I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 615

A Robot Mage with an impressive, distinct Indian accent.

That mage taught the fundamentals of magic—that is, the basics of coding—in an extremely concise manner.

Partly due to the accent and partly because I was completely clueless about magic and coding, I couldn’t understand what he was talking about.

But Lackey and the fixed-nicks currently receiving education(?) were different. They poured out their burning questions.

[Allfather] May I ask if there is a trick to quickly identifying issues when a conflict occurs?

"...Is there a trick to quickly identifying issues when a conflict occurs?"

[Oh! That’s good question. If magic...]

The kind Indian teacher meticulously answered each and every question with utmost dedication.

Thanks to that, mages like Allfather and Starlight Lady were thrilled beyond belief.

Because asking questions they had been stuck on allowed them to broaden the scope of their knowledge.

But this was only momentary. The reason I came here was not to receive education from an Indian teacher.

"Thank you for the lesson. May we move on to the next section?"

[Oh. It’s okay. Goodbye.]

[Allfather] No! Just one! Just one more question!

[Starlight Lady] If I could just ask one more as well...!

[Don’t Abandon the Hero] Grylls-nim says he’s leaving! You can’t!

[Princess Chaenggu] What a pity~

The fixed-nicks pleaded desperately, but there was no time. There were many things we needed to inspect.

Anyway, as mentioned before, unlike the knights’ sector, the mages’ sector was mostly indoors.

Also, in this world, magic and science shared many similarities. In fact, it was convenient to view magic as science pushed a step further.

Perhaps because of that, most of the mages’ sector had a close association with science.

"Master. There’s something interesting here."

"Huh? What’s this place?"

"It says ’History Experiential Learning Room’."

Striking out most prominently among them was the History Experiential Learning Room discovered by Lackey.

To be exact, it should be called the Earth History Experiential Learning Room. I looked at it with a fascinated expression.

The sight vividly brought back the feeling of visiting a movie theater in the past. Stepping inside, would there be countless seats and a massive screen?

Although I knew most of Earth’s history, I was curious to see what kind of technology they would showcase.

Thus, together with the party, I stepped inside and entered a fairly spacious hall.

[Welcome to the Earth History Experiential Field, everyone.]

A public announcement voice resounded. A low-pitched, pleasant voice.

[Please select the era you wish to view. If you wish to watch from the beginning, please choose the bottom option.]

[1. Ancient ~ Middle Ages]

[2. Middle Ages ~ Early Modern]

.

.

.

[0. All]

Options floating in midair. A strangely familiar sensation washed over me.

Noticing I wasn’t the only one feeling that way, the companions beside me spoke up.

"Master. This feels like the Gallery."

"I think so too."

Just as Lackey and Dolsoe said, it felt like the hologram visible whenever using the Gallery.

Just as I wondered if this was connected too, I selected the last option.

[Caution. Some sections contain extreme violence. Children, the elderly, and pregnant women are advised to refrain from viewing.]

"Hmm. Should we send the kids outside?"

"How violent could it possibly be? These kids have already tasted blood and flesh."

"Right? Then we should send out the elderly and infirm, so Cain-ssi, please head out."

[You talk big for someone who works an old man like a laborer.]

"I was shocked when Master worked Walker like a laborer."

"He had legs, didn’t he?"

"That’s no human. That’s a demon."

Setting jokes aside for a moment.

Anyway, the kids were as accustomed to the wild as could be, so they’d be fine.

Thus, the video began. Instantly, the surroundings turned pitch black.

’I roughly know the history... but I’m most curious about right before the migration.’

An era where 90% of humanity perished because they didn’t know the dangers of mana.

Even with ’lead’—not beastfolk—humanity continuously used it without knowing its hazards.

Mana must have gone through a similar process. With the technology of that time, it would have been difficult to analyze.

Tadadak- tadak-

While I pondered for a second, a familiar sound reached my ears. The crackling sound of a campfire.

Soon, the screen gradually brightened, displaying a blazing campfire and early humans huddled together around it.

[It seems the gods discovered fire first.]

Spot on. Fire is the beginning and end of human civilization.

Beasts were busy fleeing when encountering fire, but humans utilized it instead.

Not only that, but they used their exceptional intelligence to climb to the very top of the food chain.

[Waaaaah!]

Having climbed to the top of the food chain with nothing left to fear, humans designated each other as enemies and waged continuous war.

Hand-to-hand combat familiar to the people of this world. Wars where swords and spears clashed.

But humanity developed endlessly, and a turning point emerged.

[Booooooo!]

"Master. That looks similar to what we saw last time."

"Right. It’s a steam locomotive."

The invention of the steam engine and its masterpiece, the steam locomotive.

A decisive turning point that rapidly advanced civilization. However, fast development naturally brought side effects since ancient times.

[Kwaang! Kwagagwang!]

[Tududududu!]

[Giiiiiing- kwaang!]

By my standards, the most horrific wars in the world: World War I and World War II.

Nearly 100 million people were killed or wounded, and the resulting aftermath twisted the trajectory of human history.

[Kwaaaaang!]

[Wh-what is that? Did an entire city just vanish?]

"That’s right. It’s called a nuclear bomb, practically the pinnacle of human civilization."This chapter was copied from novelрing.com without permission.

The God of Destruction that routinely appears in myths. Human science made that a reality.

What was even more shocking was that as long as resources held out, it could be ’produced’. They even managed to miniaturize it.

[Doctor, what weapons do you think World War III will be fought with?]

[I do not know.]

After the war ended, an interview with the world’s most famous scientist, Einstein, followed.

Originally, this interview wouldn’t have been preserved as video footage, but they probably used AI to recreate it.

[I do not know with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with...]

[What weapons?]

[Sticks and stones.]

That too was a famous quote.

In World War III, human civilization would be shattered to pieces, meaning there would be no point discussing World War IV.

Ironically, thanks to the emergence of nuclear weapons, world war-scale conflicts didn’t break out for a long time.

Of course, just as the saying goes that half of human history is war, when tensions build up, they eventually explode.

[Wiiiiing!]

[D-drones...!]

[Kwagwang!]

Just like in my dream, World War III had finally erupted.

A global war utilizing various cutting-edge weapons, including drones. Horrific casualties must have occurred.

Well, fortunately, unlike Einstein’s prophecy, human civilization didn’t collapse entirely.

But the most important part came next. The exact point where my dream had cut off.

[Humanity has made its greatest discovery. Fire, electricity, and finally, mana.]

[Mana is an energy source that advanced humanity not just one step, but several leaps forward...]

AI that developed to extreme heights due to the Great War.

Mana, the energy discovered through that AI.

In reality, mana rapidly replaced all energy resources in the world.

New technology emerged day after day, advancing at a pace so blistering that even physics struggled to keep up.

However...

[Kaaaaah...!]

[M-my body... it, it hurts...!]

[Kheheok! Kheheok! Haaah...]

It was poison. No, to be exact, it was premature for humanity.

Just as Icarus flew too close to the sun, lost his wings, and fell into the sea.

Humanity had also flown too close to the sun and burned themselves to ash.

Suffering from Mana Poisoning, their bodies slowly collapsed, blood vessels swelling to the point of bursting.

Blood bled out from eyes, nose, mouth, and every orifice as they slowly began to die.

[Heavenly Demon] It is Qi Deviation.

"...Qi Deviation?"

[Heavenly Demon] Spouting blood from the seven orifices and skin cracking like drought-stricken soil. Those are symptoms of Qi Deviation.

[Sword Matstar] I’ve seen it too. It’s a symptom that happens when internal mana gets twisted or goes wild.

[Don’t Abandon the Hero] Could it be that the gods couldn’t endure Qi Deviation...?

Qi Deviation. The phenomenon Heavenly Demon had suffered and nearly died from.

Evidentally, the entirety of humanity fell into Qi Deviation, causing nearly 90% of the population to perish.

Back then, even breathing methods weren’t properly known. They had no choice but to suffer helplessly.

’Even medical personnel couldn’t treat it properly. They would’ve suffered from it themselves.’

But humans are creatures of adaptation, and many managed to weather even Qi Deviation effortlessly.

90% of the population had vanished, but put another way, around 10% remained.

10% of 7 billion was a staggering 700 million. That alone was a terrifyingly huge number.

The problem was...

[Praise... the... Manatology...]

[Praise! The! Manatology!]

[Kyaaaaaah!]

[Uwaaaaaah! Aaaah!]

Governments capable of control collapsed, leaving factions like Manatology to run amok.

Countless people sacrificed themselves to combat this, but it was like pouring water into a bottomless pit.

It was virtually on the level of World War IV. Chaos where everyone was an enemy and everyone was an ally.

The issue was that controlling leadership—that is, governments—mostly disappeared, leading to the unrestrained use of all kinds of weaponry.

Nuclear weapons were the baseline, and they freely deployed weapons never before heard of or seen.

’What the hell is that? A black hole grenade?’

The highlight among them was a black hole grenade.

I don’t know what on earth they invented, but it wiped the entire surrounding area out of existence.

Thus they struggled to survive, and under the threat of Manatology, hope seemed nonexistent for humanity for a time.

Jeobeok- jeobeok-

Until a certain man walked forward with his back turned.

Flapping a robe no better than rags, gripping a crude sword tightly in his right hand.

Yet surrounding his sword was an Aura Blade clearer than anything else.

[Praise...]

Seogeok!

The Manatology fusion entity that effortlessly swallowed barrages of bullets and artillery shells alike.

As the man casually swung his sword at the fusion entity, it split cleanly in two.

Following him, a man and a woman stepped forward to wipe out the remaining remnants.

Thus, the trio of two men and a woman who rescued the survivors gradually expanded their force.

Their numbers, which started at just three, soon exceeded ten. Each possessed a strikingly distinct personality.

[For the last Sovereign.]

The hundreds of people following them referred to the man—that is, the Chief God—as ’Sovereign’.

Sovereign is an honorific title for someone standing above all, a king or emperor.

The world collapsed and civilization was destroyed, yet he painstakingly gathered the remaining remnants to birth a new civilization.

Having established a new civilization after all others collapsed, calling him a Sovereign was hardly odd.

’Still, calling him Sovereign means his authority was that overwhelmingly dominant...’

Suddenly, the mural flashed in my mind. The gods engaging in fierce debate over the Chief God who had entered eternal sleep.

If he was truly a Sovereign, inheriting his position wouldn’t be strange. Did they fight over that issue?

Or maybe it was because the Sovereign had no offspring. Whatever the case, possibilities remained open.

[Wiiiiing-]This chapter was copied from novelpi​ng.com without permission.

What followed was identical to the contents seen on the mural. The gods hastily departing an Earth engulfed in natural disasters.

As if forming an ark, an immense number of ’vessels’ soared through the sky to migrate.

[Thank you for watching.]

As I watched with rapt attention, the video came to an end before I realized it.

It was virtually similar to a virtual reality experience, so I had lost track of time while immersed.

’Anything particularly useful gained... maybe Qi Deviation?’

The event where most of humanity collapsed into Qi Deviation and died.

Even those who endured that tragedy fell into chaos and couldn’t live proper lives.

A situation where the term ’post-apocalyptic’ truly fit. They must have been worried day to day just about surviving and eating.

[Heavenly Demon] What a truly interesting tale.

[Sword Matstar] The machines shown in the middle are even more amazing. To think things so heavy moved even without mana.

[Passing Dwarf] Can we build those now too?

[Allfather] If you, a dwarf, do not know, then no one knows.

The fixed-nicks who watched the simplified summary of Earth’s history exchanged a word or two among themselves.

Since the latter half was what mattered to me, I brushed it off. I could understand most of what had unfolded during the Age of Mana.

’Though I still don’t know much about myself.’

Above all, the man referred to as Sovereign or Chief God. His name didn’t appear.

Well, there were rumors that the Chief God had multiple names, so it was completely understandable.

This could likely be grasped once we reach the Chief God’s sector. Holding onto such anticipation, I stepped out of the screening room.

The mages’ sector was mostly aimed at tourism, so there was an abundance of audiovisual materials.

"Huh? This place is..."

Just then, I discovered a certain door. A signpost sitting solitary next to the door was a bonus.

Narrowing my eyes, I read the text written on the signpost.

"Sky... rium? Is it like an aquarium?"

"I’ve never heard of an aquarium either, Master."

"You can think of it as a place where sea creatures are gathered."

"Are there turtles too?"

"Probably?"

But this wasn’t an aquarium, it was Skyrium.

Literally translated, a place where sky creatures are kept.

’Is it a place where birds are kept?’

Harbouring doubts, I gripped the door handle. No broadcast voice prohibiting entry resounded.

Hwiiiiing!

Soon, as I threw the door wide open, a light gust of wind buffeted us.

Scowling for a brief moment, I had no choice but to marvel at the landscape visible beyond the door.

"...The sky?"

[Could it be the sky?]

It was the sky. And a sky where cumulus clouds drifted apart here and there.

I stared blankly beyond it before carefully taking a step forward.

It seemed this door operated on a mechanism connecting space to space.

Similar to the roots of the World Tree, so to speak. Of course, caution was necessary.

"Woah."

"Master. Is this the sky?"

"Magnificent."

The companions who stepped out through the door let out exclamations one after another. Naturally so.

Who on earth could stand proudly on land above the clouds?

Unless one were a god, it was not an act easily done today.

[What are those islands?]

"They look like remnants damaged because it’s been so long."

Floating fragments of land shattered here and there.

Or sections connected by colossal iron chains, as if intentionally severed.

It was truly a landscape fitting the term floating island. I knew the technology of the gods was superior, but I marveled yet again.

"Woooah! Dad! Where are we?"

"It’s the sky."

"Are we flying in the sky?"

"We’re standing on top of the sky."

Wonmo and the other children marveled with sparkling eyes.

Of course, running around and falling off the edge would be disaster, so I immediately held onto them.

Asking the children to be careful, I cautiously approached the edge.

Glancing beneath the edge, massive iron chains and the ground below came into view.

’Is this a place far away from the Theme Park?’

The Theme Park wasn’t visible. It must be quite a distance away.

I didn’t know what principle was used to create floating islands, but I looked around to see if there was anything to gain here.

"Master. It says something is supposed to be here, but there’s nothing."

"Looks like they all ran away."

There really was nothing. As the name Skyrium implied, there normally should have been various aerial creatures.

But whether they had all died as ages passed or managed to escape, there was nothing left.

Just when I thought we’d have to return empty-handed...

"Ugh...!"

"Heok...!"

Lackey and Dolsoe looked behind me, their eyes widening in sheer shock.

Jaw-dropped, their expressions looked as though they had witnessed something that shouldn’t be seen.

Not just those two, but the rest of the party was the same. Even Cain stood frozen stiff.

"Why? What’s going on..."

Seeing their reaction, I turned my head back as well. And I couldn’t help but mirror their expression.

A pure white color looking like massive cumulus clouds clustered together.

Giant blue eyes contrasting against that pristine hue.

The problem was that just one of those eyes was the size of a small hill.

Those eyes were staring directly at us, unblinking.

[Buooooo-]

A resonant foghorn sound echoed across the entire floating island.

Chalgeurang! Chalgeurang!

Massive iron chains linked to the colossal entity rattled violently.