Time in a collapsing world

I regret it, I regret it so much.

Kiana now wished she could turn back time to that afternoon when she failed to track Alicia and saw the Thousand Calamity spaceship. She would definitely grab her eager self from that time, shake her violently, and shout, "Don't go up! It's a trap! A trap a hundred times more terrifying than being chased by Honkai Beasts!"

Yes, a trap. This hellish place called "Paradise of the Past," euphemistically called "Land of Memory and Trial," is actually an exquisitely designed and elaborate super training (and surveillance) cage! Ever since that smiling Virvi threw them into some kind of "adaptive experience," their lives have never been peaceful.

Endless simulated battles, bizarre puzzle challenges, and mental interference illusions targeting each person's weaknesses... These data-generated monsters are virtually omnipresent, crawling out of fragments of memory, condensing from energy flows, and even emerging from their own shadows! Their strength varies, but their aggressive desire is intense, forcing them to remain constantly vigilant. Even finding a corner to take a nap becomes a luxury, because you never know if something will emerge from a crack beneath your feet the next second you close your eyes.

What made Kiana's scalp tingle even more was that there was another group of "Alicia," "Thousand Calamities," and "Sakura" among them... Although those beings called "memory entities" had explained their nature to them from the beginning—that they were data imprints left in Paradise by outsiders, possessing some of the original's memories, personality, and abilities, but not exactly the same individuals—Kiana still felt incredibly strange looking at that smile that was exactly the same as Senior Alicia's, but with a more detached and detached air, or feeling the Thousand Calamities memory entity's volatile aura that seemed to scorch the air even through the mask.

Moreover, these memories are clearly the main force "monitoring" and "training" them! No matter where they hide or what they try, they can always feel the interested gazes coming from somewhere. Bronya has tried hacking and data breaches many times, but the result is often that she is unceremoniously "kicked back" by higher-level privileges, or triggers some defense mechanisms that make her turn pale and say that the logic is "locked in and cannot be understood".

"There's no way to escape!" Kiana slumped against the edge of the training platform, letting out a desperate wail after yet another failed attempt to find a weak point in the space. Sirin sat a short distance away, arms crossed, her face so dark it could drip water; she was clearly fed up with this feeling of being completely controlled. Mei sighed softly, wiping away the virtual dust that had accumulated during training. Bronya silently processed yet another failure's record on her terminal. Seele sat down next to Bronya, her small face etched with exhaustion.

Just when I was exhausted and almost ready to give up, today's training session finally came to an end.

"Alright~ Kids, you all worked hard today too!?" Alicia (Memory Entity)'s signature sweet and cheerful voice rang out, and a pink-haired figure appeared at the edge of the platform without anyone noticing, smiling broadly. "Even a tense string needs to relax! Come on, I'll take you to a nice place~?"

Before they could react, a soft interplay of light and shadow swept through the surroundings. When their vision cleared, they found themselves standing in front of... the entrance to an amusement park? Brightly colored carousels, a giant Ferris wheel adorned with colorful lights, a bumper car area playing cheerful music, stalls wafting sweet aromas... everything looked so real, brimming with joy, creating an eerie yet dreamlike contrast to the cold, data-driven training ground they had just been in.

"An amusement park?" Mei was somewhat taken aback.

"Even in Paradise... they have this?" Seele looked around curiously.

"Hmph, what a boring trick." Sirin turned her head away, but her eyes couldn't help but glance at the glittering amusement park rides.

Bronya quickly scanned the environment: "Environmental data is stable, non-combat simulation zone, energy composition leans towards 'pleasure' and 'relaxation' emotional feedback... speculated to be a psychological adjustment zone."

"You got it right~ Bronya's so smart!?" Alicia (Memory Entity) clapped her hands. "This is the 'Paradise of the Past - Recreation Area'! Although not many 'people' usually come here, the facilities are very well maintained! You're allowed to relax today!"

Perhaps the intense training of the past few days had strained their nerves, or perhaps the innocent scene touched something deep within them, but the five of them eventually succumbed to Alicia's (Memory Entity) pull and tried out a few attractions. Kiana's screams on the thrilling roller coaster were genuine, and Bronya's accuracy in the shooting game made the vendor (a chibi version of Velvet made of data) accuse her of cheating.

Finally, they were led to the huge, slowly rotating Ferris wheel.

"Come on, let's sit here. It'll be a good opportunity to see the 'sky' of Paradise, even though it's a simulation~?" Alicia (Memory Entity) naturally walked into a cabin and waved to them.

Kiana, Mei, Bronya, Seele, and Sirin exchanged glances and then went inside. The cabin was spacious enough to accommodate them all.

The Ferris wheel slowly rose, the dreamlike amusement park below gradually shrank, and the various architectural landmarks in the distance presented a different kind of tranquil beauty under the flowing data sky. The atmosphere seemed to relax a bit.

Kiana looked at Alicia (Memory) who was still smiling across from her, her eyes darting around, and decided to seize this seemingly gentle opportunity.

“Alice… Sister?” she called sweetly. “Look, we’ve been training here for quite a while now, haven’t we? We feel like we’ve made a lot of progress! So… can you consider letting us go out? We promise we won’t run around, really!” She tried to put on the most sincere expression.

Mei added softly, "Yes, we are very grateful for everyone's guidance and the...training opportunities provided. But we are indeed worried about the situation outside, especially with Teacher Zijing. Perhaps we can go out and use our enhanced powers to help?"

Bronya didn't speak, but her eyes held a question. Seele looked on expectantly. Sirin snorted, but was clearly also waiting for a reply.

Alicia (Memory Entity) rested her chin on her hand, her eyes curving into crescents, her smile unchanged, but her tone now held a gentle, undeniable authority: "No, Kiana, Mei. Not yet~?"

"Why?!" Kiana cried out. "Are we going to be locked up forever?"

"Locked up...that sounds awful." Alicia (Memory Entity) shook her head. "However, the criteria for 'getting out' were actually set a long time ago. It's very simple—"

She stretched out her slender white finger and gently pointed to a certain direction below, where she could vaguely feel a scorching and violent aura that could not be completely concealed even in the relaxed atmosphere of the amusement park.

"Defeat Thousand Calamities, that is, the memory of Thousand Calamities, and you can leave the Paradise of the Past Life~ How about that, the goal is clear, right?"

The cabin fell into dead silence.

Defeating Qian Jie? That Qian Jie whose mere aura sends chills down your spine, whose battles are like a cataclysmic disaster? Or is it in this clearly advantageous paradise, facing a "memory entity" with the combat experience and memories of the original body?

Kiana's face fell: "This...this means we'll never be able to get out of here again!!"

"Don't be so pessimistic," Alicia (Memory Entity) said lightly, but a subtle, complex emotion flickered deep in her pink eyes. "Maybe a miracle will happen? Besides..."

Her voice softened, carrying an almost indulgent tone, yet tinged with a sigh: "It's really dangerous outside right now... so dangerous that even we can't fully predict what will happen. Here, at least we can chat together, have tea, and occasionally come to the amusement park. It's safe and fun, isn't that good?"

Mei keenly caught the information in her words and the complex emotion in them. She paused for a moment, then changed the subject: "Miss Alicia... since we can't leave for the time being, could you reveal a little more about Professor Amethyst's current situation? Even just some... less crucial information? We're really worried."

Upon hearing the name "Amethyst," Alicia's (memory unit) smile seemed to freeze almost imperceptibly for a moment. She sighed softly, gazing at the illusory and beautiful "sky" outside the cockpit, her voice carrying a rare, genuine sense of helplessness and melancholy.

“I’m sorry, Mei. As for what ‘he’ is doing right now… I probably don’t know much more than you do.”

Amidst the surprised gazes of the others, she continued in a low voice, "My original body... hasn't synchronized its memories with Paradise for a long time. The last relatively clear synchronization was before he decided to start that 'plan.' After that, what came through were fragmented, blurry, and even deliberately obscured key information."

She turned her head to look at Mei, and the complex emotions in her eyes became even clearer—a mixture of understanding, worry, and a kind of self-persuasive tenderness.

“I think… she (her true form) did it on purpose. She didn’t want me, or any of our ‘memories,’ to bear that heavy burden of worry and risk. After all, something that even Alicia chose to hide from me…”

She paused, not finishing her sentence, but everyone in the cabin understood the unspoken meaning—it must have been extremely dangerous, perhaps even a matter of life and death.

The Ferris wheel slowly rose to its highest point, the amusement park below was brightly lit, and the memory building in the distance stood silently. Beyond this sky made of data was the real world that they could not reach, and there was "him" facing an unknown storm alone.

A sense of powerless heaviness, accompanied by the illusory beauty outside the window, quietly permeated the cabin. Escaping paradise seemed to have a clear (yet almost impossible) goal, while the situation of those they cared about outside seemed even more shrouded in mystery and unattainable.

Alicia (the memory entity) smiled again, trying to dispel the slightly heavy atmosphere: "Alright, alright, this is a rare time to relax, don't think too much! When we go downstairs later, I'll treat you to Paradise's special treat, it tastes exactly like the real thing!?"