Story Reader / Main Story / 30 Stars Ensnared / Story
This labyrinth poses no challenge to Luna—the barriers that once stopped another are now easily pushed aside.
Just as Vonnegut said, this tower is no obstacle for agents.
As Luna touches the incomplete Gate, she senses the dormant Punishing within it, flowing backward through time.
Could the Punishing from the past become a channel for communication if information were entrusted to the Gate's Punishing?
But humans were the ones who first controlled this tower... They can't read Punishing signals, and only one frame can be immune to Punishing.
Even walking in this tower is a struggle... How did humans ever control it?
...
Could it be related to that frame's structure?
Luna recalls her conversation with Vonnegut once again.
He used to be guarded and vague—now she understands his caution, having seen Cradle's ability to read memories.
She closes her eyes, trying to read the flow of Punishing signals, but they're all blocked.
The source of the blockade... the top of the tower?
As Luna orients herself, she senses an anti-Punishing core at the highest level, continuously suppressing the tower's original function.
This core must be maintaining the Clean Zone.
If she goes any higher, the power enhancing Luna's frame will start to fade.
But Selene is there, and so is her goal—no matter what, she'll reclaim what's hers.
She hesitates no longer and strides toward her destination.
Just as she's about to move forward, she notices a phantom made of Punishing beside the incomplete Gate.
Ethereal orchids bloom amidst the crimson landscape—a clear sign of Selene's influence.
Since the Ascension-Network's re-filtering stripped away their freedom, Selene's voice has grown louder, using her stolen power to show Luna supposed visions of the future the Network "sees."
Selene sees it as either a test or the inevitable fate of those who defy their mission.
She insists that without embracing hatred, they'll all die in the future, leaving Luna alone to suffer.
In those visions, she always sees the snow orchids from her home.
Long ago, these were Luna's favorite flowers.
The memory of watching them sway by the window holds a special place in her heart.
The sound of rustling curtains, the warmth of the sun, her sister's call... These were her earliest memories.
After becoming an agent, Luna often searched the ruins for these flowers, but the results always matched Selene's visions.
They were just greenhouse flowers, nurtured by her mother and sister, like she was.
Without them, everything faded away, leaving no trace.
...
Before ascending to the next level, Luna takes one last look at the phantom image of the snow orchids.
A chance to rewrite the past lies before her. If only it were possible...
...
Selene, standing before the Gate closest to the core, painfully tears at Agent Zero, who's fused with her.
Our goals should have been the same. Why?
I don't understand either, but all I feel is pure, absolute ecstasy! Hahahaha!
I'm the one meant to destroy everything, not someone's puppet!
Gestalt has corrupted you completely.
But don't forget—our goal is to complete the Gate and leave this era behind, entirely.
No, no, no...
Without the key, even if we complete the Gate, we can't escape this place as a whole.
Luna will be my key, but I won't let you return to the past. The corrupted memetic would weaken the Ascension-Network, and the information born of hatred would no longer manifest.
Let me be clear: Even under my leadership, our goal remains the same—to destroy human civilization, wipe out those disgusting creatures, and build a world for those loyal to me.
She clutches the writhing eyeball on her chest and begins to walk toward the door.
The Gate must be completed.
The Gate... must... be completed!
