Stellarium has three different programs.

Academia.

College.

Graduate.

Among these, the Academia program I applied for corresponds to high school.

Academia students study on an artificial planet that looks like the Death Star. Only College and Graduate students continue their education on natural planets.

In other words, Stellarium is one enormous foundation. Stellarium Academia and College programs are massive facilities and brands established by the same foundation.

Anyway, Academia is taught by teachers. It's subtly different from College, which is taught by professors. Naturally, the educational structures of the two programs are completely different.

And the person I'm going to meet now is a professor. Not a teacher.

Stellarium professors typically live in apartments on the College planet. Cases like the Rheinland family, where a spaceship serves as home, are uncommon.

[This stop is "Planeta," the fourth planet in the Stellarium planetary system. The exit doors are on your right. I repeat, this stop is...]

After a long journey, Sonia and I finally set foot on solid ground.

"Whoa."

"Be careful, sir. The platform is slippery."

My body staggers after stepping on real ground for the first time in a while.

"You're pushing yourself too hard when your fever only just broke. I, Sonia, am concerned about your well-being, young master."

"I'm just dizzy, that's all..."

Warp technology does exist in this era. However, it's extremely expensive to use. For distances like between the Earth and Moon, taking a shuttle is more cost-effective.

I've had occasions to visit other ships before, like when I went to take mock exams at Seti's academy. But this time, it was particularly difficult to adjust.

"A real planet feels different."

Enduring the landing alone was grueling. This affects bone density too. If your body can't handle it, you can't travel between planets.

And I'm still weak.

"Ugh."

Pain shoots through my ankle with every step.

"Are you alright?"

"No, I'm not."

"You should exercise more diligently."

"I already promised to ask Rustila for personal coaching when I get back today."

"...You mean that young lady from the Kersil family?"

Sonia frowned slightly, which was unlike her.

Rustila apparently did well in her interview, and since then, the distance between us had decreased considerably. At the very least, I could say we had become "friends."

"It's good that you've made a friend knowledgeable about exercise, but... please get your healthcare from professionals. Don't you remember collapsing after being beaten with a wooden sword last time?"

"You beat me up too."

"How is that the same thing?"

"Are you jealous right now? Ow-!!"

Sonia jabbed my side and lifted her chin.

"Let's go. The professor will be waiting."

***

After taking the designated shuttle and traveling for about an hour, we arrived at the location written in the letter.

Ding-dong.

After pressing the call button and waiting for a moment, someone opened the door.

"Thank you for coming such a long way."

A tall, young man.

It was indeed the same person I had seen at the interview.

I bowed my head with relief, the angle of my bow sharp with deep respect.

"You are Professor Richard Feynman, correct?"

"...Hehehe."

Richard Feynman.

A name that anyone interested in physics would have heard at least once.

Of course, Feynman was a genius who lived in the same era as Einstein.

Obviously, the person standing before me wasn't the Richard Feynman I knew. Richard is a common name.

However, what's important is that this world is a fictional one, and the author has based many characters on real-life figures.

Professor Feynman was one of them. Though a namesake, his way of thinking and behavior were similar to the real Feynman.

Who else but someone like Feynman would stubbornly send a handwritten letter for a request that could have been sent by email?

At any rate, he was definitely an eccentric.

"Please come in."

"Excuse me. By the way... you don't need to speak formally to me."

Feynman waved his hand dismissively as he led me into the entryway.

"It's proper to be formal when first meeting someone."

"But we're not meeting for the first time, are we?"

"Is that so? Second time?"

"Third time."

Once at the interview, once in the restroom, and now.

I was originally going to say it was the fourth time, counting the profile picture I saw on the College physics department website. But since this guy had uploaded a picture of a cat as his profile, it became our third meeting.

Feynman seemed to know this too, as he chuckled and offered me a chair.

"Let's have something light."

He brought two cups of green tea. They were quite cool, probably from the refrigerator.

Come to think of it, this Feynman liked his tea cold and his ice cream hot. Just like how I eat Einspänner without the cream.

"Do you know why I called you here?"

"Yes."

Normally, interviewers shouldn't meet with students to maintain fairness.

But Feynman wasn't the type to follow such rules.

If he was interested in something, he would meet privately.

Therefore, anything said here wouldn't leak outside.

Feynman began in earnest.

"I understand your family is quite prestigious. Compared to that, this place must seem modest?"

"Not at all. I actually prefer places like this."

I meant it. It's not that I'm frugal. I just feel more at ease in a comfortably sized place like this than in an unnecessarily spacious spaceship.

"I see."

Feynman nodded.

"Let me brag a bit. I make quite a bit of money from my writing, but I spend it all buying snacks for my research colleagues."

"Could I get one too someday?"

"Hmm? Hahaha!"

Feynman burst into laughter and nodded.

"Of course. Perhaps someday you'll be in a position to hand out snacks too. Then you'll have no choice but to live in an apartment like this forever."

Though he spoke jokingly, I realized that every word was a metaphor.

To join our department—the physics department—you must abandon the desire for money. If you're fixated on material success, look elsewhere. That's what Feynman was saying.

The interview had begun from the moment I met this person—no, perhaps from the moment I received that handwritten letter.

If I hadn't received that letter and made the difficult journey to the professor's home?

Feynman would have probably seen me as just another smart middle schooler.

This was merely the opening salvo. We had confirmed each other's intentions. Since Feynman disliked beating around the bush...

"Young man."

"Yes."

"What do you want to be when you grow up?"

From now on, he would speak directly.

Of course, I also greatly prefer direct communication.

"A professor."

So I answered without hesitation.

It was from this moment that the atmosphere in the room completely changed.

[— The "God of Wisdom and Curiosity" anticipates your next answer.]

I said:

"I want to become a professor who studies black holes, like you."

I want to follow in your footsteps.

"I want to understand what kind of universe we live in, why it's so difficult to develop a theory unifying gravity with the other forces despite our advanced technology, what form such a theory might take if developed, and if it's impossible, why it's impossible... I want to understand all of that."

I want to see the end of this novel.

"Hehe."

"I've been suffering from a high fever for the past three days, which is why I couldn't come. So I've come to see you now, just as my cold has ended."

Even if I fail to get into the Academia program, I'll apply to College again.

If I get accepted there, please take me on as an undergraduate intern.

Furthermore, if I get into the Graduate program, please use me as a graduate student.

I conveyed all these messages through this meeting.

The possibility of failing Academia and bearing a child of the Outer God?

I didn't even consider it. At this moment, it wasn't even worth considering. To hell with it, whether I have a child or not. Whatever the Outer God might say.

[— The "God of Wisdom and Curiosity" is amazed by your spirit.]

[— You have received a 100 pron donation!]

"Hmm."

After hearing my answer, Professor Feynman closed his eyes for a moment.

He seemed to be thinking about something. Perhaps he was assessing my abilities.

I swallowed hard. Before a genius, I am merely a speck of dust. I clearly knew that this conversation would have little impact on my acceptance to Stellarium. Yet I couldn't help feeling nervous.

"...Indeed, your intellectual capacity is outstanding."

Feynman began with those words.

"But having outstanding capacity doesn't automatically make you a good scientist. We have scientific knowledge accumulated by humanity over thousands of years. It's absurd to think you can learn it all in two years of Academia and three years of College."

I nodded.

"So you'll certainly need to go to graduate school, and perhaps before that, you might lose interest and become discouraged."

Feynman asked:

"Do you still want to share snacks with me?"

He grinned.

"For your information, you shouldn't be picky about the type of snacks."

He meant I shouldn't be picky about research topics.

At the same time, he was telling me to find joy in studying and understanding the world one step at a time, even if results don't come immediately.

Even through this simple metaphor, I could tell.

This person is a genius.

And an excellent educator.

- You want to come to the physics graduate program? Aren't you deciding your career path too early as a middle schooler? Wouldn't it be better to think about it more?

While giving such warnings...

- If you still want to come, then come. I'll support you as much as I can. Just promise me one thing.

- Work hard, be patient, take one step at a time.

He's exactly like the Feynman I know.

There was no reason to refuse.

"I'll eat whatever you give me."

I was already capable of standing as an independent researcher.

No PhD? So what? My research capabilities remain the same.

Eidel is dead. Jinsoo Lee is alive. That's all. So I can move forward as myself.

I don't know why things turned out this way. I can't know, and there's no reason to know.

Everyone lives because they were born. I lived because I was born on Earth. It's the same now. I live because I was possessed.

But as I live, I will fulfill the purpose of the path I walk.

Understanding nature.

For me, that means understanding the Outer Gods.

In other words, trying to understand the incomprehensible with a smile.

That is my purpose.

[— The "God of Wisdom and Curiosity" feels a slight affection for you.]

[— The "God of Wisdom and Curiosity" wants to test how far your resolve can go.]

I gazed steadily at Feynman.

Feynman stared intently into my eyes for a while.

"...Very well."

Finally, he spoke.

"I'll see you on our campus."