An AI Repaying a Favor. (4)
An AI Repaying a Favor. (4)
"Huu..."
Seo let out a sigh.
How did things turn out like this?
Clearly, Dea got some information, and while listening to the story about that information—
[Seo-nim, are you listening?]
"Uh, yeah... I'm listening."
Dea's voice came through the in-ear earpiece he was wearing.
It was the same as Makina's, but felt calm, sounding like a more mature voice.
[If you go just a little further, you will arrive at the meeting place.]
"Got it, Dea."
Dea's voice had imperceptibly seeped deep into Seo's daily life.
Since Seo didn't have a wide variety of human relationships to begin with, the two who suddenly came to live with him were bound to feel even more significant.
Anyway.
"But why mint chocolate ice cream...?"
[It seems to be their favorite food.]
Don't tell me I have to eat it.
Since Seo was a person with very normal taste buds, he couldn't help but be reluctant about mint chocolate.
There were other delicious ice creams, so why of all things did it have to be mint chocolate?
Of course, if that was all there was, he would eat it, but...
[Anyway, please be careful. Because we don't know what might happen.]
"Thanks for worrying about me, Dea."
[It's only natural for me to do so.]
"Still, thank you."
[Heu-heung, I'll gratefully accept your thanks.]
Déjà vu.
Or familiarity.
And comfort.
Ever since they first met at the ruins—the Underground Laboratory—Seo had felt an indescribable familiarity from Dea.
Maybe it was simply because their personalities clicked.
Yet it felt like there was something more than just their personalities clicking.
"Should I buy some ice cream on the way back?"
[Yes, Makina will love that. But you shouldn't let her eat too much.]
"Of course."
An artificial intelligence who, despite being an adult, sometimes showed a childlike side.
An existence full of rich emotions, deep affection, and someone who treated Makina with genuine care.
Honestly speaking, it wouldn't be wrong to say that Dea was Makina's mother.
Because the one who was more human than anyone else, and more like a mother than anyone else, was Dea.
'I don't know why she strongly denies being called mom, though...'
Was it because she thought of herself as just an auxiliary AI?
Anyway.
Seo let out a soft sigh in front of the ice cream shop visible before his eyes.
"Dea, do you think you know who it is?"
[Connecting to the surrounding CCTV. Mmm... I don't see anyone particularly suspicious.]
"Maybe they haven't arrived yet."
[That's a possibility.]
Judging by the tone of speech seen in the chatroom and such, they definitely weren't an ordinary person.
Seo scanned the surroundings with his eyes looking for anyone unusual, but there was nobody in his line of sight who particularly stood out.
"Don't tell me they forgot about the appointment itself?"
[Maybe the other person hasn't spotted us either. Since neither of us knows what the other looks like in the first place.]
"They actually thought of meeting someone whose face they didn't even know, huh."
[Though the same goes for us.]
He nodded at Dea's words.
No, he stopped mid-nod.
"Strictly speaking, it's just Dea alone. As for me, well, I'm just here in Dea's place, right?"
[Ugh... I, I'm sorry about that...]
Dea's voice grew quieter and quieter.
A person who easily gets embarrassed.
Seo wondered if he had always been this playful.
Ever since meeting Dea, he found himself teasing her with minor pranks or throwing small jokes her way.
"...Well, all's well that ends well, I guess."
[Yes? Did you say something?]
"No, it's nothing. More importantly—"
I think I found them. The weird person.
Seo's gaze turned toward the edge of the street.
Although they should have been hard to see because of the crowd, the person at the end of the street was so eye-catching that they immediately caught his attention despite the distance.
[That is...]
Dea, who seemed to have spotted the other party—the eccentric person—through the CCTV, trailed off.
It appeared she was rendered speechless.
"...She's walking straight toward us."
[...I see her too, Seo-nim.]
Literally heading straight.
Seo swallowed hard as he watched the individual approach the ice cream shop without hesitation.
Even though it was a world full of strange people, wasn't that a bit too much?
"Oh, so you're the newbie? You look different from what I imagined! Haha!"
"...Yes, hello. So, um—"
"Mm! You shall call this grand self Leader!"
Pink hair tied in pigtails.
Horns attached beside it.
A beret perched on top of her head.
A shameless outfit revealing her sideboob and armpits.
Even devil horns and a lizard tail.
'I think I've gotten caught up in something bad...'
Seo swallowed hard.
He was told to watch out for strange people and women, so shouldn't he be even more careful if it's a strange woman?
"Come on, let's go in! This grand self will treat you!"
The other party—Leader pushed Seo's back.
Was mint chocolate ice cream really that good?
Glancing over, the other person's face was full of smiles.
"The other guys don't easily meet up even when this grand self asks them to, so this turned out great! Hahat!"
"Is that so..."
He felt like he knew the reason why they wouldn't meet up, but decided not to voice it aloud.
[I... for a moment, I thought I had come to a fantasy world.]
'...Me too.'
He mentally agreed with Dea's words.
Although he knew Biological Miracle performed body modifications, this was the first time he had seen someone who had done it so severely.
They weren't simple decorations either.
Seeing how naturally the tail and wings moved, it seemed even her nerves were connected to them.
"Why are you staring so intently?"
"No, um... your wings and tail are cool."
"Hahat, right? It's this grand self's identiti-ti... identity...? Mm, anyway, it's something like that!"
"..."
He felt a headache coming on.
Was it really right to converse with this person?
However, having come this far, turning back felt a bit awkward too.
Once started, there was no choice but to see it through to the end.
[...I'm sorry for asking you to do a job like this, Seo-nim.]
'It's okay, Dea.'
Actually, it wasn't okay.
"Come on, in celebration of welcoming the newbie, this grand self will buy! Here, two half-gallons of mint chocolate ice cream!"
"Yeees~"
Before he could even say he wanted to eat something else, the order was finished.
The person who placed the order had already grabbed a seat.
He was already swept up in the opponent's pace.
"So, you contacted me because you wanted to hear this grand self's great life story?"
"Not quite a whole life story, but—yes, well. Something like that."
"Hahahat! If it's that, of course I can tell you!"
The woman—Leader crossed her arms and laughed out loud.
Perhaps this wasn't the first time, as the employees didn't seem particularly interested.
"Before that, let's introduce ourselves! This grand self is called Laila!"
"I am Seo."
"Mm, a fine name!"
Was she in a good mood?
Her large tail swished back and forth with a boong-boong.
Was it fortunate that there were no people around?
Maybe she grabbed a seat in a secluded spot because of that.
"If we're going to talk, I should start with the story of how I stole the car from Ilmon Company."
"No, wait..."
However, it was too late to stop her.
Before Seo could even express his objection, the other party—Laila was already starting her story.
First was stealing the car from Ilmon Company.
Next was stealing the punch machine from the arcade.
And even stealing the 4th streetlamp in Industrial Complex 3.
"How's that, amazing isn't it? Only this grand self could pull off such feats, hahat!"
"That's amazing, Laila-ssi."
"Don't call me Laila-ssi, call me Leader! Or Leader Laila!"
"...Leader Laila."
The mint chocolate ice cream arrived, and useless stories continued until the tub was almost more than half emptied.
It was a relief that the stories were somewhat interesting; if they had been boring, it would have been so long that he couldn't have endured it.
Anyway.
After going in circles, they finally reached the main point.
"And this time, I received a request from Biological Miracle. To steal a war weapon from the Great War era that the government was secretly hiding."
"...A war weapon?"
They were hiding something like that? The government?
Because of the Great War 100 years ago, the government was fed up with war weapons.
To think that such a government was hiding a war weapon.
Seo's mind became confused.
"Yeah. Those fools who outwardly preach peace were secretly stashing away a war weapon. This grand self couldn't just stand by and watch that."
"So that's why you stole it?"
"Of course! War weapons are dangerous things! Especially if it's from the Great War era!"
Laila huffed.
She then went on to say that if those with power possessed such weapons, the world would fall into chaos, boasting puffed up with pride that if it hadn't been for her, another war might have broken out.
"Then what happened to that war weapon?"
"Huh? Since I was commissioned to steal it, of course I delivered it to the client."
"...To Biological Miracle?"
"That's right."
"Ah..."
Seo realized.
This woman is a huge idiot.
Right up until a moment ago she was blabbering about what happens if someone with power gets a war weapon, yet she actually handed that weapon over to Biological Miracle.
[Seo-nim, it seems we've found the culprit for now.]
Yeah, except the culprit's state is far from ordinary.
In his mind, Seo recalled Biological Miracle—more specifically, the CEO of Biological Miracle.
What on earth is that person plotting?
"It's okay, it's okay! I understand what you're worried about, but Biological Miracle is a good company!"
At Laila's words, Seo held his forehead.
It seemed this request was going to be a bigger headache than he had expected.