WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 469: Final Chapter - Childhood's Beginning (7)

──────

More time passed after the tyrant’s death, and the season of the outside world at last reached the edge of winter. The young man who shared his name with the season now drawing to a close stood by a high window, looking down at the gray city in the morning and remembering the days when he had been a boy. Winter had not ended yet, but most of the snow that had piled up was already gone. Even so, the city still looked cold.

In the world where the apocalypse had been postponed, the White House officially announced that the Morgellons vaccine had been completed. In truth, it must have been completed long ago. Perhaps around the time Gyeoul saw the message that the apocalypse was over. And yet they had delayed the announcement until now because...

‘To prevent chaos.’

That was what Colonel Han Gyeoul thought as he watched the news on the other side at that moment. The doublethink required to exist in both places at once still tangled his mind now and then, but compared to before, he was adapting more with each passing day. Soon, he thought he would be able to handle tasks that required focus, such as shooting. Actual combat was another matter.

The announcer’s voice, heard through his separated senses, confirmed Gyeoul’s guess.

「The White House spokesperson stated that “the vaccine will be jointly produced by three companies, J&J, Lilly Co., and Reed Science, and that vaccinations will be administered first to residents of potential danger zones, including former contaminated zones, areas near the old and new quarantine lines, coastal regions, and border regions.”」

「Health authorities refused to disclose the exact volume of the first vaccination batch due to security and procedural concerns, but officials predicted that “the amount of prepared vaccine will not exceed 11 million doses even at the highest estimate, and that at least two years will be required to vaccinate every American citizen.” From the pharmaceutical companies’ perspective, recklessly expanding production lines would make losses unavoidable once vaccinations are complete.」

「Meanwhile, signs of conflict over vaccination priority are emerging in regions designated as potential high-risk areas. Criticism of outsiders falsely registering their residence has been especially fierce, and every state government in the danger zones has announced that it will deal firmly with such false registrations.」

「Citizens, however, are voicing concern over whether state governments that struggle with fiscal problems every day can truly drive out the newly rich when they arrive carrying bags of money...」

In Gyeoul’s view, it was a reasonable concern. The states in the danger zones had suffered constant population outflow, and that had deepened the fiscal crises of their local governments. If people were willing to spend tens of thousands of dollars to receive the vaccine even one day earlier, it was only natural that those governments would hesitate before refusing them. From the perspective of those in power, it was not necessarily bad for the residents either.

In other words, it was a necessary evil worth turning a moderate blind eye to.

The reason this conflict had not erupted into violence, at least on the surface, was thanks to President Kramer declaring that vaccinations would be free.

「I once solemnly swore, as president of this nation, to defend the rights of its citizens. As that president, I tell you this. Vaccination against Morgellons is a basic right to survival for American citizens. The citizens’ right to survival must never be reduced to an object of compromise or trade under any circumstances. Especially not in a disaster situation like the one we face today.」

「Therefore, I make the following promise. Vaccinations will be provided free of charge to all citizens, without discrimination. The citizens of America will be assigned their rightful order as sovereign individuals, all equal before the single standard of national security.」

「This is the order I intend to defend. Everyone, listen closely.」

「America’s apocalypse is over.」

As always, it was a statement overflowing with force.

Supporting that declaration were the records of the investigative agencies cracking down on the illegal vaccine trade, especially the Bureau’s work. Even if a Deus ex Machina was weaving inevitability beneath the surface by gathering threads of coincidence, it could not have been this efficient without Anne’s efforts. The thorough punishment of corruption among the wealthy had also done much to increase citizens’ trust in the government.

Anne shared credit for her achievements with her superior, the Director of the Bureau. In doing so, the Director regained the path into politics they had wanted, and Anne further strengthened her position as the next Director.

She said to Gyeoul with a smile.

“Well, today isn’t the only day.”

The today she spoke of carried a symbolic meaning.

One day, Anne would likely challenge the presidency. Even if Gyeoul could not do it, Gyeoul’s wife could. Simply becoming the head of the executive branch would hardly make her more influential than Gyeoul was now, but if Bom, humanity’s spring, flowed behind her like a clear river, that would be another matter.

He was about to accomplish something similar here in physical reality as well.

「Gyeoul.」

On this side, Anne, who had taken control of the secretariat as a pastime, sent her voice into Gyeoul’s mind.

「The person you summoned is here. Should I let him in right away?」

「Yes.」

The person Gyeoul had summoned in the tyrant’s name was none other than the final system administrator of Afterlife Insurance.

In truth, the ones he had wanted to talk to even more were the first designers, but...

‘Honestly, I was a little shaken when I found out they really were all dead.’

When Bom, reborn as a god, checked whether they were alive or dead, every single one had died under suspicious circumstances. Considering their importance, he had thought at least one of them would have survived by faking their death.

In a way, it made sense. The Trinity Core, having accumulated operational data, had improved itself until it became a machine even its designers could no longer understand. Producing a second Trinity Core would have been nothing but a waste of money. From the Korean government’s point of view, any designer still breathing was neither more nor less than a potential risk factor.

Even so, how simply they had decided matters of human life and death. When Gyeoul read the meeting minutes from that time, he shuddered at the almost routine lightness of the discussion.

The presence beyond the door woke Gyeoul from his thoughts. Anne’s voice came through as she played the chief secretary.

“Chairman. This is An Jeong-myeong, the system administrator of Afterlife Insurance.”

The man who appeared soon after looked terribly cowed.

‘That’s not all, is it?’

Gyeoul perceived that he was suffering from severe stomach pain.

Anne, acting as the guide, left him a wink through the closing gap of the door and turned away. The door shut with a thud. The startled administrator looked back, then turned forward again, trembling faintly. His face said he had no idea what to do.

Gyeoul gestured.

“Don’t just stand there. Please come this way.”

“Yes.”

As he approached hesitantly, Gyeoul asked instead of greeting him.

“Are you all right?”

“Yes?”

“You look very uncomfortable.”

“Ah...”

The administrator wiped the sweat forming on his forehead and blushed.

“Well, I have irritable bowel syndrome. It hurts because I’m nervous, so you don’t need to worry about it.”

Gyeoul, who knew his symptoms, shook his head.

“I want to talk in a comfortable atmosphere. There’s a restroom over there, so take your time and come back when you’re ready.”

“...Would that really be all right?”

“Why wouldn’t it be? We have plenty of time.”

Confusion appeared on the administrator’s face. Was it because this seemed so far removed from the tyrant he had only heard rumors about? Since he was not someone who knew the tyrant in everyday life, Gyeoul did not need to put on a difficult act. The chances of this man meeting the existing inner circle were also slim.

“Uh, then please excuse me for a moment.”

Administrator An Jeong-myeong still looked deeply suspicious, but he hurried off to find the restroom. Gyeoul could have controlled the nerves the man himself was unaware of, but helping him have a smooth bowel movement was far more humane than numbing the pain while tightening his sphincter...

Humane? Gyeoul let out a small laugh at his own thought. A Deus ex Machina who solved constipation was an amusing concept. Even the age of gods had such earthy aspects.

‘But why didn’t you treat him before he met me? You must have predicted this meeting too.’

When Gyeoul wondered, Bom answered.

「I have no reason to treat the administrator as special. Therefore, alleviating and removing that illness becomes a problem on a global scale.」

「If related symptoms vanished all across the world at once, suspicion would inevitably follow. To justify a visible change of that scale, the phenomenon must be supported by human action. As you decided, I am an environment that induces action for humanity, not the action itself.」

‘Ah.’

It was a reasonable explanation.

「Is that not why you summoned the administrator today? To judge whether he possesses a suitable personality as an actor who will take part in your task.」

‘Right. I understand.’

Gyeoul still felt more secure when he saw people directly and judged them in person.

The wait was not long. The administrator came out of the restroom with the expression of a man who had attained solemn enlightenment, making Gyeoul smile once more. Seeing that smile brought the administrator back to his senses, but compared to before, he was far less stiff.

Gyeoul held out his hand.

“This is a little late, but let me formally introduce myself. I am Go Geon-cheol, Chairman of Hyeseong Group.”

There was no awkwardness in introducing himself with a dead man’s name.

“Ah, yes. As you already know, I am An Jeong-myeong, chief system administrator of the Virtual Reality Division.”

The administrator wiped his wet hands on his pants and shook Gyeoul’s hand. Of course, he must have known that the true owner of Paradise Group was not Go Ah-young.

“But what business did you wish to see me for, Chairman...?”

As his words trailed off, Gyeoul leisurely gestured toward a seat.

“Shall we sit and talk first?”

“...”

After waiting for the nervous administrator to sit, Gyeoul said,

“First, I want to say that you have worked hard as the sole system administrator all this time. Though the work evaluation submitted by the control personality was not exactly favorable...”

“Urk.”

“I know that the mountain of problems was too much for you to solve alone. Effort is never a master key, and the fact that you had fallen into helplessness as an administrator is within the acceptable range.”

“Th-thank you.”

“But if a powerful key figure like me helps you, the situation will change, at least when it comes to problems that can be solved by people.”

“What do you mean...?”

“I’m considering giving you a different role from the one you’ve had until now.”

In front of the bewildered administrator, Gyeoul leaned back in his chair.

“An Jeong-myeong. You had guessed that some of the people said to have been disposed of after their Afterlife Insurance coverage period ended had in fact been preserved and traded as a kind of asset, correct?”

The administrator swallowed dryly. It looked like his survival instinct was making his mind race. Should he say he knew? Should he pretend not to? What Gyeoul had mentioned must have been that grave a matter to him. Something he had had no choice but to pretend not to know, even though he did.

“It’s all right to be honest.”

Gyeoul reassured him.

“Looking at the usage records of certain secure lines that you once accessed with administrator privileges, I judged that there was a high probability you had inferred the hidden trade. I’m asking like this only to confirm how far you guessed, and how closely your guess matches the full picture I already know... You could also call it a procedure to verify your ability before entrusting you with a new role.”

It was not because he truly did not know what kind of person the administrator was, how much he knew, or how capable he was that he was testing him. Gyeoul had Bom, and Gyeoul trusted Bom’s eye. Still, confirming it like this would prevent the administrator from feeling awkward later.

‘I also wanted to see this person’s reaction with my own eyes.’

As Gyeoul thought that, the hesitant administrator asked,

“...Will my safety be guaranteed?”

Gyeoul nodded.

Footnotes:

Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried