Chapter 143: A False Life
Chapter 143: A False Life
What happened in these past few years?
Although she was extremely reluctant to answer this question, Anna glanced back at her younger brother and sister's room and couldn't help but bite her lip. She then nodded with some difficulty.
"Okay... Where should I start?"
"Start from when you received the item."
The cloaked figure calmly said, "Six years ago, after your parents passed away, I delivered the developed photos to your home and discovered that you possessed a certain 'potential.' Then, I helped you with a small favor. What happened after that?"
What happened after that...
Upon hearing this, Anna bit her lip again, her face turning slightly pale as she spoke.
"After that... I did regain my family, just like you said, but... but it wasn't the kind I wanted..."
"Oh?"
The cloaked figure raised an eyebrow with interest and then asked with curiosity, "Can you elaborate?"
"Well... when I expressed my thoughts about the photo, wanting my family back, the person who appeared wasn't my parents, but a boy around my age."
Recalling the situation at that time, Anna's eyes filled with complexity as she said, "When he saw me, he claimed to be my brother. I thought he was crazy, and it scared me. I tried to chase him away, and then I continued talking to the photo you gave me.
What I said was that I wanted my parents back, to have my family again, but the ones who appeared were still not them. Instead, it was a pair of swaddled babies..."
"I see... It seems that you didn't entirely believe my words back then."
The cloaked figure shook his head after hearing this, a hint of regret in his voice. "You were a slightly mature child with a calm and rational mind. You already had a deep understanding of death and knew that your parents could never return.
Even if I told you that the family photo was an unparalleled miracle, capable of bringing your family back to you, and even demonstrated some of its power, you still didn't fully believe me. Deep down, you still thought it impossible for the photo to bring your parents back.
Because of the doubt and mistrust in your heart, the seed I left in that photo didn't hatch to bring your parents back. Instead, it took an unknown path, and the resulting anomaly... well... the effect turned out to be a deviation. What a pity."
?!?!?!
After listening to the cloaked figure's words, Anna felt dizzy, and a heart-wrenching coldness gripped her heart.
"So... if I had believed you enough back then, could I have really brought them back?"
"I'm sorry, but that's still impossible."
The cloaked figure shook his head again. "The boundary between life and death isn't entirely irreversible, but the requirements are unimaginably harsh. It's not difficult to make someone 'immortal,' but bringing the dead back to life is incredibly challenging.
Your 'talent' is outstanding, but it's not enough to break through the barriers of life and death. However, if you had believed me enough, you might have been able to summon the residual shadows left by your parents or even create a couple of puppets."
"Then... wouldn't that still be fake?"
"Yes, it would be fake, but you were not even ten years old back then. Even if they were just two empty shells with your parents' appearances, it could still be considered fulfilling your wish. So, I didn't lie to you."
After answering Anna's question without batting an eye, the cloaked figure, who had been relatively polite, noticed that the "experimental subject" seemed to have encountered a problem. His expression visibly turned cold.
He glanced into the inner room, looking through the wall at the two children inside, and his eyebrows furrowed slightly with dissatisfaction.
"It seems that not only your brother but also the other two have no blood relation to you, and they aren't false creations either. They are all genuine, complete humans."
So, you obtained a seed numbered within the top ten, and the thing that finally grew from it was merely a child who resembled your parents, and then you forcefully erased their past and took away their original lives, forcing them to play house with you?"
"I... I never wanted to do that!"
Upon hearing the "accusation" from the cloaked figure, the deepest guilt buried within her was ruthlessly exposed, and Anna's face instantly paled, the blood draining from her cheeks.
"After discovering that thing was wrong, I immediately tore it apart and took my brother, Melanie, and the others to the police, wanting to help them return to their original home. But... but everyone's memories seemed to have been altered!"
Anna leaned against the doorframe, supporting her body that threatened to collapse at any moment, and with her lips turning white, she struggled to explain:
"The police questioned the neighbors, and they confirmed that our family indeed had four children. The city officials checked the records and also stated that they were indeed my siblings. Our home even had things for children, and in the old photos, there were suddenly three additional children!
I... I never wanted to steal someone else's family. I really tried to explain, but no one believed me. They all thought I had gone crazy due to the death of my parents. I couldn't find their original family, so... so..."
The city records, the neighbors' memories, the traces of their lives... had everything been altered?
Hearing this, the tightly furrowed brows of the cloaked figure relaxed slightly.
Although the outcome had deviated significantly from the intended result, and the anomaly was entirely different from what was initially envisioned, this direct intervention in existence, capable of forcefully altering someone's life, still demonstrated the strength of Seed Seven.
The experimental subject, while meeting the rank requirements, did not possess the desired ability. And the time for "that" was drawing near, with at most only a year left.
If, within a year, the desired anomaly couldn't be created, then even successfully dealing with the Blood-Hair Maiden in the Maiden Suite and destroying what she had sealed on the top floor would still be in vain!
"Forget it..."
At this thought, the cloaked figure, feeling somewhat disheartened, shook their head and then readjusted their hat. They politely yet coldly said to Anna:
"I have no further questions. I apologize for disturbing you today.
Oh, and since you've lost what I gave you, when I find it, I'll take it back directly. I assume you have no objections?"
"I..."
Hearing the cloaked figure's words, even though she knew they possessed power beyond her resistance, the frail girl mustered her courage and, gripping the doorframe, asked:
"If you take it back... then... what about Niall and Melanie?"
"Naturally, they will return to their original home, and these years of memories will be erased. Only you will know what happened."
"!!!"
Anna slumped to the ground, her eyes revealing that she had become a fragile shell with only a human exterior. The cloaked figure, with a tear-stained face, finally showed a sincere smile.
"Rest assured, after retrieving it, I'll help you fix the mistakes you've made. Isn't this what you wanted?"
(End of Chapter)
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