"Screwllum... where is he? He promised me... he said he would help..."
Chadwick paused abruptly, then seemed to remember something.
"No... that's not right. He did fulfill his promise, he didn't betray my trust. I'm the one who disappeared... My ears and mouth were blocked, and my eyes were covered..."
Chadwick's eyes suddenly became dim and lifeless again, and he mumbled,
"Why? Everything is so chaotic, so disordered. I am a member of the Genius Society, I remember that... But what did I do? What did I forget? Who trapped me in this illusion...?"
Star couldn't bear to watch anymore. She opened the small bottle Screwllum had given her, poured out a small pill, and handed it to Chadwick.
"It can help you remember."
Chadwick was stunned for a moment, then took it somewhat blankly.
"Is this... a pill?"
Chadwick looked at the pill in his hand and fell silent.
After a long while,
"I understand... This is Screwllum's idea, isn't it?"
Sighing, Chadwick continued,
"Now, my chest contains the entire universe. I can see every flicker, feel every beat — but in reality, I know nothing about it.
But just now, when you took out that pill, a voice came from a distant corner of that universe.
That voice... it wanted to persuade me to trust Screwllum and you."
At this point, Chadwick showed a smile, the first time they had seen genuine joy on his face since they met him.
"He completely ignored us..."
Herta looked at the two people talking in front of her, feeling a bit helpless.
"Is the charm of the Stellaron so great?"
Ruan Mei didn't pay much attention to this; her attention had already shifted to other parts of the dream.
As for Jiang Lin... he was thinking... whether he could put Chadwick into the Myriad Souls Banner... oh no, the Human Emperor Banner... But when Jiang Lin looked at Star and Chadwick again, he saw that Chadwick had already eaten the pill, and Star was already using the Clockwork on Chadwick.
Jiang Lin shook his head; for now, it seemed there was nothing for them to do.
"Are they reminiscing about the past...?"
Herta looked at Star and Chadwick in front of her, hesitating whether to get involved.
Ruan Mei seemed to read Herta's thoughts and shook her head at her.
"Alright, for your sake, I'll temporarily put away my curiosity."
Then Herta looked at Jiang Lin again, shifting her curiosity to him, as he hadn't spoken his opinion for a while.
And when she turned around, she saw Jiang Lin fiddling with a strange banner?
"What are you doing?"
Jiang Lin, still adjusting the Human Emperor Banner's data, replied without looking up,
"Oh, just adjusting some data."
Herta looked at the terrifying banner in Jiang Lin's hand and couldn't help but ask,
"Is that your creation?"
Jiang Lin nodded, without explaining anything.
"What's it for?"
"Oh, for accumulating good karma."
Hearing Herta's question, Jiang Lin answered without hesitation. Well, at least in Jiang Lin's opinion, this thing could indeed accumulate good karma.
"Huh?"
Herta's face was full of disbelief, as if to say, 'You must be kidding me.'
Ruan Mei also came over curiously, staring at the Myriad Souls Banner in Jiang Lin's hand for a while before saying,
"Is it related to souls?"
Jiang Lin nodded, then glanced in Chadwick's direction, thought for a moment, and then lowered his head to modify something again... "You want... to use this thing to help Dr. Chadwick?"
Ruan Mei voiced her guess, looking directly at Jiang Lin, hoping for his explanation.
Herta then spoke, doubting,
"This thing... are you sure it's not for murder?"
Jiang Lin glanced at Herta, and said expressionlessly,
"Don't judge a book by its cover... uh... don't judge an item by its appearance. It has its marvels."
"Alright, then I'll watch your performance later."
Herta said indifferently, as, based on their current observations of Chadwick's condition, he was likely not going to make it.
This was not only due to physical reasons, but also because they had discovered that Chadwick already harbored a desire for death, which, for him, might also be a form of release.
After speaking, Herta lost interest and went off to do something else.
Ruan Mei, however, watched Jiang Lin's actions with great interest, seemingly silently recording something.
After some time, Jiang Lin stopped what he was doing and nodded with satisfaction.
Ruan Mei stopped recording, and Herta... "Herta seems to have left a while ago."
Ruan Mei reminded him at this point.
Jiang Lin nodded, then looked in the direction of Star and Chadwick.
And Jiang Lin was startled to find that Chadwick's figure had disappeared, leaving only Star standing there in a daze.
"He's gone?"
...(This book's royalties have dropped to double digits, but the author is a very stubborn person and will definitely not have a bad ending or be cut short.)
(However, the author is also planning to start a new book. Those who like the author's writing style can also check out the author's new book on their homepage and support it. It's also about Honkai: Star Rail.)
(But don't worry, even if a new book is started, updates will prioritize this book. The author will finish this book first.)
(Finally, there will be another chapter tonight.)