Arknights, but the sickly pretty girl starts

(Like diamonds shining in the night sky...)

It's said that this nursery rhyme originated in Victoria, where it has been circulated for over two hundred years, uttered by an unknown poet. Later, it spread throughout Terra. The elegant piano music, paired with its catchy lyrics, spawned versions in various languages, ultimately becoming a ubiquitous song across Terra. Even on Casimir nights, children were often lulled to sleep by the Casimir version of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star."

And Noah suddenly recalled that he had heard others sing this song when he was a child.

But she couldn't remember who sang it... Noah opened her eyes with great effort. The face of the person who was holding her and singing was already blurred, even turned into chaos. As the tune of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star became weird, everything around Noya became distorted and weird, and the woman who was holding her and singing finally revealed a pale eye in the shadows, glowing, and stared at Noya.

"Though I know not what you are..."

(I still don’t understand what you are…)

"Twinkle, twinkle, little star..."

(Twinkle, twinkle, tiny stars...)

Noya had woken up, but she was still in a dream. The object before her, which could no longer be understood by common sense, was deeply engraved in her mind. The strange creature singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star stared into Noya's eyes.

Noah could only close his eyes and pray that he could wake up.

All this obviously showed that something was distorting her consciousness and polluting her dreams. For the first time, Noah felt why Herhunzolen was unwilling to tell her the truth. When she tried to get closer to the truth herself, when she tried to recall her past, she found that she had forgotten that those memories were protecting herself. Those originally normal memories were polluted and distorted, those warm things were swallowed up, and those cold things were quietly peeping in.

She can still maintain her original heart, but she cannot stop her memory from being polluted and devoured.

It was all just because I played that song Twinkle Twinkle Little Star... I exhausted too much of my energy, which gave these things an opportunity to take advantage.

"...Wake up...you must wake up..."

She was forcing herself to wake up, but it was all in vain. When she was struggling to swim towards the surface of the water, the dark and twisted monster grabbed her ankles and tried to drag her into the bottomless abyss.

It chants the tune of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, slowly eroding everything of Noya—

Ding-ling--ding-ling--

At this moment, a crisp sound rang in her ears, and then a faint light suddenly appeared above the water surface - a slender, snake-like figure was diving under the water, but Noah did not feel fear. Instead, she grabbed the scales of the snake creature tightly as if she had grabbed a life-saving straw. Compared with the indescribable monster below, the snake looked so beautiful at this time.

The snake creature exerted its strength, and Noah felt that she was being pulled out of her sleep by a huge force. The moment she came out of the water, she finally saw the true appearance of the snake creature.

It was a giant beast with gentle eyes, and above the beast stood a person she was quite familiar with.

"...Ms. Yaer?"

"Shh." Ya'er raised a finger. "Time to wake up, lazy bum."

"Wow..." The next moment, Noah woke up from the bed with cold sweat soaking his back. Kuro, who had been paying attention to Noah's condition in the room, breathed a sigh of relief and stepped forward to hold Noah's hand.

"Are you OK?"

"I... I don't know either." Noah shook her head, a little flustered. Her intuition told her that if she was pulled down by the black shadow, she might never wake up again.

The strange song "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" was still lingering in her ears. She didn't even dare to recall the dream she had just had. She covered her head with her hands, and beads of sweat fell onto the bed with her panting.

She didn't even know what had just happened, but she knew that if Miss Yaer hadn't helped her, she would have been finished.

"I'm glad you're okay." Enya, who was in the room, breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn't reacted when Kuro knocked on the door this morning and said Noya couldn't wake up. But she had brought Ya'er to see Noya earlier. Fortunately, Noya finally woke up. "Did you have a nightmare?"

"Hmm... I don't know why either." Noah didn't want to talk about the content of the dream, so he could only perfunctorily say, "Thank you for your help."

"It's not a big deal, I just helped a little." Ya'er also spoke at this time, "But Enya, don't ask. Some things are better not to know. It's not the right time yet."

"It's also... my fault." Enya nodded, but perhaps only Noah knew that Ya'er was talking to herself. She was blaming herself for touching something too early, and if she hadn't helped, Noah might have turned into that weird and twisted thing now.

It was something that Noah couldn't understand, a nonlinear, even meaningless, strange thing. There was no cause, no result, as if the essence of civilization had been distorted, confusing numbers and meanings. The negative emotions deep in his heart turned into a physical monster, and all common sense collapsed.

He had merely recalled the lullaby his mother had sung to him in the past, and he had already attracted the attention of that thing. Although Noah didn't want to admit it, his parents definitely had a deep relationship with that thing.

So deep that even memories would be discovered by that guy... and even eroded.

She had even despaired at one point, but in the end it was Yaer who helped her and suppressed the memories that were spreading out of her.

"...Alright, alright, she clearly needs some rest. You guys go out and let her get some rest." Ya'er seemed to sense Noya's confusion and clapped her hands, telling everyone inside to leave. Kuro was clearly a little worried, but after Noya nodded, she had no choice but to follow Enya out. Since Noya obviously couldn't be at work today, Enya had to go to the office alone, while Kuro waited at the door, awaiting any news from inside.

After everyone left, Yaer clapped her hands, and it was like a wave spreading throughout the room, isolating all sounds before she spoke.

"You're too anxious, Noah."

Chapter 61: Yaer's Identity

"What... is that?" Noah couldn't control his trembling body. "What... is that thing?"

"We don't usually call them by their names, but you do. You usually call them 'evil demons'. Among us, Anma is probably the only one who knows of their true existence," Ya'er said. "So if you want to seek answers from me, I can only tell you that I don't know much either."

"...Ms. Yaer, you..."

"You should already know my identity." Ya'er shook her head. "I didn't want to tell you directly. After all, for Kjerag right now, my presence would only do harm rather than good."

"...Are you really Yelagund?" Noya was genuinely shocked. The maid who had always been by Enya's side was actually Yelagund, the true god of the snowy mountains. "...Although I had guessed, I really didn't expect it to be true."

"Ah, that shows I disguised myself well." Ya'er stroked her cheek sheepishly. "I'm sorry, little Nuoya. I actually thought about whether I should tell you, but then I felt it was unnecessary. Luckily I placed a holy bell on you, otherwise it wouldn't be so easy for me to pull you out."

"...Ah, that dream..." Noah immediately realized something, "Could it be that the evil spirit is really targeting me?"

"Actually, it's mainly because of your parents... It seems like your parents may have come into contact with a demon, affecting all of your memories and belongings related to them, including you. Before today, you couldn't even recall their faces, right? In fact, that's the result of the demon's contamination," Ya'er, or rather, Yelagund, explained. "Although it sounds complicated, it's actually quite easy to explain. The concept of a demon is unknowable, unpredictable, and untouchable. Once attacked by a demon, everything related to it will be contaminated. In reality, the way to deal with contamination is to separate it—cut off the contaminated object. That's roughly the situation. But you're special. You're their daughter, so the solution is to block your memories."

Yaer's explanation was very clear. The scary thing about the evil demon's attack was not the damage, but the pollution. People polluted by the evil demon would be separated by reality, and the memory of their existence and most related objects would have to be dealt with.

The only exception is Noah, the bloodline of the two. Her memory was blocked, and no one knew who blocked it. For some reason, it failed tonight, allowing Noah to directly see the memory after being polluted by the evil spirit, and even allowing the evil spirit to try to pollute Noah according to the memory.

Fortunately, Ya'er intervened in time, otherwise Noah might have been taken advantage of by the demon... However, even Yelagund, a deity, couldn't help Noah cleanse his contaminated memories, so she could only add a thicker seal, freezing Noah's lake of memory and preventing him from recalling further. Fortunately, Noah's contact was through dreams. If he had come into direct contact with the demon, even Ya'er wouldn't have been able to heal him in time.

"...So, my parents really..." Noah lowered his head and said through gritted teeth, "Being killed by that thing called the evil demon..."

"Don't worry. Being contaminated doesn't mean you're doomed," Ya'er explained quickly. "And you can't be sure your parents have been contaminated. All we can say is that they did face off against the evil spirits. There are many reasons why memories could be contaminated, and there might even be a chance for a change."

Although even Yelagund had never seen such severe pollution, Yaer still persuaded him, "I am a god. You can trust anyone but me, right?"

"Well, thank you, Lord Yelagund." Noah nodded. Although he already knew in his heart that his parents were in great danger, but as Yaer said, the evil spirits were something that even the gods could not understand, and they were definitely not invincible. Pollution did not mean that they were gone.

In the future, she might have another chance...

But no matter what, this time she was in great danger thanks to Yaer's help.

"Well, there's no need to thank me like this. You've done far more for Kjerag than I have. I should be thanking you instead." Ya'er waved her hand. "I was just helping out this time. You're my Saint, how could you possibly let that thing take you away?"

"Saint..." Noah suddenly realized that if Ya'er was Yelagund, then the fact that Ya'er had previously designated herself as a Saint... "Could it be... Miss Ya'er, are you serious?"

"You think you've been recognized by Yelagund himself? Are you a saint?" Ya'er said with a smile, holding her face. "You are a true saint, a saint who can use my power just like Enya."

"..." Noya suddenly felt like she was on a pirate ship, but she also knew that it would be useless to refuse. "Then... thank you, Lord Yelagund?"

"Alright, alright. I'm not asking you to stay and become my saint. From now on, you can call me by my name wherever you are. It's not as bad as back in Kjerag, but I still have some respect. If those guys outside have any bad intentions towards you, just say you're protected by me." Ya'er patted her chest like a gangster boss. "It may not work, but you must show your strength. Don't lose face for me."

"I see..." Noah touched the holy bell at his waist, "If I really get into trouble, I will ask you for help."

"Hehe—but don't talk about me in front of other people. Keep a low profile. Enya doesn't know my identity yet." Before Ya'er could show off for long, she immediately remembered that she had to hide her identity. "Just call me Ya'er in front of others. I have to keep my identity well hidden."

"I understand." Noah nodded. "In front of others, you are still Miss Yaer."

"Good boy~" Ya'er nodded with satisfaction. "Okay, it's almost time to go report your safety. Just remember our agreement."

She clapped her hands and lifted the seal on the room. To be honest, even if she knew that Yaer was Yelagund, Noah would not change.

After all, the person she knew was Yaer, and Yelagund only existed in legends and myths.

Even if it matched, to Noah, who was not very interested in faith, she was still just Yaer, but with a vest called Yelagund.

"In my heart, there has always been only Miss Yaer, the Miss Yaer who has always helped me. I don't know any Yelagund."

Chapter 62: Past Events

After learning about the existence of the evil demon from Yaer, Noah realized belatedly why Herhunzolen was unwilling to tell his parents about the situation.

Even her memory would be eroded. If she hadn't been under Ya'er's protection, she would obviously be unable to deal with the pervasive evil pollution. The indescribable thing she saw in her dream was definitely not something she could touch now.

When he was in Casimir, he didn't have a great god like Yaer to help him. It is very likely that he would be contaminated by the evil spirit and never wake up again.

What my parents faced back then... was that kind of thing?

It's no wonder that Grandma Russell didn't want to tell her the truth. It's not that she didn't want to say it, but as long as she knew these things, she might be contaminated by evil spirits.

Thinking about it this way, both Grandma Russell's silence and the disappearance of his parents and Lin Guang's parents had a conclusion.

"...Perhaps, I should say sorry to Grandma Russell..." Noah sighed with some guilt. Although the existence of evil spirits was indeed beyond the imagination of ordinary people, he still wronged Grandma Russell.

Just knowing of its existence could lead to contamination...Evil spirits were so unreasonable that she couldn't imagine how to defeat them.

Flipping the music box in his hand, Noah fell into deep thought.

However, at least for a while, Noah probably won't want to listen to the nursery rhyme "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" anymore.

-

Noah definitely cannot go to work today, but Enya cannot. As the leader of the country, she has to go to work even if she doesn't want to.

And today she had to meet with Casimir's visitor, the Radiant Knight she had met on the street earlier, leaving her no time for rest. After finishing her morning duties, she lamented her inefficiency without Noah as she made her way to the reception room, where Margaret Linguang had been waiting for her for a long time.

Enya actually has no ill feelings towards Margaret Linguang. In fact, few people would have ill feelings towards the Knight of Glory. After all, no matter what, people can't deceive their own eyes.

Margaret Linguang, inheriting the Linguang family's golden magic, as well as his handsome face, outstanding temperament, and noble character, is a true knight among knights, radiating like a self-contained light wherever he goes. There's even a saying that there are only two kinds of people in Casimir: Linguang fans and twisted Linguang fans. While this is just a rumor, it's enough to illustrate Margaret Linguang's status as a national idol in Casimir.

But now Enya doesn't want to see Margaret's handsome face - no matter what her appearance, character, or excellence is, she is still somewhat dissatisfied with her persistence in pursuing Noah.

Even though Noya explained that most of the fault was on her, Enya didn't think that the Knight in front of her was so fair and flawless.

"Honorary President of the Casimir Knights' Association, Margaret Linguang, greets Ms. Enya, Chairperson of the Kjerag Council." Margaret immediately greeted her politely. As the saying goes, one shouldn't hit someone who smiles at them, so Enya suppressed her dissatisfaction and politely returned the greeting.

The meeting between the two was a diplomatic matter, and Margaret did not mention Noah again. The two sides had a friendly exchange, including discussions on bilateral relations, trade and other matters.

Kjerag was a small country in the Snow Region, with a small territory and not many resources. It was a good thing that Casimir was willing to take the initiative to contact them, so Enya paid close attention to the conditions proposed by the other party throughout the process. Only after confirming that the other party had no intention of cheating her did she relax a little.

I have to say that Margaret is indeed not a treacherous diplomat. The proposals she put forward from beginning to end are all aimed at a win-win situation that benefits both parties, rather than those politicians who only act to benefit their own country. If Enya had not left a bad impression on her before, she should have had a good impression of Margaret.

It's just that some things are preconceived. After both parties almost reached an agreement, Margaret paused, picked up the hot tea prepared on the side, took a sip, and then spoke hesitantly.

"Ms. Enya...I'd like to ask why your secretary isn't here today?"

--coming!

Enya immediately perked up. Sure enough, the other party had not given up the idea of ​​taking Noah away. What happened before was just a prelude, and now it was the main course.

"She's not feeling well today and is resting."

"Feeling unwell?" Margaret's expression flashed with worry for a moment, but she quickly recovered. "Well... Miss Enya, thank you for your concern. My childhood friend has always had poor health. If there's anything I can help with, please feel free to ask."

——You said that as if you were a member of Noya's family...

Enya complained inwardly, but she still responded, "Don't worry, Miss Margaret. Although Kjerag is a small country, it's not so bad that we need to trouble Casimir for treatment."

"That's not what I meant." Margaret waved her hand. "I'm just a little worried. If possible, can I meet Miss Noah?"

——The main point is that I really want to meet you...

Enya was about to refuse, but she glanced at Margaret's expression and saw that the worry in her eyes didn't seem fake...

Enya pondered for a moment and decided to ask a question she had always been curious about.

"Do you know why Noah is wanted in Casimir?" Enya had not asked Noah for the details of this matter. On the one hand, Enya felt that this might involve Noah's privacy and it would also be a bit like opening up wounds. But now, seeing that the Proud Knight of Casimir was so worried about Noah, she was really curious about what had happened that made Casimir hate Noah's existence so much.

"This is... a long story." Margaret sighed. "If you're willing to listen, I'm willing to explain it to you, but... I want an answer first. Can I go see Noah? Even just for a glimpse."

"...Tell me what happened first, and I will make the judgment myself." Enya was still a little worried. After all, the person in front of her was Casimir's representative.

"...It all started a long time ago..."

Margaret was not angry. Rather, she understood very well why Enya was so reluctant to let her meet Noah.

If it were me, I would never want Noya to be disturbed by other Casimir people... Casimir misunderstood her too deeply, and only a few people knew what Noya had done.

She just carried something that she shouldn't have carried...

Chapter 63: The Hope Left by Noah

Margaret's narration actually omitted a lot of details, starting from the first time she met Noah, to the attack she and Noah suffered when they were thirteen years old, to their separation, Margaret's expulsion, Noah's return and joining the Chamber of Commerce - and finally Margaret's return and the story of the two meeting again.

In fact, Margaret learned the whole story from Zofia and Ms. Russell afterwards. She had been away from Casimir for four years, and during these four years, Uncle Mainna and Noah had been keeping the crumbling Linguang family going. Noah had also used the property of the Kirilet family to successfully become a leader in the Commercial Federation and became a new business elite in Casimir.

It's no exaggeration to say that Noya's status at the time had essentially become one of the highest in Casimir. She owned a large villa and ran a company, a life many in Casimir dreamed of. She could easily rest easy on her achievements, and even protecting the Linguang family was a matter of convenience.

Although many people in the knight class disliked Noah's behavior, many people said that Noah Kirilet insulted the honor of the Kirilet family and became a lackey of the merchants, and there were many people who cursed him even more harshly.

These [Knight Nobles] are not clean either. Many of them have connections with the Commercial Federation, but they are hiding their benefits. However, Noah has openly become a businessman, that's all.

It’s not so much that they can’t stand Noah’s betrayal of the knight class, but rather that Noah’s publicity makes these people who hide behind their own honor feel uneasy.