I see.
Her eyes were slightly lowered, revealing a pious expression.
She already knew that this was the gift He had given her, which proved that she also had a responsibility He had given her.
However, [He] did not continue to give her guidance, as if He simply showed her the fate of everyone in the world... as if He came here just for this purpose.
She was somewhat confused, but no matter how she prayed, [He] no longer responded.
Let's go find him, the favored priest - Aponia thought.
As people favored by Him, Xiwang was undoubtedly more favored, but Aponiya was not jealous, because she knew what Xiwang had done, and what he had paid to change the "chaotic place" of Dusk Street... Therefore, she could only admire and pity him.
However, she would not mention it deliberately, let alone express sympathy to him... That would be a blasphemy to his enlightenment and a rejection of everything he had given.
She only regretted that she could not do anything for him, and she only sighed that she could not do anything to help him.
But at this moment... maybe... I can also go with him - looking at everything unfolding before his eyes, Aponia thought subconsciously.
The fate of everyone unfolds before her, and the future that should have been unknown becomes so clear... Hmm?
Abonya suddenly stopped in her tracks because she "saw" a future in which she would stand in front of Xiwang without saying a word.
why?
Aponya looked puzzled.
As companions on the road, as people who were equally favored by Him, they could talk to each other about almost anything, not to mention that the matter was about Him.
She felt puzzled, so she quickened her pace a little.
Along the way, she also met many people, saw the [silk threads] on them, and also "saw" their future.
I saw them sad because of fighting, happy because of winning, worried and troubled by daily trivial matters, and happy and delighted by some trivial things.
She sees all kinds of life.
She feels joy for everyone's future and sends blessings and concern for others' experiences.
But soon, her heart would change from joy to surprise, then to tension and anxiety, and finally to... panic.
Because they will all die, mostly because of the disaster called Honkai, but many are also due to... man-made disasters.
But more importantly, they all died without exception. No one had a future called [old age], and few even had [middle age]. They all passed away in their best [youth].
Their final outcome was laid out starkly before Aponya, allowing her to witness the scene of everyone's death.
God...why are you like this?
Aponia was puzzled. She looked at everyone with panic in her eyes and subconsciously quickened her pace, trying to "see" a better future from the people passing by, even just one.
It doesn't matter who it is, as long as she can see him, someone who can live in peace, someone who will not be harmed by Honkai, someone who will not be killed by humans themselves...
But in the end, nothing happened. Instead, she saw more and worse things.
She can "see" that people in the future will tell lies to each other and sweep all the original kindness into dust; she can "see" that people will doubt each other and all the trust they once had will be lost.
Oh God...why is this happening?
Aponia doesn't understand why people's endings are so miserable. Under His guidance, people should have a happy ending because He is a lover and He is kind, but... why is it like this?
As he quickened his pace, more and more people passed by and he met more and more people, but their final fate did not change at all, which made Abonya more and more panicked, and even a little desperate.
She did not doubt what she "saw" because it was a gift from Him...but precisely because of this, she became more and more terrified and desperate.
"Sister Nia?!"
Suddenly, a familiar voice sounded, and Aponiya came back to her senses, and found that Padophilis, who now had animal ears and a tail, was looking at her in surprise, and then showed an expression of being saved, and quickly hid behind her.
"It just so happens, Sister Nia, help me..."
"Pado, don't be so shy. In exchange, I can let you touch my ears~?"
A cute and slightly naughty voice sounded, making people feel happy.
The fairy-like pink-haired girl came to Aponia lightly, first looked at Aponia, then showed a bright smile and greeted her.
"Hello~ You must be the Sister Abonia that Padu and Xiwang mentioned~ My name is Alicia. As you can see, I am a girl as lovely as a flying flower~"
"...Hello, Alicia."
Aponia's gaze lingered on her for a moment, with a puzzled look on his face, but a hint of joy soon appeared in his eyes, and he immediately shook the hand that Alicia extended as a sign of politeness and friendship.
Because Aponia finally saw something different from everyone else before... or rather, she simply did not "see" Alicia's future, and the [thread] made of light... did not appear on Alicia.
This is undoubtedly good news, at least for Aponia.
but……
"Ah~ Miss Sister, are you fascinated by me?"
Alicia's eyes curved like crescent moons, her tone rose slightly, and she spoke with a hint of happiness.
"Oh, as expected, I am still too charming, so... Paduo, how about we exchange?"
Alicia's topic kept jumping around as usual. She tilted her head slightly, looked at Padufils who was hiding behind Aponia, and said with a smile.
"How about we touch each other's ears, Paddo?"
"No, Sister Ellie... your ears are very sensitive..."
"The tail is also OK~"
"do not want!"
Padua Felice protested.
"Come on, let me touch it!"
"do not want!"
The two of them started chasing each other in circles, one in front and one behind, just like a cat playing with a mouse... and Abonya could only stand between them helplessly, watching them circling around her.
"nun?"
Xi Wang's voice came immediately, but before Aponya could react, Padufilis ran to his side at a rapid pace, grabbed his sleeve and hid behind Xi Wang.
"Boss, save me!"
Padua was trembling, and her tail also dropped down and wrapped around Xiwang's legs several times, as if she was trying to stick to him.
"Don't be afraid, Paddy, it won't hurt to touch it..."
"don't want!!!"
Padufils firmly refused... That was too sensitive, no! And Alicia's method would make her look weird! So it was even more impossible!
"Aliceia, if the other person doesn't want to, don't force it."
Xi Wang spoke out to stop her, and at the same time raised his hand to block Alicia's figure.
"Oh, what a pity! Padu's ears and tail are so cute, and they feel fluffy and comfortable to touch~"
"Umm... Sister Ai Li, please don't bully me... I'm not used to it after the surgery... I'm very sensitive. I was really scared when you touched me just now, Sister Ai Li."
Padufils puffed her cheeks unhappily and protested weakly to Alicia.
"Oh? That means... you can touch me after you get used to it, Padu?"
"Of course you can. Just touching the ears and tail is not a big deal... Um... No, no, even if you want to touch them in the future, you have to give me something in exchange!"
"Well... okay~ I'll just swap myself and Padu for them then~?"
"……Eh?"
Padufils was stunned for a moment, and then became a little flustered.
"Ehhhh?!"
"Alicia means that she can let you, Padu, touch her ears in exchange."
"Oh oh...Is that so...I'm scared to death..."
"Well... although I'm happy that Xiwang understands what I mean, it's a pity that I won't be able to see Padu's panic. What a pity~"
Alicia tilted her head, sighed, said with some regret, and then laughed again.
"However, this kind of telepathic feeling is also good. There are very few people who can directly understand what I mean. Xiwang, you are one of them. Will this make you a little happier?"
"Well, I'm very happy, Alicia."
"It's a bit perfunctory... I'm a little unhappy~"
Alicia also puffed up her face a little, pretending to be angry, but the smile in her pupils did not fade away, but became even stronger.
"I'm not happy~ so I need some special help~"
As Alicia spoke, she reached out and grabbed Xiwang's hand, held it up, placed it next to her face, and tilted her head slightly so that Xiwang could touch her elf-like ears.
"Hmph~ Hmph~ As expected, Xiwang's hands are very warm~"
"Alicia..."
"Alright, alright~ I won't be a girl who is too annoying~"
Alicia jumped away lightly, let go of Xiwang's hand, and said with a smile.
"This nun should have something else to say to you, right? I'll give you the rest of the space~ Um... It just so happens that I have to go find Mobius for something~ So... Let's talk later~?"
After saying that, Alicia left. Before leaving, she secretly gave Padufils a lovely look, which made Padufils quickly hug the ears on her head.
"……nun?"
Xi Wang ignored the tail that was wrapped tighter around his legs, and turned to look at Abonya and asked.
"Father, that is...your friend, right?"
"Well, she rested in the church for a few days before I met you."
"I see."
"...?"
Listening to Abonya's absent-minded response, Xi Wang was a little confused, especially when she looked at him with a little relief and understanding, and... expectation.
Abonya was indeed a little absent-minded, because her eyes stayed on Xiwang, and after seeing the [silk thread] on Xiwang's body, she could not move her eyes away.
She "saw" that the [silk thread] on Xi Wang's body was much longer than that on others, and she also "saw" the path he was going to take and everything he was going to experience.
That was the path he had to take, the path he had to choose...it was long and difficult.
He will be hurt and suspected time and time again, but he still moves forward firmly, choosing to save and persist time and time again.
Time and again, he will receive the love and affection of others, take it deep in his heart, treasure it in his heart, and it will become his strength and belief to move forward.
Finally, he leads everyone to the glorious [End], the [Promised Land] that everyone loves.
Aponia "saw" that there were several strands of [silk threads] wrapped around Xi Wang's body, which were different from those of others. The [silk threads] were illusory and erratic, as if they had moved from the "past" to the "present". They seemed fragile as a whole, but they really existed... She looked carefully and unexpectedly discovered that at the other end of the [silk threads] were two cherry blossom-colored girls, one big and one small, who seemed to be sisters.
They were sisters named Sakura and Ling. Aponia suddenly understood and knew their names.
Soon, she "saw" a slightly more condensed [silk thread]. Looking closely, she discovered that it was a blue-haired girl who loved painting. This girl was even related to herself.
Her name is Grayshue, Aponia thought.
Then, she also "saw" an extremely faint [silk thread] extending from herself and Padua Felice.
It is really faint, like a mirage in the fog, as if it would disappear if you move your sight away, but it still exists, as a [silk thread] different from the others.
And these illusory [threads] extending from their bodies were all entangled with him and followed him to the [end].
Aponia understood...it was they who gave him the consciousness to move forward, and it was they who surrounded him and made him walk towards the light with determination.
Aponia suddenly realized why the nun had said that they were destined to be [partners] and [companions] on the road...not only because they were both watched by [Him], but also because of the gift [Him] gave her.
And she also understood the [responsibility] that [He] had given her... to accompany him, to watch over him, to help him, to make him experience every [ending] that he should experience, to accompany him through every suffering that he should experience, and to see him accept every love that he should accept.
In the end, he will lead everyone to the warm and happy [Ending].
The happy, shining, glorious [end] had already appeared before her eyes, and the suffering he was about to go through had also appeared before her eyes.
But she couldn't say it, and she couldn't say it out loud... because it was too selfish, too selfish for others, for those people whose "end" was already determined.
They will be freed from their destined misery and brought by him to the happy [end].
But that would be too cruel for him, for the priest... His path is much longer and more difficult than others... Too many thorns, too much hurt, and countless... suspicions, enough to crush anyone.
