["But by this calculation… doesn't that mean the Watchmaker has lived for several hundred years?" March 7th asked.]
["I don't know. When I knew Mikhail, he was already the [Watchmaker]. It might have been an inherited title."]
["…Mr. Sheriff, how old are you?" March 7th asked curiously with wide eyes.]
[Gallagher slowly turned his head. His stubbled face showed no expression: "…I'm Thirteen."]
["That's impossible no matter how you look at it!"]
——
Honkai Impact 3rd.
"Hahahaha, a thirteen-year-old bartender? The imagination here is even richer than Pardofelis. Could it be… a case of looking young but being mature? Hmm, I didn't expect Mr. Sheriff to be such a humorous person."
The crystal chandelier in the meeting hall cast warm light on Elysia's pink long hair. She had originally planned to drink and watch the Celestial Screen with Eden, but Eden got drunk after just a few cups, leaving her alone in the meeting room.
The door was gently pushed open, as if a breeze had entered. Only when the sofa beside her sank did she speak softly to the white-haired man beside her: "Kevin, it's been a long time since I've seen you here. Would you like some of Eden's treasured…"
"It's me, Elysia."
Kevin's voice was like a piece of ice falling into warm black tea.
Elysia's eyelashes trembled almost imperceptibly. Even she, who was usually eloquent, was momentarily at a loss for words.
She turned her head and began to carefully trace his features with her gaze—the cold, sharp brows, ice-blue eyes… Fifty thousand years had left marks on him, but they hadn't erased the familiar contours she knew.
Not the memory body from the Elysian Realm, but… the real Kevin.
"I was just wishing yesterday that I wanted to see the real you, and it actually came true. If I had known, I would have made a few more wishes." Elysia suddenly smiled. She reached out and poked his cheek; the temperature at her fingertips was real and vivid.
"After so many years, Kevin, don't you have anything you want to say to me?" The girl puffed up her cheeks in slight annoyance.
"Before pushing open this door, I had a lot I wanted to say to all of you. But just now… I'm sorry, I can't remember a single word."
"I thought when we met you would say something like 'Elysia, you've become even more beautiful.' I really like hearing those kinds of words~ Oh well, I'll just assume you're too excited and forgive you, okay?"
The girl's tone was light and carried her usual playfulness. For a moment, he seemed to see that dusk from fifty thousand years ago again—Elysia smiling like this, spinning on the base's rooftop, her pink hair fluttering and scattering fine specks of light.
Kevin looked around the empty meeting room and asked curiously: "Where is everyone else?"
"They all have their own matters. Besides… you suddenly visited without saying anything, so of course no one prepared in advance."
Elysia gently stroked Eden's hair beside her. "It's just me and Eden here, but she's drunk now. You can greet her when she wakes up. By the way, do you want anything? We can provide anything here… except bread."
"Uh…" Kevin lowered his head somewhat awkwardly. "…Then never mind."
——
[Hanununu liberated the frontier prison, but Asdana was still barren and backward. It was only when the historical Watchmaker extended an olive branch to the Family, attempting to turn this frontier prison into a Planet of Festivities filled with toasts and laughter, that Penacony finally gained its current name and stepped onto the stage facing the stars.]
["But earlier you clearly said the Watchmaker is the Family's traitor? You also said you were his companion, so you also…" March 7th started to speak but stopped.]
["I am not his companion. I am one of his many [children]." Gallagher shook his head and denied. "But I am indeed a traitor—not a traitor to the Family, but a traitor to… Mikhail."]
[Himeko was stunned: "…What did you do?"]
["I did nothing. That is the greatest betrayal." Gallagher's tone carried a faint sadness. "Just like you all, I once had close and inseparable companions. We poured our hearts and blood into Penacony, but the 'Oak Family'… pushed us into injustice."]
["Mikhail grew old and could no longer protect his children. We left the Family and sought our own way out. Thus, we became traitors to [Harmony]…" Gallagher gritted his teeth. "…Even though the real traitor is someone else."]
["They still outwardly praise the Watchmaker's good name, but secretly nail him to the pillar of shame. Even so, we still hope to clear his name. As long as we can drag out the real traitor, the mastermind behind all this, Penacony's Harmony can return to the right track…"]
["But we lost. As long years passed, the Land of Dreams had been affected too deeply. Under endless relentless pursuit, I gave up… like a stray dog. Later, the Family accepted me again and gave me the job of sheriff. On the surface it was forgiveness, but in reality it was punishment. From then on… I completely cut ties with my companions… with my past. And Mikhail…"]
["I heard he died in an unnoticed corner, a place no one could find. I understood that from that moment, the Penacony of the past could never return."]
——
Fullmetal Alchemist.
"This uncle is way too heavy… Just how many ups and downs and facets of life has he witnessed in thirteen years?"
"Brother, are you serious? I'd believe this uncle is thirty-three more than thirteen…"
Alphonse was momentarily at a loss for words. There was no doubt that Mr. Gallagher was a very tragic figure, but the ruthlessness in his words was razor-sharp. He undoubtedly had very sharp fangs and claws, continuing to carry full fury ready to pour out on the traitor at any moment.
"The Watchmaker is dead, so who wrote the coded message? The next Watchmaker? Brother, I feel like this Penacony is one giant trap. It pulls people from different factions into the dream, claiming to invite them as guests, but the real purpose is to assimilate everyone into parts of [Harmony]…"
Just thinking about it made Alphonse feel a chill.
"Don't overthink it." Edward waved his hand. "Didn't you hear Mr. Gallagher? The Family's target is only Mikhail. But what I'm curious about is, since he is the creator of this dreamscape, why exactly did he betray the Family? A disagreement over splitting profits? …It can't be such a low-level reason, right?"
"Brother, you're completely wrong. The person who could create this dreamscape must have very firm ideals. In my opinion, it must be that the Family betrayed Mikhail… and then they found an excuse to shift the blame—this also perfectly corresponds to the traitor within the Family."
Alphonse said word by word: "…Mikhail is both the creator of this sweet dream and its victim."