Chapter 703 – Room 301, The Cursed Room – ‘Origin of Species’ (37)
—
In Room 301, the direct phenomenon causing the end is the blessing ceremony.
Thus, by destroying the blessing ceremony with the help of the Duke, who has experienced the divine realm and awakened the truth, we can prevent the end.
Lee Eunsol must have thought this was our plan until just before losing consciousness.
Not an entirely wrong assessment!
In fact, that was the plan we initially set during the meeting.
…
There was a colleague who mentioned a completely different possibility.
To be more precise, there was a summoned entity who brought up an entirely different possibility.
*
“Is stopping the blessing ceremony really enough?”
“Eunsol, if you have an opinion, please share it.”
“I think it might trigger a resolution. But I don’t see this as a fundamental solution.”
“A fundamental solution? What do you mean, Eunsol?”
“Think for a second. Who created this blessing ceremony in the first place?”
“The prisoner.”
“My mother, the King of Is, is the root cause.”
“That’s…”
“The blessing is merely a magical ceremony created by my mother. Even if we destroy the blessing, it will only be a temporary solution. No matter how long it takes, my mother will restore the blessing.”
“Miss Eunsol, you make a valid point about the prisoner being the root cause, but what can we do? We can’t deal with the prisoner in our current condition.”
*
At first, everyone was confused by Eunsol’s words.
It wasn’t that the idea of the prisoner being the root cause was incorrect, but nobody knew what to do about it.
At that time, Sanghyun was echoing the thoughts from the hotel party.
Suddenly, Eunsol’s eyes glimmered eerily.
The words that came next were something I wouldn’t easily forget.
*
“If just one of them dies, all these problems will be over.”
“Eunsol, what are you -”
“Let’s kill my mother.”
*
Let’s kill my mother.
Let’s kill my mother.
Let’s kill my mother.
Having the two awkward words come together in one sentence sounded bizarre yet chilling.
Of course, it could be considered a form of self-defense since that mother had been ridiculing heavenly principles first.
After that, the “true plan” currently in progress took shape.
…
Talking about the time in the hotel.
Even if a long time passes in the cursed room or the real world, the hotel remains unaffected by the flow of time.
Even if we spend a week on vacation in the hotel, it doesn’t have any direct impact on the cursed room or the outside world.
Moreover, even the companions were captured from different loops, and the hotel can send us back to our respective loops.
Given this fact, one conclusion can be drawn.
The hotel, especially the time axis of the third floor, is completely separated from reality.
There’s a reason it’s deemed as the “Celestial Realm” both internally and externally, and the area itself is regarded as something extraordinary.
…
The legacy of the labyrinth, the temporal summoning.
If a summoned entity from the past timeframe is killed, the original body in the current timeframe will also perish.
This can also be viewed as a form of the principle of causation.
Then, let’s consider a scenario where a summoned entity from the temporal summoning is outside, and the original body is inside the hotel.
If the summoned entity outside dies, will the original body in the hotel die?
Connecting this with the aforementioned theory of time in the hotel leads to an interesting conclusion.
Logically, it shouldn’t die.
No matter what happens to the summoned entity outside, the original body inside the hotel should remain unaffected.
Because the time axis of the Celestial Realm is completely disconnected from the mortal realm.
Even if the summoned entity dies outside, that would hardly be seen as a past event for the original body in the celestial realm.
Thus, the flow of causation created by the temporal summoning will not impact those in the hotel.
…
However, there are always exceptions in this world.
If the time of the Celestial Realm is always separated from reality, how then do observers monitor Room 301 in “real-time”?
While time flowed in Room 301, it also flowed in the observatory.
While my companions faced struggles in Room 301, those in the observatory were eating and sleeping.
In other words, during the observation, Room 301 and the hotel shared the same time.
This is why the observatory’s telescope exists.
The telescope in the observatory is not merely a device for viewing distant Earth.
It’s a grand artifact that temporarily synchronizes the time axis and causation of the celestial realm with the observed target.
The conclusion is simple.
While the telescope observes Room 301, the time of Room 301 and that of the Celestial Realm are one.
*
“User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 18
Current Location: Floor 3, Lobby
Sage’s Advice: 0”
— Han Kain
— Thunder!
Suddenly, the king appeared with a thunderous rumble.
Radiating five colors from his entire being.
An overwhelming presence that instantly dominated the surroundings.
It felt like the divine power that illuminates the universe was concentrated into a single point, creating an enormous essence.
It was exactly the same as what I saw not long ago!
The moment our eyes met, the opponent smirked playfully.
+ In Eunsol’s memories, I was on Earth, but I see I’m actually here? +
“Ugh…!”
+ Was my appearance on Earth merely an illusion? +
Despite awakening from Eunsol’s heart, he referred to her as a stranger.
The opponent thinks of himself not as Lee Eunsol, but as the King of Is.
Despite the reality that he has lost most of his power, he remains on Earth.
And yet, there’s not a hint of wavering in his identity.
It struck me just how bizarre the mindset of a great being truly is.
It’s not just because they have immense power that they are great.
Their essence, mindset, self-identity, and the principles of their souls are completely different from mortals, thus they are called gods.
Perhaps, I chose to abandon the path of Aleph because I didn’t want to change like this.
The king chuckled softly.
+ Eunsol felt a sense of relief knowing you are with her, yet you have not even descended from the celestial realm. Isn’t that quite unfair? +
A joking demeanor.
His tone was one resembling a jovial quip with no seriousness whatsoever.
The opponent felt no tension whatsoever.
This shows just how vast the gap between us is.
Not only could I not overcome him alone, but even gathering all of us here would not allow us to defeat him.
Not to mention even landing a meaningful blow is out of the question.
Yet, I might be able to send a signal.
Not to brag, but I can split my body into two.
*
— Lee Eunsol
…
— Whoosh!
I realized it was raining from the sky.
“…”
Right before, I had received the plea of “Borrow me some time!” from Miro and gave my consent.
Once I blinked, the scenery had completely transformed.
Ah…
I’m a summoned entity.
I hadn’t really paid much attention to it before, but this time feels different.
Another version of myself made a plan I’m unaware of.
Another version of me wields me like a game piece.
Just a moment ago, I thought of the other timeframe me as something scary, but now I am that other version of Lee Eunsol, aren’t I?
Feeling truly mixed emotions, just as I was about to sigh, I sensed some unease.
“Hmm?”
Typically, isn’t Miro summoning allies during a crisis?
If Miro summoned me, it seemed likely there would be a situation where the Is race was attacking, and mental protection would be required.
That was not the case at all.
Miro was silently holding an umbrella, and the old man next to him was just staring at a metal rod stuck in the dirt.
“What’s going on?”
“…”
“What? We’re not fighting right now?”
“Nope.”
“Then what’s going on?”
“We’re just waiting.”
“What’s up with that metal rod stuck in the ground?”
“I’m waiting for a signal.”
“A signal?”
After about ten minutes of nothing happening, a bizarre event occurred.
— Boom!
With a vibration that scraped against my skin, the metal rod began to sway violently left and right.
Seeing that, I realized this was the very signal my companions had been waiting for!
That’s why Miro and the old man seemed fixated on the metal rod—they were ready for anything as soon as the poltergeist kicked in at the observatory!
As a thought like that crossed my mind, I chuckled a bit.
“Sorry.”
“Eh?”
— Bang!
The sound of a gunshot rang out.
My vision faded.
Consciousness drifted far away.
The voice that came to me seemed like an excuse.
“Sorry. But, this is your plan.”
And then, there was no one.
*
— Han Kain
— Crackle!
The king’s head exploded.
In that moment, I thought cherry blossoms were blooming from Eunsol’s head.
It seemed that the king had pulled some trick, as the smashed skull and shattered brain fragments moved in slow motion.
However, it didn’t really change the situation.
No matter what happens, there’s no way to stop the causation that “Lee Eunsol died in the past.”
It was right then!
— Whoosh!
As if defying fate, the scattered flesh began to reassemble!
Even if it’s the King of Is, he couldn’t erase the past event that “Lee Eunsol died in the past.”
But a great being can recreate the insane possibility of “the dead Lee Eunsol returned to life!”
This is neither the causation created by the temporal summoning, nor a contradiction.
Resurrection is not the negation of death but rather an overcoming of death!
+ Was this your scheme? +
Hearing the voice as if nothing happened despite the skull being crushed, I contemplated.
This possibility indeed.
Even though the summoning destroyed Eunsol’s body, this insane prisoner attempts to resurrect the dead!
And that’s why it had to be ‘me’ who remained in the celestial realm.
“Just one shot left.”
+ Wait, what – +
— Whoosh!
A dangerously glowing book filled with mystery glimmered as I bit into it.
The fact proven at the end of the second round.
The time I can obstruct the prisoner is only three seconds.
In other words, I can stop for three seconds.
This is something that absolutely can’t be replaced by anyone else, only I can do it.
Stopping the King of Is’s attempt to resurrect for three seconds!
“Now, the participant’s qualification you stole from my daughter has vanished.”
Shock, horror, panic – and then fear.
Feeling a fear from the prisoner that I’d never thought I would express.
“Can you hold on in the celestial realm without qualifications for three seconds?”
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