Hermit Wizard

Savior or Destroyer (1)

Shanghai, China.

That huge city, the center of China’s economy, had countless special economic zones established by the government. The special zone with the long name ‘Minhang Economic and Technological Development Zone’ didn’t have any distinctive features than other special zones. The distance from the main city center was also quite far, and since the development began in 1983, it wasn’t an area where investment was actively made at that point, and the area’s size wasn’t very large.

However, since about a year ago, that place had attracted attention from the Chinese government due to one environmental characteristic. It was none other than the closest research complex to the Shanghai Channel.

Close instructions were given several times in Beijing, and remodeling proceeded rapidly in several R&D centers in that special zone.

The place where the man, Wang Liang, was located was one of such research buildings. On the outside, it looked like an ordinary research center, but the interior was luxurious. Its rich design with expensive wood and marble, accented with granite. A large chandelier was installed on a high ceiling, and it looked like a luxury hotel.

Wang Liang was an agent belonging to the Ministry of National Security of China, which meant that his origin was never bad. He grew up in an economically unfortunate environment, yet he felt tired of the splendor inside that building. Of course, how the real residents felt there was a separate matter.

He was now standing in the hallway, looking at the door. It was one of the special guest rooms, so he pressed the button on the intercom and spoke.

“Remish, this is Wang Liang. I’m here to pick you up to the conference room.”

The words of an Asian man resonated through the intercom, and it wasn’t long before the answer came back.

“Yes, I will open the door now.”

It was a woman’s voice. It was a bit awkward with pronunciation, but it was Chinese that was easy to communicate with.

The door opened after a while, and a pale blonde woman in a wheelchair rolled her wheels and came out of the hallway. As she looked up at Wang Liang, she said, “Good morning.”

“Did you sleep well?”

Remish shook her head.

“Oh…”

She looked at Wang Liang, and her eyes smiled. She had pupils of color that couldn’t be found in earthly people. If you had to classify it, you would have to say that it was close to gray.

“The more my tummy gets full, the harder it is for me to sleep.”

Her tummy, which she said so, was swollen enough to occupy more than half of her body. If an ordinary person’s stomach were at that point, she would’ve been suspected of having a disease.

“I’ll contact them and tell them to bring sleeping pills…”

It felt like he was out of his mind for a moment after saying it, like taking sleeping pills for a pregnant woman.

However, Remish understood Wang Liang’s mistake from a different perspective. She replied with a slight smile.

“Our mission also includes doctors and wizards. It’s a matter of concern to them. Of course, it’s not that I don’t believe in your excellent medicine and technology.”

“… Yes, sorry. My mistake.”

“There is no such thing as a mistake. Anyway… just because we look similar doesn’t mean that the structure inside our body is exactly the same. Research on the effects of medicines used by Earth people on Gramperi’s body is still in progress, so I can’t help it.”

After saying so, Remish added.

“Of course, the Gramperi in Shenzhen are working hard, so I think there will be some results soon. So, shall we go now, Li-ang?”

Remish couldn’t pronounce Wang Liang’s name properly. Instead of a single syllable called Liang (亮), she always stretched it long and called him ‘Li-ang.’ The agent nodded and pushed the wheelchair where she sat.

‘Yes, you’re different from Earthlings.’

As he dragged the wheelchair, he muttered inside.

Gramperi’s appearance wasn’t very different from humans. Earthlings and Gramperi belonged to the same category, according to the hierarchy by which they divided multidimensional species. At first glance, she might be mistaken for a Westerner with gray eyes.

However, they weren’t exactly the same kind. While looking at the pregnant Remish’s belly, Wang Liang recalled that fact once more. Earthly pregnant women didn’t get full like that. She had recently become unable to walk alone and had been helped by Wang Liang.

Feeling his gaze, Remish smiled awkwardly.

“You don’t have to look at it with such anxious eyes, Li-ang. There are still more than two months left until the scheduled delivery date. Even if you don’t look at me with such frightened eyes, my stomach will not burst, and the baby will not come out, so don’t worry.”

Wang Liang, who knew it was Gramperi’s humor, blushed. The fact that they mixed humor in their words was often intended to dilute the unpleasant feelings. It was a kind of mind control to avoid conflict.

Perhaps it was likely that Remish was uncomfortable with his gaze.

“I’m sorry, Remish. I didn’t intend to…”

“No. I understand. It was so full that it was difficult to get out of sight. I heard the Earthlings get a much smaller tummy than this, even when it’s almost full, right.”

Wang Liang recalled when his cousin was pregnant and nodded.

“Yeah. I think so.”

Remish said with a faint smile on her lips.

“I envy Earthlings for that. Compared to us, you can move freely during pregnancy and have a ‘normal social life in a short time after giving birth.”

As she continued the conversation, Wang Liang said, trying to turn his gaze toward her tummy again without his knowledge.

“To be honest, I was surprised by your decision. It’s been a year since you’ve been here, but it’s still a strange place. To leave your familiar hometown and decide to give birth here.”

She replied in a detached way.

“As you may have already heard, this is part of the experiment as well. It’s an experiment to see what singularities occur when Gramperi gives birth in an Earthly environment. It was fortunate that one of the researchers sent to Earth was pregnant, right?”

It was hard to guess that the pregnant person was the speaker herself. Remish calmly spoke as if she were talking about someone else.

Wang Liang tried to imagine her situation by substituting her with an Earthling. If it were his own family, they would’ve never allowed it. There was no other town, no different country that would accept such a notion. It was childbirth in a different dimension. He didn’t know what

What if the government made such an offer to his wife? He would’ve been angry, saying that it was nonsense. However, the alien in front of him judged that the organization’s instructions to which she belonged were reasonable and were willing to obey. It was a simple reason that it was worth observing since she had the opportunity to give birth herself.

“Aren’t you anxious? The fact that the Earth’s environment is favorable to Gramperi’s survival has been well-proven, but it’s still a different dimension. There’s no such case documented before.”

“Yes. Even the doctors said they couldn’t guarantee safety because of the subtle differences in the atmospheric composition or air pressure. However, since there is no such case, it’s worth experimenting more.”

“But… Remish, it’s your own child.”

The alien responded with laughter.

“It’s worthwhile for the entire species of Gramperi. I made a precedent through my childbirth. This information will be useful for all of us. Isn’t it natural to value the development of a group more than the individual’s life?”

Remish shrugged and muted her words, which would cause intense reactions in most of the planet’s cultures. Wang Liang, knowing that the words contain her sincerity, swallowed a bitter sigh. No matter how much time passed, he couldn’t get used to their values.

“Of course, that won’t happen, but aren’t you afraid something unexpected might happen?”

“If it’s unexpected, is it about the possibility that I might have a miscarriage or die during childbirth because the circumstances have changed?”

She quietly spat out words that an earthly mother would seldom say.

“Of course, it must be very sad. It’s even more unfortunate if I die. However, you can’t interfere with the group’s goals because you are concerned about individual misfortunes. Isn’t this a concept that you’re familiar with?”

After asking that, Remish began to recite Chinese sentences. It wasn’t a perfect pronunciation, but it wasn’t too hard to understand the meaning, and it was a natural reading without interruptions of words.

“一切把党的正确主张变为群众的自觉行动。必须实行正确的集中，保证全党的团结统一和行动一致，保证党的决定得到迅速有效的贯彻执行。The party’s claim should lead to arbitrary action by the people. The central government should thoroughly implement its central power to ensure unity, unification, and consistency of actions of the entire party, and ensure that the party’s decision is carried out and executed quickly and effectively.”

It was a phrase that was too familiar to Wang Liang.

“The regulation of Chinese Communist Party. It’s the general outline.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

That alien, with a clear head, memorized all the long documents of 53 articles.

“The group always takes precedence over the individual, and every individual must act based on the goals and ideals set by the group. This is a concept that also fits Gramperi’s common sense. Your party is well aware of the efficiency and virtue of collectivism. That is why you would have been able to rule such a large country without difficulty. Do you say that less than 0.01% of the population has to be executed a year to maintain social order? In the light of our common sense, this is a miracle. It’s an extremely low-cost society. Even that has not yet become commonplace in a world where magic is used to control the people.”

She compared the death penalty as a cost for maintaining social order and then using other phrases.

“党员必须把个人利益服从党和人民的利益，吃苦在前，享受在后，克己奉公，多做贡献。The party members always put the interests of the party and the people before the individual’s interests. Struggling first and enjoy the joy later, contributing by working with dedication.”

Wang Liang gave a reply close to a groan.

“Article 3, Paragraph 3…”

It was one of the articles listing the obligations of the party members of the Chinese Communist Party.

“In your world, your status as a party member is similar to our Gramperi’s ‘Andaz.’”

Remish, who said so, was also a member of the class called ‘Andaz.’ Therefore, she could be included in the mission sent to Earth.

“Andaz is a privileged class. That’s why we have to serve the group even more. Are you, too? You have to learn how to give up your insistence for personal interests.”

Wang Liang nodded slightly, seemingly agreeing, but inside, he had a completely different idea.

‘No. Totally different. Who cares about such rules these days? Only a few Chinese people live with such values in their hearts even though they speak in a flashy way. What nonsense are you saying that groups are prioritized over individuals in this day and age?’

Wang Liang was certainly patriotic towards China. It was rather impossible not to be due to the nature of his origin and profession. However, it was only to the extent of a reasonable level. His affection and pride for his country were valid only when he didn’t sacrifice his own interests.

‘Remish still misunderstands the Chinese.’

It was an error in interpreting the other person in their own frame.

It was impossible for him to kill himself and to worship the group blindly. Perhaps it was unlikely for most Chinese whether you were a Communist Party member or not. They made a thorough distinction between those within the line of ‘we’ and that outside. Community values were usually applied only within the walls of personal connections called ‘guanxi.’

It was uncommon to extend the scope of personal community to the entire nation or the entire nation. No, it was almost impossible to find.

“The ideas of Gramperi and those of the Communists are similar… but a little different.”

Wang Liang answered like that for the time being.

“Are most Gramperi… among them, are Andaz’s thinking similar to you, Remish?”

“That’s right. The idea of a group-individual relationship is almost the same.”

“The scope of the group extends to the entire race, right?”

“Yes. We all belong to a single political system.”

It was as Wang Liang knew.

“Thanks to that, the information we get through me can be shared across the race because everyone is a group and a community. Even if I die here giving birth… the sacrifice can be a step for everyone. It is a sacrifice for the race. It’s a gift for not only Gramperi, who lives and breathes at this moment, but also for the many descendants of Gramperi who will live on this planet in the future.”

Upon hearing that, Wang Liang asked himself quietly.

What if it was himself? What if he could save so many people by sacrifice? It was like one man dying so a thousand Chinese people could survive? What if, in the future, 10,000 compatriots could have new life thanks to the medical data accumulated from his death?

The answer that came back was negative. Wang Liang valued his own life currently more than a thousand Chinese people he didn’t know about, more than 10,000 people in the future whose existence was uncertain. That was when he thought about his country alone, but moreover, if he expanded the object to the whole of humanity like Gramperi…

‘Ah, that’s a useless fantasy.’

Wang Liang shook off his thoughts and gave strength to his hand, pushing the wheelchair.

***

“Remish, you are here.”

It was a large conference room where Wang Liang led Remish by pushing her wheelchair. There were already several National Security Department agents and Gramperis sitting together.

The Gramperis were considerate of humans and used Chinese to communicate with themselves. When they saw Remish in a wheelchair with her tummy swollen to an enormous size, they just said a brief greeting. There were no words of comfort or encouragement. That seemed natural to them.

“As it was originally, this was the responsibility of Gramperis, who works at the Beijing Research Center, but there was a call that we would like to hear the opinions of the people here. Many of the Gramperis here are Channel experts.”

The Gramperis sitting at their seat nodded at the explanation of the middle-aged agent.

“So, let’s watch the video.”

The conference room darkened as he gestured, and a huge video appeared on the screen. It was just yesterday’s compilation of an incident that took place in a nearby country.

“That’s…”

“Oh, my God!”

As the video continued, the Gramperi researchers’ faces turned white, their mouths wide open, and some screamed in a single word because of their surprise.

Over time, the screen went dark, and the lights in the conference room turned on again according to the agent’s gesture.

And at the same time, the table became very noisy. The Gramperis gathered there were all researchers and scholars. They poured out hypotheses based on the knowledge they knew. Some were so excited that they forgot to speak Chinese and poured out their original language.

The Ministry of National Security officials recorded all of the intense discussions while at the same time leaving notes on the spot for the important part. To some extent, when the excitement of the Gramperis subsided, they chatted as if reflecting on what each other had confirmed.

“Anyway, you all agree that tentacle is creatures of a dimension we don’t know about?”

“We agree.”

“Also, the species that the tentacle dealt with is probably ‘the Space Ghost.’”

“It’s not an ordinary entity either. It outperforms any recorded object. If such a thing had flowed into our world, it would’ve caused a great disaster…”

“Perhaps Andazelkia could get destroyed.”

“Isn’t this world dangerous? It should be blocked somehow… you said it’s a country not far from China, right? It might cross the Channel and cross over to our world.”

“The Earth may have managed to escape destruction…”

The contents of the conversation were unusual. Cold sweat flowed down the faces of the agents listening to the Gramperis’ conversation.

A middle-aged agent intervened, realizing that the atmosphere was getting sorted out.

“I’m sorry for interrupting the conversation, but there is one part that our superior pays a lot of attention to. The blue circle from that tentacle is very similar to Channels.”

One of the Gramperi replied as if it weren’t a big deal.

“Oh, that’s a Channel.”

“Pardon? Oh, I see. However, what confuses us is that the Channel is attached to the body of a human-looking figure.”

Suddenly, a Gramperi said, raising his hand.

“Oh, it’s still a strange concept to you. That man is probably an ascetic.”

The agent’s eyes grew fierce.

“You mean the group that tried to terrorize our facility over and over again?”

“Yes, but… it’s a little weird. Why did he put his colleagues somewhere and move alone? Also, if a human with such strong power was among the ascetic people… I wonder how our people have stopped terrorism. If it were the destructive power to break even the power of the Space Ghost, our magic can’t have endured it.”