Chapter 49: Meaning of Void Null.
[Name: Gre Ka Go] (Pseudonym Active)
[Age: 30 Years]
[Affinity: Fire]
[Believers: 0]
[Admirers: 6104]
[Lifespan: 100 Years]
[Karma Points: 7450]
Roman glanced at the translucent panel before him. His eyes lingered briefly upon the line displaying his admirers before the screen silently disappeared, his attention returning to the Magnari seated around the table.
Truthfully...
He would have loved nothing more than to introduce the concept of Hell as well.
After all, a paradise without consequence would forever remain incomplete. Hope alone could inspire people to pursue something greater, yet fear possessed an equally terrifying ability to restrain them from crossing certain boundaries.
Both concepts complemented one another.
Heaven gave people something to strive toward while Hell gave them something to avoid.
Yet...He connot introduce it.
Now wasn’t the time.
Roman dismissed the thought almost as soon as it appeared.
The Magnari had only recently begun questioning the world around them. For generations they had lived almost entirely by instinct, and even now, despite following every custom and rule he introduced with remarkable sincerity, they had yet to develop what he would consider a true moral framework.
How could they?
Their actions weren’t driven by good and evil.
They simply trusted him.
There had certainly been disagreements, selfishness and even a handful of outlaws among the tribe, but none had committed an act severe enough for the entire settlement to collectively condemn as unforgivable.
There was no shared understanding of absolute wrongdoing.
Without that...
What purpose would Hell serve?
If he were to suddenly tell them that unimaginable suffering awaited them after death, they wouldn’t reflect upon their own actions.
They would simply become afraid.
Fear born without understanding rarely guided anyone.
More often than not...It only drove them away.
Roman had no intention of allowing the first seeds of faith to sprout from terror.
Not when curiosity was proving far more effective.
Heaven...was a far sweeter beginning.
"Then..."
Gree Ma Go’s voice pulled him from his thoughts.
"What about the Great Void Null?"
"The One who dwells beyond the Endless Void..."
"And... those words you spoke."
He unconsciously leaned forward.
"What are Existence... and Nonexistence?"
The curiosity within his eyes was unmistakable as genuine as the others.
Every Magnari around the table silently lifted their gazes toward Gre Ka Go once again, waiting for the answer.
"The Great Void Null..."
Roman slowly tasted the words upon his tongue before lifting his gaze toward the Magnari gathered around the table.
"...is a far more difficult concept than the speculation of an afterlife."
He rose from his seat and stretched comfortably before taking a few unhurried steps across the room. Walking had always helped him organize his thoughts, and before long the Magnari found themselves quietly following him with their eyes, waiting for him to continue.
"To understand the Void Null..." he murmured, "...we’ll have to broaden our imagination a little further."
His footsteps gradually slowed.
"Hmm... how should I put it?"
He remained silent for another moment, absentmindedly pacing across the wooden floor before his eyes suddenly brightened.
"Ah... I know."
His gaze settled upon one of the younger Magnari seated near the end of the table.
"Gre To Rin."
The young Magnari instinctively straightened his back.
"Y-Yes, Tribal Chief?"
"Would you do something for me?"
"Of course."
Gre ka go nodded lightly.
"Hold your breath for as long as you possibly can."
The request immediately drew puzzled glances from everyone in the room. Gre To Rin himself blinked in surprise, unable to understand what holding his breath had to do with the Great Void Null. Nevertheless, he didn’t question it. Taking in a deep breath, he puffed out his chest and held it.
At first, nothing grand had happened. The Magnari simply watched with curious expressions, wondering what exactly Gre ka go wanted them to see. Ten seconds passed, then twenty, then thirty. Gre To Rin remained determined, stubbornly refusing to release his breath, though before long the strain slowly began revealing itself. His shoulders stiffened, his face tightened, and the urge to breathe became increasingly obvious with every passing second.
Gre ka Go observed him with a hint of calculation.
The others unconsciously leaned forward, their attention fixed entirely upon Gre To Rin as they waited to see how this strange demonstration would end.
Finally....
"Haaah!"
Gre To Rin bent over the table, greedily drawing one breath after another.
"Haa... haa... Sorry, Chief... I couldn’t hold it any longer."
Roman waited until his breathing became steadier before speaking.
".Why couldn’t you?"
Gre To Rin frowned slightly, clearly confused by the question.
"What do you mean... why? I needed to breathe. If I didn’t... I would’ve eventually died from suffocation."
"And what exactly did you need in order to breathe?"
"The air," Gre To Rin answered almost immediately. "You were the one who taught us that."
"I did." Roman nodded. "Yet tell me... have any of us ever truly seen the air we breathe? Have you ever reached out and touched it, or held it in your hands?"
Gre To Rin instinctively looked around before slowly shaking his head.
"...No."
"Yet none of us doubts it exists." Roman’s gaze drifted across the room. "Not because we’ve seen it, but because every breath reminds us that it’s there. We know it exists through its effects. The moment it’s taken away from us, we immediately realize just how important something invisible truly is."
He let those words settle before continuing.
"That thought stayed with me for a very long time. If something as essential as air could exist without ever being seen, then could there be other things like it? Things beyond our senses that nevertheless leave behind traces of their existence."
His eyes slowly swept across the Magnari.
"And that’s where my speculation of the Great Void Null began."
He folded his arms thoughtfully.
"You see... ’Void’ and ’Null’ are simply two words I use to point toward the same idea. Both describe... nothing."
He almost laughed embarrassingly.
"Though now that I think about it..." He looked back at the Magnari. "Have I ever actually taught any of you what ’nothing’ truly is?"
The room immediately fell silent.
One Magnari looked at another before quietly shaking his head.
"No."
Roman nodded to himself.
"I thought so."
"After all...even I am still searching for the answer."
Roman looked around the table before speaking once again.
"I’ve spent countless days thinking about it...yet I still don’t believe I’ve reached the answer."
"So..."
"why don’t we search for it together?"
"Perhaps...between all of us..we’ll discover what the Great Void Null truly means?"