Everything fit together cleanly. And yet, the core issue remained unresolved.
Why was the present different from his previous life?
Ultimately, it all traced back to Elysia's unusually proactive behavior.
As expected, the most likely explanation was that Elysia herself was also reborn.
Perhaps she believed that her actions in the previous life had been mistaken—and wanted to change them this time.
"This is unnecessary," Lumine thought.
His path had always been the one most suitable for humanity, the optimal solution for opposing the Honkai.
No matter how much Elysia wished to experience genuine human emotions this time…
He would not change his decision.
In his previous life, Lumine had brutally suppressed all armed forces opposing Fire Moth, eliminating every rebel regardless of age. It was precisely because of this that he ensured Fire Moth remained the sole authority standing against the Honkai.
In the original timeline, when the end arrived, only thirty thousand humans survived. In his previous life, however, he preserved one hundred thousand elite humans he had personally selected, and twelve of the Fourteen Heroes survived into the next era.
Because of this, he never believed he had done anything wrong.
This was Lumine.
An extremely arrogant individual—more obsessed than anyone else when it came to fighting the Honkai—firmly convinced that his path was the correct one.
He was never sparing with kindness toward his allies, yet he never extended mercy to his enemies.
There was, in fact, another fundamental reason behind this.
He was not a native of this world, but a player—someone who once viewed the Previous Era through the distorted lens of a game.
He met the Thirteen Flame-Chasing Heroes, who were far more real than their in-game counterparts, and forged deep bonds with Kevin and most of them. But… that was all. Outside of his own squad, he had scarcely interacted with anyone else beyond what he already knew from the game.
Now that he had a chance to do better than before, how could he possibly refuse it?
"Then I'll leave it to you, Dr. Mobius."
Lumine extended his hand. Mobius shook it, her lips curling into a satisfied, calculated smile.
Now that Lumine's consent had been secured, the remaining procedures would be far simpler. She would escort him back to Fire Moth headquarters to undergo special training in conjunction with her experiments.
Of course, it would be even more ideal if his resistance to the Honkai—both physically and mentally—were slightly less absolute.
While Lumine was handling the necessary formalities with Klein, Elysia and Mobius were left alone.
Elysia spoke first.
"Mobius… you've been reborn too, haven't you?"
"Heh." Mobius gave a quiet, humorless chuckle. "I'm afraid it's not just me. When I arrived, I realized things were far more serious than I'd expected. Besides you and me, Lumine was reborn as well."
She fixed her gaze on Elysia.
"Do you understand what that means? It doesn't just suggest that Kevin and the others are likely reborn too—it means Lumine may be even more obsessive than he was in the previous life."
Elysia fell silent.
"And with how you've been acting, he may have already deduced that you're reborn as well," Mobius said irritably. "You'd better restrain yourself from now on. The best possible outcome is to dispel his suspicions."
"Why?" Elysia asked. "If that's the case, why can't we just be honest with him? We can start over together, fight again, and strive for a better future."
Mobius stared at her, momentarily speechless.
"Elysia… you may have misunderstood Lumine." She paused, then added flatly, "That's not surprising. He spent far more time with me later on. You didn't see this side of him."
Elysia looked genuinely confused. She had always believed that Lumine's later obsession stemmed from loneliness—because no one truly understood him.
In truth, she wasn't entirely wrong.
The problem wasn't that no one understood him.
It was that he rejected everyone.
Mobius exhaled deeply, her voice weary as she explained, "Lumine is far too stubborn. Think carefully—if it hadn't been for him in the previous life, how much devastation would each Honkai eruption have caused? Far more than we remember."
"He knows this himself," she continued. "And precisely because he knows it, he's even less willing to change. If he discovered that we were also reborn, he wouldn't seek compromise. He would only demand that we follow his beliefs and his methods. And if we didn't… we would still part ways in the end."
Elysia was taken aback.
This version of Lumine—described by Mobius—was one she had never truly known. For the first time, she felt uncertain.
"The best course of action," Mobius said, "is to let him believe that only you and he have been reborn. He has always trusted you."
"He'll continue to accommodate you," she added, "because that's who he is. But it won't change his convictions. What we need to do is alter him slowly—quietly. Do you understand?"
"I do," Elysia replied softly. "You're right, Mobius. I was too hasty…"
She understood now that it wasn't only the world that needed saving—but also the lonely traveler who had long since lost his way.
And that realization only deepened her sorrow for him.
Because Lumine had been fighting the Honkai alone all this time—and no one had ever truly saved him.
Mobius looked toward the direction Lumine had departed and spoke quietly.
"He's a good kid. Even with all that stubbornness… he's still a good kid. He's never owed the world anything. He never asked for anything in return."
"…He shouldn't have ended up like this."
In her previous life, she had been too absorbed in pursuing the infinite. By the time she understood the consequences, there had been no room left for correction.
This time, Mobius chose not to step away.
Lumine was too critical to the course of history, too extreme in his convictions, and too dangerous to be left without oversight. If the future was to diverge from its inevitable collapse, then someone had to remain close enough to observe him—and intervene before his path reached the same irreversible end.
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