Chapter 98: The Miracle of Absence
đ Act I: A Scroll That Wasn't There
Ne Job was cataloguing scrolls when he noticed something peculiar. A space on the shelf glowed faintly, though no scroll rested there.
Twinkle buzzed uncertainly.
Ao Bing leaned over. "That shelf is empty."
Taiyi Zhenren frowned. "That's Miracle #280-A. Archived as 'Absence.' It is a scroll that exists only when missing."
Ne Job reached out.
The shelf pulsed.
And suddenly, he felt the weight of something not there.
---
đ§ Act II: The Bureau Reacts
Lord Xian summoned the Department of Paradox Management.
"This scroll," he said, "is unique. It is absence itself. It teaches that emptiness can be presence."
Ao Bing grinned. "So nothing is something?"
Taiyi Zhenren muttered, "Contradictory."
Ne Job whispered, "It's teaching us to see what isn't there."
Twinkle hummed softly.
---
đ Act III: The Ceremony of Emptiness
The Reflection Hall was prepared.
Interns gathered before an empty pedestal.
The Absence Scroll pulsed invisibly.
Rules:
- Each intern must present something missing.
- Each absence must be honored.
- The scroll will record the presence.
Ao Bing presented laughter that had faded.
Taiyi Zhenren presented a footnote erased.
Glimmer presented a sprite's silence.
Ne Job stepped forward.
He presented the absence of Twinkle's hum â once lost, now remembered.
The pedestal glowed faintly.
---
𧔠Act IV: The Trial of Nothingness
The hall dimmed.
Interns faced emptiness.
Ao Bing felt the absence of thunderfruit chaos.
Taiyi Zhenren felt the absence of order.
Glimmer felt the absence of mischief.
Ne Job felt the absence of story.
He trembled.
But he whispered, "Absence is not nothing. It is space for renewal."
Twinkle pulsed faintly.
The pedestal glowed.
---
đ Act V: The Miracle of Presence
The scroll rewrote itself â though no parchment was seen:
> "Absence is presence. Nothing is wonder."
Interns wept softly.
Ao Bing tossed confetti â into emptiness.
Taiyi Zhenren footnoted silence.
Glimmer laughed softly.
Twinkle hummed triumphantly.
Lord Xian nodded. "Intern Ne Job, you have shown that absence is not loss. It is presence."
---
đ Epilogue: A New Registry Entry
The next morning, a new entry appeared in the Miracle Registry:
> Miracle #280-A: The Absence Scroll
> Status: Paradoxical, reflective, eternal.
> Effect: Teaches that absence itself is presence. Activated through emptiness and renewal.
Ne Job added a note:
> "Some miracles don't appear. They remind us that emptiness is also wonder."
Twinkle hummed.
And somewhere in the Bureau, a shelf glowed faintly â holding nothing, yet everything.
---