“It’s over.”
Seoha set down the chalk as if he had finally been liberated and collapsed into a chair.
“I need to rest a little. I don’t want to do anything.”
Theo nodded.
“No one would say a word even if you took a year off.”
“A day is enough. It’s finals period at school right now.”
Theo laughed as if he found that absurd.
“Are you the one writing the exam questions?”
“Don’t joke. There’s a lot to learn at school. Every day, I realize that all the studying I did on my own wasn’t enough.”
He shook his head.
“There’s no way you can’t solve problems at the undergraduate level. Graduating as soon as possible would be best for everyone.”
Seoha wiped off the chalk dust and gathered the trash that had fallen to the floor.
When he looked in the trash can, it was full of chocolate bar and jelly wrappers.
“Are you hungry, by any chance?”
Theo rubbed his face.
Since coming to the East, he had not had a single proper meal. He missed the fish tacos and turkey avocado sandwiches he used to enjoy.
“I’ll have to look for a restaurant. There must be at least one place in Cambridge where I can eat.”
“Would you like to come with me? My mom is a really good cook.”
It was already the second invitation. If he refused again, he had a feeling Seoha would be disappointed.
After hesitating, he nodded.
“I’ll do that. I don’t have any prejudice against Asian food.”
“Really?”
Seoha happily began packing up his things.
When he looked out the window, the sun had been up for quite some time. Following Seoha’s proof, he had lost all sense of time.
‘Home, huh….’
Suddenly, he thought of his parents and siblings in Denver.
They probably still thought of him as a traitor. Christmas was coming soon, but he simply could not bring himself to go home.
‘Does he get along well with his family?’
He saw Seoha talking on the phone with a bright expression.
As if something delighted him, he kept laughing and chattering endlessly in Korean.
“Do you have any allergies?”
“No.”
‘So they were talking about the menu.’
Theo looked around at the blackboard.
The assumptions and conclusion, the flow of logic, the balanced development. It was a flawless proof with no gaps to be found.
And yet, even after accomplishing a feat that would astonish the mathematical world, Seoha showed no sign of joy. His expression was calm, as if he had simply finished homework he had put off for a long time.
“Let’s go!”
The two left the campus and headed for his house.
The chilly winter air brushed across their faces. Most of the snow had melted, but traces still remained along the edges of the sidewalks.
As they walked, Seoha did not say a single word about Smale’s problem.
Unable to overcome his curiosity, Theo finally asked Seoha.
“You solved a difficult problem. Aren’t you happy?”
“Uh….”
Perhaps it was an unexpected question, because he looked flustered.
“By any chance, how many difficult problems are there in mathematics?”
Theo fell into thought for a moment.
“Roughly two or three thousand.”
“That many?”
Difficult problems were one of Theo’s areas of interest. He explained calmly.
“Of course, I doubt anyone has counted them precisely.
Algebra, analysis, topology, mathematical logic, combinatorics, number theory…. Each field shares its own unsolved problems. As they pile up every year, they grow like a snowball. Even if there were far more than that, I don’t think I’d be surprised at all.”
Seoha nodded with a serious expression.
“I don’t think the problem I solved is meaningless. But it’s probably a problem that matters only among mathematicians.”
“Mm…. That’s hard to deny.”
Solving it would not immediately change anything.
“There’s a teacher in Korea who has helped me since I was young. He firmly believes that I’ll someday reveal the secrets of the world. Like….”
“Like Newton?”
Theo felt he could understand how that “teacher” felt. Anyone who witnessed such talent would harbor that kind of belief.
“Yes. So I want to live up to their expectations. And since I was little, I’ve admired the mathematicians of the past.”
Surprisingly, Seoha was making an objective assessment of his own intellect.
If it was Seoha, he could naturally be compared to them. Perhaps he might even surpass them.
“Who’s your role model right now?”
It was a casual question, but unexpectedly, he thought about it for quite a while.
“Rather than a role model, there is someone I think of as a rival all by myself.”
“Who?”
Seoha spoke shyly, as if embarrassed.
“Pascal.
He published ‘Pascal’s theorem’ when he was sixteen, so I have one year left now. I want to produce a result comparable to his within that time.
It’s not that I mean to be bound by age, but that’s how I feel.”
Since childhood, Seoha had been chasing after Pascal.
He had thought he would surely be able to overtake him someday, but the achievements Pascal had left behind were far too immense.
“One of the greatest geniuses in history. He came up with Pascal’s law at twenty-four.”
“By the time I’m that age, won’t I have accomplished something too?”
Seoha laughed cheerfully.
Theo nodded without thinking. He was not yet complete. But even with immature knowledge and experience, he had shown an ability that was difficult to approach.
‘What will he be like once he is complete?’
Von Neumann came to mind.
A once-in-an-era genius who had changed the paradigms not only of mathematics, but also of chemistry, physics, computer science, and economics.
‘No.’
He shook his head.
Neumann had been more interested in the real world than in theory and philosophy. Seoha had an idealistic side that was not like his age.
A pure passion, as if he were a medieval mathematician, immersing himself for the sake of truth itself.
“We’re here.”
While he was thinking, they had arrived at their destination.
Seoha’s house was a modest two-story home that could be found anywhere.
Theo checked his clothes.
Jeans and a coat. They were cheap, but they did not seem to violate etiquette too badly.
“Come in.”
When the door opened, the smell of food rushed out.
The scent of soy sauce and doenjang. They were ingredients he could easily come across in San Francisco.
Seoeun came running out of the living room.
“Oppaaa— huh?”
Seeing the unfamiliar adult, Seoeun hopped back two steps and pointed at Theo with her index finger.
“He has red hair!”
Theo gave a wry smile and touched his orange hair.
When he was young, his hair color had been a complex for him.
“Seoeun! I told you not to tease people about their appearance!”
At Seoha’s scolding, Seoeun flinched, then bowed politely.
“I’m sorry. I said it because your hair color is so pretty.”
Theo waved his hand as if it was fine.
“It’s all right. I’m actually grateful that a young lady would take an interest.”
“Really?”
Cheered up, Seoeun energetically guided Theo in.
In the kitchen, Miyeong was moving busily in an apron.
The sizzling sound of meat cooking and the sweet smell of seasoning as it caramelized were irresistibly tempting.
Growl.
Hunger suddenly surged up in him.
“Welcome.”
Miyeong, whose English had grown fairly comfortable by now, greeted him warmly with tongs in hand.
“I heard you came from far away. I’ve heard a lot about you from Seoha. That you’re someone we’re grateful to for helping with his research….”
“Ah…. Yes. Thank you.”
Theo, accustomed to Asian culture, bowed at the waist in the Korean way.
Soon, bubbling sundubu jjigae and well-grilled LA galbi were placed on the table.
“This is wonderful.”
Theo exclaimed in admiration.
But that was not the end. Side dishes came out endlessly. Various greens she had grown herself and preserved foods Miyeong had made as a trial were placed on the table one after another.
Theo felt as though he were receiving a grand welcome.
“Did you make all of this yourself?”
he asked, surprised.
“Yes, the children have picky palates.”
“I do?”
“I’m not like that either?”
Seoha and Seoeun looked at Miyeong as if to ask what she was talking about.
“Oh, you two wouldn’t know. I tried putting out side dishes I bought at the market a few times, and you wouldn’t even touch them.”
It was a pleasant meal.
Seoha and Theo, who had been hungry, emptied the food with ferocious momentum. Theo was deeply moved by the “real” food he had not tasted in a long time.
He was not used to holding bones with his hands, but the combination of sweet and savory meat with rice and the spicy yet soft sundubu jjigae was so appealing that it made him forget even appearances.
“Thank you for the meal.”
“Mom, it was delicious!”
After the meal, while they were drinking coffee, Miyeong learned of Theo’s situation.
“You two stayed up all night researching yesterday? And you’re staying at an inn right now?”
Seoha awkwardly turned his head, afraid he would be scolded.
“It won’t be easy for you to go back, so please rest here today before you leave. It isn’t spacious, but we have an attic.”
Seoeun, who was interested in Theo’s hair color, nodded.
“I agree! Let’s play games together!”
For a moment, Theo’s mind went blank.
People who treated others so naturally, without the slightest hesitation. He even wondered if, because they had not been in America long, they lacked a sense of caution.
“Uh…?”
While he was still bewildered, Theo was shown to the room where he would rest.
A cot and a desk.
Perhaps it was usually used to store things, because the room was full of books. Theo looked over the bookshelf.
He saw encyclopedias in Korean, various advanced mathematics texts, and numerous neatly bound papers.
He pulled out one of them.
Rustle.
It was a thick bundle of papers.
[A Study on the Zeros of the Riemann Zeta Function]
Aside from that, all the documents in this room were papers related to the Riemann hypothesis.
‘How many are there? There must be over a thousand.’
“Is the room all right?”
The door slid open, and Seoha poked his face in.
“Yeah, it’s much better than an inn room. But what are all these papers? Don’t tell me you’re thinking of challenging the Riemann hypothesis?”
Seoha shook his head.
“Not right now. I realized it would be difficult alone. Still, I was preparing.”
Of course.
A party was essential to defeat the Demon King. Besides, the Riemann hypothesis was a Great Demon King-class monster.
“Can you afford to be that relaxed?
Thanks to the paper you published, the Riemann hypothesis is extremely hot right now. The entire mathematical world has been in an uproar over it. I heard there are quite a few professors getting fired up about it too.”
All of them had their own teams.
“Ah….”
Seoha did not seem to mind.
“Aren’t you worried someone else might solve it first?”
“If it were that simple a problem, I would have finished it by myself.
But I am certain that an answer can be found. Once the conditions are in place, I intend to challenge it and prove it without fail.”
Theo nodded.
Thinking about it, it was only natural. To solve a Millennium-level problem, one needed a good research environment, colleagues to collaborate with, data and computational resources, and, above all, the material and temporal leeway and space to think solely about mathematics.
“Then please get some sleep!”
Seoha bowed and withdrew.
Exhausted, Theo quickly fell asleep.
In his dream, he was wearing heavy armor.
The weighty feel of iron, the shield in his hand larger than his own body.
The sky was dark. Across the earth lay magic circles resembling the Riemann zeta function.
Grrrrrrroooooar—
In the distance, an enormous monster roared.
The countless numbers and symbols clinging to its body flickered like flames.
“Prepare!”
Someone shouted.
Behind him stood a young hero.
Perhaps he was the only hope left in this world.
From every direction, monsters poured attacks toward him. It was a furious onslaught that seemed about to cover the earth.
“Damn it!”
Theo instinctively threw himself forward and blocked them with his shield.
The impact boring into the shield rang through his bones.
His arm had already lost all feeling. The monster’s attacks continued without stopping for even a moment.
Theo gritted his teeth. His role was to protect the hero.
“Huff, huff….”
When he woke up, his forehead was drenched in sweat.
“No, what on earth was that dream?”