I created the myth of the Great Old Ones.

All of this reached its climax during the competition when Amber hit the bullseye with ten arrows in a row.

Both the protagonist and the audience now know that the ending is inevitable: Amber will go to the attic, while the protagonist will continue to wander in the sea.

An indescribable sorrow lingered in Ms. Merritt's heart. Strangely enough, many films in the past had failed to evoke such a strong resonance in her, but now, as a seasoned film critic, she was lamenting the sorrow in the film.

Before the ceremony, Amber came to the protagonist's house. The two had a very ordinary conversation, as if they would see each other again tomorrow, as if they could continue to be together in the future.

Finally, Amber tells the protagonist that the moonlight will be beautiful tonight.

As the background piano music tightened, all the emotions reached their peak at that moment.

Ms. Merritt wept bitterly.

She saw the flames of the ceremony, the people laughing and joking, and the world that was about to be at peace.

It was such a wonderful thing, but she always felt like she had lost something.

"It is indeed a deeply moving film."

Ms. Merritt had to admit that the film masterfully captured that ambiguous and sorrowful atmosphere. The plot itself was not slow-paced, but rather well-paced. The choices of different people outlined the entire world, and Amber, this innocent, pure, gentle, kind, and resolutely hardworking girl, had deeply resonated with Ms. Merritt's heart.

Next up should be the cast list. Ms. Merritt relaxed a little and tried to organize her thoughts, but she didn't know where to begin.

She picked up the bottle, ready to pour herself a glass of wine to calm herself down, but the screen suddenly lit up again.

Ms. Merritt looked over.

She saw that the protagonist was preparing to pack his things and leave, but as he gazed at the attic, a slight emotional fluctuation arose within him.

He arrived at the main hall, the sealed-off area, and used the mask he had obtained from the bandaged man to turn into smoke, then slipped inside.

This courtyard was supposed to be the residence of a retired shrine maiden, but it was completely empty.

Only the cold moonlight shone.

The protagonist sensed something was wrong. He entered the shrine and saw a row of shelves in the darkness, with neatly arranged urns containing ashes.

Ms. Merritt found it strange that at this point, it was necessary to show these things. If it was meant to show that the two were separated by distance and could never see each other again, it seemed a bit superfluous.

Her curiosity grew stronger as the protagonist explored, and when the protagonist left the courtyard that should have been the residence of a retired witch and found that no one had lived there for many years, Ms. Merritt's heart skipped a beat.

She thought of some unpleasant things.

But there is still hope.

Ms. Merritt sat up straight and watched as the protagonist finally headed towards the attic.

Suddenly, Ms. Merritt seemed to smell a burning odor.

It smells like the stench of an animal burned by fire.

The attic was covered in burn marks, and the heavy lock on the door declared that it could not be opened.

If this cannot be opened...

Ms. Merritt's heart sank.

She followed the protagonist into the attic, where she saw a mess on the first floor, bloodstains on the second floor, and then went to the third floor.

In her initial vision, Ms. Merritt imagined that Amber should be dressed in magnificent clothes, sitting upright in the bright and clean attic, resolutely and sternly shooting flaming arrows to protect the world.

However, when Ms. Merritt saw the amber, she couldn't help but cover her mouth.

Chapter 378 She broke down

What a tragic scene it was.

That was the state of human death—being burned alive, without a shred of pity, without any redemption, a state of pure despair.

Every image was like a knife, piercing Ms. Merritt's heart.

She felt a pang of heartache, as if the director were stabbing her chest again and again with a merciless, blunt knife.

I clutched my chest, but the story continued.

Ms. Merritt saw the ghostly witch who had appeared before.

In her narration, the truth about this shrine and this world was revealed to Ms. Merritt.

Only the noblest people and the highest aspirations, transformed into the power of despair, can nourish the pure fire.

Only pollution can combat pollution; stronger pollution can cover weaker pollution.

For thousands of years, all priestesses have been like this.

If we don't do this, the world will be destroyed.

Ms. Merritt's brain had completely shut down at this point.

All the images in her mind were fixed on the once lovely, petite girl's current miserable state.

Until the ghostly witch revealed that Amber had called out the protagonist's name the last time, repeating it hundreds and thousands of times.

The scene shifts to the moment when Amber drinks the potion, is bound to the attic, and is burned by flames.

She was desperate, she struggled, she hated, she cursed everything.

Meanwhile, the people below the attic cheered and laughed with joy.

The two images intertwine on screen, and Ms. Merritt can no longer distinguish whether the raging flames are a merciless fire that devours life and hope, or a warm fire that sweeps away despair.

She saw that Amber, whose skin had peeled off and whose flesh had melted, was still repeating the protagonist's name.

She said, "I'm sorry."

Ms. Merritt thought that if she could choose again, Amber might choose to ignore those responsibilities and leave with the protagonist.

She also hopes that Amber will make the same choice.

However, it was too late.

Everything forms a closed loop, and it is precisely because she is such an outstanding person that she is standing here.

Her death was not due to personal desires, and it cannot even be considered a tragedy.

One person's death, and the survival of many.

Although not of his own volition, it was a necessary sacrifice for the world.

This made Ms. Merritt feel truly powerless.

If Amber was killed by a major villain out of hatred, or if her death was caused by someone's mistake, then Ms. Merritt could be angry, could be resentful, could accuse, and could blame those who committed the crime.

She could yell at the protagonist to break everything, burn down the entire shrine, destroy the entire sacred cherry tree, and ruin the world.

However, no one in this incident is unforgivably at fault; everyone is rushing headlong toward making the world a better place and ensuring its survival.

If there is anything wrong with this, then the fault probably lies with the entire crazy world.

Even in such a world, Amber hopes that the protagonist can survive here.

Everything has formed a deadlock.

"Live."

Through the ghost witch, the protagonist hears Amber's last wish.

Ms. Merritt was somewhat shocked.

Her eardrums buzzed, and blood rushed to her head.

From her throat to her stomach, a cold sensation, like tentacles, churned within her.

Ms. Merritt felt as if her brain had been boiled in boiling water. Her eyes were bloodshot, her back was hunched, and acid rose in her throat, causing her to vomit.

She didn't eat much that night, so most of it was stomach acid and alcohol.

Even the foul-smelling vomit seemed pleasing to Ms. Merritt at that moment.

She saw on the screen that the protagonist finally left and went to the sea. The world continued. In the warm spring sunshine and among the brilliant cherry blossoms, he heard a silvery sound. He looked up and saw a blazing arrow streak across the sky like a shooting star. Just as Amber had said, no matter where he was in the world, she could see him.

"You saw it."

The protagonist chuckled softly, his figure disappearing as the cherry blossoms fell like rain.

It was a beautiful and splendid scene, but what it represented behind it sent a chill down Ms. Merritt's spine.

The more beautiful the scene was, the harder it was for her to accept the plot she had just witnessed.

Simply put, she broke down.

"Is this director insane? Why did he have to kill Amber like that? Does he have some grudge against this character?"

"I can't accept this ending. How could such a good girl be killed like that while everyone else is laughing and cheering!"

"The director must be a dark person. He's just waiting for the audience to see this, isn't he? He likes it when the audience criticizes him, isn't he? What a perverted masochist!"

Ms. Merritt stood up, and immediately felt dizzy. What she had just witnessed challenged her reason. Her vision went black, and the rush of blood made her faint.

thump--

Ms. Merritt collapsed onto the sofa, her body only occasionally twitching, a testament to her continued life.

After more than ten minutes, she gradually regained consciousness and sat up from the sofa.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, and the angrier she became, the more she thought about it. She immediately went to her computer to prepare to write an article to accuse Lu Ban.

But just as Ms. Merritt was about to type, she realized something.

As a judge, I cannot give away spoilers before the film is officially released.

Especially considering the content of this movie, this kind of plot twist is at the core of the film. Of course, she could take a moment to be smug and reveal everything about the movie, but in doing so, her judging qualification would definitely be revoked, and she probably wouldn't be able to make a living in the industry afterward. The price would be too high.

and……

After calming down a bit, Ms. Merritt thought carefully about how long it had been since she had felt such a strong emotional response to the fate of a movie character.

The more furious, sad, and regretful she is now, and the more she resents and denounces the director, the more it means that the character of Amber has successfully entered her heart, right?

The more Ms. Merritt thought about it, the more she realized that she, like the protagonist, had entered a dilemma.

The more she wants to criticize the director, the better the director's filming is considered to be.

The better the director's filming, the more she wanted to criticize him.

Even his past sharp, sarcastic, and outrageous remarks have now become hymns of praise for the director and the film.