"My God*. I only just realized that being a teacher is a hazardous profession," Sutanta remarked as he looked at Agung’s face, which was covered in bruises that had begun to turn a sickly yellow.
[A/N] Italics indicate dialogue spoken in English.
"I just found out too, Prof. If I’d known it would be like this, I would’ve joined a Muay Thai camp before applying for the job."
They both laughed. Time seemed unable to erode the easy familiarity between the mentor and his former student. Agung quickly recounted the string of events at his school. The professor listened intently. His warm, fatherly gaze never failed to dissolve the hardened shell of adulthood Agung had built as an orphan.
However, Agung’s tongue tied when he reached the conclusion of his story. This hesitation did not escape the Professor's notice.
"You’re smart, Gung. We could have been an incredible team if you had continued your career as a researcher." They had long moved past the era of arguing over this difference in perspective. Now, Sutanta could only try to mask his sadness.
"Don't give me that sad look, Prof. I’m happy with my choice. It’s precisely because I didn’t want to be your colleague that I found another profession," Agung replied sharply.
Sutanta closed his eyes and smiled, dismissing Agung’s cheap attempt to annoy him. "Follow me," he said, standing up.
"To the execution room?"
"You're crazy."
They drove to Sebelas Maret University (UNS). Agung's question about why Sutanta wanted to meet him so early in the morning was answered the moment he stepped into the auditorium.
This old man said he was just passing through Solo, and yet here he is, headlining a seminar this big. Agung felt a mix of irritation and amusement at Sutanta's childish streak, which clearly hadn't changed.
“Consciousness as the Player: Unveiling the Role of Mind in Quantum Reality” was emblazoned on a long banner across the stage and on the LCD screens to the left and right. Although the room was packed with hundreds of participants from various backgrounds, Agung didn't have to worry; Sutanta had reserved a seat for him in the front row among the VIPs.
On the poster, beside Professor Sutanta's picture is Prof. Dr. Hartono Liem, M.Sc., Ph.D. It was a familiar name. A quick Google search revealed that the face he was looking at belonged to a legendary professor from ITB with a staggering list of achievements. Among them, as featured by Tempo, was his work on developing Indonesia's first quantum computer prototype and his contributions to national digital sovereignty.
Agung had to read the text three times to ensure his eyes weren't deceiving him. It made sense that the name sounded familiar; the man was a titan in his field. Agung had heard his name frequently back when he was still Sutanta's assistant.
Before he realized it, his gaze had swept across the occupied VIP seats, finding sharply-dressed figures with the striking physical characteristics of various nationalities. Sometimes he forgot that his former mentor and his associates were among the world’s elite in their respective fields.
Though he was smiling in his photo, Prof. Liem gave off a colder, more unapproachable impression compared to Sutanta, who was grinning from ear to ear. Agung guessed that Prof. Liem would handle the quantum mechanics side, while Sutanta would explain the psychological perspective.
The event began. Stripped of his joking demeanor, Sutanta was a professor whose gravitas could silence a crowd for five minutes. After those first five minutes, however, the seats in the back would usually start buzzing with the groans of intellectual fatigue.
Watching the participants grow dizzy from Sutanta's explanations convinced Agung that the Professor's view of him, that he was better suited for research, was merely self-projection. Sutanta’s overly technical delivery threw Agung back to his college days, making him feel like a freshman sitting through his first lecture.
On the other hand, Prof. Liem was an incredibly engaging speaker. He packaged heavy topics in accessible, crisp language that reminded Agung of Neil deGrasse Tyson. His charismatic presence, untouched by age, convinced Agung that the man would be a massive success if he ever started a YouTube channel or a podcast. His explanations of scientific concepts like superposition and the double-slit experiment were effortless to digest.
Placing Prof. Liem as the closing speaker felt like a satisfying dessert. Something Sutanta had mentioned earlier only became truly shocking once Prof. Liem reinforced it.
"Intent focused on photons is capable of shifting the resulting interference pattern," Sutanta had explained. Prof. Liem drove the point home: "The bottom line is: the consciousness of a trained group of humans is capable of altering the physical world."
The audience immediately buzzed with awe.
Even though this seminar wasn't in his plans, it was impossible for Agung not to take diligent notes in the pocketbook he always carried. The event ended with thunderous applause. As the auditorium began to empty, Agung waited for Sutanta to finish a seemingly endless photo session.
"I heard you were fired, weren't you?" A voice emerged from beside him.
Agung looked up. He knew exactly that trouble was approaching. "Oh, Mr. Hendrik. News certainly travels fast to your ears." Despite knowing the man's intentions, Agung remained polite. He stood up and offered a handshake.
Before him stood a young teacher, perhaps only a few years older than Agung. His hair was perfectly slicked, his face clean-shaven, and he wore his civil servant uniform with pride. He gave Agung a haughty look and ignored his outstretched hand.
"I heard you got into a fight with a student?"
"No. I didn't."
"Oh right, not a fight. You just got beaten to a pulp." Hendrik’s gaze swept from Agung’s feet to his head, lingering on the forearm crutch Agung used to stand.
"Maybe sometime you could try facing two thugs at once on your way home, while exhausted from jogging," Agung replied coldly.
"Already facing divine retribution, and yet your mouth is still unchecked!"
"I’m not looking for trouble, Sir."
"Of course not, you already have too much trouble of your own making. If you didn't want problems, you shouldn't have embarrassed me in front of the other teachers."
Now Agung remembered. He and Hendrik had had a heated debate during the last subject-teacher meeting. It seemed the man had been nursing a grudge ever since.
"What I gave you was called a critique. If you feel embarrassed, then stop being a teacher. That’s a sign you can't self-reflect. How can you teach with a mentality like that?"
"Is that so? To be a teacher like you? You can't even set an example for your own words!"
Every argument inevitably led there. Agung knew that quitting teaching wouldn't solve his life's core issues. Saying "it wasn't my fault" would just be swallowing his own pride. He sat back down and acted as if Hendrik were no longer there.
"Why so quiet? cat got your tongue?"
The answer didn't come from Agung, but from another authoritative voice that cut in. "Is my student causing trouble?"
Hendrik moved to snap back, but his courage withered when he saw it was Sutanta asking, accompanied by Prof. Liem. Hendrik furrowed his brow, turned on his heel, and threw one last line: "Teach your student some manners."
"You seem to have quite a 'fan club,'" Sutanta teased, treating Hendrik as if he were nothing more than a passing breeze.
Agung packed his things quickly. "The risk of being sane in a mad world is being labeled a madman."
Prof. Liem laughed. "You certainly have confidence."
Agung didn't know how to respond, but he realized Prof. Liem wasn't mocking him. He reached out and introduced himself. "Your research on Q-Consciousness is incredible, Sir. Your explanation earlier was also very easy to follow."
The scientist didn't answer immediately; instead, he exchanged a look with Sutanta. "May I see your notes?" Prof. Liem asked suddenly.
Agung looked at Sutanta, who remained silent, watching him. From that, Agung knew this was a test. Whatever the purpose of the test, Agung didn't know if he wanted to pass. Doubting himself, he opened the first page he had written during the seminar and handed his small notebook to the renowned scientist.
Initially, everything was fine, but Agung’s body felt a jolt of electricity when Prof. Liem abruptly flipped through the other pages, going all the way back to the first. Spontaneously, Agung tried to snatch the book back, but the man—who was old enough to be called a grandfather—was faster and stronger than him.
Recorded there were his unfiltered thoughts. Agung winced every time a page was turned.
After several minutes that felt like an eternity, Prof. Liem closed the book. "Why did you become a teacher instead of a researcher?"
"That's what I've been saying!" Sutanta exclaimed enthusiastically.
Breathing heavily, Agung put on a face of offense at the invasion of privacy and the fact that his passion for teaching was being questioned again. "Do you think I'm not suited to be a teacher, Prof?"
"It’s not that you're unsuited, but that you are wasting your talent as a researcher." Liem’s gaze turned cold; his voice was deadly serious.
"That doesn't mean you can just become a great researcher overnight. I see you have a high degree of curiosity, detailed observation, and a radical, insane pattern of thinking. But often, your feelings get in the way."
"What do you mean by that?"
"When your student was possessed in the counseling room, you had a golden opportunity to observe that phenomenon and answer the questions you wrote here." Prof. Liem tapped the cover of the notebook, referring to a series of existential questions Agung had written while witnessing that very phenomenon.
"Are you saying I should have just sat back and watched my student who needed help?" Agung’s voice rose, incredulous at what he was hearing. "I’m his teacher! Even if I weren't, I would help him as a fellow human being."
"That is the problem. Even if you weren't a teacher, you would still intervene and leave all these brilliant questions empty and unanswered."
"How can you say something so inhumane?!"
"Is curiosity not also human? Since the dawn of civilization, we have loved and we have killed because of love. We then call one act human and the other not."
Left speechless by Liem's answer, Agung unconsciously took a step back. His body wanted to retreat before his mind could even process why.
"He doesn't entirely mean what he said; of course he wouldn't kill someone just for the sake of curiosity," Sutanta said, trying to diffuse the tension between Agung and Liem.
At Sutanta's words, Liem simply nodded and continued, "What do you want to achieve in your life, Gung? Don't tell me you want to educate the youth so the world can be a better place."
"And is that a bad thing? Or do you not believe that education brings about positive change?"
"Don't you see we are just running in place? We study past conflicts not to avoid them, but to learn new patterns to repeat them more efficiently. Even if you could educate half the world’s population to be brilliant and moral, every high seat and decision-making position would still be controlled by people who are unhindered by their conscience."
“Don't play fair in a game where everyone else is cheating.” Heru’s words echoed in his head again. His tongue went dry; he could no longer argue.
Liem stepped forward, closing the distance Agung had created. "You can continue what you’ve been doing, patching small leaks on a sinking ship, or you can join us and bring real change to the center of gravity."
"Is being a researcher the answer?" Agung shot back with a bitter, mocking tone. Yet, he couldn't hide the slight tremble in his voice.
"Not just any research." Liem leaned in close to Agung. "At Mula Gati, we study magic," Liem whispered.
"Mr. Liem!" Sutanta shouted in shock, but Liem signaled for him to be quiet.
"Magic? Mula Gati?" Agung stammered at the alien terms.
"Not just study it—you will apply it." Seeing Agung speechless, Liem continued, "If you aren't interested, that’s fine. We’ll act as if this conversation never happened."
"Wait! At least explain it!"
Liem simply closed his eyes and shook his head.
"No, show me!" Agung demanded.
Without a word, Liem and Sutanta walked away, while gesturing for Agung to follow. Agung expected them to go to a hidden laboratory or even a ritual room, but they stopped after a few steps at an empty wooden table abandoned by the crowd. Liem pulled out a die.
"Check if this is a real die."
Full of suspicion, Agung examined the die; he weighed it and rolled it several times. A normal die. Once satisfied, he accepted a white cup from Sutanta. He was asked to cover the die and shake it on the table.
"You're going to guess the result? If so, can you do it with your palms open?" Agung challenged. Standing before two of the smartest minds in the world, he had no idea what kind of technology they might be hiding.
Sutanta and Liem chuckled, then rolled up their sleeves and raised their hands.
"Okay, let's go." Agung shook the cup wildly.
"Four," Sutanta said.
Agung lifted the cup slowly. His breath caught at the sight of four dots on the die.
"One time isn't enough!" Agung’s voice rose with a burning enthusiasm. He shook it again.
"Five," Sutanta said as the cup stopped. Correct again.
"How is this possible?" Agung repeated the process over and over. He checked the cup, looked for cameras or hidden assistants. Nothing.
After ten trials that were all perfectly accurate, Liem finally spoke. "Is that enough? My hands are starting to get sore."
"Just a bit more. Can you do it too?" Agung asked Liem. The scientist laughed and nodded.
Agung shook the cup again. "How many?"
"Six," Liem answered. The die showed a six. Agung looked up, his eyes glazed with thought. "Hard to believe. Is real magic actually real?"
"Conclude for yourself. I'll give you a little bonus. Shake it a few more times."
Agung did so. He felt as if he were being introduced to the world for the first time.
"Six," Liem said. The die showed six.
"Six."
"Six."
"Six."
A cold sweat broke out. Understanding dawned on him with a sense of dread. "You can control the die?" Agung was stunned for a moment. "But... why does it have to be covered by the cup?"
"I would be disappointed if you didn't know the answer."
In that instant, Agung's world felt shaky as he managed to connect the dots. His mind went blank. It was as if a bolt of lightning had struck him, turning his entire vision white. Now, in that space, there were only the three of them and the die on the table. His mouth opened, his voice quiet but certain:
"Superposition."
Agung clutched his head, which felt like it was about to evaporate. He paced around, dazed. He didn't remember how long he spent wandering the empty auditorium. Now, everything he had been shown felt both perfectly logical and utterly impossible at the same time.