Asked what the paintings depict, Atem says: plants I grew. The world starts gardening.
Kaiba Corporation ships a notebook, Seto is asked to draw one himself and produces something a museum wants, and a book goes out with Atem's sketches on one side and Seto's footnotes on the other.
The priests read the footnotes as scripture. The afterlife turns green, the potatoes begin to glow, and Atem's fondness for fava beans becomes a global agricultural movement.
This is a translation of an original work on Pixiv.
Original Title: 愛と理論 15 王、世界を耕す
Original Author: 葉人(@Hathor_yuki)
Personal site: https://prideshipping.sakura.ne.jp
Surrounded by reporters, Atem answered quietly while receiving the light of the flashes.
"What is the motif of this picture?"
"Plants I grew."
That one line moved the world again.
The next week, the trends on social media were like this.
#thekingskitchengarden
#growitanddrawit
#observationrecord
All over the world, balcony gardens, the revival of yards, the explosive selling of gardening supplies.
Everyone had begun a new lifestyle of drawing one's own plants.
At Kaiba Corporation's distribution centres, a single product was literally flying off the shelves.
Observation Record Notebook, Developed by Kaiba Corporation.
Characters carved in gold embossing on the cover.
On the pages, that "format" Atem first used is faithfully reproduced.
Growth data, weather, and a column for recording "what you felt."
All of it to a specification fusing love and theory.
The developer's name is, of course, Seto Kaiba.
Several weeks later.
Seto appeared at a magazine company's interview studio.
The reporter asks with a hint of excitement.
"President, how do you view the worldwide boom?"
"It isn't a boom. Human beings have merely recovered their interaction with nature."
"Then what was the development intent of this Observation Record Notebook?"
"The conversion of affection into data. Sentiment, too, once quantified, can be converted into growth rate."
The reporter points at the notebook on the desk while nodding.
"If you don't mind, could you draw something you're actually growing?"
Seto knitted his brows slightly and took up a pen.
"A picture, is it?"
"Yes. Following the King, Master Painter, by all means the President, Master Painter."
The studio falls silent.
After several seconds of silence, Seto let out a light breath and opened the notebook.
"The one who grew it is that King of ours."
Smooth lines run across the white paper.
Within a few minutes, a startlingly precise sketch appeared there.
The cross-sectional structure of a tomato, the details of the leaf veins, even the way the roots extend, drawn in perfect logical order.
The reporter caught his breath.
"...President, that's amazing..."
"Naturally. Observation is the act of drawing itself."
That footage was disseminated in an instant.
#thepresidentmasterpainter
The tag was born, and theoretical precision drawing began to be evaluated as a single genre of art.
On the way home, Seto murmured while looking at the dusk from the window of the company car.
"...It appears the world has begun rolling in a tiresome direction again."
In the seat beside him, Atem smiles.
"The world is a thing to be cultivated, isn't it?"
Seto turned his gaze away, and
"...At the very least, keep the weeds from growing."
returned only that.
Inside the car, a soft, dry laugh rang out.
"President, requests are flooding in for your exhibition next."
At the public relations director's report, Seto moved an eyebrow briefly.
"...I am not an artist."
"But they want a President, Master Painter exhibition held as a sequel to the King, Master Painter exhibition. From inside and outside the company, and from overseas as well."
"Overseas... Do those people have nothing to do."
Seto raised his gaze from his documents and let out a sigh.
Since the King, Master Painter exhibition, Kaiba Corporation had come to be called the enterprise fusing human emotion and theory, the share price had risen as expected, and the media were running features day after day.
But the man himself had not the slightest intention of bathing in such fervor.
"...Rather than have it done unofficially, I'll strike first."
Seto closed his notebook.
"Tell public relations. I'll draw a limited number of original pictures for official merchandise. Make the format that we lend them out for exhibition."
"You'll draw them in your own hand, President?"
"That's the request, isn't it. It's simpler than quantum computation."
Several days later.
On Seto's desk, several original pictures were lined up in good order.
All of them diagrams of "the correlation between plant structure and quantum vibration," drawn in Seto's characteristic precise lines.
A beautiful, cold world where geometry and life intersect.
Several weeks after that.
There was an exhibition that suddenly became a topic in the art scenes of every nation.
The President, Master Painter: An Exhibition of Quantum Marriage Originals
It is not official, of course.
But the quality of the exhibition is perfect, the AI's commentary speaks eloquently of "the quantum state of love" and "interference by observation,"
and day after day, visitors formed long snaking queues.
Atem laughed while watching the news.
"Seto, you're astonishing the world again."
"Not me. Idle people who did it without permission, that's who."
"But the one who drew them is you."
"The result was predicted."
Seto looked over at the visitor numbers and revenue data displayed and closed the terminal.
"...The figures aren't bad. There should be no harm in leaving it alone."
Atem said, smiling:
"From your hand that drew theory, love spilled out."
Seto laughed a little, and
"A matter of pen pressure."
But that voice was somehow soft.
Outside the window, the night wind sways quietly.
The sound of the green curtain's leaves rustling rang out, distant, in a nostalgic rhythm.
An interview venue.
Several weeks after the success of the King's exhibition.
On the platform, Atem was answering calmly while smiling softly.
"Among the plants you grew, is there one that made a particularly deep impression?"
"Fava beans."
"Oh, why is that?"
"Because they were the first plant I grew, starting from making the soil. But the one who tilled, and gave water, and did the daily management, was mostly Seto."
At that one line, the hall stirred.
The press corps' flashes went off all at once, and articles immediately began running.
By the next morning, the headline
President Kaiba, Leading Authority in Plant Cultivation
was burying the news sites.
That night. At the office of Kaiba Corporation's head office.
"...Explain."
"I merely stated a fact."
"I taught you how to till, and the soil management system introduced on a trial basis and the AI merely issued you instructions. Which is to say, the one who grew them is you."
"If it isn't Seto's hand, the plants aren't reassured either."
"Don't make statements with no scientific basis."
"The basis for affection is the same, isn't it?"
"Don't mix logic with emotion."
Quips and an air like static electricity collide with each other.
Seto knitted his brows slightly while operating his terminal.
"...Because of your statement, thirty-six interview requests have come in from agricultural magazines."
"An honour."
"A nuisance."
Atem laughed a little and propped an elbow on Seto's desk.
"But Seto. The world moved again. Your hand tilled the soil of the world."
"...Cultivate your words in moderation as well."
In the midst of all that, new contact came in from a publisher.
They wanted to "make a book of Atem's observation notebook exactly as it is."
"Exactly as it is is bad. Half the observation record is a personal essay."
"That's what readers want."
"What they want is accurate data."
As a result, a compromise proposal was adopted.
Pictures and comments by Atem, annotations and footnotes by Seto.
On the night of the production meeting, the two turn the pages of the notebook side by side.
"This description, the wind is gentle today — I'm deleting it."
"The wind is part of the environment too."
"The wind is outside the greenhouse. It isn't quantified."
"To feel is one form of observation as well."
"The only one who calls that observation is you."
Every time Seto strikes the keyboard, Atem runs his pen.
Accurate data on one side of the page, and on the other, sketches with a distinctive aura drifting about the brushwork.
The coexistence of reason and sensibility.
In that moment, the notebook of the two was almost like dialogue itself.
In time, The King's Observation Record Notebook was completed.
Naturally, it sold out on the first day of release.
The book that vanished from bookstore shelves had a reprint decided in an instant.
At an interview, a reporter asks:
"What is the meaning of the fava bean seeds included as an appendix?"
Atem laughs, and Seto averts his gaze just slightly.
"Knowledge is the seed for putting out a sprout. But what extends the sprout is affection."
"...Let me supplement that: the seeds are an untreated early-maturing variety with a ninety-seven percent germination rate."
Laughter and applause arise in the hall.
Both of their statements were correct for the world.
The afterlife, the Hall of the King.
White sand dances, and stillness filled the windless space.
Into it, one of the priests came running.
"O KING!!!!!"
"...What is it. What's happened, so out of breath. Calm yourself."
"I cannot calm myself! The King's Observation Record Notebook has reached the afterlife as well!!"
"Ah, so it has."
Atem rests his chin on the arm of the throne and laughs loosely.
"And so?"
"The priests, grateful for it... We shall begin cultivation in accordance with the King's teachings! they say!"
"Cultivation...?"
"Yes. They began saying a garden of repose for the afterlife and started making fields!"
"...A peaceful story, isn't it. Nothing to panic about."
"But! They looked at the compounding formula in the footnotes and everyone imitated it!!"
Atem stopped his thinking for an instant.
The footnotes.
Which is to say, the side Seto wrote.
"The soil that maximizes synthesis efficiency...?"
"Yes! Believing it to be a formula in the King's own words!, they all began chanting it together... and the whole afterlife has grown bright!!"
Atem pressed at his forehead.
"He's got me... So his rationality has finally brought moisture to the world after death."
Around that time, the mortal world, Kaiba Corporation's president's office.
Seto was gazing at a report, sipping coffee without a word.
The AI secretary announces evenly:
There is unidentified data access to the afterlife-side server. Point of origin: the next-life domain.
"...Your doing again, is it, Atem."
In that instant, the communication terminal rings.
Seto! Because of your footnotes the afterlife is being greened!
"That's good to hear."
Green in every direction! My afterlife, mind you!
"It's proof that the environmental controls are functioning. Efficient."
Too efficient!
Just as Atem's voice seemed to recede a little, the stirring of priests rang out from behind him.
O King! The crops have grown too much and the warehouse is glowing!
The potatoes are luminescing!!
Seto!
"...I told you, didn't I. The precision of the figures is perfect."
Atem let out a deep breath.
...You. How far do you intend to move the world.
"You of all people don't get to say that. Geological improvement of the afterlife is an unanticipated side effect."
Don't change the geology as a side effect!
Seto slides a finger lightly over the terminal and grins.
"Well, with this the afterlife agricultural special zone has been born. Even hell becomes a market."
Surely you don't intend to bring the concept of economic activity into the afterlife again.
"An administrator is always one who puts structure in order. ...The basics of structural dominance."
Atem shrugged and laughed faintly.
So the end of love and theory is the prosperity of the afterlife.
"Prosperity has no need of emotion."
But without a hand that touches the soil, the seeds don't sprout.
"...Something poetic again."
It's fact. Next you till by hand as well.
"That's you. Say it once you can make a decent furrow."
In that instant, a voice rings out from the afterlife.
O King! Next, the teaching of "Lord Seto's method of compost blending"!
...You're being made into a cult founder, Seto.
"Don't lump me in with you."
Atem murmured quietly while laughing.
What budded in the afterlife is not life alone.
"What is it?"
Love, dwelling in theory.
Seto was silent for just an instant and averts his gaze.
"...You. Your way of closing things is always oddly skillful."
Because I'm a king.
And in the afterlife, the potatoes are glowing today as well.
The afterlife, the Great Temple.
Pale blue glowing vines crawl across the ceiling, and the sand-covered earth that was once dry is now filled with deep green.
In the hands of the priests gathered there, a single volume.
The King's Observation Record Notebook
But what they are reading aloud is not the main text.
The footnotes.
Which is to say, Seto's annotations.
"Adjust the N:P:K ratio according to the growth stage of the crop...! What a profound principle!"
"Excessive moisture rots the roots — this is a commandment for the soul as well!"
"Believe the figures — this is an oracle!!"
Annotations read aloud together with prayer.
The priests' voices were by now like a chant.
Shown that scene by remote communication, Seto pressed at his forehead with a blank expression.
"...Calm yourselves. All of you, that is not scripture. It's a nutrient management manual."
A.R.E.S. supplements evenly.
On site, "the Kaiba method of cultivation" is in the process of being established as a faith.
"Don't create a religion without permission. That sort of thing is sufficiently covered by Atem alone."
Seto closed the terminal and let out a deep breath.
At the end of his gaze, the Kaiba mansion's green curtain sways deep and blue.
The vines dance in the wind, and light comes through.
"...Because of Atem the mansion is being greened as well. The afterlife going deep green from my influence is within the margin of error."
At that moment, a light voice came from behind.
"To call it an error, the colour of the world has changed."
When he turned around, Atem was tracing the green curtain with a finger.
The leaves letting the light through are set off against crimson eyes.
"Look, Seto. The mortal world and the afterlife are both filled with green now."
"Which of us is responsible is clear enough."
"Responsible? No. This is a joint work."
"Don't make it a joint production without permission."
"A fusion of love and theory."
"Stop abusing scientific terminology."
Atem laughed lightly and drew near the window.
"But Seto. The annotations you wrote became scripture. Theory guides the human heart. ...A splendid thing, isn't it?"
"I merely wrote the operating procedure for a cultivation AI."
"That is being called an oracle. Being modest isn't like you."
"It isn't modesty. It's a damage report."
Even so, a faint smile mixes into Seto's voice.
"Well, even with the afterlife greened, useful data for real environmental models was obtained."
"As a result, the world was enriched."
"You're the same as ever. ...Being excessively positive doesn't bother me in the least, I suppose."
"Because I'm a king."
Between the two, wind flows quietly.
The leaves sway, as though the same wind were blowing in the distant afterlife as well.
Atem said, looking satisfied:
"Green is proof of love blooming atop theory."
"...What kind of metaphor is that."
"Like the footnotes you wrote — the truth is behind the main text."
"......"
Seto was silent for just a little.
And then murmurs quietly.
"...Your main text was worth reading too."
Atem grins.
"Next, shall we build a bookstore in the afterlife?"
"Stop, the distribution will collapse."
Outside the window, the rustling of the leaves rang out like laughter.
In the afterlife and the mortal world both, within the green, love and theory had put down roots.
The feature title of a news program.
The "Fava Bean Revolution" Sweeps the World! The Origin Was a Single Observation Record Notebook
What is shown on the screen is fava beans growing deep green in the fields of every nation.
Rooftops in cities, research facilities in deserts, and in the end even orbital plant experiment modules were planting the variety called the Atem strain.
The commentator speaks with a hint of excitement.
"This current originates in the King's Observation Record Notebook. In particular, the portion where Mr. Atem repeatedly stated that the fava bean is great..."
Watching that footage in the president's office of Kaiba Corporation.
"You've noticed."
Seto murmured quietly.
Beside him, Atem tilts his head, puzzled.
"Noticed what?"
"That you were pushing fava beans abnormally hard. Someone in the world noticing was a matter of time."
"You mean it would be strange not to notice?"
"That's right."
Atem laughed delightedly.
"Then civilisation has finally matured. The world has caught up to fava beans."
"Conceit taken this far becomes art."
Several days later, the trends were like this.
#Atemsfavoritefood
#taameyachallenge
#todaysfavabeans
Social media is a green flood on a global scale.
In cooking videos, fava bean soup, fava bean pizza, fava bean tart.
And in the homes of every country, Atem-style ta'ameya is lined up.
An interviewer asked:
"President Kaiba, why do you think ta'ameya spread this far?"
Seto answers without changing his expression.
"The cause is simple. Because that King of ours ate it."
"...That alone?"
"That alone is sufficient."
Night.
On the terrace of the Kaiba mansion, Atem and Seto were taking dinner side by side.
On the plate, fragrantly fried ta'ameya.
The green curtain swaying in the wind casts soft shadows.
Atem sets down his chopsticks and suddenly looks up at the sky.
"Seto. Right now, all over the world, this bean is being grown. This sight is... could it be an offering to me?"
Seto thinks for just an instant, and returns it evenly.
"No."
"Then what is it."
"...No. It isn't. It isn't, but it is."
Do anything and he moves the world, and in the end takes on the aspect of an idol. Atem has a great many fans.
Atem narrowed his eyes and laughed.
"An ambiguous theory."
"Mix in love and theory wavers."
"Wavering, precisely, is life."
Silence.
The voices of insects sound in the distance, and the scent of fried beans drifts in the air.
Seto murmurs quietly.
"Honestly... one word from you and the world moved again."
"I had no intention of moving it. I merely said I loved it."
"That I love it is moving the economy."
"Then isn't that fine. A joint work of love and theory."
Seto wears a wry smile.
"...Offering or market, either is fine. As a result, the world is enriched."
Atem nodded and closed his words quietly.
"The green has spread. By human hands, and by the heart."
The wind blows through and strokes softly between the two.
In the distant city, and in the fields of the afterlife, in every place there was the sound of ta'ameya frying.
And the world today as well, by the joint composition of the King and the president, is quietly prospering.
