Chapter 3
Chapter 3
Chapter 3
Eye Monster Adi
Rudian thought to himself.
Looking back, my life has been quite an unfortunate one.
When I first realized this world was the world of , I used to daydream about embarking on adventures, imagining a brilliant fantasy life.
But ideals were just ideals, and reality was cold.
'Without money, status, or skill, there was nothing a worthless person like me could do.'
Even knowing who was the instigator behind Chapter 1's Heavenly Demon War, there was nothing he could do.
Chapter 2's Superhuman War could have been prevented with minimal preparation, but anyone saying this would be treated as a madman.
Even knowing the locations of all the miraculous encounters that the protagonist and villains would obtain, Rudian lacked the ability to claim them first.
If he had at least been reincarnated as a noble family's child with some foundation, the story would have been vastly different, but as a commoner struggling to survive day by day, the infinite world of remained just an unattainable ideal.
'It was fortunate enough that I can read and write.'
Should I consider this a special perk of being in another world?
Although Rudian had been terrible at English during his college entrance exams, in this world he could read, write, and speak with great fluency.
Thanks to this, despite being an orphan, he was able to solve his living expenses by receiving payment from Marco the village chief, and eventually caught the eye of the Iskar family's tax collector, rising to the position of subordinate to the young master Calline.
'But it seems my luck ends here...'
He felt the pain of his bones being crushed throughout his body.
A bottomless abyss where only darkness existed, even with eyes open.
Without question, instant death was certain; the only difference would be whether his corpse would remain intact or not.
But...
Somehow, his body's condition, which should have no sensation at all, felt a bit strange.
...Huh?
FLASH!
'Wasn't I supposed to be dead?'
From diving off the cliff due to the golem until losing consciousness, about 10 seconds seemed to have passed.
Ten seconds might not sound like much, but a person falling for that long would not die peacefully, to say the least.
Normally, he should have become a bloody mess like when a juggling dies, or at best, even if he miraculously survived, he should have been completely paralyzed, but...
CRACK! CRACK!
"...I'm fine?"
Was the thunderous sound that made him think his head would be smashed just an illusion?
There were no broken bones, and he could feel all his limbs normally.
Rising to his feet, Rudian moved his body around curiously.
Whatever divine blessing had fallen upon him, his body was perfectly fine except for the scratches he got while protecting Calline.
'...Did I achieve cosmic enlightenment on the brink of death and my body just POOF! Awakened...? Probably not.'
If such a thing were possible, he wouldn't have been struggling so much until now.
After confirming there was nothing wrong with his body, Rudian suddenly felt a sense of discomfort attacking his senses.
The source of that discomfort was the bright light surrounding him.
'Wasn't this... Underground?'
According to the setting, this place was a dungeon made of dark dimensional magic existing in the 'Demon Realm.'
Without magic, there should be no way to emit such bright light.
Just as he was about to look around with heightened tension.
-You're awake.
Without sensing any presence, a single sentence that put all his nerves on edge pierced his ears.
"WHOA! You scared me!"
Seriously, he was incredibly startled!
A businesslike male voice from behind him.
It was surprising enough that he hadn't heard footsteps, but what was more surprising was the shadow of the other party cast on the floor by the light.
'W-what is that? A monster?'
Looking at the shadow, he could see the afterimage of long, wobbly tentacles.
"...W-who are you?"
He unconsciously slipped into dialect.
-No need to be tense. I have no intention of harming you.
Seeing Rudian too stiff, the other party appealed to his harmlessness in a reassuring tone.
"......"
-It's true, I tell you!
"......"
-Come on, just turn around and see?
After several rounds of persuasion.
Finally, gathering his courage, Rudian turned his head.
"...Beholder?"
A black sphere with a single eye embedded in the center was waving tentacles like arms while looking at him.
And the moment he saw this sight.
THUD!
Rudian fainted again.
-H-hey, you okay?
***
It was about the size of a human face.
A large eyeball was firmly embedded in the center, and the pupil of that eye moved back and forth, up and down, examining him.
Strangely, rather than feeling disgusted, it seemed quite cute.
-Fainting at first sight is against etiquette.
"Ah, sorry."
But anyone seeing something like you for the first time would faint without fail.
The creature waved its tentacles in response to Rudian's apology.
-I accept your apology. It's been 3,000 years since I've met a human. I thought only beings with divine status could find this place in the age of apocalypse. Today is quite an unexpected day.
The creature circled around Rudian, talking incessantly.
Rather than a beholder, it looked more like the flask dwarf from a certain alchemy cartoon, but unlike that one, this creature had no mouth at all.
By the way, this place?
"Where is this?"
It was just a tiny mumble to himself, but the creature caught Rudian's whisper.
-This is the ruin where I was sealed. A ruin created 3,000 years ago by the now-vanished 'Adora Civilization.'
'...Adora Civilization?'
The number 3,000 years might seem ancient, but from Rudian's perspective, it was quite ambiguous.
The ancient civilizations that appear as enemies of the protagonist in the original story all existed at least 10,000 years ago, when the First Heavenly Demon War took place.
Moreover, the name 'Adora' didn't exist at all in Rudian's knowledge of the original work.
'I've never heard of such a civilization.'
It was a name he, an avid reader, was hearing for the first time.
Whether it was a MacGuffin setting left by the author or not, this wasn't the time to ponder that.
'Is this situation an opportunity, or a crisis?'
Strictly speaking, this situation was closer to a crisis.
After all, a seal, regardless of its nature, was ultimately implemented because there was some problem.
'I need more information.'
In any case, Rudian judged that this was his first real encounter with the world of , which he had only read about in novels.
Hiding his inner thoughts, Rudian spoke to the creature.
"So you're a being sealed in this ruin."
-Yes, I've been stuck here all this time without receiving a master designation. My dormant consciousness awoke the moment you entered this space.
Rudian somehow sensed that the creature was quite happy.
'Judging by how freely it's answering, I think my guess is right...'
Rudian swallowed and asked the creature the most important question in the current situation.
"Then, can you tell me who you are?"
Even if he didn't know what the Adora Civilization was, this creature was surely part of a setting created by the author of , and that meant it must be part of a miraculous encounter, whether picked up by the protagonist or enemies.
This world of was a stage where a 'story' created by the author unfolded.
'Even if it's a MacGuffin setting, it must have been created with some intention to use it somewhere.'
Rudian waited for the creature's response, hoping this thought was correct.
Soon after, the creature answered his question.
-I am the 7th generation comprehensive artificial intelligence, 'Arcadia,' left behind by the Adora Civilization.
"...Artificial intelligence?"
That thing?
'And the name uses 'paradise' again?'
A fresh shock assaulted his entire body.
By its appearance, he would have believed it was a demonic god's legacy.
No, perhaps the Adora Civilization was a civilization that existed, or had existed, in the Demon Realm.
But what surprised Rudian more was the single sentence the creature added next.
-I hope that you will become my master, what do you think?
***
"Master?"
If he was the cause of the creature's unsealing, such a proposal wasn't strange.
But making such a direct suggestion so quickly was certainly unexpected.
-This place is originally unreachable for those without qualification. Truly, unless one is a god, no matter what method they use.
The creature had clearly defined those it expected to discover this place as divine beings.
But the one who reached here was not a divine being, but rather an extra who hadn't even awakened to magic.
-But you defied such expectations and awakened me. That means you're fully qualified to be my master.
The creature was saying he had 'qualification.'
Setting aside what benefit there would be in taking this creature in, what exactly was this qualification?
Rudian, suddenly overcome with curiosity, asked the creature.
"What is that qualification?"
-Being an 'outsider.' That's the only one.
"...What's that?"
-Actually, I don't know what it means either. I thought it might be godhood, but your existence has broken my expectations. Over the past ages, the number of beings who explored this dungeon is by no means small, but only you have reached this far.
'Could the condition for reaching here be diving into an abyss?'
Rudian tilted his head and asked.
"If you don't know, how did you determine that I'm an outsider?"
-It's determined by whether my core, sealed in an external dimension, responds or not.
"Your main body..."
So this eye monster form is just a simple terminal.
But before that...
'Outsider.'
He had a rough idea of what this might mean.
Probably only he would know this fact in this world.
Then is this creature before him some kind of special bonus created for someone who has been transported into a novel?
'It's a bit hard to trust this blindly, but...'
If this creature was truly prepared by the original author for readers who transmigrated into this world, it shouldn't have been discovered only now, years after he fell into this place.
'It's more likely that it was scattered with the intention of 'collect it if you can'...'
Suppressing his mixed feelings, Rudian looked directly into the creature's eye.
"If I become your master, what benefit do I get?"
Contrary to his expectation of being offered something amazing, the creature shook its eyeball left and right and uttered something unexpected.
-Honestly, in the current situation, I can't be of much help to you. If there were previous generation terminals prepared by the creators, it would be different, but now there's nothing.
"Terminals? What are these terminals?"
-They refer to six auxiliary artificial intelligences created by the creators for me.
It seemed that the concept of this Adora Civilization was based on future world technology, creating a super-scientific civilization.
-There's the 1st generation collection-type AI Eldorado, 2nd generation exploration-type AI Elysion, 3rd generation healing-type AI paradise, 4th generation transport-type AI Dilmun, 5th generation combat-type AI Shambhala, and 6th generation restoration-type AI Eden.
"...All named after paradises."
He had a rough idea from the point this creature was named Arcadia, but the naming was too obvious.
-With each recovery of generational terminals, I can use abilities specialized for those terminals. And when all terminals are gathered, the seal on my main body in the external dimension will be released.
In other words, I need to collect them one by one like Dragon Balls.
-The problem is that unless we approach other terminals, we can't know their whereabouts...
The creature's tentacles pointed weakly downward.
Even just looking at its eye, a gloomy mood was conveyed.
'What should I do?'
Honestly, there wasn't much choice.
In this situation, refusing the creature's offer might bring some kind of trouble.
But there was an emotion boiling up stronger than that sense of crisis.
'Maybe with this creature...'
Rudian, who understood the original story and its foreshadowing, was confident that with a certain level of power, he could create a better direction and a better ending.
'Even if I do nothing, I'll definitely die a few times due to external forces. Rather than that...'
How about joining hands with this creature and putting up a fight?
Judging from its way of speaking, it seemed to be quite high-ranked even within .
Having made up his mind, Rudian exclaimed in a strong voice.
"Alright, I'll register as your master!"
-A wise choice.
Arcadia immediately brightened at Rudian's agreement and responded.
Then it began to praise itself, saying that if even one or two of its terminals could be recovered, it would be of tremendous help.
' is famous for its chaotic developments, but that's because of the balance breakers scattered throughout. If this creature is at least that level, it would be perfect, but...'
If its actual specs were even just 1/10 of that confidence, it would be helpful enough.
Soon when entering the main timeline, the world would be thrown into chaos by demons, and he needed to prepare for that time.
And so, Rudian formed a master contract with Arcadia.
Well, there was nothing special about it.
All he had to do was extract a drop of blood from his index finger and rub it against the creature's tentacle.
-Then, I look forward to working with you, Master.
"Me too, Adi."
The name Arcadia was too long, so he needed an appropriate abbreviation.
That's how the nickname 'Adi' was created.
-Adi... That's quite nice.
The creature seemed quite satisfied with this nickname.
Rudian clenched his fist while watching Adi.
Although the contract seemed to have been concluded somewhat haphazardly, in order to survive in this chaotic world, he needed to have some kind of power.