A Father's Plea
The sudden appearance of a giant robot in the world—specifically, the Steel Titan of P City—first launched an assault on the neighboring W City. It wasn't out of any longstanding grudge between the two cities. Rather, it was simply because W City possessed the resources P City desperately needed.
As an industrial city, P City would become nothing more than a useless tin can the moment its resources ran dry. Invading resource-rich W City first was the most logical move.
A factory capable of building anything given the right materials had begun moving on its own, hungry for resources. What did the other cities do in the meantime?
They simply watched. Or rather, not just watched.
Relief supplies from various cities continue to arrive in W City day after day… Refugees line up to receive rations. The International Refugee Organization has issued a stern warning to P City—
While sending aid, the other cities quietly turned a blind eye to P City's actions. It wasn't hard to understand why. They were all afraid. Afraid of that giant robot that had appeared out of nowhere, smashing through heroes and military weapons alike as it advanced.
No one knew just how powerful this super robot, straight out of a comic book, truly was. In such a situation, not a single city was willing to dispatch their S-class heroes to stop it.
The balance between heroes and villains in each city was delicate. If an S-class hero sent to another city were to die, the entire city could collapse.
“Did we send anything? That thing?”
“Of course we did. Where else would we spend that kind of money?”
“We are an evil organization, right…?”
After a hollow laugh at the boss's mention of sending relief supplies, the TV once again showed the giant robot—the Steel Titan—blowing apart tanks and fighter jets.
Steam billowed from the Steel Titan's entire body as its arm moved with impossible speed for something so massive, snatching up a tank. Then, with a casual flick, it hurled the tank straight at a fighter jet. The jet, which had been flying erratically, was struck dead-on as if the Steel Titan had predicted its trajectory.
Hundreds of millions of dollars vanished in an instant. Dozens of lives were snuffed out meaninglessly. Even we, who proudly called ourselves villains, found the sight rather distasteful.
‘Well, even if they're villains or terrorists, they probably don't kill as many people as those who start wars.’
War was horrific, and the humans who casually started such wars were even more so. Freedom was far too extravagant a gift for humanity. Perhaps it would be better to strip everyone of their free will and grant them only the freedom that had already been predetermined—
The TV screen changed.
It showed citizens who hadn't yet fled for various reasons, and the heroes rescuing them.
“There's no need to panic! Everyone can reach safety if you just wait your turn—”
“A building collapsing doesn't mean the country is collapsing! Citizens! Stealing or looting is a criminal act—”
Even in this hopeless situation where everything was falling apart, they didn't lose their light. They saved people. They sacrificed themselves for others. Watching that scene, any hatred toward humanity melted away like snow, leaving only pure aspiration and a racing heart.
I was smiling faintly at the sight when the phone suddenly rang. The boss answered, nodded a few times, then looked at me cautiously.
“—Scientist?”
“Yes, Boss.”
“Apparently you have a visitor… What will you do?”
“A visitor? For me?”
I tilted my head, wondering who would come looking for me, when the boss told me who it was.
“A scientist who worked with you in P City. Someone named Steelstone.”
“Why would he come here…?”
“How would I know? Will you meet him? Or refuse?”
Surprised that Steelstone, who should have been maintaining the Steel Titan in P City right now, had come all the way here, I immediately arranged to meet him.
Leaving the chairman's office, I headed straight to the lobby and found Steelstone there, covered in far more soot than he'd had back at the research lab.
“Steelstone! What brings you here…”
Before I could finish, I noticed something odd about the robe he was wearing. It fluttered loosely, making it hard to tell at first, but his right arm was completely missing.
Realizing I'd noticed, Steelstone raised his empty right shoulder in a casual greeting.
“—Hey. Dr. Eight.”
The Steelstone I'd met again after so long had lost his right arm.
“Here's some green tea. Please have some.”
“Thanks.”
Inside the lab, after reaching a place away from prying eyes, Steelstone finally removed his robe. His movements were awkward as he picked up the teacup—like someone still not used to having only one arm. That alone told me his arm hadn't originally been missing.
In other words, he'd lost it recently. It wasn't hard to guess why.
‘Did he rebel because the Steel Titan he treated like a son was killing people without a second thought?’
Of course, he was one of the people who knew the Steel Titan had been built as a decisive weapon. But no matter what the design philosophy was or what its original purpose had been, no one would willingly accept their child killing people. Especially not Steelstone, who had built the Steel Titan simply because he enjoyed making weapons, not because he wanted it to kill.
“Your right arm…”
“—This? I left it behind. In the new era.”
“……That's your left arm.”
After coughing awkwardly at the way he was looking at me like I'd said something strange, I realized what he meant by “new era.”
“So you left Punk Technology?”
“They said they didn't need me anymore since I'd already built the Steel Titan. When I tried to leave… they didn't exactly let me go quietly.”
“Your arm…”
Steelstone stroked the stump where his right arm had been and gave a bitter smile. For a man who had built robots with both hands, losing an arm meant far more than just the loss of a limb. It was also to ensure he couldn't build a weapon to defeat the Steel Titan with anyone else's support.
“So, why did you come to see me?”
“……There are a few things I wanted to ask.”
“Go ahead.”
At my words, Steelstone explained everything that had happened to him. From the day after I left, when the Steel Titan suddenly started acting strange, to exactly what commands it followed and how it moved.
Listening to him, I finally understood why the Steel Titan had suddenly lost its heroic spirit and begun slaughtering people mercilessly.
“That's… hacking. Quite impressive, really.”
“Hacking? You can hack a soul?”
“Of course you can. Humans can be hacked too, can't they?”
“……Don't tell me, mind control?”
“Yes. That's right.”
I hadn't even considered it. The idea that someone would attempt mind control on a machine—and that it would actually work—was something I'd never imagined.
But just as espers could casually accomplish things modern science could never achieve, their powers possessed an inexplicable mystery that defied logic. For example, espers could create wind in space, freeze fire, or even teleport with their bare bodies. Sometimes, simply believing something impossible could make it possible.
“But something's strange. I thought we'd blocked external access.”
What puzzled me was that the Steel Titan's soul was hidden deep inside. Unless someone who could directly operate the Steel Titan from within possessed an esper ability capable of brainwashing even machines, this shouldn't have been possible.
The fact that it had been done meant there was already a spy inside Punk Technology. No—given P City's actions, it was far more likely that this had been their goal from the very beginning rather than a spy infiltrating to brainwash the Steel Titan…
“……In other words, one of us made the Steel Titan that way. Is that it?”
“Calling it ‘one of us’ is a bit misleading. It was originally built as a weapon like that. —Everyone except you, Steelstone, probably thought that way.”
“No… That's not possible…”
Steelstone let out a strangled sound for a long time. There was nothing more unsightly than a grown man sobbing, but I quietly looked away.
After sniffling and choking for a while, Steelstone lifted his head and muttered.
“That's… That's too cruel…!”
Because of adult circumstances, a newborn child had been turned into a weapon that knew only slaughter. It was only natural that Steelstone, who truly thought of the Steel Titan as his son, would find it heartbreaking.
“It's too much. Too much. If you're human—if you're a person—you shouldn't do this…!”
“You're right.”
“How… How could they do this?”
After cursing for a while, Steelstone wiped his tears as if he'd made a decision and met my eyes. The eyes that had been like dying embers were gone, replaced by flames that burned fiercely once more.
“—Help me, Dr. Eight.”
“……With what?”
“Saving the Steel Titan.”
“How am I supposed to help with that?”
“If it's you, you can do it, can't you?”
Steelstone muttered as if he knew everything. I stared at him in silence for a moment.
Seeing my gaze, Steelstone flinched, then immediately dropped to his knees and banged his head against the floor.
“—I want to save my son! From those humans!”
A father's sincerity could sometimes move even villains. I quietly grabbed his shoulders and helped him to his feet.
“To break the Steel Titan's brainwashing, we'd need to access its control device. That's probably difficult for you now, isn't it?”
“I've already quit…”
“Then there's only one option left.”
“What do you mean…”
“We have to defeat the Steel Titan ourselves and connect directly to its core.”
Steelstone looked up at me with disbelief. I nodded and smiled.
“You'll have to build another child, Steelstone.”
I held out the red pill. Taking it, Steelstone looked up at me with eyes full of salvation. In the father's eyes, the last conscience of humanity was reflected.