Mystery: Survival from the Secret Doll

Chapter 280, Question 279: How did you get back?
Possessing mirror travel, a demigod-level curse, a pathogen, and a special, strange divinity, Triss is supposed to be just a Sequence 8 instigator, not the despairing witch under normal circumstances.

Tang's left eye turned an unusually dark black, and remained calm and still.

His right eye seemed to connect to another world, and everything in front of him unfolded rapidly in a two-dimensional form.

"She's not the Witch of Despair, but her progress in digesting things doesn't lie. She doesn't have any extraordinary characteristics, but despair is a power brought about by a blessing."

Triss, who was pulled into the Kingdom of God by Nicholas—no, in her current situation, Tang felt she should be called Triss.

Triss Chick, in the original story, forcibly borrowed power from the Primordial Witch to prevent George III from becoming the Black Emperor and to avenge Prince Edsack. She ultimately died in self-destruction, consumed by "love"...

The witch who died of love in the original story...

"However, judging from this situation..."

Don did not directly intervene in Nikolai's actions against the witch. At this moment, he was acting as an observer and analyst, trying to analyze the actions and problems of this witch who had suddenly lost control and should have been heading towards a predetermined ending in "destiny" and "fate".

The investigator from the University of Michigan behind him bowed respectfully, then withdrew to avoid disturbing the Angel King's operation on the Historical Aperture Image. Tang then took out a monocle that looked like it was carved from crystal from the Historical Aperture Image.

He put it in his right eye socket, and through the dual decryption of Euclidean space and the unique power of borrowing the Thief's Path, Tang quickly analyzed the source of Triss Chick's abnormal state.

"A strong sense of destiny, and it comes with a touch of..."

Tang frowned. He couldn't quite describe the strange feeling. It was very similar to what he had encountered in the historical gap images in the universe before, on the followers of those who believed in higher-dimensional beings looking down from above, but there was something else mixed in, something special, something he was familiar with.

"It's a bit like those random, chaotic things I've seen in system novels before... the awakening of characters in those books? They know their future and therefore want to try to change it?"

He immediately thought of such a situation, but quickly dismissed it.

This is not Triss Chick's own problem; it is the "masterpiece" of the Ring of Fate and the higher-dimensional observers.

After all, this kind of "awakening" is not a good thing. The underlying logic of this world is crazy. Tang, as a transmigrator, understands this more and more after becoming a Sequence 1 Archangel and feels it deeply.

"The essence and underlying logic of this world is madness. Once they realize that they are just characters in a book, then madness, loss of control, destruction and violence, and all kinds of negative emotions will erupt in an instant. In an era where 'cognition' and 'knowledge' are equally toxic, this kind of 'awakening' is also a kind of pollution."

It can drive people insane to death, the kind that's incurable.

Tang could also sense a bit of the corrupting influence of the Supreme Being's predetermined future, which was inherent to the "transmigrator" persona.

Everyone is a character in the book, and the characters in the book will naturally move forward according to the author's predetermined trajectory to achieve the ideal ending.

The ninth sequence of the "Supreme One" gift system has a potion called "Reader," which is somewhat similar to the Reader pathway, but its construction logic is completely different.

The essence of this path involves the identity of a true "time traveler." From a mystical perspective, Tang, as a "time traveler," a true time traveler, is a symbol in this world, a unique symbol.

If Triss "awakened" that memory on her own, she would immediately become the "Supreme One," a node that would pollute the current dimension and spacetime.

This couldn't have happened without a reason. Even Nikola and Brooks were part of him because they were his puppets, so it didn't matter if they were corrupted. This is how the "Bionic Puppet" module could continue to operate stably without exploding on the spot.

The emergence of a new node, a new source of pollution, with the unique symbol of a "transmigrator," and Tang himself being at Sequence 1 level, could not possibly fail to notice it.

But he did indeed sense the familiar "destiny" and "future" contamination from "Triss Chick" through the "Supreme One" pathway, and this cannot be faked.

"So the initial guess was correct. According to the description of the Super Star Overlord, the High Dimension Overlord truly went mad a long time ago, and that time, after confirmation, is basically consistent with the time when I 'traveled' here..."

"Those two old fogies, the High Dimensional Observer and the Ring of Fate, have already determined that I belong to a path that allows for cross-exchange. And then they pull this stunt..."

The higher-dimensional observers are attempting a self-salvation by breaking free from their current state, but what is the purpose of the Ring of Fate...?

Tang's gaze was fixed on Triss Chick, who was currently struggling to hold on in front of Nikolai.

That's really strange.

Although the initial goal was indeed to eliminate the hidden danger of this problem, after Tang saw that Triss Chick had some strange contamination from himself, he instructed Nikolai to focus on trapping her instead of killing her immediately.

"Of course, this could also be wrong. The Ring of Destiny and the High Dimensional Overlords might be planning this. They are waiting for the opportunity to eliminate Triss Chick if I don't get rid of her immediately."

But he can afford to lose in this matter.

'Host, shouldn't we just remove it? The scan revealed that this nasty thing has a lot of weird stuff on it...'

"No, wait a minute."

The historical gaps and images of Tang are becoming increasingly realistic. The main body located in Tingen City has entered the Euclidean space and the historical fog, and is focusing most of its attention on this side.

When necessary, he will directly pull out his future self, who is the "Supreme Being," to indiscriminately pollute the present with "fixed fate," neutralizing the power of the higher-dimensional observer and the Ring of Destiny.

Meanwhile, atop Source Castle, Mr. "Mistake," seated at the head of the bronze table, lightly tapped it. His gaze seemed to pierce through the layers of boundless gray mist within Source Castle, casting his eyes down from the spirit realm to observe the anomaly at Backlund Wharf.

"More sublime than the starry sky, more enduring than eternity, you are the Crimson Lord, the Mother of Mysteries, the Queen of Calamity and Fear, the Lord of Sleep and Silence..."

On the main peak of the Hornakis Mountains, in an ancient palace where countless corpses hang.

A man's voice echoed in the empty, silent palace. The man, sitting on an ancient high-backed chair, was bowing his head and slowly chanting the name of the goddess of night.

Tang asked Antigonus to contact the goddess of night and have her keep an eye on the astral plane to prevent those old things from causing trouble.

Kingdom of Rune, Backlund.

Tang looked up at the sky, where countless stars hung in the clear, dark night, guarding the enormous red moon.

"The moon has turned red..."

Tonight is a blood moon.

A kingdom of God filled with errors.

Having already stolen the abilities of despair, pain, and pleasure, Nikolai adjusted his black silk top hat. His calm, light brown eyes looked at Triss Chick, who was kneeling on the ground, panting, her gaze filled with incomprehension, hatred, and fear, but without a trace of dread. A slight smile played on his lips as he asked:
"It seems you don't recognize me?" "You are, huff, the thief's path, huff, angel."

In a brief but intense exchange where she used every means at her disposal, Triss realized the chasm-like gap between herself and the person before her.

Perhaps later, in his "final moments," he could have injured his opponent and attacked him by relying on the power of the Primal Witch.

The fundamental difference made Triss feel desperate, but she was already used to this kind of despair, so Triss remained unusually calm.

Triss gritted her teeth. The moment she had a thought to retaliate, it all vanished instantly.

They were stolen.

"Yes."

Nikolai nodded, showing no intention of hiding anything.

"But as far as I know, there is a 'blasphemer' on the path of the thieves. Aren't you afraid that he will come?!"

Triss is all bark and no bite. As a former Witch of Despair who has spent a long time navigating the world of mysticism, Triss knows a great deal of knowledge that is extremely important in the world of extraordinary beings.

This also includes Amun the Blasphemer, the thief who is the common enemy of all extraordinary beings!

Triss wanted to scare away the elusive angel who was actually a thief, whose true name was unknown, by using the name of "the blasphemer" Amon.

After all, at this point in time, many things have not yet happened, and the existence of "the blasphemer" Amon is enough to make the thieves who try to intercept him, the angels, hesitate to act.

"We've already wasted several minutes. Phew, perhaps He's already nearby."

Although, if that "blasphemer" were to arrive, he certainly wouldn't fare well either.

Or perhaps, He simply won't come.

“A blasphemer?” Nikolai chuckled, his posture casual, a hint of anticipation in his voice. “If He really comes, then I might have to thank you for your blessing, Mr. Triss.”

Just as Triss was about to answer the angel's expected question, "He won't come," and was about to retort with, "Why do you think He can't find you?" and "Are you sure He won't come?", she fell silent the moment she heard those words, which were full of "expectation."

A version of Triss that's a generation behind: ??
Triss, kneeling on the ground, was somewhat bewildered, but she could clearly see that the angel who had passed through the Thief's Path was not afraid of Amon, and even felt genuinely delighted at this possible development.
It's like seeing a dog that's been wandering outside for a long time, joyfully waiting for it to run into your arms...

"This is not a polite metaphor, but rather blasphemous."

Nikolai said slowly, "But I do not reject your idea, although I prefer to compare Amon to a gift box with a sweet treat hidden in a somewhat disgusting package."

Every time I open it, it's a pleasant surprise.

Of course, he didn't care about Triss's analogy of "stray dogs," after all, only Amon was offended.

Triss was horrified. He hadn't made a sound, so he immediately realized that he had been parasitized.

Nikolai, seemingly oblivious to the change in Triss's expression, stood at the center of a world filled with error and fallacy—a world where the sun radiated black sunlight and the moon shone brightly. Looking at Triss, he asked with a smile still in his voice:
"I'm a little curious, what happened to you?"

Triss's expression twisted for a moment. In that instant, her ability to suppress her own desires had been stolen, and at the same time, Nikolai had given this strange "witch of despair" even more desire to confide.

Nikolai has no intention of deeply parasitizing the other party for the time being. After all, this strange witch still has the remnants of the Ring of Destiny and the power of a high-dimensional observer. It is hard not to suspect that this is a huge pit that Tang and he are deliberately trying to fall into.

If you parasitize it or turn it into a secret, it might just cause a disaster.

Nicola lowered the brim of his top hat, looked at Triss, and awaited her reply.

Triss bit her lip hard. Despite being just a Sequence 8 instigator, her appearance gave off an unusually pitiful and vulnerable feeling, as if she needed to be cared for.

This was a change brought about by the "gift" of power, but this change did not cause Triss to undergo gender reassignment surgery on the spot.

“I don’t know what happened either. Our ship was attacked by a ghost ship when we reached the Misty Sea. Everyone else on board died… or maybe some of them survived, but I don’t know where they are now.”

Triss spoke the absolute truth, and realizing he had no more leverage and could not resist, he immediately went along with her.

"You can check, that ship came from Tingen! From..."

But when she mentioned Tingen, Triss's expression froze and she looked surprised for a moment.

It was as if he had just unearthed from a jumble of scattered fragments of memory those completely different from his own past "memories".

"You are--"

His voice cracked slightly when his pupils met that calm, expressionless face:

“Nikolai Flamel!”

"You are the archangel of the Thief's Path! You—you killed Amon—!"

This disjointed, completely different development, disconnected from what had been before, left Triss stunned, as if she had suffered a terrible shock.

“That description is not accurate, Triss.”

"Or should I call you Triss? Triss Chick?" Nikolai slowly smiled and asked in an exceptionally gentle tone, "You should know that what I want to ask is not what happened to you on that ship."

"What I want to know is, how did you manage to, um, return to this point in time?"

"Back to this time, before the Great Fog of Backlund occurred, before you became a witch, before Edsack Augustus died, before George III attempted to become the Black Emperor, and you, likewise, did not sacrifice yourself for revenge, dying for love..."

"This node?"

(End of this chapter)