Chapter 603 – The Stolen World (18)
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User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 229
Current Location: Central 3rd Road, Jungdong, Bucheon City, Gyeonggi-do
Sage’s Advice: 3
—
– Han Kain
“So we know about the Arks and the Raiders. But what about the Moon?”
“Well, that’s a long story. It’s connected to what we’ve discussed so far.”
Taking a deep breath and sipping water, Adia continued her explanation.
“I’ll break it down chronologically. The first Ark was created after studying the Returners. Returners existed even before the Ark.”
“Sounds about right.”
“The world at that time was a rigidly hierarchical society. Returners were seen as royalty chosen by the heavens.”
Wait, we treated Returners as heavenly royalty?
That’s an intriguing take, but it makes sense in a way.
Now, the Management Bureau controls information so the average person doesn’t even know Returners exist, making it hard for them to be seen as royalty. But what if that control didn’t exist?
To the common people, a Returner would be practically a demigod.
“The control of the Ark also lay in the hands of royalty, much like the way the power is held by the Silent Ones now.”
“Gotcha.”
“Initially, the Ark seamlessly integrated with the next world without any major issues. But then the first accident happened.”
“Accident?”
“A rebellion broke out. A war of unimaginable scale erupted, and many records vanished in the chaos. During this time—”
As I listened to Adia’s explanation, a strange feeling washed over me.
It felt like a scenario where a sci-fi civilization descended from the skies and conquered the whole world.
Did they actually swear loyalty, or just resign themselves when they had no strength to resist?
Labeling the clash between the Ark forces and indigenous people as ‘rebellion’ is purely from the Ark’s perspective. The indigenous folk would call it ‘independence movement.’
“It seems like the rebels wanted to get their hands on the technology related to the Ark.”
Even if they disliked the Ark forces, its technology was tempting.
Just like how colonies suffering under the oppression of empires covet imperial weapons; it’s only natural.
“They obliterated the souls of most royalty and left just one young boy behind.”
“… To control the Ark?”
“Exactly. And then they began reverse engineering the Ark—”
“Hold on, hold on!”
As soon as I heard Adia’s words, memories from a few months back in Jeju Island flashed in front of me like a panorama.
My intuition whispered for me to connect the ‘two pieces of information’!
*
‘They created the Ark to maintain the world’s continuity.’
‘Some folks appeared belatedly.’
‘They wiped out everyone already aboard and took their places.’
‘Are those who seized the Ark villains?’
‘What if such events keep recurring in the future?’
‘Let’s say there’s one last survivor.’
‘That survivor grew up without knowing the past.’
‘What would happen when they find out as an adult?’
*
“Holy One? You okay?”
“… Just a minute.”
“Sure.”
The information I got in Jeju was an allegory for this!
The original Ark and the people of the next world.
The people of the next world annihilated the Ark forces and reverse-engineered the Ark.
One can’t really call the next world folk evil.
From their perspective, it was just an ‘independence movement’!
Countless clashes between invaders of past worlds and indigenous peoples must have continued.
In the original Ark, there was a last surviving royal.
That royal was exploited by the enemies without any recollection of the past due to brainwashing.
If at some point, he regained his memories, what would he think?
“I’m good now, so please continue explaining.”
“The rebels succeeded in obtaining the design of the Ark through the young royal, and they isolated him. They didn’t kill him to keep their options open.”
“And then?”
“Ha!”
“Why are you laughing?”
“It’s funny you’re asking me this!”
“…”
“The rebels proudly called themselves the ‘Management Bureau.’ There was a researcher among them who ranked in the top three of the Bureau back then.”
“…”
“That researcher inexplicably freed the royal.”
“…”
“The freed royal eventually reclaimed the Ark, and after a long time, merged it with the Moon.”
From that moment on, the original Ark transformed into the Moon.
“At the time, the Management Bureau was much stronger, and the Moon was considerably weaker. Thus, they succeeded in sealing the Moon inside Earth.”
“…”
“Needless to say, the researcher who liberated the royal became a permanent target for extermination by the Management Bureau.”
A permanent target for extermination.
How many lives I had in countless loops ended prematurely before I even became an adult.
“Many loops have passed since then. The Management Bureau has endlessly declined, and the Moon has grown stronger than ever.”
“…”
“If I add the Raider story I mentioned earlier, that wraps up our history lesson! Any questions?”
Lee Eunsol raised her hand first.
“I’m more curious about your tone than the content.”
“My tone?”
“It feels like you’re recounting information you’ve read rather than lived. Did you forget the memories of the ancient past?”
“…”
“You were the first to discover the mirror, right? You must have been around during the rebellion.”
“I see your point.”
Since Adia sounded less like someone with firsthand experience and more like someone sharing historical records.
Plus, if the Management Bureau obliterated the first Ark’s royalty, how has Adia survived?
With a wry smile, Adia pointed at me.
“Just like you avoided the Bureau’s attacks.”
“You mean I—ah.”
I realized it.
“You were in the hotel during that time.”
“I was captured and returned after everything I said ended. It took a lot of effort to learn about the lost history.”
“…”
“Next question!”
Now it was Ari’s turn to ask.
“I’ve always been curious since becoming a Silent One. There’s one question that still lingers after hearing your explanation.”
“What is it?”
“What was the original reason for creating the Ark?”
The subsequent Arks were created to counter the threats of the Moon’s demons or Raiders.
Considering that both the Moon and Raiders are types of Arks, the later Arks were actually created to avoid the earlier ones.
The first one causes the second, and the second causes the third.
So what is the cause of the first?
Adia answered effortlessly.
“Isn’t it easy? The world is filled with threats from the apocalypse aside from the Moon or Raiders. Many of those were isolated by you.”
“That’s true.”
There are plenty of causes for the apocalypse that don’t relate to the Ark.
Thinking of the prisoners in the hotel, aside from ‘the host’ in Room 104, the other prisoners didn’t even mention the Ark.
“They were probably trying to avoid such things.”
“Adia, I know that much. My curiosity lies in the whereabouts of that first cause.”
“…”
“There’s a first cause that led to the creation of the original Ark. It reached a domain so overwhelming that even civilizations couldn’t dare to resist it.”
Even humanity, which fled to build an Ark to endure the loops, couldn’t have allowed the first cause to vanish entirely.
Adia candidly answered.
“I don’t know.”
“… Thanks for the honesty.”
Suddenly, a thought crossed my mind.
Maybe the first cause is linked to information we already know? I just don’t know what that link is.
Finally, I opened my mouth.
“I have one more question.”
“By all means.”
“Why did the researcher free the last royal?”
“Ha!”
Adia chuckled and asked back.
“May I ask you instead, Holy One? What were your intentions in liberating the royal?”
Naturally, everyone else’s gaze shifted toward me.
“Seriously, why did my past self free a royal kept isolated by the Bureau?”
Ari nodded along.
“Why did the Moon demon come to be?”
Even Cha Jinchul appeared intrigued, asking.
“Why did the world fall apart?”
It hasn’t fallen apart yet.
It’s just on the brink of collapse…
Lee Eunsol offered her opinion.
“Well, it’s a stretch, but the Moon is currently blocking the Raiders, right?”
That’s not wrong.
“Plus, the Raiders only assaulted us after the Bureau crumbled.”
“Exactly.”
“I think the Raiders sensed that the Moon’s awakening was imminent.”
“What do you mean?”
“They’re probably treading carefully since they’re afraid the Moon might wake up sooner if they attack the Bureau. If they expend energy fighting the Bureau, they could end up getting swept away by the Moon.”
“…”
“All of these calculations only hold in a triangulated conflict. Imagine there’s only the Raiders and the Bureau without the Moon. Would the Bureau have held out?”
If five or ten Raiders appeared over the course of hundreds of years attacking the current world, would the Bureau manage to defend against it?
That would be impossible.
In this loop or several recent loops, due to the Raiders’ restraint, the Bureau’s system has been maintained.
Why the restraint?
Because they fear the Moon more than the Bureau!
That’s a plausible theory.
But it’s also a logic built on results.
Adia quickly countered.
“That doesn’t make sense. Holy One, your liberation of the royal wasn’t a recent event. It happened a long time ago.”
“Right?”
My past self freeing the royal means it’s a story before the Moon demon was born.
And also before most of the Raiders even existed.
“You’re saying they would create a triangular structure in advance against an enemy that doesn’t even exist? What are we talking about—a cosmic seer?”
“… They might have had foresight.”
Sorry to Eunsol, but I agree with Adia on this one.
With Insight being an enhanced form of foresight, I’m quite sure of it.
Predicting a problem that might arise from a world that has repeated the apocalypse and rebooted countless times?
It’s not something that even a quizzical owl next to me could determine.
Even a deity of foresight would find this realm impossible.
In conclusion, it’s become a triangular structure, and this situation itself can’t be intentional.
Ari also showed a subtle reaction.
“Even if we say we knew everything, did we create the Moon out of fear of the Raiders? That’s like…”
Ari glanced at Adia, holding back her words, but I could guess the omitted phrase.
Didn’t I receive the answer through Miro?
The conclusion of the three-sided conflict between the Bureau, Raiders, and the Moon!
If special changes don’t happen, the Moon will emerge as the final victor, leading to a future devoid of hope.
Thus, saying the Raiders fearfully respect the Moon is akin to keeping a tiger as a pet out of fear of a fox.
“I see. So that’s not it.”
As Eunsol sighed and hung her head, now it was Adia’s turn to share something a bit more sentimental.
“I have faith.”
“What kind of faith?”
“Belief that the Holy One chose justice with a pure heart!”
“…”
“In the past, you examined the records of the rebels to uncover ancient truths, correct?”
“…”
“The rightful heir to the world should undoubtedly have their destiny returned to them through your righteous decision. I truly believe it.”
“Yeah, I guess that could be it.”
I’d bet my entire fortune and one limb that this is not the real deal.
Recalling the tales Miro shared, I felt uneasy.
*
‘Initially, I thought it was out of sympathy or ethical reasons.’
‘As time passed, my thoughts changed.’
‘His character often mirrored that of his past lives—a person who won’t shy from the cruelty of the process for just causes.’
‘It wasn’t sympathy; there were other underlying motives only he knows.’
*
I’ve been told my character is similar to the past and present.
So, whatever thoughts I had before may very well be the same as what I have now.
…
One particular frightening possibility flickered in my mind.
The thoughts I can have now.
The thoughts I’ve had before.
The thoughts I can—
Ari asked me.
“What do you think?”
“…”
“I guess you don’t know.”
“I suppose we need to wrap things up since we’ll be leaving again tomorrow.”
I don’t know.
Or maybe I just don’t want to know.
*
It was late; everyone except me had fallen asleep.
As I quietly rose, a voice emerged.
“Holy One, are you still awake?”
“… A lot on my mind.”
What, are you spying on us instead of sleeping?
Stop calling me ‘Holy One’ and start believing in me.
“I’ll check the situation outside.”
“Now? If you wander too far, you could get caught in the Raiders’ devouring…”
“Don’t trust me?”
“…”
“Don’t trust the Holy One? Is that your faith level?”
“Uhh, no.”
“I’m going.”
Believe in me already!
The moment I stepped outside, I summoned the sun and shot it high into the sky.
This should make it hard for Adia to keep watch, right?
— Flap!
A magnificent scene unfolded.
Please work!
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