"So it's true... that piece of music was really composed by Lilith for Silas," Eden said thoughtfully. "But Ellie, you really don't need to feel discouraged about that..."
"If it were only that, of course I wouldn't give up," Elysia lowered her eyelids. "But... what I'm more afraid of is Silas' attitude."
Eden looked at Elysia without saying anything.
"In the previous life, I wanted to understand Silas, but until the very end, I never truly did. I thought that now, with enough time, I could get to know him again, start anew with him, but... only now do I realize that during this time after rebirth, aside from feeling I can't accept his leaving any more, I still don't know him well enough," Elysia spoke softly. "After seeing Lilith today, hearing from Silas about everything Lilith did... suddenly, I feel confused. Do I really still have a chance?"
Eden said, "Ellie, actually, that kiss Silas mentioned..."
"I know of course that the kiss he spoke of wasn't that kind, but that Lilith took the initiative," Elysia replied. "But what I care about is his attitude. He clearly knows... knows how I feel about him, knows how everyone feels about him, yet he still chose to say it like that... so does that mean, in his eyes, our feelings are just a burden?"
Eden sighed gently and embraced Elysia. She whispered, "No, Ellie, maybe Silas doesn't actually think that way. Or rather... is it that you truly believe he thinks that way, or that you're afraid he thinks that way?"
Elysia closed her eyes and after a long moment answered, "I think... I'm afraid he thinks that way."
"Ellie, if you look at everything that happened in the previous life, you'll find that Silas seemed to already know all the fate that was to come. He was always fighting against destiny," Eden said.
"I asked Aponia, and she told me she saw all the threads representing Lilith's fate held firmly in Silas' hands. She even saw the threads of Astaroth break but be mended by Silas... although their threads were completely severed in the Tragedy of Binding. After that, the threads on Sakura — threads that should have broken during the Twelfth Herrscher incident — were also mended by Silas."
Elysia fell silent.
"This came at a cost. Aponia saw those threads piling up around Silas, watching him fall alone into the swamp of fate," Eden recalled her conversation with Aponia. "She said Silas was taking on the fate meant for those whose destinies he changed. Because of this, he suffers sleepless nights, carries the weight of divine sin, and his disappearance is inevitable..."
Elysia's breath hitched.
"In this life, if his choices remain unchanged, then his ending will also remain the same," Eden continued to relay Aponia's words. "Silas himself must understand this. Ellie, after spending these months with him, don't you know what his choices have been?"
Elysia didn't answer.
"Silas has always been a very gentle person, though this gentleness never extended to his enemies. Since he already knows his future, since he has prepared for a fight to the death, he surely wouldn't want us to grieve excessively," Eden said. "Before the final battle in the previous life, he already knew I planned to remain in this era and die with you. He said: 'Elysia must have said, an ending is just another beginning. Her story needs someone to sing it, for she so strongly wanted to leave her mark in this world... I hope that in the next era, there will still be children who know her story and admire her perfection.'"
Elysia's pupils contracted sharply.
Eden sighed again. "He also asked me to compose music for the Thirteen Fallen Angels, hoping to record his story and leave traces of his existence. In the final battle, everyone who fought knew clearly—except for Kevin and Silas—the rest were merely creating openings for their attacks. But Silas, he stubbornly wanted to protect us. He blocked fatal strikes meant for Pado, Vill-V, Kosma, Kalpas, even me and Mobius. Though we were all prepared to die... Silas was different. He didn't need to prepare for death, because he never intended to survive."
After a pause, Eden continued, "If the bond becomes too deep, then when he leaves, it will only cause more sorrow. That's likely how he thinks. But Ellie, you are different. This time, if our resistance still fails, will you still choose to leave?"
"I would," she thought to say.
But in the end, she did not voice the answer. It didn't need to be said—she knew, Eden knew, and Silas absolutely knew.
If the inevitable end is separation, then isn't the best approach to keep distance from the start?
Silas must think so.
No matter how much Kevin tried to urge him, Silas never once took the initiative to mention Lilith. Perhaps because the loss of Lilith in the previous life hit him too hard, this time he did not want to get entangled with her.
"I understand," she said.
Elsewhere,
Pado, looking dejected, relayed to Sakura what Silas had said. At the end, she said, "I know I can't compare to Lilith. After all, Lilith can do everything, unlike me—I always do everything poorly..."
Sakura silently held Rin's hand. She wasn't surprised by this situation. After all, in her eyes, Lilith and Silas were truly a pair, but... the feeling of loss still lingered.
She had long noticed that whenever things involved Silas, Pado would act differently. She cared deeply about these things and wished she had more time with Silas...
But she wouldn't say it out loud.
She never intended to get any answers from Silas. She just wanted to protect him. His ending shouldn't be like last time.
"Ugh—No way!" Pado suddenly shook her head. "We've come this far. What kind of person would give up now? Elysia said it too—Silas was once an ordinary person, and if he can do it, then so can I!"
Sakura looked at Pado, who was trying to encourage herself. Her gaze flickered; that courage to keep chasing was truly admirable.
At least, she's stronger than those who don't even have the courage to face their own feelings.
Back at the MOTH headquarters, in the Helix Workshop, the genius girl was putting on a one-woman ensemble play all by herself.
"Why did that woman have to be reborn too?!" Pure Evil Vill-V clawed at her hair in frustration. "I knew I should've gone with him! A listening device wasn't enough—I need to stick to Silas like glue!"
"Hm… nobody expected to run into Lilith, especially since she remembers her past life," the Expert said calmly, though the way she clenched her fists showed she wasn't really at ease.
"Suddenly, Pure Evil's idea of locking Silas up doesn't seem so bad," The Great Magician Vill-V's smile twisted unnaturally. "If he never leaves, he'll never see her again."
"Magician, watch your words. Pure Evil is already unhinged enough—we don't need a second one," The Conductor Vill-V massaged her temples.
"Are the Fallen Angels doomed to remain alone? Even meeting that solitary traveler first couldn't rewrite fate..." The Scholar Vill-V lamented tragically.
As for Flavorful and the Original Persona, they'd already withdrawn into silence.
At that time, a certain Kevin Killer MK5 was too busy calculating how best to pummel Kevin.
Meanwhile, in Mobius's lab—
"Doctor, Silas said if you skip a workout, he'll take away your instant noodles for a week," Klein said expressionlessly as she stared at Mobius. "It's time for your evening training."
Mobius was utterly frustrated. "Klein, whose side are you on?! You're supposed to be my assistant!"
Klein stayed calm. "Are you going or not?"
Mobius: "…Fine, I'll go."
For the noodles, she endured…
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