Lorelei woke to a familiar sight: an endless field of plain grass, a warm sun heating the passing breeze. The ticking she'd heard was still there, but it was bearable now—unlike when time had stopped. She got to her feet and looked around, searching for the figure. Lorelei had already noticed that she was brought here every time she died.
She walked a little further, and the scenery shifted. Her surroundings slowly turned into a forest—more specifically, a tropical one. The humidity was so thick she could almost see water hanging in the air. The change of scenery was proof that the figure was somewhere nearby, so she kept walking.
A wall of vines blocked her path, and through the gaps she caught a blinding light. She pushed the vines aside and stepped into it. The first thing she heard was the crash of waves against a rocky cliff. At the end of it, the figure was there, watching the sea stretch across the horizon, a white chair standing beside her. Lorelei walked over and sat down without a word. The figure turned at the sound.
"You're here."
She turned her gaze back to the sea. A tiny splash rose in front of them and violently dove back down.
"I died again?"
The figure nodded.
"Why didn't I drown in that darkness like the first time?"
"They thought you were Lan."
"Lan? Who is Lan?"
"It would take too long to explain." The figure sighed. "Let's just say they thought he was back, so they quieted down."
"Why did they think that?"
"You used what belonged to him."
"That thing when everyone stopped moving?"
The figure nodded again. "The Eye of Time. You possess a numeral. That glove has the numeral," she said, pointing at Lorelei's hand. "The numeral six."
Lorelei tried to make sense of it, but it just wouldn't reach her. The figure noticed her confusion.
"Think of the Eye like a clock. A clock possesses twelve numerals, and you have one of the twelve. Fray has the rest. That day she could have taken the last numeral, but decided to let you keep it."
Lorelei looked at her gloved hand, then took the glove off. She shook her head, remembering the person who had killed her.
"The Authority of Time and the Eye of Time complete each other. The Authority holds half the numerals and the Eye holds the other half, but there's a clear difference between them."
"Then how do I have one of the numerals?"
The figure sighed again, looking as though she were debating whether to answer. "Well, I suppose the sooner you know, the better."
She turned to Lorelei and pressed her index finger to her forehead. A flash of memories ran past her eyes, and with them came the journal she had forgotten.
"You erased my memory?"
"I didn't. It did. For now, listen closely to what I'm about to say."
Lorelei was frustrated by having her head interfered with, but she kept quiet.
"Clovis placed a numeral of the Eye inside that glove he gave you. When he died, Fray likely came to take the Eye containing the rest of the numerals. She already had the Authority of Time before taking the Eye, so she thought she'd completed it—until she realized a numeral was missing. She came to see who had it, and she found you. Do you understand so far?"
Lorelei nodded.
"It's the first time this has happened. She decided to activate your numeral using the Authority, something you can't do with the Eye alone. Once a numeral is removed from the Eye, it becomes independent of the Eye—but dependent on the Authority. That's why you couldn't use it before." She took a deep breath. "That illusion she put you in was meant to test how long it would take before you lost your mind, but I pulled you out. She knew I was going to save you. She planned to walk you through the memory of every person you've killed—directly or indirectly—until you lost your identity. If that happens, then..."
"Then?"
"It's not something I can tell you. At least, not yet."
Lorelei was still processing all she'd been told, so the unanswered question didn't bother her much.
"She mentioned her master. Who is her master?"
"Lan."
The figure seemed perplexed that Lorelei didn't already know.
"Did you not ask It?"
"It?"
The figure pressed her finger to Lorelei's forehead again, but this time nothing happened. She tried again, and again, but no memory surfaced—nothing.
"It's impossible," she muttered.
She scratched her head, agitated, and began ruffling her hair. Lorelei reached out a hand, but the figure turned on her violently, glaring. A crest had formed in her right eye, glowing a deep red. Lorelei pulled back, and the figure dropped into the back of her chair.
"I'm sorry," she said once she'd regained control.
"It's fine."
"This wasn't supposed to happen. Why now? Why? Why? Why?"
"What wasn't supposed to happen?"
"..."
"I've been meaning to ask. You talk as if you already know the future. Why is that?"
The figure stopped and straightened herself. "I lived through it."
Her gaze slid away from Lorelei, who knew she was hiding something—from the way she spoke, acted, moved.
"Does that mean you went through the same things as me? Up until now?"
"No. It was different. You are different."
Lorelei gave her a confused look.
"You're different from them, from us. You can speak freely to the tree. That's the only explanation. It erased your memories of those times because you could speak to It freely. It never happened before. Never."
"What is It? What tree are you talking about?"
The figure fought to keep her composure. "None of what I planned will work. Might as well tell you some of it now."
"You're avoiding my question ag—"
Lorelei's mouth snapped shut.
"Listen."
She knew the figure had done it—after all, she was omniscient here.
"We can't rely on what I know. Treat every battle as a matter of life or death. True death, not just a temporary disconnection from your body. I'm talking about true death."
A drop of sweat ran down Lorelei's forehead.
"Do you know what I call true death?"
Lorelei shook her head.
"When nothing remains. No memories. No body. No choice after death. Nothing left—absolutely nothing. Those you've killed still live on, remembered by you, but you won't be remembered by anyone. That's what I call true death. And worse, you'll bring that death to them, too. You carry the burden, the responsibility of remembering their existence. If you die, who will remember them? Who will remember you?"
A knot formed in Lorelei's stomach. She wanted to ask why no one would remember her, but her mouth stayed sealed.
"If more people were to possess one of Lan's spirited swords, they could kill you. Trust me. That's why I told you to kill that girl and take the sword. You'd become its new master—since you killed its previous owner, you'd automatically qualify. It would give you a chance at facing what awaits you."
The figure took a deep breath before continuing.
"Remember when Fray told you, 'one of my master's authority'?"
Lorelei nodded, though it was still hazy.
"The higher-ups. They possess the Authorities, not Lan. Lan is nothing more than a 'normal' human who killed them, but he wasn't able to take all the Authorities—he wasn't qualified. Even the Authority of Time and Destruction rejected him, despite him having the Eye of Time and Destruction. Fray still believes he's dead and that he kept the authorities. She thinks he granted her the Authority of Time to bring him back, but that was mere coincidence."
The figure sighed again.
"It would be easier to just show you the memory, but it's too risky. I don't know what happened with It."
A long pause followed, punctuated by the crash of waves.
"The higher-ups—Lan killed every single one, but since he didn't take their authorities, they came back to life after a few centuries, their memories restored. I still don't understand. If he wasn't worthy of taking them, who would ever be?"
Lorelei felt her lips released.
"What should I do, then?"
"I'll tell you my goal."
The figure rose from her chair and stood before Lorelei. The wind swept her hair back and forth as the waves churned behind her.
"I want to bring back Lan. There's a huge risk, but I need to bring him back."
"You're using me to resurrect some dead man?"
"Precisely."
The figure wouldn't look directly at her. Lorelei suspected that too was a lie, but she played along.
"Very well."
"From here on, you have two options, Lorelei. Either you find Shiniel and kill her, or you go to the pillar and grab Blut."
"What's Blut?"
"Another of Lan's spirited swords. There are seven in total, each lodged inside a pillar. Some may even be broken, for all I know. But you need to either take the one she has or enter the pillar to claim Blut. Even then, there's a chance it might reject you. This isn't the future I knew. We'll deal with the rest as it comes."
"There's nothing in it for me here. I don't see a reason to accept."
"You will die. Simply. True death awaits you. You've already caught the higher-ups' attention just by being born, and now more people know of your power—people with the means to return you to nothing. At first I planned to let you go your own way and interfere only occasionally, but given how things turned out, it's far too risky. I'll help you thoroughly from now on."
She grabbed Lorelei by the clothes and turned her around.
"I hope you like noise in your mind." She smiled. "It's about to get pretty noisy from now on."
The smile widened. "L-O-R-E-L-E-I."
She let go, and Lorelei fell from the cliff. She twisted around to see a giant spike jutting from the ground. There were no particles to use, no gun to give her recoil. All that awaited her was being impaled. She closed her eyes and braced for impact.