Rain fell all night.
Lin Ye barely slept.
The white card marked A-017 remained on his nightstand the entire time.
Even by dawn, he still couldn't believe it.
Before yesterday.
He had been nothing more than an ordinary high school student.
Today.
Someone had told him that he belonged to an organization called Archive.
Even more absurdly.
He had actually started accepting it.
Because compared to the possibility that he was "mentally ill."
The world itself was far more insane.
Six-thirty in the morning.
His phone alarm went off.
Lin Ye reached out to shut it off out of habit.
Then he noticed an unfamiliar notification in the notification bar.
It wasn't a text message.
It wasn't from a social media app.
It was from the program that had appeared on its own yesterday.
Archive.
There was only one line on the screen.
07:30 Go to school as usual.
Beneath it was another line of smaller text.
Starting today, nothing about your daily routine can change.
Lin Ye frowned.
"Go to school as usual?"
He had nearly died in the old library last night.
And today, they actually expected him to go to class?
Just then.
His mother's voice came from outside the door.
"Xiao Ye, you'll be late if you don't get up!"
Lin Ye froze for a moment.
The terrifying events of last night seemed almost like a dream.
His mother was still there.
The smell of breakfast was still there.
The TV was playing the morning news.
Everything was exactly as usual.
If not for the white card on his nightstand.
He might even have suspected.
That he had imagined Archive himself.
The classroom was still noisy.
The moment Wang Zhe saw Lin Ye, he waved with a grin.
"Why'd you suddenly take yesterday off?"
"The teacher even told me to message you."
Lin Ye smiled.
"I wasn't feeling too well."
"How about now?"
"Much better."
He secretly watched Wang Zhe.
His expression was natural.
There was nothing unusual about him.
And he never mentioned Chen Zi'an.
As if that name had truly never existed.
Lin Ye's heart sank.
It seemed.
Nothing from yesterday had been restored.
During the break after first period.
A folded slip of paper was quietly placed on Lin Ye's desk.
He looked up.
No one in the classroom seemed to notice.
He opened the note.
There was only one line on it.
Noon. Rooftop. Don't let anyone know.
There was no signature.
But the handwriting.
He recognized it.
Xia Wei.
At noon.
The rooftop's metal door stood slightly ajar.
Xia Wei was already standing beside the railing.
The wind lifted her long black hair.
She didn't turn around.
She only gazed into the distance.
"Sleep well last night?"
Lin Ye gave a bitter laugh.
"What do you think?"
The corners of Xia Wei's lips lifted slightly.
"That means you're starting to adapt."
"Adapt?"
"A real Archive member."
"No one sleeps on their first day."
She turned around.
A kraft-paper envelope had appeared in her hand.
She handed it to Lin Ye.
"Your first mission."
Lin Ye took it.
Inside was a single photograph.
It showed a little girl who looked about seven or eight years old.
Her hair was tied into twin ponytails.
She was smiling brightly.
A line of writing appeared on the back of the photo.
Lin Yuqing, seven years old.
Beneath it was a date.
Today.
Lin Ye frowned in confusion.
"Who is she?"
Xia Wei was silent for a moment.
"Tonight."
"She'll be Zeroed."
Lin Ye's breath caught.
"How do you know?"
Xia Wei looked up at the sky.
"Because of Archive."
"Archive always receives the notification one step ahead of Reset."
Lin Ye lowered his head and stared at the photograph.
The girl was smiling so happily.
She had no idea.
That she had less than twelve hours left to live.
"So we're going to save her?"
Xia Wei didn't answer.
She only stared quietly at Lin Ye.
A few seconds later.
She finally spoke, and the words sent a chill through Lin Ye's entire body.
"No."
"We're going to determine."
"Whether she's actually worth saving."
Lin Ye froze.
"...What does that mean?"
Xia Wei didn't answer right away.
She simply put the photo back into the envelope and handed it to Lin Ye again.
"Do you know why Archive exists?"
Lin Ye frowned.
"To preserve the people erased from the world."
"Not entirely correct."
Xia Wei looked toward the distant athletic field.
Students were running during gym class.
Their laughter, the sound of whistles, and the thud of a ball hitting the ground formed a stark contrast with their conversation.
"Archive isn't a savior."
"We don't have the power to save everyone."
Lin Ye fell silent.
"Reset Zeroes a lot of people every day."
"If we saved every single one."
"The world would collapse in no time."
Lin Ye lowered his head and looked at the photograph.
The girl was smiling so happily.
No matter how he looked at her, she was just an ordinary elementary school student.
"So..."
"You decide who gets to live?"
Xia Wei shook her head.
"Not us."
"Archive does."
"We only confirm it."
Lin Ye clenched the photograph.
"What's the difference?"
Xia Wei didn't answer.
She knew.
Everyone who encountered Archive for the first time asked the same question.
And the answer...
Often took a very long time to truly understand.
After school that afternoon.
The two of them went to the address in the photograph.
It was an old apartment building.
The exterior walls were mottled and peeling.
The stairwell was full of damp air.
Xia Wei stopped on the third floor.
"302."
Lin Ye knocked on the door.
A moment later.
The door opened.
A middle-aged woman stood behind it.
Her expression was haggard.
Her eyes were swollen and red.
"Can I help you...?"
Before Lin Ye could say anything.
The woman forced a smile.
"Are you Yuqing's older schoolmates?"
Lin Ye and Xia Wei exchanged a glance.
Neither of them denied it.
"Can we come in?"
The woman nodded.
The living room was tiny.
But it was spotless.
Photographs of a family of three covered the walls.
Lin Ye recognized the girl in the photos at a glance.
It was Lin Yuqing.
"Yuqing."
The woman called toward the bedroom.
"Your big brother and sister are here to see you."
The bedroom door opened.
A little head peeked out.
When the girl saw the two of them.
She immediately broke into a smile.
"Big brother!"
She ran over.
An old stuffed rabbit was clutched in her hands.
"Your name is Yuqing?"
Lin Ye crouched down.
The girl nodded hard.
"Yep!"
"Big brother, did Mom ask you to come play with me?"
Lin Ye didn't know how to answer.
He could only smile and gently pat her head.
Xia Wei remained standing off to the side.
She didn't say a word.
She only watched in silence.
An hour later.
The two of them left the apartment.
Lin Ye remained silent the entire way.
It wasn't until they reached the mouth of the alley.
That he finally couldn't hold back.
"She's just an ordinary kid."
"Yeah."
"She hasn't done anything wrong."
"Yeah."
"Then why does she have to be Zeroed?"
Xia Wei stopped walking.
Then slowly turned around.
"Archive didn't tell you why?"
Lin Ye shook his head.
"No."
Xia Wei was silent for a while.
In the end, she only said one thing.
"Because."
"The world determined that she's anomalous."
"Anomalous how?"
"I don't know."
"You don't know?"
Lin Ye raised his voice.
"You let her disappear without knowing?"
For the first time, Xia Wei's eyes wavered.
"You think I never asked?"
"Every time."
"Every person."
"Archive only ever gives one result."
"It never gives a reason."
Lin Ye was stunned.
"So you've always..."
Xia Wei gave a bitter smile.
"This is how I've always done the job."
At seven that evening.
Lin Ye sat outside a convenience store.
In his hand was an unopened can of coffee.
He kept staring at the photograph.
Lin Yuqing.
Seven years old.
Tonight.
She would disappear.
He suddenly thought of Chen Zi'an.
Of the old man who fed the cats.
Of all the people whose names he could no longer remember.
If, back then.
Someone had known in advance too.
Then maybe...
They wouldn't have had to disappear?
Just then.
His phone vibrated.
Archive displayed a new notification.
Target status updated.
Time until Zeroing: 01:59:42
Lin Ye's pupils contracted.
The countdown had begun.
He shot to his feet.
"Xia Wei!"
"We can't just stand here and watch!"
Xia Wei didn't answer.
She only stared at the countdown on the phone.
After a long time.
She finally said softly:
"When I went on my first mission."
"I thought the same thing you do."
"What happened after that?"
Xia Wei lowered her head.
"After that."
"I saved her."
Lin Ye's eyes lit up.
"Really?"
Xia Wei closed her eyes.
But her voice grew softer and softer.
"The next day."
"The entire street."
"One hundred seventy-three people."
"All of them were Zeroed."
Lin Ye stood there, completely stunned.
The night wind swept past.
The silence around them was terrifying.
Xia Wei gazed at the city lights in the distance, exhaustion filling her eyes.
"This is the answer Archive never told you."
"Every time someone is saved."
"The world corrects itself."
"And the price of that correction..."
She slowly raised her head and looked at Lin Ye.
Word by word, she said:
"Is always greater than you can imagine."
Lin Ye lowered his head and looked at the photograph.
The girl's radiant smile looked especially glaring beneath the streetlight.
Just then.
His phone vibrated again.
This time.
It wasn't Archive.
It was an unfamiliar text message.
Sender—
Unknown.
It contained only one sentence.
If you want to save her, come alone.
I know the real reason for the Zeroing.
Lin Ye's heart skipped a beat.
Lin Ye stared at the phone screen.
The text had no phone number.
No sent time.
Not even a carrier label.
It was as if it hadn't come through the phone at all, but had simply appeared on the screen.
He tried tapping the sender information.
But the screen suddenly flickered.
The next second.
The entire message dissolved into snowy static, then returned to normal.
As if some force wouldn't allow him to trace its source.
Xia Wei noticed something was wrong.
"What is it?"
Lin Ye didn't answer immediately. Instead, he handed her the phone.
However, the moment Xia Wei saw the screen, her brows slowly furrowed.
"It's blank?"
"What?"
Lin Ye looked down.
The text message from moments ago had vanished.
All that remained on the screen was Archive's countdown.
01:56:18
"Impossible..."
Lin Ye clearly remembered those words being there just seconds ago.
Xia Wei studied his expression, her face gradually turning grim.
"Are you sure you really received a message just now?"
Lin Ye nodded without hesitation.
"And..."
He slowly tightened his grip on the phone, repeatedly replaying those words in his mind.
I know the real reason for the Zeroing.
Just then, a gust of night wind swept past.
The streetlight at the corner suddenly flickered twice.
Lin Ye instinctively looked up.
Across the street, someone holding a black umbrella was standing there—he didn't know since when.
The person had no face.
Or rather...
His face had been completely swallowed by darkness.
The figure simply stood motionless in the rain, then slowly raised a hand toward Lin Ye.