Chapter 304 Zero Playthrough (11)
Scenes from the past unfolded before them like a movie.
Morofushi Kagemitsu and Noah's Ark spent a day and a night traversing these ten years.
Ten years, compressed into just over twenty hours, contains an unimaginable amount of information.
While Morofushi Kagemitsu was focused on his journey, Noah's Ark shared the data back in real time. The Noah's Ark in the present world then conducted a preliminary scan, selecting any minor anomalies and all the key important nodes. Everyone then divided the work and observed all the details frame by frame from God's perspective.
This is a complex process that requires considerable care and patience.
Fortunately, members of the Sakura Team were present at all the key locations. It wasn't just you or me; there was always someone responsible for a particular point. Choosing events they were familiar with made the research faster and more comprehensive.
By the second night, everyone was exhausted, but their faces were still full of excitement.
First, they did discover many things they didn't know before from God's perspective. They confirmed that even if the system didn't actually descend, it still influenced and prevented their plans through other means, which is why their previous experiments always went wrong.
Secondly, Morofushi Kagemitsu and Noah's Ark finally arrived at Christmas ten years ago.
December 25th, the day Rei Furuya died.
The thought of this made everyone's hearts clench.
With serious expressions and an unprecedented level of concentration, they prepared to continue their observation and research.
They wanted to persuade Morofushi Kagemitsu to take a break, but Morofushi Kagemitsu said that he did not feel tired or hungry in that place, and could not bear to stay there.
Instead, he advised everyone in the world to take turns resting, but no one agreed, and no one could sleep at all.
"Two mere two days!" Matsuda Jinpei slammed his fist on the table. "Do you think everyone's been through that?!"
Not to mention the police and researchers, even the detectives often stay up all night to investigate cases, not to mention the people in the organization.
There are no ordinary people in this group.
Everyone frequently deals with various emergencies and experiences all sorts of things.
In that case, Noah's Ark, which was truly unaffected, could only take a deep breath, plunge into the riverbed, and enter the world of ten years ago.
Everyone stared intently at the images on the screen, carefully comparing them with their own memories.
Once you delve deeper into the world, the scene really does switch to normal movie speed, only Noah's Ark rapidly changes perspectives.
At the same time, Morofushi Kagemitsu's consciousness was also rapidly scanning the battlefield.
The current time is midnight on December 25th.
As the clock struck midnight, ten years ago, Morofushi Kagemitsu had just fired at Unit-00 disguised as Furuya Rei, waiting for Karasuma Renya to fall into his trap.
Morofushi Kagemitsu watched this scene from God's perspective, and without lingering, immediately moved to the actual location of Furuya Rei.
Inside the organization's experimental base, which has not yet been destroyed.
A faint light shone from the dark corner, illuminating the blond youth's face and his bright, sharp, purplish-gray eyes.
Morofushi Kagemitsu's consciousness froze in front of him.
"...zero?"
Rei Furuya can't hear it.
Noah's Ark arrived at this moment, broadcasting the scene to everyone in the present world while rushing into Furuya Rei's phone to try and talk to him.
Zero is not visible in the valley.
Everyone realized something at that moment.
Noah's Ark was taken aback and tried to merge with its counterpart in this time and space.
But it failed.
The people watching the live stream on the big screen fell into a deathly silence.
After a few seconds, Hiroki Sawada murmured, "They...can't affect that place?"
"Why?" Kazami Yuya asked anxiously, "Didn't you manage to have an impact before?"
"Because...this is part of the story?" Yusaku Kudo said.
Everyone fell silent.
*
"zero".
"Zero, do you remember today's calendar?"
"When facing east, do not arbitrarily knock on or move objects located directly east of the warehouse or bed."
"This is referring to the Pandora Experiment Base. Among the gems collected in that display case to the east of the laboratory is the real Pandora."
"It's the first gem you brought back from the auction, also named Pandora. It's purple, and I've mentioned that it's similar to the color of your eyes."
"You didn't expect that, did you? That wasn't fake; that was the real Pandora."
"The reason we couldn't see it is because the outer gem is a special protective layer. The real Pandora is hidden in the other half of the gem that has been cut open and not studied. We can see it by breaking it."
“But Zero, you can’t touch that. You have to stay away from it. It’s dangerous.”
"That's the system's last resort. The system will use Pandora to take you away, and we won't be able to find you."
"Zero, we can't find you."
In the darkness, the blond youth protested indignantly that everyone else had taken on all the dangerous tasks, leaving him to safely huddle in a corner and grow mushrooms, yet a smile played on his lips.
He can't hear.
Morofushi Kagemitsu refused to give up, staying by his side and repeating the same thing over and over again, trying to stop him from irreversibly heading towards that ending.
But Pandora's crimson light eventually enveloped the blond youth's body.
Morofushi Kagemitsu stood in front of Furuya Rei, reaching out to grab the gem.
Pandora passed right through his body and eventually disappeared from the world again along with the blond youth.
They changed nothing.
The moment Morobuchi Kagemitsu regained his senses, he gritted his teeth and charged forward.
"Calm down—" Noah's Ark held him tightly. "Don't be impulsive! Mr. Zhufu! It's not time for you to personally enter the River of Destiny yet! I can try a few more times, or I can wait a few more days to see if I can change anything before it all begins, right?"
Zhu Fujingguang clenched his fists tightly, looked down at the swaying water, and only let go after a full half minute, saying, "Okay."
It's definitely not the right time yet.
Zhu Fujingguang thought, "It's not the final moment yet; I must be patient."
He once again followed Noah's Ark, sinking his consciousness into the river.
Once, twice, three times, four times, five times... one hundred and twenty-three times.
They tried a total of 123 times.
Ultimately, it even traced back to the system announcement that the save point "A Dream of Nanke" had been successfully completed at the eighth save point, back to the very beginning of that save point.
Even now, despite trying every possible method, they still cannot change the plot in the slightest.
123 times.
In this time and space where they could personally experience Furuya Zero's senses, in this year of time chaos, they tried 123 times back and forth.
They watched as Rei Furuya disappeared 123 times.
On this side of the live stream screen, everyone's eyes were red.
It is both physical exhaustion and mental torture.
“Let’s leave it at that for now,” Hiroki Sawada said. “We all need to rest, especially Mr. Morofushi.”
Noah's Ark also said, "That's right. Even if the body doesn't feel tired or hungry, the mental energy is still depleted. I've studied it, and Mr. Morofushi can stop here, take a nap on the ship, and recover his energy."
On the golden river of light, Zhu Fujingguang leaned back on the boat, adjusting his condition, and shook his head, saying, "I can still hold on."
"Don't rush." Date Wataru frowned. "Morofushi, the plan is currently facing a problem that can't be solved for the time being. What you need is to rest well and then think of a new solution in perfect condition. We're all here for you."
Morofushi Kagemitsu: "...Alright, then I'll just close my eyes and rest for half an hour."
Matsuda Jinpei: "Are you kidding me? Give me at least six hours of sleep! Do we really need that little bit more time at this point?"
Morobuchi Kagemitsu: "Then I'll sleep for an hour."
Kenji Hagiwara: "Morofushi, I won't say more, but at least get four hours of sleep, okay?"
Morofushi Kagemitsu: "Alright, then it'll be an hour and a half. 90 minutes should be enough."
"Jingguang," Zhufu Gaoming suddenly spoke, slowly saying, "Two hours. Now close your eyes and go to sleep."
Morofushi Kagemitsu: "..."
Morofushi Kagemitsu sighed helplessly, ultimately being punished by his own brother. The moment he closed his eyes, he almost fell into a deep sleep.
The others finally breathed a sigh of relief.
It's already the afternoon of the third day.
Although their mental exhaustion wasn't as severe as that of Morofushi Kagemitsu, their bodies were indeed very tired, and they planned to lie down and sleep for two hours.
Sato Miwako and Takagi Wataru, who had been busy for three days because so many people had taken leave, finally had time to come over. Unexpectedly, they arrived just in time for everyone to rest, so they simply went next door and asked Noah's Ark to show them the records they had missed before.
In the other laboratory, Noah's Ark silently processed the data, pondering how to change the seemingly fixed plot.
In the silence, Shinichi Kudo suddenly got up.
There was a rustling sound as the others, who were also unable to sleep, opened their eyes.
Although they were physically exhausted, their minds were too excited for them to fall asleep immediately.
Yukiko Kudo, who was lying next to Yusaku Kudo, reached out and pulled Shinichi Kudo down again.
Shinichi Kudo: "..."
“Never mind, even if we can’t sleep, closing our eyes can help us rest for a while. Those of us who can’t sleep can talk quietly, and maybe we’ll fall asleep while we’re talking,” he said.
"Given the current situation, the entire game's storyline might be unchangeable," Shuichi Akai stated directly. "We've already worked hard for ten years after the story ended, but what about before the story even began?"
Noah's Ark turned his head: "That's right. If we really can't change the plot, then we can only try to go back to an even more distant past, back to before the plot even began."
“But we still don’t know exactly where to begin within the scope of the story,” said Yusaku Kudo. “In my experience, prequels, flashbacks, and side stories should all be considered part of the story.”
“That’s too broad,” Vermouth frowned. “Do we have to start counting from the era of Karasuma Renya?”
"Let's try all the possibilities within the storyline first," Matsuda Jinpei said, opening his eyes. "Otherwise, I won't be satisfied."
"I'm wondering why the plot can't be changed at all now," Kenji Hagiwara said, his eyes closed in thought. "Is it because the plot has already ended?"
“There are a few possibilities now,” Hiroki Sawada whispered. “One is system obstruction, just like Noah’s Ark 1913 is finding it increasingly difficult to reach the future, and is now developing almost in sync with reality. The second is the protection of the rules of this world, which is the world consciousness that maintains the game’s storyline, as we mentioned before. The third is that both are involved.”
Koizumi Akako pushed open the door and said, "The divination results tell me that three is the most likely outcome, but the dominant factor should still be the world consciousness."
Sera Masumi took a deep breath, feeling a sense of unease.
“Jingguang and Noah’s Ark should be fine,” said Morofushi Takaaki. “They could change the past before, but suddenly they can’t do anything once they return to the world within the storyline. This is a problem with the world. The system’s abilities are not yet at the point where it can completely control us.”
“It’s all just speculation right now, let’s get some sleep.” Date Wataru sighed. “Once Morofushi wakes up, we can work with Noah’s Ark to find out more about everything that happened in Furuya before we talk about it.”
"How... to break the program that rules the world..." Shiho Miyano said, and slowly fell asleep.
Akemi Miyano helped her pull up the blanket that had slipped off as she turned around, then looked up past her to see Atsushi Miyano and Elena Miyano behind her.
Professor Agasa is leading them over to rest.
Curaçao, Vermouth, and Hondou Hidemi had been sitting by the door the whole time. No one knew when they had gone to rest. Now they were wide awake, seemingly taking on the role of doormen and bodyguards. They had stopped chatting and were staring blankly at the screen.
At the very front, in the seat closest to the big screen, sat a large white dog.
Harlow has grown up, but he's still as fluffy as ever.
It tilted its head back, its gaze following the face of the blond youth on the screen, its tail wagging from time to time, and it even seemed about to bark.
A hand suddenly covered its mouth, and golden hair fell onto the fluffy white dog's head, making Harlow's ears twitch a few times.
But it did not struggle.
Ten years have passed, and Harrow has become much more mature and composed.
"Everyone's asleep. I'll take Harlow out for a walk. I'll come back when you all wake up," the woman holding the dog said softly.
That was Rei Furuya's mother.
Ten years is enough time for everyone to become familiar with it.
Vermouth nodded, her expression softening, and even opened the door for her.
The huge laboratory gradually quieted down.
Two hours later.
Kogoro Mouri and Eri Kisaki drove Ran Mouri and Sonoko Suzuki to Nagano. On the way, they encountered a blonde woman walking her dog. They stopped the car to take her home, but just then they heard Masahiro Furuya's voice coming from his phone.
The volume was quite loud, and it didn't seem like he was saying something that others could hear.
But the blonde woman hung up immediately and walked over with a smile.
The Mori family and Sonoko Suzuki had also been in the lab, but even with so many people staying in one place, they still needed to eat. Three hours ago, Sonoko Suzuki took the Mori family out to shop, saying that she wanted to ensure everyone's nutrition was at its best.
They returned at the perfect time, just as everyone woke up, and while eating, they discussed what the best course of action should be.
Morofushi Kagemitsu and Noah's Ark don't need to eat; they've already re-entered the storyline to try again.
"I never imagined that the timeline of what we thought was a normal year would be so chaotic," Yukiko Kudo exclaimed.
"The situation is indeed a bit tricky right now." Kudo Yusaku wiped his glasses. "By the way, Toichi and the others should be finishing up over there soon, right? Let me ask."
This morning, Kuroba Toichi received news that an earthquake had occurred in a remote country, which had unearthed the tomb of a famous person from a neighboring country. It was said that there were treasures inside that could grant immortality.
They didn't miss this opportunity to obtain special energy, and the entire Phantom Thief family flew over.
The abilities of the Kaito Kid family are beyond doubt, but unfortunately, while the treasure does exist, the detectors made by Noah's Ark do not react and there is no special energy.
They had also heard about the situation here and were rushing back.
"Alright." Noah's Ark finished adjusting the instruments and turned around, saying, "Let's stop here for now. Let's go check out other places first and try out all the possible changes."
After all, they had tried every method, and no one objected. They all sat back down in their chairs, ready to begin their journey to a new time and space.
Morofushi Kagemitsu remained silent for a moment, but then agreed.
Noah's Ark had already marked important key moments.
Next, they will go through the events before the eighth save point, "A Dream of Nanke," is confirmed.
Noah's Ark first tried to take only one step forward to see what caused the dream to occur.
Then, everyone watched as Gin on the big screen delivered a knockout blow to Shinichi Kudo, forcibly feeding him APTX4869 and turning him into Conan Edogawa.
Shinichi Kudo, who was being watched by everyone at this moment: "..."
And what about Furuya Rei and Morofushi Kagemitsu? The two of them watched the whole thing from a Ferris wheel high up, using binoculars.
The camera cuts to this side, and the system's voice sounds.
[The seventh save point, "The Raven Is Staring at You," has been completed]
[Achieve the HE (Happy Ending) side story: A Dream of Nanke]
Everyone frowned.
Rei Furuya's inner thoughts then emerged.
He felt extremely guilty as he recalled the dream chair and the hundreds of nightmare experiments, and he also uncontrollably recalled the scene at the end of the [Long Rope Tie Scene] loop where he and Hiro consumed APTX4869...
Everyone: "???"
"Wait a minute! Hundreds of experiments???"
"Wait a minute, something's not right here!"
"Huh? What is he saying?"
"This guy! He really was hiding a lot of things!!!"
"We're missing too much information from here. Let's start observing from the seventh save point."
The proposal was unanimously approved.
This period was not unfamiliar to Morofushi Kagemitsu; in fact, it was unforgettable. He almost stormed into the organization's headquarters to confront Furuya Rei.
The incident began on April 1st.
It's April 1st again, a familiar day.
Rei Furuya disappeared on this day and did not reappear until May 1, a month later.
His explanation was later proven to be partly false when the Huayuan Martial Arts emerged.
But when they went back in time themselves, they found that Rei Furuya had hardly told the truth about his painful experiences during that period!
Seventh save point: "The Raven Is Staring at You"
From the 58th playthrough to the 73rd playthrough.
Life is but a dream
[Eight Calamities and Three Disasters]
[A futile effort]
Outnumbered
[Advance, Retreat, Survival, or Death]
[Even a hundred lives cannot redeem it]
[The journey is poor at sunset]
【extremely suspicious】
[The pig defeats the emperor]
[Jiao Ao throws stones]
Dividing a pig into two pieces, cutting a snake in half.
【hurricane】
[Defeat at Maicheng]
Surrounded by enemies on all sides
[Failure at the last minute]
A fleeting dream
They watched as Karasuma Renya tormented Furuya Rei's will time and time again, yet they could not change it in the slightest. They could only watch as he died repeatedly, squeezing himself to become stronger in order to find a way out.
Morofushi Kagemitsu was actually prepared for a brutal reload point.
But when he saw the scene of himself shooting the real Zero, he admitted that he was still not prepared enough.
And it's far from enough.
besides.
There are many more.
Many, many.
Sixth save point: The world line where the four-petaled cherry blossom survived.
Fifth save point: The world line where the three-petaled cherry blossom survived.
From the 57th to the 58th playthrough.
[A vow of life and death]
A match made in heaven
It was a pain and despair that words could not bear, a pain so heavy it was hard to breathe.
Fourth save point: The world line where the two cherry blossoms survived.
From the 20th to the 57th playthrough.
[The sun is tied to a long rope]
The innocent suffer the consequences.
[All efforts were in vain]
[Fish collapse, birds flee]
【Shattered Feathers and Exploding Scales】
Moths to a flame
The good times didn't last long.
Extreme joy turns to sorrow.
[Boil water to make ice]
[Pushing the boat on land]
[Sun in the East, Moon in the West]
There's no escape.
[Like a mantis trying to stop a chariot]
[A futile effort]
【completely annihilated】
[A fleeting year]
Stirring the boiling water with your fingers
[The road has come to an end]
[At the end of the road]
[Twilight and Lingering Light]
The scenery remains the same.
【Radiant Splendor】
[Desperate]
Scattered Hills
[Painting Fat and Carving Ice]
[Long rope tied to the scenery]
[To die for righteousness]
【burn one's boats】
[Going through fire and water]
Going against the current
[One wheel, no return]
[To follow through with death]
【Mountain Climbing to Gather Pearls】
Polishing a brick into a mirror
Defeat came swiftly.
Jingwei Filling the Sea
[Sacrificing oneself to seek the Dharma]
[Theft of the Sky and the Replacement of the Sun]
This save point is so devastated that no one can even speak.
Rei Furuya did not hide this experience from them; they all knew about it.
Knowing something is one thing, but seeing it with your own eyes is another.
Not to mention... experiencing it firsthand.
"Why... can't we preserve those memories?" Matsuda Jinpei murmured.
“We’ve been through so much, yet we’ve all forgotten, and in the end, only he remembers…” Kenji Hagiwara turned his face away, gritting his teeth, and said, “That’s just too cruel!”
"Furuya..." Date Wataru paused, clenching his fist, "The emotions he carried were several times heavier than we imagined. If Morofushi hadn't guided Furuya to be honest about most of his experiences and feelings, I can't even imagine how much more pain he would have had to endure alone."
"No..." Zhu Fujingguang took a deep breath.
The image of the blond child lying on the black-haired man's corpse in the snow-capped mountains, crying hysterically, lingered in my mind, and the red scarf wrapped around them became increasingly glaring.
“Not enough,” he said. “No, not just, it’s not.”
Zhu Fujingguang covered his face, tears streaming down his face, and choked out, "What he said, what I know, is far less than half of what actually happened... I know he was in a lot of pain during this period, and I thought I should understand, but I didn't know it was to a degree that I couldn't imagine or bear..."
He choked up and could barely form a sentence.
Zhu Fu Gaoming sighed, wanting to say something, but ultimately remained silent.
“I…I’ll go back one more time.” Morofushi Kagemitsu wiped away his tears, turned around and entered the save point again, watching it all over again from beginning to end alongside Furuya Rei.
He also tried to stop something in every possible and impossible place, wanting to change those cruel experiences.
But Rei Furuya, unable to hear or see, still collapsed on the cold, snowy mountain.
The blond youth went through thirty-seven cycles before finally succeeding in stealing the sky using the most dangerous method.
And this is only part of Rei Furuya's experience.
They continued walking.
The third save point: The world line where a single cherry blossom petal survives.
From the eighteenth playthrough to the twentieth playthrough.
Haste makes waste
Too much of a good thing is bad.
[Life and death are intertwined]
Second save point: "The Shining Officers"
From the tenth playthrough to the eighteenth playthrough.
The Unspoken Change
Unexpected disaster
【Catch the moon in the water】
Viewing flowers in a mirror
Trying to catch fish by climbing a tree
Gains and losses
Finding a needle in a haystack
[Drawing water with a bamboo basket]
A bright future awaits!
First save point: Police Academy Under the Cherry Blossoms
From the first playthrough to the tenth playthrough.
[Ignoring everyone else]
The lessons of history are still fresh in our minds.
[The dragon soars high without regret]
Sacrificing one's life for righteousness
Good causes lead to bad consequences
[Fearless in the face of death]
[Unpredictable]
[Sacrificing one's life without hesitation]
[Like strangers]
【Cherry blossoms in full bloom】
Then came... the zero playthrough.
[Congratulations, Rei Furuya! After 73 playthroughs, your dream has come true! Your wish has been fulfilled.]
[The eighth save point, "A Dream of Nanke," has been completed]
[Achieving a Happy Ending: It Was Destiny]
[Ninth save point discovered: Reset]
You have started the zero playthrough.
Everyone was stunned.
"This...this is a development we never expected..."
So that's how it is. Is this what they call fate? Was everything predetermined from the very beginning?
They came to their senses, their expressions complex yet unable to conceal their excitement as they watched Morofushi Kagemitsu's consciousness return to the River of Destiny.
Anyway! In short! They finally know where Rei Furuya went!!!
Zhu Fujingguang closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and his chest heaved several times before he finally managed to calm himself down and think about the problem at hand.
He looked up and said, "That's why this golden river suddenly starts to turn here."
“Although we can’t see the entire River of Destiny at a glance, according to my calculations, it’s roughly the shape of a giant Möbius strip,” Noah’s Ark gestured, “which is infinity ∞.”
Everyone in front of the screen looked over, observing and discussing the river of fate after the bend.
Is Zero over there?
Zero is right there!
Morobuchi Kagemitsu took a step forward.
Noah's Ark stopped him: "I'll go and investigate first."
The small boat glided across the water and into the world under the tense and expectant gaze of everyone.
They saw a... very special world.
That was the world before Rei Furuya encountered the system.
Before they could even marvel at what it was like to be on the zero playthrough, Noah's Ark quickly located Furuya Zero.
Where is Zero? In what form did he remain in this world? What did he experience here? Where would he be now?
The blond youth was not yet visible on the screen, but Morofushi Kagemitsu had already snapped out of his daze, leaped forward, jumped off the boat, and instantly submerged into the water.
"Wait—" Noah's Ark realized something and immediately sent the small boats in the world to find him.
Morofushi Kagemitsu has found Furuya Rei.
Noah's Ark followed, and after traversing space, it appeared in a familiar cemetery.
Before the tombstone, the blond, dark-skinned youth looked up in surprise, his purplish-gray eyes staring blankly at them.
Morofushi Kagemitsu tried his best to put on a familiar, gentle smile and extended his hand to the blond youth.
“Zero, we’ve come to take you home,” he said.
Reset to zero.
It means all efforts are reduced to nothing.
It could also be a return to zero after a period of decline.
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