Acheron studied the figure before her, who had somehow shifted into her own monochromatic palette.
Her gaze eventually drifted to the girl's translucent midsection. "I thought some mindless wanderer had strayed in here to splash around in the waters. It gave me such a fright I practically flew over."
'Hysilens' chuckled at the remark. "Flew? I'd love to see what you look like when you're actually startled."
"..."
Acheron stared back, speechless, before raising a finger to give 'Hysilens' a gentle flick on the forehead. "What identity are you wearing this time? And what brings you here?"
"Hysilens, the Ocean Chrysos Heir... and she represents the Path of Nihility."
Acheron's pupils contracted slightly. "And the original?"
"Perfectly fine, though even I'm not entirely sure what happened there."
"Is there actually something you don't know?"
"...I'm not a voyeur," 'Hysilens' grumbled helplessly. She had encountered the real Hysilens many times before. "Besides, I wasn't an Aeon back then. How was I supposed to remember every little detail?"
No one had ever mentioned it, and Hysilens herself had never shown any signs of becoming a Self-Annihilator. Since she wasn't some creep who spent her days spying on people, she saw no reason to go poking around.
Acheron was momentarily stifled by the sheer logic of the answer, but on second thought, it tracked. "Still, we should probably check in. Where is Madam Hysilens now?"
"The Astral Express. She and Cerydra of Amphoreus joined the crew a while back. They're Nameless now."
Of all the groups to join, it had to be the one that spent its time wandering across the universe. Acheron shook her head with a sigh; she wasn't particularly close with the Express crew. That matter could wait.
More importantly, she had a feeling the person standing in front of her wasn't here for anything "proper." This individual had already used their identities on Amphoreus to decode two different Paths. Now here they were again, wearing the guise of a Nihility representative.
Acheron had a hunch—though it remained unsaid—that this person had likely already figured out how to parse Nihility as well. And they had just been caught wading in the sea.
"Let's talk about you first. You didn't come here... intending to research Nihility, did you?"
"Spot on." 'Hysilens' gave Acheron a cheeky thumbs-up.
However, that thumb was promptly and firmly pressed down by Acheron.
"No. Even if you aren't affected by Nihility's influence, that doesn't mean you can just dive headfirst into its depths unscathed." Acheron felt a headache coming on.
Just what gave this person such reckless courage? Even an Aeon shouldn't be playing such a dangerous game. "Aren't there enough other Paths for you to mess around with?"
"Don't worry, I'll be careful. If things look south, I'll pull back immediately."
"...I don't believe you."
Acheron half-wanted to just chase her away—get her as far from this place as possible. But as things stood, she couldn't win a physical confrontation.
The power gap between them was no longer something that could be bridged by mere effort.
Fortunately, when force failed, there were other ways.
Before 'Hysilens' could react, Acheron reached out and scooped her up into her arms. She locked her grip tight, effectively pinning 'Hysilens' and restricting her movement.
"I won't accept you being this reckless. Until you drop this idea, I'm taking you away from here. I'll be watching you constantly unless you decide to knock me down to get away."
"..."
The corner of 'Hysilens's' eye twitched. She tilted her head to look at Acheron in disbelief. "Are you serious? You're playing dirty now?"
The corners of Acheron's mouth curled slightly—a hint of happiness tinged with a flicker of guilt.
"I'm sorry for taking advantage of your feelings for me, but I have no choice. It's fine if you don't forgive me. After all, I'm just someone who could disappear at any moment."
"...Acheron, you're being really mean right now!" 'Hysilens' ground her teeth, shooting Acheron a "fierce" glare.
Acheron simply met the gaze with a tender smile, offering no further rebuttal.
After indulging in the warmth of Acheron's embrace for a moment, 'Hysilens' let out a defeated sigh.
Even if Acheron tried to stop her like this, she could still find ways to study Nihility, but doing so wouldn't actually solve the underlying problem.
Using a bit of technique to slip out of the hold, she turned around and took Acheron's hands in hers.
"Listen to me, Acheron. The reason I'm targeting Nihility is because I want to resolve the issue of the Self-Annihilators and the Sin Thirsters. To put it boldly... I'm probably the only one who can do this."
"I will handle it. No matter how many years it takes, it doesn't have to be you." Acheron's voice was a bit stiff; she knew her words sounded more like stubbornness than a logical counter-argument.
"I won't accept you spending countless years on this. You were meant to live out your life in a better world."
"A better world..." Acheron's smile turned a bit lonely.
There were many beautiful worlds out there, but which one was truly her home?
"If there isn't one you like, then we'll create one. Even if you want a world of beautiful dreams, I can turn those dreams into reality. You know I can."
Acheron could feel the sheer resolve radiating from 'Hysilens.' It was a familiar feeling. Just as she didn't want 'Hysilens' risking herself for Nihility, the other woman clearly didn't want her trapped here by this duty forever.
And yet... when two immovable resolves clash, one side has to give.
Acheron looked down at her hands, held firmly in the other's grasp. It seemed increasingly likely that she would be the one to yield.
"I'm going to free you from Nihility, Acheron. I won't let you stay here forever."
'Hysilens''s tone was just as firm, and arguably more practical. Rationally, Acheron felt she was being the temperamental one, as she couldn't offer a better alternative.
In the past, when others chose to approach Nihility, Acheron would offer a word of caution and then step aside, respecting their choice. But 'Hysilens' was different. She wasn't just "anyone."
She was the one who had saved her, pulled her from a state of mindless drifting, and even suppressed the Nihility within her, allowing her to think and act like a normal person again.
"Besides~ Acheron, you're the one who started playing dirty first. So now, I'm not letting you say no. Even if I have to knock you out and carry you away, I'm pulling you out of this mire."
'Hysilens' raised their joined hands, almost as if flaunting a strength that Acheron couldn't resist.
"Hah... It seems I don't have the power to refuse you." Acheron sighed.
Just as 'Hysilens' couldn't bring herself to actually hurt her, Acheron felt the same. "But if you start throwing your safety away, I will stop you—even if it costs me my life."
She spoke with such gravity that the smile faded from 'Hysilens''s face. Whatever Acheron intended to do in that scenario, it was clearly an ending she couldn't accept.
Since Acheron had yielded, she would meet her halfway. "I promise. I won't be reckless."
Even though Acheron had stepped back, she wasn't entirely at ease. She remained glued to 'Hysilens''s side, watching her every move as she quietly researched the Path of Nihility.
While 'Hysilens' enjoyed the closeness, being stared at so intensely was getting a bit uncomfortable.
Sitting on a jagged reef right next to Acheron, 'Hysilens' momentarily withdrew her consciousness from her research and turned her head with a sigh. She immediately met Acheron's watchful, sentry-like gaze.
"...Look, I get it, but do you really have to watch me this closely?"
"If I don't, you'll definitely look for a loophole."
"You really don't trust me? I'm going to cry."
"Stop being cheeky."
Watching the girl try to act cute, Acheron reached out and pressed a finger against her forehead, blocking her vision so she wouldn't spot any cracks in Acheron's own expression.
Though she hated to admit it, Acheron felt like she was being completely handled.
If 'Hysilens' got serious, she'd give in; if 'Hysilens' acted cute or pouted, she'd still give in.
She had almost blurted out that she did trust her just now.
Thankfully, she'd held her tongue. But 'Hysilens' wouldn't let her off that easily, pulling Acheron's hand down.
"Oh, just take a break. We're only at the beginning; it's not dangerous yet. If you burn all your energy now, you won't be able to stop me later when it counts."
"..."
The girl always had a "correct theory" to win her over.
Acheron had been reflecting lately on whether the other woman was just that logical, or if she herself was just too easy to persuade. Clearly, her self-reflection hadn't yielded much result.
Without her hand blocking the view, Acheron locked eyes with 'Hysilens' for a few seconds before she finally broke.
"Fine. I'll take scheduled breaks."
"That's more like it! If you stay wound up like a spring, you'll snap at the critical moment."
"..."
Acheron didn't reply. She simply looked away, finally relaxing her vigil.
'Hysilens' breathed a sigh of relief. Being stared at like that was high pressure.
Submerging herself back into the Nihility Equation, 'Hysilens' proceeded with extreme caution. She wasn't being nearly as casual as she had been with the other two Paths.
To understand and master Nihility, one had to touch the very concept of "nothingness"—and simply trying to perceive such negative concepts was enough to warp one's psyche.
Because she was actively learning Nihility, the system couldn't provide the same total isolation and protection it usually did. After all, decoding a Path Equation required a unique way of perceiving and understanding the Path itself.
It wasn't like being a standard Pathstrider, but if the system blocked every single influence, she wouldn't be able to learn a thing.
With the system's defenses lowered, 'Hysilens' naturally began to feel the physical and mental strain. She didn't have a shortcut for this; she just had to take it one step at a time.
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL