
Is his first kiss still there? This was a question that required Lin to think for a moment. Yama had said that lips merely touching lips didn't count as kissing, so that time with Sakura shouldn't count. But his consciousness and Yama...
"You're hesitant," Elysia muttered.
"...It's gone."
"Consider yourself honest." Elysia paused, then asked the second question: "Did you kiss that person who looks just like me?"
"No."
"Good."
The moment the word fell, the pink-haired girl threw off the blanket, grabbed Lin wrist, and pinned him onto the bed.
A waterfall of starlit hair brushed against Lin face. Eyes as brilliant as stars stared into his own, long eyelashes trembling slightly. On her exquisite cheeks was a rare blush of shy embarrassment. Her usual unrefined cuteness and mystery were like an intoxicating wine, smelling even richer at this moment.
Lin couldn't feel the breath on his face, but he could hear Elysia breathing get heavier. He made no movement, simply allowing the girl to handle him.
"Lin, one person cannot make a decision for another."
"Because everyone is different, each with a completely different life. Even the tiniest joy constitutes our difference."
"That is why people are so lovely. That is why the world is so beautiful."
The girl smiled slightly, a feast of pink flowers emitting a sweet fragrance in the warm sun.
"I hope you can stay by my side forever. But you won't do that, will you?"
"I..."
"Don't lie to me~"
"..."
"There must be someone who has been waiting for you, missing you. They are in a place far away that I don't know, caring about Lin, just like... I was last night."
Elysia giggled at his silence. "Lin, you haven't changed at all after all this time. You usually use sharp words to hide your softness, but once you're exposed, you turn back into that bewildered silence."
"..."
"Go back."
Lin slowly raised his head. He saw the girl's pure, flawless smile, as if an angel were leaning down to kiss his forehead.
"Go back to where you belong."
"...And you?"
"I'll probably start traveling again. I'll meet more people as beautiful as Lin, witness their stories, and..." The angel tilted her head and smiled; the saintly image faded, leaving behind the sweetness of a young girl. "I will miss you and wait for you. Even if you leave next time and never come back, I will... always love you."
Winter snow melts at the arrival of spring; they disappear without a trace, but their whiteness is proof that they once existed here.
The girl leaned down, her cherry-thin lips touching Lin. The laughter in her eyes was replaced by shyness, yet she did not retreat at all.
After a long time, their lips parted.
The winter snow melted, as if it had never existed.