Chapter 72
Chapter 72
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Mod7
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: Chapter 7 - Diary (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Day 4.
Alraune’s sprout had grown to my knee height. A thick bud had formed, and inside, I could see a small, fetus-like form.
I had struggled so much with my doctoral dissertation, and yet, if I had simply studied Alraune’s biology… no, that would have probably shattered the foundations of the scientific community.
I was just reminiscing, lost in thought. Perhaps it was because I had more free time now, but memories of my old life often resurfaced.
Today, I thought of my beloved lab. I remembered the quiet hours spent there, wearing my white coat, scribbling notes.
If that version of me could see me now,
Would he even recognize himself?
Unlike my lab, filled with beakers and specimens,
A space of quiet contemplation,
This cave held a different kind of silence. Not a true silence, but a stillness punctuated by soft breaths and occasional movements.
Most of the sounds came from Amy. Despite being a human-created AI, she breathed and blinked, just like a human.
Of course, these were simply imitations of human and biological behavior. Amy didn't need to blink to keep her corneas moist, or breathe to circulate her synthetic blood.
It was a testament to human ingenuity. Compared to Amy’s intricate design, the weapon Isaac and I had created seemed crude and primitive.
“Doctor.”
But even Amy, despite her advanced technology, seemed to be… watching me, her behavior a strange mixture of concern and deference.
“Are you awake?”
“…Yes.”
Amy didn't need to sleep.
So, she spent every night awake, watching over Isaac and me. And this morning, having woken up early, I found myself alone with her.
“What were you doing?”
“Processing data.”
It didn't matter if it was true or not.
But,
Seeing her awake, alone in the quiet, pre-dawn hours, filled me with a strange sense of pity.
“…Really?”
I still hadn't sorted out my feelings towards Amy. Sometimes, I resented her, and other times, I wanted to comfort her, to fill the void within her.
“I see.”
But I couldn't forgive her for harming Isaac. And I wasn't entirely happy about her killing the spiders either. So, I turned away, closing my eyes, trying to sleep.
Amy was too… mechanical. She claimed to be acting in my best interest, but her methods were twisted. I couldn't simply forgive and forget.
“Goodnight, Doctor.”
Yes, that was the right approach.
The right approach…
“…”
But this morning,
The air was unusually cold.
That’s probably why I had woken up. It was cold enough to warrant pulling the fur cover tighter around me.
“Don’t just sit there, lie down.”
“I can function optimally without lying down. Sleep is unnecessary.”
So, I had said something to her, something I probably shouldn't have. If I had just ignored her and gone back to sleep, nothing would have happened.
“Just lie down. It’s bothering me.”
I pulled out another blanket and placed it beside me, offering her a place to rest.
She watched me, her expression unreadable, then, as I lay back down, she carefully mimicked my movements, lying down beside me.
“Goodnight.”
“Yes?”
Amy lay there for a long time.
I didn't know if she was actually sleeping, or simply lying there, staring at the ceiling.
But she responded to my casual farewell, her voice soft.
“…Goodnight, Doctor.”
Day 5.
I went out with Amy to look for Jenny, but I felt a strange chill, my body trembling.
I thought it was just the colder weather, but Amy suggested I might be coming down with something and advised me to finish our tasks quickly.
Her scans, however, didn't detect any abnormalities. No viruses, no infections, no unusual symptoms.
Yet, my body continued to tremble. I tried asking Alraune, but she seemed preoccupied with growing her new sprout and didn’t respond.
Only Jenny reacted strangely. She growled at me, baring her fangs, as soon as she saw me.
When I asked her what was wrong, she simply barked and snarled, then, after her outburst, she licked my face and body, covering me in saliva.
Only after I was thoroughly drenched in her saliva did she seem to calm down, nuzzling her cheek against my chest. This planet was filled with strange and incomprehensible creatures.
Day 6.
I felt unwell. I had a slight fever in the morning, and by midday, I started feeling dizzy.
Arachne was particularly worried. She said she had been having unsettling dreams lately and urged me to take care of myself.
I mentioned the dizziness to Aria as well, but she simply tilted her head, her eyes filled with concern.
The lack of a clear diagnosis worried me. And what was even more unsettling was that even Amy’s sensors couldn't identify the cause of my symptoms.
The headache persisted as I wrote this. My chest felt tight, and I planned to take a walk with Arachne after finishing this entry.
This is all that happened in the past few days. It seems I need to rest and recover.
Day 7.
I’m still not feeling well. I won’t write today and will focus on resting. I’m lying in the cave, under Amy’s care.
Day 8.
(No entry)
Day 9.
I had a strange dream, a dream I couldn’t forget. I wasn’t sure what it meant.
I saw a white shape, something I thought I had seen before. It slowly approached me in the darkness, and I screamed, waking up in a cold sweat.
The dream, and the lingering headache, made it difficult to fall back asleep. I tossed and turned, trying to calm my racing heart, and then,
I fell back asleep, and the dream continued. The white shape was clearer now, closer.
I’m writing this now, having woken up again. Goosebumps still cover my skin.
No, writing about it, reliving it, only intensifies the memory, the strange sensation that had filled my dream. The white shape approached me, as if coming to greet me, its face drawing closer, its eyes meeting mine.
But I couldn't help but scream. A strange, unsettling feeling overwhelmed me. I couldn't face that white being, not physically, not mentally.
“Doctor, your eyes-”
I woke up and started writing this entry, and Amy, looking at my face, said something strange-
“Please remain calm. Based on my scans, your eyes are undergoing a temporary genetic modification.”
…I went to the lake,
And now, feeling calmer, I will finish this entry.
I looked at my reflection in the water. My right eye was a deep, dark black.
I screamed involuntarily, and Arachne, Aria, and Amy rushed over, their faces etched with concern. They seemed unable to comprehend what had happened.
I gasped, my body trembling, unable to process the change, then I remembered the fingers,
And I closed my left eye, looking at the world through my right eye,
And I saw them, faint, grayish-white shapes, shimmering and shifting. I can still see them now, as I write this.
They were especially prominent around Isaac. I had seen something similar before, when I had confronted Amy about Isaac,
But I had dismissed it as a hallucination, a side effect of the stress. But now, my right eye could see them clearly.
I wasn't sure what they were,
But based on my observations,
I could only conclude…
That I could see ghosts.
It sounded ridiculous, especially coming from a staunch atheist like me, but there was no other explanation.
Why was I having these spiritual experiences on this remote planet? The devout Christians back at headquarters would be fascinated, perhaps even a little envious.
What was strange was,
That while spiritual experiences were usually attributed to mental processes or some inexplicable sixth sense,
My right eye had physically changed, its color shifting to black.
A mixture of fear and curiosity filled me.
Perhaps,
I had already become something… different.