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墨書 Inktalez
The screen faded to darkness, and Eileen found herself back in Esperanza. The once peaceful town had transformed into a hell of suffering and despair. Every street lay abandoned, the laughter of the past replaced by piercing cries. The wails of newborns no longer heralded new life but marked the beginning of pain and torment. Each cry felt like a sharp knife stabbing into the heart of this land.
She saw a dilapidated shack, its walls riddled with cracks, the roof leaking and unable to shield from the elements. A mother cradled her frail baby, whose weak body trembled in her arms, while exhaustion and hopelessness etched deep lines on her face. Each night, the baby's cries echoed through the quiet darkness, breaking hearts.
Eileen noticed an old man sitting alone in front of a crumbling house. His eyes sparkled with a longing for happiness, yet that desire had been buried beneath the harshness of reality. His silhouette appeared so lonely, as if the entire world had abandoned him. He gazed into the distance, his eyes reflecting endless sorrow and helplessness.
In another corner, she saw young people struggling in poverty. Their eyes brimmed with hope, yearning to change their fate, but reality loomed like an invisible wall blocking their path forward. They toiled in the fields, yet all they reaped was hunger and despair. Those unfulfilled hopes weighed heavily upon their souls like shackles.
Eileen witnessed a father kneeling before a freshly dug grave, where his wife and child lay buried. His gaze was hollow, tears long dried up. With trembling hands, he caressed the gravestone, murmuring as if recounting endless longing and pain. The sight shattered Eileen's heart; she could not bear such sorrow.
"This is reality, child," the voice of the cicada echoed again, gentle yet steady. "Their pain and desires reflect every soul on this land. Hope and despair intertwine to shape its fate."
Eileen felt the despair and suffering endured by every soul on this land; those unfulfilled hopes bound them tightly like heavy chains. In each person's eyes flickered a yearning for happiness, yet reality was so cruel that it mercilessly shattered their dreams.
The cicada continued, "My birth stemmed from shattered hopes; I achieved what gods could not—I saved them..." Its voice remained gentle and steady, imbued with an indescribable power. "Yet just as my strength derives from faith, my sustenance must also be faith. I have existed since millennia ago; I merely had to lie dormant... until this very moment!"
Eileen's heart brimmed with countless questions and fears; she felt herself teetering on the edge of madness and reason, unable to articulate further thoughts. There was an irresistible truth in the cicada's voice, as if everything had already been predetermined.
Suddenly, the surroundings shifted again; time seemed to freeze as she was pulled back into the burning church. The flames roared fiercely, yet their flickering and crackling sounds seemed paused in that instant. Smoke hung thickly in the air as if even the heat waves had come to a standstill.
Standing in this frozen hell, Eileen felt an overwhelming sense of loneliness and despair. Her gaze wandered until it landed on Diego Montoro, engulfed in flames yet still struggling to climb. Every inch of his skin was charred; blood and tissue fluid mingled grotesquely together—a horrifying sight. Diego's throat was parched and weak, but his face bore an expression of fervor and madness as if awaiting some divine arrival.
The cicada concluded, "Eileen... my dear child, do you understand? Everything in this world requires just a glimmer of achievable hope for it to become more stable and happier. And I am that glimmer of hope..."
Eileen stood there in a daze, staring at the countless Compound Eyes, each one shimmering with a cold and profound light, as if gazing into her very soul. A torrent of thoughts surged within her, emotions and reason clashing violently in her mind, yet she seemed powerless to refute the words of the Cicada.
Memories of the past flooded her mind: Mark's pain and trauma on the battlefield, Lisa's bullying during her school years, and the buried resentment and struggles deep within her heart. There was also the suffering and despair of every soul in Esperanza, the cries of every newborn, and the sorrow of every elder passing away in solitude. All of this filled her with immense pain and helplessness.
"Everything in this world only needs a little hope to be fulfilled..." The Cicada's voice echoed in her ears again, carrying an irresistible truth. "Then the world will become more stable, more joyful. And I am that glimmer of hope."
Eileen's heart was filled with contradictions and struggles; she knew there was some truth in the Cicada's words, but she could not accept it all. Doubt and confusion flickered in her eyes as she struggled to determine what she should believe. She wanted to argue back but found no suitable words to express her inner resistance.
"The pain and despair you see are just part of reality," the Cicada's voice softened, as if soothing Eileen's soul. "But all of this can be changed; it only takes a little hope, and I am the source of that hope."
Eileen's thoughts were tumultuous; she felt her will gradually crumbling under the endless pressure. Her hands trembled and fell limply at her sides, filled with infinite pain and despair. She did not know how to face it all, but she knew she could not give up.
"I..." Eileen whispered, her voice heavy with endless contradictions and pain. Tears shimmered in her eyes as she struggled to determine her choice. "I don't know..."
"My dear child, you need not doubt," the Cicada's voice carried a hint of comfort and gentleness. "You only need to accept reality and find your own peace. The pain and chaos in this world will change with the emergence of hope."
Unconsciously, Eileen knelt down; as her knees touched the ground, she felt an unprecedented weight pressing down on her. Her eyes fixed on those Compound Eyes, each one seemingly telling a profound truth. She felt as if all her life experiences were being overturned, making all past efforts and beliefs seem insignificant at that moment.
Deep within her heart, a voice continuously questioned her: What had her past self been doing? She looked at the Cicada; amidst those countless Compound Eyes shone a calm yet deep light that seemed to penetrate every corner of her soul. A subtle stirring arose within her—was it a redefinition of self? Or a complete denial of herself?
Eileen felt immense confusion and pain; she did not know what to believe anymore. All past efforts and perseverance seemed so trivial at this moment, as if they were merely an insignificant dream. Her consciousness gradually crumbled under this relentless pressure, feeling her soul grow weak before this force.
"I... I don't know what I've been doing..." Eileen murmured softly, her voice filled with endless bewilderment and pain. Tears glistened in her eyes as her vision blurred into obscurity.
Looking at the cicada, she felt an inexplicable attraction, as if it were her only salvation. In that moment, her heart was filled with countless questions and contradictions, yet a glimmer of indescribable hope emerged. She sensed that the cicada's presence could bring her some form of relief, offering the peace she had longed for.
"Who... am I?" Erin asked herself, unsure of the answer. Everything from her past became so blurry and distant at that moment, with only the cicada's voice echoing clearly in her ears.
"My dear child, you need not doubt," the cicada's voice was gentle and steady, as if soothing her soul. "You simply need to accept reality and find your own peace. The pain and chaos in this world will change with the emergence of hope."
Erin felt a subtle flutter within her; deep down, it seemed she was gradually accepting these words. She didn't know what this feeling was, but she understood that there was no turning back. A flicker of hope ignited in her heart, still filled with pain and confusion, yet she knew she could not give up.
"Maybe... maybe you are right..." Erin whispered, her voice laden with endless contradictions and sorrow.
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