Episode 213. Commit Suicide (2)
I noticed it as soon as I saw it.
This is not a human work.
A building like this cannot be created due to the human nature of unconsciously pursuing aesthetic value and cutting edge rather than efficiency.
If you’re wondering if the shape was intentionally twisted in such a bizarre way, that’s not true.
Upon closer inspection, I realized that the flow of information and magic power from the end of each branch to the center was designed for maximum efficiency.
No. It’s not design.
Rather than saying that it was designed this way, it would be more correct to say that it was designed this way after building it in pursuit of efficiency.
The order is wrong.
“Wait a minute, man. To get in here, you first need security clearance-”
Beep.
The front door is opened without any help, despite the unknown person’s attempts to dissuade it.
The bar door is the same as the door used in the old mansion.
However, since the view beyond is a completely different world, the sense of disconnection is quite severe.
“What is it? This is a place where even if the Frost Lord comes, he has to wait until a permit is issued before he can enter…”
An unknown person tilts his head as if questioning.
Don’t think about it that hard.
Since the landlord came, I just opened the door.
That’s really the story.
‘As expected, Linda sees me.’
The predictions came true to some extent.
Linda can recognize me.
It’s normal to be overjoyed at this…
For some reason, it feels a little creepy.
“Are you going in? Just like this? Are you going to set off the alarm?”
“It doesn’t ring.”
“If there’s any trace of me coming here, I’ll be tracked down, right?”
“You can’t even be traced.”
“······?”
As I moved forward without hesitation, an unknown person followed me carefully from behind.
Her face is full of worry.
There is absolutely nothing to worry about.
“······!”
Then inside.
The building in the center, which looked like a tree trunk, opened.
A figure… No, a machine appears.
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[It’s been a while, master. How have you been?]
“The jokes have increased a lot.”
[Huhuhu······.]
A clockwork machine in a maid’s uniform burst out into laughter and covered her mouth as if she couldn’t hold it in.
I also responded with a smile to those captivating eyes.
There was another one.
Someone who recognizes me.
That fact alone seemed to warm my heart.
“I never knew there was a place like this in the archive…”
Although it is said that there is a massive data storage space, like an archive or something.
The mansion that Cairn handed over to me was still the same.
Deep inside, surrounded by mechanical architecture.
The mansion stands tall as if it were a house isolated deep in the woods, unable to blend in with the surrounding scenery.
Even though no one lives inside the mansion, it is well maintained and clean.
What should I say?
It feels like a living space in the middle of nowhere surrounded by a fortress.
This is by no means an analogy or exaggeration; the buildings that make up the archive are not equipped with weapons, but are optimized for defense.
It’s as if it was created with a siege war in mind from the beginning…
I guess this is a leap on my part.
I guess it was created simply to increase magic efficiency, and it ended up being a good structure for defense.
Well, that’s fine.
[This mansion was not built in the archive. The archive was built where this mansion was located.]
“Oh, really?! This landlord must have become really rich! Land prices must have gone up a lot!”
hehehe. I know, right.]
“······.”
Linda smiles kindly and tilts the teapot to fill the teacup.
She looks like an ordinary human maid.
However, the moment she turns around, the machines and springs on her back and buttocks are clearly exposed, proving that she is an artificially created being.
“Why do you think you’ve become more human-like?”
[Oh my, is that so? If so, you are mistaken.]
“Why? Aren’t you still learning to resemble a human?””It’s a misunderstanding, Master. My nature has been complete since birth and has not changed a bit. If there has been a change, it would be more correct to call it ‘growth’. Like humans gain enlightenment and knowledge over time.”
“······.”
She herself admitted to the change.
It’s been three years, but I remember it clearly.
Linda was not this clever.
She used to be a maid with a cuter taste than now, but how come······.
Of course, I don’t regret that she’s less cute.
Really, really not.
I’m just annoyed by the sense of incongruity.
In the case of Mumin, he has completely changed from the Mumin I knew since he was born.
It is natural that the time we were apart was much longer than the time I saw him.
However, in that changed appearance, I was able to find the Mumin I knew.
Even though his appearance and inner self have changed as he grows, his essence is the same.
I was convinced of that.
But in Linda’s case······.
Should I say that the Linda I knew has completely disappeared?
‘What happened when she was repaired and rebooted?’
If there was a time when the change occurred, it was when Linda destroyed herself and Kern repaired her.
There is no other time than that.
What the hell happened during the repair······.
‘No. Wait a minute. Why did Linda choose to commit suicide in the first place?’
The moment I thought of that question, I felt creepy and my hair stood on end.
I was so busy at the time that I didn’t have time to find out separately.
Now the questions are flying in and sticking to me.
Linda chose to commit suicide on the night of the day when the power of Draken was withdrawn from all living beings in the present world.
The effects were different for each monster, but Linda was the only one who chose to die.
And Kern, who arrived at the mansion to take care of the repairs, said.
It seems that the repair will take at least a month.
Thinking about it now, it’s strange.
A clockwork machine is a machine that is made without any particularly expensive parts or complicated processes.
So, as long as the blueprint exists, it shouldn’t take a month to completely disassemble Linda and make her new from scratch.
‘Did something major go wrong?’
The suspicious thing is a defect in the internal software.
For example, Linda’s memory was infected with some kind of malware······?
If that’s the case, it would explain why Linda chose to force quit.
It makes sense that Kern said it would take time to recover the data.
It’s a hypothesis that fits so well that it’s creepy.
Then who is this in front of me now······?
[Why are you like that, Master? Your expression is not good. Are you not feeling well somewhere?]
“······.”
At that moment, the artificial skin face pushed in front of me.
It’s a face I’ve never felt uncomfortable with.
But today, it’s creepy every time I see it.
[Ah, ahhh. Why. Whyyyy······.]
Creak, creak.
I grab Linda’s cheek and stretch it, and press it and look at it.
The feel and reaction are Linda’s.
The taste of the tea she poured out also matches.
‘At least Linda isn’t completely gone.’
Whether or not she was infected with malware, Linda is not completely gone.
At least it’s clear that the memory data remains.
If so, is the opponent not the kind of malware that indiscriminately deletes and corrupts data, but intended to cleverly control Linda from the beginning?
“Linda. Let me ask you a few things.”
[Yes. Please feel free to speak, Master.]
“How many times have you received updates while I was away?”
[0 times. I haven’t received any updates since the Alliance was formed and I took over as the caretaker of the archive. If you receive data from outside, there will be security issues.]
There was no code inspection or patch after the repair.
It’s ridiculous.
Are you saying that you left the clockwork machine, which you don’t know when it will malfunction, to fix the malfunction itself?
Even people tend to get damaged if they don’t go to the hospital regularly, but what about a clockwork machine?
Even if Linda was stubborn, Kern wouldn’t have left her alone, would he?
“Then how many times have you met Kern?”
[I met Kern twice. Once when I was broken and repaired. And the other time was when the archive was completed.]After the first two meetings, Kern stopped coming?
Linda has clearly become strange?
The master who loved Linda so much has not come back as if he had lost interest in her?
Suddenly, I started to worry about Kern’s well-being.
“Then, how far can you follow my orders?”
[I can follow you to the end of hell, master.]
Linda answers with her hand on her chest.
There is no hesitation in that answer.
I also said without hesitation.
“Then kill yourself right now, Linda.”
[······.]
Suddenly, as if the air conditioner had been turned on, the whole place became cold.
Linda’s colorful expression also hardened.
So I gathered the sword energy in my right hand and carved out a transparent sword.
Mijung picked up Blinny’s wooden club (enhanced +1).
Then, with a vibration of thud, thud, thud, the archive vibrates.
[Are you serious, master?]
The structures that were reaching out to the outside like branches were broken and turned inward.
The ends of the rebars were all pointing at us.