The general took the bag and read the name on the plate: “I recognize Dave, there is everything here that should not be according to the charter. He never liked the charter, so he joined the warrior caste. He wanted more freedom.”

Among Dave's possessions, the general found a rectangular gold coin encrusted with a tal crystal. The general, pulling out a coin, handed it to Kir.

“This is your son's fee.” Kir explained.

“Kirk, take it. This is a deposit for finding a junior.”

“But Mell! This ten thousand tal coin is a very large amount.” Kir resisted.

“Kir, I beg you, use them to search”

“I will refund your unused funds.”

The general left the office. Kir, putting the coin in his pocket, went to the window and watched the general walking along the road to the aerving waiting for him. A driver walking nearby hurried to open the door for the general. Kir noticed that he was not the only one watching the general. Professor Tom Seed was standing a hundred meters from the fence. As soon as the aerwing rose into the sky, the professor quickly walked towards the gate of Kir Lak's house.

“What happened neighbor?” Kir asked when the professor appeared on the threshold of the office.

“I have the same question for you. Such transport appears in our places when something happens. So I hurried to you like a neighbor to find out if something had happened.”

“Don't worry professor, it's my old acquaintance who came to visit because we haven't seen each other for a long time.”

“Pardon my curiosity.” The professor apologized.

“It's OK. By the way, we have something to talk about at dinner, I hope you do not refuse.”

The professor agreed, and they went into the dining room.

“I still remember our conversation last time. And I wanted to ask, do you believe in mysticism? Is the curse something inexplicable and mystical, or is it just a coincidence?” Kir asked.

“There is no definite answer to this question. According to the legends of the pilgrims, they have an oracle, around which a kind of cult has formed. Unfortunately, there are no historical documents confirming the existence of the oracle, as the legends are passed from mouth to mouth.”

“You speak of the oracle as if it were in existence today. But judging by the legend of the pilgrims, the oracle is more than a thousand years old.”

“The cult exists, but I don't know about the oracle. In addition, the oracle may be over a thousand years old. Once upon a time, when I was still studying at the academy myself, and was appointed as an assistant to the famous archaeologist and historian Professor Rem Masari. Somehow, we also started talking about the oracle and the professor shared with me a story about the find. He told me that his archeological expedition had arrived on the planet Zogrotan, the cradle of colonian civilization. In the ruins of the ruler's palace, he found a fresco in an ancient dialect, which spoke of someone ancient with the ability to calculate the future. Yes Yes! It is the word to calculate, and not to predict, this is not a mistake. The professor showed me a scan of the fresco. This fresco is about six thousand years old. And this means that the colonians knew the oracle much earlier than the pilgrims, since the pilgrims arrived from a star cloud after three millennia.”

“I wonder if the pilgrims know about this or not?” Kir thought.

“You need to ask the pilgrims this,” Smiled Tom. “I can say with confidence that now only two people know about this - me and you Kir. Are you surprised? My teacher did not publish data about the find, since one source of information is not enough for an official story. In addition, Masari warned me not to tell anyone about this.”

“Why did he forbid telling, and you just told me about it?”

“I asked him the same question, to which he replied “I don’t want Kadaria to become empty like Zogrotan”, nothing happens by chance. Zogrotan was the first casualty of the war between the Pilgrims and the Colonians. And during the era of dark time, Zogrotan turned into ruins. I told you only because I trust you, and you are the first who in the last half century has been so interested in this issue.”

“By the way, Tom, you answered my question about the curse, there are no accidents, so mysticism.” Kir smiled.

“I don't believe in mysticism, I'm a realist,” Tom answered nervously. “The label of mysticism is hung whenever humanity encounters inexplicable phenomena. But as soon as science takes a step forward, mysticism disappears in scientific justification. Over time, the question of the existence of the oracle will be closed, since work is being done in this direction and there is a result. I will tell you more, the word “compute” on the mural was for Professor Masari the key and motivation to create a predictive model of the history of the future. His work on the algorithm of the model inspired me and many scientists to create this predictive model. You won't believe it, but I can show you the probability of events with thirty-five percent accuracy.”

“Are you seriously!” Kir was surprised.

Kir's surprise silenced the professor, he turned pale as if he remembered something, pushed his plate away and said. “I probably shouldn't have told you this, this information is not for everyone, like the story that I told you. To be honest, I was scared when I saw an aerwing at the gate of your house. Last time, in a fit of passion for history, I told you something that should not have been said.”

“Tom, your fears are unfounded.” Kir urged fearing to interrupt the conversation at the most interesting place. “I am going to the Nodian Empire on an important mission. I will say more, my signature will stand under the ratification of the Astilian treaty.”

The professor perked up a little. “Wait, wasn't it ratified forty years ago?”

Kir only shrugged his shoulders in response. The professor thought.

“How does this turn of events affect your predictive model?” Kir asked carefully.

“A small detail can make a big difference. You know, Kir, what you told me is worth a lot, now I can improve the accuracy of the calculation.” The professor rejoiced.

“I think you have more to say about the future than your predictive model.” Kir smiled.

“You are stepping on a sore spot.” The professor complained. “ We could achieve a better result if we knew the truth.”

“So you are a historian, you see the causes and consequences of events. Isn't that enough?”

“Alas, the pilgrims have cleared history with their dark stars. We collect and restore bit by bit. And what we sometimes find is not very popular with politicians. Therefore, the main history of our civilization has been written since the Renaissance, and here again politics intervenes. It dictates the rules for the interpretation of certain events, wishful thinking. Some politicians say that we can set the vector of development by changing our perceptions of the past. But as a historian, I'll say that it doesn't work that way. The past strongly influences the future, changing the interpretation, we mislead the algorithm, as this changes the behavioral characteristics of the population, of course, the result of the calculation is pleasing to the eye, but in reality the expectations are not justified. Politicians want to know the future, but at the same time they do not want to admit the mistakes of the past, and the accuracy of the forecast depends on this. Every time we find the true causes of an event in history, the accuracy of the forecast increases. Knowing the future is a blessing that must be used correctly”

Having finished speaking, the professor took out a ditab from the inside pocket of his jacket, typed something on the screen and handed the ditab to Kir. There were several pages of text on the ditab screen, which Kir skimmed through. The professor got up from the table and walked over to Kir. The professor swiped his finger across the screen, an image of a concentric pattern resembling tree branches appeared. Enlarging one of the branches of the pattern, the professor opened the date of the proposed ratification of the treaty and changed the date. Like a gust of strong wind, shaking and breaking tree branches, a wave ran through the pattern. The professor reopened the same text and invited Kir to evaluate the changes.

“I'd rather not know.” Having finished reading Kir returned the ditab. “Now I don't know what to do.”

“I think you yourself guessed the consequences. The Nodian Empire is doomed, corporate systems and galactic council systems will divide its territories.” The professor said.

“Yes, I felt some kind of catch in this contract. But I did not think about such global changes.” Kir replied.

“You asked what to do, act according to your conscience.” The professor advised.