With vigilance, Noah traversed the electromagnetic mist distorted by Tacetite reverberation energy with extreme caution, finally emerging from the deep mist rock cave.
The view suddenly opened up. The main island of the Black Shores, [Tethys Hub], appeared in his vision like a sleeping garden.
Pale blue tides repeatedly washed the shore. In the center of the island, a cluster of buildings with an extremely futuristic design rose from the ground, like a scene that would only appear in a sci-fi movie.
"Strange..."
Noah frowned, his gaze sweeping back and forth over the surrounding environment, feeling puzzled and anxious.
Everything here was exactly the same as the Black Shores environment presented in the game, but the current atmosphere made him faintly uneasy.
It was too quiet.
No wind, no insect chirps—only the monotonous and repetitive sound of tides, constantly amplifying in the empty space.
"Didn't the Tethys System issue a global Lament warning? Why is there no change in the environment inside the Black Shores at all?"
Even the generation of just one Tacet Field would cause enormous damage to the surrounding environment.
By common sense, the Black Shores where a Lament occurred should have long fallen into chaos, with the environment undergoing earth-shaking changes.
No matter what, let's find clues first. After all, it's a global Lament—it's normal for it to be different from regular Lament.
Noah took a deep breath, calming down, and walked toward the cluster of buildings he had entered countless times in the game.
Buzz—
As he approached step by step, the surrounding Sonoro Sphere energy suddenly vibrated. Noah drew Emerald of Genesis, his gaze becoming vigilant again.
The Sonoro Sphere continuously gathered, forming a blurry tall figure of a man in black clothes and black hair—his facial contours unclear.
It was a Reverberation, recording the past Reverberation.
Noah sheathed Emerald of Genesis and quietly watched the actions of "Rover" in the Reverberation.
"Rover" reached out, touching a crystal of unknown purpose, triggering resonance with frequency. The crystal deconstructed, energy matter inside surging out like a butterfly breaking from its cocoon.
The continuously surging energy weave finally manifested in the form of a girl, responding.
"I am the Shorekeeper, a tool created because of you."
The pale blue girl's words had no fluctuation at all.
"I will bear your needs and fulfill your commands. I will help you and Tethys deduce the origin of the Lament."
"Shorekeeper... keeping secrets, guarding the unshaken shore base. It sounds simple and clear, but it doesn't sound like a name at all."
The blurry black-haired figure frowned. The Shorekeeper only calmly replied.
"A tool doesn't need a name—it's just a designation; it doesn't affect my completion of commands."
"...Fine. We still have plenty of time to discuss this."
The Reverberation ended here. The Sonoro Sphere energy dissipated. Noah, left confused, waited in place for a long time but couldn't find other clues.
Helpless, he could only continue forward.
The Black Shores' building cluster used minimalist panel structures spliced with triangular motifs, metal outer walls etched with chip-like patterns.
Even without anyone tending them, all the buildings still glowed on their own.
Along the long staircase, Noah climbed all the way to the top, finally reaching the pinnacle of the main island [Tethys Hub]—the greenhouse.
The instant he stepped into the greenhouse, the Sonoro Sphere energy vibrated again, forming a pale blue figure that slowly climbed to the top of the greenhouse stairs.
The real Shorekeeper had already merged with Tethys, so what appeared here was only a Reverberation.
"Twenty years, two months, and seventeen days... Whether in Jinzhou, Rinascita, the New Federation, or the ends of Solaris's skies and seas—I couldn't find you."
In front of the piano, the Shorekeeper sat silently. On that exquisitely crafted face like a divine creation, an emotion called sadness emerged.
"Where did you go after losing your memories... Why do even the Sentinels in various places no longer remember you... Why can't I recall your appearance..."
"I am the central hub of the Tethys System, bearing the pain, unwillingness, and resentment of people under the Lament... Your disappearance is a Lament more turbulent than the Lament itself..."
"I was born into this world because of you; my life originates from your mission... I miss you so much... so, so much..."
Her tears connected into lines. The Reverberation slowly dissipated.
Unlike the last time, after this Reverberation dissipated, it left behind a Blake Bloom attached with the crystallization of the Shorekeeper's longing.
Noah picked up this Blake Bloom containing the highest modification authority for the Tethys System, suddenly gaining enlightenment.
These Reverberations and the welcome voice he heard when first entering the Black Shores were all left by the Shorekeeper.
When he appeared carrying Rover's frequency, it would trigger the Reverberations.
The Shorekeeper—as an Echo lifeform that didn't understand emotions yet was sensitive and delicate—before merging with Tethys, still hoped to meet Rover again, even if only through Reverberations.
The first Reverberation introduced their relationship to the amnesiac Rover. The second Reverberation expressed the Shorekeeper's longing while transferring the highest authority of the Tethys System to "Rover."
So, what next? What else did the Shorekeeper want to tell Rover?
This was very likely an important clue to solving the Lament at the Black Shores!
Noah turned and quickly ran out of the greenhouse.
Passing through Haven of Sprouts, passing through TD Observatory—though there were no traces of people wherever he went, Reverberations triggered everywhere.
He heard the gentle and emotional words of the blue figure.
"Shorekeeper—this title is fine. It represents a certain determination and meaning because of you."
"It doesn't matter if you don't remember, because... I'll introduce myself to you again. I am the Shorekeeper. Just like before, I'll always be by your side."
"After you left, I imagined our reunion more than once, but when this moment truly came, what I most want to say to you is... Welcome back. Welcome... back to my side again."
"Next time you leave... can you take me with you? I won't just watch you from afar anymore, but be by your side... is that okay?"
"It doesn't matter... For you to come to these shores, I am already... very, very happy... No matter how far, I will be on these shores, watching over the wandering you..."
"Can this kind of emotion... be called... love?"
No one knew that this Echo lifeform who had developed emotions, in unmanned corners, cautiously expressed her love that grew wildly like weeds.
She endured lovesickness bitterly, joyful or sad, worried or infatuated in one-sided performances, her heart twisting a hundred times.
Noah traversed the upper layer of the Black Shores, visiting all the traces of love left by the Shorekeeper, finally stopping at the central star gate leading to the lower layer.
Here was the last Reverberation constructed from Sonoro Sphere—one person and one machine, conversing here.
"Welcome, highest administrator—Shorekeeper."
A steady, monotonous cold mechanical voice emitted from the Tethys System.
"This unit's malfunction is continuously expanding. Black Shores functions are basically paralyzed, and the Rover you mentioned, not recorded in the database, has not appeared."
"A paralyzed Black Shores cannot perform Lament observation and warning functions. Without this unit's deduction, the probability of large-scale civilization extinction will reach 100%."
"Suggestion: Activate highest authority strategy, implant core, restore data center computing power. Please make a decision quickly."
Facing Tethys's objective and rational statement, the Shorekeeper fell silent, finally shaking her head slowly.
"I haven't found him yet..."
"Emotion is a burden to continuation."
"I just want to see him again..."
"Unable to comprehend."
Tethys consecutively popped up several red program alarm windows, speaking again.
"Repeat: On world lines without this unit's existence, civilization will be unable to resist the Lament. This is definitely not something the Rover you speak of would wish to see."
One sentence seemed to hit the Shorekeeper's weak spot. She finally lowered her head, her expression unreadable—whether lonely or subdued.
"...Okay."
Having developed emotions, she would forever become the core of the tool observing the Lament, bearing the pain, unwillingness, and resentment of all who died in the Lament.
She did not hesitate in her choice, nor need to make further decisions—simply because it was what he needed.
The black-red Death Star unsealed. The pale blue butterfly figure leaped up, slowly falling into that inescapable black hole.
In her hand, she clearly held a small Blake Bloom, yet it was as if separated by the farthest distance in the world.
"I give up... the right to survive..."
"My life is already enough for me..."
"To bitterly miss you from afar..."
"My eternal, only—hero."