Chapter 78. The Bird Trapped in the Egg (1)
“Victoria, lunch is ready.”
Yukgap called her over as he set down a plate of food.
Victoria sat at the table with an expectant look.
“What’s on the menu today?”
“Omurice. We had a lot of eggs left, so I made some.”
The fluffy omurice was one of Victoria’s favorite dishes.
As she squeezed ketchup over the egg, she hummed,
“The bird struggles to break free from the egg. The egg is the world. Whoever would be born must destroy a world. The bird flies toward God. That God’s name is...”
She scooped up a large spoonful of ketchup-covered omurice.
“Abraxas.”
“I didn’t expect to hear that name while eating.”
The moment he heard the name Abraxas, Yukgap openly showed his displeasure.
Victoria continued chewing as she explained,
“It’s a passage from the novel Demian. Abraxas is the ‘god’ spoken of in the spiritual realm. It can also be interpreted as a state that only someone who destroys the world they belong to and rises beyond it can reach.”
She swallowed.
“In other words, destruction is unavoidable if a bird wishes to ascend to where God resides.”
“Fine. Just eat your food.”
Victoria was probably the only person who could turn a plate of omurice into a discussion like this.
More importantly, Yukgap did not think it was appropriate dinner-table conversation.
“Is anyone here?”
While they were eating lunch, someone opened the restaurant door and came inside.
It was a middle-aged couple who looked to be in their mid-forties.
[Welcome, lumps of flesh. Sit here. What do you intend to order?]
“I’m sorry, but my wife and I didn’t come here to order food.”
The husband spoke calmly.
Robert sounded puzzled.
[Then why have you come to a restaurant? We do not accept peddlers or religious solicitation.]
“We came because we wanted to meet Doctor Victoria Frankenstein.”
The husband revealed their purpose with a tense expression.
Victoria, who was still eating her omurice, raised her hand.
“That’s me. What can I do for you?”
The husband stared at her and asked in a trembling voice,
“Are you Victoria Frankenstein, the daughter of Doctor Mary Frankenstein?”
“Yes?”
The moment Victoria answered, the wife, who had remained silent until then, suddenly burst into tears.
“Ugh... sob...”
She buried her face in her hands and simply cried without saying anything.
Both Victoria and Yukgap were too startled by her sudden reaction to speak.
The husband hurriedly comforted his wife before continuing.
“My name is Seo Jeongheon. This is my wife, Go Hyeona. We both work at a biological research institute. We’ve read every paper Doctor Mary published.”
“My mother’s papers?”
Victoria visibly startled at the mention of her mother.
Jeongheon continued,
“That’s right. Doctor Mary was an authority not only in alchemy, but also in biology and genetics. There probably isn’t a biology researcher who doesn’t know her.”
He took a breath.
“In any case, we came to find you today because we have one request.”
The couple bowed deeply.
Then, in desperate voices, they pleaded,
“Doctor Frankenstein, please bring our child back to life.”
“His name was Seo Eunho. He was fifteen years old.”
Jeongheon held out a photograph.
“He passed away a few months ago.”
The photo showed a gentle-looking boy wearing glasses.
From the way Jeongheon spoke, the boy was already gone from this world.
“Ugh... Eunho...”
More pitiful than anything was the wife.
Go Hyeona burst into tears every time their son was mentioned.
It had reached the point where normal conversation with her was almost impossible.
Her husband seemed used to it.
“I’m sorry. Ever since our son died, my wife has been having a very difficult time.”
“She always becomes like this when we talk about him. Please understand.”
Apparently, losing their son had devastated her.
Victoria looked at Hyeona sympathetically and nodded.
“You lost your child. Of course you’re hurting. It’s all right.”
Jeongheon’s eyes were already red as well.
“The reason we came to you is exactly what I said earlier.”
“Our son died far too young. Ever since he left us, it feels like we haven’t truly been alive either.”
His voice trembled.
“That’s why we asked around until we finally found you.”
“I heard that the last subject Doctor Mary studied before her death was ‘resurrection of the dead.’”
“I’m sorry, but that’s impossible.”
Victoria immediately shook her head.
Her voice turned heavy.
“It’s true that my mother researched that field.”
“But it’s something that cannot succeed.”
“And more importantly, it shouldn’t.”
Seeing Victoria’s skepticism, Jeongheon hurriedly spoke.
“We know that completely resurrecting our son is impossible!”
“That’s why we brought this.”
He handed Victoria a small plastic medicine container.
Victoria accepted it casually.
“What is it?”
“My son Eunho’s hair.”
Victoria’s expression changed.
