Chapter 697 – The Ultimate Self, The Beginning of the Third Attempt (4) Fin
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User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 17
Current Location: Floor 1, Lobby
Sage’s Advice: 2
—
– Han Kain
“Chilling Kain, hey there!”
The person sitting in front of me was Ahri.
It seemed she heard from Eunsol about me being a bit off today, and I was at a loss for words.
“I’ve recently been feeling like the hotel has gotten itself a professional counselor. Right?”
“Are you talking about me?”
Ahri giggled and nodded.
“You must have had a tough morning lecturing. Or was it fun?”
“Lecturing, my foot…”
“Sometimes, it’s fascinating to watch you.”
“Why’s that?”
“The ability to control others’ bodies. The ability to read others’ destinies.”
In reality, insight is not the power to read destinies.
While similar, insight and prophecy are distinctly different abilities.
However, my comrades don’t bother distinguishing the two.
From the outside looking in, it’s tough to differentiate anyway.
“Either way, it’s hard to gain trust with those abilities, right? Body control is one thing, and reading destinies is another. Just think of Cassandra from Greek mythology.”
“Hmm…”
“But we trust you completely. That’s probably tough for me or the past Miro to do.”
Caught off guard by Ahri’s sudden compliments, she quickly continued.
“Anyway, listen to my lecture this time.”
She started talking about the title of Room 301.
“The title of the room is ‘Origin of Species.’ As you know, it symbolizes evolution.”
“Right.”
“As always, this room’s title has significant meaning.”
To the hotel, the keyword for Room 301 was ‘evolution.’
“The pioneers and the Administration Bureau believe that the returners are the result of humans spiritually evolving. Of course, it’s quite a pseudoscience.”
“Whether it makes scientific sense isn’t the main concern. The important thing is that it’s what the major powers within the hotel believe.”
“Exactly. And from Eunsol’s past recollection, there’s been a next step after the returners.”
“Participants.”
To the pioneers, participants are seen as a step beyond returners.
How do they view participants among those who see returners as the result of human evolution?
The pinnacle of evolution. The ultimate achievement of humanity.
Of course, this analysis is far from scientific.
“So, the meaning of the room title implies that there’s an attempt to create participants within Room 301.”
Nodding, I replied,
“I was thinking something similar, but I have my doubts. Look at the King of Is when he actually succeeded in achieving grace.”
At the end of Round 2, the King of Is seized Eunsol’s body and successfully achieved grace.
“The world went to hell. It’s possible that countless human souls were used as resources for the grace ritual. Is that what the pioneers actually desired?”
Ahri immediately shook her head.
“Probably not. The pioneer likely dreamt of an overall spiritual elevation for humanity through the King’s power.”
A universal spiritual leap for all humanity, huh…
That sounds plausible, but considering the reality revealed at the end of Round 2, it was doomed from the start.
Not everyone could become a participant through grace.
Only those who were preordained like Eunsol could potentially do so.
Even Eunsol’s moment of acquiring her destiny was a challenging task for a prisoner to control.
On top of that, countless humans meet their demise during the grace process, leading to the judgment of the end.
What’s the reason behind such a horrific reality?
Because the King of Is has not an ounce of affection for humanity.
The only ones he loves infinitely are the Is race.
I spoke the thought that naturally arose.
“So, is there a way to draw the pioneers into the next round?”
At that moment, Ahri frowned slightly.
“Seems difficult.”
“Why?”
“The pioneers probably aren’t the type of people who can be persuaded.”
“I’m not saying it vaguely. I mean through logic that the pioneers would understand—”
At that moment, Ahri wore a bit of a complicated expression and spoke up.
“Hang on, Kain. Let me explain something.”
Soon, Ahri began telling an interesting tale.
“Having been with you for a long time, and recently learning about your predecessor Wisdom, I’ve realized something. Those who belong to Wisdom have a highly irrational tendency.”
Those belonging to Wisdom tend to have a strong irrational disposition.
“Is it that they received the blessing of Wisdom because they were like that from the start? Or did the blessing change them?”
“Seems like both. They might’ve had that tendency naturally, and gaining the blessing might have reinforced it.”
“Right. Anyway, at the end of rational thought, you guys often reach insane conclusions.”
Reaching madness through rational thought?
It sounded puzzling but strangely reasonable.
“When thinking logically, if my death is necessary, I would choose suicide.”
“….”
“When thinking rationally, if the goal pursued for countless eons seems flawed, I’d immediately give up.”
“….”
“Those are your actions and those of your predecessor Wisdom. In your view, this might seem reasonable and obvious.”
“That was actually a rational decision.”
“What I mean is, people like you are incredibly rare in the world.”
Not everyone thinks like that—like the predecessors of Wisdom or me.
Thus, Ahri believes my judgment this time is flawed.
In that moment, I felt a strange joy.
Since gaining insight, most comrades rarely refuted my opinions.
Usually, Ahri is the one who engages in such rational debate, with perhaps a comment from Eunsol now and then.
Or Miro would just flip the table without context.
Ahri spoke seriously.
“In my opinion, the pioneers are not persuadable beings. They’re highly likely to be trapped in their beliefs and won’t believe anything you say.”
“Is that based on your experience at the Administration Bureau?”
“Exactly. There are many pioneers like that in the Bureau. Due to the nature of the organization, bizarre information from around the world gathers, and many get caught up in conspiracy theories.”
“Hmm, then, we’ll just have to proceed with eliminating the pioneers.”
“By the way, during Round 3, it seems they were trying to persuade the King of Is, right?”
“Right. For that, I’ve incorporated the scheming from Round 2 into the current timeline.”
“…”
It seemed Ahri was unsure about what to say next, pondering for a while.
“It might feel absurd to discuss the ‘character’ of a great being that transcends humanity, but…”
“Just go ahead.”
“I feel like the King of Is has these characteristics.”
Soon, Ahri began scribbling on the whiteboard.
Analysis of the King of Is’ Actions
1. Secrecy in hiding the full plan even from the Is race.
2. As the manager said, repeatedly making the same mistakes.
3. Extremely cunning, skilled in schemes, and has a tendency to toy with mortals.
“So, what are your thoughts on that?”
“Mystery, self-certainty, and disdain for mortals, I guess.”
“Can we persuade such a being?”
“The entities trying to persuade aren’t us—”
“Even if it were a scheme, would they listen?”
“…”
“The King loves the Is race dearly. It’s likely he wants to save them, even at the cost of his own life. The love is genuine. But loving and believing are different.”
“…”
“Parents might love their children, but they also know that kids can be foolish and weak compared to adults. The King of Is must feel the same.”
Ahri’s point was very straightforward.
Both the pioneers and the King of Is don’t seem like they would be persuaded.
Whether we speak to them or a scheme is presented, it seems they wouldn’t heed it.
I cautiously attempted a ‘reasonable’ counter-argument.
“What if the King reads the memories of the scheme and gets insights from previous rounds? No, wait, the King of Is can read destinies; maybe he could figure out the entire fate of past rounds—”
“Kain, you really don’t get conspiracy theorists, do you?”
“Huh?”
“When undeniable evidence appears, conspiracy theorists say this.”
At that moment, Ahri stood up and dramatically exclaimed like a demagogue.
“It’s all a setup!”
“….”
“Everything, all, all of it! A complete setup!”
“… Who is manipulating the memories of the scheme?”
“Buddha orchestrated it all!!!”
I was momentarily speechless.
“You’re giving way too childish an analysis, aren’t you? You decide your conclusion first and insist that all opposing evidence is manipulated; the King isn’t some fool.”
“Do you think only people with low intelligence fall into conspiracy theories? Then, why do the world’s top elite at the Administration Bureau delve into them?”
“…”
Even hearing Ahri’s argument, it felt hard to accept.
To me, it seemed so unreasonable and foolish.
“No matter how I think about it, the King can’t be that foolish.”
Upon sensing my thoughts, Ahri simply shrugged.
“Seeing it as foolish is too much of your perspective. Try using some advice for a change. I’m curious.”
“Advice: 2 -> 1”
‘What do you think of the current conversation?’
The answer was remarkably simple.
“Heaven”
It was so simple it nearly shocked me.
“What?”
“Why? Did the Owl give you another cryptic reply? What did It say?”
“Heaven. Just two words.”
“Wow~ That’s the Owl for you. I always feel that we have no benefactor in this hotel who helps us like the Owl does.”
“True.”
“The one who helps the most is also the one who annoys me the most….”
Having said that, Ahri shook her head and added one last remark.
“Anyway, think carefully about what I said. You need to consider various possibilities.”
As Ahri left, I was left alone at the snack table, sipping cola while reflecting on the Owl’s advice.
To summarize what Ahri said:
It seems difficult to persuade either the pioneers or the King of Is, or to break their wills.
Neither seems to be the type of beings who accept others’ words like I do.
Ahri noted that the conspiracy theorists she encountered multiple times at the Bureau are a good example.
They never stray from the conclusion they’ve drawn; upon encountering opposing evidence, they deem it all manipulated.
After hearing this, the Owl’s response was simply:
“Heaven.”
“…”
— Clunk!
As the empty cola can was placed down on the table, I finally grasped the meaning behind the Owl’s ‘cautious’ advice.
Having settled on one conclusion, they budge not an inch.
No matter what obstacles arise, the unyielding will remains unshaken.
Ridiculous sacrifices, implicit tragedies, the sorrows of many—these are all seen as mere ‘temporary phenomena.’
The ultimate self.
A spirit unbroken even through eons of suffering.
“…”
Unknowingly, I raised my head to look above.
In this moment, I genuinely accepted the advice from Ahri and the Owl.
Not only foolish beings can fall into a self-certain mindset.
Some beings might be so great that they wouldn’t even consider the possibility of being wrong.
Such beings can be persuaded by no means.
“… If words don’t reach them, I might just have to show them some spicy flavor.”
Later that night, my comrades and I discussed how to approach the third attempt and drafted the rough outline of our plan.
When Eunsol proposed an incredibly risky plan, I made use of today’s last piece of advice.
“Advice: 1 -> 0”
‘What do you think about the plan?’
“The die is cast.”
Eunsol’s reaction to this was simple.
“What? Are you some kind of quotable genius?”
*
Morning broke.
The beginning of the third attempt.
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