The Player Who Can't Level Up

The voice Gi-Gyu had heard in his head definitely belonged to his father.

Why was he hearing his father’s voice in the Shaolin Temple’s secret room?

And what was the “number” thing all about?

Prepare for what?

The voice didn’t reply.

-I prepared for a long time. This was the case before my time and will be for the next generations.

Gi-Gyu’s guess was right. The speaker had no consciousness, which made the dialogues seem like a recording.

-Did you find me first? Or did you find another me first?

The voice continued to speak in riddles.

-Or it’s possible that you didn’t find anything at all. You coincidentally found me, or…

-Could this be what Gaia wanted?

Gi-Gyu’s eyes widened.

-Perhaps you were guided here by Gaia. Perhaps Gaia helped both you and me.

The voice continued,

-My descendant, you must be prepared for a future of desolation.

With a crackling sound in the air, light filled the space again. It was blinding, but Gi-Gyu didn’t close his eyes.

The voice added,

-My name is Bodhidharma.

Suddenly, something appeared before him, and Gi-Gyu got ready to defend himself.

The voice continued,

-And Kronos.

Gi-Gyu’s guess was correct.

-I suppose you are like me.

The light disappeared, and Gi-Gyu found a man standing in front of him.

The man asked, “I ask you again. How many Kronoses have there been before you? What number are you?”

The man looked different from how Gi-Gyu remembered his father, but the man’s energy told Gi-Gyu that he was Kim Se-Jin.

“I am…” Gi-Gyu opened his mouth slowly.

***

Gi-Gyu gulped, his mouth dry. The man, who reminded Gi-Gyu of his father, had consciousness. This meant Gi-Gyu could have a conversation with him.

“I am not Kronos.”

The man remained quiet for a moment before replying, “That can’t be.”

Another silence fell. After a few minutes, the man continued, “Only the worthy one can enter this place; therefore, you must be…!”

Gi-Gyu was certain the man in front of him was Bodhidharma. Bodhidharma had seemingly realized something because he hesitantly whispered, “You’re right.”

Find the original at bit.ly/3iBfjkV.

“Yes.” Gi-Gyu bowed lightly and greeted the man. He didn’t know the proper way to greet the man, so he decided to go with a small bow.

The man seemed surprised.

Gi-Gyu introduced himself, “I am Kronos… I mean Kim Se-Jin’s son. I am Kim Gi-Gyu.”

“...”

Gi-Gyu also didn’t know how to address the man, but he could guess the man’s identity. He had to be a past version of Gi-Gyu’s father.

He was the first Kronos Gaia had created in her world. This man held the history of all Kronoses.

“Ahh…” Surprise, pleasure, and despair flashed on the man’s face. He muttered, “I guess the time has finally come.”

It was time to prepare for the end of the world. The man gave Gi-Gyu a fatherly smile and offered, “Would you like to chat with me?”

The man had sharp features, but his smile suggested he still had warmth in him.

“We don’t have much time, but I would really like to talk to you,” the man informed. Suddenly, a small table and two seat cushions appeared in front of Gi-Gyu.

***

“I don’t know when it all began. But, repeated coincidences helped us find some of our memories,” Bodhidharma, a past version of Gi-Gyu’s father, explained.

“All the very many coincidences made us think this was Gaia’s will. So we prepared ourselves.” The man sipped his tea.

Bodhidharma, his father’s past version, was a strange being. He had a physical form, yet he didn’t have a body. He could maintain a physical form in this space, but it wasn’t perfect.

The space was filled with unique energy and God’s power, which constituted Bodhidharma’s body and mind.

“When the world finally ends, my true self will find you,” Bodhidharma said to Gi-Gyu.

There were many forms of Kronos, but there were chiefly two: The original—who was born at the beginning of time and built the Tower, and Gi-Gyu’s father—an inferior version created by Gaia.

“There is only one reason why you would be here. You…” Bodhidharma’s face crumpled into a grotesque expression. Gi-Gyu couldn’t tell if the man was smiling or crying.

“You must have found my child. Jupiter… That was his only purpose. Are you Jupiter, or… No, I apologize.” Bodhidharma corrected himself. “You introduced yourself as Kim Gi-Gyu.”

“Yes, that’s right. I am not… Jupiter.” Gi-Gyu wasn’t sure, but he didn’t elaborate.

“We don’t have much time. I think I gave away too much last time. Now, it’s hard for me to even maintain a physical form.”

“Last time?” asked Gi-Gyu.

“I don’t know much about it since I can’t remember. My consciousness experiences rebirth every time someone enters this place. Mine is a temporary psyche created and maintained by this space’s energy. I exist only to relay the message to my descendants.”

The smile never left Bodhidharma’s face. He requested, “May I ask you for a favor?”

“Please go ahead.”

“Tell me your story. The fact that you were born means the end of the world is approaching. Based on what I can feel from you, I can tell a lot has already happened.”

Bodhidharma continued, “I believe that I must have failed in this life too.” He looked depressed.

Gi-Gyu replied, “It wasn’t a complete failure.”

Gi-Gyu told him about his life. It was a long story, so Gi-Gyu kept it concise.

He talked about the Tower and the players’ appearance, Kronos’ defeat at the hand of his father, and how that Kronos turned out to be a mere copy.

“I would like to hear about you,” Bodhidharma insisted. He was more interested in learning about Gi-Gyu than the world’s happenings.

So, Gi-Gyu obliged.

His father’s death.

His mother’s illness.

How he grew as a player.

The confusion and despair he had felt.

How he had met Lou.

Gi-Gyu told him about everything that had happened in his life. While listening, Bodhidharma’s face changed continuously. He smiled and cried as sorrow and joy constantly flashed on his face. Bodhidharma had apparently shed his emotions to concentrate on contemplating the world. Yet, Gi-Gyu could see all possible emotions on his face today.

“Ahh!” Bodhidharma exclaimed after Gi-Gyu had finished his story. “You have grown up to be a fine young man.”

Tears rolled down Bodhidharma’s cheeks, and Gi-Gyu couldn’t understand why.

Bodhidharma was a version of his father, but…

‘I’m not his son.’ 

This situation was so strange that Gi-Gyu became confused.

Gi-Gyu asked, “Now, can you tell me your story?”

“Of course.” Bodhidharma nodded with a pleased smile.

***

“We experienced many lives, but we didn’t have children often,” Bodhidharma began.

“In most of our lives, we couldn’t even have children. Or even if we managed to have them, they died early.”

Gi-Gyu nodded solemnly.

Bodhidharma continued, “It was also hard for us to get wives. We always felt empty inside. It was true for me, and I’m sure it was the same for all my other forms too.”

“...”

It was a long story. Apparently, all the Kronos clones had a hard time having children. And if they succeeded in having one, Jupiter’s power ensured they wouldn’t survive for long.

Moreover, since they were only allowed to love a version of Gaia, they couldn’t find a wife easily. After all, what were the chances their soulmate would always be just down the road in all the very many lives they had lived?

“They were only allowed certain things,” Bodhidharma explained.

But their search for answers helped them frequently. Unaware of what they had to look for, many engrossed themselves in various fields, including academics, religions, and martial arts. Many of them became experts in their respective fields.

“I think the first time was a coincidence.”

It was when Kronos awakened for the first time. This first man who had the original Kronos’ memories had engrossed himself only in making preparations. After this first man, the others who followed showered their sons with love. Perhaps it was because Gaia had created them.

“We all thought Kronos would wake up and return to our world. We were him, so we could guess his plan and goal.”

So they prepared themselves for the day they had to welcome Kronos. They studied Kronos’ power and accepted that the day of his arrival would be the end of the world. Therefore, every time they were reborn, they readied themselves.

“But not all of our lives continued seamlessly. Some lived scattered lives, but… In my own life, I gained a lot of things.”

Every copy of Kronos remembered a different part of the original’s memories. Each copy down the line inherited those memories; sadly, a lot was also lost to time.

“The energy that fills the room… Do you feel it? I’m sure you can,” asked Bodhidharma.

“Yes.”

God’s power filled the room.

Clack.

The sound of the teacup being put down on the table rang in the space.

“I don’t know if it was Buddha’s will, but I acquired the fragment Kronos wanted the most. So I hid it. It was a part of the power Gaia scattered in this world when she first created it. I brought it here because I suspected that you would be born and find me here in the distant future.”

Bodhidharma smiled, and Gi-Gyu wondered if this man was a soothsayer. After all, Gi-Gyu was born in Korea, the country nearest to this place, and had found his way to this secret room.

Bodhidharma continued, “I tried to protect you, and I guess I succeeded in a way. Still, I didn’t do a perfect job.”

Like a true monk, Bodhidharma had asked a rhetorical question. With a fatherly smile on his face, he asked, “So, does that answer your question?”

“Yes.” Gi-Gyu kept his answer short. He was more interested in the one who had come here before him. Gi-Gyu didn’t know when this happened, but the last worthy one had taken a lot of what had been here.

Bodhidharma was becoming weaker, barely maintaining his physical form.

“Not much of what I prepared is left here, but I guess I can give you the most important treasure. I kept it safe just for you.”

Bodhidharma’s smile slowly disappeared. His form scattered like smoke, and Gi-Gyu closed his eyes.

“...”

Gi-Gyu felt his father’s love for him in this place; it was something he had never felt before. All his life, he had misunderstood his father’s true intention. But now, he knew better and wondered if he should thank Gaia for it.

Life after life, Kronos’ copies never lost their love for their sons. They worried and sacrificed themselves for him.

“One last thing,” Bodhidharma’s disappearing form whispered.

Gi-Gyu could still see his lips moving.

“One and two, and two and one. All of these things come from him, so…” Till the very end, Bodhidharma spoke in riddles, making Gi-Gyu grin.

Most of Bodhidharma’s form was gone now; suddenly, Gi-Gyu’s eyes began glowing gray.

“...!”

***

Sun Won stopped walking in the middle of the street.

“...?”

In an empty corner of the Shaolin Temple, he saw someone meditating. Visitors were banned from entering the temple a long time ago. And Sun Won remembered the face of every visiting player.

He didn’t remember seeing this man before, yet…

‘He looks familiar?’ 

The energy Sun Won could feel from this man was extraordinary. It wasn’t magic, but it was strangely thick. Unable to control his curiosity, Sun Won approached the man and asked, “Who are you?”

The man was meditating on the ground and kept his eyes closed. He eventually opened his eyes.

“I am the father…”

The man’s facial features were sharp, but a fatherly smile appeared on his face as he continued, “Of a child.”