2 Chapter 1: Original Sin

It's cold and empty. I was floating on an endless sea of the void, only held back by my feeble, mortal self. My limb was immobile, my eyes couldn't close, and my tongue was frozen.

So it's true that I died at that time. This may be what the afterlife looks like.

I've been here, for how long? My mind was light. Ah, it must be my soul finally leaving this deceased body.

Regret, I... Sorry, Alicia, I do love you very much, but if I had any wish—but if I had any regret—it was that society still let those charcoal creatures roam free even after they proved themselves again and again to be savages with no redeeming qualities.

"So do you seek vengeance upon them?"

Wait, who's there? Who are you?

"Is my identity really that important?" "But well, if you ask me, you can just call me God." The mysterious being was transmitting the dialogue into my head. Even after my ears have stopped functioning, the sound can still be heard. With my mouth not able to form any sentences, the least I could do was make protests inside my head.

Such transgression! There is no way you are God! Where is the chariot? Where is the angel? Where is the throne? Oh, I recognize you. You are the devil, seeking to sway me in my last moments to doubt my faith. That has to be it. Go away! I won't be swayed by your temptation.

"Devil. God. Such a distinction, while important to your species, is irrelevant to me. But, well, it feels insulting to get slandered when I just want to grant your dearest wish" "Sigh, if you do hate me that much, I guess I should just vanish right now."

Wait, please! My dearest wish is... Do you mean I can reunite with Alicia?

"Of course, I can grant it easily, in fact." "But what you just said is a lie."

A lie?! My love for Alicia is more brilliant than a shooting star. It is my deepest wish to meet her again.

"Oh, you're still saying that?" "Maybe you've forgotten; I'm not surprised if you have." "After all, unlike your wish to meet Alicia, this wish only manifested recently, when you were on your deathbed."

Silence. I knew very well what the devil was talking about. Even if it's a devilish temptation to drag me down, to divert me from the path of my religion, the hatred, rage, and abhorrence will not go away. Even if I went to heaven, I don't think I could have a proper life there.

"So you have decided."

Yes, please give me another chance to exact my revenge on those charcoal creatures.

"Your heart is indeed in the right place, but you are a bit shortsighted."

Shortsighted? What do you mean by that?

"Here, let me show you a glimpse of the future."

The devil manifested a round mirror surrounded by a majestic golden frame. There was a large, noticeable crack on the mirror. My eyes, which should not be able to see it, can see it clearly, and the brilliant gold frame made me numb just by looking at it.

The devil waved an imaginary hand in front of the mirror, causing a static followed by what I could only describe as a miracle. There was a moving person inside the mirror, and a voice came out of it. Such sorcery.

"Don't be surprised just yet; the real show is only about to begin."

The image in the mirror had changed; it now depicts a male charcoal creature wearing a strangely styled dress. That man entered a huge building called a university. But I don't understand why the devil would show me this.

"Oooh, you just wait..."

No, my eyes (?) must have been fooling me! Did he just write and read competently? Not only that, he was allowed to even sit near God's chosen people. I looked around a bit, and there were many strange things. A young woman who should never leave the house without her husband was now sitting freely without him or a guardian. Not only that, she wears a cloth that barely covers her bosom and belly in public places. Had she no pride? She might as well just be naked. Was this a nightmare I'm seeing right now?

"No, it's the future of the world that's yet to come." "Around 200 years from now, your religion will be forgotten, and all the ethics that stem from it will not be followed anymore." "Not only that, in this godless society, they have a twisted ideal where they had the bright idea of treating everyone as equal, even those who were born heretics."

No way. So you're saying that even if I seek vengeance, society will eventually forget the savagery of charcoal creatures and elevate them to the same level as God's chosen people? Not only will that woman forget God's word, but so will the majority of the population? What should I do? What power could even one powerless man like me have to stop that revelation? Maybe I should just change my wish to meet Alicia and ask to be revived instead.

"It's not like you reviving will do anything, as those events in the faraway future are permanently inscribed upon the world, so there is no way to change that history."

So you were telling me there was nothing I could do, that any effort I made was useless.

"Now hold your horses." "You might not be able to change the future of your world, but what about another?"

Now I'm confused.

"Let me make my point clear." "A world that is many leagues away from yours and filled with many savage creatures was about to undergo this kind of change." The devil didn't have a presence, but I could feel a finger pointed at me. "Now are you going to let this innocent world turn into a world where society has degraded to the point where the God's chosen people are equal to savages, or are you going to meet your Alicia only to be doomed by this knowledge of the future?" "Eh, no need to be thinking too hard; after all, a coward like you will surely choose the easy answer."

Even if the being in front of me was really the devil, that being was correct. I shouted inside my mind to answer the choice given to me.

Of course not! I would do everything in my power to prevent society from reaching that tipping point. I'll lay down my life and even sacrifice all my wealth and toil just to make the world right forever. Even if it means making a deal with the devil and being labeled a heretic, I'll still spread the teachings of God.

"Very good enthusiasm. So, I presume you're ready?" "I'm sure you have a strong conviction to nonchalantly go to another world you know nothing about."

Of course, I don't need to answer twice.

"Heh, just to make sure you won't regret making this choice,"

The devil chants an ominous sound in a language I couldn't understand, and it seems the devil also did some kind of dance that strangely compliments the chant.

"Haaaa!" said the devil, stretching out the fiery red hand that was burnt into my mind. I was bombarded by an unknown force that made my stomach tingle, as if in a strange emergency.

My body turned into a ball of light and flew away at high speed. It was such a surreal experience to be walking through the wordless void of space at a speed even faster than my thoughts. My conscious mind, which couldn't keep up with the journey, was forced to rest, and so I fell asleep.

When I awoke, I was greeted by an unknown concrete ceiling and a cool climate that made me reminiscent of my homeland.