Elegy from Another World

The departure of "The Watcher" left an invisible yet profound mark on the SS Phantomhive-Neus. After the initial grief subsided, a stronger will to move forward emerged. The "Dawn Core" he left behind continues to pulse steadily in the power center, the new weapon systems stand silently ready, and La—this new life carrying his final blessings—is gradually adapting to life on the ship; her very existence is a gentle tribute.

Surprisingly, the upper-level narrator, Ash, did not lose contact with the "Watchers" after their disappearance. Instead, he communicated with the Dresden Shield even more frequently, seemingly regarding us as truly trustworthy partners, or even, in a sense, "joining" us. His technical support and unique perspective from the upper-level narrative helped us solve many thorny problems.

The focus of the work returned once again to the ultimate goal that had always remained unresolved—finding Dr. Scranton's whereabouts. The Singularity Observatory had completed its analysis of the debris on the outer edge of the Miniature Galaxy, and a large number of new technologies had been digested and absorbed, further enhancing the capabilities of the Survival Cross. However, the clues about Scranton himself still pointed to that most mysterious and dangerous region—the core of the Miniature Galaxy.

Even the Watcher warned us never to approach that area; any detection methods were futile.

On this day, groundbreaking news arrived from the technological world. The elite team under King Xuan, while continuously monitoring the energy fluctuations of the miniature galaxy, detected an extremely subtle yet remarkably regular anomaly. This indicator was incredibly complex, and their technology was insufficient to fully decipher it.

The data was shared with the Dresden Shield immediately, and also transmitted to Ash.

"This fluctuation pattern..." Ah Hui's cartoon avatar appeared on the screen, his brow furrowed. "It's very old, and it's encrypted with countless layers. Wait... I need to use some... um... less commonly used analysis tools."

We waited quietly. What Ah Hui called "uncommon tools" often meant the use of authority or resources from higher levels of the narrative. Several hours passed, and his expression changed from confusion to surprise, and finally to disbelief.

"The analysis results are in..." Ah Hui's voice trembled slightly, as if he himself couldn't believe the conclusion. "This indicator... after reverse tracing and pattern matching... points to the source identity authentication as... Scranton! His current life signal, or rather, his presence imprint... is inside the core of that miniature galaxy!"

What?!

The entire bridge erupted in chaos!

Scranton, the mastermind behind it all, the one we've been searching for so long, is actually inside that eerie core we've never been able to reach? He's not missing, but "hiding" there? Or... is he trapped there?

"How is this possible?" Naa exclaimed. "That core can even absorb detection signals, how could he survive inside?"

"Perhaps it's not 'survival' in the traditional sense," Ah Hui speculated. "It might be some form of consciousness uploaded from somewhere, or it might utilize the special physical laws of the core itself. But the direction of the signal authentication is very clear: he's inside."

The target has finally been identified, but an even more challenging problem has arisen: how to get in?

All the reconnaissance drones sent out earlier, whether physically approaching or attempting energy projection, completely lost contact the moment they touched the core boundary, failing to transmit even a trace of debris or data. It was like an absolute forbidden zone, an ultimate black hole of information and matter.

"Ash," I placed my hopes on this friend from the upper narrative, "with your abilities and resources, is it possible... to find, or create, an 'entrance' that can safely enter the core? Even if it's just a temporary, unstable passage?"

Ah Hui's cartoon character has a serious, thoughtful expression, his fingers flying across the virtual keyboard, as if searching a vast database and calculating possibilities.

After a long while, he finally raised his head, his eyes filled with a do-or-die determination: "It's difficult, extremely difficult. That core physical rule might be self-consistent and exclusive. But... it's not entirely impossible. I need time, and I also need... my 'cheat team'."

"A cheat team?"

"Hmm," Ah Hui nodded, "Some upper-level narrators like me, dissatisfied with the status quo, or simply interested in solving this ultimate puzzle. We might be able to pool our resources and find a 'loophole' or 'backdoor.' But that will take time, and success isn't guaranteed."

"I understand." I took a deep breath. "In any case, this is the most promising direction right now. We await your news. The Dresden Shield is ready to provide any assistance."

"Okay." Ah Hui's image began to blur. "Keep the communication silent. I need to focus. I'll contact you immediately if there's any progress."

Communications were cut off, and silence returned to the bridge, but a new atmosphere, a mixture of tension and anticipation, permeated the air. Scranton's whereabouts were finally becoming clear, but the path to the answer pointed to an ultimate unknown that even the upper-level narrators needed to assemble an "external support team" to attempt a breakthrough.

The core of the miniature galaxy, like a silent behemoth, floats quietly deep within the Networld, guarding its last and greatest secret.