Genius Warlock-Episode 658
658. dawn (1)
“······hello. teacher.”
A heterogeneous space where the floor, walls, and ceiling are indistinguishable.
Oliver greeted the man he met again there. Because it was polite.
We only met two or three times at most, but he looked the same as usual..
comfortable sofa.
the table between the sofas.
Chocolate cookies and a mug of warm milk on the table.
It really looked the same.
Except one thing.
“We can meet even if it's not in a dream.”
Oliver said, sitting down on the sofa across from the man without asking permission..
The man didn't seem to care much. As proof, he answered plainly.
“I am everywhere. Hey kid.”
“okay······.”
Oliver answered in a slightly weaker voice than usual and then remained silent. It's also quite long. I thought I was tired, but I massaged the area between my eyes to see if I was actually tired..
The man opened his mouth first.
“Are you not going to eat the cookies??”
“yes······. I have no appetite..”
Oliver, who ate one out of courtesy no matter how bad he was, answered like that..
An unusual appearance. The man pointed out that.
“Was what you just saw shocking??”
“Teacher, are you a god??”
“······.”
Oliver did not answer the question, but instead asked a question..
Asking direct and sudden questions without any of the usual consideration or caution..
The man paused for a moment and shook his head..
“······I'm sorry, but I'm not him. Hey kid.”
“So, are you the Pied Piper’s father??”
The man shook his head again.
“why do you think so?”
“It's just a feeling... I feel like I know him well..”
Oliver mentioned a conversation he had with a man in the past. The man knew in detail the identity and name of the Pied Piper..
the man answered.
“I don't know very well. Because I watched that child, met him, and talked to him..”
“Can I ask what you talked about??”
“We talked about choices. Because life is a series of choices.”
“······.”
“The child chose what you saw. Denying his true nature by covering himself with skin that does not suit him, going against nature.”
It was a story I heard from a man in the past. At that time, Oliver asked: 'Is that wrong?'... So Oliver asked a different question this time..
“So you just saw it? A child eating a poisoned stew..”
“······You seem angry. Hey kid.”
“Please answer my question first. teacher······. Was it because the Pied Piper chose to stay silent after seeing his child eat poisoned stew? It's against the law. Haven't you seen it all??”
Oliver asked, certain that the man was watching the tragedy of the Pied Piper..
Otherwise, I couldn't explain why I'm meeting this guy right now..
As Oliver asked, a deafening silence filled the space, and it became more severe as it combined with the void where the concepts of up, down, left and right disappeared..
I feel like I'm going to lose my mind if I make a mistake.
After a long silence, the man opened his mouth..
“It's not punishment, it's karma. Hey kid.”
“What do you mean by karma??”
“The boy who played the pipe was chosen. He denies his true nature and instead wishes to become someone's husband and father. Because that was the child's happiness.”
“and both died.”
“Because I chose to belong there. You can't have only good things. It makes sense that bad things naturally follow. The same goes for the misfortune that happened to the child playing the flute. I just experienced one of the misfortunes that can happen to anyone..”
“So you're saying you stayed quiet even after seeing everything??”
“It's true that I watched everything and stayed silent, and it's true that I didn't help even though I could have helped, but that's not the reason. If it were anyone other than the child playing the pipe, I would have stayed still..”
Sincerity. Oliver couldn't read the man's emotions, but something beyond his instincts convinced him that he was telling the truth..
“Hey kid. How many times do you think something like that happens a day? If you add up all the times since humans ate figs, how much do you think it will be? One is a tragedy, but if the number exceeds one hundred, one thousand, ten thousand, it is just a number.. ”
“That's a contradictory statement for a gardener..”
“A gardener's job is to watch, child. At least intervene. Only when it matters most. If I were to step forward one by one, it would be contradictory. It's against God's will.”
“Are you saying this is God's will??”
“Why do you have brains to think for yourself, free hands, and legs to stand up? Good and evil, right and wrong. If we interfere and control each and every thing for political reasons, how is that any different from livestock??”
What's different? Oliver said nothing to that question..
The reason was because I completely agreed with what the man in front of me said..
Whatever the reason or the form, if someone were to intervene and control each and every one, it would be closer to livestock than to people..
Even if it brought good results, it was unhealthy, and believers... At the very least, it wasn't something that even the God Oliver met through the scriptures wanted..
If God really wanted that, as the man said, he wouldn't have given humans a head to think, free hands, or legs to stand..
At that moment, Oliver realized one more thing. Why is the man doing nothing, why is he so tired?.
“It looks like you're having a hard time watching. From the teacher.”
“······.”
“Gardening work. Even after seeing something like that, I can't do anything... Isn't that difficult?.”
Oliver's conversation with the man and the conversation he had earlier. Above all, I relied on intuition to arrive at the most important facts..
It was not God who managed the garden, but a man who had been given that task by God. Also, the fact that he was very tired..
After seeing countless cases like the Pied Piper, my heart was worn out..
That's why I wanted to get out of that place. Waiting for the next gardener to show up.
The most important thing here was who the next gardener would be..
A being who manages the garden on behalf of God.
While I was feeling scared and suffocating just imagining it, the man answered Oliver's question..
“Of course I'm tired. But I know what's hardest?”
“well······. I'm not sure.”
The man looked at Oliver's face..
Even though he couldn't even see his facial features, much less his expression, due to the deep shadows, Oliver had the feeling that he was smiling sadly..
“There is no end.”
“······.”
“In a way, it's a completely natural story. Is there an end to things like gardening? It's not something that has an end..”
That was correct. Work has a goal, and most things in the world are over once that goal is achieved. However, tending a garden was not that kind of work..
Gardening literally means maintaining the garden to a certain level..
The true goal is not to end when the goal is achieved, but to continue to maintain the goal state. In other words, it was an endless goal..
Like penance without enlightenment.
“But that doesn't mean it's easy..”
The man opened his mouth again. His voice was a mixture of emotions: fatigue, sadness, lamentation, and self-loathing. I felt that way.
“Green grass leaves turn brown and dry if left alone, and aphids attach to beautiful flowers..”
“······.”
“The branches of the trees spread out here and there, ruining the scenery, and the fruits are eaten by insects. What's even more frustrating is that the garden is overrun with unwanted pests, snakes, and toads. Still, I can barely touch it. Even though I can.”
At that moment, the man's appearance shook in an indescribable way. It looked like dozens or hundreds of people were blurring and overlapping..
His appearance and clothes were fat and thin, sturdy and weak, rich and poor, proud and shabby, noble and humble..
It was difficult to even say anything, and the dark space shook as if in resonance..
As if the flesh, bones, and even internal organs would explode. Meanwhile, Oliver opened his mouth and pointed out the man's mistake in speaking..
“Isn’t it that kind of garden to begin with??”
Oliver said. A garden managed by a man is not a garden with only beautiful and pretty things..
Perhaps it was an accurate point, but the turbulent space became quiet..
“That's right, kid. It's that kind of garden. Free and full of life and will... But that doesn’t mean there are no lines. Freedom is a right accompanied by responsibility. Freedom without responsibility is nothing but self-indulgence, and self-indulgence is a sin..”
“So you want to upset the garden??”
Oliver brought up a problem he had been ignoring and avoiding on purpose. I feel like I can't ask now.
Fortunately, and unfortunately, the man answered Oliver's question..
“I'm not trying to upset you yet, kid. However, it is my legitimate right..”
“Are you talking about overturning the garden??”
“Yes, it's a garden I've taken care of, so who can say anything even if I upset it?.”
“Would that be best??”
“perhaps······. When the existing garden disappears, a new garden will be created. A new life will bloom.”
“Before that, shouldn't we try to save the garden first??”
Oliver said without realizing it.
Knowing that I am not good enough, knowing that it is dishonest, I avoid saying presumptuous things as much as possible..
At a time when Oliver wondered if he should stop here, the words of Ameline, the director of the Arc Orphanage who had been turned into a tree, flashed through his mind..
‘Sure, you always say nice things, but if you fail to act like that at an important moment, it would be a good idea to get stoned... Still, you have to do it. If you don't even do that, your children won't even have a chance to be right..’
Director Ameline’s teachings to say the right thing first, even if you are afraid or regret it later..
Oliver opened his mouth again, using the words that sounded like excuses at the time as a cane..
“Wouldn’t it be better to try to save the garden first? teacher.”
Oliver, who had been avoiding the question of the end itself, asked the gardener:.
Now that Joanna has lost her sisters.
Now that Derek died for the orphans he didn't know..
Now that I have seen the past of the Pied Piper.
Only now that Director Ameline has become a tree..
It's a bit late, but Oliver brought it up right now..
Oliver looked at the man, waiting for an answer, and the man also looked at Oliver in silence. She looked very, very sad. Like he wants to say something, but can't say it.
There was a long silence, and after a while, the man spoke..
“······So what are you going to do, child?.”
“yes?”
“Are you going to save the flock of lambs??”
Oliver was speechless at the unexpected question. I was hesitating because I couldn't decide what to do yet. Should I follow my impulse to leave or do what feels right?.
Oliver is troubled at the crossroads. At that time, the man gave advice.
“If you choose the latter, you too will suffer..”
“I beg your pardon?”
“He said that if you choose the right thing, you will suffer. As much as a child playing the pipe. Because even doing the right thing comes with karma..”
“······Why are you telling me that??”
Oliver asked sincerely. What on earth should I do? The man gave an unexpected answer again.
“Maybe it's because I have conflicting feelings about you. In a way, it's an abominable feeling..”
The shadowed face of the man looked straight at Oliver. I felt like I was being sucked into his invisible gaze..
“I just want you to enjoy your rights. Taste all the blessings and joys of the world, and experience no pain. Because you deserve it... But on the other hand, I want you to fulfill your duty. Even though it's not your duty.”
“······.”
“I want you to walk on a comfortable and safe path, but I also hope that you walk on a thorny path..”
“If I take the easy path... So what happens to the children??”
“Don't you already know? The fate of the sheep that the shepherd does not find.”
“Is that the price you pay for choosing an easy job??”
“Up easy.”
“······Can I ask one last question??”
“say it Hey kid.”
“With the Pied Piper... what is his child's name?”
The man thought for a moment and then opened his mouth..
At the same time, the man's figure became blurred, as if immersed in darkness, and the darkness that had colored the surroundings began to slowly disappear, like a curtain being lifted..
As if it was never there in the first place.
I saw something shining beyond the darkness that cleared away..
As the light rose after the night, it illuminated Oliver's face..
It was dawn.
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