Chapter Eight: A Slice of Life Amidst "Mountains of Illusions" (Love and Food)
After emerging from the illusions, the system showed Ryoma snapshots of Siya and Mira's terrified lives. A giant space station (Atlas), surrounded by steel walls, houses millions of terrified humans. Ryoma (secretly looking at the screen): "Children are playing among the ruins of machines, and the elders are talking about the 'golden past' before the artificial intelligence wakes up. These people deserve to be protected. And if you fail... their scream will echo in this void forever." In the corner of the cabin, Mira, the rebellious witch, was sitting in a pilot's chair, her face smeared with dirt from the Qing world, looking at a screen displaying a blueprint of a spaceship. Mira (with a faint, sarcastic laugh): "Space? It seems I was dreaming about it as a child, Ryoma. You sucked us into a wormhole with you, and now we are in a metal ship, without mana, without magic, and in the middle of a black void. Is the regime trying to kill us with boredom before we reach the goal?" Ryoma ignored her sarcasm and walked towards the center panel. His left hand was glowing with a light energy (15% of the strength) that he had acquired in Qing. Ryoma (turning to Siya and Mira seriously): "Listen... this world is different from Edenia and Qing. Here, the power is not in magic or martial chi, but in these machines. The system tells me that the central artificial intelligence has decided to erase humans from existence. And we are here to stop it." [The system in Ryoma's mind:] Alert: The registered companions (Siya, Mira, Zhang) have been transferred successfully. Zhang is now in the "planning room" trying to decipher the maps. Objective: The central AI plans to send an extermination fleet to Neo-Seoul Station within 24 hours. You have to get there. That night, after the team explored the ship and sat down to eat (canned meat dumplings from the Qing world, which Mira complained had a "metallic" taste), Ryoma retreated to his private cabin. He sat in front of the window, looking at the rushing stars. Ryoma (in secret): "Why me? Why can't I live a simple life? Betrayal in the land, wars in Edenia, politics in the Qing... and now this black void. The system says I am the new vessel, but I feel like I am just a pawn in a grand chess game. The previous ruler... that man that Bei Long talked about... who is he? And why did he turn to the system to train me?" His train of thought was interrupted by a soft knock on the door. Ryoma: "Come on." Cia entered, she had taken off her heavy armor and was wearing the tight pilot clothing the ship had provided her with. Siya: "Ryoma.. are you okay? You didn't eat anything today." Ryoma (with a slight smile): "I'm fine, Siya. Just thinking." Siya (approaches him and looks into his gray eyes): "Ryoma... I am afraid. Not of the enemy, but of this void. In Edenia, I knew my enemies. But here... the enemies are machines, heartless, soulless. It is as if we are fighting shadows." Ryoma put his hand on her shoulder, feeling the warmth of her body under the tight clothes. Ryoma: "Don't be afraid, Siya. Remember how Qing taught you that strength comes from the martial spirit? The spirit is the heart. Machines may have technology, but they don't have the spirit. We will use our martial spirit to blast their steel." Siya (holding his hand and placing it on her cheek): "Ryoma.. Promise me one thing. Promise me that you will not leave me alone in this black void." Ryoma (with a mysterious look): "I promise you, Siya.. I will be your shadow even in this world where there is no shadow."