The three of them walked down the corridor, passing one closed door after another.
Each door had a child's name pasted on it. Some were decorated with little flowers and animals drawn in colored marker.
Every time they passed one, Robin would slow slightly, as though confirming something.
"How have the children been lately?" she asked the nun in a low voice.
"…Not very well." The nun's tone grew heavier.
"Little Anna stopped speaking again last week. She spends all day curled up under her blanket. Tom's doing a little better, but he still refuses to come outside. We have to leave his meals at the door."
She paused, then lowered her voice even further.
"And Jack… yesterday he tried to use a shard of glass to cut his wrist."
Robin stopped dead in her tracks.
"Jack…"
"He was discovered in time. He wasn't hurt," the nun hurried to assure her.
"But he kept repeating one sentence."
"What did he say?"
"He said, 'The outside world is too noisy. I just want some quiet.'"
Silence settled over the hallway for a few seconds.
Soon, the three of them arrived at a hall.
The children in the sanatorium had all gathered there already.
"…Sister Robin?"
The moment they saw Robin, some trace of emotion finally appeared on the faces of those children who had been sitting expressionless.
Robin stepped forward. "It's me, children. Big sister came to see you."
But that was all the reaction they gave.
The nun took a step forward and explained,
"Miss Robin, you've been gone too long. The children… they're worse than they were last week."
"But thank goodness you're back now. Please, help them."
As she spoke, the nun looked at the children seated in the hall, her eyes full of pain.
Hearing that, Robin only felt guiltier.
Of course she knew this state.
This was how the power of Nihility worked.
It didn't make people suffer. It didn't drive them mad. It didn't even necessarily make them uncomfortable.
It simply made everything feel… meaningless.
Joy no longer mattered. Sadness no longer mattered. Living no longer mattered. Dying no longer mattered either.
Robin took a deep breath and stepped forward.
She opened her mouth, trying to produce the voice that had once so easily called people back from despair.
But all that came from her throat was a dry current of air.
No resonance. No echo. No power at all.
Robin's fingers tightened around the fabric of her skirt.
She had almost forgotten what this feeling of helplessness was like.
Back then, whenever she sang, the children trapped by Nihility would seem to hear some distant summons, and light would return to their eyes.
But now, she could not produce even a single note.
"Sister Robin?"
A timid voice came from the corner.
Robin turned toward it. It was a frail little girl. She sat huddled in the farthest corner of her chair, curled into herself like she wanted to disappear.
"…Anna?" Robin called her softly.
Anna nodded. "You haven't come in a long time."
"Sorry. Big sister has had some things to deal with lately…" Robin crouched down, trying to bring herself level with the girl's gaze.
"Oh."
Anna answered, then lowered her head again, staring blankly at the tips of her shoes.
There was no feeling at all in that "oh."
Not disappointment. Not anger. Not grievance. Not even understanding.
Just a simple, empty "oh."
Robin stayed crouched there and, for a moment, found herself with nothing left to say.
She turned to look at the nun. "Are they always like this?"
"It's gotten worse and worse lately," the nun replied softly.
"Last week, Anna would still ask me every now and then when Sister Robin was coming. Then it became once in a while. And later…"
"She stopped asking altogether."
At that, Robin rose to her feet and swept her gaze across the entire hall.
There were more than twenty children here. The youngest was only five. The oldest couldn't have been more than twelve or thirteen.
They sat there quietly, without fuss, without noise, without conflict.
A few had even closed their eyes, their chests barely rising and falling, as though they might dissolve into the air at any moment.
"If only I could still sing…" Robin murmured.
She had already lost her Harmony voice. There was nothing she could do for them now.
Of course, she had already spoken to her brother about it.
Soon, he would bring in some Chaos Doctors to help these children.
Until then, they would simply have to endure.
At that moment, a hand rested on her shoulder.
Robin turned and saw that Kallen had somehow come up behind her.
"Want me to try singing a couple lines?"
"Miss Kallen?" Robin looked startled.
"But didn't you—"
"Ahem!"
At once, Kallen coughed sharply, cutting Robin off before she could finish.
What a joke. She had her pride too.
If Robin spread that rumor about her in public, what would happen to her dignity?
Besides, even if her singing was a little terrible…
If she only hummed along to the tune, it shouldn't be that awful.
Probably.
Seeing that, Robin swallowed the rest of her words.
"Miss Kallen, are you sure?"
"Sure." Kallen nodded.
"It can't get any worse than it already is, right?"
Robin opened her mouth as if to object, but in the end stepped back and gave her the space.
Kallen walked to the center of the hall, facing the two dozen silent children.
They looked up at her, their eyes hollow like dried-up wells.
Kallen stood in silence for a few seconds.
Honestly, these children's symptoms were obvious enough, but not yet terribly severe.
If a Chaos Doctor with a little experience—or a Harmony Pathstrider—came here, slowly bringing them back to health wouldn't be difficult.
Then again, Robin had apparently been doing exactly that before.
It was only because her Harmony had suddenly vanished that the treatment had been interrupted.
Now Kallen could temporarily take her place.
After all, she counted as a healthy and fully functional practitioner of Nihility. With Kallen's own essence behind this identity, her authority over Nihility had long reached the level of an Emanator.
Suppressing it a little for someone else truly wasn't hard.
Still, before that, she needed to put on a bit of a show.
In an instant, the power of Preservation surged out, and golden light flooded the entire hall.
With such a ridiculously invincible special effect on display, Kallen opened her mouth once more, preparing to show off her "singing."
…
In the end, the treatment went very smoothly.
Although Kallen still sang horribly, under the power that was outwardly Preservation but inwardly Nihility, the Nihility inside those children eased.
As for what came next, once Robin's Harmony returned—or once the Chaos Doctors Penacony had summoned finally arrived—there should no longer be any major problems.
When they walked out of the sanatorium, Robin thanked Kallen at once.
"Thank you so much, Miss Kallen!"
"If it hadn't been for you, I truly wouldn't have known what to do today!"
Kallen simply waved it off. "It was nothing."
But seeing how unconcerned she looked, Robin began making her own guesses.
Perhaps this treatment hadn't been as effortless as Kallen made it seem.
Robin herself had once sung for these children before.
Every single time had been an ordeal, but for the sake of her beliefs, she had never backed away.
But then—what was Kallen doing this for?
Robin halted and asked softly, "Miss Kallen, do you believe in Preservation?"
Kallen had indeed used the power of Preservation just now.
But in this galaxy, power and faith were not always the same thing.
Kallen's steps paused. She turned around.
"What do you think, Senior Robin?" she asked in return.
"I don't know," Robin answered honestly.
After all, she didn't truly know what a follower of Preservation ought to look like.
Preservation sounded noble enough as a Path.
But because of the IPC, a large portion of those who walked the path of Preservation were tied to the Company.
And the Company's reputation, to put it mildly, was mixed.
"I've seen many Pathstriders of Preservation," Robin continued.
"Most of them came from the IPC. They talked endlessly about building walls and protecting others, but what they held in their hands were contracts and bills."
She paused, seeming to weigh her words.
"But you're different, Miss Kallen."
"How am I different?"
"You don't have that smell of money on you."
As she said that, the corners of Robin's lips lifted slightly.
"When I first saw you riding that strange motorcycle through the streets, I thought you were some kind of Galaxy Ranger."
Kallen laughed.
"A Galaxy Ranger?" She arched a brow. "Those lunatics who slap bounties everywhere? I'm not nearly that committed."
She turned and leaned back against the corridor railing.
"Senior Robin, what do you think Preservation is?"
Robin thought for a moment. "Building walls. Resisting outside threats. Protecting the people behind you."
"And what if the wall gets built too high," Kallen asked, "and traps the people inside it too?"
Robin froze.
Kallen went on.
"Before I came to Penacony, I went to a lot of places."
"In some Company branches, Preservation had become a business. Those who could afford to pay got the protection of the wall. Those who couldn't were left outside to fend for themselves."
"That kind of Preservation is naturally not the kind I recognize."
"Then what about you?" Robin asked.
"What is your Preservation?"
Very quickly, Kallen answered, "I don't think Preservation has any meaning in and of itself."
"I only want to find my own meaning."
Robin paused.
Then she asked, "And what is your meaning, Miss Kallen?"
To stain Preservation with Nihility.
At least, that was what the character description had said.
But Kallen naturally had no intention of saying that to Robin.
Instead, she picked a reason that sounded heroic enough and fit her current persona perfectly.
"My Preservation shall be the people's shield!"
Robin was silent for a moment before repeating slowly, "…The people's shield?"
She had heard too many grand declarations, too many impassioned speeches, too many lofty slogans.
But for some reason, when this person said it, it didn't feel false in the slightest.
There was no righteous fervor. No emotional crescendo. Not even any deliberate emphasis.
It simply felt as though the girl named Kallen ought to be exactly this kind of person.
And besides, what she believed was not all that different from Robin herself.
A saint.
For some reason, that word came to Robin's mind.
"Miss Kallen, you really are a very interesting person."
Kallen shrugged.
"Interesting? I think I'm pretty boring. I sing badly, I'm no good with words, and the only thing I've got going for me is being good-looking."
That matter-of-fact tone made Robin laugh again.
For some reason, Kallen loved bringing up how pretty she was.
But before Robin's laughter had completely faded, a steady set of footsteps approached.
And judging from the instant change in Robin's expression, she clearly recognized the owner of those steps.
Then Sunday stepped around the corner.
He wore his signature Oak Family attire, his hair immaculately arranged as always.
"Robin," Sunday spoke first, as though it were just another ordinary conversation between siblings. "The Iris Family is looking for you. It seems to be about the Charmony Festival."
Kallen, however, reacted first.
It was obvious enough—Sunday wanted to send Robin away so he could have a private word with her.
After all, he had been watching from the shadows the whole time.
Maybe he was worried this dangerous element might hurt his sister?
Well, if Robin was going to be sent away, then so be it.
Anyway, Kallen had already had enough fun for now.
But, unexpectedly, Robin did not respond to Sunday at once.
She remained where she was, her gaze moving back and forth between her brother and Kallen, as though confirming something.
The memory of finding that meeting room empty was still fresh in her mind, and now here he was trying to send her away again.
It all looked far too suspicious.
Without warning, Robin stepped in front of Kallen protectively.
"Brother, just in time. I happen to have something I want to ask you."
Sunday raised a brow. That ever-composed face of his still showed no flaw.
"What is it?"
"It's about Miss Kallen."
"Brother, have you been bullying Miss Kallen this whole time?"
Sunday: "?????"
Wait.
Bullying who?
Him? Bullying that violent Preservation Emanator?
Sunday wanted to defend himself, but with Kallen's overwhelming presence looming over everything, he had no way to speak the truth.
And then something even more despair-inducing happened.
Robin continued:
"I won't let you bully Miss Kallen anymore!"
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 150)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter190)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter105)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter222)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 190
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 170
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/5
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 215
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 200
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/30
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 115
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 130
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 105
I Can Copy Unique Skills 100
Summoning an Evil God, but the 70
Supernatural Multiverse 90
My Harem Is Indescribable 85
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 90
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 68
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 81
Still playing traditional Honk 69
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 65
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 60
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 55
Transmigrated as Sukuna 61
Checking In in Demon Slayer 65
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 80
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 66
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 58
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 65
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 63
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 59
Why did they assign me to Uma 55
MYGO Beauties 56
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 45
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 49
Honkai's Otherworld? Wait—Who Are You People?! 26
My patreon : patreon.com/queen_sin
My patreon : patreon.com/queen_sin