novelonline Chapter 4253 Memories on the Verge of Disappearing
Chapter 4253 Memories on the Verge of Disappearing
Chapter 4253 Memories on the Verge of Disappearing
The two remained silent for a moment, staring at the skeleton. Shad then asked Ms. Thorne:
"What exactly have you been with for so long? A spirit that refuses to leave? Or is Mr. Albert in the temple now just a fabrication from your memories?"
Even the witch who had always acted as if she knew everything was now uncertain. She paused for a few seconds before answering:
"I have an eye condition."
Xia De really couldn't refute this statement:
"Did Leonard Albert also go up to the second floor to see the gods?"
"Yes, I was there at the time."
The witch understood Shad's meaning:
“Although he has problems, since the gods haven’t said anything, it means he’s allowed to stay.”
Xia De wasn't entirely sure either:
"Perhaps this person came here carrying his own corpse, and the 'illness' he wants to cure is death."
Although the joke wasn't funny, Ms. Thorne still managed a smile:
"In any case, at least we now have a lead on how to solve Mr. Albert's problem."
Shad nodded, bent down, and carefully removed the skeleton from the pile of bones. At such close range, he was certain it was indeed the skeleton of an ordinary person.
"Let's go back and see what Mr. Albert has to say."
He turned the skeletons into cards, and after burning the remaining remains, as the two were preparing to return, Shad suddenly asked:
"Ms. Thorne, do you think this world might just be a memory?"
"Whose memories?"
The witch asked, and then immediately understood Shad's guess:
"Don't think about that now, let's deal with what we're dealing with first."
Having lingered in that low-lying area for some time, the two quickened their pace on the way back to prevent the fire from going out. Although nothing else blocked their path, the flames in their candles and kerosene lamps went out some distance from the temple.
The moment the fire went out, the slightly dispersed fog surged back in. Ms. Thorne slowly stopped, instinctively turning to look at Shad, and immediately asked in surprise, even a hint of fear:
"A man? No, what are you? What are you going to do to me? Why isn't the witch's curse applied?"
"Chains of Sin!"
Three chains, already prepared, instantly bound the witch who was within reach. Although Lady Thorne was a twelfth-rank witch, she was still unable to resist the chains' power. Her sins weren't particularly grave, but Shad inexplicably sensed a very deep desire within her, though he couldn't yet use the chains to perceive exactly what that desire was:
"go!"
He carried the immobilized witch on his back and rushed towards the firelight ahead, thinking to himself:
"No matter what strange thoughts I have because of my memory loss, you must remind me to keep moving forward immediately."
She smiled gently:
At least this time, it shouldn't be necessary.
The firelight quickly enveloped Shad and Ms. Thorne, and during this time Shad did not experience any memory loss. Whether this was due to the "sunlight" or his own special abilities, Shad's resistance to the white mist was indeed increasing.
He put Lady Thorne down, and after returning to the temple, the witch, who had been terrified of being kidnapped by a humanoid male, gradually remembered what she had been doing.
She slapped her forehead and sighed, saying:
"I have a feeling that if I stay here any longer, my brain will start to have more and more problems."
Mr. Albert and the two old witches remained sitting by the fire, merely glancing at the two returning from their outings without saying much.
Shad and Mrs. Thorne, of course, did not directly throw away the skeleton. After sitting down by the fire, they first told the two old witches about the enemies they had encountered on this trip. Then, Mrs. Thorne sat by the fire without saying a word, pretending that she needed to rest, while Shad moved to Mr. Albert's side.
They are all men, so it wouldn't seem particularly awkward for them to get together and exchange a few words.
Although Mr. Albert's spirits were much better than before, it was clearly not enough to support him in having a complete conversation with Shad.
However, what Shad needed was not communication. After exchanging greetings, his senses began to investigate what this seemingly normal human male was.
His breathing, heartbeat, and pulse were all normal, just like a normal person's. Even his weakened mental energy fluctuations were no different from those of a mentally exhausted normal person. The power of his soul could be perceived by Shad, and its "existence" itself was not fabricated.
Therefore, "she" came to the following conclusion:
This is how he remembers himself, so it's no different from the real him.
Shad stared silently at the fire.
"Without your help, how can we possibly discern this level of disguise? And are those two old witches and Miss Thorne also part of a memory?"
Xia De did not doubt the gods on the second floor; the power of gods cannot be faked.
Her smile was very gentle:
[Such unique fragments of memory only appear in these special areas. Isolde Thorne is not a memory, but a real, existing being; I have already investigated for you.]
Shad wasn't being modest when he told Ms. Thorne that he wasn't an expert on memory. Although he had heard Sirius talk about many things related to memory, he only had a superficial understanding of it.
However, a "rough understanding" is sufficient for the current situation. The echoes of the soul will create some seemingly plausible fragments of memory, and under special circumstances, the memory will truly manifest in the material world. Sirius once told Shad a similar story.
Essentially, the dazed man sitting next to Shad at this moment is not human, not even a living being. But he believes himself to still be the person named Leonard Albert, and that Shad will still help him regain his lost memories.
Shad didn't understand the secrets of memory, but Sirius had said that things that are memories themselves can be easily guided to temporarily return to normal. This process must prevent them from becoming aware of who they are, and requires preparing items related to real people and using magical techniques to awaken their consciousness.
Hillis's words were vague, and Shad didn't know if they would be helpful in the current situation, but he felt he could give it a try.
Shad then gave Mrs. Thorne across the campfire a wink, signaling her to prepare for the worst. Shad then reached into his pocket and pulled out a finger bone.
The memory named "Leonard Albert" looked at the severed finger bone, its expression changed for a moment but eventually returned to its lifeless look.
Shad sighed:
“Look at me.”
He said that as the man looked at Shad, Shad chose the magical technique granted by the Cherubim:
"Inspiration from the Spiritual Spring!"
The wet fingertip touched the man's forehead, and his eyes widened suddenly:
"Me, me"
Seeing that he still hadn't fully recovered his memories, Shad withdrew his finger and put the moonstone ring back on. After kissing the ring, he summoned bright yellow moonlight, a magical technique he hadn't used in a long time.
"confusion!"
The yellow moonlight represents guidance, and this magical technique can drive normal people mad, as well as bring the mad to their senses.
The moonlight appeared before them, and the man by the fire fell silent, staring blankly at the moonlight. But Shad clearly felt that his eyes were seeing his own memories. Even the two weary witches looked this way, and Lady Thorne had somehow moved to Shad's side.
Both Shad and Ms. Thorne were worried that this fragment of memory would remind him of his own death and cause him to completely break down, but thankfully, when the confusion in the man's eyes faded, what he said was:
“I remember now, I really remember! How could I forget something so important? I remember why I came here.”
Shad breathed a sigh of relief, but seeing that the other party was about to reveal her purpose, Ms. Thorne stopped her:
"It is the Great One, not us, who can bestow grace upon you. Go and meet the merciful lady."
She was actually worried that if she voiced her deepest obsession, the memory would immediately crumble. Shad understood Ms. Thorne's concerns, and he didn't give Leonard Albert time to think:
"Let's go. Now that you've remembered, let's hurry and see the gods, otherwise you might forget again in a little while."
As he spoke, he pulled the man up and led him around the screen wall to the elevator.
Mr. Albert, at this moment, seemed to have fully regained his senses:
"Okay, okay, but how can I thank you? If it weren't for you, I..."
"Enough with the talk, let's go see the gods first."
Shad quickened his pace, for he clearly noticed the man's body gradually becoming transparent; the memory was fading. Ms. Thorne followed the two, equally curious to see what would happen next.
With a rumble, the elevator carried the three to the second floor. Mr. Albert had clearly noticed that the two were in a bit too much of a hurry. As Shad rubbed his hands together outside the god's room, preparing to push open the door, Mr. Albert asked in confusion:
Are we in a hurry?
Although Ms. Thorne wasn't particularly keen on talking to men, she still replied at this point:
"Yes, we're in a hurry. There are some things that a man like you, who has never been exposed to the extraordinary world, wouldn't know. Anyway, there's not much time left, and you probably don't want to be the last one to fall, right?"
The witch could now see Shad directly through Mr. Albert's body; his dissipation was faster than they had anticipated.
Shad had no good way to stop the memory from fading, so before pushing open the door, he reached out and patted Mr. Albert on the shoulder:
“We are about to meet that benevolent deity. Now, don’t let your mind wander. Focus on what you want to say to the deity in a moment.”
Taking advantage of the slapping motion, he affixed the card containing the remains to the back of the other person's transparent body. Although this did not bring back the fading memories, at least the trend of Mr. Albert's body becoming transparent was no longer so obvious.