Angela muttered to herself for a while, then a strange light suddenly flashed in her eyes.
"Therefore, I also think it's a good thing for the owner to go home to rest and recuperate."
Hayden felt he couldn't understand a word she was saying, except perhaps the last two sentences.
"How about changing the environment?"
He turned to look at the azure sky that had been swept away by the typhoon.
"The environment has changed a long time ago. It will never come back."
Capitalists use the wealth they accumulate through exploitation to invent even more and faster ways to exploit workers.
With the development of the "bowing bug" system and educational chips, the competition between large corporations will intensify, and the exploitation of workers will become even more severe. The environment has changed, and it will get worse.
The present of demi-humans is the future of modern humans.
They are the corpses living in the wilderness, the corpses of today's proletarians tomorrow.
Karen was filled with lofty ambitions and vowed to change the world.
However, despite Hayden's admiration for her and his companionship with her, fear still lingered in his heart from time to time—could this transformation of the world truly be accomplished? Would the demi-humans who were walking corpses in the wasteland today truly become the future fate of ordinary people in modern times?
The pursuit of freedom: Could Pazuzu, who was killed by Karen with a single finger using the climate control system, be Hayden's tomorrow?
The environment has changed, it's gotten worse, which makes the future even more frightening. Hayden couldn't maintain complete confidence with just Karen's courage.
But Angela, who was still troubled by some strange things, immediately noticed Hayden's worries and fears.
"Master, please don't be afraid."
She leaned in, just as she often did, and gently hugged Hayden's head, stroking it lightly as she spoke softly.
"Haven't you already seen it? Haven't you already known it? Don't be afraid of death, because I love you."
As Angela finished speaking, she turned to look at the apple tree beside her. Beneath each leaf, one could vaguely see silver apples, like stars. Unfortunately, they hadn't turned golden yet.
Don't worry about tomorrow.
However, Angela still said the same thing.
"Because I have planted the tree here today. Tomorrow I will give you the fruit of the Tree of Life. At that time, the dead will rise again, the corpses will awaken, and everyone will overthrow the tower of death. Because I love you, I will do the impossible for you."
To be honest, Angela's words always sounded so mysterious and inexplicable. Hayden didn't understand even half of it, nor did he dare to ask further. But at least he wasn't foolish enough to take "tomorrow" literally.
This tomorrow is certainly not that tomorrow; it cannot be a real tomorrow. It's probably the same rhetorical device used in Karen's "if one day..."
Strangely, unlike Karen's bold and passionate words, it was Angela's inexplicable words that gave Hayden a strange sense of security, making him willing to believe Angela's actions and words.
There is so little we can change today. The world and the environment are far too cruel.
But a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
If we can ride the wind tomorrow, we will surely create a better tomorrow for all people.
Bonus Chapter: The Sun
This is a side story.
It is something that happens at a time that is both possible and impossible.
Because Angela had only been with Hayden for a little over a year, they hadn't even celebrated their second December 25th yet.
So this happened in an impossible time.
But this is still part of the story.
--------------------------
"Christmas?"
When Angela heard this word, she made a very strange expression.
"May I ask whose birthday this is?"
No wonder Angela asked this question, since today is December 25th.
The usually bustling streets of New Jersey have become a hundred times more lively with Christmas approaching. Thanks to the improved security in New Jersey this year, with the incorruptible and hard-line manager, "Jarway II" Denton, there have been very few robberies of shops offering freebies.
Although Hayden disliked Supervisor Denton, that hothead (because he had caused Karen a lot of trouble before), even Hayden had to admit that Supervisor Denton had greatly improved the lives and safety of the citizens of New Seattle. Even all the shops in the lower-class residential areas were now bathed in bright, shimmering magic. The joyous festive atmosphere burned freely like a flame, and the streets were crowded with citizens dressed in festive and brightly colored clothes, their various gaudy decorations almost like small lights in a shop window, assaulting people's eyes and ears.
Moreover, the dazzling array of customer attire clearly demonstrates that New Jersey is indeed an international metropolis. The streets are filled with people in black tailcoats and top hats, strange monks in long robes and skull rosaries, even dwarves, winged sprites, and enhanced humans and lower-ranking gods—people of higher social standing—strolling about. It's a joyous season, a day brimming with celebration.
However, Hayden seemed completely uninterested in the festival. It was only because Angela noticed the festive atmosphere on the streets, the various discounts and promotions from the shops, and the overwhelming amount of advertising that she went to Hayden to inquire about it.
Even though Hayden doesn't celebrate Christmas, when Angela came to inquire, he naturally had no choice but to explain the whole story to her—besides, Hayden is actually quite fond of showing off his knowledge.
Simply put, Christmas is the birthday of Mithra.
Hayden glanced at the comic book he hadn't caught up on on his computer screen and answered casually.
"Mithra is the 'savior' who led the rise of new gods and overthrew the feudal old gods more than four hundred years ago. The people who were saved from the feudal slave owners, in order to thank Mithra for his divine grace, set December 25th, Mithra's birthday, as Christmas Day - but this is basically a modern nonsense."
Angela had been listening with an "Oh, I see" look on her face, but Hayden's final sentence confused her: "Nonsense?"
"December 25th of each year is basically around the winter solstice. The practice of worshipping the sun god around the winter solstice has existed for at least 12 years."
Hayden looked away from the comic book and gestured in the air with his hand.
"The winter solstice is the day with the shortest daylight and the longest night in the Northern Hemisphere each year. In other words, it is also the turning point in the year when the climate begins to change from cold to warm. Because after the winter solstice, the daylight hours will gradually become longer and longer, and the Northern Hemisphere will absorb more and more solar heat."
Cold is the magic of death, warmth is the magic of life. This concept exists all over the world.
"Therefore, since ancient times, the winter solstice has been regarded in many parts of the Northern Hemisphere as the turning point of the year when the natural life force goes from death to regeneration. From ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, the ancient priests developed complex sun worship rituals to promote the continuation of ecological cycles. These cycles include the daily sunrise and sunset, the cycle of the four seasons, the regeneration of plants that die in winter in spring, the regular flooding of rivers, and so on."
After all, the sun has a very important impact on Earth's ecology.
"Similar sacrificial traditions—namely, the tradition of offering sacrifices to heaven on the winter solstice every year—also existed in ancient Eastern countries. They also existed at least four or five thousand years ago."
As the ancients said, on the winter solstice, one should offer sacrifices to the gods, humans, and spirits.
Another saying goes: "On the winter solstice, the yang energy rises, and the ruler's virtue grows, hence this celebration."
Or it is said: The winter solstice is the most important festival of the year, and it is valued by both the gentry and the common people. They exchange gifts, raise their cups in celebration, and offer sacrifices to their ancestors.
Therefore, the Winter Solstice is not only a day for worshipping gods, humans, and ghosts, but also a day for celebrating and visiting relatives and friends to exchange gifts, which has existed since ancient times.
Angela became increasingly confused as she listened: "What does this have to do with Mitra? He's not the sun."
“Indeed, Mithra is not the sun god. But after he led the new gods to break the dark age of the old gods and create a new era, he was regarded as a symbol of ‘savior and light’, and thus he was associated with the concept of the sun.”
Hayden frowned.
"Actually, it wasn't a big deal at first. Although I hate big companies and capitalists, I also admit that it was a good thing that Mithra led the rise of the new god of capital four hundred years ago and broke the rule of the old feudal gods. After all, the capitalist system is more advanced than feudalism and better for the people. At that time, people thanked the Bodhisattva Mithra and used this 'Christmas' to thank him, which was only natural."
"However, over time, the original meaning of the holiday, which was to commemorate good deeds, began to change. Starting about two hundred years ago, Christmas gradually became a shopping festival created by capitalists to take advantage of the opportunity to sell more goods."
"As for couples going on dates and having sex on Christmas Eve..."
Hayden finally let out a cold, gruff laugh at this point.
"A bunch of decadent, trendy men and women actually use ancient days of worshipping heaven or thanking people as an excuse to vent their desires! A real man like me never follows the crowd! Rather than celebrating Christmas, I'd rather pour myself a glass of red wine in the quiet night and watch an old cartoon to relive Barney's heroic moments! That's what a real man does!"
Huh? Huh?
Needless to say, Angela couldn't fully understand what Hayden was saying. But since he often talked nonsense and said strange things that only anime fans could understand, Angela was quite indifferent to it; what he actually meant didn't matter at all.
Angela could tell that Hayden's last words were just sour grapes, and that was enough.
However, on the other hand, this is also troublesome.
Angela knew perfectly well that Hayden wasn't truly bad at socializing. It was just that he had a so-called "virgin aesthetic," so even if he had sexual desires, he would use this aesthetic as an excuse to avoid making the first move.
In Karen's words, Hayden was a weakling who couldn't get an erection.
Angela was quite helpless about this. Perhaps it was because the women around Hayden who had feelings for him (especially Karen) were all too assertive, which made Hayden too afraid to make a move. So Angela was recently considering whether to try a different approach, perhaps to find Hayden a girl with a gentler personality—but that's a matter for the next volume, so let's leave it at that for now.
"By the way, there are also some other cultural customs from other New God companies mixed into Mitra Christmas, after all, everyone wants a piece of such a big cake."
Hayden had no idea what Angela was thinking. Once he started quoting, he got carried away and couldn't stop talking.
"For example, the Christmas tree was originally a sacred object offered to the ancient Greek god of agriculture to pray for a bountiful harvest. Later, the new god Mars defeated the old Greek gods, absorbed some of the old gods and their magical symbols, and developed the Christmas tree as a magical tool to bring a good harvest."
"As for Santa Claus, he was originally Odin, the chairman of the Wotan Mystic Technology Company. Legend has it that hundreds of years ago, he fought on the winter solstice, riding his eight-legged steed across the night sky, using his spear Gungnir to kill the evil Old Gods and their servants, and rewarding the good with gold. The image of Santa Claus in modern times was once a symbol of justice from the ancient god Odin, who punished evil and rewarded good."
"All these symbols and emblems that are now commercialized by capital were once..."
Hayden was speaking with great relish when suddenly his expression darkened, he sighed, and fell silent.
Angela paused for two seconds before realizing why Hayden sighed.
Once upon a time, at least four hundred years ago, the symbols and emblems of these new gods were quite beautiful.
People exchanged gifts to express their gratitude and blessings. They thanked the new god for illuminating the darkness of the old god, and for the benevolent new god for defeating the evil old god, bringing a better life to the people of the world.
As time has passed, these once beautiful symbols and emblems have all been transformed by the new gods into tools to promote consumerism and hedonism, becoming a way for merchants to tempt people like devils.
The holy sun that once illuminated the darkness, and the justice that once rewarded good and punished evil, Odin, have all lost their original meaning.
Hayden didn't think that the once-beautiful holidays had turned into shopping festivals were so terrible, so miserable, or so unbearable. After all, as the witch Abigail often said—no matter how bad the modern society created by the new gods was, could it be worse than the feudal society of more than four hundred years ago?
That's obviously not the case. Even the worst capitalist is better than a feudal lord. Only a fool wouldn't understand that.
Hayden just couldn't understand why the world was the way it is today.
Angela could see Hayden's troubles. She tilted her head and said thoughtfully, "According to you, Master, did these 'new gods of capitalism'—Mitra, Odin, and the like—once have the idea of making the world a better place and improving people's lives?"
Hayden paused for a moment, then nodded.
Of course, it's impossible that every new god who initially overthrows an old god does so out of good intentions. They're probably just looking to increase their own power and status.
However, Hayden had worked hard to investigate and understand ancient historical documents from the period of the capitalist revolution and the power transition between the old and new gods, and tried his best to find the information he could find. In the end, he still believed that some of the leading new gods—such as most of the bodhisattvas including Mithras, and Odin, the great god of the Wotan Company, and his brother Thor, the god of thunder—were reformers who were not afraid of their own death but had compassion for the world.
As for examples like the American Smoke Mirror Company and the Japanese Soshin-Ue Company, who were originally old gods but switched sides and joined the camp of new capitalist gods when things went wrong, there's not much to say about them. Hayden isn't surprised at all that they're bad.
but,
"Why did those new gods, who originally had good intentions and wanted to improve the world and help people, end up making the world like it is now?"
This is what Hayden finds most incomprehensible.
Mithras's Christmas was ultimately just a starting point. Commercialized holidays, no matter how bad, are ultimately nothing special. The ordinary people who enjoy the holidays still seem quite happy, so there's no need for righteous condemnation. Hayden's dislike of Christmas was probably half due to sour grapes.
His distress stems primarily from the fact that he glimpses of past history in the current festivals.
Many new gods once harbored lofty ambitions to change the world and compassion for humanity. Yet, today's capitalist society is still quite terrible. Although it is much better than feudal society, no one (perhaps only the upper class) can say that modern society is perfect and without flaws.
Why is this the case? Why isn't the world getting better every day?
Does the hero who slays the dragon inevitably become the dragon himself? Or do they simply change their minds when they switch places?
Hayden didn't really believe this claim. That's why he was even more confused.
Angela tilted her head, seemingly lost in thought. Of course, she couldn't directly answer Hayden's question.
She pondered for a moment, then casually picked up a tarot card from Hayden's desk and showed it to him without even looking at it.
This tarot card really surprised Hayden.
Because the card depicted an upside-down sun. The image also included an upside-down depiction of a child riding a horse, obscured by a gray wall.
This is actually a reversed Sun card.
Since Angela came to Hayden's side, he seems to have rarely drawn reversed tarot cards.
The meaning of the Sun card is easy to understand. A golden sun shines on a child riding a white horse, crossing a gray wall. The passion, power, and success after overcoming difficulties contained in this tarot card need no further explanation. The upright Sun card is one of the most auspicious cards in tarot readings.
However, the reversed Sun card is more complicated.
The reversed Sun card signifies a gradual weakening of its original energy, indicating that the sun is gradually dimming and setting, having passed its peak. Its brightest and hottest moments are over, and the passion it represents has vanished.
The card depicts a child riding a horse reversed, but the horse is unable to cross the wall and is instead blocked and confined by the gray wall. This wall has ultimately become a barrier, and its original protective function is gone, resulting in a closed state.
Considering that Mithras was once worshipped as the sun god and the god of light, and considering that today is the winter solstice, Angela drawing this reversed Sun card is quite... intriguing.
Has the new god Mithra, who once shone like the sun and illuminated the darkness of feudal society, now set in the west?
Hayden obviously wouldn't make such a definitive statement, but it would be even more foolish to completely ignore the signs of the future that Angela had given.
"Is this what the ancients meant by 'When the mandate of heaven changes, divine artifacts are replaced'?"
If Karen were here, she might add, "This is called 'When Qin lost its deer, the whole world chased after it.'"
However, Angela couldn't help but sigh when she saw Hayden's appearance.
Master, if your head is filled with this kind of stuff every day, how are you going to find a wife?