Chapter 172 204: Opening that Damned Door.

A thin membrane separates the real world from the Negative Universe. This film transcends time and space; no matter how advanced spaceflight technology becomes, it is impossible to reach the destination.

The only way is to tear this membrane apart. For its own goals, "God" left behind the Dead Sea Scrolls. That final ceremony is akin to a stairway to heaven; as long as this ladder exists, there is a possibility of ascending under the current conditions.

Of course, making this ladder manifest requires a heavy price. That price is the Third Impact, formed by the lives of all humanity. Perhaps one time is not enough; perhaps a fourth or fifth Impact will be needed.

And what Shinji is looking for is another path, one that theoretically also transcends the framework of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

In Ritsuko Akagi's eyes, this is impossible. It is already impressive for a low-level biological species like humans to execute the Dead Sea Scrolls as written, but now there is Shinji, who has returned after a hundred years of service.

"You mean to overlay enough psionic power with the Spear of Longinus, and then coordinate it with the final ceremony to open the gate?"

Inside the conference room, only Shinji and Ritsuko Akagi were present. The others had gone to the hangar, and the content of their discussion was not the newly discovered Angel signal.

"Yes. Use violence to pierce the membrane between the real world and the Negative Universe."

The idea was bold. Ritsuko Akagi immediately fell into deep thought. She was not as "selfish" as Misato, who felt excited just by being able to participate in a great plan, regardless of the mortality involved.

"The energy required for this must be terrifying. Wait, is this why you are provoking SEELE?"

Ritsuko suddenly remembered something: SEELE was constantly doubling down. The 13 mass-production units originally used for the ritual had already reached 18, and she had heard they were going to increase that to 24.

"That is one of the reasons. 24 mass-produced EVAs, 24 pseudo-Spears of Longinus—I need them to increase their investment."

Shinji changed his sitting posture and said nonchalantly, "But that's still not enough. Whether it's the mass-produced EVAs or the pseudo-Spears of Longinus, they are all things within the framework of the Dead Sea Scrolls. If the world could loop infinitely, they might find the optimal method, but I only have one chance."

"Psionic power?"

"Correct. Using psionic power as fuel to work in concert with the enhanced ceremony to open the door."

"I see. No wonder you wanted to trigger the Great Upheaval and have us search globally."

Ritsuko understood completely now. She was the only one who knew that Shinji used the hunting of Angels to obtain psionic power. Since it was fuel, the more the better. This boy had utilized the Great Upheaval—no, to be precise, he had utilized the inevitable fate corrected by "God."

"God" needed psionic users to grow stronger to find a shortcut, like a sugar-coated bullet. Shinji, in turn, swallowed the sugar and fired the bullet back.

The logic was simple. Ritsuko was concerned about one more question: "Do they know?"

Shinji paused for a moment, recalling the conflict on Misato's face, and shook his head. "They don't need to know. I really like the life I have now, and I feel very happy being with them, but the mission is unquestionable."

Everyone has a core essence. Just as Asuka remains conflicted even after achieving completion, there are certain things Shinji will never change. Personal desire always yields to the mission.

Ritsuko Akagi looked at him with nothing but admiration. This was the most unique aspect of Shinji-kun, and also the reason why he perplexed Asuka and the others who were "non-terrestrial." He was as hard as steel. Shinji's "completion" should be a return to normalcy, but if he completes, the world ends.

"Never ruled by love, clearly knowing what you want to do—you are stronger than me."

Ritsuko Akagi, who had once been head-over-heels for a man, said with a wry smile.

"That is a matter of course."

Shinji did not think this was flattery. If an Astartes lacked the steadfastness of a mortal, he would have no face to return to the Golden Throne.

"This is a potential path found based on the 'Emperor's Conjecture.' What do you plan to name it?"

"How about 'The Law of Loyalty'?"

'What the hell, 'The Law of Loyalty'?'

Even Ritsuko Akagi had many things she wanted to retort, but she eventually accepted it helplessly. She could only say it was very "Shinji-esque."

The matter was decided. It was good to have a reliable superior; Shinji provided a clear development route, and Ritsuko only needed to find a way to realize it. At this moment, she pulled up the Angel signal.

"I collaborated with Dr. Ito to develop a new detector. The detection efficiency has increased by 200%, and we have focused on special terrains like ice sheets, swamps, and volcanoes."

She slowly explained that, through the experience with the Embryo Angel, Angel eggs usually existed in areas with harsh climates. If they were placed in cities, what if they were discovered? Furthermore, different environments triggered different instincts in Angels.

"The Embryo Angel used magma; the Fish Angel used the sea as its home field. The Sky Angel should have been born in low Earth orbit; otherwise, with their massive size, it would have been impossible to know nothing about them."

"An interesting deduction."

Shinji also considered this. Angels were roughly divided into two types: one with obvious characteristics, and the other, like the Terror Angel or the Night Angel, being more abstract.

Come to think of it, as one explored the Angels, peeling away that obscure, impenetrable religious cloak, wasn't this just the old story of robots fighting monsters?

"It's a bit like Ultraman, only I am a loyal human, not an alien creature."

"Shinji-kun watches anime too?"

"Rei watches it. I took a glance, and after I gave my critique, she stopped watching."

'You... really don't know how to please a girl.'

Ritsuko found her desire to complain rising recently and hurried to pull the topic back. "The survey team has already gone. When do you plan to handle it?"

"Handle it now. If possible, I want to capture an Angel; these monsters can be used as sacrifices."

Shinji had already calculated it. He would never complain about having too few sacrifices; after all, the mass-produced EVAs were just a pile of degraded offerings.

"Then I'll arrange it for you immediately. Do you want to sortie yourself?"

"Of course. Speed up the repairs on Unit 03. With the three of them there, Tokyo-3 will remain as secure as a fortress."

"That's not a problem, but SEELE won't agree to Unit 01 launching proactively."

"Simple. Submit the report after the sortie. Let Gendo Ikari handle the rest; that is his purpose in existence."

Ritsuko Akagi's eyes widened. Even though she and Gendo Ikari were now at odds, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of sympathy. The last time, the Embryo Angel had set that man up quite miserably.

'He's really using his biological father to the point of destruction.'

"Aren't you afraid he'll spill what he knows?"

"Hmm. From the Ninth Angel onwards, NERV's Commander has been sidelined. The various agents sent by SEELE, including the 'Owl,' have been turned, sending back only false information. The entire organization is controlled by a fourteen-year-old boy. He is a person who traveled back from tens of thousands of years in the future, knows about the 'Human Instrumentality Project,' knows about SEELE, and is writing the script himself."

Shinji said calmly. This was the simplest truth; every word revealed honesty, but—

The boy spread his hands, smiling pleasantly. "Who would believe that? Gendo Ikari would only be sent to a mental hospital. As for the moral level, I have even less burden. This is his sin."

Atonement is also a specialty of 40K that one must experience, but like the Death Korps of Krieg, in the dark galaxy, simple death is never atonement. Only by burning one's last shred of self-worth like a torch is the true meaning of atonement.

'Atonement, huh?'

Ritsuko took Gendo Ikari's perspective, felt the thick, deep resentment and despair, and suddenly smiled.

"Then I'll thank you on his behalf."

-

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"Ahhh, Shinji is so slow! He called us here but won't let us join the meeting. This is clearly looking down on us."

Asuka was complaining, but her hands didn't stop, carefully wiping down Unit 02 with a rag.

In the past, she treated Unit 02 as a precious tool, a weapon to fulfill her value, but now it was different: Unit 02 was "Mom." She had even cut back on band activities, coming to the hangar whenever she had nothing to do.

Sometimes she would hide in the entry plug to complain; other times, she would personally wipe the airframe as if she were a maintenance worker.

'So good.'

Not far away, Ayanami Rei was envious. This was Asuka's greatest gain. Even if Shinji rejected her, this glass cannon wouldn't shatter, because she still had family.

'But I have no family, only Shinji.'

She pursed her lips and said nothing, suddenly understanding that fellow existence named Kaworu Nagisa. Beings like them were bound to be lonely—natural outcasts. That was why, when Gendo Ikari used a little bit of method back then, she opened her heart to him.

"Hey, I'm talking to you! That idiot is acting all sneaky all day, I don't know what he's doing. What do you think he's hiding from us?"

Despite the indifferent tone, Asuka was actually very concerned; she was just a bit afraid of knowing too much.

"Bearing the fate of humanity."

Ayanami Rei held her legs, answering succinctly, her body trembling slightly for an instant.

'Yes, Shinji is doing something extremely dangerous, very likely to leave us. I want to stop him, but I cannot.'

"That idiot lives such a tiring life, day in and day out. Can't he just fight Angels and live a good life? Why must he worry about a disaster however many years in the future? Maybe by then, we'll all be dead of old age. None of our business."

Asuka muttered. She was straightforward and didn't talk about "the greater good."

"Don't speak such willful words. You should know Shinji's pursuit."

"I know, of course, I do—it's just—"

Asuka secretly glanced at Rei, lifted her chin, and said, "Can't the two of us make him change his mind?"

"If he were to waver, he wouldn't be Shinji. He has a heart of steel."

"Pah! 'Heart of steel,' so annoying. It would be nice to be a normal person."

Rei frowned this time and immediately retorted, "If Shinji were just an ordinary boy, closing off his heart, cowardly and evasive, would you still love him? Could you still change because of him?"

'Ah... this...'

Asuka lowered her head and really pondered it seriously for a moment. She wanted to tell Rei what love was—that you would love your lover unswervingly regardless of what they became—but the sophistry died on her lips. Her intuition had already given her the answer.

'Of course not.'

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