"Checkmate!"
Time flew, a month passing in a blink. In the Matou residence, Samuel and Roman played chess.
Samuel's "queen" cornered Roman once again.
"Man, you're good, Master! That's the thirty-first time, and each one's a brutal loss!"
Roman scratched his head with a wry smile. Getting trounced this many times in one game would embarrass anyone.
But…
Roman's expression turned serious, an indescribable aura radiating from him. His usually lazy, frivolous eyes now pierced with insight, meeting Samuel's gaze and seeing through his emptiness. "Is this really okay? Does this kind of victory… mean anything to you?"
"What are you getting at?"
Samuel's face showed confusion—not genuine, but as if it should.
"Haha… my Master, let me tell you a story!"
Roman laughed, his gravitas vanishing, as if it were a fleeting illusion.
"Oh?"
Samuel propped his chin, curious to hear what his summoned "big shot" had to say.
"It's about a friend of mine…"
"Oh…"
"Long ago, in a distant land, there was a kingdom with a king. He was a born king—not just praise, but fact. His nation needed a leader, and he was destined for it. Chosen by divine will, he wielded god-given wisdom and might. He made laws, ruled the land, and was beloved by his people. He…"
"Had a huge harem, right?"
"Cough, cough… Well, yeah… Don't interrupt, Master, let me finish…"
Roman knew Samuel had guessed his true identity and the story's subject.
Some things, though seen through, shouldn't be spoken aloud.
"But… it was all duty. He didn't choose to do it; he had to. It was like a scripted play, no room for his own will… because he wasn't human. He lacked 'humanity.'"
Roman's face grew somber, not mourning his own life, but reflecting his pessimistic nature.
"Oh, I get it. He wasn't human—just a mechanism linking god and man, a programmed robot tasked with strengthening and then dividing Israel. Harshly put, he was God's tool to show divine authority, a 'leader' bestowed on humanity."
Samuel analyzed succinctly, cutting to the core.
Roman fell silent, unable to counter, and gave a bitter smile. "That's pretty harsh."
"Alright, I've got a question."
Roman smiled slightly. "You want to know what happens ne—"
"Is this friend you're talking about you?"
It was a question, but delivered with certainty.
"Your anchor coordinates are weird! Fine, whatever. Everyone's different. Just let me finish."
Roman sighed helplessly, recalling how his past self was just as troublesome as Samuel.
"After fulfilling his duties, he sought God and begged for a miracle—to become truly human. He gave up divine wisdom and immense power, shedding his burdens. Reborn, he traveled far, saw much… You get what I'm saying, right?"
Roman had seen it—Samuel possessed a wisdom akin to "divinely granted." It let him control everything, but also made choices for him.
Doing only "correct" things—what's the difference from a controlled puppet?
"People are limited by what they see. One's world can't be shared with others."
This referred to eyes, but more so the mind.
A person's thoughts, imagination—these can't be shared. They lead to a unique path.
Even the same person, in the same moment, with identical conditions, might choose differently, creating "parallel worlds."
But Samuel wouldn't. His choices were calculated, always the same under the same conditions, because they were "correct."
That's not inherently bad… but it's not human.
What is "human"? Infinite possibilities define a "human," not just the species.
Choosing the most advantageous path after observing countless possibilities… means losing those possibilities.
"Roman… you know, coming to this world, meeting you, even hearing this—maybe it's all just the result of my calculations. Like your friend, begging for the miracle to become human…"
"Maybe that means he already had humanity, so he asked. Or maybe that request was part of his duty."
"Even so… you still want to persuade me?"
Samuel's eyes were cold, locking with Roman's. Roman felt a chill like winter, glimpsing the frozen void deep in Samuel's gaze.
"Maybe being human is a duty too? Haha… Seriously, I didn't consider that? Or did I not want to?"
Roman laughed self-deprecatingly, hand on his forehead, mocking his past reluctance to face it.
Then…
His mocking laughter faded, replaced by a serious expression.
"Master, what if… I still hold to my belief?"
Yes, perhaps being "human" was his duty too. He never escaped it. But so what?
That time as a "human" taught him he didn't want to escape duty or become human—he just wanted to be human, to meet others like Da Vinci, Mash… That time was truly joyful.
***
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