No one really knew—gathering positive memory fragments was like mining light in a world that kept triggering storms. While wounds, disappointment, and anger... they never needed an invitation. They came on their own. And they stayed.
And when his eyes caught sight of that girl, Knnight didn't know what to feel. There was a flicker of joy, yet also a sting that sliced slowly through him. That moral dilemma didn't just shake his heart—it fueled the fire that had been buried deep inside.
Memory Bank: Anger—it grew, slowly but surely, from the shards of unexplainable irritation. Annoyed because he could feel... something. Annoyed because that emotion had no clear form. Faint. Blurry. Yet real.
His body had long given up. His breath, ragged—like the world was refusing to let him breathe. His soul... had borne wounds for far too long. But even as he crawled through despair, he kept searching—for one positive memory, no matter how dim its light.
Not for power.
But to survive as a human being.
Because only he knew:
the price of the Law of Remnant... was sanity itself.
With a broken body, a torn soul, and a mind on the edge, Knnight struggled against the storm. Clutching the last embers of warmth in his memories, he resisted the dark tide threatening to burst and consume everything.
And that day, for the first time… he succeeded.
He held back the destruction. He refused to surrender his will to fate. He—a man teetering on the edge—remained standing.
Silent. Wounded.
But still standing.
---
But the world doesn't let small victories last long. Because just as Knnight took a breath—trying to stabilize his trembling mind…
…the front door creaked open again.
BRAAAAK!!
"YOU JERK OF A GUY!!!"
Knnight reflexively turned around. The dark aura that had nearly faded flared back up, triggered by that sudden voice.
The girl who had asked to come in because of the rain—was now seemingly taken over by some alter ego. Her footsteps slammed the floor like she was mad at every tile in the world.
Her.
The girl who showed up in the middle of the storm.
The girl now glaring at Knnight with a sour face and an emotion so loud even Remnanctum couldn't contain it.
"I DON'T CARE IF THIS PLACE IS HAUNTED, CURSED, OR LOOKS LIKE AZAZEL'S STORAGE ROOM—AS LONG AS THERE ARE NO HYPOCRITICAL GUYS HERE, I'M STAYING!!!"
Knnight simply stared at her. Then calmly replied:
"…You… got dumped?"
She turned away. Eyes red, nose sniffly from the held-back sobs… and the flashlight in her hand raised like a baton to beat the air.
"NO! I'M JUST—SO MOVED!!"
She choked on her sobs, then shouted again:
"SO DAMN MOVED THAT MY BOYFRIEND WAS FLIRTING WITH OTHER GIRLS THROUGH A GHOST ACCOUNT!! EVEN CALLED HIMSELF 'LOYALTYKING88'!!"
Knnight nearly coughed blood. Even Remnanctum seemed to pause in confusion at this new emotional wave: absurd heartbreak and righteous rage from this girl.
"He said, 'I'm not cheating, babe, it's just social research.'"
"RE—RESEARCH?! Research on WHAT?! How hot girls fall for sweet talk?!"
Knnight didn't know whether to laugh, hug her, or flee to another dimension. But one thing was certain—this girl brought a storm, but not the kind that destroyed worlds.
She brought a storm that broke his silence.
He sighed and said:
"…You do realize you're standing on a field of emotions that could collapse this building, right?"
Lily looked around, then casually sat on the dusty floor and said:
"If this place's gonna collapse from rage, I'd rather be here. My heart already collapsed a while ago."
And Remnanctum—the place holding the world's darkness and scars—
…fell silent.
Not from fear.
But because, for the first time…
the incoming emotional surge wasn't destructive—it was heartbreakingly absurd.
And that... wasn't in the Law of Remnant's manual.
---
Lily sat cross-legged on the cracked cold floor, using an old plastic sheet as a mat.
Knnight stood still, like a statue in a museum of ruined feelings. Whether it was Remnanctum's lingering power... or his complete confusion—he didn't know.
"You know," Lily started, shaking the flashlight in her hand.
"I found this place because it sounded scary. 'The Cursed Building No One Could Sell Till Doomsday'—fitting title for my love life."
Knnight turned slightly.
Remnanctum rumbled softly—either laughing or wanting to seal this girl away into another dimension for being too absurd.
"So why still enter?"
"Because Maps glitched. Then I cried on the road. So I walked in. Thought maybe, if this place is haunted, at least the ghost would cry with me."
Knnight sighed. The world was already crazy. But this...
this was next-level emotional absurdity even he never asked for.
"…And instead of a ghost, you found me."
Lily glanced at him.
"True… but your vibe's kinda similar."
Knnight nearly sneezed out blood.
"You really came here to insult me?"
"Nope," she said, putting her small bag in the corner.
"I came to run away. But maybe… I found the wrong place."
She lowered her gaze. And for the first time, her voice was calm. Fragile. Real.
"I'm just tired... tired of always hoping. Tired of being strong. Tired of being seen as fine—when inside I feel like a crooked locker about to fall at the end of the school hall."
Knnight stared at her.
Heartbreak. Disappointment. Injustice. Shame from looking foolish. All of it—familiar. Too familiar.
The very fuel of Remnanctum.
"You know," he spoke gently.
"This place… doesn't reject broken people. But it doesn't promise they'll walk out whole either."
Lily looked at him. Then gave a small smile, even though her eyes were still red.
"Good. I'm not looking for safety. I'm just looking for… a place that's honest."
At that moment, Remnanctum responded. Its trembling walls calmed—as if the old building accepted Lily's presence like soil meeting roots for the first time after a long drought.
And Knnight, for the first time in who-knows-how-long,
…didn't feel alone.
Not because someone understood his pain.
But because—for the first time—someone sat with him in the ruins.
Not to save him,
…but to sit in silence.
---
Silence blanketed the second floor of that old building. Only the soft patter of rain and the whistle of wind slipping through broken windows remained.
Lily leaned against the wall, knees drawn to her chest. She looked exhausted, but not afraid. Like someone who'd stopped caring whether tomorrow would be bright or shattered.
Knnight stood not far from her, watching from the shadows. In silence, his thoughts wrestled.
"That face… too familiar. The school uniform. Her hair tied just like that. Even her gaze."
But he knew full well—Lily wasn't Elara.
Elara wouldn't just show up, knocking on the door asking to stay out of the rain.
Elara… had long vanished from his life. Either erased by time, or buried by Remnanctum.
"Hey," Lily suddenly spoke, breaking his thoughts.
"You still haven't answered. Can I crash here tonight?"
Knnight was silent. He should've said no. He should've been cold and indifferent, like always. But…
That look.
Those eyes that resembled someone he once protected.
Even if now… it was only a hollow reflection of the past.
"…Whatever," he finally murmured.
"But don't blame me if you get nightmares."
Lily grinned.
"No worries. My life's already a nightmare."
Knnight almost choked on air.
"And don't ask too many questions," he added.
"This place… doesn't like questions."
"Same," Lily mumbled as she laid down.
"I'm also… done asking why I keep getting hurt."
Remnanctum exhaled. Not a loud sound. Just a long sigh like an old building complaining about the weight of two broken souls resting inside it.
Knnight sat down, leaning against the wall a few meters away from Lily. His eyes gazed up at the dark ceiling.
"She's not Elara."
"But why… do I feel like I need to protect her, even if just for one night?"
And Remnanctum, as witness, fell into peace.
Because for the first time, its long-time resident might finally…
try speaking to the world again.
---