As they were discussing, suddenly there was a knock at the door. Kai, a little confused, walked over to the door and opened it. Standing before him was an old man with a simple appearance. The old man looked at Kai and asked, "Hey, son, can you give me a place to stay?"
Without hesitation, Kai smiled warmly and welcomed the old man in. "Of course, come in."
As Kai led the old man inside, Andreas was shocked. The house they were in—this was no ordinary place. It was situated in cosmology level 1,000,000,335,287,877, an existence far beyond anything they had ever encountered. The power of this cosmology flowed through every corner of the house.
However, as the old man stepped inside, he spoke in a calm voice, though it carried an unsettling tone. "You know," he said, his eyes shimmering with an odd light, "fictional beings like you are just part of my story. You two are my favorite characters."
Kai stood still, confused, not understanding the meaning behind the old man's words. Andreas was the first to react. "What do you mean?" Andreas asked, his tone full of suspicion. "Who are you?"
The old man smiled faintly, his eyes narrowing with a glimmer full of meaning. "I wrote your entire journey—every incident, every tragedy, everything. I wrote it all."
Kai's heart raced. Everything they had experienced, everything they had faced—was it really just part of this man's story?
Andreas, who was not easily swayed, hardened his stance. "You say everything we've been through, everything we've faced, it's all just a story you wrote?"
The old man nodded calmly. "Yes. Every trial, every encounter, every moment in your lives... I planned it all. You think you are free to choose your path? No. I guide every step you take, like an author creating a story."
Kai felt as if the world was spinning. Everything he knew about their journey, their struggles—was it all just the creation of an author?
"I don't believe you," Andreas said finally, his voice cold and sharp. "We're real. We've fought and fought. We've lived and been hurt. This isn't fiction."
The old man looked at Andreas with a slight smile. "Is it?" he asked gently. "Isn't your existence, your struggles, just a creation of my mind? Who can tell what is real and what is simply the imagination of an author?"
The atmosphere in the room grew heavier with the old man's words. The concept of what was real began to feel fragile—like a thin sheet of paper that could tear at any moment.
Kai looked at Andreas, his emotions in turmoil. Is this true? Is everything they've experienced just part of someone's imagination? And if it is, what should they do now? What does this mean for their future?
The old man smiled wider, as if relishing their confusion. "You may not believe me now, but soon you will understand. Your story is not over yet."
With that cryptic statement, the air in the room grew even heavier, as if something much larger, much more cosmic, was waiting to be revealed—something that neither Kai nor Andreas could predict. The next chapter of their lives, and their journey through a reality that might not even be
real, was only just beginning.
The old man smiled broadly, and without hesitation, introduced himself with a voice full of authority. "I am Tsukumojuku," he said, his voice flowing like a river through a world that could not be comprehended. "Perhaps you don't fully understand who I am yet, but now you know."
Kai and Andreas exchanged glances, confusion and tension flowing between them. Kai felt that something enormous and terrifying was happening right before his eyes. Andreas, who had always felt like the one controlling his own fate, now sensed a higher power—far beyond what he could comprehend—was playing with them.
Tsukumojuku—his name echoed in Kai's mind. Everything they had learned about cosmology, all their achievements, suddenly felt small in the face of this being.
Andreas finally spoke, his voice sounding a little unsure. "So, you... you control everything? Our entire journey, all the chaos we've faced... it was all your plan?"
Tsukumojuku nodded calmly, his eyes reflecting wisdom and power far beyond what any human could understand. "Yes. Everything you've experienced—every obstacle, every tragedy—was part of the story I wrote. You are characters in my tale, and you cannot escape it."
Kai felt a heavy weight on his chest. Everything he had thought of as life's struggle, as reality, turned out to be part of a narrative written by Tsukumojuku. There was no freedom, no choice—everything had already been determined. Were they really alive, or were they just part of a story?
"So," Tsukumojuku said, his voice growing deeper, "do you want to know why I brought you to this point? Why I created you to struggle in this world?"
Kai and Andreas could only remain silent. They knew that the answer Tsukumojuku would give was not something easily accepted.
"All this time, you thought you were chasing power, chasing a goal," Tsukumojuku continued, "but what you were really seeking was freedom. The freedom to determine your own fate, freedom from the narrative I wrote. But, as you can see, even that freedom is part of the story I wrote. You cannot escape it."
Andreas glared at Tsukumojuku. "What do you really want from me? From us?"
Tsukumojuku smiled. "I want you to understand the truth. You've been through so much to get here, but you still haven't truly understood what's happening. I want you to see the reality—a reality bigger than anything you've ever imagined. You are part of a larger story, and you haven't seen its end."
Kai felt as if the world around him was collapsing. What Tsukumojuku had just said was a truth that was hard to accept. However, one thing was clear—their journey was far from over. They had just entered a new chapter, and what they would face next could very well surpass anything they could imagine.
Tsukumojuku stood up and raised his hand, and instantly, the space around them shifted once again. Everything around them began to spin, and Kai felt as though he was being pulled into an invisible black hole.
"You've reached this point, but your journey isn't over," Tsukumojuku said, his voice reverberating. "Welcome to the true trial."
As everything turned dark, Kai and Andreas could only feel fear and confusion—and one question lingered in their minds: Would they be able to change the fate that
had been written for them?