Chapter 172: And So, the Gears Began to Turn (1)
Chapter 172: And So, the Gears Began to Turn (1)
"Librarian?"
"Yes?"
"We were definitely in the middle of enemy territory, right?"
"Yes, we were digging through the ground until just a moment ago."
"Then what exactly is this spread out in front of us?"
"I am wondering that myself."
Even though we had clearly been digging downward, we had emerged from beneath the earth into... this.
We hadn't fallen from a ceiling. No, the place we emerged after tunneling through the ground was a perfectly ordinary street.
A street lined with buildings and cars driving by. A street where... things that might be people were walking around.
We had arrived in an alleyway overlooking such a street.
"...Anything on the sensors?"
"Hard to say. We're so deep underground that most communications are dead. However..."
"However, what?"
I’m already annoyed by the situation, so spit it out. I’ve dealt with enough of this crap lately to be on edge.
"It’s not an illusion, nor is it mental manipulation. It’s not a dimensional shift or a Hole, either. This place physically exists in our reality. Provided my instruments aren't malfunctioning, that is."
A place that physically exists.
Come to think of it, I feel like I read about something like this in a book once...
Something about reptile people... something about the inside of the Earth...
What was it called again?
"That... thing... where the inside of the Earth is hollow..."
Unable to recall the specific term, I ended up squeezing out a pathetic description.
"Are you referring to the Hollow Earth Theory?"
My dear friend picked up on my trailing sentence and provided the answer I couldn't find.
"Yeah, that. You’re not suggesting something as crazy as the Hollow Earth Theory is actually true, are you?"
No matter how I thought about it, it was unscientific. I know our world has gone to hell, but the idea of the Earth's interior being hollow and filled with lizard people was just...
"Hmm. It does seem to be something similar."
Librarian’s words flatly contradicted my expectations.
"Huh?"
The response was so unexpected that I asked back reflexively. My tone—and my look of utter disdain—carried a very clear message: There’s no way such a ridiculous thing is actually happening right now, you crazy scientist.
"Don't look at me like that. I am well aware of how absurd the concept is. Besides, this area isn't even that large. It’s roughly the size of Seoul, perhaps? They likely applied spatial expansion to its absolute limit."
Hahaha. Only the size of Seoul, he says.
Hahahaha.
"Just how many times do you have to expand space to make that possible? What? It was impressive enough when you expanded the base a few hundred times, but you’re saying they expanded this place tens of thousands of times? Seriously?"
At least say something that makes sense. Is your gauge broken? It’d be easier to believe this was all just a hallucination.
I pressed Librarian with my arguments, but he only looked back at me with a puzzled expression.
"Hmm? Did you perhaps not notice?"
"Notice what?"
Is there something weird? I don't feel anything out of the ordinary.
Since I had no way of knowing, I waited for Librarian’s rambling explanation.
"Hmm. If even Lee Ha-ram can't feel it... perhaps it’s a sensation biological organisms cannot perceive. It might be something only I can sense. A truly fascinating subject."
As if his obsessive research switch had been flipped, Librarian ignored me and began muttering to himself, staring into thin air.
"Hey, I don't care what you're researching, but we're in enemy territory. Share the info already."
Before I level this whole place.
"Ah. Right. It was so intriguing that I lost myself for a moment. It’s a bad habit I really should fix. Though, I feel like I said that yesterday as well..."
This guy...
"Fine. I'll start by beating the crap out of you today—"
Clank.
The heavy weight of the gauntlet settled onto my hand. Just as I was about to swing it at Librarian’s head—
"Try touching that wall over there," Librarian said, his expression suddenly turning serious. He added a cold sideways glance at my gauntlet, as if asking, 'Why did you even pull that out?'
Hah. Look at this guy. He really thinks he’s never in the wrong.
Sigh. Fine, I’ll let it slide. I’m the one who’s older, has more experience, and does all the dirty work, so I should be the bigger person.
Thinking about it just makes me angry again.
If I spent any more time dwelling on Librarian’s nonsense or his double standards, I’d lose my mind first. I stopped grumbling and reached out toward The Wall as he suggested.
It was a concrete wall of a building, the kind you could find anywhere in a city. I reached toward the slightly damp, cracked surface of the alleyway wall.
Perhaps that was why.
Crunch.
The moment my hand made contact, The Wall collapsed.
Rumble.
The stone shattered into pieces and fell, kicking up a cloud of dust. I hadn't even intended to break it. I had merely touched it.
"Uh... that wasn't my fault, okay?"
It was an accident. Just a coincidence...
I knew that wasn't true, but I repeated it to myself anyway.
"Did I say anything? It’s only natural that it would happen, so don't worry about it. The composition of the matter forming this place is extremely thin."
Fortunately, Librarian didn't blame me for the incident and gave me a straight answer.
That’s a relief. I didn't ruin anything.
But putting that aside...
"What do you mean, the matter is 'thin'?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. Normally, when expanding space, additional measures are required to adjust density so that the internal matter doesn't 'stretch' along with it. They skipped those measures here, which allowed them to expand the space beyond its limits. As a side effect, the composition of all matter became distorted... No. Is it the opposite? Did they use that side effect to create this world...? If so, what could their intention possibly be..."
Fucking science geek.
* * *
After that, we continued walking through the city.
We headed toward the location where Librarian said he felt a concentration of power.
We encountered people along the way, but they didn't react to us at all. It was as if we were invisible or didn't exist.
And yet, it was clear they were aware of our presence. As we moved through the crowds, a curiously perfect circle of empty space formed around us.
It was as if they instinctively knew that touching us would mean their death.
I decided to ask Librarian about them.
"Are those things human?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, are they like the machines we saw above?"
"They are living organisms. It seems some kind of process has been applied to their brains. Rather than humans, it would be more accurate to call them bio-mechanical puppets mimicking humans."
Hearing that, I abandoned any thought of approaching them, even as a joke. I had no desire to watch something that looked like a person explode in front of me.
Anyway.
"Why do they even exist?"
"In what sense?"
What do you mean, 'in what sense'?
"I mean, they’re living their lives here. Or maybe they’re just following a set routine. Either way, they’re acting like humans."
It was true. Even just looking at this crowded street, countless Simulated Humans were busy doing something.
People running shops.
People buying and eating food.
People operating street stalls.
People singing.
People dancing.
People performing street art.
It was a literal scene of a disorganized crowd, devoid of any apparent efficiency or rigid order. Aside from the fact that they perceived us as non-existent, it was all too natural.
Even their conversations, drifting on the wind, sounded normal.
'How are you going to submit the assignment?'
'Our group is such a mess...'
Just ordinary conversations.
Why did something like this exist at The Core of The Enemy’s base? On an island where everything else was made of machinery, why were these Simulated Humans here?
"...I don't know."
Even Librarian, who usually had an answer for everything, seemed unable to offer an opinion on this. He fell silent.
A perfectly natural space existing inside the utterly unnatural Island of Steel.
We continued walking through that place.
Toward a building visible in the distance.
Toward the place where the power was felt.
The people singing on the street would pack up their instruments and say goodbye to the crowd as we approached, as if they had intended to leave all along.
Those setting up stalls would suddenly change color and disappear somewhere, as if they had a sudden bathroom emergency.
It was all so natural that one might think we weren't actually there and weren't influencing anything at all.
"...Did you feel anything?"
"Nothing. It was exactly as it seemed. The song was ending, and the vendor really did have a stomachache."
Hearing that, I briefly wondered what would happen if I walked into a shop that was currently open for business.
But I soon dismissed the thought. Whatever happened, I was sure it would seem perfectly natural.
In that case, there was only one thing left to do.
"Let's just get there, see the face of the guy who made this, and ask him ourselves."
"Ask him what?"
Isn't it obvious?
"Ask him why the hell a place like this exists."
With those words, I picked up the pace. I made sure to stay within a range that wouldn't disrupt the 'natural' flow of the surroundings.
* * *
The place we arrived at was a university.
There were several buildings, but we headed toward one where the windows were brightly lit despite it being night.
From one of the classrooms, a voice could be heard—slow, rhythmic, and steady.
"...Now, this is a question first posed by Plutarch and later addressed by Hobbes. Regarding the two identities..."
An unnatural voice echoing within this natural space.
I had definitely heard this voice before. It was the same voice we had heard back in the Mechanical Forest before coming here.
Upon hearing it, we looked at each other and nodded. Librarian slowly opened the classroom door, taking care not to break it.
We were certain that it was just beyond this door.
Slide.
The door opened, and a single pair of eyes focused on us.
A fragile-looking Westerner with blond hair and blue eyes. A professor standing in front of a chalkboard, giving a lecture.
He looked exactly like what Librarian might look like if he were older and had wrinkles.
"...Undergraduates, I believe we'll have to end today's lecture here. It seems some long-awaited guests have arrived."
Only then did the students in the classroom seem to notice our presence, their gazes shifting toward us in silence.
"I will schedule a supplemental lecture for this material at a later date. For today, everyone will be marked as present regardless of attendance."
As the professor finished speaking, the students began quietly packing their bags. One by one, they filed out.
They all exited through the back door, not the front door where we stood.
Creak. Thud.
The door closed, leaving only the three of us in the classroom.
The old professor.
Librarian.
And me.
A heavy silence followed.
The two of us stood by the door, glaring at the professor. The professor looked back at us while tidying his teaching materials.
He acted with such natural ease, as if he truly lived this life.
And yet, nothing about the professor's appearance was natural. I had thought he looked like Librarian, but that was only his face.
Below the neck, he was clearly covered in silver metal, unmistakably a machine. From his sleeves and the hems of his trousers, severed wires dangled, occasionally spitting sparks.
He was the very image of an android or a robot.
I wanted to say something to him, but I wasn't the protagonist of this scene. I was merely an observer. I wasn't the one who needed to speak.
After some time had passed...
"Why don't you take a seat instead of just standing there?"
The Enemy broke the silence. Aside from the mechanical tone, his voice felt almost friendly.
To be honest, I just wanted to lung forward and swing my hammer, but since Librarian was staying still, I remained standing quietly with my hands behind my back.
"If you're worried about damaging the furniture, you needn't be. I've made it so that the area around me is automatically reinforced."
No, that’s not why. I’m just being quiet because Librarian is being quiet.
Regardless of The Enemy’s consideration, Librarian didn't move. After about thirty seconds of staring The Enemy down...
"I have something I want to ask."
Librarian finally spoke.
"What is your question?"
The Enemy responded calmly, showing he was ready to listen.
"Whew."
Librarian took a deep breath. As if the question he was about to ask was of the utmost importance. He closed his eyes tightly, his whole face tensing.
Then, the moment Librarian’s eyes snapped open...
"There is a chip in my brain. Did you put it there?"
He squeezed out the question, his voice trembling.
"I did."
The Enemy answered simply, as if it weren't a problem at all.
Librarian bit his lip hard. Then, as if he had finally made up his mind, he spoke again.
"Then, my next question. The chip that replaces my brain, which is in a vegetative state... did you program it? Was every action I've taken your intention?"
He threw out the shocking question.