The Sorcerer's Handbook

”What’s wrong?” Sonya asked, a hint of tension tightening her voice.

”Nothing. I was just thinking... when I regain my memories, does that mean the ’me’ right now is killed by my former self?”

Sonya snapped, her nerves stretched to their limit. ”Why are you getting philosophical at a time like this?”

Denzel looked at him, her gaze unreadable. ”Are you afraid?”

Ashe thought for a moment, then nodded. ”Maybe.”

He turned his attention back to Sonya. ”Let me put it this way. You said our real relationship might not be one of lovers. But right now, I truly see you as my lover. To put it directly, with no room for ambiguity, right now, I like you.”

Sonya froze.

Ashe sighed. ”But if we leave the cabin and our memories tell us that’s not the case, then does the version of me who likes you right now get killed by my past self? Thinking about it like that, memory is a frightening power.”

”But that’s just avoidance.”

Everyone was startled. The voice belonged to Dia. She had just woken up. Usually timid, she spoke now with a rare, cold firmness. ”The past doesn’t disappear just because you refuse to face it. On the contrary, it is precisely because you carry your past that you are who you are now. Living is a process of killing yourself. Knowledge kills ignorance, reality kills naivety, and silence kills expression. Avoidance is meaningless because our current selves are merely the result of our pasts.

”To reach a goal, killing your former self is inevitable. Even if we start over, fate is a narrow and unforgiving path. What we once abandoned, we will be forced to abandon again in the end.”

Ashe blinked. ”That... actually makes a lot of sense.”

”No,” Sonya looked at Dia, then at Ashe. ”If abandoning the past can make me better, then I’d rather let it go. Instead of repeating the same mistakes, I’d rather believe that everything can begin again.”

Ashe paused, realizing she was referring to his earlier joke about getting back together and tormenting each other.

He couldn’t help but laugh. ”Who do you want to start over with?”

Sonya bared her teeth at him. ”None of your business!”

At that moment, Denzel placed her hand over Ashe’s on the doorknob. ”So, is everyone ready?”

Not to be outdone, Sonya placed her hand over Denzel’s. ”I’m ready to break up.”

Dia placed her hand over Sonya’s. ”I... we’re ready, too.”

Ashe smiled. ”Then... Knight, lover, sister, mistress... see you in a moment.”

The overburdened doorknob turned at once, as if eager to send them away. The cabin door swung open. What met their eyes was the ever-flowing, reverse-streaming golden rain.

As they stepped out, the golden glow reflected in their pupils. Their palaces of memory lit up, and the darkness that had shrouded the cabin vanished. Every element that formed their personalities—their souls, intelligence, thought patterns, and the rules of their very existence—awakened at once.

Their eyes widened, opening wider and wider with every returning memory.

***

Inside the cabin.

With Denzel’s departure, her memories had been returned to her. With that, Phantom Denzel dissipated. The other three phantoms, however, seemed reluctant to leave the cabin’s warmth just yet.

”I think what Dia said made a lot of sense. As expected of me,” Phantom Dia said, walking behind Phantom Ashe with a smile. ”What should be discarded is better discarded sooner. Escaping the past is useless. Under the arrangement of a grand fate, everything repeats itself... Watcher, it’s not too late to change the plan.”

Phantom Ashe ignored her. Phantom Dia hopped over to sit beside Phantom Sonya, trying to win an ally. ”Swordswoman, what do you think?”

”I think Sonya is right,” Phantom Sonya said calmly. ”If letting go of the past can make us better, then it’s worth the cost. I believe we’ve interfered enough. Watcher, from here on, we should adopt a more cautious approach.”

Phantom Dia was taken aback. ”But I remember you were the one who opposed the plan the most—”

Phantom Sonya closed her eyes. ”That just means I’ve already killed my former self.”

”But aren’t you jealous?”

”Jealous of what?”

Phantom Dia leaned close to Phantom Sonya’s ear. Her layered, overlapping voice slid like a slick tongue, plucking at the strings of a restless heart. ”Shouldn’t the one who deserves a fresh start be you, after everything you’ve been through? If it were you, you would certainly do better than she.

”Honor, the spotlight, thunderous applause, admiring gazes... You could reclaim everything you were once denied.

”You would walk a starlit path paved with flowers, not a bloody road built on corpses. You would have countless admirers looking up to you, not endless enemies burning with hatred and vengeance. You could live a quiet life as an ordinary girl with a sword, instead of becoming—”

”You think I resent my life?” Phantom Sonya grabbed the Witch’s wrist. ”No. I don’t resent it at all. Mountains of corpses and seas of blood feel like home to me. Slaughtering those who seek revenge is just a pastime. Peace, normalcy, society, those are the three things I hate most.

”I enjoy every feast fate has laid before me. I’ve grown strong because I have consumed enough of it. I don’t need to act like a weakling, trying to mend regrets or dwelling on remorse.”

Phantom Dia stared into Phantom Sonya’s eyes. ”You avoided my question. Aren’t you jealous of Sonya Selby?”

Phantom Sonya’s expression remained stony. ”What would I be jealous of? She may be naive enough to irritate me, but at least she grew up normally.”

Phantom Dia continued to stare, the corners of her lips curling into a subtle smile. A deep malice flickered within her murky eyes. For the first time, even the fearless Phantom Sonya felt a trace of tension. Her hand slowly drifted toward the hilt of her sword.

Phantom Dia quickly stepped back and turned toward Phantom Ashe. ”Forget it. Watcher, what do you think? Instead of letting the present grow slowly, why not let the past step in directly?”

Phantom Ashe spoke leisurely. ”Hmm... I have heard your suggestion.”

Phantom Sonya shot to her feet. ”Hey! You’re not thinking of backing out now, are you?”

Phantom Ashe shook his head. ”Of course not.”

Phantom Dia pressed him. ”Then what do you mean? Will you reduce your interference as she suggests, or step in directly as I propose?”

”What do I mean?” Phantom Ashe tapped his fingers lightly against the table. ”Ashe’s will is my will. The choice I made that day has carved itself into my soul, twisted my perception, and shaped my thoughts. My personality, my resolve, my memories, they all exist solely to carry out that will. You ask what I mean?”

He cast them a cold, piercing glance. ”You phantoms are nothing more than lingering thoughts. What right do you have to question my decision?”