Arknights, but the sickly pretty girl starts

"Shut up!" Viviana held the rapier in her hand, and her hand holding the sword was shaking constantly. When she saw this Sakota, she once thought that the other party was somewhat similar to Noah she knew, but now, she felt ashamed of this idea.

Noah would never do this——

"I am arresting you in the name of the Elector. Please put down your staff, disarm, and follow me to the prison!" Viviana took a deep breath and said seriously to Sakota in front of her, "From now on, you must be supervised!"

"Yes, that's why I came here." Arturo smiled, put down the cello and raised her hand. "Okay, I don't have anything dangerous on me anymore. Take me away, Miss Viviana."

The opponent's cooperation was too strange, but as an excellent warlock, Viviana could sense that the opponent indeed had no Originium units left. If the opponent did not have Ore Sickness, it would be impossible to cast the spell.

After a body search, Viviana escorted Arturo to the prison. After explaining the situation to the captain in charge of the case, Loris Bordin, captain of the gendarmerie of Trinterme, imprisoned Arturo in accordance with the law. However, after entering the prison, this Sacotta still did not seem to be passive at all. On the contrary, she was full of curiosity about the prison, as comfortable as if she was back home.

Viviana watched Arturo in prison, and the deep uneasiness still lingered in her heart.

In order to prevent any accidents, she specifically instructed Captain Loris.

"This prisoner possesses special Originium skills. She must not be allowed to come into contact with any spellcasting units." Viviana frowned, "Not even musical instruments."

"I understand, Lord Elector." Loris nodded. However, when he turned around and looked at the Shakota who had voluntarily surrendered himself, the black-haired Shakota actually smiled at him. Judging from this alone, it was difficult to equate him with "Witch King's remnants" or "inhumane wanted criminals." "Should we negotiate with Lateran? He's a Shakota, after all?"

"...This... depends on the Queen's decision." Viviana had no experience with international affairs, so she didn't know the rules and regulations. She could only shake her head and said, "But before the trial, I'll leave it to you, Mr. Loris."

"I will act according to my duty." Loris nodded, agreeing. Viviana left with a worried look on her face. She still had to meet the Queen and report Arturo's situation, but Loris heard Arturo's call from the prison.

"Loris Boulding."

"...You know my name?"

"Of course. Twenty-three years ago, the Twin Queens bestowed upon you the title of Viscount for being the 'first soldier to enter the Witch King's Tower.' You subsequently became the captain of the Trilinterme Carabinieri, commanding them ever since. A legendary carabinieri captain who repeatedly solved extraordinary cases, you are, of course, a hero," Arturo commented with a smile. "Although no one knows you left Lateran to engage in business, you were imprisoned and scheduled for execution as an 'outsider' simply for stepping on a fallen statue of the Witch King—"

"You know quite a lot," Loris shook his head. "But I'm no hero. I just walked away a little faster. Besides, I'm about to retire. If you behave yourself, I will submit my resignation to the Queen after this case. Then I can find a place to settle down."

"Is that so? The captain of the military police who once solved countless strange cases, the soldier who first rushed into the Wizard King's Tower, has now become disheartened?"

"It's no use provoking me. I know I'm no hero. I was just lucky to be the first soldier to rush into the Witch King's Tower—" Loris shook his head. "Besides, all I can do is stand guard for the last time. If you can cooperate, I'll save you some pain."

"Lucky, Mr. Loris. There's no such thing as luck in this world. You've come this far and received so much recognition not because of good fortune, but because you originally had a heart that pursued justice," Arturo said with a smile. "But fifteen years ago, you took on a mission related to the Echoes of the Sorcerer King. You saw the truest side of Letania: the Echoes of the Sorcerer King, the Queen, the Tower, the political maneuvers. You feared these invisible hands, and you were even powerless to save your lover. Now, you're still stuck in that alley—you haven't left."

"...You know a little too much." Loris's face had turned gloomy. "I hope you can shut up, or I wouldn't mind letting you experience how I interrogated you back then."

"Okay, maybe I did say a little too much. But... in the end, I still want to ask you a question."

"……you say."

"—Julia Schüler."

"...?!"

"I just want to ask you, when you dream every night of Miss Julia Schüler in that alley, ravaged by magic and unrecognizable, how did you feel? After all, you proposed to her before that, right?"

"……shut up!"

The prison bars shook violently, sending dust tumbling down. Loris gripped the bars tightly, as if he were about to tear the cast iron bars apart. Those unbearable silhouettes flashed before his eyes. Yulia—his beloved, who had nothing to do with the Witch King's Echo, was merely passively involved. And because of this, she was deprived of her life! And this Sakota, knowing all this, still took the initiative to bring it up in front of him.

Want to irritate him?

That she has done.

But Arturo was not afraid. She just stared into Loris' eyes through the iron bars. The person trapped in the prison at this time did not seem to be Arturo, but Loris, the former hero and captain of the gendarmerie with a heart of justice.

The corners of her mouth turned up.

She was still right. Loris still hid his true heart. He still longed for revenge and justice.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Loris. But I just want to know what you really think." There were iron bars between Arturo and Loris, but the other party's anger seemed to have turned into substance, making him hold on to the iron bars tightly, like a prisoner of fate.

She spoke, guiding the man in front of her with words.

"You see that alley."

"You smell the scent of blood, follow the footprints, and call out her name, but you see a horned sculpture shaped by magic—"

"What were you thinking at that moment?"

"Anger? Sorrow? I can help you break free from those useless shackles." Arturo's words were like the devil's temptation. "I will play your anger and let your heart speak. Your heart is telling you that it's not me you should be angry with, and it's not me you desire revenge on."

"……you……"

"No, not me. What is it you really want revenge for?"

Chapter 9: Original Heart

revenge……

Who should I take revenge on?

The Witch King? But the Witch King was dead, everything was gone. Any traces of the Witch King? He had captured the man who had killed her, and he had executed him himself. So... who should he turn on for revenge?

Loris fell into confusion, a huge sense of loss enveloped him. He never thought, no, maybe he had been avoiding thinking, or maybe it was because of fate, or maybe in the end, the past caught up with him - he had to face his lifelong regret again, and had to think about what caused all this.

——It’s Leitania.

He raised his head, and this time, the flames of revenge ignited in his eyes - the echoes of the Witch King could continue until now, not only because of the Witch King's influence, but also because behind the scenes of Letania, in those corners where the light could not reach, those old nobles always believed that only the Witch King could lead Letania to a more glorious future. They firmly believed in the Witch King's omnipotence and did not trust the current power system in Letania.

His enemy is not a specific person - but the poison still lingering in Leitania.

Only when the poison in this country is truly eliminated can people like him retire with peace of mind!

"...I don't know what your goal is, but you win." Loris looked at the prisoner, "Perhaps you're right. It's not time for me to retire yet."

He took off the key ring from his waist and threw it into the iron bars. "Untie your shackles, Sakota. I want to see what you are up to."

-

"teacher?"

"Hush..." When Ermengarde came to the top of the tower, she saw her teacher, the Lord of the Lich King's Court, the Gatekeeper of Knowledge - in short, she didn't know why this old man had so many titles on his head. It would take a long time just to read them one by one. In short, this big man was sitting in his chair with a serious expression. Ermengarde poked her head out in confusion and asked in confusion.

"What's wrong? You seem happy?"

"Do you remember the succession ceremony of the Lich King's Court?"

"...Oh, I remember, one hundred and eight bricks, the one hundred and eight steps you built in the tower—what's the matter?"

"Didn't I tell you before that when you can complete these 108 steps, you will be able to inherit my position? What's the highest level you've reached?"

"...I'm on the 50th floor... After that, the difficulty skyrocketed. It's simply not something a human should be able to overcome." Ermengarde complained, "Why are you suddenly talking about this? Are you throwing me in again? It's only been half a year since I last went in there, right?"

"Hmph, I'm afraid it's impossible to expect you to inherit my position in this thousand years. Someone broke into the tower - the same guy as before."

"That guy? You mean... Herhunzoren?" If it were in the outside world, Ermengarde naturally would not say this name casually, but in the tower, or in front of the old man, she would have no concerns at all. After all, strictly speaking, although it is not clear who has higher attainments between the old man and Herhunzoren, Flemont was his teacher before Herhunzoren became the Witch King.

Strictly speaking, I am also Helhunzolun's junior sister.

Judging from the old man's reaction, it seems that the intruder's level is quite high. He is estimated to have reached the 50th floor or above - that's about the 80th floor at most. You know, the succession ceremony of the Lich King's Court is not so easy to be cracked. The last person who passed the 108 levels is now known as the most powerful warlock in history.

She couldn't believe that a second evildoer would appear in such a short time.

That’s right, he is no longer a genius, but a monster.

Ermengarde would not belittle herself. She was already the best warlock of the new generation in the Lich King's Court. However, even she had only passed the test of the 50th level. In this era, apart from the old lich himself, no one else should be able to pass this test.

"Which level are we on? No one's going to die, right?" Ermengarde blinked, asking doubtfully. "The later the levels, the harder they are. If we're still on the 80th level or below, we should still be able to be saved."

"...One hundred and seven floors."

"Oh, I was thinking, only 107...wait?" Ermengarde was still complaining when she suddenly turned around. "107 floors?"

"She only needs one more level to reach the same level as that guy. And it's an even more difficult level—" The old lich laughed, "But she's already been at level 108 for almost an hour."

"...Well...if she really passes, what will you do?" Ermengarde frowned and asked uneasily, "Last time you taught a Herhunzollon, won't you do the same this time?"

"Hmph, I'm not that senile, but according to the rules, as long as she comes to me, I will teach her everything without reservation. This is my oath." Flemont snorted coldly. "The Hall of Knowledge does not belong to the lich. We are merely the gatekeepers of knowledge. Do I need to remind you of this again?"

"There was a rather troublesome example before," Ermengarde shrugged. "I thought you would change the rules or something."

"-- Humph, speaking of this, I asked you to go find someone, but you ended up traveling all over the place before coming back." The more Fremont looked at Ermengarde, the more he disliked her. The younger generation he had trained with his own hands was not even half as good as the one who was currently breaking through the level. It really brought shame to the lich race. When had the lich ever embarrassed such a big person? If it weren't for Ermengarde who at least respected him, he would have beaten her so hard that she was at a loss.

"...Ahem... This matter... I didn't want to happen either. I was almost there, but the girl passed away due to worsening of her oripathy... What could I do... I went to Rhodes Island again and even met the modern Demon King, but she kept silent about the girl. All the clues were cut off. What could I do?" Ermengarde could only complain, but Frémont was too lazy to pay attention to this useless guy at this moment. Ninety-nine percent of his attention was on Noah who was stationed on the 107th step.

Curiosity, illusion and reality, life and death, future and past, order and chaos, war and peace, balance, equal exchange—at every step, Noya experienced a truly unforgettable test. Many were choices she had considered before, even experienced before. Each one seemed to test Noya's heart. Her heart was firm, and she could pass the test of her curiosity. She could distinguish illusion from reality, easily navigating the distractions of illusion. She had experienced life and death, and knew the preciousness of life. The past and the future meant nothing to her. Order and chaos—she could clearly distinguish their importance within herself. War and peace—she had been caught up in more than one war and coup. As for balance...hadn't she always been striving for the right balance?

It can be said that Noah's experience is enough to pass these tests, but even so, she still stopped before the 108th step.

Because at the 108th level, the person who appeared before her was herself.

This is not accurate. To be precise, it was Noah Kyrielight as a child who recognized herself at first sight - and then she understood that the problem of the 108th level - was the heart.

She has been making choices, giving up some things in exchange for some things. These are the qualities a warlock should have. A warlock must always remain calm - but in the end, the final problem is actually her original intention.

It comes from Noah Kyrielight's...original intention.

Noah hesitated. The reason why she never moved forward was not because she was bewitched by the illusion of magic, nor because the little Noah in front of her prevented her from moving forward, but because - now she really couldn't remember what kind of person she really wanted to be in the distant past.

...Her childhood memories are very vague. Not only are her parents' memories vague, but her own memories are the same. Since she can remember, it seems that she has always been taken care of by her grandfather. Later, she met Margaret and everyone in the Lin Guang family. But when it comes to Noah's childhood, or the memories before she was taken care of by her grandfather, Noah can hardly remember anything.

Memories that she couldn't recall naturally couldn't satisfy the test of [original intention], so she was stuck awkwardly.

She looked at the girl in front of her who was holding out her arms to stop her with annoyance and couldn't help but sigh, "Can you... let me pass?"

"No! I don't know you! Grandpa said no one is allowed to go through! I can't go either!"

"...But...I am you. I am Noah Kyrielight."

"You're lying! If you're me, then what am I?!" Little Noah puffed up her cheeks and said angrily, "I'm Noah! I'm Noah Kyrielight!"

"..." Noah began to have a headache, and at this moment, Precious's laughter could be heard beside her.

"You were probably much more difficult to deal with when you were little?" Precious mocked Noah. "What should I do? If I want to move on, I'm going to have to dig deeper into those incomplete memories of yours."

"...I don't need you to remind me of this kind of thing." Noah said harshly, "...But my original intention, wasn't it to become a knight?"

"Isn't it about being a princess saved by a knight? All the little girls in my time wanted to be princesses, preferably Disney princesses."

"What is Disney?"

"...Well, a copyright troll, but it doesn't exist anymore. Anyway, all you need to know is that it's a giant with theme parks all over the country." Precious explained casually, "Why? Are you interested in this?"

"Not really." Noya wasn't particularly interested in Disney, but wasn't her childhood dream to become a great knight? Since little Noya shook her head in denial, it meant that her original dream did indeed remain in her memory, though she simply couldn't recall it for the time being.

"...If I want to recall it, the only way is to hypnotize myself..." Noah said helplessly. Her specialty is hypnosis therapy. She used to help her employees relieve their worries. She never thought that one day she would use it on herself, and she still had to find out what the so-called "original dream" was.

This kind of thing... is as common as an elementary school essay... and what's the meaning of the so-called original dream?

Dreams are something that will change slowly as time goes by, as you grow older, and after you face reality. When you were young, many people dreamed of becoming scientists, but how many of them can actually enter the world of science?

This original intention is meaningless and can be easily forgotten... How can it be important?

She couldn't help but ask.

"...Is this answer important to you?"

"It's very important! Grandpa said it! Anyone who can't give this answer is the enemy, and we absolutely cannot let them in!" Little Noya insisted, standing in front of her. It was hard to imagine that she had been so naive in the past. Thinking about it carefully, it seemed that she had shed her childishness from that day, although that day also cost her too much. But how could growing up be without a price?

But Noah's price was too heavy—

From that day on, the dream of becoming a knight was shelved. If the so-called initial dream was counted, Noah had already given up both of his dreams.

...No, from that day on, because she had to think about how to survive, she seemed to no longer have any long-term dreams.

If she had to say something, she hoped to keep the promise she made to Margaret before she died. This was probably her truest thought at the time. She didn't think about the future, or even what she would do in the future.

Everything she did back then was to fulfill the promise and then face her own end without regrets.

Because fate is never on her side, she must try her best to complete what she has failed to do before fate comes.

She wrote more than one suicide note, and then burned them all. She didn't want her despair to make others sad - at that time, she just stubbornly lived on.

She seemed to be killing her past self bit by bit in her own way.

Then carefully piece the pieces together, trying to create an idol that would not cause anyone to worry.

And this idol... is today's Noah Kyrielight.

Even after she got rid of the mineral sickness, she still didn't find herself again.

——My true heart...

Noah smiled bitterly.

——Do I really have what is called true heart?

Chapter 10: Name

This test seems to be an invasion of Ludwig's Tower, but in fact it is a final exam given to him by his teacher.