Mysteries: Arcana Wars

"..."

After a slight noise, Leonard's voice sounded again.

"Okay, it's okay now."

"Leonard, I feel like something is not right."

Klein swallowed, his voice trembling, and his breathing quickened.

“I felt like everything around me was wrong, different from usual.

"I came to this square yesterday, but today, it's completely different... Something must have happened..."

He looked around.

“Yesterday I met a man from the Western Continent who was doing divination at a stall. The vendor next to him said that this guy with pointy ears has always been doing divination here, but he didn’t come today.

“I did some divination last night, and that guy named Chang Tou Tu is indeed an extraordinary person of the Path of Destiny, and he has been setting up a stall here.

"A Destiny Path Extraordinary suddenly changed the trajectory of his life. Something must have happened today."

"..."

Leonard seemed to want to say something, but Klein didn't give him the chance.

“Too many anomalies, Leonard.

“The man selling flowers in the square, I saw him selling all kinds of roses yesterday, but today, he actually bought a batch of leaves to sell.

"The acrobat used red prop bottles today, but he used blue ones yesterday. The bottles were covered with scars, and it was obvious that they were old props that had been used for a long time, but they were suddenly replaced with new ones today.

“The shopping mall next door was still using the advertising equipment with stereo projection yesterday, but today, they suddenly changed to the old traditional screen equipment.

"I remember there is a sightseeing train in the square here, which runs every hour and is very punctual. It is a famous tourist attraction. I saw it yesterday, but the sightseeing train has not arrived today. It is half an hour late. The guide on the Internet says that it is never late...

"Something is wrong, Leonard, nothing is right, everything is changing.

“It was as if the normal [daily life] was artificially modified by something, and many small details changed and became [abnormal], which made me feel a suffocating sense of disharmony...but everyone felt that there was no problem and everything was normal.

"What is this, Leonard? What is this? Is this Melissa... Is this the message my sister is sending me from the outside world? Is she passing the message to the real world and to me by modifying the details?

"If that's the case, then what exactly does she want me to do? What message does this send me?

"...Or...in fact, that wasn't my sister...some abominable extraordinary being influenced my cognition, took over my position, and attempted to control my actions through my sister's identity to achieve its own goals?

"And my shadow, it seems alive, squirming under my feet, but it always sticks to my feet and I can't get rid of it..."

"Calm down, Merlin, calm down, take a deep breath."

Leonard sighed.

"Don't be nervous, just listen to me carefully and do what I say.

"First of all, did your spiritual warning sense anything?"

"No, nothing. It's quiet. Even... safe."

"Then do some divination again to see if there are any changes in your current environment."

"...No, the divination told me that nothing happened - it's not that the divination failed, but that the divination succeeded and told me that nothing happened."

"Okay, take out your pocket watch now and check if the hands are moving. What time is it now?"

"The hands of the pocket watch are moving... so that means I am now in a hallucination..."

"Yes, Merlin, relax, I think you are just in a hallucination. And nothing is happening around you, it's safe.

"My judgment is that your hallucinations are not caused by external forces, and no one has cast a spell on you. Rather, they are hallucinations caused by your own problems. Don't be nervous, you are safe.

"All you need to do now is sit down and wait quietly for the hallucination to end, just like we have been doing for the past few months."

"But the needle keeps jumping and won't calm down. I don't know how long I have to wait...

“Besides, I can’t find…

“I only know that my current cognition and senses have been eroded by hallucinations, but I don’t know what is hallucination and what is reality in my world.

“Is that red prop bottle fake? Is that green leaf fake? Is that little train fake too?

"I can't do it, Leonard, I can't do it...

"I feel... my world is like a dilapidated house, leaking everywhere..."

"...Okay, now, relax, take a deep breath... in, out, in, out, in... and listen to me..."

Leonard, who used to be a requiem master, has a wealth of experience in comforting people. Even without using extraordinary abilities, he is enough to comfort people.

Klein's breathing gradually calmed down.

"Yes, that's it. Then you will realize that you are already an angel. Now, breathing is not a necessity for you. Slowly and gently forget about it. You will not feel hurried or annoyed by it, nor will you feel happy and excited by it. You are calm and stable, and you will not be affected by anything like breathing..."

Leonard sighed.

"[Disillusionment Embers] syndrome, I should have mentioned this, it is the sequelae of excessive exposure to the smoke of nothingness. I have always believed that all the hallucinations you have experienced since waking up are caused by it.

"This includes a range of symptoms including disorientation, frequent hallucinations, loss of reality, decreased logical thinking ability, loss of bodily control, sensory disturbances, paralysis of spiritual intuition, and more.

"But the core phenomenon of these problems is that the patient's ability to distinguish reality from hallucinations is impaired.

"Unfortunately, I have seen very few related cases. After all, in my time, the Yennefer Fountain and St. Julie's Church had just been built not long ago. And those who have come into contact with the void smoke and dust rarely survive.

“But here’s a very typical case, and it’s someone you’re familiar with:

"Gloria Mitchell."

Klein struggled to capture Leonard's every word.

“Overall, her symptoms are much milder than yours, but there is a question you can use for reference.

“She mentioned several times in the records she submitted that she found her own mind influencing her hallucinations.

"Once, she was eating a beef pie. But she was in a daze at the time, thinking about having strawberry puffs for afternoon tea later. Then she tasted the flavor of strawberry puffs in her mouth. The texture, taste, and even the feel were exactly the same as eating strawberry puffs. She didn't even notice anything wrong after she finished eating it.

"It was not until she finished eating and someone next to her reminded her that Gloria realized that she had fallen into a strawberry puff hallucination. She had just eaten a beef pie. The hot filling even burned her tongue, but Gloria, who had just fallen into a hallucination, was unaware of it.

"It sounds like you're in much the same situation as her, Merlin.

"So now, what you need to do is to gather your thoughts, relax, sit still and wait quietly, don't run around, and believe that you are safe enough.

"You are safe around me, Merlin, no one is trying to manipulate you.

"The flower shop bought green leaves because green leaf flower arrangement has become popular again recently. After hesitating for a long time, the flower shop owner finally made up his mind to open up a new track.

“The juggler has finally saved enough money on the streets to buy a new set of high-quality props.

"The store bought the new advertising screen a long time ago, and it finally arrived yesterday. I worked overtime at night and completed the installation project under the circumstances that would least affect business.

“The sightseeing train has a long history, and some bumps and bruises are inevitable. It may just have a minor problem on the street, and it will come back when the engineers fix it.

"That fortune teller might just want to take a day off today, so he didn't come to the square today...

"The world is going on as normal, Merlin. Change and development are part of this world, it's normal and positive, relax."

"So... all the uneasiness and disharmony I feel are just hallucinations caused by the [Ember of Disillusionment] syndrome? Is it because I currently have difficulty distinguishing between hallucinations and reality that I feel strange?"

"...Theoretically, yes...But I don't recommend that you pursue the boundary between reality and illusion too much. It's okay to blur it a little. The most important thing now is that you should restrain your thoughts.

"Collect your thoughts, Merlin. Just like you did in the Hall of Honesty, clear your mind of all the things you shouldn't be thinking about. Just sit there and daydream, or even take a nap. These strange feelings will slowly fade away."

"...But...I..."

"But you still don't give up, do you still want to find a limit?"

"……Yes."

Leonard sighed again.

"I knew you were still the same...

"But if you insist on distinguishing reality from illusion...

"Then do as I say carefully."

"Okay." Klein agreed.

"Now, Merlin, put your phone down, turn it off, and shove it in your pocket. Then go to the stand behind you and buy a fresh hot dog and put it to your ear."

This request was a bit strange, but Klein did it anyway. He immediately went to buy a hot dog and came back to continue sitting on the bench.

"I've bought the hot dogs, now what?"

"Then, the method is very simple. You need to establish a complete understanding of a world without hallucinations and without the influence of extraordinary abilities. Then, combine it with the perspective of ordinary science to investigate everything you see."

Leonard said.

"For example, in a normal world without hallucinations, a shadow will not come alive; it is dead. You think it is moving only because you pass by a street light or a car passes by you. The shadow only changes because of the light, so the movement of the shadow is fake, but the passing of the car light is real.

"For example, dogs can't fly into the sky, cats can't dive into the water, rain can't rise from the bottom, and fireworks can't fall from the top... If these situations occur, they are your illusions, they are false.

"According to this kind of logical reasoning, you can make a preliminary judgment on the truth or falsity of some propositions.

“So you realize, hot dogs can’t talk.

"So the Leonard Mitchell you are talking to now is also your hallucination."