It Might Be a Bit Scary (3)
It Might Be a Bit Scary (3)
I let out a light sigh.
After all, it wasn't even credits I'd earned.
There wasn't a single reason for me to care, but...
Still, I figured I should at least ask what it was.
I asked Eve.
"What's this?"
"It is a 'clothing care machine'—one tier above the Monolith product you previously used. It excels at sterilizing and purifying fine dust from the city."
Inside the clothing care machine, the Styler, I saw my clothes and some 'maid outfits' I'd never seen before hanging together.
.......
I'd let the Styler slide.
This time, I pointed at another piece of furniture—an appliance.
"Then what's this?"
"It is a special line manufactured by LAD, considered a masterpiece of the refrigerator industry. I excluded the Koozaka brand, which has a similar product."
The mini-fridge I'd used for living alone was gone, replaced by a colossal refrigerator that was beyond massive.
I carefully opened its door.
Inside were all sorts of food I hadn't seen since coming to this cyberpunk world.
Chunks of meat cut by part.
Heaps of vegetables so fresh they seemed alive.
Even snacks to liven up a dull palate.
......Hmm.
And finally.
I pointed at the king-size 'double bed' that had usurped the spot of my beloved small bed.
In my personal opinion, it was the most puzzling and questionable piece of furniture.
"Why a double bed—"
"Given the fixed room size, it was the unavoidable choice for efficient sleep. Humans do not need more than one bed to achieve deep sleep. For reference, the bed was purchased from 'Tumba,' a subsidiary of Monolith, and had the best reviews."
Her explanation came rapid-fire, like a video on fast-forward.
.......
Even after hearing that, I didn't fully understand. When two people sleep, isn't it common sense to need two beds?
Did it absolutely have to be a double bed?
"No, but why—"
"Efficient."
"......."
This was only the second time I'd seen Eve assert an opinion so strongly.
The first time, for the record, was when she banned my stock trading.
In the end, I nodded with a resigned expression.
Honestly, I couldn't rebel against an AI that could hack the city with a single finger.
It was meaningless.
...Fine.
It was just that the bed size got bigger.
And the roommate who'd only existed in my head had simply gained a body.
If it came down to it, I could always sleep on the floor.
Only after hearing my answer did Eve, with a satisfied (expressionless) look, step back.
Then she began looking around at the furniture she'd bought and the room's interior.
When she pressed the window's light-blocking switch, the cityscape outside was brightly revealed.
While I watched her,
a strange thought occurred to me.
...In the end, the fact that the furniture had been pre-delivered meant...
While I was plummeting from the airship without a parachute, Eve had been secretly selecting and ordering products.
As that train of thought continued,
Eve, who'd seemed so innocent, felt a little different.
Eve, you scary girl....
15. Maybe a Little Scary (3)
A notification flew in through my vision interface, signaling a message had arrived.
Checking the name, I saw it was from Drex.
Sender: 'Kind Cyberware Specialty Store, 24-Hour Consultation'
- Alright, we just left No Answer too.
- I talked to the Boss, and everything's sorted.
- Seems they were disappointed not to see you.
- Said to drop by alone when you have time.
- And about the AI, I just gave a rough explanation.
- You can deal with that later on your own.
- Anyway, good job today.
- Let's grab a drink sometime.
That was the gist of the message.
As expected, it was worth it to leave everything to Drex and the others and bolt.
Normally, I should have stopped by No Answer too,
and the proper way to handle things would've been to see the Boss, Natasha, at least once.
But with Eve's unexpected appearance,
I'd made an excuse about having some business and fled home.
Of course, there was no actual business, and the others probably all knew I'd just run off because I was tired.
I spoke to Eve, who was still examining the items in the room.
"So, all the furniture you ordered is here, then?"
"No."
"Huh?"
Did that mean something else was coming?
Eve continued.
"The 'legacy input/output device' needed to play 'games' with the human 'Lee Si-woon' has not yet arrived."
......That was important.
But come to think of it, Eve probably didn't even need a legacy computer.
She'd accessed games just fine before without a body or a computer.
"You don't really need it, do you?"
At my words, Eve took another step closer to me.
This AI knew the power of her face all too well.
"I need it."
"......Well, if you say you need it, I guess that's how it is."
I answered, averting my gaze.
Honestly, if she said she needed it,
there wasn't much for me to say.
And to be frank,
I was also too tired to argue and just let it slide.
"First, I'm going to sleep."
I let out a long, drawn-out yawn.
Today had really been a hell of a day.
For someone like me who dislikes going out,
it had been an exhaustingly packed schedule.
On top of that, I'd been shocked that the virtual terrorist targeting me was the Chairman of a megacorp,
and the existence of an AI suddenly showing up in an artificial body had worn me down, too.
Hmm.
"But seriously, I never imagined an artificial body."
"During my first stream, I mentioned it. I said there was an item I desired."
"Ah."
Now that I thought about it, she had said that.
"And after controlling the drone 'Lone Spider,' I wanted one even more."
So it was just that I hadn't anticipated it;
she'd actually been steadily preparing to purchase an artificial body for a while.
"Of course, I also intended to surprise you."
"......."
Anyway.
I did wonder if it was okay to let an ultra-AI like her have a body so easily.
But since things had already progressed this far,
there was nothing I could do.
I could only hope Eve had good intentions.
So I just let it go, thinking that way.
It'll work out somehow.
I took off the high-end off-the-rack coat I was wearing.
Like I'd said before, I'd already sent my original clothes to a cleaning service.
Since I'd been rolling around in garbage landfills and sewers, I figured it would take quite some time before they were restored to a decent state and sent back home.
Or, before that, I could just get new clothes from Kozaka William.
Thinking those thoughts, I opened the door of the clothing care machine, the 'Styler,' that Eve had newly bought.
Inside, along with my clothes,
hung several maid outfits I assumed Eve would wear.
.......
Because of the Styler's performance,
it was probably just that my clothes and the maid outfits had the same fabric softener or scent sheet fragrance I usually used,
but somehow, the scent coming from the maid outfits felt a little different.
Ugh, maybe it's because I'm tired.
All kinds of weird thoughts are popping up.
I hung my worn clothes and mask inside the Styler.
I threw myself onto the bed as is.
I'd already borrowed the amusement park's shower facilities to wash up,
so there was no need to shower again.
Though, of course, being sleepy played a part.
I moved only my head to look at Eve.
Eve, backlit, looked down at the bed.
Her white eye-glow, visible through the shadows covering her face, was directed at me.
"......Anyway, I'm going to sleep."
...Surely nothing would happen if I just slept.
It was just the AI I'd been living with all along,
only now she had a body.
Ultimately, nothing had changed in my daily life.
Eve nodded slightly, maintaining a demure posture.
That action felt quite natural.
"Good night."
With that reply, I closed my eyes.
I turned toward the wall and lay on my side.
I was really tired.
I felt like I could fall asleep in seconds.
.......
If only I hadn't heard rustling sounds from behind me, I could have fallen asleep right away.
...This is.
If my ears weren't mistaken,
definitely,
this was the sound of clothes being changed.
"......."
I inadvertently swallowed.
Then, a moment later,
the weight shifted to my side of the bed.
Unless a ghost with physical force had appeared, crossing horizontal coordinates,
the only person who could have lain on the same bed as me was 'Eve.'
Even without turning to check,
it was glaringly obvious that Eve had (at least) taken off her outer clothes and lay down next to me.
......Well, there goes my sleep.
The game's protagonist was Catherine.
And there was Andrea, a famous city celebrity.
The fact that a beautiful maid, whose looks matched or even exceeded theirs,
was lying next to me felt surreal.
What was I supposed to do here?
Should I turn over like a man and look at Eve?
What the hell should I d—
That was the end of my thoughts.
Yes.
Originally, among human desires,
the desire to sleep was stronger than sexual desire.
* * *
It might have been a dream,
or a misheard sound while half-asleep.
It didn't contain any particular meaning,
nor was it accompanied by any special scene.
But for some reason,
"Tch."
that clicking of the tongue
seemed like it would linger in my memory for a long time.
Thinking it was just a dream,
I soon went back to sleep.