The recording stopped at just the right moment, right at the spot that made one's heart itch.
And this kind of ending, as if cut off right before the climax, made Raiden Mei feel like cats were scratching at her heart.
She wanted far too much to know what happened afterward.
What kind of reaction would Mobius have upon witnessing that scene?
For Van and Elysia's first meeting to actually be such a gunpowder-filled (and perhaps carrying a bit of some other flavor) beginning?
How would their relationship develop afterward?
All these questions filled Raiden Mei's heart.
She subconsciously looked toward Elysia, who was smiling sweetly at her side, her eyes full of complexity.
Inside them was a mix of probing, doubt, and a trace of...
Something she herself wasn't quite willing to admit, envy.
To be slammed against the wall by Van like that...
That kind of thing, Raiden Mei told herself deep inside, she absolutely didn't care about.
'Yes, not at all.'
'What's so special about being pinned against a wall?'
She, Raiden Mei, was long past the kind of little girl who would get flustered and spend days with a racing heart over just a little physical contact.
'That kind of scene in shoujo manga...'
'That kind of wall slam pose...'
'Ugh...!'
'A mere wall slam!'
She! Truly! Doesn't! Care! At! All! (As if!)
———
[In the Real World]
When the scene had played up to this point, the atmosphere became even more delicate.
Everyone's gazes all focused squarely on the two people in question.
Elysia cupped her cheeks with both hands, twisting her body shyly on purpose.
"Aiya~ even such old memories being dug out and shown to everyone, even I can't help but feel a little embarrassed~"
Mobius beside her, on the other hand, didn't bother to hide the 'tsk' that slipped from her lips, her face so dark it could drip water.
That old vinegar jar in her heart had been completely overturned.
If only she hadn't been careless at that time, letting these two meet so muddle-headedly, how could there have been so much nonsense afterward?
Maybe the one in the lead right now would have been herself.
As for Van, he very tactfully shrank into the corner, trying hard to lower his presence, like a cold, emotionless wooden pillar.
Many near-death experiences had taught him that, at times like these, silence is gold, even one more word could set fire upon himself.
But still, seeing that memory, Van's heart was filled with emotions.
At that time, the lab was pitch dark, and hearing noises inside Mobius's laboratory, his first reaction had been, enemy agents sent in.
Who would have thought it was Elysia?
If he had known earlier, how could he have attacked without a word?
Thinking of this, Van subconsciously recalled the feeling of grabbing Elysia's wrist back then...
Somewhat slender, carrying a faint coolness...
The sensation of holding it in his hand...
Truly...
"Little mouse~"
Just then, a cold voice suddenly rang in his ear, cutting off Van's thoughts.
"Are you... savoring it?"
Van's body froze, and he slowly turned his head.
Mobius, at some unknown time, had leaned close.
In her hand, that gleaming scalpel spun nimbly between her fingers.
She squinted her eyes, a dangerous smile curling on her lips, staring tightly at him.
———
[Back to the Video]
[Inside the Archives of the Elysian Realm]
Raiden Mei gathered her scattered thoughts, pulling her attention back to the file in front of her.
She looked at Elysia, her tone carrying confirmation, "This record... is about your first meeting with Van?"
"Yes~" Elysia's smile bloomed like a flower,
"Yes, truly nostalgic. Back then, we were really full of youthfulness and impulsiveness, of course, I'm still just as young and beautiful now, aren't I? "
"But Van's changes are what's really big. Look at him back then, so straight-laced, actually raising his hand against such a cute, pretty girl like me~ But now..."
At this point, Elysia shot Raiden Mei a teasing glance, leaving it unsaid.
And our Raiden Mei could only mutter in her heart, 'That's because the lab was pitch black, he couldn't even see who you were, right?'
Even though that's what she thought, Raiden Mei still followed along in words, "Indeed. Even among the Thirteen Flame-Chasers, your ties with MOTH are considered very deep."
"But... what I care about more is the information that man in the training room mentioned while talking to you."
"Not 'another man~'" Elysia corrected with a giggle,
"It's 'Hen.' Mei, you should've seen his name in other records."
"Hen..." Raiden Mei thought for a moment.
"I saw that name in Kevin and Kosma's memory fragments."
"If I'm not mistaken, he also later became a Flame Warrior. At that time... it seemed he unintentionally brought up your 'origin'?"
"Ah, you mean that..." Elysia tilted her head with a smile, "That's actually a story I myself don't really remember clearly."
"I was far too little then. 'Vostok-51'... that was the name, right? Supposedly where I came from, but I hardly have any impression of it."
"It's not that I don't miss my hometown, it's just that I was really too young then. The only thing I still vaguely remember is being taken away by MOTH."
"Taken away?" Raiden Mei caught onto that rather abrupt word.
"Mm, and not just me." Elysia nodded.
"MOTH took away many residents of the town back then. It seemed to be for some investigation, but in the end, they found nothing, and so everyone was sent back."
"There wasn't even much of a proper record left of it. Later when Dr. Mobius mentioned it, she said it was ultimately classified as a... 'false alarm incident'?"
At this, Elysia's tone carried a trace of disappointment.
"Truly a pity. I'd been hoping my origins would hold some shocking secret unknown to the world~"
"The story after that was rather ordinary." Elysia spread her hands.
"I slowly grew up, becoming more and more beautiful and cute, and then, fate once again let me encounter MOTH."
"From then on, the gears of destiny began to turn click by click... and the later things, Mei, you already know them all, don't you?"
"...That's all?"
Raiden Mei still felt this explanation was too lightly brushed over, so much so that she suspected Elysia was hiding something from her.
"If Mei isn't reassured, you can confirm it yourself, you know?"
Elysia said, her gaze drifting lightly toward the old typewriter. "It's fine, check all you like~"
Raiden Mei didn't hesitate, operating the typewriter again.
Soon, a new sheet slid out.
The record matched almost exactly what Elysia had said.
"Vostok-51" was just an obscure little city, which at one point had been sealed off and investigated by MOTH, but ultimately it was confirmed that the residents were normal, and the incident ended there.
"See?" Elysia said with a smile, "So now Mei can believe I'm just an ordinary girl, just a bit more beautiful than usual~"
"Let's leave conclusions aside..."
Raiden Mei lifted her gaze from the file, seriously looking at Elysia.
"The people described in these records are indeed different from how you are now. Time... more or less leaves traces on everyone. Thinking about it carefully, it really does make one sigh with emotion."
She added softly, as if casually bringing it up, "You... and Van, both so."
Elysia blinked, her smile still sweet, but with a subtle, almost imperceptible depth behind it.
"Mm, how should I put it? Maybe this is... what they call 'step by step,' the slowly walked path, isn't it?"
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