Arknights, but the sickly pretty girl starts

She couldn't grow up anymore—

The one who took over her baton was the product of Project Zero, now known as [Noah].

As the pieces of information connected, Noa finally pieced together most of the truth. Why was her memory flawed? Because she wasn't Noa Kyrielight herself. Why had she survived oripathy and possessed so many strange powers? Because she was a product of Project Zero, she possessed the ability to repair and even rebuild her soul. Finally, why was the Administrator present in her subconscious? Because as a product of Project Zero, Noa was the Administrator's creation. In other words, the Administrator was her past, her sealed memories.

All the unexpected and strange things have an explanation, although this explanation is not what Noah himself wants to see.

More importantly... she didn't even know who to hate...

Do you hate Miss Administrator? But she is her own creator, even her own mother, and she created herself to save the world.

Did she hate her grandfather? Although she wasn't his biological granddaughter, Noya remembered his kindness to her. No wonder the family heirloom sword didn't recognize Noya's qualifications... That sword was never meant to be hers.

Then...who should I hate?

It should be said that the world is a huge boomerang. When I stopped Alex and persuaded her, I probably never thought that I and Alex would be created from the same plan. No wonder Alex has such a strange obsession with her. After all... Noah doesn't even know what she is now.

"Miss Administrator."

"……Um."

"Can I ask you another question?"

"Go ahead." The administrator looked at Noya, who was like her own daughter, and nodded. "I'll tell you the truth. I promised you."

Everything in the past flashed through Noah's memory bit by bit, like a kaleidoscope. She had lived as Noah Kyrielight for so many years. These emotions, the feelings of those who had connected with her, were not fake. She would not deny these. Those things were the reasons why she had persisted in fighting until now. Although she was still confused just now, she slowly propped up her body and faced the administrator, her creator, or... her real mother.

"I don't think the life I've lived is fake," she began. "After all, it's the life I've lived. My heart, my soul, has become what a Terran is. I'm not a creation of Project Zero."

She rejected this identity, preferring to continue living as Noa Kyrielight. In the past, she might have thought she was a fake and owed everyone an apology, but she was no longer the submissive child she once was. Noa now had people she cared about and things she needed to do. A change of identity wouldn't destroy all the years she'd lived, nor would it destroy the self she'd built.

So, she had to make this matter clear to the administrator.

"I will not be your bargaining chip, Miss Administrator. I will use my own way, together with my partners, to complete your unfinished goals."

The administrator was clearly surprised. She'd thought she knew Zero well, and her words would crush him. But she hadn't considered that, regardless of her identity, everything Noa had experienced on Terra had completely changed her, or rather, had already established a strong sense of identity within her. She didn't have to be Noa Kyrielight. She was shaken, but that was all.

I'm not Noah, so what?

I sympathize with Noah Kyrielight's experience, and I also hope to help that child, but this does not mean that I have to give up everything that comes with this identity. These are her own things. You can say that she is selfish or that she is using someone else's power to take advantage of her, but those are Noah's most precious things, and she will not give them to anyone.

Mace, Margaret, Maria, Viviana—the me they recognized was not fake.

"I'm so sorry, Miss Administrator," she apologized again. "Thank you for bringing me into this world. This world is wonderful, and I love it. So, you from the old times shouldn't interfere with our future."

She turned around, and the moment she saw the administrator, she already knew the way to leave this memory - the way to leave the Garden of Eden was to eat the forbidden fruit, and this forbidden fruit was the truth that the administrator had mentioned.

As humans gained wisdom, they realized the shame of being naked, so they used the tools around them to cover their bodies.

Although humans were bound to leave the Garden of Eden, they had already taken away the most precious things from it.

At this time, a door had been opened for Noah, and the administrator behind her did not move at all. She just watched Noah from a distance as he walked towards the door. Noah finally stopped in front of the door. She turned her head and took a last look at the administrator. Then, she took a step without hesitation and disappeared behind the door.

"...grown up." The Administrator stared at the door closing, everything around them crumbling. This was originally a fragment of memory, and after the truth was revealed, it had been able to maintain it until now. However, in the end, the Administrator did not become discouraged. Project Zero, also known as the "Ark Project," had failed from the beginning. The Administrator had originally intended to use Project Zero as an ark, carrying all human souls to a new era, but when the Lumberjack crisis truly broke out, Project Zero was not completed.

The Administrator was ultimately forced to use his own soul as material to complete Zero, but it was already too late.

Most of the human souls were devoured by the Originium and merged into the Sea of ​​Solaris. A small number were protected by the sarcophagus of the Preservator Project. The Deep Blue Tree lay dormant on the seabed, and the Heaven's Fulcrum hung in the sky. In the end, everything was exactly as she had expected.

Finally, she had a final phone call with Precious before sacrificing her soul and completing the final step of Zero.

The Administrator did not save humanity, she did fail.

However, the Zero she created deviated from her plan, or rather, exceeded her plan itself.

In a sense, as a mother, the administrator is actually very happy. Although she is now just a personality constructed from memories, it does not prevent her from offering blessings to Noah.

"Good luck, my child."

Then, she just melted into the ocean of subconsciousness, leaving no trace.

-

"...Failed at the 108th level? No, she gave up." The Lord of the Lich King's Court, who had been waiting for a day and a night, finally heard the news. But it wasn't good news. Noya had given up the test; she hadn't passed the Inner Question. "No, something's wrong. I clearly felt the 108th level was almost over. Why did it have to be now..."

"It was her own choice." The one who knew everything was, of course, the Witch King, Herhunzoren, who had been silently guarding her. When he saw Noya open her eyes, the Witch King finally smiled.

What the hell is this question about one's true heart? My student has already truly examined her own heart. These techniques are meaningless and cannot shake her soul at all. Then what's the point of this test?

How could Herhunzollon not be happy?

That’s right, it wasn’t the 108th level test that stopped Noah, but Noah could already completely ignore the 108th level spells and skip directly.

After Noah pushed open the door, all the spells disappeared with a wave of her hand. Noah now could no longer be influenced or spied on by spells of this level.

"Teacher, I hope I didn't embarrass you, did I?" Noah asked curiously, "But I'm also curious, teacher, have you known my true situation for a long time?"

"I can guess at least a little bit." Herhunzollon did not deny it. "Your soul and your body are not compatible. This kind of thing is easy to detect."

“—No wonder you insisted that I pass this test before you could tell me the answer…” Noah couldn’t help but complain, “It’s too dangerous… I almost couldn’t get out.”

"How could my student possibly lose to me?" Helhunzollon sneered. "You've successfully surmounted all the defenses of this tower. Now, all you have to do is go meet him."

"he?"

"The Lord of the Lich King's Court, the Gatekeeper of Knowledge, you can call him: Fremont. To be strict, he should be considered your great-grandmaster." After all, Herhunzollon was once a student of this old man. If you really talk about seniority, he is indeed a figure of the great-grandmaster level.

"...Grandmaster? I destroyed Grandmaster's mechanisms along the way..." Noah was dumbfounded. "Why didn't you stop me?"

"That's how I broke in the first place." Helhunzollen shrugged nonchalantly. "It's just that this guy's stuff isn't strong enough. Don't give him face."

"——You..." Noah muttered, "You really are..."

Helhunzolun pretended not to hear his apprentice's mumbling. Noya pushed open the door. Behind it was an old man sitting on Zoe. Noya saw the old man's eyes sweep over him. Then he put down the book, coughed twice, and stood up from his seat. "Do you know what you did?"

"..." Noah felt the terrifying pressure from the opponent. He was worthy of being Herhunzollon's teacher. This oppressive force was indeed enough to prove the opponent's strength.

The Lord of the Lich King's Court... one of the ten royal courts of the Sarkaz, why is he in Lethania?

Numerous questions popped up in Noya's mind, but she quickly recovered and knelt on one knee with student etiquette. "Excuse me, I'm honored to meet you...Master..."

"...? What did you call me?" Flemont, who had just been showing off in front of the younger generation, was suddenly stunned. Then his eyes suddenly lit up with a gleam of light. "Who... is your teacher?"

"My teacher's name is Herhunzollon, and he asked me to say hello to you." So, according to what the Witch King taught her word by word, Noah admitted for the first time that she was the Witch King's disciple, or in other words, it was the first time that she admitted her identity in front of others. She was still very nervous.

But Herhunzollon himself was not so patient. The next moment, Noah's eyes suddenly changed. She slowly stood up, looked directly at Fremont, and spoke.

"All is well, Frémont."

At this moment, Frémont was completely certain. There was only one person who would greet him so disrespectfully.

"I should have guessed it was you, Herhunzollon." Frémont took a deep breath. As expected, the longer you live, the more you see. Although he had witnessed Herhunzollon's fall, the one before him at this moment was undoubtedly Herhunzollon himself.

Only he could walk into his own tower so casually.

But Frémont did not realize that the moment he saw Herhunzollon, the corners of his mouth rose slightly.

Chapter 21: Sweeping Out

Even Fremont probably didn't expect that he and Herhunzollon would meet under such circumstances.

"This child is your disciple? What? Have you changed? Why did you tell me that taking on a disciple was a waste of time?" Flemont raised his eyebrows and said, "Let me see, what did the great Sorcerer King bring back? Noah Kyrielight, your disciple is truly a household name. What? Is this a surprise that hasn't been seen for a long time?"

"Teaching mediocre people is a waste of my time, old friend." Herhunzoren, using Noya's body, gave a strange smile. "But my disciple has truly passed all of your levels, just like I did back then. You even made them more difficult. According to the agreement, my disciple should have two choices."

"Your disciple is not a lich, so she cannot be the master of the Lich King's Court."

"Yes, but in exchange, you can help her once. Or perhaps accept her as your disciple. Liches don't have a rule against teaching outsiders, right?" Helhunzollon certainly wasn't interested in the position of Lich King. He looked at Fremont and said, "Although I'm her teacher, as her grandmaster, it wouldn't be against the rules for you to pass on your teachings to a different generation, right?"

"...Humph, what do you want?" Fletmont narrowed his eyes and sat down on the chair. "But I must remind you that you are already dead. Even if there is still a little remnant of you, you will never be resurrected."

"Of course I'm not here for such a boring thing as resurrection, and you won't help me. After all, it was you who stole those two primarchs that were originally used to fight against the warp from me." Herhunzoron spoke frankly about what happened back then, and did not take Fremont's face into consideration at all. After all, Fremont had never concealed his participation in the coup, or in other words, the assassination.

Two Primarchs he had meticulously crafted, combined with the spells of the Lord of the Lich King's Court. Without the combined power of the two, how could the Witch King have fallen in his own tower?

Although he was using Noah's body, the Witch King's demeanor still gave Fremont a terrifying sense of oppression when it was expressed on Noah.

He is like a reef, standing in the wind and waves, and his rugged shell has not changed for thousands of years.

"Should I not have argued with His Majesty Herhunzollon?" The old lich twitched his lips and frankly admitted everything Herhunzollon had said. "I have tried to persuade you."

"This isn't your first time." Helhunzollen also laughed. "What exactly made that once high-spirited old man, the one with more ambition than any young man, finally show some signs of unease? Was it the sudden appearance of the alien demon king? Or did you realize that I never left?"

"Lethania is your shadow. As long as she's here, you won't leave," the old lich complained. "I originally thought those two Primarchs were just weapons you created, but in reality, I've seen what you instilled into their minds. What were you thinking? Did you intend to let those two Primarchs rule Lethania from the beginning?"

"It's fair to say that I can't remain in the real world forever. I certainly need a replacement, someone to take charge of Leitania in my absence. They must be strong enough and have complementary personalities. It was you who reminded me of the consequences of over-centralization of imperial power. As you can see, I don't have time to slowly change Leitania. I tried to get Leitania to follow me, but I failed. Gradual progress is dangerous, but necessary. Before that, I prepared my replacement. It's not difficult to understand."

"What about you? If you were planning to abdicate, you could have told me clearly at the beginning."

"I never stop. This is what distinguishes me from the sages of past generations," Herhunzollon responded. "To this day, the ocean and sky are still shrouded in the fog of cognition. The earth is the limit of what the people of Terra can feel and know. But according to the knowledge you have shared, even the highest clouds and the deepest seabed are nothing but 'reality' imprisoned by time and space. Beyond reality lies another side of the world, a void, a strange and dangerous unknown realm. If the questions are endless, then the answers are endless."

Herhunzollon smiled. "This is my 'immortality', Fremont. Immortality lies in 'renewal'."

Letania is the shadow of the Witch King. This sentence may be a compliment to other Letania emperors, but only Herhunzoren said this, and it was Letania bragging about herself.

Only Fremont knew how far the Witch King's vision reached. He wondered if it had been a mistake for him to tell Herhunzollon about the existence of the Thousand Threads. If he had not known about the existence of the Warp and had not carried out those studies, perhaps the Witch King would have become a monarch praised by all ages. He was a wise king and a peerless scholar, but when he tried to lead his Leithania across the ages, Leithania could no longer withstand his progress.

But now he found it funny, because his original doubts had been answered. The twin queens were the substitutes he had prepared.

In a sense, Leitania was still within his sights, and the two queens seemed to be dancing in his palms. It was funny to say that even his betrayal might have been within his expectations.

"That's enough, Herhunzollon." The old lich smacked his lips, and the last trace of guilt he felt towards Herhunzollon disappeared. "Just tell me, why did you come back?"

"—It seems you don't want to reminisce. That's just as well. I have only one request." Helhunzollon stood up and said, "Exile my disciple."

"?" Fremont was stunned for a moment. He thought of many possibilities, even that Herhunzollon wanted to let his disciple become the new Witch King, or asked him to help exile the Twin Queens to pave the way for his disciples. He even thought about whether this was just the beginning of Herhunzollon's next plan. However, no matter how much he thought about it, he never thought that Herhunzollon actually wanted him to exile his disciple to the warp.

"Are you crazy?"

"The fact that she was able to pass your test proves that her will is no longer shaken by the Warp. Her understanding and ability to parse spells have also reached a sufficient level. She will not be lost by the unique structure of the Warp. Now, she is qualified to enter there, Fremont."

"That doesn't mean she should go there! You lunatic! She's still young and has a bright future! But you want to push her into the fire pit!" Frémont's voice was deafening, and the entire tower was shaking, startling the birds flying outside the tower. "Herhunzolen! You are really crazy!"

"...Master." At this moment, Noah finally took back control from the Witch King. In an instant, the oppressive aura disappeared, and Noah said seriously, "Master didn't ask me to do this. I did it myself."

"...You..." The old lich looked at Noah's appearance. From the beginning, Noah's deeds seemed to cover up something, something...obvious.

"...Kirielight, Lin Guang...I see." The old lich looked at Noah and suddenly realized the connection between the warp and the surname Kirielight. He also understood why Noah came here and asked to be exiled.

"My parents... are in the Warp?" Noya was no fool. From the change in the old lich's expression, she knew everything. Clearly, the old lich's attitude had made him think of something, and the name of Kirielight was probably what made him think of it. Old liches in Leithania generally had a low chance of coming into contact with knight families, which meant that they had likely seen her parents. Combined with the Witch King's words, she was almost certain that her parents had traveled to the so-called Warp.

"You just mentioned... Lin Guang. Could it be..." Noah clenched his fists, "Even they are..."

"What did Herhunzollon tell you?" Fremont lowered his brows. "Did he tell you that as long as you enter the warp, you will be able to see your parents?"

"...No." Noah shook his head. "The teacher didn't tell me anything. He just told me to come here and I would find out the truth."

"... Considering the situation in the Warp, this is indeed safer." After realizing the other party's last name, Frémont's attitude towards Noah was obviously much better than before. After all, they were old friends. "I have indeed seen your parents and those two Lin Guangs, and they did go to the Warp - but Herhunzoron obviously didn't tell you the whole truth, Noah Kyrielight, about your parents..."

Frémont hesitated for a moment, but replied, "They're dead."

“…You’re lying.”

"You can't lie in front of her." At this time, Herhunzollon's voice rang in Frémont's ears, "My disciple has the ability to feel other people's emotions. It's impossible to lie in front of her, Frémont."

"Shut up!" Fremont was indeed lying, but to be precise, it was half true and half false. After all, the nature of the subspace is special, and the flow of time inside is chaotic. The time of entering the subspace and the time of leaving the subspace can even differ by more than ten years, or even go back to the past. In this case, entering the subspace itself is a very dangerous thing. Even if you are not caught in the turbulence of time, you may be distorted by the completely different rules as soon as you step into the subspace.

In this case, people who enter the subspace are basically in a superposition state of life and death - before seeing each other, no one knows whether they can leave the subspace alive.

The Warp is such a dangerous thing, so the Lich's innate spells can enter the Warp and move within it with priority, which is itself a unique advantage. Other races are almost impossible to do this. This is also one of the reasons why Fremont said that Herhunzoron was crazy. It was because of his life knot that Herhunzoron was able to glimpse a corner of the Warp.

But now—he actually wanted to let his own disciple enter that kind of place? He was either crazy or had bad intentions!

Herhunzoron was very clear about the dangers of the Warp. He might be the person in the world who knew the most about the Warp except for the Lich, so Fremont was so angry.

"Miss Noah, no matter what Herhunzoren says to you, no matter how he tempts you to enter the warp, you must never listen to his one-sided words. Your parents did enter the warp, but the warp is almost as vast as the universe. It is impossible for you to find your parents' whereabouts after entering the warp. The warp is a mirror that reflects the material world, and the degree of chaos inside is far beyond your imagination." Fremont tried to persuade Noah earnestly, but Noah did not listen at all. Although she learned that she was not the real Noah Kyrielight because of the subconscious, she still could not give up her purpose of coming to Leithania.

Maybe she is indeed fake, but even for the sake of Noah and her grandfather, she must find them back - this feeling has never faded because of the so-called fake identity!

"Mr. Fremont! Master! Please!"

"No! Absolutely not!" How could Frémont agree to such a thing? He became cruel and waved his hand. A strong wind instantly lifted Noah off the ground and flew out of the window. He cursed, "Madman! You can't rest in peace even after death!"

Noah was falling at high speed, but at the moment of landing, a gentle force lifted her up and slowly dropped her down, preventing her from landing hard on the ground. This was Fremont's insurance measure. He was ready to receive her spell when he threw Noah out of the tower.

After landing, Noya was still a little dazed. Just a moment ago, she was just a tiny bit away from the truth. The Warp, the Warp was where her parents went! But the master rejected her request and drove her out.

"……teacher!"

"I've already done what I promised you—" Noah wanted to say something, but Herhunzollen reminded him in advance, "I only said that this place can give you the truth, not that I can help you find your parents. If Fremont doesn't agree, then there's nothing I can do."

"...Could it be that you did this on purpose?" Noah came to his senses. "You want to use this method to persuade me to give up?"

"I've already told you where to enter the subspace. Now, it's up to you to convince this master who's even more stubborn than I am, isn't it?"