Aglaea's Four Questions didn't affect Amphoreus's Flame-Chasing Journey, nor did they alter the assistance the two Nameless provided.
The main story continued, the journey proceeding without any major climaxes until they reached the location of the Time Titan.
Stelle received a glance from the Aeon of Remembrance, gaining the power of the Path of Remembrance.
After fighting alongside her Stellaron Hunter companions in the Memory Zone and bidding them farewell, the anticipated continuation of Amphoreus's story didn't happen. Instead, the perspective shifted.
[Switching Perspective: The Herta]
"The Herta? Is Madam Herta coming to save us?" Little Bear had no objections to the sudden perspective shift. His eyes lit up, clearly eager to see Herta's details.
[Great, it's Madam Herta! We're saved!]
[When Herta comes, she should bring Lumina along. Then Amphoreus will be like, "Bro, who is this woman in the white dress? Is she hacking?!"]
[Lumina: A hack? Hilarious. What kind of hack are you, daring to compare yourself to me?]
[A hack? You're calling Lumina a hack? What a joke! Has Lumina really gotten so weak she's on par with a hack? (facepalm)]
[Lumina: A hack is just the minimum requirement to even meet me.]
"Hmm... I wonder if Lumina will cause any trouble?"
"One sentence... should be enough to make her drop the idea of messing with me, right?"
The perspective shifted to Herta, who was currently inside the Audience Device.
"Forget it, let her do whatever she wants." Herta was in a sealed compartment within the Audience Device, facing a shattered mirror.
"Madam Herta, now that the troubles in all three sectors have been resolved, does this mean..." The mirror spoke, its voice unnaturally clear as it questioned Herta.
"Of course. But before that..." Herta pushed aside thoughts of Lumina, crossing her arms with a slight smile. "We still have a small matter to deal with..."
"We need to take care of... a little Memokeeper who's been hiding and tailing us."
"Wow~ Truly impressive, Madam Herta! Your observation skills are impeccable!"
"Do you need our help?"
The mirror praised Herta before asking, seemingly dismissing the little Memokeeper as insignificant.
"Sure. Call everyone out," Herta replied without hesitation, nodding slightly to signal the mirrors to emerge.
"What we're doing is too important to let a petty thief exploit any loopholes," Herta chuckled softly.
In the next instant, four mirrors materialized, surrounding a Memory Bubble in a flash.
"Hmph." Seeing this, Herta slowly approached, the sound of her shoes clicking on the floor echoing loudly in the Memokeeper's ears.
"Parasite of Remembrance, did you know?"
"Even Lumina could see through your pathetic disguise at a glance."
Herta sneered at the Memokeeper.
Both Herta and Lumina had noticed the Memokeeper from the very beginning.
Herta's earlier question—"If a beautiful girl committed heinous crimes, would you forgive her?"—was actually a test to gauge Lumina's opinion on this Memokeeper.
If Lumina had answered "I would forgive her," Herta would have let the Memokeeper go. After all, she hadn't managed to steal any memories.
But since Lumina had answered "I wouldn't forgive her," the situation had naturally escalated to this...
Pushing aside thoughts of Lumina, Herta focused on the Memory Thief before her. She was going to punish this one thoroughly.
"Once my mirrors find you, don't even think about escaping."
Herta strode up to the Memokeeper, forcing her to reveal her true form. A dangerous smile played on Herta's lips.
This Memokeeper had tried to steal her memories, and Herta was furious.
But before even attempting to steal her memories, the thief had dared to target Lumina's?
How dare she?
Unforgivable... Madam Herta would absolutely not forgive this!
A shadow fell over Herta's gaze. Her amethyst-like eyes, usually brilliant and beautiful, now radiated a suffocating, dangerous aura.
"M-Madam Herta... I... I..." The Memokeeper trembled uncontrollably under the crushing pressure.
If... if she had known stealing Herta's memories would provoke such a reaction, she would have died before ever daring to challenge her!
Thud...
Under Herta's relentless gaze, the Memokeeper couldn't hold out for long.
Within moments, she collapsed to the floor, groveling and begging for mercy.
"Madam Herta, please spare me, Madam Herta!"
"I... I'll never do it again..."
"Heh." Herta remained unmoved by the Memokeeper's pleas.
"Let you go?" Herta chuckled softly. "Lumina might let you go, but I won't."
As her words faded, a powerful suction force erupted from the mirror, pulling the Memokeeper's entire body inside.
"Aaaaaah!"
After a series of agonized screams, the room fell completely silent.
Clap, clap, clap~
"All done." Having finished her work, Herta clapped her hands. The gloom and dangerous aura in her eyes vanished in an instant.
"Hmph. You can repent to Lumina inside that mirror for all I care."
With a soft snort, Herta turned her gaze back to the mirror, preparing for the final step.
"A Memokeeper? Wait, was that Memokeeper trying to solo an Emanator of Erudition?" Little Bear watched the in-game story unfold, utterly stunned.
A mere Memokeeper daring to steal the memories of an Emanator of Erudition... It reminded Little Bear of an old acquaintance...
Though, compared to that acquaintance, this Memokeeper was probably a bit stronger.
After all, that acquaintance didn't know their target's true identity. When they failed, they could only blame their own lack of strength.
But Herta was different. What kind of reputation did she have across the entire cosmos?
Member of the Genius Society, Emanator of Erudition—those two titles were the real deal.
To still dare to steal her memories even after knowing those titles... Little Bear had to admire the audacity.
Are all followers of the Path of Remembrance this bold?
[LMAO, if the Pathstriders of Remembrance are this entertaining, I can't even imagine what their Emanator is like.]
[Path of Remembrance (❌) Path of Elation (✔️)]
[So, I made my move. (Black Swan tilting her head up proudly.jpg)]
"This scene should connect to the end of Herta's Version 2.7 storyline, when she had an audience with Nous, the Erudition," Little Bear mused.
"Has she... already met the Aeon, or not yet?"
His eyes filled with anticipation as he clicked the mouse, continuing the story...