Part 6: The Fading Stars

Kaalaa Baunaa: According to Kumar's past observational data, the secondary star's trajectory changes periodically.
Kaalaa Baunaa: It approaches the white dwarf until a minimum distance, and then the entire orbital trajectory begins to change.
Kaalaa Baunaa: Then the supernova explosion I inferred would be nothing more than an absurd conjecture. All my previous research would become a pile of waste paper...
Kaalaa Baunaa: Kumar, what were you thinking?
Kaalaa Baunaa: If my conjecture is wrong, there was no point in hiding it.
Kaalaa Baunaa: Allowing me to go further and further down the wrong path, all that wasted time and money... What was in it for her?
Kaalaa Baunaa: It seems I'll have to observe it myself...
To prove your mistake, just observe the secondary star, on its nodal day, and you'll have the answer.
Kaalaa Baunaa: And the nodal day is...
Kaalaa Baunaa: Tomorrow?!
How fortunate... Who else could personally experience both the confirmation and the collapse of their work in just a few days?
There's no time to waste. The most pressing matter now is to choose a telescope for observation, which is your specialty...
Kaalaa Baunaa: The optical telescope, although hampered by haze, is still the most widely used tool for everyday observations.
Kaalaa Baunaa: Simple and affordable. I remember Gaurav sending one to his grandmother in Mawlynnong...
Kaalaa Baunaa: The X-ray telescope can only detect X-rays emitted after the white dwarf's eruption. But it's still far from time...
Kaalaa Baunaa: And radio telescope ... it can observe the radio waves emitted by distant stars, unaffected by weather and atmosphere...
The celestial body hanging overhead gradually expands, like a canvas of darkness.
Looks like its patience is running out.
You look at the thick clouds, deep in thought.

You head straight for the optical telescope at the observatory. That's where you met Kumar for the first time. You will never forget that day.
Kaalaa Baunaa: Why did she conceal the observed data?
Kaalaa Baunaa: She must have known my conjecture was...probably wrong from the start.
You touch the timeworn telescope, wondering if it can tell you the answer.
Little Kaalaa: ...
Kumar: Child, how long have you been here?
Kumar: You would like to see it, right?
You bobbed your head hesitantly, like an indecisive puppy wagging its tail.
She gently moved aside, stepping back to make room.
You clenched your fists. That was the first time you wanted to touch something beyond your reach, which unexpectedly, led you to a future you had never imagined.
You got onto the stage, and brought your eye close to the gateway to the universe ...
Kaalaa Baunaa: ...
You understand this place won't help you with the problem. This is just a visit for you to reminisce.
Well, at least it helped you remember a few things.

The X-ray telescope—Kumar often used this as a touchstone for spotting the gifted.
Are you really going to choose this?
Is your memory failing you? A researcher's brain can't be THIS smooth.
Let's take a little trip down memory lane.
Kumar: So none of you know what it is?
The classroom fell silent. The students stared at the arrogant instructor, clueless.
Kumar: Heh. It's ridiculous that Admissions would let you students with no common sense get into my classroom.
Kumar: It seems I'm expected to stuff the wonder of the celestial bodies into your empty heads.
Kaalaa Baunaa: An X-ray telescope.
You raised your hand, giving the answer.
Kumar: Hm?
She looked at you with interest.
Kaalaa Baunaa: This telescope can receive X-rays emitted by celestial bodies for analysis and observation.
Kaalaa Baunaa: It's launched into space, and has an extremely long observation distance.
Kaalaa Baunaa: But it doesn't perform well when observing celestial bodies that emit weak rays, such as a stable white dwarf.
Your expectant gaze met her eyes, which held the hint of a smile.
Kumar: Not bad. At least you're not as empty-headed.
Kumar: Please come see me after the class.
Since then, the other students have secretly called you and Kumar the "Siamese Twins".
You didn't bother to deny it, because the two of you became ... almost inseparable.
The more time you spent with her, the more you became like her in temperament. Like a sponge, you began to absorb her wisdom and insight.
Yet today you come here, like one of those ignorant students—is your life a living comedy?

You haven't been back here for years.
When Kumar first brought you here, she saw you as her sole successor.
Kumar: Radio telescopes can receive information from even more distant celestial bodies through radio radiation.
Kumar: Unlike an optical telescope, it won't give you just a rough picture of the universe.
Kumar: The receiver processes the radiation signals and converts them into their final form for recording and display.
Kaalaa Baunaa: Which means ... it works no matter what the weather or the atmosphere is like.
Kumar: Yes, but it is not an extension of the human eye. It presents the star to us from a different angle—in precise data.
Kumar: For most people, numbers on paper and stars in the sky are nothing alike, but the accurate data to us is the same as the stunning night sky to them.
Kumar: This is our first lesson, child—the moment you enter the research institute, the glittering stars in your eyes will cease to twinkle.
Kumar: The vast universe will become...tedious. When you look up at the night sky, you will find the primal thrill slowly leaving you. And that is the price of reaching for its secrets.
She taught you everything she knew and treated you as her own child.
Until finally, you realized she was just nurturing another version of herself.
Kaalaa Baunaa: The switch ...
You turn on the radio telescope and hold your breath, getting ready for the final reveal...
Is this a cruel joke of Kumar's, or a ridiculous blunder?

You drag your weary body back to the institute. Your brain is groaning, craving sleep like never before.
According to the radio telescope's observations, Kumar's data was correct every step of the way.
The observation results are a death sentence, condemning you as a failure, your research nothing more than an absurd mistake.
And Kumar had known this all along, but remained silent. After all, it was your research.
Electricity arcs inside the light bulb, and the room pulsates between light and darkness.
It's an old problem with the wiring—tolerating its inconvenience has long been the consensus.
But the flaws will pile up like an insurmountable debt, until everything wobbles and falls apart, beyond salvation.
The darkness descends upon the room like an unpleasant intruder.
It is heavy, as are your feelings.
There is no one around. Holding the report tightly, you close your eyes ... and open them again.
Kaalaa Baunaa: I should have known...this entire research was just a small part of her plan.
Kaalaa Baunaa: From the moment I entered the institute, she no longer saw me as a student...
Flames ignite, crawling up the paper.
You know this is just one insignificant segment among the countless, meaningless threads between mankind and arcanists.
A journey left unfinished, a chapter left unconcluded, and a theory left unproofed...
Kaalaa Baunaa: Kumar, I hope this is the last lesson you left me...
The report burns. Words turn to ash and dissolve into the air...
"The secondary star's trajectory is consistent, but there are small anomalies in some of the observational data. The amount of such anomalous data is scarce, and was considered an observational error."
Kaalaa Baunaa: ?! ...Wait!
Kaalaa Baunaa: In that case...
Kaalaa Baunaa: ...!
You try to put out the fire, but what's left of the report turns to dust in the palm of your hand.