Annan once had the courage to give up his memory decisively for a certain thing or a certain purpose.
Annan can believe that this kind of decisive and complete abandonment is indeed what he can do...
But Annan would never give up everything just because of trivial matters.
For Annan, the memory of details is itself a great wealth.
Because he does have such a talent for insight into people's hearts.
So on the other hand... is there anything that Annan would rather give up all of this to pursue?
no doubt.
It is the intense and fiery positive emotion that has never been frozen by [Heart of Winter].
Now Annan completely understands.
——Annan’s original desire for pure asceticism.
——A heart without fear brought about by the inverted Heart of Winter.
——Unstoppable, repeated failures.
The ascetic heart that has not been frozen by the heart of winter can only have enthusiasm and persistence when facing the torture of failure; and the reversed heart of winter can burn out Annan's fatigue, despair and despair when facing failure.
Fear; never-ending, infinitely repeated failures prevent Annan from seeking a second answer. After all, doing the same thing but craving different results is a fool's errand.
Under the intertwining effect of these three, painful torture turns into extremely absurd joy.
The greater the pain, the greater the happiness.
——This is a level that only Annan can pass.
This is not an exam that can reach the end if you persist, but a seal that will linger at the bottom forever without any key.
If Annan didn't have that ascetic heart, he would only think about how many times he had to repeat it before he was saved by Salvatore; if Annan hadn't been reversed by the Heart of Winter, he would have committed suicide in despair amid endless failures.
If Annan had not faced such a desperate situation, he would have used his brains to find another solution.
Denton never expected that the trap he designed would turn into the best whetstone.
This is an experience that can rewrite one's personality - Annan before experiencing this nightmare is definitely not the same person as he is now.
"From this point of view, I must thank you. Denton."
Even the memory of the past has become as blurry as a dream.
Annan will never forget the ecstasy of climbing up in the abyss.
"I've never felt...I'm in such good shape."
Annan felt the joy and excitement in his heart.
His soul is so bright.
He clearly felt...that some glorious power had awakened deep in his soul.
Annan was also extremely convinced.
Denton's murder of himself in the dream world is now meaningless.
"Come again, Denton!"
He laughed, the light in his eyes was so bright: "I want to see what else you can bring me!"
"——It will be as you wish."
Finally, a dull voice sounded in front of Annan.
Sitting in front of the portrait on the other side is a young child whose movements are exactly the same as Annan's.
That is the mirror image of Annan.
The same ice blue eyes, the same clothes.
But Annan's hair is black, while the other person's hair is white.
And the most crucial difference - Annan's pupils are as bright as stars in the night sky.
The other person's pupils were as calm as water, a deep ice lake without any emotion.
Although the two parties had never met... Annan was immediately convinced that the other party was Denton, the dream thief.
In other words, it is the virtual image of the soul reconstructed by Denton's will with the help of Annan's memory.
He can't be said to be entirely Denton.
Rather, it is a new combination born by combining all the memories of Denton and Annan.
——But memory is not something that the more you have, the stronger it will be.
It was precisely because of this that Annan was willing to abandon his memories and start over.
"You just want to take my body away?"
The corners of Annan's mouth rose, and a big, bright smile suddenly appeared: "Interesting, how dare you appear in front of me?"
Although it was a very cheerful smile, it unexpectedly made people feel cold from inside.
Faced with Annan's question, "Denton" was silent for a moment.
"I did greatly underestimate you."
"Denton" slowly said: "According to my original calculations, even if this pure fear cannot trap you... it should at least make you despair. You are a hedonist and a willful person.
arrogant lunatic,
"You are already stronger than I remember you."
"Isn't that natural?"
The smile on Annan's face did not fade at all: "Every minute, every second I am stronger than the last moment.
"I haven't aged yet, and progress is natural. What you grasp is the person I was a few hours ago, but I am different now."
"Is this the power of the Book of Heavenly Chariots? The way of promotion and change..."
Denton murmured.
"—Wrong, Denton."
The smile on Annan's face gradually faded.
He said seriously: "This is my power. It is the result of my will.
"It was the me in the past who chose to abandon all the frosty feelings and memories - that is why I now have no weaknesses in my soul.
"It's like my purity has become lower after being mixed with the ingredients of 'Denton'."
“Purity—does it work?”
Denton asked calmly.
Facing the expected rhetorical question from "Denton", Annan even laughed heartily: "As expected of you! As expected of me! This level of connection... is really great!
"Give me my last nightmare."
Annan looked at "Denton" and said calmly: "Otherwise, I will kill you now."
"I've already prepared it for you."
"It's not something you've played with before, is it?"
"Of course not, and it's very simple and short."
"Denton" closed his eyes.
The painting near him disappeared again and turned into the pupils of an old man.
Annan looked at the painting without fear.
The madness that had just awakened in his heart was like a fire, urging him to take risks.
The closer he was to death, the more he experienced failure...the more powerful he felt in his heart.
next moment.
The scene in front of Annan's eyes changed again.
He was lying on the hospital bed.
His body was extremely weak. He could only see blurry things when he opened his eyes, and it was difficult to speak when he opened his mouth. The small sounds he heard in his ears were like chisels digging into his brain, extremely noisy.
There were people around him, but he didn't recognize them, and he couldn't see them clearly.
He felt someone sitting next to him, holding his old hand; he also felt someone sobbing softly in the corner, and someone pacing outside the house. Some were looking at him, and some didn't dare to look at him.
Annan, on the other hand, felt inexplicably that his time had come.
The god of death is already standing at the head of his bed, and the next time he breathes out, it may be his end.
Annan suddenly understood.
This time it is not a time-limited escape room, it is not a battle of wits with others and a long role-playing game, it is not even a platform jump filled with repeated failures and malicious intentions of the creator... It is just an extremely simple, "move forward" game.
As long as Annan accepts his fate of death, this extremely brief and directionless little game will be over.