Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: AI Deep Learning
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Today, I head to the Tower for work as usual.
Boss floors don't repeat, so I pick the 16th floor.
Today's goal is just one thing.
Test the robe's performance.
On top of that, it was about time for my level to go up.
I'd probably level up on the next floor at the latest.
[You have entered the 16th floor (EXTREME).]
I step into the familiar Tower, and sure enough, I'm greeted by the same old tiresome jungle scenery.
"Sigh, jungle again...."
It had gone from boring to almost nostalgic.
The stifling air grew thicker with every floor in this jungle.
Thinking that we'd only passed half of this environment since the 11th floor made my vision go dark.
This floor had one slight difference, though.
A creepy sound coming from deep in the jungle.
The whoosh, whoosh sounds, followed by something swiftly brushing through the underbrush.
Soon, the bushes in front of me rustled violently, and a monster I'd never seen before appeared.
"Lizardmen, huh."
A form like half-human, half-reptile.
Its body, covered in green scales, looked tough, and it held sharp bone spears in both hands.
There were five of them.
They flicked out their tongues and charged.
"They say Lizardmen flicking their tongues means they're really pissed."
But these mob monsters were no longer a threat to me.
I decided to go full efficiency mode.
"Desertification."
Dry sand instantly swallowed the swamp around my feet.
While the Lizardmen hesitated, I prepared my next skill.
"Sand Totem."
The number of totems I summoned: twenty.
Several times more than usual.
Elongated sand pillars like totem poles rose up over the desert.
I crumbled my fingertips into sand and mixed bits of my body into each totem.
The pillar-like totems slowly began to take on my form.
Twenty sand clones, identical to me, lined up in front of me.
A number of clones I could never normally control.
For a moment, I recalled the 15th floor boss fight.
The memory of my brain overloading while simultaneously controlling the giant golem and a bunch of clones.
I thought my head was going to explode back then.
But now, there was no need for that.
I grunted as I pulled out the Legendary Robe and put it on.
"Ugh, it's seriously too big."
A child's body.
No way something that seemed a bit large even for an adult man would fit.
"Can't even take it to a tailor...."
Grumbling, I activated the robe's sole option.
A robe with no stat bonuses, just one single line as its option.
[Artificial Mana Core Creation.]
I activated the magic embedded in the robe.
As if I'd known it from the start, the method to use this new skill naturally popped into my head.
I extended my hand toward the sand clones in front of me.
"Artificial Mana Core, bestow."
Blue-glowing mana circuits engraved themselves onto the clones' bodies.
Mana began to flow through them, intricate as human veins.
At the center, where a heart should be, a brightly shining artificial core formed.
I smiled in satisfaction and gave the clones their orders.
"Good. Everyone, attack!"
Even without me micromanaging their movements, the clones started moving on their own.
The twenty clones charged at the Lizardmen individually.
One against four. No chance of losing.
"Hunting is all about auto-hunt, after all."
I stepped back comfortably and watched my clones hunt with a pleased expression.
The ultimate freeloading hunt system was now complete.
"...Huh?"
But something was off.
The clones' movements were way too clumsy.
One tripped over its own feet mid-charge, another swung its fist at empty air.
One tried to fire a sand bullet but failed and just mimed it in the air.
Some couldn't even dodge Lizardmen attacks and took direct hits.
Thwack!
A clone hit by a bone spear had its chest punched through, sand spilling out.
"What the hell, why'd you take that hit?"
I clicked my tongue.
Looks like my expectations were too high.
In the end, I couldn't just watch and stepped in myself.
"Sheesh, you guys can't even take it easy."
I fired sand bullets and lightly cleaned up the Lizardmen.
The tide turned in an instant.
These guys weren't opponents for me even if a hundred came at once.
I recovered the wrecked clones and trapped the surviving Lizardmen in sand prisons.
I needed training sandbags.
I lined up the remaining intact clones in a row.
I had them each hold a spear made of sand.
"Alright, watch closely. This is how you attack."
I mimed extending my arm forward.
The clones awkwardly thrust their spears in sync with my motion.
Swish-swish. Flop-flop.
Movements with no power, just wobbling.
Not a shred of sharpness.
"...Now defense!"
I took a defensive stance with my spear.
The clones couldn't even follow that properly and just flopped over.
I rubbed my forehead.
My head was spinning.
Were these really my clones?
"Come to think of it, they were like this on the 10th floor too...."
On the 10th floor, I'd given sand clones axes and tried using them.
But since they couldn't go beyond my own experience, they had zero combat ability, so I gave up.
This time, with auto-drive AI loaded, I thought it'd be better, but they were still idiots.
Looks like the skill doesn't provide knowledge or experience.
"No way this is how it ends."
Back home, I immediately turned on my computer.
And posted on the Mage Gallery asking for advice.
[Title: How do you raise summon intelligence?]
Author: Anonymous (D55.555)
Loaded auto-drive on my clones now.
Basically real summons at this point?
But they're so dumb they can't fight....
Any ways to train summons?
- Magic is Firepower: Golem types have low intelligence by default.
- Refrigerator: I know a bit about summons.
- Refrigerator: Keep them summoned all the time and let them watch what you do. They'll learn bit by bit.
Refrigerator's comment was crystal clear.
Keep them around constantly to learn?
"Not a bad idea."
I decided to put it into action right away.
I summoned one sand clone about my height.
My already messy tiny studio felt instantly crammed.
"Alright. Let's have it learn by doing housework...."
I bestowed an artificial mana core on the clone and gave it an order.
"Hey, start by doing the dishes over there."
The clone tilted its head as if it heard me.
Then it glanced around the room and, without hesitation, walked to my bed and flopped down.
"...What are you doing right now?"
Instead of answering, the clone turned its head to look at me.
Pfft-.
What appeared on its sandy face was a blatant smirk.
"This bastard...?"
A mere summon daring to develop an ego and sass me? You're dead.
I couldn't hold back my anger and turned the clone back to sand.
I let out a deep sigh as I watched the sand scatter on the floor.
"Hoo, pisses me off...."
But I couldn't give up.
I gathered the sand again and made a new clone.
Hoping this one would be proper, I bestowed another mana core.
"Alright, this time...."
While I pondered what to have it do, the newborn clone started moving on its own.
I watched closely to see where it was going.
The clone headed straight for my computer desk.
It naturally sat in the gaming chair and grabbed the keyboard and mouse.
'...What're you trying to do?'
I watched in shock.
With familiar hand movements, it turned on the computer.
Then it launched the browser from the desktop and clicked something in the bookmarks.
What appeared on the screen was all too familiar.
Hunter Gallery.
"Hey, you crazy bitch!!"
I mercilessly turned this clone back to sand too.
I stood there dazed for a moment.
The mental shock was too much.
Then, a horrifying realization hit me.
"No way... these things are mimicking what I usually do?"
It all made sense now.
Why the first clone lay on the bed.
Why the second started gallery browsing.
Because those were my usual activities at home.
Lying in bed or sitting at the computer gallery-surfing.
That was all they had to learn from my behavior.
A deep wave of self-reflection about my life suddenly crashed over me.
"No, there's no way I'm that trash...."
I had to find a solution.
For the dignity of my humanity, at least.
After some thought, I came up with one clever idea.
I turned the computer back on and launched Nutube.
I typed in search terms like practical martial arts or swordsmanship.
Out of the many videos, I picked the most legit-looking one and played it fullscreen.
On the screen, a buff guy was showing off flashy kicks and punches.
I made another sand clone.
"Alright, watch carefully. Move like that."
The clone stood stock-still in front of the screen and started watching the video.
It looked pretty serious.
'Alright, seems effective this time.'
Feeling relieved, I decided to step out for a bit.
My stomach was growling, so I figured I'd hit the nearby convenience store.
"Don't slack off while I'm gone—study hard."
I sternly warned the clone and left the house.
Ten minutes later, snacks in both hands, I returned.
And had to doubt my own eyes.
The monitor was no longer playing the martial arts video.
Instead, videos packed with stimulating thumbnails and sound effects were playing rapidly.
[Top 5 Worst Monsters Found in the Tower!]
[Frequency That Makes You a Mage in Just 1 Hour]
The clone had turned off my educational video and was watching trashy Nutube content.
I dropped the convenience store bag on the floor.
The road ahead felt endlessly long.