Chapter 737 – The First Wish, Kim Sanghyun (4) Fin
—
— Observation Station
—
Han Kain sat at the telescope, observing Sanghyun.
Ahri, seated at the table, murmured in bewilderment.
“That’s strange.”
Songee and Jinchul reacted.
“What’s strange?”
“Did the memo get mixed up?”
“… Is this part the record left by Eunsol? It states that Sanghyun went to space with the agents.”
“Right, that part was written by my sister. Didn’t you write the rest?”
Ahri frowned and muttered.
“According to Sanghyun, who recovered his memory from the first and second photos, he mentioned he even trained the agents… not to mention going to space together.”
“Yeah.”
“How did he come back?”
Songee tilted her head.
“What do you mean how did he come back? He must have come back in a spaceship, right?”
Ahri made a perplexed expression.
“Back in a spaceship? How?”
“What do you mean how—”
To which she reacted, a slight annoyance creeping in.
“If he came back in a spaceship, there has to be enough fuel to return to Earth.”
Songee spoke, appearing puzzled.
“Isn’t it obvious? It’s a space shuttle, after all—”
“Don’t forget! The Shining Star is different from an ordinary spaceship. With the central temple, even fitting seven passengers was a struggle.”
“Uh…?”
“With such cramped space, would they have any fuel left to return to Earth? They wouldn’t even keep it around in the first place!”
“They wouldn’t need to keep it? Are you saying the agents all just have to die there? Sure, the Bureau could be a ruthless organization that might order them to die, but they wouldn’t accept it—”
At that moment, Jinchul finally grasped the situation.
“… Songee. If the passengers are agents, they don’t need fuel to come back.”
*
— Kim Sanghyun
—
What can I do now?
Naturally, thoughts of Astear’s words floated back.
“Alright, we’re wrapping up now. Let’s proceed calmly, without mistakes. Just to make it clear, if the ritual ends incompletely, it’s worse than not doing it at all.”
I must interfere with the ritual.
The pale angel, the Son of Dawn— I must prevent the awakening of the devil that grotesquely twists humanity’s fate!
— BEEP!
— E-823 emergency stop command execution.
“What the—!”
“Johnny! Stop immediately!”
The bodies of my approaching comrades suddenly froze like stone.
The movement of the spacesuit, which weighed 140 kg, had ceased.
Of course, the weight of 140 kg wasn’t a challenge for agents.
— Squeak!
“You think I can’t move just because of this?—”
“David! If you push any further, the joints will burst!”
If they were agents, they could surely overcome the 140 kg weight.
But facing the destructive snowstorm at a bone-chilling -242 degrees on this alien planet— that was a whole different matter.
Realizing they might actually face destruction if they forcibly moved, the agents all froze in place.
Up until now, I thought I could take control of the situation.
“How do I get out of this?”
“The PLSS system isn’t responding!”
“What’s the fuss? The one who issued the command must know how to deactivate it. Cerilda!”
Before I could finish my thoughts, Cerilda pointed at me.
“Yah!”
The brown-skinned woman pointed at me, and suddenly my entire body turned to stone.
With a single gesture, Cerilda began to dominate my body with a firm voice.
“Disable the stop order!”
Soon, my hands began to move against my will.
— Beep!
— E-823 emergency stop command lifted.
The freed agents approached with fierce expressions.
“Wow, I treated you as a colleague thinking you might be decent, but you turned out to be this dumb!”
“Did you really think you could change the situation all by yourself? What a disappointing judgment.”
Voices dripping with mockery.
Only Astear looked at me with a somewhat pitiful gaze.
Before long, the agents, strengthened by some force, forced me down and proceeded with the ritual.
The stilled ceremony restarted.
Blood flowed through the transparent coffins scattered around the temple, mixed with overheated prayers.
“Thus, the Savior shall gain freedom, and we shall gain salvation.”
Ah…
Had there ever been a moment of greater despair in my life?
“Huh…! Huh…!”
On this alien planet, the forbidden ritual unfolded.
Worming on the ground like a caterpillar as I thought.
The initial fervor faded, replaced by rising despair.
What on earth can I do?
A thought crossed my mind.
I confess, I do not believe in God.
In the great homeland, atheists are looked upon with suspicion, so I never revealed it.
Having started life in harsh circumstances, I saw many unfortunate souls wandering the slums.
Most of them lived their lives without ever receiving payback.
Did God really allow such absurdity?
I doubt it.
Therefore, either God does not exist, or if He does, He’s far removed from the absolute good of scripture.
However, at this moment, I finally began to understand the heart of the religious.
I realized why people seek out God and pray.
— GoOoO!
“Almost there!”
Ah…
All that remains is despair and ruin, and yet I can’t do anything.
Here I am, solid as stone, waiting for some extraterrestrial god to break free!
What on earth can I do in this situation?
I can only pray to a god I don’t even know exists.
“Please… Please… Father in Heaven! Whether it’s God, Allah, or anyone—please save me… us…”
The surrounding agents glanced at me as if it were a joke, but there was no real interruption.
“Please don’t make humanity’s towering golden tower worthless…”
In my heartfelt prayer, for the first time in my life, I begged a god I wasn’t even sure was there.
Just for once, grant me an opportunity!
In that moment – I heard a voice.
‘In the realm of the unattainable, it is said that humans cycle through hell, hungry ghosts, beasts, humans, and celestial lives for endless eons. This is known as the Six Realms of Rebirth. The only way to break free from this infinite cycle is through liberation.’
…?
‘So, in what life is the probability of liberation highest? At first glance, one might think it’s the exalted celestial existence, but no, it’s humanity’s life.’
…?
‘In the human experience, we suffer from life, death, and disease while bearing afflictions. Life’s challenges are indeed painful, but it is that very pain that leads humanity to liberation.’
…?
‘Thus, the Son of Dawn, who seeks to relieve humanity of its suffering, is Mara. He is the presence that pulls people away from the path of enlightenment…’
As the unknown voice faded away!
— Whoosh!
“Ah!”
“Cerilda, focus! Concentrate!”
Suddenly, the snowstorm that engulfed Cerilda surged forth.
This means the magic binding me was temporarily weakened.
Whether it was God or Allah, someone granted me a chance!
— Beep!
“Ugh! Johnny, block it!”
In a contorted position on the floor, I had two thoughts racing through my mind.
First, the agents couldn’t handle the PLSS system of their spacesuits properly.
They couldn’t lift the emergency stop command unless they controlled me first.
Second, what error did I make before?
I hadn’t considered that Cerilda could control my body.
Though I knew the agents were superhumans, I didn’t know their exact powers.
So…
This time, I must make a move they can’t anticipate.
I must issue an irrevocable command.
— Beep!
— T – 31 force-opening command execution.
“Huh, forced opening? No way!”
— Sqiitch!
With a hissing sound, helmets began to pop open everywhere.
This meant the agents’ bodies would be exposed to the -242-degree snowstorm and toxic gases!
“Ahhh!”
There wasn’t even time for a proper breath— screams erupted from all around.
In the next moment, an unidentified force emerged through the blizzard.
The brown-skinned woman, Cerilda, who had earlier subdued me with a mere wave, now attempted to control my body to resolve the situation.
But I’m not foolish enough to fall for the same trick twice.
“… You! W-what are you doing—”
The lesson from my earlier failure struck hard.
The enemy might not be able to directly control the PLSS system, but they could control me.
Therefore, I would have to die here.
So, the command for the forced opening was given, including my spacesuit.
— Siit!
From a distance, I caught a glimpse of Astear with glazed amber eyes.
Soon, a pain like tearing through my lungs struck me like lightning!
.
.
.
Ah…
So today, I’ll die here.
I wasn’t afraid of death.
From the beginning, I had come prepared to face the end, so I expected nothing less.
With my consciousness fading, one last thought came to mind.
What was the deal with that unexpected snowstorm that shook Cerilda?
Had the god up in the sky truly responded to my prayer?
After not setting foot in a church once since childhood, how strange it would be for an atheist like me!
So, that’s why, I offered my first and only earnest prayer.
My “First Wish.”
…
I believe.
Only the tower we build ourselves holds value.
Even if the tower bestowed by the celestial being is massive, it’s still not worth the tiny sandcastle made by my hands.
I believe.
Even if the height of the tower we build is modest now, one day, the tower built by everyone will touch the skies.
One day, the strength born from human hands will ignite even angels and demons alike.
Lastly, I believe.
Though today may be my last day, this isn’t the end of the world!
…
As my consciousness waned, I saw someone.
He was a cheerful-looking young man with black hair.
“I heard you well. There’s one mistake you’re making.”
He smiled, nonchalantly asking.
“Today is not your last day. So… Johnny, let’s meet again in the ‘next life.’”
This would be my final memory.
*
— BAAAAAM!
—
In the brief yet lengthy farewell to my consciousness,
When I finally regained my senses, see a bewildered Astear in front of me.
“Johnny? What’s going on?”
At that moment, I had to suppress a mix of shock and horror threatening to twist my expression!
Countless pieces of information assaulted my mind in real-time, but the most shocking fact stood out.
So…
“…”
“Johnny?”
I had not returned to Earth aboard the spaceship!
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.