"Mm."
Her tone was flat, as though she were answering an insignificant question. Everything seemed detached from her, as if nothing in the world truly concerned her.
A long silence followed.
Ye Guizhou slowly raised his head, his trembling gaze finally meeting those violet eyes.
"I..."
The words caught in his throat.
Looking into Acheron's emotionless eyes, he suddenly didn't know what to say.
Should he continue apologizing?
Or simply remain silent?
He had imagined countless times how Acheron might react.
Yet now, faced with her calm indifference, Ye Guizhou felt a complicated mixture of guilt and heartache.
It wasn't her coldness that saddened him.
It was the broken state of her emotions.
If a person truly lost all desire, all joy, and all sorrow, what color would the world become in their eyes?
Would it be a world devoid of warmth and light?
Or an endless desert of indifference, where even life itself had lost its meaning?
Acheron blinked. Her beautiful eyes were as clear as morning dew as her lips parted slightly.
"There's no need to dwell on things that never happened. Cherish the present and pay attention to the people around you. As for the past, Father, there is only one thing you need to remember. You took me in and gave me a home, allowing a wandering soul a brief place to belong. Even if it was only a small act of kindness, that is enough."
...
As her words faded, Ye Guizhou's expression became increasingly complicated.
He lowered his head in thought and remained silent for a long time.
Acheron wasn't in a hurry.
She simply waited quietly.
After a while, Ye Guizhou finally looked up and met her gaze.
"Is that truly all you feel?"
"Yes. Nothing more."
"I see."
A heavy sigh escaped his lips.
He no longer lingered on the matter.
Instead, he asked another question.
"You said earlier that you're not an Ability User?"
Although Ye Guizhou was an ordinary person, both his intuition and Acheron's unique presence had always told him one thing:
Acheron was definitely not ordinary.
"But... if it's something you'd rather not discuss..."
He hesitated.
Just as he was about to continue, Acheron's calm voice interrupted him.
"Galaxy Ranger Acheron—a traveler from beyond the galaxy."
Ye Guizhou: (*ﾟﾛﾟ)!!
The revelation struck him like a bolt of lightning.
Every assumption he had ever made instantly shattered.
At that moment, he realized he had vastly underestimated Acheron's true identity.
Still, Ye Guizhou's mental fortitude was exceptional.
After a brief moment of shock, he gradually calmed down.
Taking a deep breath, he steadied himself and looked at her once more.
Seeing his reaction, Acheron tilted her head slightly.
"Father's reaction is calmer than I expected. You don't doubt my words?"
A faint smile appeared on Ye Guizhou's face.
"No, I believe you. After all, Ability Users already exist. If even that is possible, then what reason do I have to doubt the existence of someone from beyond Blue Star?"
Acheron nodded.
Her expression remained unchanged, but somewhere deep within her heart, a faint warmth quietly stirred.
Like a gentle spring breeze.
"Then let me make a guess. Ever since Mo Xi returned home, your condition has changed considerably compared to when we first met. So... have you remembered everything? Or do you have some purpose in coming to Blue Star?"
Acheron shook her head.
"Those who walk the galaxy alone have only two desires: to follow the traces of their predecessors, or to find a path of their own. But beneath Their gaze, the latter often leads back to the former. For now, this world is merely a brief stop among countless journeys—a fallen leaf drifting across ten thousand mountains, destined to become nothing more than an unnoticed footnote at the edge of history."
Her voice was calm and distant, as though she were recounting someone else's story.
Yet Ye Guizhou's heart was anything but calm.
Every word she spoke shattered another piece of his former understanding.
The truth was so vast that it felt absurd.
As an ordinary person, he could hardly evaluate what he had just heard.
But for the first time, he felt as though he had touched a corner of Acheron's heart.
Within those violet eyes lay an indescribable loneliness.
A sorrow etched into the soul itself.
A desolation that even the passage of time could never erase.
The room fell silent once more.
Acheron waited patiently, allowing him time to process everything.
She hadn't hidden much.
Sooner or later, many truths would inevitably come to light.
Since he had asked, there was no reason not to answer.
After a long while, Ye Guizhou finally managed to sort through part of the shock.
The usually quiet and indifferent Acheron hid far more than he had ever imagined.
Only now did he realize that the Acheron he knew after years of living together was merely the tip of the iceberg.
The truth hidden beneath the surface was far deeper and more mysterious than he had ever imagined.
"Sorry... I lost my composure for a moment."
"It's fine."
Ye Guizhou rubbed his forehead.
Today's conversation had already exceeded every expectation he had held.
After taking a breath, he asked his final questions.
"Just two more. After today, as long as you're willing, this home will always welcome you."
"Mm."
"First, is there a way to cure your condition? And second... when this is all over, will you leave?"
As the words fell, Ye Guizhou thought he saw the faintest smile flicker across Acheron's lips.
And this time, he wasn't mistaken.
The questions were unexpected, yet entirely reasonable.
As for the first one, Acheron answered with quiet regret.
"Where memories linger, every touch becomes a thorned blossom... but this is the path I am destined to walk."
And that path was destined to be long and lonely.
For the first time, Acheron gave an answer that wasn't entirely direct.
Yet Ye Guizhou seemed to understand.
He merely nodded helplessly, his expression carrying a trace of melancholy.
Acheron rose to her feet.
Her violet figure moved lightly toward the door.
Ye Guizhou didn't stop her.
He simply watched her leave, as though bidding farewell to a chapter of the past that could never be spoken aloud.
"As for your second question..."
Acheron opened the door.
"Mother has already gone out to buy ingredients for dinner."
With that, she stepped through the doorway.
Her purple skirt fluttered softly behind her like ripples spreading across still water before her figure disappeared from sight.
Click.
The door closed gently.
Ye Guizhou remained seated in silence, staring blankly at the closed door.
After a long while—
A faint smile slowly appeared on his face.