Chapter 188 Lucia
――This is about 8 years ago.
The secret society Chronosphere, established by Jilva Chronosphere at that time, was trying to solve the "problem" of his own lifespan.
And immediately after its establishment, he began to experiment with various methods to extend his lifespan.
However... it wasn't that he had planned to use [God's Remains] to open [God Realm] from the very beginning. That was his last resort, and he had considered other methods with lower risks.
One of those methods was the "Lucia Rebirth Plan," which involved the Original Priestess.
――But what exactly is a "Priestess"?
It refers to someone who has the ability to connect with "God" or [God Realm] using their own power, without relying on any devices.
In the era known as the God Era, anyone could connect to the [God Realm]. This was because devices using nanomachines had become commonplace. However, only those with the "Priestess" talent could house a "god" within themselves.
Only "Priestesses" could "download" the self-information of a "god" into their own bodies.
And if someone in the modern era possessed the perfect abilities of a "Priestess", the problem of "lifespan" that Chronosphere God faced could be easily resolved.
The ability of a Priestess to connect to the [God Realm] was not made possible by technology, but was an inherent quality of the individual, and it was possible for them to access the [God Realm] even if it was closed off by an [Evil God].
This was because the [God Realm] was closed off due to its settings, which rejected access from devices such as the "Brain Support Interface". Changing these settings would be equivalent to "opening the path" to the [God Realm].
However, if a Priestess could access the [God Realm] without the need for any devices, then these settings would be meaningless.
Therefore, Chronosphere and Noah had planned to create "the Original Priestess Lucia".
If there's a "Lucia" who possesses the ability of a Priestess, then the Chronosphere God can take over her body, allowing her to wield the Priestess's abilities. By downloading the "self-information of the Chronosphere God" stored in the [God Realm] anew, he can avoid the "collapse of himself due to the lifespan".
This means rewriting the original Chronosphere God with a new one that has no problems, just like the current one.
To put it in a more human-like way, it's like discarding the "broken Chronosphere God" and bringing down a "brand new Chronosphere God" from the [God Realm] to be reborn.
The "lifespan of the Chronosphere God" refers to the collapse of one's self due to the mental instability caused by living too long.
Originally, as long as the Chronosphere God was connected to the [God Realm], it could prevent its self-collapse by constantly "defragging" its self-information. But if it couldn't "defrag" and lived for thousands of years since the ancient times, it was only natural for the god's spirit to start collapsing.
It was not created to operate independently for thousands of years.
It's a miracle that it's managed to last until the present day.
――Anyway.
That's why, during the early days of the secret society's establishment, the plan was to avoid the lifespan limitation not by using the [God's Remains], but through the "Lucia Rebirth Plan".
And if "Lucia" can be artificially created, then the problem of Noah's worries about "God's Vessel" will also be solved. After all, there's no body more suitable as "God's Vessel" than Lucia, so Eva won't be chosen as the next vessel either――that's how it is.
The problem is, how do we bring Lucia into being?
Noah asked. God's answer was simple.
"What are you planning to do?"
"Yeah, I'm going to create a clone of Lucia."
Chronosphere taught Noah about cloning technology.
Noah quickly understood the advanced knowledge from the distant past, even before the gods' era.
"I see... So you take the nucleus from an unfertilized egg, replace it with a nucleus from Lucia's cells, and then cultivate it, right?... I understand the methodology, but where are Lucia's cells, anyway? Is Priestess Lucia a human from the gods' era?"
Noah asked, almost certain, but seeking confirmation.
Chronosphere answered readily.
"Lucia's cells remain in the present day as [God's Remains]."
"Does that mean... we're going to unseal [God's Remains]?"
At that time, they weren't as desperate as they are now. There was still hope for the "Lucia Rebirth Plan". However, because of that, Noah couldn't agree to unseal [God's Remains] and showed hesitation.
But Chronosphere waved away his concerns.
"No, I already have Lucia's body cells obtained from [God's Remains]."
"......!!"
Noah immediately understood the meaning.
The Chronosphere God had caused stampedes several times before. In other words, it had stopped the function of the [Seal Temple]. At that time, there was an opportunity to unseal [God's Remains], and in fact, [God's Remains] had been taken out.
However,
"I couldn't just leave it taken out of the [Seal Coffin]. I only took out a few cells and put [God's Remains] back in the coffin right away."
The Chronosphere God had taken a small amount of cells and sealed them with [Space Freeze].
Noah asked why [God's Remains] was put back in the coffin.
"...Can't [God's Remains] be sealed with [Space Freeze]? If it's the Chronosphere God, can't you maintain [Space Freeze] permanently? Or if you turn it into a large-scale magical tool, wouldn't the problem of magic stone consumption be solved, and you could maintain [Space Freeze] for a long time?"
The Chronosphere God answered. However, the answer was somewhat strange to Noah.
"[God's Remains] itself can be sealed with [Space Freeze], but the [Evil God] can also use Space magic. If it's sealed for too long, it might gain resistance or break the [Space Freeze]. That's why it's impossible to maintain [Space Freeze] on [God's Remains]. But since only a few cells were taken, there's no need to worry about that."
"...So, [God's Remains] is divided into 4 limbs and a torso, right? It's like each limb has the consciousness of an [Evil God] or something..."
"Yeah, it has consciousness."
"......"
Noah was taken aback and looked back at the Chronosphere God.
The Chronosphere God, stroking his white beard, smiled mischievously and opened his mouth.
"Noah, do you know about octopuses?"
"...Ah, of course. They're seafood, aren't they? Delicious."
"Yeah, they're really delicious. You see, octopuses have a lot of nerve cells not just in their brain, but also in their legs. Each leg can think independently, it's said. Well, that's not entirely accurate, but it's like each of their 8 legs has a small brain of its own."
"...Is it the same with [Evil Gods]?"
Noah asked with a skeptical expression, and the Chronosphere God answered with a wry smile.
"Well, [Evil Gods] are human bodies, after all. It's hard to compare them to humans, who are vertebrates, mammals, and primates, with soft-bodied creatures like octopuses... I can understand why you'd think that way."
"......"
"But [Evil Gods] can build extremely advanced neural networks throughout their entire body, far surpassing the nerve cells in an octopus's legs."
Noah somehow realized that. That's not exactly a neural network, but something that can mimic its function almost perfectly.
"...Is it nanomachines?"
"That's correct! You're so smart, Noah!"
Chronosphere praised Noah with a big smile, and then continued.
"As opposed to you humans, we gods don't have an instinctual aversion to copying our consciousness. We can copy, disperse, and store it in various parts of our bodies. Well, except for the original, we gods are prohibited from creating our own replicas, so I can't do that. The reason she can create her own replicas is because she's gone crazy."
"That's... I understand, but what's the point of doing that?"
"If a part of our body remains intact, we can regenerate our memories and become whole again. Before we sealed away the [Evil God], she was being targeted for her life from all over the world. She's had her head blown off more than once or twice, you know."
"......"
Chronosphere clapped his hands loudly, changing the atmosphere, and said to the silent Noah,
"Anyway, that's why there's a high possibility that each part of the [God's Remains] contains the [Evil God]'s self-awareness. However, with only a few dozen or hundred cells, the number of nanomachines that can replicate within the cells isn't enough to store self-awareness information. So it's relatively safe to store them."
"Oh, I see..."
Noah nodded, still stunned by the [Evil God]'s absurdity, and decided to focus on the "Lucia Rebirth Plan" for now.
"So, you're saying we'll use those cells to create a clone of Lucia? If so, we'll need equipment to create a clone embryo and a female surrogate, right?"
"No, neither of those is necessary."
Noah's face contorted in confusion at those words.
"What do you mean? How do you plan to create and grow a clone embryo without those?"
"Actually, the equipment and facilities needed to create a clone embryo already exist. From now on, I'm thinking of using an artificial womb instead of a mother's body to nurture the clone embryo. We can't delay this any further."
"...An artificial womb? If that's possible, I suppose it's fine...but wouldn't it be much simpler and more reliable to use a mother's body instead?"
"Yeah, that's true...but it failed."
Chronosphere explains. The reason why he possess Lucia's cells, and the reason behind it.
"It's been decades since the last Stampede...the goal of the previous operation was to extract Lucia's cells from [God's Remains]. And I succeeded in creating a clone embryo from those cells and implanting it into a woman's womb."
"...So, the previous Chronosphere's goal was also the 'Lucia Rebirth Plan', right?"
"That's right. And...it failed."
Chronosphere speaks.
"I tried many times, changing various conditions such as race, age, and genetic traits...but none of the mothers could handle it."
"......!!"
Chronosphere's nonchalant announcement of the experiment's failure sent shivers down Noah's spine.
The mothers couldn't handle it――the phrase's implications were not lost on Noah. And the fact that he tried many times means...many people must have died. Yet, Chronosphere doesn't seem to feel any guilt about it.
――Noah's rational mind understands that it's not an unusual thing.
God selects the "most efficient action" to achieve its "goal", without distinguishing between good and evil, and without emotions like regret or remorse.
Even though he understood it, he couldn't help but feel a sense of fear towards the unknown entity.
Chronosphere continued to speak calmly.
"I don't know why the mother body didn't have it... I don't understand. Since I was cut off from the [God Realm], the knowledge I can provide is limited, after all. ...And when I think about it, the original Lucia was a designer's child and a test-tube baby. Maybe Lucia's growth was too much for a human mother to handle. That's why trying to raise her in an artificial womb has value."
"...What is this artificial womb thing? Can you make it?"
"Yeah, I have the theoretical knowledge. However, it's impossible for me to design the device, manufacture the parts, and assemble the artificial womb based on that knowledge. Knowledge and technology are different things, after all. That's where I need Noah and the others to help me."
"That's understandable, but... why now? Didn't you try to make an artificial womb decades ago?"
"That's a simple story. Decades ago, we didn't have the industrial technology to manufacture an artificial womb. But with the investments from the 4 houses over the years, the world's technological level has advanced significantly. So, it should be possible now."
"...You're trying to mechanically recreate a human womb, right? That's a pretty advanced device, I think."
"No, it's okay. While it's true that it's tough with just science and technology at our current level, we have magic technology now, unlike before. If we combine the two, we should be able to do it at this stage. And since it's not ethically prohibited nowadays, it might be relatively easy to make."
"...If you say so..."
――And then.
Noah designed the artificial womb device as Chronosphere requested, and worked with numerous skilled people to assemble it.
It took only about half a year to complete, an incredibly fast pace.
And just ten days after its completion, by combining Chronosphere's [Time Acceleration] magic, Lucia's clone embryo grew rapidly and became a ten-year-old girl in a short period, marking the birth of the first "Lucia Series".
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)