It is the fifty-first day of the autumn month in the calendar year 458 of St. Leon.
It had just rained outside the window. It was said that the cold wind from the empire traveled southward, dispelling the sultry heat of the previous few days. The silver-haired Elna girl walked down the stairs, opened the window, and let the moist air brush her cheeks.
, looking at the two rainbows in the distance.
"My eldest lady." Joyce's gentle voice came from behind, "What are you thinking about? Is your research not going well?"
Fleisher nodded. In recent weeks, she confirmed that the doll's 'soul core' has simple learning capabilities and stores a large amount of unparsable information. However, she has made a total of thirty-three awakening attempts.
, all ended in failure.
"Do me a favor and go find Quinta and come here. I have something I want to ask him."
The voice behind him was silent for a moment, and when he spoke again it was with a hint of ridicule. "Don't you care about his hidden purpose?"
"Of course not." Fleur turned around and looked down at the young man on the sofa, "But a secret is just a secret, and it is two different things from a problem."
"Okay, as ordered." Joyce raised his hand and snapped his fingers, stood up leisurely, and walked to the door unhurriedly, "I will come back in a quarter of an hour. Let yourself relax once in a while, there is always time.
.”
The door closed. Fleischer breathed out softly and looked out the empty window again. She rarely was completely alone, but sometimes, she did need such a short time.
Everyone has secrets. She does too.
Hamis Felton had a past with his mother, and he also took in a Balrog; Quinta may be trapped in this continent, but for some reason he is willing to serve the 'Chancellor'; Joyce has always been extremely considerate
, is also the person she trusts most now, but Fleur is vaguely aware that the many cares he takes for her are not just because of his old friendship with her mother.
For Fleur, the biggest secret is not her purpose, but her origin——
She may not be from this era.
Fleur's childhood in memory was lived in a country called the "Marland United". It was a relatively wealthy country, and most of its residents made a living in handicrafts, manufacturing and performance industries, and it became famous in the surrounding area.
Tourist resort. Various cheap occult props are circulating in the market, allowing people who are not wizards to enjoy the convenience of magic. Due to the popularity of heavy machinery, the production of food and materials is very sufficient, even if some people are not willing to work to make money.
You will not be short of food and clothing just by relying on the relief provided by the Civil Affairs Department.
Naturally, she does not belong to the latter. Ever since she could remember, Fleur has been learning puppet crafts from her 'original' mother. It is a knowledge that mixes handicrafts and secret techniques, and can make lifelike dolls with all joints able to move freely.
, and are exquisite dolls that look like works of art.
But unlike the golems that have sealed the souls of the inner world and have independent consciousness; and the machine puppets that are said to have been restored from ancient times and have many preset instructions - their 'dolls' are just a body unless they use magic to control them.
Furnishings that will not move.
That actually doesn't matter. Even if the production cost is much higher than ordinary handicrafts, there is no shortage of nobles and rich people in the entire association who are willing to collect rare objects at high prices. But her mother never refused to sell them to anyone. Whenever Fleur tried
When trying to persuade my mother, she always got the same answer:
"Don't forget, we are Luo Zhen's heirs. Fleur, we have lost his inheritance, and we cannot throw away his teachings as well. Luo Zhen has never sold his daughters, because every doll has its own
Life has its own will. Even what we see in front of us is just that we haven’t woken up yet——"
Those were all nonsense, she had always thought so.
The legend of Luo Zhen is like a fantasy story, and no one has ever actually seen his living 'daughters'. His birth year is unknown, his real name is unknown, and there are different opinions on how many works he has. Markets and auctions
Occasionally there will be sellers under the name of 'Luo Zhen', but no matter how shoddy the products are, they are at most regarded as a joke rather than so-called 'fake'.
After all, if the real thing never existed, how could there be a fake?
But Fleur doesn't intend to go against her mother's wishes. She doesn't believe that Luo really exists, nor does she think those dolls have life or thoughts. Perhaps somewhere deep in her heart, she is also unwilling to sell her mother's and her own hard work.
For those wealthy people who only see 'them' as collectibles.
As a result, she can only take a few dolls to the streets, squares, and banquets of the rich, and control 'them' to present a performance - acrobatics, folk arts, dancing and singing - and then from the onlookers,
Or from the host of the banquet, you can get income to support daily expenses and purchase materials.
This life lasted until she was fifteen years old. If it hadn't been for that 'accident', it might have lasted longer.
One night in the autumn of that year, his father, whom he had not seen for several weeks, returned home. Regardless of his mother's obstruction, he insisted on taking away two dolls they had made, claiming that he had already found a buyer for them.
Home.
"The money these two are worth is equivalent to your income from performing arts for a whole year!" After a dispute, the man impatiently pushed his mother down on the sofa beside him and picked up the two dolls.
He walked towards the door without looking back, "Okay, when I get the money, I will give you half of it. It will be enough for you to live a good life for a while, or to make a dozen more of these things, right?"
He failed to step out of that door. And to this day, Fleur is still not sure what happened at that moment——
The petite red figure flashed across her field of vision in an instant, and the utility knife in her hand cut the man's throat without hesitation. She recognized it as the "Crested Ibis", the earliest doll made by her mother, which had stood quietly for several years.
In a corner of the studio. With the blood spurting out, Fleur instinctively looked at her mother aside, but saw the same shock - and a fleeting ecstasy - on her face.
During the subsequent investigation and trial, her mother insisted that she had never done anything and that the dolls used their own will to kill the men who wanted to 'take them away'. As you can imagine, such wording did not
Anyone who believed it would have further confirmed her motive for the murder. In the end, her mother was sentenced to death for intentional homicide, and all the dolls were confiscated and later auctioned at a low price.
Ironically, the one that fetched the highest price was the "Crested Ibis" that was identified as the murder weapon.
All those things are no longer connected with Fleur. She lost her father, then her mother in just one month, and many memories of the two of them for more than ten years. But what she can never forget is the last time
When she went to visit her mother, she said something to her with a smile.
"I don't care if they believe in me or not, Fleur, as long as you believe in me, it's enough. I didn't do anything that night, it was the Crested Ibis...she did all this herself." The mother's expression was a little haggard, but her eyes were bright.
As if igniting a fire, "In other words, what we believe is true, and our inheritance is also true! Being able to know this means that even if I die, it will be valuable!"
"But, I will never see that day again." Her mother shook her head gently, smiling with a rare relief, "I don't regret it, Fleur. It's just that from now on, 'Luo Zhen Doll Workshop' will
Please give it to you——"
On the day her mother was executed, the girl did not go to the scene. Instead, she huddled in bed alone and slept from morning to evening. She learned almost all of her mother's skills, but she had no clue about the future of the 'Doll Workshop'.
Whether she makes a living by doing business as usual or starts selling her own works, it seems impossible to meet her mother's expectations of her.
Needless to say, as the daughter of a 'murderer', her future life will only be more difficult than before. Her father's relatives came to the door a few days ago, believing that this house should be used as compensation for her mother's crimes, and ordered her to live in this house.
They moved here within a month. They also "kindly" persuaded her to leave her hometown where she had lived for more than ten years on the grounds of avoiding rumors - but no one cared about where in the world she should go if she was alone.
The sky outside the window gradually darkened. Hungry finally made Fleur get up from the bed and staggered to the living room, intending to find some bread or something to fill her stomach. When she opened the bedroom door, she saw that the living room had opened at some point.
The lamp was turned off, and sitting at the table was a woman she had never seen before.
She was wearing an ordinary woolen dress and had long, smooth brown hair. She looked to be a few years older than Fleur. She raised her head slightly and looked at the girl opposite her gently, as if she had known her a long time ago.
"Fulei." The woman called her name softly, "Do you want to see Luo Zhen?"
The girl frowned, not knowing what kind of reaction she should give. Since her mother always talked about Luo Zhen, there were quite a few people around them who knew this name, but without exception they treated it as if they were watching a joke. However,
Just now, Fleur felt for no reason that women were not taking any pleasure from her.
"Who...are you?" She tried to ask, "Is it me...or someone she knows?"
"You don't know me now, and neither does your mother." The woman raised a finger and shook it gently, "But I know where Luo Zhen is. Don't you want to meet her?"
She's not sure, Fleur thought. The legendary "Luo Zhen" has an erratic personality, sometimes amiable, sometimes stubborn and unkind. No matter what, it is more like the mother's wish than hers, "He...
…are they really my ‘ancestors’?”
"That's right." The woman replied with certainty, "Although you are separated by a long time, you are connected by blood."
That's not a choice. Anyway, she has nowhere to go now. The girl thought to herself, "What price do I have to pay?"
"I don't need anything except to live well." The woman's smile became more obvious, which seemed to mean that she was somewhat satisfied. "Of course, if you have an unhappy life, I can also send you back here."
"That's not necessary." There is nothing here worth her nostalgia, so it would be better to say that she can leave, "As long as you don't lie to me."
The woman stood up gracefully, approached almost silently, and held out her right hand to the girl.
"Transaction established?"
"Let's forget it." Fleur gently grabbed the other person's hand, "Speaking of which, what should I call you?"
"It's a secret for now." The woman smiled, "Until we meet again, I wish you all the best."
…
Those things now seem more like a distant dream.
When Fleisher woke up from her sleep, she had a new name - although the nickname was the same as her 'former' real name; a new identity - an Elna person in the Forest of Tranquility; and new relationships.
Relationships - mother Israfil, father Arminas, and friends of similar age, Lanlor, Erwin, Modilola and Amberli; I don't know whether they are new or original.
All her memories of living in this world for decades.
She hasn't studied much history, and she doesn't know how long ago she has returned to her original era. The magic machines in her memory are missing here, but there is no inconvenience in her daily life. When she was performing in the square before, she had done so more than once
I have seen the silver-haired traveler, and now that I think about it, he is probably her current compatriot.
She then asked people around her and consulted many books, but no one had even heard of the name 'Luo Zhen'. According to the records of the Elna people, the technology of the mystical doll originated in the first era and was invented.
It has long been impossible to verify. Moreover, their main purpose is war weapons, which seem to be fundamentally different from those made by her and her former 'mother'.
On the other hand, the knowledge she had learned in that 'dream' can definitely take effect in this world. The secret techniques for controlling the actions of the dolls are the same as those recorded in the books, which are used to 'awaken' the dolls.
The ceremony seems to be exactly the same.
It was precisely because of her help that Israfil accelerated the research on artificial souls, which also led to them being accused of contacting the 'forbidden arts' and escaping from the Forest of Tranquility. Even so, this also made them
She avoided the empire's invasion of the forest and the brutal war that lasted for nearly a month.
Perhaps as the proverb goes, bad luck always brings good luck.
Fleisher shook her head gently and put aside the memories of the past. She was no longer the girl from Malland, nor was she a member of the kingdom. Now she just wants to 'resurrect' her mother and find "Roman"
"True" whereabouts, and more simply——
As the woman said, live well in this world.
That may not be something that comes easily. In her 'previous life', the Marland Federation had never experienced war; even in the current continent, the Phil Federation was rarely robbed by war - a hundred years ago
The same is true during the "Gray War". However, Fleur understands that peace is the product of the trade-offs and efforts of many parties, rather than the result that should be taken for granted.
What the Oron Empire did a year ago has broken the balance that has been maintained to this day; the death of Rogman not long ago, the situation within the empire, and the movements of other countries also prove that Hermes Felton's
'Preparing for a rainy day' is not unreasonable.
The girl turned back and looked at the doll that carried the soul of her 'mother', and suddenly laughed a little self-deprecatingly. She accepted the woman's proposal, somewhat with the idea that everything would become better if she escaped from the original environment.
Now it seems that I have been tricked by her?
Maybe as long as you are alive, the journey will never be smooth sailing, Fleur thought. It is the same everywhere.
She used to be weak and powerless, but now at least there are people who need her strength. For her now, the Federation is just a temporary harbor - even if she leaves Hermes later, she has the confidence to go on alone.
The time was almost up. Fleischer glanced at the clock on the wall, put away those useless thoughts, and turned his attention to the door again.
After a moment, the door was pushed open slightly roughly, and a sturdy man strode across the room and raised his eyebrows at her. Joyce came in afterward and threw herself back on the soft sofa.
Put your hands behind your head and close your eyes to relax.
"I heard that you have something to do with me." Kunta crossed his arms and looked at her condescendingly, "Tell me about our 'Miss Staff'?"
Even in close contact, Quinta Tu'o could not see any characteristics of the devil. Her intuition still conveyed warnings to her, but Fleur believed that since the other party currently chose the identity of 'human', he would not do anything too
Doing something outrageous.
"I want to know something about souls." She replied flatly, "Have you ever heard of artificial souls?"
The man pushed her away with his shoulder, walked to the doll standing quietly, leaned down and looked at it for a while, and then sneered.
"All souls are 'artificial'. You don't understand this, do you, Miss?"
Fleisher shook her head. Since she decided to ask the other party for advice, she did not intend to hide her ignorance. "I would like to hear the details."
Kunta grabbed a chair and sat down, crossing one leg, seeming quite satisfied with her attitude.
"When humans die, their souls will be attracted to the outer world that matches their characteristics. In most cases, they cannot return to the material world and can only gradually become part of the outer world, no matter in what form."
The man patted his belly and narrowed his eyes, "Okay, in that case, where do you think the souls of those new human beings come from?"
She had read the previous statement not long ago. The soul after death will first turn into petitioners, and the lowest alien creatures - lemures, cowards, or holy light envoys, etc., are also made of these.
It is transformed from a soul that has "experienced death". However, how the soul is created in the first place is beyond what is mentioned in the book.
"Probably...it was born during the development process of the body from scratch?" She tried to guess.
"Absolutely. A few changes in the material world can disturb the spiritual world, and 'creation' happens to be one of them." Kunta licked his lips, "Then what do you think comes first, the body or the soul?"
Fleur frowned, this question confused her. According to the man, if 'creation' must mean the birth of an entity, then the body obviously takes precedence over the soul; if you change the way of thinking, the conceptual 'creation'
Souls can also be produced, and the body can be given to them later; even more extreme, if the entire spiritual world is regarded as a huge 'spirit body', the newly born souls are just independent 'fragments'——
"I don't know." She finally shook her head and replied honestly, "I think that for humans, it should be...the body comes first."
"This is what you think." Kunta did not comment on her answer, but raised his hand and pointed his index finger on the chest of the doll, "The soul generated based on the existing body naturally only applies to the same body. As long as
The soul inside still belongs to the 'Elna people', so you can't revive her."
These words made Fleur's heart sink slightly, "According to what you said, what's going on with the lich?"
"The phylactery." Quinta Tu'o shrugged, as if it was a problem not worth mentioning, "The phylactery contains part of the original body of the lich, and is also a tool they use to adapt to their souls. Even so, most of them
Liches can still only use their tattered undead bodies, and cannot replace them with other things."
"If you want to revive her, is there anything you can do, Quinta?"
"Of course. Clean the things inside and summon a more suitable soul to stuff it in." Kunta nodded to himself with his thumb, "I can help you with this, but of course it's not free."
Fleur shook her head. That would not satisfy Hermes' requirements, let alone her original purpose.
"No. I want to resurrect her, not create a demon statue."
"Then let's change it. Kill an Elna person and let her soul occupy that body." The man glanced at her, with a half-smile on his face, "I'm not sure how complete her soul is. Maybe even if she wakes up.
, she will only be a cripple."
"I disagree." She shook her head again without hesitation, "I am not a murderer."
"There are always people who deserve to die." Quinta Tuo sneered, "How can you let go of those guys who made your mother become like this?"
He knew more than he thought - did Hermes tell him? Fleur was a little wary, but her expression remained unchanged, "My mother never said she wanted me to take revenge, so why should I?"
"You are such a good person." The man chuckled, "Don't forget, wrong storage will continue to consume the soul, and she doesn't have much time left."
"I don't mind reminding you." Fleur responded in the same low voice, "We all know this."
"So we are not from the same place." The man stood up and moved his shoulders. "For the sake of inviting me, I'll take my leave, miss."
"Wait a minute, I have another question."
Fleur watched the man walk towards the door in three or two steps, and suddenly spoke from behind.
"snort?"
"If you just create a doll without using the methods you mentioned, is it possible to create... a new soul?"
Kunta turned his head, looked at her for two or three seconds, and hummed softly.
"Many people want to do this," he said. "As far as I know, no one has ever done it."
The man left. Fleur withdrew her gaze and looked at the young man leaning on the sofa, "Have you heard enough?"
"It's more interesting than I thought." The young man opened his eyes and arched his eyebrows, appearing to be in a good mood, "What do you want to do next?"
"We can only try to find 'Luo Zhen'." The girl lowered her head and muttered, "Have you really never heard of him?"
"It's absolutely true." The young man stretched his neck, "But since you know that there is such a person, then this person must exist."
"You do believe me." Fleur rolled her eyes at him, "Then what can I do now?"
The young man from Elna stood up, walked towards the window, with his back to her, and drew his left hand from the top of his head down to his lower abdomen, and then passed it horizontally across his chest.
"The opportunity will come soon, my eldest lady. Just wait patiently."