Fantasy Clock～Dream Ruler～

The water droplets reflect the light on the back of the world, and fall on the lakeside hidden in the cave, causing ripples called time.

In my long sleep, I suddenly realized the passage of time. I opened my eyes with the sound of dripping water that seemed to have no end, and my vision was suddenly immersed in the foggy world.

Looking through the dusk after a long sleep, catching up with the lights on the ceiling of the room, and scanning the layout around.

No windows, slipping through the season's wind; no hanging lights, to welcome the waking teenagers. It is neither the bedroom of my house or Xia Yinci's house, nor is it the big laboratory of the Core Research Association.

——It was a room completely unfamiliar to me.

The perception of being in an unfamiliar environment made me shudder immediately, recalling the memories of the dream in the last second.

Is this reality? Without any tools to distinguish reality from dreams, it is impossible to judge. It's not Inception, unlike Leonardo's Cobb who has a spinning top as a totem to testify.

By the way, where are Lin Yu and the black cat?

Thinking of this, I immediately leaned against the edge of the bed and wanted to get up, but a sore and weak feeling from my elbow threw me back on the bed again.

"Eh...you're awake."

The voice of a girl stretching and talking suddenly sounded beside me. I quickly cast my gaze in the direction of the voice, but saw the girl raised her arms like a cat, brushed back her long ice-blue hair, and opened her small mouth slightly. Talking about sleepiness, my sleepy eyes met mine, and then I showed a little smile that I didn't understand.

"...Xue Xueer? Ah, are you okay? Is there any serious physical problem... such as mental weakness? I'm really sorry about Su Huilin..."

"Stop, stop! Now is not the time to talk about that!" Xue Xueer's cheeks puffed up for some reason, as if she was seeking comfort for a certain frustration in her heart, but she cheered up again after she lowered her eyes for a while, and looked up. Looking at me with rippling eyes, he said, "Don't talk about this! Su Ruoyang, do you have more important things to do?"

As if she knew I would keep asking, she found a way to gag me beforehand.

Although I was deeply concerned about the incident of the Annihilation Flower, Xue Xueer didn't seem to be in trouble, but was alive and kicking like when she was by my side half a year ago, so I naturally followed her words.

"...Yes, there is a world-class trouble waiting for us on the other side."

"That's right! So, let's start our interview!"

"Well, that's exactly what it is...what the hell? Why did you interview me?"

"Didn't I tell you that my giving up was temporary..."

Xue Xueer stretched out her fingers and swayed in the air, while staring at me seriously. This made me stupefied involuntarily. In retrospect, there was indeed such an incident, which happened when I bid farewell to her on the school rooftop. And when she first entered the dream prison, she also said that she still hadn't given up on the "interview" with me.

"It's true...it's not! There was a big problem, and you were almost bypassed!" I quickly sorted out the information I obtained during this period, and asked, "Aren't you interviewing me just to find Lin Yu? I don't know why, but you already work in the Core Research Association, so you already knew that Lin Yu was lying in that laboratory, right?"

The atmosphere was only silent for a moment. So Xue Xueer showed a weird smile again.

"Hmph, Su Ruoyang, I didn't expect that! I never said what kind of interview it was?"

My chin almost hit my chest in bewilderment—it was simply inexplicable. But she didn't seem to really say anything about the interview, which made me follow her out of the room out of curiosity. The corridors outside were filled with experimenters dressed in white, and many of them were pushing small carts with various medicines.

Xue Xueer took me to a position against the wall and took the initiative to avoid them. Although they all moved in a hurry, these people were always able to turn to avoid each other before they collided, dragging the cart and making strange noises against the floor. I suddenly remembered the fact that this is the Core Research Association, and immediately became wary of the experimenters passing by.

"What’s wrong with you?"

The sudden accusation made me tremble all over, but I saw Xue Xueer walking in the corridor of the Core Research Association with ease, looking back to observe my reaction in confusion.

"...If I said that I was afraid that they would suddenly prick me with a needle and send me back to my dream, what would you think?"

Xue Xueer paused when she heard this, looked me up and down with doubly confused eyes, and clapped her hands together as if she suddenly understood.

"Ah, I forgot to tell you! You don't have to go to jail in the future, I'll find a way to bail you out hehe."

This time it was my turn to be puzzled. But I didn't have time to ask her nonsense, Xue Xueer stood still unexpectedly at the corner of the corridor, and I hurriedly braked on the spot and almost hit her.

"Okay, you're here."

With black lines on my face, I carefully looked around for a week. But all I saw were rows and rows of doors that were almost the same as the corridor just now.

"...Where am I?"

"Destination."

"..."

So idiots know that her destination is here, the problem is that she didn't tell me where it was.

I simply didn't ask any further questions, and I thought I'd find out if I went in and had a look. Xue Xueer thought for a moment, then raised her fist and stretched it out in front of my face, straight in front of me.

"Are you sending me to this room?"

Xue Xueer puffed up her cheeks and nodded solemnly. I didn't have the mood to complain about her for a while, and walked in the direction of her finger alone, but she didn't mean to follow, it seemed that she meant to let me go in alone.

Although when thinking that this is the nuclear research headquarters, it is inevitable to doubt whether this is a trap or something, but after thinking about it, Xue Xueer will not lie to me, not to mention that nuclear research does not need to spend a lot of time to carry out such a scheme on its own site. No more hesitation.

Speaking of which, it doesn't look like it has been attacked. I don't know if those criminals managed to escape under the leadership of the black cat.

And at this moment, the door of a ward obliquely in front suddenly opened, and a familiar figure dressed as a nurse walked out, and she lifted her face a step later.

When our eyes met, the two of us fell into strange emotions at the same time——

"Wow~ Aniki, are you finally awake?"

"Chen Xue...?"

——The difference is that she is always full of surprises and excitement, while I am mostly surprised and confused.

But before I asked about her situation in detail, my attention to Chen Xue was instantly attracted by the patients in the room. For a moment, I stared at his figure and was speechless. Under the gaze of this middle-aged man, I passed Chen Xue, and my body almost involuntarily walked to the door of the ward.

"Yo, son."

The father in the room smiled at me and waved to me as if he was at home. The memory of the figure lying in a pool of blood flashed in my mind.

"I'm still dreaming..."

"What are you talking about in your sleep?"

"So it really is my father's ghost who came to seek my life..." I opened my arms and closed my eyes to welcome the reincarnation of karma. "Come on, I'm ready. This body will be handed over to you." , use the same means to take revenge on your unfilial son!!"

"Huh? What are you talking about, you bastard!"

"Uncle Su is alive and well... ANIKI, are you seriously ill? Huh, I, Chen Xue, will go through fire and water, and I will definitely find the best doctor to cure you..."

"That... Su Ruoyang... I let you go to the room next door."

The three people present except me were chattering away, tearing my already chaotic thoughts apart.

Thus, a reality that is more chaotic than a dream unfolds—what the hell! What is going on now, what do you want me to do?

"Although you may still be in the dark...but the person who bailed you is my old ghost, do you understand now?"

As soon as my father finished speaking, I remembered again the words Xue Xueer wrote when I first entered the prison——

[Please answer me, what crime did you commit? Since it is something for which the answer cannot be ascertained, no conclusions can be made. 】

"So...Xue Xue'er, you already knew my father was fine before you said that?"

"Hmm. That's it. Your father was sent to the hospital for treatment in time, and he didn't hurt his life—as for your little girlfriend..."

Xue Xueer hugged her chest meaningfully as she said, and pointed to the room next to me with her eyes.

The heartbeat suddenly accelerated, trying to jump out of this body, sticking to the edge of the eardrum and beating continuously. Stepping out uncontrollably, stretching out trembling hands in fear but anticipation, holding the handle to feel the cold temperature of the metal, as if the other side leads to another world. In the end, the anxiety was stronger than the fear, and I pushed open the door that was extremely heavy for me.

A pure white hospital bed. The long-lost sunlight shines through the half-opened window on the girl's snow-white skin, outlining soft lines.

【If possible, I really want to die in love with you. 】

His vision trembled with the steps forward, and he walked into the ward through the blind corner of the wall. There was a soft closing sound of the door behind him, isolating the endless footsteps in the corridor, and the huge world seemed to shrink down to the small room in front of him.

When the girl's pretty face came into view, I suddenly stood still - I couldn't find any words in my mind, I just stared blankly in that direction.

The timely wind outside the window blew through her loose black hair, and the sun cast a warm light on her blue hair blown by the wind. She lightly raised her hand to shave the hair hanging from her mouth behind her ears, and her green eyes turned sideways to glance at me.

Then her touching eyes smiled. Like the first ray of dawn after a long eternal night, people can't help but raise their hands to block its light, but also can't help but stroke the hard-won temperature against the light, the body is released from the ice, and the heart is full of joy. Unspeakable peace. In the end, even I didn't know why my eyes were wet with tears.

"Hey, Su Huohuo!" Xia Yinci squinted her eyes and laughed, and the name that came out like a bell sound knocked on the door of my heart, melting the last ice covering my heart with just the right temperature. Her voice was as energetic and arrogant as the beginning of the story, "How about it, do you still feel that lucid dreams are meaningless?"

"Yeah...meaningless, boring, dangerous, and chaotic to the point of unsightly."

Even though there was a forced smile in his eyes, every word squeezed out of his throat seemed to be trembling.

Xia Yinci pushed back the hair that fell to her cheeks, stretched out her hand to me calmly, and spread her small palm. It was as if the spirits wandering in the middle of the night were inviting me to a ball of goblins.

"Then do you regret it?"

"What?"

"Became the "chosen child" of a half-god like me, and promised me a series of irrelevant promises, do you feel regretful?"

—Do you regret it?

Under the gaze of the elf, I questioned myself.

This dream-like adventure is so incredible that anyone may want to take a detour. But even so - now I will never regret our initial choice for each other.

I mustered up the courage to take a heavy step, but when I touched the ground, it brought me great ease. The warm spring breeze swept across a few inches of sunshine, and I raised my hand to meet the girl's moving gaze, and shook her little hand. It was as if a feeling of electric shock spread to his chest, making his cautious heartbeat start to move again.

Everyone has their own unique body temperature, right? Otherwise, when I touched the temperature of her palm, how could I feel that the temperature is nostalgic?

Xia Yinci smiled and pursed her lips, the rosy color on her lips faded a bit, but her eyes became more charming, she took my hand actively and pulled me closer to her. Following her strength, I exaggeratedly fell to the side of the bed, rubbing the back of my head that hit the wall to show her pain.

I wanted to sit up as a joke, but Xia Yinci pressed the other palm to my chest, and suddenly gave up my plan to get up. She looked into my eyes provocatively. Her body temperature seemed to be only separated from my heartbeat by a half-open door, and this alone made my whole body hot and restless.

"Then Su Huohuo, I take it as you are willing to renew the contract with me?"

Warm breath blows in the ear. I couldn't help feeling a little itchy in my heart, and felt a little dissatisfied with being so teased by Xia Yinci that I couldn't resist, so I simply let go of all my worries, turned sideways to look into her eyes, and made direct contact with her watery gaze .

"When are you going to renew this time?"

But I didn't expect that Xia Yinci not only didn't have the slightest intention of avoiding it, but instead took my arm and moved closer to my face. The warm gleam in her eyes overshadowed everything else in her field of vision.

"Time limit, until death~ If you want to terminate the contract, die with me, right?"

My heart skipped a beat quietly. Thoughts suddenly slipped into the blue sea in her eyes and began to fall. It wasn't until she blinked her eyes playfully that I recovered from the throbbing and sat up from the bed in a trance.

With my back turned to Xia Yinci, I let out a tense breath. In this way, I couldn't see her eyes, and the hot blood in my head gradually cooled down.

"Your injury...how is it?"

Xia Yinci didn't answer, and there was silence behind her. I involuntarily clenched the bedsheets on the edge of the bed, pulling out a few creases in my heart.

But then, her hand stretched out in front of me coldly, and suddenly grabbed my wrist. The strength is not heavy but it has an inviolable magic power. I can't help following her, slipping into the gap between the clothes and skin, and sticking to her warm abdomen.

My cheeks felt hot all of a sudden. His fingertips passed over her smooth skin, but touched some abrupt blemishes.

"Su Huohuo, remember? This is the trace you left in my life."

A little further to the side is this year's new injury. Even if it's hidden by the rough texture of the gauze, I know it better than anyone.

"The scars at that time could not fade away in time, and they have followed me for so many years. It is always said that human memory is extremely fragile, but as long as there is one thing to remind, no matter how time blows and rains on it, the memory will also be engraved on it. Unforgettable in my heart. That’s why I can stick to it like a day for ten years.”

Xia Yinci gently pressed my fingertips, and stroked the scar on her abdomen that was neither shallow nor deep.

"But now——I don't need to worry about it anymore." She wrapped my fingertips in her small palm, and the touch of the scar was covered by her body temperature, "Wait a minute, I'm going to One last operation to suture the new wound. I heard from Xue Xueer that they will help me erase the previous wounds along the way."

"Eh……?"

What she said made me turn around and look at her, but to my surprise, her shirt was not buttoned up at this time, and her naked and snow-white body was clearly visible. Reason made me avoid it at the first moment, but my eyes couldn't help sweeping down her chiseled collarbone, and couldn't help but focus on her puffed chest.

I have to say that Xia Yinci's figure is more predictable than when it was visible to the naked eye! Even if she is covered by the thin clothes on her body, it still creates an incredible visual effect, coupled with the involuntary red tide on her cheeks, how could I not think about it...

I hurriedly looked away, and coughed unnaturally, and then I noticed that Xia Yinci's bewildered eyes gradually locked on a certain abnormal part of my body. After her eyes stopped for a few seconds, she suddenly covered her face shyly, and turned sideways to wrap her body with clothes, her cheeks flushed as if she was drunk.

"Pervert, pervert..."

"...No! This is a normal reaction! Wouldn't it be nice if other men would have rushed over eagerly?"

"Finally revealing my inner thoughts!" Xia Yinci pursed her lips hastily, her red face puffed up cutely, but the words she said were completely opposite to cuteness - "You must want to put me on the bed This, that, and this... ravage my body!"

"Huh!? Where did you learn that?"

"...But, if Su Huohuo did such and such a thing, I... I can actually try to accept it?"

Unexpectedly, Xia Yinci's attitude suddenly changed 360 degrees. At this moment, my thoughts suddenly became chaotic, coupled with Xia Yinci's shy expression, the instinct hidden in a man's genes almost couldn't stop the car and spewed out.

"Su...Su Huohuo don't need to feel shy, so...don't all the soldiers who went to fight in distant places before set off on an expedition, and their lover... like this? I can satisfy Su Huohuo's wish."

"No, where did you hear such inexplicable legends? And... and... and a lover, why didn't I know when you agreed to be my girlfriend?"

As a result, tears suddenly appeared in Xia Yinci's eyes, and before I could understand her reaction, she threw herself in front of me regardless of her body being exposed in front of my eyes, and slammed her fists "violently" on my chest. chest.

"It's not all Su Huohuo's fault! Why haven't you confessed to me, you idiot!"

The moment her voice fell, my whole body trembled like an electric shock, and my cheeks became hot with a hesitant step. But my silence was not just because of the confession, but because of her sudden understanding of the meaning contained in the tears.

"...Is it going to be another tough fight for me?"

That's why Xia Yinci mentioned the soldiers who went to fight far away. For me, what lies ahead is a battle that transcends reality.

Xia Yinci lowered her tear-wet eyes, let out a heavy breath from her chest, and softly sighed a little helplessly.

"Su Huohuo, you know the butterfly effect, right?"

"...I know, I'm afraid you don't understand."

"Huh? Why are you afraid I don't understand?"

Judging by Xia Yinci's reaction completely out of the situation, he probably forgot the details of the conversation with me from the outside world.

"It's nothing. But, can I put on my clothes first...?"

Hearing this, Xia Yinci tilted her head ignorantly, and after a few seconds of downtime, she suddenly blushed, puffed her cheeks and snorted at me in a milky voice, and turned around quickly to unbutton her jacket, but The plump breasts seemed to be a hindrance to her, and it took her a lot of effort to fasten the most critical button.

I'm afraid that Xia Yinci will launch an inhumane counterattack against my teasing. So I waited for her to finish this series of actions, and immediately put away my inner imagination, and took the lead in speaking the prepared words, and returned to her original topic.

"What happened to the butterfly effect... please continue."

Xia Yinci was in a daze again as if she was in a crash, she stopped on the spot and blinked at me, as if she was thinking about my words seriously. So although she said that she was angry with me the last second, she chose to continue my question very obediently, as if she had forgotten what happened just now.

"Hey, where did I just say? It's all because Su Huohuo interrupted me." Xia Yinci glanced at me resentfully, forgetting about my molesting her, and said after a long time, "A butterfly flutters its wings in the distance. It can cause a tornado, but not every butterfly can cause a tornado...Su Huohuo, why do you think this is?"

Xia Yinci's eyes full of arrogance suddenly flashed, just like the previous look full of interest in far-fetched things.

"It's because the number of tornadoes that will be produced in the world is constant... right?"

"BINGO (correct answer)! Butterfly's flapping wings cannot produce or prevent any tornado, it just happened to cause this tornado to come in advance. As the saying goes, what is destined to happen will definitely happen, just like the butterfly's wings only It would change the order of the tornadoes."

"You mean...in the world's "eternal reincarnation" our different behaviors are the same as different butterflies flapping their wings?"

No matter which butterfly flaps its wings, the result is that tornado. In samsara, our deviant behavior may be like another butterfly flapping its wings.

"Well... every tens of thousands of years, everything will start from scratch and enter a new reincarnation. Although the memory of the previous reincarnation is completely erased, there are always traces left, and we will be more or less influenced by these traces. Do something contrary to the last time."

"In this way...wouldn't it naturally prevent the original incident from happening?"

"It looks like this on the surface, but in fact it only affects the time when the event occurs—either postponed or advanced, as the saying goes, "What should happen will definitely happen"."

Xia Yinci gently touched the scar on her abdomen. Even though it was a subtle movement, I caught my eyes clearly, and the lake in my heart was filled with waves.

"...After the domination war ended, you left me without saying goodbye, and went to a place where I couldn't see you. Is it just to prevent what happened every time in the past?"

"Yes, it's a pity that things backfired. I didn't expect that Rin'er would be taken away by unknown forces for half a year after being hospitalized. I didn't expect that you would be immersed in the world of lucid dreams. If you continue like this, you will only fall into the bottomless abyss of despair. The future will remain the same as before."

"...It won't change, will it?"

Xia Yinci's shoulders trembled slightly, she squeezed the corner of her clothes into her palms and pursed her lips, but put her hands on her thighs pretending to be calm.

"I feel scared when I think that the world will turn into nothingness after this "RESET". I began to wonder whether the established fate of "Eternal Reincarnation" is the blade you stabbed in my stomach, or your heart that has been sluggish since then. "

I suddenly recalled the reunion with Xia Yinci that day in the ward with extreme sleep disorders. Those sad eyes seemed to tell that fate was inevitable, but the truth was hard to tell. She had no choice but to bite her lip, complaining that I couldn't understand her mind in that way.

"That's why you came back on purpose at that time, right? In the end, no one knew that this mistake caused the future to repeat the same mistakes again, and ended up in that fateful event...It really is my fault, right? If only I could trust you a little more Alright. Then I will be more attached to the message you left, and maybe I can understand your intentions."

"No, Su Huohuo..."

"You must have told me the way to prevent the end of the world and the conditions to save the memory of the world before you left? But I have been depressed for so long, and until now I don't know what to do—"

Suddenly, the words that I fell into a rampage stopped abruptly—Xia Yinci suddenly held my cheek, making my eyes closely match hers. Her behavior was like the creator at that time, but her body temperature was different from that passionate love, as if she was just telling small things in her heart, whispering whispers in her ears that only the two of us knew.

"Su Huohuo, if you are really as miserable as you said, how did you learn the truth of so many worlds while I was in a coma?"

"That's because..." I didn't say any more. Thinking of how she seemed to know everything since I entered the ward, even if she didn't ask me if I knew anything about the outside world. This made me unable to resist asking again, "...Did Qianyan tell you?"

"No, I haven't been in touch with her for a long time. I just believe that you can find the truth of the world, if not, I'm ready to tell you everything."

"... Can you let me share with you the hardships that you bear alone?"

While talking, I took the initiative to meet Xia Yinci's gaze. She suddenly opened her eyes wide in surprise, and a hazy layer of movement covered her face like a cloud of mist.

"Do you still remember that Chen Zekai came to look for you?"

"Well, remember..."

The scene of that day is still vivid. The saucer knocked over by the flower girl on the dining table also messed up my mood. In such a situation, I suddenly felt that Chen Zekai really wanted Su Huilin to wake up, and I was just picking up my lost memories.

I thought to myself that Chen Zekai is much higher than me in terms of awareness to save others. But despicable unwilling to admit it.

"Actually, I asked Chen Zekai to look for you." Xia Yinci lowered her eyes and paused for a while, then suddenly showed her characteristic smile with distress, "I kept in touch with him occasionally during those six months. Inquiring about your situation... Later, he was the one who told me about Rin'er's disappearance, and about you falling asleep."

"So in the final analysis, I must have caused history to repeat itself to a certain extent..."

There is no doubt in the tone, but I am only stating the facts I believe.

In my opinion, I must first recognize my sins before I am qualified to talk about how to cross the end of being cursed by the world and move towards tomorrow three months later.

But Xia Yinci looked into my eyes tenderly and shook her head gently.

"It's not Su Huohuo's fault~ Although I was forced to do so, it's an undeniable fact that I've been hiding everything from you. It must be very distressing for you to suspect my thoughts for so long, right? You will There’s nothing wrong with being depressed like that. Anyone would be suspicious, tired or even disgusted, right?”

"No, that's not the case...Are you going to take all the mistakes on yourself like you did when you crossed the Winter Bridge?"

The fine strands of hair swayed to her mouth as she shook her head, and she simply tied her fingers and twirled them around the strands of hair.

"All the unforeseen disasters we have experienced, or the doomed catastrophes, are actually the inevitable results of the inertia of processing information when the gigantic computer of the "world" operates. All events that will happen to us are essentially data to be processed.

"Thinking at the macro level, the computer has been restarted more than a thousand times, and the data is cleared every time. It encounters the problem of "how the world is born, develops and continues" again. In the process of dealing with this problem, our world unfolds. A problem with a huge workload is transformed by a computer, which is equivalent to a set of extremely complex data.

"As many as 1590 restarts, facing the same data after each restart, how do you think the computer will handle it?"

I bowed my head in thought, and put my palms across my bangs to my forehead.

"...will give priority to the best processing plan that has been used before? If it is more detailed, it is to follow the pre-designed program, find a precedent for a similar command frame, and then use the same plan for homogeneous processing."

He cast a confirming look at Xia Yinci. But she suddenly raised her head, with a light that lived up to expectations in her eyes, she nodded like pecking at rice.

"Exactly! So most events in this world can be predicted...!"