Chapter 50
Chapter 50
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: The Strange Research Society (2)
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Nade showed immediate interest. But just then, the class bell rang, cutting their conversation short.
“The professor’s coming. Let’s head in for now.”
Shirone temporarily forgot about the research society and focused on his classes. The day’s schedule ended with the final class at 5 PM. Shirone packed his bag with Nade and left the lecture hall.
“First, let’s go hear about it with Iruki.”
Nade led Shirone to the research society’s clubroom. Arriving at the magic warehouse, Istas, Shirone stared blankly at the building. If the Istas he had seen before was a cluster of structures like a colony, its current form was a series of soaring towers.
“This thing is incredible every time I see it.”
“With 89 buildings, the number of patterns is endless. I hope Iruki is awake.”
The interior of Istas had changed as much as its exterior. Yet, Nade navigated the complex paths with ease, heading for the lab.
“I’ve been curious for a while, but how do you find your way? If the structure keeps changing, leaving marks would be useless, right?”
“Heh heh. We don’t use such low-dimensional methods. We literally memorize everything. A long time ago, one of the society’s senior members restored the blueprints for Istas.”
Shirone’s expression was one of astonishment. It wasn’t just about drawing the blueprint for a single building; it was about understanding the mechanism of a complex structure with an immense number of patterns.
Nade pointed to the ceiling of the passage and said.
“See? There are three dots there, right? That means this is Room 3. For Room 3, you just have to look at the color of the third warehouse’s iron door. It’s blue, right? So the name of this place becomes ‘Blue of Room 3.’”
Shirone’s gaze followed Nade’s finger.
“Once you’ve confirmed that, you count the number of warehouses connected to this place. There are four diverging paths, so four warehouses. This is where it gets important. You substitute the room number for X, the color converted to a number for Y, and the number of warehouses for Z, then plug them into an equation.”
“What kind of equation?”
“An equation our seniors created by analyzing the patterns of Istas. When you plug in the numbers, you get a solution with two decimal places. We use that number to determine the direction. So, as long as you have this equation memorized, you can never get lost in Istas. It’s like a mathematical master key, you could say.”
Shirone wondered if it was really necessary to go to such lengths for a club activity, something that wasn't even an academic class. Istas, boasting an enormous number of patterns. And yet, his seniors had calculated all those patterns and condensed them into a single equation. He was finally starting to think that this research society might have something others didn't know about.
“But if you have to calculate it every time a warehouse changes, wouldn’t it take too long to get anywhere?”
“Only at first. As you practice every day, you get used to it. It’s a routine. After about three months, you’ll start to get a feel for it.”
Shirone nodded in understanding.
“That’s truly amazing. An equation that serves as an escape map for a labyrinth.”
“I guess one of the founding members was a savant like Iruki. Even Iruki said the equation was incredibly beautiful when he first saw it. Anyway, you must never speak of this to anyone. It would be a huge problem if the master key were leaked.”
Shirone was grateful to Nade for sharing such a crucial secret. But at the same time, it was a clear sign that he was hoping Shirone would join the society.
A place where the unproductive and frenzied obsessions of its senior members had accumulated since its founding. That was the Paranormal Research Society, hidden within the labyrinth of Istas.
The two walked for about ten minutes and arrived at the lab. Just like before, the sign was hanging crookedly. As they opened the door, a cloud of dust billowed out, as expected. This time, however, Shirone had covered his mouth in advance and avoided disaster.
“Iruki, we’re here.”
Nade said without looking, and Iruki, who had been writing equations on the blackboard, turned around. He grinned when he saw Shirone.
“Hey, Shirone. What’s up? I didn’t think you’d ever come back to a gloomy place like this.”
Remembering the previous incident, Nade burst out laughing.
“Haha! That’s right. But now he says he wants to join.”
“Oh?”
Iruki’s eyes narrowed in surprise. In his mind, this was no place for a model student like Shirone.
“It’s not just about joining. I came because I have a problem. I was hoping to get some advice from you guys.”
“A problem, from the genius who beat me? I bet it’s an incredibly grand problem without even having to hear it.”
By now, Shirone knew Iruki’s personality, so the sarcastic remark didn’t bother him.
“I feel like something’s changed since the Speed Gun test. I’ve been having nightmares, and when I wake up, I feel a chill. Sometimes it feels like someone is next to me. Could this be related to the paranormal or supernatural, or something like that? You guys are knowledgeable in this area, right?”
Nade’s and Iruki’s eyes lit up. As an explorer of the unknown and a critic of the unknown, Shirone’s words had piqued their interest.
“Then you’ve come to the right place. Here, here. Have a seat.”
When Nade dusted off the sofa, a tremendous amount of dust flew up. Shirone recoiled and waved his hands frantically. He finally realized the source of the abnormally thick layer of dust. It was Iruki’s chalk dust.
“No, I’ll just sit. Please, don’t do anything in this room. Or just clean it once in a while.”
“Now, now. Don’t be defeated by mere fine dust, first client of our research society. Please, state your business.”
Nade and Iruki pulled up chairs and sat down. Shirone was dumbfounded by the sight of them waiting with their legs crossed arrogantly like experts, but a thirsty man digs his own well. He began to speak with a desperate heart.
“Well, you see. Lately, I’ve been having these dreams…”
Shirone explained the dream he had every night. He also spoke of the strange sensations that came to him at all hours.
“I have no idea what’s going on. It’s not like a ghost has possessed my body, right? Have you ever heard of a similar case?”
An unexpected silence fell.
Shirone swallowed hard. He had expected them to say something, even as a joke, but their expressions were more serious than ever before.
“What? What’s wrong? You guys are messing with me again, right?”
Nade scratched his eyebrow awkwardly.
“Um, well… now that I hear it, it sounds pretty plausible.”
“What do you mean by that? Explain in detail.”
“That sensation you felt. The chilling feeling, sensing something even though you can’t see it. In the field of parapsychology, that’s called a ‘paranormal sense.’”
“Paranormal sense? Parapsychology?”
The unfamiliar terms made Shirone even more nervous. Nade touched his temple, lost in thought, then gave an example.
“Two hundred years ago, a certain scholar conducted an experiment on a death row inmate. It’s called Soul Electrolysis, based on the hypothesis that if a person’s soul is made of matter, it can be decomposed by electricity. The method was this: the inmate was locked in a sealed, conductive metal box, and an electric current was passed through it. But the experiment was halted midway because it was too inhumane. Thanks to that, the inmate’s life was spared, but he was said to have been unconscious for a month. The problem starts now. When the inmate finally woke up, he knew everything about the outside world that had happened while he was unconscious.”
“No way. How is that possible?”
“That’s why it’s so surprising. The scholar proposed the hypothesis of the ‘ionization of the soul.’ He claimed that electrolyzing the soul generated an electromagnetic force that drew the world’s information to the inmate. Of course, he was treated as a madman by the academic community. Besides, there were rumors that the inmate had bribed the guards for information to save his own life.”
“Wow. There was an experiment like that.”
“Orthodox scholars don’t acknowledge it, but it’s still a hot topic in the paranormal science community. Besides, the Spiritist Assembly, an official religious organization, acknowledges the trance state, right? So the idea of the ionization of the soul isn’t entirely baseless. Anyway, the sensation that inmate felt is what we in this field call a paranormal sense.”
A chill ran down Shirone’s spine. The term “paranormal sense” connected with his nightmares, and he started to think it might actually be true.
“Then it’s my turn to state my conclusion.”
Shirone broke from his thoughts and looked up. He was curious how the logical Iruki would interpret it. Come to think of it, they made a pretty great team in this field.
“But first, I have something to ask. You said the paranormal sense started after the Speed Gun test, right? Your photon output was definitely different that day. You don’t have to reveal your secret, but it would be helpful to hear about it.”
Shirone thought Iruki was right. To analyze the result, one needed to know the cause. Besides, he had been in a state of shock at the time, but he hadn't intended to keep it a secret from his friends.
Shirone recounted in detail the process of reaching the infinite domain—from the enlightenment he found on the journey of the sequence formula to the transcendence of numbers he had unknowingly awakened to under the pressure of the duel.
Iruki nodded. He had already heard about the concept itself from his father. It seemed Shirone had opened a forbidden door.
“Immortal Function.”
“Immortal Function?”
“I heard about it when I was young. The absolute function that can solve all the secrets of the world. But in my opinion, it’s very dangerous. Because ‘everything’ is, phenomenologically, the same as ‘nothing.’”
Hearing a story along the same lines as Etella’s, Shirone realized anew just how dangerous his attempt had been.
“I had only thought about it, I never imagined I’d actually go that far. I never want to experience it again.”
Iruki wagged his finger as if to say, ‘What are you talking about?’
“It’s quite the opposite. As I said, Immortal Function is already a spiritually studied state of mind. The mind is different from knowledge. Just because you know it in your head doesn’t mean anyone can do what you did. Anyway, hearing your story makes me feel a bit better. I suppose it would take the Immortal Function to beat me. Heh heh heh.”
Iruki, who treated the Immortal Function that even Etella was wary of as if it were a party trick, was certainly eccentric. But it was also true that his attitude put Shirone at ease.
“Hmm. So that was the Immortal Function. I see. Things are starting to make sense now.”
“Really? You have an answer?”
Instead of answering, Iruki turned his head and stared at the wall, as if drawing an equation on its blank surface.
“The paranormal isn’t my major, so I don’t know much about the paranormal sense. But that nightmare you have every day… I have a rough idea of what it is. And why you’re having such a dream.”
Shirone unknowingly clenched his fists.
“Tell me. Anything is fine. I’m prepared to hear even the most absurd story.”
“First, dreams distort or exaggerate memories. But your dream was likely a direct projection of a memory. It’s called psychological regression, the same principle by which a person under hypnosis can clearly recall their past. In any case, assuming your nightmare is of that kind…”
“A-Assuming it is?”
“What you saw was probably… the universe.”
“The u-universe?”
Shirone knew what the universe was. A vast world outside of this one. But his knowledge ended there. No, who really knew? Since time immemorial, humanity had known of the universe’s existence, but no one had actually seen it.
The only race to have experienced the universe was the dragons. 680 years ago, the Saint Dragon Gramish, having decided to leave the planet, headed for space in the presence of representatives from each race.
But in the end, he crashed back to the surface after just 13 hours. The dragon’s corpse was said to have been in a gruesome state.
Following Gramish’s dying words, the representatives of each race dismembered the body and returned to their respective homelands. The evidence they obtained would later play a major role in the development of cosmology.
“The thing I saw in my dream… was the universe?”