The arrivals hall of Hanover Langenhagen Airport was already packed with mathematicians and reporters from all over the world.
The moment Seoha passed through the immigration gate, dozens of reporters swarmed after him.
Click.
Click.
“Seoha! Please look this way!”
“How do you feel about coming to Germany?”
“Who is the mathematician you respect the most?”
Seoha stopped walking and answered their questions as honestly as he could.
Only after finally escaping the airport did he get into the car that had been prepared in advance. Looking out the window, he saw flags announcing “ICM 20■■” fluttering all over the city.
“We’re finally here. Riemann’s hometown.”
Theo murmured, as if overcome with emotion.
“So this is where the center of modern and contemporary mathematics once was.”
“The gloomy weather must have been good for concentrating.”
“It’s hard to believe so many great figures were active in this small city at the same time.”
In addition to Gauss, Riemann, and Hilbert, Hanover had also been the stage on which Emmy Noether, the mother of modern algebra, had worked. In an era when the idea of a woman doing mathematics felt out of place,
she lectured at the university under a male colleague’s name, without even receiving a salary. What was it that had given Noether such passion?
Sujeong felt her heart grow solemn.
Leaning his head against the window, Seoha watched the airport recede into the distance. In his mind, the sight of Riemann’s back from last night’s dream kept flickering before him.
Thump.
Thump.
Ever since he had arrived in this city, it felt as though his heart had been beating faster.
‘This is troublesome. Why can’t I calm down?’
It was strange.
The Riemann he had seen in his dream had said nothing to him. He had merely stood at the end of a dark corridor with his back turned, motionless, as if waiting for something.
As the car entered the city, Gothic spires came into view.
After arriving at the hotel, the group quickly unpacked, went downstairs, and had a late lunch.
“Seoha, aren’t you nervous?”
Theo asked as he cut into his schnitzel with a knife.
“About the lecture?”
“No, they’re announcing the Fields Medalists right after the opening ceremony tomorrow.”
“Ah, right. They are.”
“What, did you forget?”
Seoha merely smiled.
He had not forgotten, but it was true that it had been pushed far down on his list of priorities.
Even that was because of the promise he had made with Seoeun.
That evening, Seoha prepared in his hotel room for the lecture he would give the next day. The time allotted to him was one hour, including the Q&A.
As he was wondering what he should say in such a short amount of time, his phone rang.
Ding.
—Can you come down to the lobby for a minute?
It was Gyeoul.
He had heard that she would not be able to come because she had an important competition next month... Seoha sprang up from his seat.
He hurriedly took the elevator down, and when he stepped into the lobby, he spotted someone among the crowd who gave off an especially unfamiliar radiance.
Her glamorous, wavy brown hair flowed softly over her shoulders. She wore a stylish one-piece dress with a thin outer layer draped over it.
With slightly upturned eyes, the captivating beauty, reminiscent of a pretty cat, was sitting on a sofa reading a book.
“Han Gyeoul!”
She lifted her head.
Contrary to his expectation that she would have grown gaunt from preparing for the competition, Gyeoul looked more vibrant than ever. She rose from her seat and walked toward Seoha.
“What happened? You said you couldn’t come.”
When Seoha asked in surprise, Gyeoul leaned her face right up close to his instead of answering.
“Stay still for a second.”
Seoha unconsciously inhaled.
As she drew near, a faint citrus scent drifted from her.
“Wh-what is it?”
“Shh!”
Gyeoul’s eyes swept over every corner of Seoha’s face. She even took hold of his chin and turned his face this way and that, carefully examining the dark circles under his eyes.
“Your face has gotten so thin. Are you eating properly? German food is worse than you’d think, isn’t it?”
“I’m fine. I had schnitzel and sausages earlier.”
“Really? Then that’s a relief.”
Seoha’s face was filled with questions. Had she crossed the Atlantic just to ask him something like this?
“Take this.”
Gyeoul took something out of her pocket and placed it in Seoha’s hand.
Seoha’s eyes widened.
“Huh? This is...”
“Tomorrow’s an important day. It’s just insurance.”
Gyeoul gave a slight, smiling glance.
After fixing Seoha’s disheveled bangs for him, she took a step back as if satisfied.
Gyeoul stood beneath the brilliant lights of the hotel lobby. It felt as though only the area around her had become unusually bright and lovely.
“I’ll be there tomorrow too.”
Gyeoul waved and walked away. Beyond the hotel doors, Seoha could see her hair scattering in the night wind.
Seoha stared blankly down at his palm, then went back up to his room.
***
The next morning, the members of Team Apex were dressed quite differently from usual.
Theo, who was always dressed comfortably, was wearing a neat suit, and Sri and Ben had also prepared new clothes for the day.
Click, clack.
Cecilia and Sujeong walked out into the lobby.
The men’s mouths fell open. Cecilia was wearing an elegant navy dress.
It was a noble and dignified outfit, casting aside her usual image as an intelligent researcher.
“Hmph!”
“Why are you all acting like that? As if you’ve never seen me before.”
Sujeong was wearing a red dress. The intense color contrasted beautifully with her skin, which was so white it almost looked pale.
As if embarrassed, she primly tucked her hair behind her ear.
Sri muttered with a dazed expression.
“No, I just didn’t know our team had models like this. Couldn’t you dress like that sometimes in everyday life too?”
Sujeong glanced at Seoha.
He, too, was wearing a shirt that Miyeong had ironed for him and a newly purchased suit. The clean, well-fitted clothes suited him well.
Seoha still looked as though he was pondering something deeply.
“Well then, shall we go? History is waiting for us.”
At Theo’s joking words, the group got into their private van.
The area around the venue was already crowded with tens of thousands of people. When they entered the hall, everyone’s eyes widened.
“Is... isn’t that Andrew Wiles? The one who proved Fermat’s Last Theorem...”
“My goodness, the Abel Prize winners are all gathered over there. Just how many medals are in this place?”
An elderly gentleman walking down the corridor, scholars seated on benches engaged in heated debate. Most of them were giants whose names appeared on the author lists of mathematics textbooks.
It was no exaggeration to say that every lineage of modern mathematics had gathered beneath this enormous dome. When they saw Seoha, they approached with interested expressions.
“Oh, so this young man is the famous Seoha.”
An old professor with neatly combed silver hair approached warmly and extended his hand. On the name tag pinned to his chest was a name that any mathematician would revere.
“It is an honor, Professor Andrew.”
“The honor is mine.”
Starting with him, the scholars nearby began gathering around one by one.
“Good to meet you! I’ve had my eye on you since the Four Color Theorem, but I never imagined you’d grow so much already. My students were all gloomy, saying they had to rewrite their papers because of you. Hahaha!”
“Ours are the same. In topology, the majority opinion is already that the textbooks need to be rewritten. There are far too many missing theories.”
“Seoha, did you really solve the Riemann Hypothesis? You’re not planning to announce it today, are you? Just give me a tiny hint. If you announce it suddenly, I feel like my heart might stop.”
“Make me one promise. You’re young! Even if you fail, you must never despair.”
Their tone was full of mischief, but their eyes held curiosity and anticipation that they could not hide. The rumors had already spread far and wide.
The Riemann Hypothesis had stood like an impregnable fortress for nearly two centuries, and the masters looked warmly upon the boy who was trying to cross its threshold.
“I will do my best.”
Seoha bowed politely.
The faces of the team members standing a few steps back were filled with pride. Seoha and his group exchanged greetings with people in a daze as they made their way to their seats.
Looking to the side, he saw the Fields Medal candidates gathered in the front row.
Seoha carefully checked his seat as well and sat down beside them.
“Wow... there really are so many people.”
The crowd filled the hall.
Beneath the high ceiling of the Hanover Dome, tens of thousands of mathematicians were packed tightly together. Not far away, he could see his family.
In the left corner, Gyeoul sat with a tense expression. When her eyes met Seoha’s, she smiled brightly.
A strange tension hung over the hall, as if everyone sensed that something might happen today. Seoha suddenly felt sorry.
Because he was not currently in a position to satisfy their expectations.
‘Please, Ducky. Not today.’
[5.]
[4.]
[3.]
[2.]
[1.]
With the countdown, the giant screens on either side lit up. The achievements the mathematical world had accomplished over the past century flowed across the screen like a panorama.
Hilbert passionately speaking at the 1900 Paris Congress, the letter Ramanujan sent to Hardy, Emmy Noether standing at the podium, the young Gödel, who had been a handsome and stylish man,
Alan Turing decrypting Enigma, and then John Nash and Grothendieck appeared on the screen in succession.
The video passed through Andrew Wiles and Perelman before ending with Elijah Cronen solving Reed’s Conjecture.
A majestic orchestral performance resounded throughout the dome.
Following tradition, a congratulatory address was given by the Federal President of Germany, the host country, and then the president of the International Mathematical Union stood before the microphone.
“A thought suddenly occurred to me. If someone were to lock the doors from the outside right now, just how great a loss would the world have to endure?”
He looked around the hall.
“Or perhaps it would become peaceful, with all the troublesome people gone.”
“Hahahaha!”
At the president’s joke, the mathematicians burst into hearty laughter.
“Today’s schedule is long, so let us get straight to the point.”
U Hyeon glanced to the side. The awards ceremony would begin immediately with the opening.
Miyeong had clasped her hands together and was praying to some unknown god.
Seoeun was also looking forward, hugging her doll tightly.
‘Old gentlemen. Please, give it to the person who deserves it. Don’t do anything strange.’
He clenched his fist tightly.
His palms were sweaty. Suddenly, memories of the past flashed through his mind like a revolving lantern.
‘Teacher, that answer is vulgar.’
‘If I really am the genius you said I am, if I really do have the kind of talent that appears once in a century, then there’s no way I couldn’t solve something like the Four Color Theorem, is there?’
U Hyeon nodded and murmured quietly.
“That’s right, Seoha. For you, it must have been merely that much. And you proved it. Now show me a wider world.”
The president picked up the golden envelope placed on the podium.
The rustling sound of paper traveled through the microphone and echoed throughout the hall.
In an instant, as if the hall had become a vacuum, the murmurs inside died away. Tens of thousands of gazes focused on one place.
“The Fields Medal is the most honorable medal awarded to young mathematicians. At the same time, however, it is also a weighty request that they continue to expand the horizons of humanity with all their strength.
Praying that today will not be the most glorious day of the recipient’s life...”
The president opened the envelope and took out the card.
The candidates seated in the front row swallowed hard.
“I can say with certainty that in my entire life, I have never seen a candidate as qualified as this recipient.
Republic of Korea, Seoha, Yu!”
Seoha’s eyes widened.
“Waaaaaaaaah!”
An explosive roar burst out as if it would pierce the ceiling of the Hanover Dome.
Miyeong covered her mouth and cried. Seoeun hugged Justin and threw her arms up in triumph. U Hyeon sprang to his feet, but the strength left his body, and he sank back down into his chair.
Theo rose from his seat with his fist clenched and embraced Seoha. Cecilia, Sri, and Ben were cheering. Sujeong stood with tears brimming in her eyes and pushed Seoha on the back.
“Seoha! Hurry, go!”
He slowly rose from his seat.
When he looked to the side, Gyeoul was there in the distance. With reddened eyes, she gestured for him to hurry up and go.
Click!
Click, click!
Dozens of cameras fired their shutters ceaselessly like machine guns.
When he climbed the stairs and stood on the stage, the German president approached him with a radiant smile.
“Congratulations.”
He whispered softly and extended his hand.
A golden medal engraved with the portrait of Archimedes. It was placed around Seoha’s neck.
Clap, clap, clap!
Thunderous applause filled the hall.
Eighteen years old.
It was the moment an unprecedented, immortal record—one that would never be broken again—was born in Hanover.