Ch.9696. A Sudden Farewell.

When there is a beginning, there must also be an end. When there is a meeting, there must also be a parting.

Even Mori’s broadcast, which had transcended time itself, could not defy this immutable truth.

Just as suddenly as it had appeared, Mori’s broadcast vanished. Since there had been occasions in the past when the broadcast had abruptly gone offline, people assumed it would return the next day.

But a day passed. Two days passed. A week passed.

Mori’s broadcast never returned.

Whether you liked it or not, it was the first video you’d see when visiting any streaming site.

Scenes of a devastating future unlike anything depicted in any film or media.

The broadcast constantly sparked controversy for various reasons—the authenticity of the footage, the dangerous implications of its content, the futuristic technology it displayed.

Yet despite all this, Mori’s broadcast received far more attention than she could have ever imagined. Anyone with a phone or computer knew about it, regardless of nationality or age.

Of course, many disliked the unsettling landscapes shown in the broadcast. Others had grown accustomed to the quiet, solitary nature of the stream—so different from the dopamine-flooding content that dominated modern society—and stopped watching.

But whenever something “special” happened on Mori’s broadcast, even those who didn’t usually watch would tune in and fill the chat with comments.

That’s exactly what happened when Mori and Robot visited the abandoned photo studio.

An alien structure rising from a vast snowfield. Stairs leading down into a dark interior.

Ironically, what they found there was an ordinary photo studio that could have existed even in the 21st century.

Behind this familiar yet out-of-place photo studio was something viewers recognized—

A computer that had appeared occasionally in Mori’s broadcast, enough to make an impression on viewers.

Whether that cube shape represented the most efficient computer design humans could achieve,

Or whether future computers were built that way because people had seen this design in Mori’s broadcast, no one could say.

But for the first time, this computer—which had been visible before but never operational—came to life.

There was no monitor, keyboard, or mouse—none of the peripherals typically needed to operate a computer.

Just as viewers were marveling at the incredible technology that could overlay virtual elements onto Mori’s reality,

A flood of history in the form of photographs began pouring from the tiny computer.

Technological advancement and towering skyscrapers. People living abundantly surrounded by machines.

Countless disasters and wars. People starving and dying from injuries amid collapsed ruins.

The photos poured forth as if to say: this is how the world became what it is because of all these events.

Unfortunately, these images were captured on camera for only a few seconds.

[“That’s impossible.”]

Just as people began to grasp the significance of these photographs depicting events that hadn’t yet occurred, Mori discovered an image of herself among the snow-like pile of photos.

That was the last anyone saw of her.

In that moment when Mori shook her head in disbelief at finding her present self in photos taken by people from the past, the previously stable broadcast began buffering, then terminated completely.

It happened so quickly that many viewers, confused by the sudden end, waited for the broadcast to resume. But as we know, it never did.

It had been a broadcast that many people watched with interest. After it disappeared, with some rare reports claiming to have seen Mori collapse just before the broadcast cut off, there was much discussion.

But people’s attention was already focused on the brief glimpse of human history that had been revealed, so not many remained concerned about the broadcast or Mori herself.

As time passed, however, those who wanted more than just the recorded footage, as well as those who had simply enjoyed Mori’s broadcast, began waiting for her return.

Weeks passed.

Months.

Years.

Based on the records captured in those photos, humanity prevented wars and disasters, and rapidly reproduced the future technologies glimpsed in Mori’s broadcast, achieving revolutionary advancement. But Mori’s broadcast never returned.

No matter how many times people refreshed the video site in a trance-like state, the broadcast wouldn’t come back. Eventually, they had to accept the truth.

That by seeing both future and past simultaneously, and by changing the future as a result, they had become distanced from her.

Even the same seed will produce vastly different results depending on when, where, and how it’s grown—how could a world that had changed its actions after seeing its future possibly follow the same path?

Almost no one watching Mori’s broadcast wanted that future to come true anyway, so no one failed to understand when told that the future had changed. Nevertheless, some people were disappointed.

Investors lamented the loss of future information, while others who had grown attached to Mori—watching her survive alone in harsh conditions, occasionally reading and appreciating messages—felt the loss deeply.

But no matter how much they worried or wished for the broadcast to return, there was no way to send their hopes to Mori.

Besides, there was a high possibility that Mori no longer existed in the already-altered future.

Eventually, people rationalized the situation.

If such a dangerous broadcast had continued, they might have witnessed something truly shocking. Though it was sudden, wasn’t this the best ending for everyone?

Since Mori’s broadcast had such a profound impact on all of humanity, discussions about it continued for a long time.

Though there could be no definitive answers about something that had already ended and would never return,

No one disputed the claim that if Mori’s broadcast had continued, all those viewers would eventually have witnessed her death.

They might have seen her sustain a serious injury in that harsh environment, or slowly die from an incurable disease.

Perhaps they would even have witnessed her losing all hope and taking her own life.

While part of people’s interest in Mori came from watching her survive in such harsh conditions,

That didn’t mean they wanted to see her suffering or dying.

So what happened to Mori? What is she doing now? If the future changed, wouldn’t she have been spared from such a fate? Is that too hopeful a thought?

Though many questions remained, as time passed, public mentions decreased. With new issues arising and a rapidly changing world demanding adaptation, people gradually forgot about Mori.

Occasionally, when a company or technology first seen in her videos emerged, or when a war or incident that should have happened was resolved, people would remember—”Oh right, there was that broadcast”—but otherwise, life went on normally.

Humanity had only one task remaining: to escape the once-certain extinction of mankind.

Since the glimpse of future photos had been so brief, no one knew exactly what needed to be done to avoid this end.

But with the world changing rapidly thanks to knowledge from the future,

If all of humanity worked together, they could surely escape extinction and ensure Mori’s broadcast hadn’t been in vain.

However, such a hopeful outcome did not materialize.

Mori’s broadcast undeniably changed many things. It prevented wars. It advanced technology. It raised awareness about environmental pollution and the dangers of excessive technological development and individualism.

But the impact wasn’t entirely positive. Even though the events hadn’t occurred yet, the revelation that certain parties would have started wars led to various diplomatic and political incidents. Other wars not recorded in history broke out instead.

Competition over interpreting the technologies only glimpsed in the videos intensified with each passing day.

The gap between countries that could implement these technologies and those that couldn’t grew wider. Even though the future had already changed, companies failed simply because they hadn’t appeared in Mori’s videos.

Reality always moves quickly, and the world develops even faster, constantly demanding that we keep up. Mori’s broadcast only intensified this pressure.

While people were already struggling to adapt to reality, few had the luxury to worry about the distant future.

Of course, the extinction of humanity hundreds of years in the future was a serious matter. But it didn’t feel as immediate as losing one’s job and starving along with one’s family.

Despite consistent efforts from some, people grew frustrated without being able to confirm whether their actions were making a difference or would meaningfully help the future.

Developing something that doesn’t yet exist is inherently lonely and painful—everyone knows this. But few people could dedicate themselves to a cause without reward or satisfaction when the results wouldn’t be seen for hundreds of years.

The biggest problem was that some began claiming that since Mori’s broadcast had disappeared, everything must have been resolved, and they only needed to focus on their own lives.

People gradually succumbed to this drug-like public opinion that obscured their vague concerns about the future. Even if problems arose, they maintained the optimistic belief that someone in the distant future would handle it.

“It was too sudden a farewell.”

Among all this, only those who dreamed more of the future than the present, those who sought to realize the impossible, continued to feel a sense of crisis and remember Mori.