## Chapter 1461 – 1461. Dark Moon
“Only transcendence is our ultimate goal.”
Zzzzzzz.
The door opened.
I stepped into the open doorway without hesitation. Bell, startled, quickly followed behind me.
The hallway lights turned on as soon as we entered. The pure white corridor stretched straight ahead. Considering the door’s location, it was clearly going down to the basement, but the corridor was perfectly level, so it didn’t feel like that at all.
“Transcendentalists? I’ve never heard of them before.”
“The higher-ups deemed the ideology of the Transcendentalists dangerous and began controlling information. As the information was buried, interest faded, and eventually, even the higher-ups forgot about them.”
“Information control is common. But I don’t understand. Were these people, who own a building of this scale, just standing by while being controlled?”
“The number of Transcendentalists was small. Controlling information? It didn’t matter to the Transcendentalists. They didn’t force their ideology on others. For them, their own transcendence was all that mattered.”
“What is transcendence? Is it what I think it is? Going beyond level 7 and becoming a monster… something like that?”
In this world, level 7 is often called the realm of the superhuman.
However, many people are mistaken. The levels in this world are not about realms but are closer to a measure of power.
“The transcendence of the Transcendentalists is not like that. It’s about discarding everything and reaching one’s own ideal.”
“That’s a vague ideology. What’s so dangerous about that? Anyway, those guys try to control and eliminate everything they don’t like…”
“It was dangerous. There were those among the Transcendentalists who truly achieved transcendence.”
“That’s interesting.”
As we walked down the hallway, we reached a wall. I naturally moved my hand to the pad next to the wall. The pad turned on, and a field appeared asking for a password.
I paused for a moment and searched my memory. What was the password here?
‘Originally, you were supposed to do a quest related to the Transcendentalists, find clues, and deduce the password… But I hate thinking, so I just searched it up on the internet without much thought.’
I found it in 10 seconds after searching the internet.
‘It was definitely 697852, right?’
I entered it.
The bulkhead opened. Another long corridor continued.
“But if they achieved transcendence, wouldn’t they have become an enormous being? Why haven’t I heard of them?”
“Don’t think of transcendence as something too great. Achieving transcendence doesn’t mean gaining the power to destroy the world. There were Transcendentalists who wanted that kind of transcendence… but they all failed.”
“Tell me about a successful transcendent. I’m curious.”
“A transcendence that’s easy for you to understand… I see. It’s machine transcendence.”
“Machine transcendence? Those guys who claim that you have to abandon the weak human body and attach superior machines to your body?”
“Do you know about cyber souls?”
“Of course. It’s about digitizing the soul and putting it into the cyber world. There are a few related projects if you look for them… Machine transcendence is, could it be.”
“That’s right. That’s machine transcendence. However, the Transcendentalists added a few conditions to it. One of them is that it shouldn’t be affected by external interference, and the other is that it should fully maintain its ego.”
“You’re talking about a successful transcendent, right? Are you saying that a cyber soul… no, that a god of the cyber world exists?”
“It’s different from a cyber god. Just because you become a cyber soul doesn’t mean you can do everything related to cyber.”
“I’ve been wondering since before… how do you know so much?”
Because I saw it in the game. I couldn’t say that.
“I’m interested in ancient things. If I hadn’t learned magic, I might have become an archaeologist. Transcendence, the Void, Humanity…”
“Huh?”
“They are the ideologists of the ancient times. It’s close to religion. You know about the Voidists, right?”
“You mean those guys who claim that the cause of the Dark Moon is in the Void? Ugh, just thinking about those bastards makes me sick. Damn it. I’ve been on the verge of death twice because of them. But what about Humanity?”
“……The Dark Moon is just a means of transcendence.”
“Huh?”
“Worship the Dark Moon, the gate of the Void is in the Dark Moon.”
“……”
“Someday, we will control that Dark Moon too.”
That was the slogan the game company used when introducing the Transcendentalists, Voidists, and Humanists. As you can probably tell by now, in the game, players could choose an ideology. Of course, you didn’t have to choose. If you did, you would get new abilities or quests. Of course, it wasn’t all advantages; there were disadvantages too.
“Hmm. Well, I kind of get it. But do you memorize that stuff?”
“I just happened to learn it. It was so impressive that I memorized it naturally. And there’s nothing that expresses them better than this.”
I could feel the gaze that was looking at me as if I was absurd.
“…If it’s a cyber soul, wouldn’t it be possible to control Hamburg Innovation?”
“I think it’s impossible because the cyber world of that city is too vast, but if you’re interested, ask them directly.”
We arrived.
This time, the door opened automatically without needing a password.
A large space appeared. The interior was neat and clean. And it had a futuristic design that was hard to believe was from an ancient ruin.
Pop.
A hologram human appeared in front of us.
“Welcome, young Transcendentalists. I am Barkase, the 72nd Transcendence Guide.”
He was a blond man wearing a white gown. He had his hair slicked back and wore glasses. He looked and felt like a doctor or researcher.
“Artificial intelligence…? No, it doesn’t feel like artificial intelligence. It doesn’t have the stiff feeling that AI has.”
“Haha. Didn’t you already know about me?”
“…Cyber soul.”
“I feel a sense of time passing. It feels like just yesterday I was called a parasite of the network.”
I looked around the space and asked Barkase.
“Did you hear our conversation?”
“I didn’t intend to eavesdrop. This building itself is my hardware… so I naturally heard it.”
The space was exactly the same as in the original. Barkase appearing was also the same. Taking the machine parts in the space? I might get some money, but I’d make Barkase an enemy. In the long run, that would be more of a loss.
“Then you know without me saying it. We are not Transcendentalists.”
“I wasn’t a Transcendentalist from the beginning either.”
“We have no desire to become Transcendentalists.”
“It reminds me of the old days. When I knew nothing about transcendence. I thought transcendence was absurd. Because that’s common sense. But look. In the end, I achieved transcendence.”
“I have no intention of becoming a parasite of the network.”
“Haha. You’re prickly. You know that there isn’t only one direction for transcendence, right?”
“Why are you being so friendly to us? I don’t understand.”
“Isn’t it because I’m happy to meet humans after a long time?”
Bell interjected. She was already looking around for things that could be worth money. Of course, there was nothing, so her expression turned sour.
“It’s because you are qualified.”
“I’ve never gotten a certificate except for my driver’s license.”
Bell, who had looked around, grumbled and came to my side.
“The qualification for transcendence. You have that qualification.”
“…Mr. Barkase? Could you explain it a little easier? Unlike the mage next to me, I’m hearing about transcendence and Transcendentalists for the first time.”
“Simply put, it’s the talent to achieve transcendence. In your case, your body is special, and your partner has received the blessing of mana. Neither of those are common.”
“……”
“……”
Bell and I closed our mouths. I closed mine simply because I had nothing to say, but in Bell’s case, it was probably because she was surprised.
“Don’t think too seriously about it. I have no intention of harming you. Rather, I intend to help you. If you agree, that is.”
As soon as I heard those words, I was secretly delighted. The annoying problem of having to persuade him had disappeared.
“How exactly are you going to help us?”
Bell asked.
Barkase stretched out his hands to both sides.
“I will help you using these capsules. Well, that’s all I can do here right now.”
“What are those capsules?”
“They are mana showers. They remove waste accumulated in the body and stabilize the body. In addition, they can put the body in the best condition or make slight adjustments. All Transcendentalists want a mana shower. Once you do it, it feels incredibly refreshing.”
“Ha. Do you think I’d go into such a suspicious thing?”
Bell said, as if she couldn’t believe it.
“You need it.”
“I can live well without receiving something like that.”
“It’s also possible to adjust the body and machine. I’ll optimize the machines attached to your body. I promise it’ll be much better than getting it adjusted by any mechanic. Especially since you have a problem with your heart, don’t you?”
“……You know about this heart?”
“I’ll have to check the details.”
“……”
Bell was lost in thought.
I could say that I knew more about her heart, but I didn’t bother. Even if I told her, she wouldn’t believe me right away. And it wasn’t that important. Nothing would change even if I knew.
“What about you?”
Barkase asked me. I answered without a second of hesitation.
“I’ll do it.”
In the original, if you received a mana shower, some of your stats would permanently increase for the first time. It was the same as eating the highest-grade elixir. There was no reason to refuse.
‘I was originally going to come after restoring all the mana rods….’
Since things have turned out this way, there’s nothing I can do.
“……I’ll do it too. Tell me the details about my body. Especially about my heart.”
“I thought you would from the beginning.”
Pshhh.
The capsules opened.
“Then take off your clothes and go inside. I’ll take care of the rest.”
“Take off my clothes? Are you telling me to be naked here?”
“Is there a problem?”
“No, it’s just….”
Bell glanced at me. She seemed embarrassed to show me her naked body.
“There was a girlish side to you. Go outside. I’ll go first, and then you can go next.”
“Who’s calling me girlish? Ha, I was just a little surprised. What’s the big deal about showing my naked body.”
She started taking off her clothes, flustered. I took off all my clothes first and went into the capsule. The capsule door closed. The capsule door was transparent, so I could see her outside. Of course, she could see me too.
‘She has a good figure.’
