Chapter: 636 – The Path for Everyone (1)
—
User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 234
Current Location: Searching…
Sage’s Advice: 0
—
The prince Emilio and Aleph have both fallen into a long slumber.
This signifies the approaching end of a lengthy journey in reality.
Of course, there are still plenty of issues left unresolved.
First and foremost, let’s sort out the situation of my comrades. Fortunately, nobody has died.
“Not really?”
“Hyung? What do you mean?”
“I’m just organizing my thoughts and it hit me that Elena is biologically dead—”
“Ugh! I told you! My sister’s soul is contained, so—”
“Got it, got it. Just make sure to wrap those bandages well.”
Elena’s body was destroyed while shielding Seungyub.
Thanks to that, Seungyub reacted sensitively to even a mention of Elena, feeling a mix of gratitude and guilt.
It’s a serious blow, but not an unsolvable problem.
We’ve already gathered the scattered ‘body parts’ of Elena from the Moon Church, so with the Administration Bureau’s technology, I believe we can recreate her genetically.
Jinchul-hyung has returned to being ‘Cha Jinchul’ as the dream’s effects faded away.
His physical condition appeared strange, and his mind seemed filled with confusion, but…
I don’t view it as an unsolvable issue.
If we use regeneration and the Flute of Respite, eventually he’ll be whole again.
The biggest concern was Ari, who looked like she might drop dead at any moment.
Unlike Elena, she couldn’t be contained in a soul vessel, so if she died here, it seemed like ticketing was the only option.
Fortunately, Eidia managed a weird emergency treatment by utilizing crystal magic.
“Ari, you need real treatment outside.”
“Thanks.”
“Once you go outside, remove the crystal too.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t fall asleep until it’s removed! Keep your wits about you!”
“Why?”
“If you lose consciousness, a mini Eidia might sprout from your body—”
“Ahhhh! Don’t go implanting nonsensical things!”
“Don’t worry. Ari will handle it well.”
“And if she doesn’t?!”
“A mini Eidia might even be cute!”
In addition, I scanned the weary expression of my sister Eunsol who was merely waving her hand and Miro, who was sticking by Ari looking all miserable, organizing what to do next.
—
As evening approached, my comrades, former Wisdom, and the Holy Mother gathered in one place.
The first to speak was the former Wisdom.
“Finally… it feels like the issues concerning the Moon are coming to an end.”
“Indeed, holy mother.”
“Yeah?”
“I’ve immediately removed the everlasting dream-like states.”
This was the very first thing I did after merging with Aleph and acquiring the crown.
What was the reason the prince tortured the poor souls trapped on the moon?
To purify their souls into a gleaming white so he could consume them.
On the other hand, Aleph and I reached a concluding agreement at the last moment.
‘Becoming a god through the principles of soul convergence is not my path.’
Thus, there was no reason to continue the senseless torture.
“… That’s a relief. Truly.”
The former Wisdom nodded slowly.
“Now, the prince is gone.”
“The researcher too.”
Strictly speaking, they haven’t completely vanished, but I didn’t argue to avoid stirring unnecessary anxiety.
“Essentially, we’ve resolved the biggest issue.”
“Shall we throw a congratulatory party then?”
“Let’s do that outside. I’ll gladly participate, but we still have work to do…”
After a brief silence, the former Wisdom spoke flatly.
“Now, tell me. What’s your real plan?”
“…”
“I’ll soon exit the moon, and as soon as I do, the union will ask me how it turned out. I need to understand the situation before that.”
He already knows that the plan I mentioned in the past was fabricated.
He knows, but simply turns a blind eye because he thinks it doesn’t concern his true purpose.
As the former Wisdom said, I can’t hide it forever.
“The prolonged battle between the Administration Bureau and the Plunderers, intertwined with the Moon! To put it simply—”
“A fight for a chair.”
At Ari’s interjection, the former Wisdom nodded in agreement.
“Right. Various factions craving the one chair of reality in the ongoing loop. What are you planning to do about this?”
The problems concerning the Moon have been resolved.
This merely means we’ve excluded the ‘chairs’ trying to break it.
The struggle over chairs among the Administration Bureau, the Plunderers, and between the Plunderers still remains.
— Tap!
After lightly tapping the table to gather attention, I began explaining.
“First, let’s split the issues into two.”
“Hmm?”
“First, there are no more arks.”
“…”
“That’s….”
“That was what you mentioned earlier, right? The ark was the root of the first fall.”
What the former Wisdom once said.
The ark involves gathering the souls of countless people to create a quasi-divine entity, enduring the loop in this state and eventually splitting the quasi-divine back into humans in the mirror.
At this time, the ‘mirror’ doesn’t restore to its original state, and that’s where the trouble begins.
This is something we already figured out in Room 207.
The initial ark was where the first fall began.
Not a single comprehensive understanding crumbled all at once.
It wasn’t as if all humanity suddenly transformed into cephalopods or sprouted tentacles instead of hands.
The common sense of the world melted away slowly like ice facing the sun.
Some were enchanted by the murmurs of distant worlds and summoned bizarre monsters.
Some rose from their graves after death to seek revenge for past grievances.
Some suddenly leaped into the sea and sprouted fins from their backs.
Only after centuries of such occurrences repeating did the first pioneers accept it.
They came to terms with humanity having strayed ‘just a little’ from primal purity, slightly altering the common sense of the world.
At first, it didn’t seem like much of an issue.
Small monsters were easy to deal with.
The first ‘slight’ wasn’t a serious threat, so they merely recreated the ark.
And then it became two, then three.
And here we are now.
“What was the world like before the ark was born?”
“I’d think you’d know better than me. You’ve got the prince’s memories.”
“There was what you call mysticism even then. It was part of science back in the day, like physics and chemistry.”
“…”
“Much easier to control at that time. Far more logical.”
“…”
“Did the fall spread and turn science into the occult? Let’s stop the ancient tales here—they’re too faded even for the prince’s perspective.”
“Right.”
“The fall is just a part of the ark’s problems. The bigger issue is the fight over the chairs. This fight itself was born from the ark.”
Having said that, I took a deep breath and surveyed the surroundings.
None of my comrades, including the former Wisdom and the Holy Mother, opposed this.
Of course!
What would be the reason for the former Wisdom to say such things to me in the first place?
He, too, realized, over eons, that producing the ark was the true issue.
I remember the former Wisdom’s earnest words.
And now, I agree with them.
*
‘We’re paying the price for reverse heaven….’
‘Afraid of the end, fearing the collapse of the sandcastle called civilization, we created the ark…. But reconsider. It’s natural for ice to melt as summer comes. It’s natural for sandcastles to crumble with crashing waves.’
‘When the end arrives, letting the sandcastle fall is also natural. We should’ve left it alone, but forcing ourselves to maintain it led to disaster.’
*
“Wasn’t this what I said in the first place? What I said makes sense, but…. it’s a matter of ‘how’.”
The Holy Mother nodded with understanding.
“The existence threatening the world is quite numerous. While the Moon was the biggest threat, there are many others.”
I recalled the ‘note’ Aleph had handed me before he died.
The beings that instill fear in humanity are not limited to the Moon.
… Perhaps it’s just the beginning.
“Now you all know, I come from the so-called first civilization—and—”
“I’m the one who discovered the mirror first. The source of all evil, better than Kain!”
Ari’s sarcastic quip made the Holy Mother chuckle awkwardly.
“Erhem, I never expected such events to occur in my lifetime. As I mentioned earlier, I was captured at a school—what you all call a hotel.”
When she returned, she said it was after several cycles of end and restart.
After that, she probably had many adventures until meeting Prince Emilio.
“What astounded me the most was the people who nearly lost their world due to the ark that had attacked in the previous loop….”
“…”
“When they felt the end approaching in panic, they created their own ark and left to snatch the next world.”
If you do it, it’s an invasion; if I do it, it’s a necessary choice for humanity.
This has occurred countless times throughout human history.
“Creating an ark is no different from humanity’s survival instinct when faced with crisis. How do we stop that?”
“The principle of the ark is the soul convergence circuit and the mirror.”
“Precisely.”
“Among them, the soul convergence circuit is a technology. It’s one of the universe’s principles that humanity will naturally discover in due time.”
“Right.”
“This cannot be controlled.”
The soul convergence circuit is uncontrollable.
The basis lies in the cosmos’s principles, and it’s a kind of science that civilizations will eventually figure out when the time comes.
“The mirror is not.”
A great treasure bestowed by an incomprehensible alien god – something that the first civilization didn’t even intuitively understand the principle behind.
“So controlling the mirror is the key.”
“…”
“Let’s gather every mirror that exists in the world under the Moon.”
The former Wisdom mumbled.
“Is that what you meant by combining the Moon and the Plunderers?”
“The people on Earth will never have to touch the mirrors again. They’ll go about living their lives in ignorance of their existence.”
“Let’s say that’s true. You acquired the Moon and, with my cooperation, will absorb the Plunderers, gaining all the mirrors of the world.”
“Exactly.”
“What are you planning for the next loop? Just to be clear, don’t say something like ‘I’ll prevent the end, so there won’t be any more loops.’”
“Haha! Would I be foolish enough to say that?”
Am I going to prevent every crisis of end and claim there’ll be no future loops?
That’s the most meaningless statement ever.
Who wants to perish?
Think of the Plunderers that appeared in the sky above Earth, the pitiful refugees.
They too were once the masters of their world and likely never thought about an end.
It’s a world where a meteor could suddenly crash from the sky, and an alien god awakens.
— Tap!
I lightly slapped the floor with my hand.
“The final ark remaining in this world—the Moon plays the role of the manager.”
“… What do you mean?”
“Let’s say an alien god suddenly descends from the sky. You try to stop it but fail, leading to the world’s end.”
“…”
“Moving on to the next loop. Under the Iberian Peninsula, another—ah, wait, that’s confusing. Does a mirror always appear beneath Spain in every loop?”
“Not always. Sometimes it does. Or it might just appear every time but broken due to an earthquake or something.”
“Let’s say it appeared. Whether the Moon destroys it or retrieves it doesn’t matter.”
“…”
“The Moon will no longer consume souls from Earth. It will merely shine in the night sky managing the planet.”
Ari, who had been listening, asked for confirmation.
“Is it like a higher authority over the Administration Bureau? Eliminating the root of destruction represented by the mirror while appropriately dealing with the demons that seem too overwhelming for humanity?”
“Close enough.”
“What can I say? Sounds very godlike. It feels like the Moon Church might re-establish itself on Earth.”
“There’s little we can do about that.”
At that moment, the Holy Mother spoke with a somewhat somber expression.
“To put it simply, is it correct to say that once the Moon consumes all the Plunderers, it will manage the world in a way that no more arks can be born…?”
“Sounds about right.”
“Is that really a happy ending? What I mean is, what happens to the Moon and the Plunderers? They too are collectives of souls that longed for their own world…”
The Holy Mother’s statement is straightforward.
Both the Moon and the Plunderers are assemblies of souls that also sought to settle in the world. What will happen to them?
Are they to glow in the night sky, serving humanity for eternity?
That’s not a happy ending for the countless souls bound in the Moon and Plunderers.
“It looks like it’s time for the second story to emerge.”
“Second?”
“If the first story is ‘There will be no more arks in the future,’ then the second story asks, ‘What do we do about the already born arks?’”
“…”
“They evaporate.”
“Pardon?”
“The Moon and the Plunderers will gradually evaporate. They will no longer consume souls, and those already consumed will slowly settle into the world.”
“…”
“Just counting the souls sleeping in the Moon, there’s at least several billion. The souls in the Plunderers combined total an extraordinary number. There’s no way all these souls can settle in Earth simultaneously. But!”
The formerly silent former Wisdom chimed in, seeming amused.
“There’s no need for them to settle all at once.”
“Right. They can slowly and steadily settle in. How about scattering about thirty million people across Earth every year? Is that too many? We can figure out the specific numbers later….”
“And their identities? Unknown orphans?”
“Let’s leave that to the Administration Bureau. After all, the Silent Ones are right next to us.”
Ari managed a sardonic smile instead of a proper answer.
It won’t be easy, but it doesn’t feel impossible if there’s a reasonable number.
“Isn’t this going to take too long?”
“What does it matter? The Moon is overflowing with time as long as it can endure the loop.”
Eunsol, who had been quietly listening until now, mumbled.
“Who knows? If we withstand for long enough, maybe one day the era of space exploration will begin.”
“The era of space exploration?”
“When it’s time to delve into another realm, let’s scatter around ten billion at once there. That should wrap things up quickly!”
Honestly, I felt like I was indulging in a bit too much wishful thinking here.
But over thousands of years, who knows what’s possible?
After a brief pause…
The former Wisdom soon summarized the conversation thus far.
“In short, your plan is this.”
“Do lay it out.”
“Gather the Moon, the Plunderers, and every mirror in the world. Then, manage the Earth so that no more arks can be born.”
“Correct.”
“Once the Moon and Plunderers have become one, they will slowly evaporate over an extended period. They will no longer consume souls, and those already consumed will gradually be scattered, gaining new life.”
“Exactly. How do you feel about it?”
After a moment of contemplation, the former Wisdom replied.
“Overall, it doesn’t sound bad. It has a notion of a happy ending, as you said. Earth’s humanity no longer has to fear the previous loop’s invaders, and the members of the already born arks will eventually gain a new life.”
“…”
“The downside is that it’s going to take a long time, but this much is unavoidable.”
“As I mentioned earlier, the eternal prison has long ceased to exist. For the souls awaiting reincarnation in the Moon, there will be no more sorrow; they will just feel it was a momentary dream.”
The end of the fight over the chairs and a ceasefire.
No more arks will be born, and the existing members of the arks will gain new lives over the long term.
“However, I can see two issues.”
“Let’s have it.”
“First, what will happen once the Moon and Plunderers have evaporated? If the manager disappears, everything that has happened until now will just repeat—”
“Ugh!”
I couldn’t help but burst into laughter at the moment.
“Former Wisdom, even if everything plays out perfectly, it will literally take eons for the Moon and the Plunderers to evaporate.”
“…”
“Perhaps it might occur after several loops have passed. For that future—”
“Are you going to leave it to the people of that era?”
“Exactly! You don’t think I’m foolish enough to reckon with the entire universe’s evil all by myself?”
I calmly raised my hand to point toward the ‘heavens’.
“Let’s leave it to the great being who tears for the Three Thousand Worlds. We’ll do what we can within our limits.”
“I understand that much. Then for the second one. In fact, this is the crux.”
“Let’s hear it.”
“Who is going to manage the Moon and the Plunderers for those ‘eons’? After all, it’s not like you’re going to be up in the Moon doing all the managing, right?”
“…”
“Who will be needed to control the Moon, especially when you need the crown to rule it? That crown is in your hands, isn’t it?”
“…”
“Is it you who is going to keep an eye on the world alongside the Moon for all that overwhelming time?”
“…”
“That makes me… feel a bit afraid. Can you really do it? Even if you can, the chance of—”
“Corruption?”
“…”
“Are you worried that, like Aleph, I might plunge into an incomprehensible madness, turning the world into hell?”
“… If that happens, nobody could stop it.”
I understood the former Wisdom’s sentiments, worried yet doubtful.
After all, Aleph created every issue, being another version of ‘me.’
Time can be terrifying.
While handling something that could take a millennium or ten thousand years…
At some point, I might transform into something incomprehensible and attempt to devour the entire world again.
“Who watches over the watchers?”
“That’s a saying from ancient Rome.”
“Your concern is encapsulated in that phrase.”
“…”
“Who will watch over me as I manage the world?”
“…”
Fortunately, I had an answer for the final question.
“Your concerns stem from a fundamental misunderstanding.”
“What’s that?”
—
(Continuing in the next one!)
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