The Fire-Chasing Herrscher Who Destroyed the World

By the time Mikael and Ellie returned to the box, the play had entered the fourth act, which happened to be the scene where the heroine Hermia, played by Eden, faced her end and said goodbye to everything.

Wearing a gorgeous flower crown on her head, she stood on the top of the mountain facing the wind, facing the rising sun that had already shed a ray of light.

"Ah...I know. In fact, I have always known it! Birds, have you seen these gorgeous flowers on my head?"

"Yes, this is my life. On the surface it looks as gorgeous as flying flowers, but underneath the flowers are heavy thorns."

"Its weight forces me to lower my head and walk on this road called life. The deeper I walk, the more pain the thorns bring. Even if I am lucky enough to make it to the end, I will just be covered in bruises... "

"But you, you are different. You are a witness, witnessing my efforts and pursuits all the way...O flying bird far away! If you really pity my misfortune and feel sad for my end...please don't stop for me. ...Please continue to fly high! Fly over the distant mountains, fly over the distant rivers, fly over the distant clouds and cities, and bring my voice, my smile, and everything I pursue farther than the distance. Far away!"

"Perhaps you can't understand my pain now... Ah! Have you shed tears? Then cry like a child... Cry until you are exhausted, which means that you have walked from the stage to the stage, and you will be watched by the bystanders. Become a witness..."

"Then, fly! Take this part of me with you and fly high! Use your eyes to take my soul with you to witness and experience..."

"Ah...you asked me if we can meet again..."

"Haha... Flying bird... If you always firmly believe that you can see me again in the future, then you should fly high without hesitation, fly to the future along the path we have opened, fly to that place where we can meet, The real future..."

As the last line was sung, the lingering sound lingered in the splendid hall, and all the lights were focused on "Hermia". She opened her arms as if to embrace the rising sun in the distance.

However, the next second, the lights went out, and the holographic projection on the stage was completely gone. In the endless darkness, only a bird's cry could be heard, and then the sound of stones rolling down.

When the lights came on again, people could only see a bird flying around the field with a flower crown in its mouth.

It flew over mountains, over clouds, over rivers, and finally came to a distant and familiar ruins.

It landed slowly among the ruins, laying down its crown of thorns.

Then, I don’t know how long it took, until the thorns and flowers disappeared without a trace along with the smoke.

On the dilapidated ruins, a green sprout sprouted out of the ground.

The entire hall was silent until half a minute later, sparse applause could be heard. However, the scattered applause quickly merged into one, like a stream flowing into a river and sea, and applause resounded from every corner.

Only Mikael did not applaud.

Alicia's face flushed with excitement. Although she felt a little regretful that she could not watch the entire opera, the fatalistic tragic ending deeply attracted her - but what attracted her?

Mikael put his whole body weight on the back of the chair and looked at her side face tenderly and sadly.

He has repeatedly doubted whether there really is a higher dimension in this world. Otherwise, how to explain this ubiquitous prophecy?

Mikael chuckled twice, feeling that he must have watched too much "Dream of Red Mansions" in his previous life, so that he was too sensitive to everything happening around him.

Well, that must be the case.

Ellie was a little embarrassed by Mikael's gaze, which made her blushing face instantly turn red.

She turned her head shyly, but not to be outdone, she said: "Hey! Where are you looking? Oops! You won't be looking at me all the time! Don't be like this! I will be shy!"

She stretched out her finger and gently poked Mikael's cheek.

Compared with half a year ago, today's young man's face no longer has any traces of baby fat. From his cheekbones to his chin, his face is as sharp as a knife, and his straightness reveals his perseverance.

This makes Ellie somewhat unhappy, because the touch of her cheeks is no longer the same as before...

Mikael closed his eyes gently, avoiding Ellie's blazing gaze.

"What, don't you like tragedy?" Ellie asked softly.

"No... no... I'm just... I'm still intoxicated with emotions and can't get out for a while." Mikael told a half-truth.

"Ah! That means you are also very suitable to be an actor! How about we contact Eden, and after the Honkai Impact is resolved, you can also enter the entertainment industry!"

"Ellie..." Mikael smiled bitterly.

He stretched out his hand out of habit, wanting to poke Ellie's cheek, but thinking of the invisible corolla of thorns made his nose sore and his vision blurred. In order to cover up the abnormality, he quickly changed his gestures, stretched out his five fingers, and pretended to touch Ellie's head, thus covering half of his face.

Ellie unexpectedly did not dodge, but allowed Mikael's somewhat cold palm to cover her head.

The palm of his hand first touched the fluffy hair, and then there was a warm touch. Mikael did not dare to stay longer, and it was separated at the first touch.

The host's announcement came from the stage: "Thank you very much for your support of Ms. Eden. In the next half hour, please enjoy the transition song - and give Ms. Eden some rest time to continue. singing, okay!”

The noise from the outside world flowed past the two of them, making no waves.

Ai Li suddenly took the initiative to hold his sleeve: "Can't you get over it yet? How about we go to the rooftop! Breathe the fresh air and take a look at the beautiful night sky!"

"Okay." Mikael held it in for a long time before he struggled to pronounce this syllable.

Ellie's steps couldn't be said to be brisk, at least not as heavy as Mikael's. She took Mikael's hand and quietly walked through the safe passage to the rooftop on the top floor.

"Hey... I miss the tall building in Luluye so much..." Ai Li quickly stepped forward, leaned on the railing and stretched out her hand, as if she wanted to touch the unreachable sky.

Mikael stood beside her.

The distance is not too close, not too far, and the arms touch slightly, just enough to feel each other's body temperature in the night wind.

In fact, there is nothing interesting to see in the night sky. Except for the crescent moon, there are only a few stars, not to mention the deep darkness that has been polluted into lavender by the neon lights in the city.

But the two of them still stood under the night sky for a long time.

Neither of them spoke.

It has been almost seven years. After seven years of getting along day and night, sometimes there is no need to speak at all, and there is no need to observe any of the other person's movements. Just being relatively silent, you can guess the other person's thoughts.

It’s just that no one would say it shamelessly.

But there are still a few more seven years...Mikael closed his eyes. He felt that Ellie should not be able to guess this sentence.

Suddenly, soft footsteps came from behind.

Ellie made no move because Mikael had already turned around immediately.

The person who came was a woman, her age... She was wearing a mask and sunglasses, and her age could not be discerned just by her good figure.

Seeing someone on the rooftop, she seemed a little hesitant, her steps full, but she soon felt relieved.

She also greeted Mikael in a familiar manner, and then asked with some expectation: "Are you also an audience? How did you feel after watching the opera just now?"

Mikael pursed his lips and did not answer immediately. Ellie looked at the night sky and commented slowly but firmly: "It's very romantic."

"Very romantic?" The woman did not expect Ellie to give such an answer. "Gloomy, depressing, and sad. Obviously this is how most people feel, well, just like this boy."

Mikael touched his nose, feeling a little embarrassed, "It's a tragedy after all..."

Ai Li nodded. Her voice seemed to be deeper, but she still did not lose the light feeling: "It is indeed a bit too much! There has been nothing happy from the first act, and all the developments are taking the plot to the next level. A worse direction. The characters are all powerless little people, being dragged forward by fate, and they no longer know where they are in the blink of an eye..."

Mikael closed his eyes again.

"Isn't it too real? It's really hard for people to watch the whole story like this." Ai Li said softly.

The woman's facial features were covered, making it difficult to see the changes in her expression. She seemed to realize something - the girl's words were not meant for her - at least not simply for her.

But, this boy with her.

So she didn't mind helping to promote the conversation.

"Then...why do you think it's romantic?"

"It's because of the ending! Although the process was very difficult, I really liked the last scene of this play. On top of the ruins shrouded in smoke, a new sprout is breaking out of the ground... It's a beautiful sight, isn't it?"

Mikael's closed eyelids were shaking.

Just like in her previous life, Ellie's words were not a simple response to Eden. It was more like she was speaking to a third party somewhere in the world, and now, that third party is actually standing beside her. Next to him, he could feel her body temperature and the fragrance blowing into his nose with the night wind.

"It may bloom for a long time, or it may wither in the next second, but at this moment, it is there, announcing its new life to the whole world... It is such a moment that I will never forget for a long time."

"It said to me: Tragedy is not the end, but the beginning of hope. The footprints we leave in the world will eventually become the light for another person to move forward one day in the future..."

"Alicia... don't say any more..." Mikael's voice was choked with sobs, and he rarely used a pleading tone.

"What's wrong!" Ai Li finally turned around and looked at the young man who accompanied her all the way.

She suddenly felt that the figure trying to completely submerge herself in the darkness was a bit strange. At least at this moment, she could not completely read his thoughts.

"Yes... the footprints you have left have illuminated the path of countless people, and one of them is standing in front of you... Alicia..."

Mikael wanted to say this, he wanted to tell Alicia everything.

Why is the Third Collapse about to happen here? Why is it that the Herrschers of this era have no chance of regaining their humanity? Why is this world doomed to be destroyed... And you, Alicia, you are a human being, too. Lawyer...

But he swallowed all of this.

"No...it's not yet time..." he warned himself.

There is no need for Ellie to bear these heavy burdens prematurely. For the time being, just bear them on me...

He suddenly stood up and said in as relaxed a tone as possible: "Someone still needs to deal with the aftermath of the previous incident. I'm going to help them."

Ellie stared at him for a while, then nodded slowly.

"Wait a moment."

Eden suddenly stopped him, "I want to chat with this girl for a while. Before you leave, can you tell me your two names?"

"Her name is Alicia, and my name is Mikael."

Eden was stunned, then nodded, as if he understood something, "What a good pair of names, as if there is God's will in the dark - the flawless paradise and the guardian of the paradise."