Ryu stood up slowly, the book still floating before him, now closed again, awaiting his next question. But his mind was heavy with what he had just read.
In Antarctica, there existed a being capable of altering the planet's magnetic poles and atmospheric systems at will. Ryu looked down at his small hand, a shiver running through him, and asked himself, "Could I ever make something like that calm?"
The destruction described was beyond imagination. He wanted to find a purpose, but this—this was a calamity, and now he knew about it.
Ryu put a hand on his face and sighed. "Knowing too much isn't always a blessing."
He shook his head, letting his equilibrium reset his nerves. Calm once more, he told himself, "I can't allow this to happen. At the very least, I have to prevent anyone attempting to awaken this entity from succeeding."
He looked at the book floating before him and spoke: "I want to know about these people… who are trying to awaken it, and why."
The book's cover shimmered and changed, bold black letters appearing: [SEELE]. It opened, text flickering in greenish-blue.
The [Book of Everything] reported:
[SEELE is a secretive organization operating worldwide, composed of national leaders, influential families, and the wealthy elite. Publicly, the group's actions are obscure, but internally, their goal is the "Human Instrumentality Project". They seek to unify all human souls into a single consciousness, erasing individual identity to eliminate conflict, loneliness, and suffering.]
[Millennia ago, ancient texts known as the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered, containing knowledge about the Seed of Life—an entity capable of triggering a transformation of humanity itself. SEELE interprets these texts as a blueprint for guiding humanity into a singular, perfected form.]
[Their plan involves awakening this Seed of Life and orchestrating events that will lead to the merging of all human souls.]
[To achieve this, they manipulate governments, corporations, and covert organizations, hiding their ultimate goal from most of their own members. Only a select few understand the true scale of their ambition: to forcibly reshape humanity, transcending individuality to achieve what they call "perfection."]
Ryu read the text again, feeling a knot tighten in his chest. 'Maybe I read it wrong…' he thought, rereading the lines carefully. He looked at his small hand, gripped it, and nodded to himself. 'Yeah… I'm awake.'
He glanced back at the floating book, and seeing the same text, let out a long sigh as he crouched down. "Why… just why?" His voice barely whispered.
He didn't know what else to say. What he was reading was far worse than he could have imagined. There were people willing to destroy their own entire race… all for what? Perfection?
Ryu pressed his fingers against his forehead, trying to process it. "First, they're trying to awaken an entity that could destroy the Earth's atmosphere. And if that isn't enough… they have a plan to extinguish all of humanity." He shook his head. "What is this… some kind of max-difficulty game?"
Though his body and mind remained calm, the magnitude of the information was hard to grasp. He shook his head again to clear his thoughts and turned back to the book. "Tell me… how does the Human Instrumentality begin?" he asked.
The [Book of Everything] shimmered and closed itself, its cover morphing as new text appeared. Bold letters spelled [LILITH]. It opened, pages glowing with greenish-blue light as it began reporting:
[Lilith is one of the Seeds of Life, an ancient entity responsible for propagating life on Earth. According to the Dead Sea Scrolls, she was sent to the planet long ago to act as the "Mother" of humanity, ensuring the proliferation and development of human life.]
[The Scrolls describe that Lilith contains the collective potential of all human souls. The Human Instrumentality Project, as interpreted by SEELE, is intended to merge all human consciousness into a single entity by reconnecting humanity with Lilith's soul. This would eliminate individual identity, loneliness, and conflict—achieving what they call "perfect existence."]
[Lilith herself is currently restrained beneath Tokyo-3, within Terminal Dogma, sealed in a state of dormancy. Her immense power is suppressed by a combination of physical containment, specialized restraints installed by SEELE, and the structural and environmental systems of the underground facility. While her potential is nearly limitless, she cannot yet act freely, and any attempt to do so would be contained by these safeguards.]
[SEELE's plan is to gradually manipulate these containment factors, orchestrate human events, and align global circumstances to trigger her awakening, ultimately initiating Instrumentality. Until then, her influence remains latent; her overwhelming potential is held in check, waiting for the conditions to be properly aligned.]
Ryu looked through the text as he read, slowly piecing things together. "So… humans actually came from her, the Seed of Life, Lillith… and she has the ability to merge all of humanity again?" he murmured to himself, his brow furrowing.
He forced himself to focus, trying to make sense of what he didn't want to believe—but he didn't have the luxury of denial. This was real.
As he scanned the pages, he realized something chilling. "SEELE had almost complete control over the Seed of Life. If they can slowly remove the safeguards to begin Instrumentality at their own pace…" he whispered, a cold knot forming in his chest. "…then they could do it even now."
A deep, shuddering breath left him, and he could feel the weight of the situation pressing down. This being—the very origin of humanity—was being controlled by a group of fanatical lunatics.
He gripped his forehead, muttering, "My head… it hurts." Just thinking about the consequences made chills crawl down his spine, even though the air around him was warm.
He shook his head, trying to clear the dread clouding his thoughts. This mission—this purpose he had set for himself—was only getting harder. He forced his attention back to the Book of Everything and asked aloud, "Where is Tokyo-3 and Terminal Dogma?"
The book shimmered, its pages closing as the cover morphed. Bold letters appeared: [TOKYO-3 / TERMINAL DOGMA]. When it reopened, the greenish-blue light cast a glow across Ryu's face.
The text reported clearly:
[Tokyo-3 is a specially designed city located in the mountains of Japan. On the surface, it appears as a normal settlement, but the city is heavily fortified and camouflaged to remain hidden from public view. The population is maintained under strict surveillance, and many advanced military facilities are concealed within the urban landscape.]
[Beneath the city lies Terminal Dogma, an underground complex of immense depth. This facility houses critical research operations, containment systems, and is the primary location where SEELE maintains control over the Seed of Life, Lillith.]
[The facility is isolated from government oversight and public knowledge, making it a secret stronghold for SEELE's clandestine operations.]
Ryu's eyes narrowed as he read. Hidden in plain sight, yet shielded from the world.
The scale of the operation, the secrecy, and the sheer audacity of SEELE's plan pressed heavily on his small shoulders. "This… this isn't just dangerous. It's insane," he muttered, feeling the tension tighten around his chest.
***
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