Sid exhaled, voice low and serious now.

"Guess I'm about to learn what kind of life she lost… before she became the woman sleeping next to me."

He tightened his spectral fist.

"Alright then. Guess it's time I finally learn who you really were, Evelise."

He reached out and the moment his fingers brushed the surface, the light burst outward, swallowing the darkness in a wave of blinding white. His ethereal form reached out and touched the glowing tombstone, and the object instantly fragmented into a holographic star map. The dark void surrounding him was replaced by a network of glowing lines tracing a massive, stylized city grid, overlaid with countless faint, unlit nodes. Only one node, the one he had just activated, glowed brightly— a brilliant green light marking The Undying Bride. The rest of the map, stretching into the unknown depths of Evelise's past, remained entirely dark.

The system's calm, emotionless voice echoed through the emptiness.

[Welcome to the Dead Chapter Interface.]

[Each light represents one of Evelise's Dead Chapters. The brighter one indicates her first chapter, while the others remain locked. To progress further into her past, you must first complete the earlier chapters during Night Time sessions.]

Sid blinked and turned around slowly, eyes wide as he took everything in.

"Whoa… okay, this is insane! It's like… a freaking galactic map menu. This is straight out of a dream."

Sid's gaze followed the glowing threads that connected the lights like constellations.

"One chapter at a time, huh? You'd gate progression like it's some story mode DLC. Man, this feels straight out of an RPG— except the lore is my partner's trauma."

[This feature is only accessible during "Night Time," triggered by intimate synchronization with your companion.]

Sid sighed, a whisper of sound in the silent space, running a phantom hand through his non existent hair.

"So, let me get this straight… I have to keep having sex with her just to unlock her memory files? That's messed up, even for this nightmare world."

He still couldn't shake the memory of Evelise's face, the mix of guilt and resolve.

"She told me she wanted to die, that she was an abomination and chose to stay dead. I'm the one who dragged her back to life, the one who won't let her rest."

The thought of forcing her to relive her memories and forcing himself to witness them to achieve a goal she might not even want was a heavy burden.

"So, what am I looking at here?"

Sid asked, turning his attention back to the mesmerizing map.

"Is this like, a new update? Don't tell me you devs dropped this insane update after I died! That's not fair! I could've beta tested this!"

He reached out and found that he could zoom in and out of the cosmic city map, watching the lines and constellations of memory nodes shift. The control was intuitive and fascinating, a beautiful, unexpected piece of technology in his otherwise ruined existence.

"Whoa… okay, that's actually kinda sick!"

[To travel to her first Dead Chapter, simply focus your will and click the illuminated node.]

"If I want to know what that bunny majesty really is, I need to see it for myself. I have to understand what kind of zombie I revived— whether she's the kind one or the kind that should've stayed dead. Eeeh… what if she's actually a villain, and that is why there is an option to leave her as she is!? Ahem—alright, whew… here goes nothing!"

Knowing that whatever pain Evelise carried was about to become his own. With a determined mental push, Sid "clicked" the glowing green light. The single point of light expanded instantly, morphing into a massive black hole that roared silently. It didn't pull him in violently; rather, it swallowed him whole, seamlessly enveloping his spectral form in pure, consuming darkness.

"Oh, crap— wait, I didn't mean literal travel!"

But it was too late. The vortex swallowed him whole, dragging him down into Evelise's first Dead Chapter that would reveal the woman she once was.

The moment the black hole swallowed him, the sensation was replaced by a blinding white flash, then a sudden shift to vibrant color and warmth. Sid blinked rapidly as his vision cleared, his eyes stinging from the sudden brightness. The first thing he noticed was the sky— clear and endless blue, with the burning sun pressing down on his skin. He could feel the warmth, the dry air, and even the faint scent of fresh soil and trimmed grass. It all felt too real. He rubbed his eyes, squinting at the light.

"What the hell… this doesn't look like I'm just watching her memory, like some anime episode. It's like I'm actually there."

As his vision adjusted, he noticed what stood before him— a massive topiary, sculpted perfectly into the shape of a bird. Its wings were spread wide, its beak open as if caught mid cry. It was unmistakable. It looked exactly like Haribon. The detail was stunning, the leaves trimmed with care, the lines sharp and symmetrical. Sid couldn't help but whistle in awe.

"Damn, whoever did this has skills. This is better than any art mod I've seen."

As he stared, mesmerized by the artistry of the living sculpture, he felt an unexpected weight in his hands. He looked down. In his grasp was a large pair of hedge shears, the metal blades glinting under the sun. He froze.

"Wait a second…"

A quick check of his body revealed he was wearing sturdy gardening gear: thick gloves, protective eyewear, and bulky knee pads. He realized with a jolt that he wasn't just a gardener; he was a servant in Evelise's past.

"Oh, you've gotta be kidding me."

He caught a faint glimpse of his reflection in the blade of the shears. The face staring back at him was still his— his expressions, his eyes. No mistake about it.

"The hell—!? That's me!"

He shouted, his voice cracking in disbelief.

"Don't tell me I'm actually living in it! So that's what the system meant by 'Step into her past, relive her experiences— F*CK YOU, SYSTEM! You brought me here just to do a damn roleplay job!?"

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