The Uninvited Guest and the Ghost in the Machine

I’m currently practicing abstinence... It’s already been a week since I took down the Human Hunter. The broadcasting station I’d visited, thinking it was a distress signal, had been home to an unexpected Queen-class monster. I’d almost been wiped out by a single sucker punch, but thanks to my perfect control, Revi’s heavy-hitting fists, and Serika’s—ahem—very timely "rear-end assistance," we all managed to survive. Plus, there was an unexpected harvest.

Since our base didn’t even have a proper workshop yet, I hadn’t expected to be able to craft weapons or modify gear, even after taking down a Queen-class monster. I thought it would just be extra work for no reward. But.

"It’s a good thing it’s a broadcasting station."

"Chanwoo?"

"Why are you saying that? We should be heading out."

In the original Star's Doll, these old ruins—especially broadcasting stations, research labs, and factories—were overflowing with hidden farming points.

"Not yet. We need to grab a few things before we leave."

"Grab... things?"

"I’m hoping there might be some dead batteries or residual circuits left that can store power."

"......!"

Inside the ruined broadcasting station, there were more power components, spare batteries, and traces of ancient humanity than I’d imagined. Some were still functional, and we managed to scavenge quite a decent haul by collecting them one by one. And even more unexpected than that was Revi. Facing the core of the Queen-class monster, she had followed some intuition she couldn’t even explain herself, absorbing a portion of its power as if she were "consuming" it. A strange energy reaction. A white light flowing through her fingertips as she reached out by instinct. It ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was a phenomenon I’d never seen before, not even in the original game. The core was absorbed, the light vanished, and Revi remained as stoic as ever. Nothing seemed to have changed, but something remained. A single, unshakable certainty: This... is a 'variable' I’ve never seen before.

And then, the bodies of the countless androids sacrificed to the Human Hunter. There were no signs of battle, no damage. Their bodies were pristine, but their cores had been precisely extracted, and they lay there as if they had simply fallen into a quiet sleep. The sight was almost beautiful. Their expressions looked like they were dreaming, their hands were neatly folded, and their clothes were free of even a speck of dust. In the cold ruins, those remains lying there like flowers... they could no longer be called "parts." They were, without a doubt, "those who died for humanity."

"Revi, did you find a shovel?"

"No. There were no shovels, but my hands are more than enough for the depth you requested, Chanwoo."

"Wow."

I was genuinely impressed. Following the dimensions I’d specified, Revi and Serika began digging over ten graves, each about a meter deep, in front of the broadcasting station entrance. I carefully carried the fallen androids out one by one and buried them with the utmost care.

"You all worked hard."

As I quietly covered the last grave with earth, I whispered to them. At that moment, Revi and Serika, who had been watching the scene from the side, tilted their heads in unison.

"Chanwoo, what exactly are you doing right now?"

"Why go to the trouble of burying androids that have ceased functioning? Units with their cores removed are simply items for disposal."

"That’s right. There was no need to go through all this trouble. If they were an eyesore, I could have just disposed of them with my laser..."

As expected. To these calculating androids, the concept of a funeral was bound to be foreign. But without a word, I walked up to them and gently placed my hands on their heads, stroking their hair.

"This is... the bare minimum of courtesy for ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the dead."

"The... minimum... courtesy? ...Is that so?"

"Yes. These androids fought for us humans. So, as a human, I want to show the minimum amount of respect for their sacrifice."

Revi and Serika still didn’t seem to understand, but somewhere in their eyes, there was a faint, tiny glimmer of "understanding." After a short moment of silence, we went back into the broadcasting station to dismantle the power production equipment and farm for parts. The result? We managed to cut the power charging time, which had previously taken two months, by more than half. The base where Revi and I lived was literally becoming a small utopia of self-sufficiency.

"Electricity is accumulating smoothly, and we have enough food stockpiled..."

"According to my calculations, the probability of survival until we can send a transmission to R.P.M. is approximately 92.41%."

Revi’s statistics are always reassuring to hear. We had returned to our base, a small ruin that used to be a motel, and were living a comfortable life. Smoked meat, lake water, and the power we gathered day by day. In this apocalypse, this was practically a noble’s life. However, there was just one strange thing happening lately...

"Hmm..."

"..."

"Huuuuum..."

It was Revi. Ever since she absorbed the Human Hunter’s core, she had suddenly started "meditating" for some reason. And it wasn’t just for a day or two—it had already been a week.

"I’m going to the bathroom."

"Chanwoo."

"Yeah?"

"I’ll say it again just in case... but right now, masturbation is prohibited."

"Ah, right..."

And that was the real problem. She wasn’t just practicing abstinence herself; she was strictly forbidding me from "taking care of myself." And it wasn’t just a casual request—she was dead serious, with a stern face, as if she were making a vow.

"Please, not right now, Chanwoo."

Revi couldn’t explain why. But her gaze was clear. I could feel the sincerity in her eyes, as if she would grab my hands to stop me at any moment, and I couldn’t ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠help but nod, feeling guilty for no reason. What was even more baffling was that we had originally promised to naturally share each other’s breast milk and semen whenever we returned to this base! A human and an android together in this apocalypse. A relationship where we could be each other’s comfort and share sensations beyond mere survival. In fact, right after we survived the last battle, Revi had naturally tried to take off my pants. The touch, the gaze, the breath at that moment... it had all felt like a certainty. But now? She was in a "hardened abstinence mode" that I couldn’t even touch. She had started meditating on her own and had issued a ban on me moving even a single finger. What on earth had changed? It wasn’t like there was something wrong with her body... no, if anything, she looked too healthy, which made me even more anxious. And so, a subtle imbalance and a suppressed peace continued quietly.

Then, one day.

"I have arrived!"

"Huh?"

"What?!"

Serika, the owner of the tuna canning factory and now a VIP visitor to our base. She had brazenly entered our "little utopia" with her loot bags stuffed to the brim in both hands, and she said,

"Hey, I can live here for a while, right?"

...And with that, my peace began to shatter.

***

A peaceful day. A quiet apocalypse. And... I had one more pair of breasts to deal with.

"...I’m screwed."

That meant 3P was now possible! ...As if. I was already in the middle of a mysterious abstinence life, so what kind of "crazy obstacle" was this?

"Se, Serika?! You should be at the tuna canning base!"

"Yeah. That’s true."

"Then why did you suddenly come here?"

"Ah, well... how should I put it? Things got a bit complicated? Besides, the world isn’t fun if everything goes exactly the way you want it to, right?"

Having said that, Serika walked into our four-person motel bedroom as if it were the most natural thing in the world. And in the blink of an eye, she tossed her luggage right into the middle of the bed we’d been using together.

"Ahem, I’ll be in your care ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠starting today, okay?"

The way she stretched out her legs, looking completely indifferent. Watching her unpack as if she were the owner of the motel room, Revi and I were both left speechless. She had literally just moved in. And then, over the hand of Revi, who was trembling like a fighting cock, she placed something that looked like a "bribe."

"Hey, Revi. Don’t be like that, let’s get along. The building is big, and the bed is huge, right?"

"What is... this?"

"A gift~ Here, take it. It’s canned saury, no less."

"Sau... ry?"

"Sau, sau... saury?!"

For a moment, Revi’s eyes widened, and I instinctively swallowed my saliva. In a ruined world where even canned tuna was a luxury, canned saury?!

"You only ever eat cheap tuna, so you’ve never seen this, right? Saury was originally a high-end item."

"...D, do you have another one?"

At that moment, Revi’s gaze toward Serika shifted from "intruder" to "supplier."

"Serika, you’re truly amazing..."

"Hehe. I, is that so? I found an abandoned fish farm between the beach and the factory. After I cleaned off the radiation, it was actually pretty edible."

Running a tuna canning factory and even harvesting and producing saury herself. She was truly the alchemist of the canned food world.

"But... why did you really come here? You usually preferred being alone."

"Th, that’s..."

"That’s right. Go back. This is our territory. *Munch, munch*... Go away..."

Even as she refused with her mouth, Revi was already opening the can of saury. Serika avoided my gaze and looked out the window. Her lips were perfectly groomed as usual, but somewhere in her eyes, there was an unexplainable hesitation and a moment of lingering doubt. She hadn’t said it outright, but it was clear she had come because something had happened. Yet, she was acting as if she were just bored, or just "passing by." That felt even stranger. It was like the quiet hunger of someone who wanted to be by your side while hiding the reason why. And it was then that this strange peace was abruptly shattered.

[ ...Help me... ]

"Huh?"

"What was that?"

The old TV in the corner of the motel room. The signal should have been cut off long ago, and external reception should be impossible, right? A clear female voice emanated from it. Before, signals had come through with mechanical electronic noise, but this was different. This time... it was the screen.

Over the static-filled screen, along with the characteristic bleeding effect of an old CRT, red letters slowly began to rise.