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Chapter 351: The Adventures of Jail Goose

"The Harmonizer of All—"

"The Chorus of All—Dominix!" 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

"On the First Day—In the Beginning, There Was Order!"

How dare you touch Robin! At worst, I’ll just sink Penacony!

(Penacony: ?)

"Whoa... he’s that strong?"

Hoshi (Stelle) clung to a lamppost. The terrifying storm of energy had almost sent her flying.

Just how much... was Sunday holding back when he fought us?

"Is this... the power of this world?"

The "King of Gold" (Gilgamesh) stood on top of the same lamppost (his ’throne’), arms crossed.

He was Gilgamesh. And he still loved his "lamppost-throne."

"King of Lampposts! Get off of my head!" Hoshi (Stelle) yelled up at him.

"King of... Lampposts?"

CRUNCH!

Gilgamesh’s mouth twitched. He stomped his foot, shattering the lamppost light.

He did not like that mocking title. Mocking a King... what is your crime?

"Zasshu! Don’t think you can be so impudent just because you know Ritsuka Fujimaru!"

The Gate of Babylon opened. Countless sharp Noble Phantasms slowly emerged, all aimed at Hoshi (Stelle).

"Ahem! The view up there is great! Please, enjoy, my King!" Hoshi (Stelle) said, immediately "following her heart" (being a coward).

If I get hit by all those... I’ll be a human honeycomb!

This "Goldie" is so moody!

Gilgamesh snorted, but didn’t pursue the matter.

...

"Robin! Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

Sunday smashed Grady’s barrier to pieces, looking at his sister with concern.

"Brother... I’m fine." Robin’s heart warmed, and she shook her head.

"But... this place..."

Looking at the utter devastation around them, Robin’s eyebrow twitched.

"Ahem." Sunday coughed lightly. "I... didn’t control my power well."

"Didn’t control it?! ’In the Beginning, There Was Order’ right off the bat! ’Jailbird Sunday,’ you weren’t this ’clean’ when you fought us!"

Hoshi (Stelle) walked over, her messy hair looking like a bird’s nest.

Sis-con... so scary!

Robin looked at her brother, a half-smile on her face.

At a glance... he had changed a lot. Just a little trip with the Astral Express... and it was like his ’core’ had been swapped.

Is the ’Nameless’ assimilation... that strong?

His eyes were much clearer. She almost thought he was an imposter.

...

Black Swan moved through Penacony like a ghost.

After Gintoki, her next target was Leon. Time to open another "blind box."

"Hiss... why is this person’s head... filled with nothing but ’kill Oxers’?"

Black Swan took a quick peek and felt her teeth ache. ’Lazy to talk, listen to me,’ ’Serve with evil’...

It had been a long time since she’d seen someone so "pure" and "obsessed."

He was... so "righteous" he’d "looped back around to evil."

Ridiculous. She was suddenly glad she wasn’t an Oxer. If she was... she wouldn’t even be able to cry.

Forget it. Next.

...

BONK!

Black Swan clutched her head, looking at Seiya in confusion.

What? I... can’t read his memories?

"Don’t bother. I’ve placed three layers of protection on my soul," Seiya said flatly, holding up three fingers.

Being the Cautious Hero, he had anticipated this. Someone might try to peek at his memories.

"Three... layers?"

"Is that... really necessary?"

Black Swan’s mouth twitched. How pathologically "cautious" do you have to be to set up three layers?

"It is necessary."

"...One layer as the main defense, one layer as a backup, and one layer as the backup for when the backup is gone," Seiya explained calmly.

(I’m lying. As if a ’Cautious’ person like me would only set up three layers.)

(Saying ’three’ is just to mess with her judgment.)

"Are you... some kind of ’Defense Maniac’?" Black Swan complained.

"You’re a ’Hero,’ right? Are all ’Heroes’ this cautious now?"

She didn’t get to see his memories, but it was... an education. This must be the "Cautious Hero."

"When you’ve experienced... the ’Demon King spawn-camping the revival point’... you learn the importance of ’caution’."

Seiya’s expression suddenly changed, filled with world-weariness and complexity.

Black Swan’s lips twitched. She didn’t know how to retort. This ’Hero’ was... really not right. She could only say:

"...Ungodly."

No... that world isn’t right. The Demon King... spawn-camping the ’fountain’? That’s... not like the ’Hero’ stories she’d ever seen.

...

Onward. Next blind box.

Can’t I just get a normal person? She felt like "normal" memories were a rare commodity. Why was everyone she met so weird?

The red-haired girl... I choose you!

She looks so gentle... so pure... This should be fine, right?

"Oh... my... god..."

Black Swan hadn’t even looked for long before she felt a ’heart attack’ coming on. (Good thing she was a memetic body.)

Dammit! Why am I seeing ’Gintama’ again?!

She had buried that memory in the deepest part of her mind, and now it was floating back up from the "deep sea."

She’s such a harmless-looking girl! Why is she watching this ’explosive’ stuff?!

"Miss Erii... is... Gintama... good?" Black Swan was tired. She decided to just ask the source.

She didn’t want to look at any Gintama-related memories right now.

(What Erii saw was fine; it was just the manga and anime. But Gintoki’s actual, vast memories... contained ’explosive’ scenes that weren’t in the manga.)

(You can’t draw that stuff. It would be censored.)

"It’s... pretty interesting," Erii nodded.

She couldn’t understand some of the behavior... but that didn’t stop the manga from being fun.

"Interesting?"

"I... see. I’ll watch it... slowly... later."

Black Swan pondered. She had only seen the "abstract" and "no-scruples" parts... and was "shocked" into sleep.

She hadn’t really seen the "details."

...

Next blind box... please... no more memories like that.

"A... wolf?"

Black Swan saw Wolffy. This shouldn’t be a problem, right? Compared to humans, an animal’s memories should be... simpler.

"Strike. Strike."

Target confirmed. Black Swan entered Wolffy’s mind-space.

"What... What is THIS!?"

The "first-sight" kill instantly crashed her brain. A look of utter shock appeared on her face.

It was... a massive, towering figure that pierced the heavens! Even an Aeon would look tiny in front of this... thing!

The "Wolf King’s" (Guinness’s) pressure... was like a storm. She felt her memetic body... like a tiny boat in a hurricane... about to capsize.

This is... ’Great Terror’...!

No! Kids! I’m... crashing again!

This was Black Swan’s last thought before she lost consciousness.

...

"Black Swan...? Is that the ’Memokeeper’ the group was talking about?" Wolffy used a glass jar to... "bottle" the unconscious Black Swan.

What’s so interesting about my memories? What a strange person.