The World Is a Vast Garden of Death
"Jeong Hyun-a. Perhaps, this world is about to face a situation we have never seen before."
When I was called into the lab and heard the Doctor say that, my first thought was, What on earth is he talking about? No, he wasn't the type to say things like that. Was he serious? "For now, it’s better if you see this first." With that, the Doctor pulled out a tablet, opened something, and handed it to me. It was a long document. Looking at the page count, it was over fifty pages.
"Read only the first three pages. The rest is all supplementary explanation."
I did as I was told. But the content... I couldn't make heads or tails of it. Project C.E. C.E. stood for Carbon Eater. It was a global project led by the WTO and managed by a multinational consortium. Project C.E. was about carbon reduction. The earth was getting hotter, and to reduce carbon, which was cited as one of the main culprits, they planned to capture it using massive amounts of plants. That was the main gist of it. They would spray catalysts to make plants flourish on a massive scale in places on Earth that were currently unusable.
"Did you finish reading?"
"Yes. But..."
"This is a dangerous plan. The theory itself is something a middle schooler who just realized the seriousness of the problem might come up with. What's even more terrifying is that they are actually going to execute it."
Dr. Lee Chan-seop. My father's best friend and a PhD in molecular biology. A grateful person who took care of me in place of my late parents.
"That is why I am going to move to America. I cannot stop this. By the time they realize it’s wrong, it will already be too late. So, those of us who think like me will gather our intentions and find a way to survive. So, I ask you... won't you come with me?"
"America? Why America?"
"The conditions there are better. I will explain the details slowly."
The Doctor must have assumed I would naturally go with him. But unfortunately, I was thinking something else. My heart was pounding, and I felt a strange sense of exhilaration.
"Is it certain that the situation will go wrong?"
"I only hope it doesn't. I only hope that what I am doing is nothing more than groundless worry and that we are all just digging our own graves for nothing."
"Could I take a closer look?"
"Go ahead."
I turned the tablet back on and started reading. The Doctor sighed and buried his body in the chair. It took about 20 minutes to read it all. Even though I skipped the difficult parts, that's how long it took. But the content was quite serious. It was so serious that I wondered if this level of effort for a prank was actually art.
"I've stepped down as the lab director. I've put my house on the market, too. As soon as the house sells, I plan to move to America. Since it's a place that will sell once it's on the market, it shouldn't take that long."
The Doctor's words were more serious than the content of the tablet. Hearing that, the contents of the tablet began to feel even more serious. Just how much certainty did he have to be doing this? The Doctor I knew wasn't a light person like that. He was so cautious that even his family would have a word or two about it.
"It must be real."
"I truly hope I am wrong. I truly hope I will regret this moment. That I shouldn't have stepped down as lab director, that I shouldn't have come to America. I hope I'll be self-reproaching with thoughts like that."
A reality that was gradually gaining weight. A fear that was becoming tangible. The Doctor was terrified. It was quite rare to see a man over 50 looking so afraid of something.
"I'm sorry, but... I don't think I'll be going."
"You're not going?"
"Yes."
"May I ask why? I was actually thinking that you might say that. But I couldn't figure out the reason at all."
"Well. Even if such a worst-case scenario happens, I want to prepare in a place I know well. America is a bit unfamiliar to me right now."
That wasn't the truth. My real thoughts were elsewhere. But no matter how much he was like a father to me, I couldn't reveal those thoughts. That would be rude. It would be a betrayal.
"Is that so."
It probably wasn't a convincing reason, but the Doctor just let it slide. Then, the Doctor handed me a USB drive. I received it and looked at the Doctor's face, and the Doctor sighed and said,
"I don't think you're the type to share such things with just anyone. But just in case, I'll ask you one more time. Do not share that anywhere."
"Yes."
"Right. I understand. You may go now."
I stood up from my seat. Then I returned the tablet to the Doctor and bowed my head.
"If you change your mind, tell me anytime. I can easily take at least one person with me."
I gave the Doctor a wide grin. That was probably answer enough. Seeing my smile, the Doctor must have been convinced that there was no way I would change my mind. He was a grateful person. Perhaps this gratitude was beyond words. In my bleak world, the Doctor's family was my only sanctuary. The fact that I hadn't gone astray and had lived until now was likely thanks to the Doctor's family.
Returning to my studio apartment, I read the contents of the USB the Doctor had given me. It contained quite a lot of data. The 50-page document I had seen on the tablet was child's play in comparison. All sorts of data, papers, reference materials, citations, and so on. Those materials were quite ruthless. These weren't things for an undergraduate like me to read. They were materials exclusively for experts. Even they would have to rack their brains and struggle with these for a long time. But I found it quite enjoyable to look at them. It felt like life was returning to my meaningless existence. In other words, it felt like I had found what I wanted to do for the first time since my parents passed away. So, I clung to those materials to understand them. It wouldn't be easy, but if I had this much material, there were many places I could get help.
Three months later, the Doctor really sold everything and went to America. On the day of his departure, at the airport, the Doctor's family told me to take care of myself as if they were truly sad. Especially the Doctor's wife. Since she was someone who treated me like a son, I suppose that's why.
"It would have been nice if you had come with us, Oppa."
Young-ju, the Doctor's daughter, said that as if she were truly disappointed. Hmm. If Young-ju had been a little prettier, would I have followed them? I thought for a moment. I don't know. I had never thought about that before.
And so, the Doctor left. A one-way flight to America. I felt stranger than the people involved. It was like... something was being ripped away? The emotion I felt was certain. It felt like the heater that kept one corner of my heart warm had been turned off. Because of that, my heart, which had lost its warmth, grew cold. A heart that felt like it was drying up. Emotions that were becoming dry and tasteless. My gaze, looking at the departure gate where the Doctor's family had entered, also changed slightly. My gaze looking at the countless people here was the same. Do they know? Do they know that this world is on the verge of facing an unprecedented crisis? They wouldn't. There's no way they would. Even if they did, they would just understand it as a common conspiracy theory. Honestly, if I were to stand in front of all these people and say, "The world is going to be ruined because of future climate problems and the blunders of international organizations!" who would listen seriously? Airport security would come first. I would be kicked out of the airport.
On the way back from the airport, I examined the faces of the people one by one, at a level that wouldn't cause a fight. I looked for a long time, but I couldn't remember a single face. Come to think of it, how long had it been, and I couldn't even remember the faces of the Doctor's family. What did they look like? Why couldn't I remember? And so, I returned to my daily life. But there was a change. I gave up on job hunting. It was a good excuse. I didn't want to do it anyway, so it worked out well. Fortunately, I had my parents' inheritance and life insurance money. So, it didn't matter if I didn't work. In fact, the reason I had tried to look decent by having a job and working was also because of the Doctor's family. I was off the leash. The minimum leash that had been holding me back was loosened. However, that didn't mean I would immediately run wild or cause a disturbance. I'm a gentle person, after all. Besides, things were going to get interesting from now on, so there was no need to cause such a commotion.
And so, I graduated from college. And I continued to focus on Project C.E. The project had started three months ago, so by now, it must be in full swing. So, while building up knowledge based on that, I also checked their trends. It's proof that the world has gotten better. Just by sitting in my studio apartment and fiddling with my laptop and cell phone, I could know the news happening somewhere in the world. Moreover, perhaps because Project C.E. was a multinational consortium, information about their activities was quite public. There were also many SNS posts uploaded proudly by those involved. I scraped all that information as well. These were all contents that would become assets to me. I had to know what was done, where, and how so that I could find the cause-and-effect relationship later. So, I enjoyed collecting information one by one. Wishing for the world to be ruined. Wishing for something dopamine-filled to happen in this boring life.
One year. Project C.E. unexpectedly achieved results. The plants that were made to flourish and cover vast areas by promoting growth showed effects that were significant enough to be seen in the data. Of course, it had only been one year. Whether that data was accurate was also questionable, and there were so many variables in the environment and climate. So, the data they claimed was not proof of Project C.E.'s success. The arguments of the counter-theorists were the same.
Two years. Consistent data built up a certain level of reliability. Carbon had certainly decreased, and as they claimed, everything seemed to be getting better. Of course, even if such things happened, the majority of people were not interested in such things. Only someone like me would be interested. In the meantime, I had quite a lot of contact with the Doctor. The Doctor continued to provide me with new data and materials and also sent me comments from experts on them. Of course, since the Doctor was on the skeptic side, I had to take into account that the materials were biased toward that side.
And the third year. Strange things began to happen in the world little by little. Things that no one would think were related to Project C.E.