Chapter 168

Chapter 168

From Cosmic Rascal to Professor.

Episode 168: Second Year (3).

I couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief.

The situation was absurd – an Outer God had set up a laboratory inside someone’s mind. Life certainly had its surprises. If I ever had children, this would make for an incredible bedtime story.

Cartesia, who was perched in her chair, spun around to face me.

“Kid, take a seat.”

“I’ll need a normal chair first.”

What Cartesia called a chair was nothing more than a mass of writhing tentacles, with hardened suckers forming a makeshift seat and backrest. No sane person would sit on that.

“Could you at least get rid of these tentacles?”

“For a human, you’re quite demanding.”

With a snap of her fingers, the tentacles transformed into normal wooden material. I carefully lowered myself into the chair as she got straight to business.

“The Constellation, the Crystal, and the Ether Neural Network – today was fascinating. Thanks to you, I’ve stumbled upon an intriguing topic.”

“What might that be?”

“Would you like to know?”

“Not particularly?”

“You don’t have a choice. Just be quiet and listen.”

She began speaking with the enthusiasm of a child who had just received a present.

“That Constellation was imprisoned within a crystal. You used that crystal to develop technology capable of blocking our species’ thought signals. Yet despite our neural structures being different, they share remarkable similarities.”

There was nothing particularly extraordinary about it – it was purely academic discussion.

As I listened, I began to understand what she was trying to convey.

“If we can just understand this structure, we could sever the lifeline of those Darwin bastards. I’m absolutely certain. And that’s not all – we could even turn those Constellation leaders’ minds into blank slates…”

“Um, Outer God?”

I called out to Cartesia, but she continued her rapid monologue. Unable to bear it any longer, I clapped loudly to get her attention.

“…What do you want, kid?”

“What exactly are you getting at?”

I feigned ignorance.

Cartesia leaned back in her chair, stroking her chin thoughtfully. She was clearly stalling.

While I might not know much about Outer Gods, I was familiar with this kind of behavior.

“Let me guess – you just wanted someone to share your ideas with.”

“… Don’t make assumptions, kid.”

“Then why did you bring me here?”

“That’s…”

“It doesn’t make sense, does it? You’re an Outer God, and I’m just a mere human. If you’re curious about something, you could think it through and research it yourself. Why go through the trouble of showing me your lab and all this?”

Having encountered Outer Gods multiple times before, this level of conversation no longer intimidated me. It’s like emailing professors – terrifying as a freshman but routine by graduation.

I pressed on, teasing her further.

“Shall I explain? You’re lonely. Why? Because you live bound by ‘chains.’ You exist because you cannot die.”

“…Hey. Rookie.”

“You’ve been trapped in a single black hole for at least hundreds of thousands of years. As a God of ‘Wisdom’ and ‘Curiosity’ who loves exploration and adventure, you must be desperate to explore beyond these confines. Am I right?”

The ‘chains’ – constraints placed on her by another Outer God – prevent Cartesia from leaving our galaxy’s spiral arm.

While I don’t know the reason behind it, one thing is certain.

“Isn’t it lonely?”

“Ha, interesting.”

Cartesia scoffed.

“Are you worried about my well-being now, human? Trying to crawl up to me? Do you think I’m that easy?”

Worm-like tentacles emerged from behind her. I didn’t flinch. After experiencing tentacle encounters during every visit, I’d grown accustomed to it.

“Lonely? Me? You must be mistaken. I called you here for a quest. I’ll give you a new trial, and if you show an interesting approach…”

“You’re lying.”

Cartesia, who had been slowly wrapping a tentacle around my neck, hesitated. Undeterred, I continued with confidence.

“You haven’t issued any forced quests lately. Outer Gods typically give quests for fun and amusement. But from what I can tell, you’re not just some monster driven by such trivial matters.”

Most Outer Gods lived for entertainment. They were provocative and violent by nature. Cartesia was different. She had firm standards.

Academic interest.

That was her sole criterion for issuing quests.

“While other Darwinian fools might wonder, ‘wouldn’t it be fun if men could get pregnant,’ you’re more interested in whether XY chromosomes could actually combine. That’s just who you are. I understand people like you well.”

“…You think you know me?”

“Of course. Because you’re cut from the same cloth as I am.”

Cartesia was visibly unsettled. Though I couldn’t read her mind, her discomfort was as clear as day.

“I may not understand the minds of Outer Gods, but I understand researchers. Aren’t you the God of ‘Wisdom’ and ‘Curiosity’? You’re perpetually thirsting for knowledge, compelled to investigate whatever piques your interest.”

I thought back to the relocation exam.

The day we defeated the monster Renanial and found ourselves stranded with Rustila and Zelnya. Immediately after our conversation, Cartesia gave me her paper on the Graviton Bomb. Not an ability or item but a research paper.

“Publishing papers makes you essentially a researcher. And in research, things like gender, nationality, religion, race – none of that matters.”

“Ha.”

“Shall I be direct? Cartesia, you need a research partner.”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, rookie…”

“Work with me.”

For a split second, Cartesia’s expression changed.

“What did you just say?”

The look appeared and vanished too quickly to fully grasp, but I caught her twisting her lips.

“Co-work? Are you suggesting joint research, human?”

“Yes, joint research. Share your ideas with me, and together, we’ll discover as many applications of the crystal as possible.”

Suddenly, a warning from ‘Surviving Outer Gods’ flashed through my mind:

Never ask the Outer Gods for a favor.

The reasoning was obvious – Outer Gods always demanded payment for their favors, usually something far more precious than what they offered in return.

But then a thought occurred to me: What if we reversed the dynamic?

“Let’s create a device to trap the Darwin System. We’ll also research ways to alter the conditions under which Constellation of Virgo operates. If we succeed in subduing ‘Aurore’ and my relationship with Rustila progresses, Cartesia, I’ll grant you one wish.”

I will grant you a reward.

So accept my quest.

“…You madman.”

The response was instantaneous.

Cartesia drew a deep breath before erupting into uncontrollable laughter.

“You lunatic! You are an absolute lunatic! This guy is completely insane——!!”

Her manic laughter echoed through the space, bordering on madness itself.

I was taken aback. It was the first time I’d seen Cartesia display such intense emotions, given her usually calm demeanor.

“How dare you propose a quest to an Outer God without knowing your place? And then to grant a wish? Do you think you’re smarter and more capable than me?”

The ground trembled beneath us. The geodetic coordinate system became unstable, wobbling as space itself began to progress.

Then, suddenly—

Swoosh!

In the encompassing darkness, eyes resembling luminescent jellyfish materialized, surrounding me with their penetrating gaze.

“Listen here.”

The sight was both bizarre and terrifying.

“You might think we are alike, but let me enlighten you. Kid, there’s a dimensional wall between us—the third dimension. While you exist in the fourth dimension, I reside in the seventh or beyond, in super-spacetime. We inhabit entirely different planes of existence. Understand? Yet you dare…”

“That’s enough.”

I interrupted, gesturing toward the ‘indescribable’ devices.

“This is your lab, right? Your shop is the ‘Secret Lab of Cartesia,’ correct? As a public lab, I have every right to purchase these items.”

I’d been observing for a while now. When I concentrated, focusing my vision, faint numbers appeared—price tags. They ranged from a few hundred prons to tens of thousands.

“Since we’re going to be working together, should I move these to my professor’s lab?”

“What…?”

I’d been accumulating prons without spending them. There was no point in hoarding them if I wasn’t fighting.

This seemed like the perfect opportunity to put them to use.

“Did you know?”

“Know what?”

“Deals with Outer Gods or Constellations take place in the contractor’s gray matter… which means humans have the advantage.”

Snap!

I snapped my fingers.

‘Matter Crusher’ has been purchased.

“Wait, you madman! What do you think you’re doing?”

‘5-Dimensional Crystal Cutter’ has been purchased.

‘Incarnate Manufacturing Device’ has been purchased.

‘Ether-Anti-Ether Pair Generator’ has been purchased.

“Stop buying! I said stop!”

Would you like to purchase the ‘Ultra High-Density Pron Beamline’?

“No, not the beamline! That’s my favorite—it costs 165,000 prons!”

“Oh, just made it.”

‘Ultra High-Density Pron Beamline’ has been purchased.

Cartesia let out an anguished scream.

Immediately after my actions, I was struck roughly 300 times by a hardened tentacle. Since it wasn’t the real world, I survived, but the pain was something I never wanted to experience again.

Rubbing my stinging face, I asked.

“Be honest. Why did you show me the lab? You knew perfectly well what all the shops were like.”

“…”

“If you don’t want to talk, that’s fine.”

“You’ll die later, kid.”

I could guess the reason even without asking. That’s just how researchers are.

Setting up a lab and keeping it private, hidden from others? They could never do that. Researchers are the type who can’t resist showing off new equipment – like someone who feels compelled to share a cake the moment they get it.

“Come to think of it, my peaceful coexistence with the Outer God began when I made that deal about the Graviton Bomb research.”

“So what? What’s the big deal?”

“I was just wondering if it had anything to do with the ‘chains’.”

A grinding sound echoed in my mind – teeth gnashing together.

Cartesia remained silent for a while.

Meanwhile, Professor Feynman stood gaping at the Outer God’s new equipment.

“My goodness, what is all this? Student Aidel, did you bring this in?”

“Yes, I purchased it myself.”

“This is incredible.”

The unused room was packed with various pieces of equipment. The beamline, however, was much larger and still in its non-materialized state. Items purchased with Pron could be materialized at any desired location when needed, like the ‘Calipers of Wisdom’ I received from Cartesia.

Still, the equipment present should suffice for crystal research. The beamline installation could wait…

“…So, are you going to do the quest or not?”