episode_0213

I noticed it as soon as I saw it.

This is not a human work.

A building like this cannot be produced due to the human nature of unconsciously pursuing aesthetic value and cutting edge rather than efficiency.

If you’re wondering if the shape was intentionally twisted in such a bizarre way, that’s not true.

Upon closer inspection, I realized that the flow of information and magic power from the end of each branch to the center was designed for maximum efficiency.

no. It’s not by design.

Rather than saying that it was designed this way, it would be more correct to say that it was designed this way after building it in pursuit of efficiency.

The order is wrong.

“Wait a minute, man. To get in here, you first need security clearance-”

Beep.

The front door is opened without any help, despite the unknown person’s attempts to dissuade it.

The bar door is the same as the door used in the old mansion.

However, since the view beyond is a completely different world, the sense of disconnection is quite severe.

“What is it? This is a place where even if the Frost Lord comes, he has to wait until a permit is issued before he can enter…”

An unknown person tilts his head as if questioning.

Don’t think about it that difficult.

Since the landlord came, I just opened the door.

That’s really the story.

‘As expected, Linda sees me.’

The predictions came true to some extent.

Linda can recognize me.

It’s normal to be overjoyed at this…

For some reason, it feels a little creepy.

“Are you going in? Just like this? Are you going to set off the alarm?”

“It doesn’t ring.”

“If there’s any trace of you coming here, you’ll be tracked down, right?”

“You can’t even be traced.”

“······?”

As I moved forward without hesitation, an unknown person followed me carefully from behind.

His face is full of worry.

There is absolutely nothing to worry about.

“······!”

Then inside.

The building in the center, which looked like a tree trunk, opened.

A figure… No, a machine appears.

[It’s been a while, master. How have you been?]

“The jokes have increased a lot.”

[Huhuhu······.]

A clockwork machine in a maid’s uniform burst out into laughter and covered her mouth as if she couldn’t hold it in.

I also responded with a smile to those captivating eyes.

There was another one.

Someone who recognizes me.

That fact alone seemed to warm my heart.

“I never knew there was a place like this in the archive…”

Although it is said that there is a massive data storage space, like an archive or something.

The mansion that Cairn handed over to me was still the same.

Deep inside, surrounded by mechanical architecture.

The mansion stands tall as if it were a house isolated deep in the forest, unable to blend in with the surrounding scenery.

Even though no one lives inside the mansion, it is well maintained and clean.

What should I say?

It feels like a living space in the middle of nowhere surrounded by a fortress.

This is by no means a metaphor or exaggeration; the buildings that make up the archive are not equipped with weapons, but are optimized for defense.

It’s as if it was created with a siege war in mind from the beginning…

Maybe I’m taking too much of a leap.

I guess it was created simply to increase magic efficiency, and it ended up being a good structure for defense.

Well, that’s fine.

[This mansion was not built in the archive. The archive was built where this mansion was located.]

“Oh, really?! This landlord must have become really rich! Land prices must have gone up a lot!”

[Hehehe. Iknow, right.]

“······.”

Linda smiles kindly and tilts the teapot to fill the teacup.

She looks like an ordinary human maid.

However, the moment she turns around, the machines and springs clearly exposed on her back and buttocks prove that she is an artificially created being.

“Why do you think you’ve become more human-like?”

[Oh my, is that so? If so, you are mistaken.]

“Why? Aren’t you still learning to resemble a human?”

[It’s a misunderstanding, master. My nature was perfected at birth and has not changed at all. If something has changed, it would be more correct to call it ‘growth’. Just as humans gain enlightenment and knowledge over time.]

“······.”

He himself acknowledged the change.

It’s been three years, but I remember it clearly.

Linda has never been this sly.

The maid was cuter than she is now, but somehow…

Of course, I’m not saying I’m sad that the child has become less cute.

Really not.

It’s annoying to feel a sense of discomfort.

In the case of the unknown, from the very beginning, it was completely different from the unknown that I knew.

It’s only natural that we’ve been apart for a lot longer than the time I’ve seen each other.

But in that changed appearance, I was able to discover the unknown I once knew.

Even though both the appearance and the inside have changed as we grow, the essence is the same.

I felt that confident.

But in Linda’s case…

Should I say that it feels like the Linda I knew has completely disappeared.

‘What happened when I received the repair and rebooted?’

The moment when change occurs is when Linda destroys herself and Cairn repairs it.

There is only that point.

What happened during repairs?

‘no. for a moment. Why did Linda choose to commit suicide in the first place?’

The moment I thought of that question, I felt an eerie feeling and my hair stood on end.

I was so busy at the time that I didn’t have time to look into it.

Only now do questions come to me and stick to me.

Linda chose to commit suicide on the night when Draken’s power was recovered from all living beings in this world.

The effects were different for each monster, but Linda was the only one who chose to die.

And that’s what Cairn said when he arrived at the mansion to take over the repairs.

They say the repair will take at least a month or more.

Thinking about it now, it’s strange.

A wind-up machine is a machine made without particularly expensive parts or complicated processes.

So, as long as the blueprint exists, even if Linda were to be completely dismantled and rebuilt from scratch, it wouldn’t take a month.

‘Something serious error occurred?’

What is likely to be suspected is a defect in the internal software.

For example, is Linda’s memory infected with some kind of malicious code?

If that were the case, it would explain why Linda chose to force the termination.

It will take quite some time to recover the data, so I understand what Cairn said.

This is a hypothesis that fits so well that it gives me goosebumps.

Then who is in front of me now…?

[Why are you doing this, master? My expression doesn’t look good. Aren’t you feeling unwell somewhere?]

“······.”

At that moment, a face made of artificial skin was thrust in front of me.

It’s a face that I’ve never once found unpleasant.

Even today, I feel eerie every time I see it.

[Ah, ah. why. Why…]

Crumple.

He grabs Linda’s cheek and stretches it, pressing it and looking around.

Linda is right about the texture and reaction.

The taste of the brewed tea is also consistent.

‘At least Linda hasn’t disappeared completely.’

Whether or not it was true that she was infected with malware, Linda was not completely gone.

It is clear that at least some memory data remains.

So, does this mean that the other party was not a type of malware that indiscriminately deletes and damages data, but rather intended to take control of Linda cleverly from the beginning?

“Linda, let me ask you a few questions.”

[yes. Speak freely, master.]

“How many updates did you get while I was gone?”

[It’s number 0. After the Federation was created and I took on the role of managing the archives, I haven’t received any updates. Security issues arise when data is received from outside.]

There have been no code checks or patches since the repair.

This is ridiculous.

A clockwork machine that never knows when it might make an error is left to solve its own problems?

People tend to break down if they don’t go to the hospital regularly, but what about clockwork machines?

Even if Linda had been stubborn, wouldn’t Cairn have stayed still?

“Then how many times did you meet Cairn?”

[I met with Cairn twice. One time I had something damaged and had it repaired. And the remaining time was when the archive was completed.]

After the first two encounters, Cairn stopped going?

Linda has clearly become strange?

The man who cared for Linda so much seemed to have lost interest in her and never came to visit again?

Suddenly, I started to worry about Cairn’s safety.

“Then how far can you follow my orders?”

[I can follow you even to the end of hell, master.]

Linda answers by placing her hand on her chest.

There is no hesitation in the answer.

I also spoke without hesitation.

“Then kill yourself right now, Linda.”

[······.]

As if the air conditioner had suddenly been turned on, the whole place became cold.

Linda’s colorful expression also hardened.

So, I gathered sword energy in my right hand and forged a transparent sword.

Mi-jeong picked up Blin’s wooden club (reinforcement +1).

Then, I feel the archive vibrate with a dull vibration.

[Are you serious, master?]

Structures that used to extend outward like tree branches bend and come inward.

The ends of the rebar were all pointing towards us.