Wizard Reading Patterns

Episode 2. Wizard reading patterns (2)

Ray leaves and Dante opens the box.

A small USB stick was included.

I sat down with my laptop open and plugged in a USB.

A mechanical sound was heard along with a somewhat flashy intro to be called a will.

[This will was first drawn up on August 3, 533, and last updated on June 30, 548.

Dante Prime’s biological father, Pierre Prime, and biological mother, El Prime, left a will to their only son, Dante Prime.

This cyber will contains an electronic signature and is legally binding. ]

August 3, 533 is the day Dante was born. June 30, 548 is the day before my parents leave for their last mission.

It seemed that he renewed his will every time before leaving for a mission.

Then, a video of the parents’ faces was played. A wave arose in the calm lake of emotions.

“Huh.”

Dante bit his lip and swallowed the tears.

Now, little by little, all of this is starting to come into reality.

that your parents died

I’m really alone now

Dante unconsciously reached out to the monitor and groped his parents’ faces.

cold.

It was hard.

Then I heard the voices of my parents.

It was unfamiliar.

So, the sadness rose even more.

[Dante. my son! it’s mom and dad If you’re watching this video, that means we died together. ]

“I know. Why did you two go out together?”

It is difficult for a miner to make a living with a single income. So the two did most of the missions together.

I wondered.

Why did they both have to be miners?

Hamel once asked Dante carefully.

” hey. My housekeeper, the lady, quit. So, why don’t you ask your mom? 」

The competition rate was high for super-in-home housekeepers because they paid a lot and it was a safe job.

Dante asked his mother after returning from the mission, but her mother refused like a knife.

Why did you refuse?

Did you think it would be better for you to die with your father?

‘why… … .’

That was the part I still couldn’t understand.

The will continued.

The middle part was that he was sorry for neglecting his childrearing.

and… … .

[ love. son Can you forgive these poor parents? ]

forgive me

well.

Although they certainly weren’t very good parents. Did you do anything wrong enough to ask for forgiveness? Nor was it.

Of course, I still wonder why my mother refused to be a housekeeper, but they did their best. Even Dante knew that much.

‘Couldn’t you have suffered from guilt right before closing your eyes?’

If I knew it would be like this, I would have told you at least once. Thank you for raising me hard.

Don’t worry.

It’s okay.

Even though I knew that he went to work where it would not be strange if he died every time, I couldn’t tell him.

Thank you.

that easy word.

Dante was heartbroken and cried for a long time.

Now it was time to look at the last part of the will.

[ son. If we die on a mission, the miners’ association will give us a reward. Don’t worry, Ray will take care of all the complicated procedures. And there’s someone you should meet. Follow Rey to Echo Base. got it? I love you and I love you, my son. ]

Before long, the parents’ faces disappeared from the monitor.

however… … .

You just told me to go to Echo Base?

Didn’t you hear that wrong?

Tears pour in.

Dante laughed.

I’m not terribly stupid.

Echo Base.

It was a place called the lair of demons.

* * *

One week after the C108 accident.

A large-scale funeral was held at Charlie’s base.

I never met Hamel.

This was because the incense burner for the dead superhumans was set up in the central square of District 1, and the incense burner for the miners was set up on the outskirts of District 113, which was in the midst of development.

After the joint funeral, they returned home with the ashes. The ossuary was empty, like Dante’s heart.

Strangers hang out in front of the house. They said they were relatives.

“Dante. A long time. Have you grown up?”

“It’s me, your uncle. I saw it often when I was young. don’t you remember? You are getting more and more like your tired grandfather. huh?”

“What about paternal grandfather? His facial features are only on the outside. Dante! I am your great aunt.”

Dante was stunned for a moment.

Still, I thought you came to me like this after hearing the news.

Say hello politely.

“You must be busy, but thank you so much for coming.”

“What is gratitude? My family is Zhanglian, of course you should come.”

However, the impression did not last less than 30 minutes.

“It’s about compensation. Shouldn’t we share it in moderation?”

“Your father borrowed money from me, I mean! so you have to pay I brought the documents, so take a look. Your father’s signature, right?”

I’m at a loss for words.

To pay death insurance money to a 15-year-old boy who just came home from parenthood?

Are these really human?

‘Trash.’

You have to eat hard. Because now there is no fence called parents.

Dante looked them in the eyes and talked.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I have any obligation to share the compensation. But since you came all the way here, I’ll take care of the cost of meals and transportation.”

I did my best to speak politely.

I didn’t want to disgrace the faces of my parents who passed away for no reason.

Demons wearing human masks looked at Dante and clicked their tongues, saying that he had no manners.

“Oh my gosh. look at what he’s saying My parents who left first will be upset if they see it, kid.”

“I am Parents leave the house for 100 days, so their children are like that.”

Uncle, let alone condolence money, spat in front of the door and left.

‘Ha, life. Can I really live alone?’

Dante, for the first time, understood the feeling of being ‘creepy’.

Even after that, his uncle came a few more times and made a fuss asking him to pay back the money, but Ray took care of it.

The debt confirmation turned out to be fake, and the man was sentenced to prison for forgery.

“Thank you for your help. Uncle Ray.”

“That is my job. Are you okay?”

“… … .”

“Oh, I made a mistake. sorry.”

“no. it’s okay.”

Ray looked at Dante and smiled bitterly.

“The guy too. What about luggage?”

“I have it.”

“Then let’s go.”

Taking advantage of the weekends when there are no school classes, I decided to go to Echo Base as my parents will.

Modern society was divided into six city-states. There was a base on each continent centered on Central Agras, a city nestled in the old American land.

Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo.

The official language was English, and very few people spoke other languages.

Dante has lived in Charlie’s base all his life. To be honest, it’s because it’s a base, Charlie was also a very spacious place.

100 districts across the lands of old Europe. About 10 million people live in each district, 100,000 people.

Dante, who followed Ray, asked a question.

“Why Echo?”

Ray let out a laugh.

“Why? why. Do you think Echo Base is a garbage dump?”

“… … yes.”

It’s natural, right?

Echo Base.

A base built on old Chinese soil, it was a notorious place for out-of-control vagrants, illegal immigrants, and criminals of all kinds.

“The news is all lies. You shouldn’t believe it straight away.”

“My mom and dad hated it too. They say that if you wipe out all the monsters, they will come and steal only rare stones. Echo bastards.”

Go to that Echo Base?

why?

“I don’t understand even thinking about cancer.”

“so. Won’t you go?”

“I must go. Still, it’s an advice… … .”

Shouldn’t you go and find out?

Why did you send yourself there?

Charlie’s Third Airport.

Dante chased after Ray, carrying only one backpack.

It was the first time I had been to a passenger plane airport.

Each area of the base is connected by high-speed rail, so there was no need to take a plane unless moving to another country.

Immigration procedures are also difficult.

“I heard that the third airport is dedicated to private planes. Right?”

“that’s right. Is this your first time riding a private jet?”

“Actually, it’s the first time I’ve been to the airport.”

The third airport’s main customers were wealthy people with private jets. People with witty lines were enjoying expensive coffee all over the place.

Departure screening, which is said to be difficult, was completed in one minute. It was because Ray had prepared the documents in advance.

Upon entering the concourse, I saw a window lined with small planes.

‘oh my god. Aren’t there too many rich people?’

Dante boarded the plane through Gate A1004 with Ray. It was a small plane with a capacity of about 10 people.

“Is this airplane Mr.? How much is it, how big is this?”

From noble mtl dot com

At Dante’s question, Ray grinned.

Strictly speaking, it was not Ray’s personal property.

“I bought this with money from acquaintances from across the street. It will be worth ten high-end apartments.”

“How long does it take? To Echo Base.”

Depending on the model, the exterior, interior, and speed vary greatly. So I asked.

“It will take a couple of hours.”

“and… … It’s a high-end model… … .”

In the old days, it was said that it took about 12 hours to get from Italy to China… … With the development of mana stone splitting and flight technology, the speed was about five or six times faster.

Airplanes of this era were basically vertical take-off and landing, and were operated with automatic navigation. So anyone could own and drive a private plane after receiving a simple education.

As soon as I buckled my seatbelt, the plane moved.

After exiting the hangar, the plane moved slowly along a wide underground tunnel.

As we approach the end of the tunnel, light leaks in.

Whoa!

with a loud mechanical sound.

Soon the plane took off.

Dante involuntarily grabbed the handle next to him.

“Are you scared?”

“Oh no?! just… … You see it on the news sometimes. Fall case.”

A plane crash due to an aerial monster attack.

It wasn’t uncommon, but it was a rare case that might happen once a year.

“Even though this guy is small, it is a high-end model equipped with stealth functions, monster detection radar, and anti-monster mana missiles.”

“is it so?”

Only then did Dante feel a little relieved.

Eyes look out the window.

It was getting closer and closer to the sky.

‘Is this Hamel’s house over there?’

The high-rise ground apartment that everyone envied. It was now at Dante’s feet.

I forgot that the destination was Echo Base.

My heart swelled.

The desire to go higher and experience more soared.

About two hours after takeoff.

Ray, who enjoyed a short nap and woke up, spoke to me.

“Look down.”

“Down?”

“This is Echo Base.”

“ah… … .”

Despite being a city of 10 million, all you can see is a runway.

“Isn’t the city quite far from the runway here too?”

“About an hour by high-speed rail?”

“It’s similar. with Charlie.”

Due to the nature of the runway, it is difficult to build it underground. So it was often made on the ground.

However, the above-ground facility ‘Here I am!’ It was like advertising to monsters. So these days, the runway was gradually disappearing.

“But don’t you get off here?”

“I’ll go another 15 minutes.”

“Is it 15 minutes?”

An additional 15 minutes in an airship at 4,000 km per hour was a considerable distance.

AD 20th century.

Voyager 1, launched in 1977, took 36 years to leave the solar system. The speed was about 60,000 km/h.

AD 21st century.

The Parker Solar Probe, a solar probe, set a record for flying at about 700,000 kilometers per hour.

Since then, mankind has constantly challenged its limits. And in the end, he found a clue that would make light-speed flight possible. It was a way to gain momentum by splitting S-class mana stones.

The era of fighting monsters on alien planets and gathering rare stones. Flying at 4,000 km/h was no longer surprising.

「General passenger planes cannot use Class A or higher Mana Stones as a power source. If it weren’t for the legal provision that said, “Intercontinental movement would have been much faster.

anyway.

Even a 4,000 km/h plane was just a new world for Dante.

“and… … Beijing here. Right?”

“that’s right.”

“Isn’t this building completely destroyed?”

“It’s a good environment for homeless people to live in.”

“I guess so.”

These remaining old buildings were inhabited by outcasts who had escaped government control.

“Is the person I will meet also a tramp?”

“… … bum?”

Ray chuckled and nodded.

“Well, there is no mistake in calling it that.”

Unlike Ray, who was relaxed, the smile on Dante’s face disappeared.

and… … .

Even when I said it was an Echo Base, I was cold.

Are you a bum?

“… … So my parents were friends with the bum and wanted me to meet the bum?”

“Do you think you will continue to doubt me even if I explain to you? Now that we’re all here, see, hear and judge for yourself. Why did your parents send you here?”

Although Dante was naturally curious, he was not a suspicious child. But it keeps bothering me.

‘no… … I think my mom said a hundred times that if you get involved with a bum, you’ll be in big trouble. It’s strange that such a mother left a will to meet a bum. I have doubts.’

Is it something you can really trust and follow?

The plane flying high in the sky got closer to the ground. It looked like a place where there used to be a fairly large city.

“Where are you?”

“seoul. It is the old Korean land.”

“There are a lot of vagrants here too.”

As in Beijing, there are many buildings that have been half-destroyed or preserved almost in their original form.

It was only after seeing it with his own two eyes that Dante realized it.

‘… … I’m going to meet a real bum?’