Chapter 97: Echoes of the Past
The room was quiet.
Very quiet.
For several seconds—
Nobody spoke.
Nobody moved.
Nobody knew what to say.
Alice's story had finally ended.
The rise of Oheyo.
The friendships.
The betrayals.
The experiments.
Brennan.
Akari.
Chocomint.
The Cult of Azathoth.
The destruction of an empire.
The birth of everything that existed today.
It was a lot to process.
Alice slowly stood from her chair.
The usual sharpness in her expression was gone.
She simply looked tired.
"Told you."
She muttered.
"I already explained everything important."
Nobody argued.
Because for once—
Nobody had the energy to.
Alice walked toward the door.
Stopped halfway.
Then looked over her shoulder.
"I'm going to sleep."
A pause.
"And if anyone wakes me up before noon tomorrow..."
Her eyes narrowed.
"I'll personally throw them off the city wall."
Nish immediately nodded.
"Reasonable."
Eric nodded too.
"Very reasonable."
Noah raised a hand.
"Question."
Alice pointed at him.
"No."
"...I didn't even ask yet."
"No."
Then she left.
The office door closed.
Click.
Silence.
Nobody moved.
Then they all slowly looked at one person.
Andre.
Andre looked up.
Still chewing.
"...What?"
The table was covered in empty plates.
Nobody knew where he got them.
Nobody remembered him leaving.
Nobody remembered servants entering.
Yet somehow—
Food had appeared.
And disappeared.
Noah blinked.
"You listened to all of that."
Andre nodded.
"Yep."
"And didn't interrupt."
"Yep."
Eric looked suspicious.
"You didn't even make a joke."
"Yep."
Raj narrowed her eyes.
"Are you sick?"
Andre immediately pointed.
"Hey."
Silence.
Then he swallowed.
"That Brennan guy sounded cool."
The room became quiet again.
Because surprisingly—
That was probably the most sincere thing Andre had ever said.
Raj smiled faintly.
"He was."
Nobody disagreed.
For a moment—
The room felt heavy again.
Then Raj stood.
"The past still hurts Alice."
She said quietly.
A pause.
"And honestly."
She smiled weakly.
"It still hurts me too."
The room remained silent.
Nobody knew what to say to that.
Because some wounds never fully healed.
They simply became easier to carry.
Raj stretched.
"Anyway."
She pointed at everyone.
"It's late."
Nish nodded.
"Agreed."
Eric nearly fell asleep in his chair.
Noah yawned.
Andre was somehow already eating again.
Nobody questioned it.
One by one—
They began leaving.
Nish first.
Then Eric.
Then Noah.
Raj shortly after.
Andre was last.
Halfway through the doorway—
He stopped.
Looked back.
Then said:
"If I ever meet Brennan."
A pause.
"I'll buy him food."
Nobody knew whether to laugh or cry.
Then Andre left.
Leaving only one person behind.
Kai.
The office became silent.
The city outside was illuminated by countless lights.
Asphyxia.
A city built from loss.
A city built from memories.
A city built because someone refused to give up.
Kai slowly walked toward the balcony.
The cool night air greeted him.
Far below—
People continued living.
Merchants.
Guards.
Citizens.
Travelers.
None of them knew the entire story.
None of them knew what had been sacrificed to create this place.
Kai rested his arms against the railing.
Then looked east.
Toward the horizon.
Toward ruins he had never seen.
Toward a city that no longer existed.
Oheyo.
The name felt strangely familiar.
Not because Alice explained it.
Not because of the story.
Because something deep inside him reacted to it.
The same feeling as before.
The same feeling he got from strange dreams.
From broken memories.
From fragments that didn't belong.
Kai narrowed his eyes.
"Oheyo..."
No answer came.
Yet the feeling remained.
Maybe there was something there.
Maybe there were answers.
Maybe there were none.
But the thought refused to leave him.
He stared toward the darkness for a while longer.
Then finally turned away.
And left.
Far away—
Inside the royal residence—
A single room remained lit.
Alice's room.
The door was locked.
The curtains were drawn.
The room itself was surprisingly ordinary.
No royal decorations.
No expensive paintings.
No displays of authority.
Just a room.
And a bed.
Alice lay beneath the blankets.
Silent.
Still.
Held tightly against her chest—
Was an old stuffed rabbit.
Its fur was worn.
Its stitching had been repaired multiple times.
One ear drooped slightly.
A small carrot was sewn into its mouth.
And both eyes were stitched into little X's.
A silly toy.
One she had kept for a very long time.
Alice hugged it closer.
The room was dark.
Quiet.
Peaceful.
Slowly—
She raised one hand toward the ceiling.
As if trying to reach someone.
Someone no longer there.
"...Brennan."
Silence.
"...Akari."
Silence.
"...Choco."
The hand slowly lowered.
The room remained quiet.
Outside—
The city slept.
Inside—
Alice finally closed her eyes.
And somewhere between memory and dream—
She hoped.
Just a little.
That her friends were still out there.
Waiting.
Somewhere.
Then sleep finally claimed her.
And the night continued.