The monster that swallowed the delay.
It wasn’t that he was such a terrible monster from the beginning. The place where he lived was like the rest of the world.
The good side and the bad side of the world.
good people and bad people.
It was a mediocre, ubiquitous world where everything coexisted.
If there’s something special about them, they don’t know hunger.
If they don’t eat or drink, they won’t die.
“It’s a pity that you all die if you don’t eat regularly.”
and one such person.
The man who appeared to be a researcher was staring blankly at a puppy lying on the street.
“Hunger… … . You must have been abandoned by God. Like poor guys.”
Just by existing, they can accept into their bodies the grace of God rooted in the world.
So other creatures that eat and drink water are not understood. Wouldn’t that kind of life be uncomfortable?
To those who did not know hunger, they were permanent organs, and the rest could only be seen as inconvenient creatures that needed to be recharged.
“Theo. What are you doing here?”
“yes? Oh Penny. I was just watching the poor god-forsaken life. It’s unfortunate.”
“… … If you want to pick it up, how about doing that?”
“I? Why?”
The man called Theo laughed cynically and shrugged, but the woman called Penny looked at Theo and smiled wryly.
“I thought if it wasn’t like that, I wouldn’t have to take care of it diligently.”
Theo had already taken a number of measures by the time he found the puppy lying on the side of the road.
First of all, not only did they cover themselves with towels so that they wouldn’t shiver in the cold, but they were also in a state of being prepared for different kinds of food for the puppy to eat.
Penny couldn’t help but laugh at her kindness.
“Well, if it’s such an imperfect life, a higher creature like us should take care of it. That makes sense.”
“Theo… … . You still have a lot of useless adjectives.”
Theo carefully lifted the puppy up, paying no heed to Penny’s ridiculous remarks.
“By the way, Penny. What else did you come for?”
“Oh right. The warden is calling.”
“The warden?”
“Yeah, why?”
Theo wanted to ponder for a moment, then said with a confused expression.
“Didn’t you and I get into an accident?”
Theo had been kicked out of the lab because he had an accident with Penny.
Normally, the two belonged to a fairly competent class, but for some reason, when they collaborated with each other, an accident happened and they didn’t get along well.
Because it was the two of them who caused the accident, they were tied together and called pœnítĕo.
Just like the word, which means ‘regret’, it meant that making them do the same thing would be something they would regret.
“No, Penny. Wasn’t this your fault in the first place? I was at work and you came to me on your own, and the accident happened. I feel unfair.”
“It’s sad that other people do it, but let’s not do it ourselves.”
Penny murmured at Theo’s words with a grim expression on her face.
“Well, it won’t be like that anyway. If it was that, I would have called too.”
“Oh yeah?”
“right. It’s just that I, like you, was kicked out, but I happened to run into him and tell him.”
“yes?”
Theo let out a sigh of relief while questioning.
‘It’s the warden… … .’
It’s already been 4 years since he got a job at this lab for the project.
He had yet to remember having had such a conversation with the warden.
“First of all… … okay.”
Theo left the puppy with Penny and immediately went to the director of the laboratory who said he had found him.
“Chief? This is Theo. May I come in?”
“Oh, are you here? come on in I was waiting for you.”
“Forgive me for being late.”
“No, I called you without prior notice, so there’s nothing to worry about.”
An old man with a benevolent impression.
‘Gentilis’, the director of the life science research institute where Theo belongs, put down the teacup and smiled kindly.
“So today is that… … What did you call me for?”
“I will tell you straight forward. Researcher Theo. Hey, do you have any plans to participate in my research?”
“Yes… … ?”
Theo couldn’t help but find Gentilis’ words embarrassing.
Not only did he have his original project, but the most important thing was that Theo didn’t know what Gentilis was researching.
The director of the research institute to which he belongs was a man of many secrets. Nothing is known about the study.
Even with such a large laboratory and such tremendous support, nothing is known.
Needless to say, it was to the extent that it was impossible to even know what kind of research he was doing or what his major was before.
“Oh, of course I’m not forcing you. I just thought it would be okay if it was you.”
“But the warden’s research… … .”
“Of course, it is still a secret. Since this is a secret project entrusted by the government, it cannot be explained by anyone other than those involved.”
“Is that so?”
“There is no such thing as too much pressure. I just heard that your project is close to completion. If you’re going to replenish the staff, wouldn’t it be nice to have a colleague from the same research lab?”
“Ah, yes. That’s for sure.”
Theo had no memories of being associated with Gentilis, but it was true that he spent close to four years at the institute.
It is better to select reliable people around you than to expand the number of people by finding and filtering out spies who are targeting research contents from outside.
Theo finally relaxed to some extent. Isn’t that a reason I can understand?
“I will tell you the answer later. Today I just wanted to ask for your opinion.”
“Ah, yes.”
so the conversation is over. The very moment Tae-o was about to leave the room in awkward silence.
“Researcher Theo.”
“Yes?”
Gentilis said.
“I think you are like me. So you probably won’t regret taking part in this project.”
A soft smile and a voice full of trust.
But why did Theo hear those words of trust?
“Yes… … .”
It seemed to give me goosebumps.
* * *
Theo eventually joined the project at Gentilis’ request.
just for a moment As if possessed by the words that he would not regret it, he made up his mind.
Originally, it would have been something I had to think about for a long time.
You won’t know until you reach the end whether you will regret it or not.
It is only important how to fill the process for the result.
Fortunately, there was no lie in Gentilis’ words. It was clear that it was a study to save the world.
“This… … .”
“As you can see. We are perishing.”
Theo understood.
The meaning of the long-winded words of saving the world.
extinction of the species. If that was the case, I would have just hidden it. No, on the contrary, it was something that should never be discovered.
It was easily expected that people would panic when the fact spread outside.
“You say you have a dog?”
“Ah, yes. picked up by chance We are protecting them because they are creatures that cannot survive unless they consume something.”
Theo, like Penny, hid his shame by covering his goodness with the idea of the chosen people.
“That’s right. But it’s not just puppies. Fish swimming in the sea and birds flying in the sky. Aren’t they all consuming something to cover their lives?”
The warden seemed to smile wryly at the sight of Theo, and then continued the story.
“But we don’t. For us, food is just a luxury item.”
Gentilis raised her teacup. It was filled with a liquid that looked like blood, perhaps because of the lighting.
“It’s tea. It’s because I like to eat it a little thicker. Would you like to hear it too?”
“Oh, no. Fine.”
Even if I ate, I was not full, and even if I drank, my thirst did not go away. Because they don’t have such a system in the first place.
“We can live without eating or drinking. Now, if they get their nutrients from the food they eat, what do we get our nutrients from?”
“… … This is Deva. Warden.”
“Right. For convenience, we call it that way. We gain strength through that ‘Deva’. But it also means the other way around.”
Gentilis broke out in a cold sweat.
He is the kind of person who can assume the unlikely from the obvious. It was a person who had only assumed.
“How on earth can we live without the Devas?”
“… … that’s.”
How can we survive if the air disappears from the world?
It was like that question.
The moment such an assumption is established in the first place, there is no going back.
“Perhaps the imperfect life is us, not them.”
You can live without eating or drinking. But there is no doubt that they also need something.
And that ‘something’ was irreplaceable.
It is impossible to create artificially, so if such a situation comes, it is inevitable that it will perish.
“Until now, that was only hypothetical. It was just an illusion. But look at this. Assumptions are becoming reality, delusions are becoming phenomena.”
The data provided by Gentilis included the fertility rate over the past five years, as well as the phenomenon that life itself is dying out.
Thoroughness, no, in a sense, a kind of madness to believe that it must happen.
“why… … . Did you choose me?”
“Didn’t I tell you? Because I think you are the same as me.”
“… … .”
My head was dizzy.
If it was a religious eschatology, I would have laughed at it, but the opponent in front of me was an authoritative researcher and was holding objective data.
Theo couldn’t help but shudder at the ominous feeling that ran through his body the more he read the material.
The end, no, the culling of imperfect species is approaching in real time.
“At this rate, you only have three years left… … .”
“That’s right. In the next three years, ‘Deva’ will disappear from this world.”
“After that? What will happen after the ‘Deva’ disappears?”
“Well? I don’t know what will happen. So we’re just looking for all the means we can get ready for.”
Theo felt the weight of the determined determination in the warden’s eyes.
Research to save the world.
There’s no way Theo doesn’t know how heavy it means to jump into such research. His failure will soon lead to the extinction of the species.
“I am… … .”
in the midst of the pressure and fear.
“What can I do first?”
Theo made a choice.
A choice that will probably leave nothing but regret.
* * *
So time goes by and goes by.
The promised moment of destruction is already right around the corner. Theo set up as many hypotheses and countermeasures as possible with the director and numerous researchers.
There was nothing I could do.
What to do? ‘Deva’, which they always carry in their bodies and use as energy, is a power that has not yet been proven.
How can we find a countermeasure when we have not even identified the power?
All they can do is after ‘Deva’ disappears from this world. It was about what they could do.
“Theo, you seem tired these days. Are you okay? Would you like a cup of coffee?”
“… … Thanks, Penny.”
“Research even under these circumstances, you are a very different kind.”
“Nothing… … . Nothing has been decided yet.”
Many people felt the loss. That’s natural.
At the point where the birth rate statistics for the past year reached 0, people had no choice but to recall that fact even if they didn’t like it.
Distinct statistics have made certainty out of vagueness.
In fact, the overall life span was also decreasing, and there were too many mysterious deaths that could not even reveal the cause of death.
“Uncle Rosen, who lived next door. He passed away suddenly yesterday.”
“… … .”
“Another disease of unknown cause. He was still on the right side, but at some point he weakened and died.”
“I see.”
“Here, Theo. How do you think the research will yield results?”
“I don’t know.”
“I see… … . So, are we all going to die like this?”
Theo was able to notice one thing from Penny’s tone.
Theo looked at Penny with a stunned look, and Penny had a smirk on Theo’s face, as if it were funny.
“you… … Did you know?”
“Well, you knew. How much is our exchange, don’t you know that? You made an effort every time you heard rumors of someone dying.”
“I thought I was confident with my poker face, but I guess I wasn’t.”
“Isn’t that so?”
At Theo’s self-condemnation, Penny giggled and slapped Theo on the back.
“Because I noticed. Didn’t anyone else notice?”
“yes… … ?”
“Yeah, it’s me. So cheer up. Even if you fail, no one will blame you. at least i do So don’t be pressured.”
“It is not a matter of blaming anyone. It can’t be a burden.”
“What, it’s already been four years. Isn’t it too late to regret it now?”
“Yeah, it’s too late to regret… … .”
Theo refreshed his mind by washing his face dry. It’s too late to regret.
The only thing left to do is to do our best until the moment of the end arrives.
“I’ll go back to the lab.”
“Yes, Theo. i’ll wait here Because if I go, I think it will create synergy in a bad way.”
“Well… … . Even if you follow me and cause an accident.”
Nicknamed peniteo (pœnítĕo), which is a combination of the two.
The two of them committed something they would regret to the extent that it could be said to be a ‘must have’.
Theo also admitted that the two of them often created synergy in a bad way.
but… … .
“I don’t want to regret it.”
“yes?”
Theo denied the jinx for the first time. Yeah, that was just a jinx after all. It was a means to excuse one’s own failures.
“As you said, it’s too late to regret it. If it was a social event that would explode just because of your mistake, we must have been lacking in preparation from the start.”
There are no more excuses.
I just do my best in the task I have been assigned so that I don’t regret it.
Theo headed back to the lab.