episode_0325

***

NB, who came to Aaroo after leaving Kang In-ho sleeping soundly, captured the image of the sun just rising on the visual sensor.

Recently, I saw the sunrise from the base, but when I saw it from the alley leading to Aaru, a slightly different scenery unfolded.

I thought that the sight of the sun shining faintly in the darkest alley was similar to the word ‘hope’ expressed in the book I stayed up all night reading.

There was no particular reason why NB left Kang In-ho for Aaroo. Because the Ark changed the drone’s operation plan, they had to travel alone until their patterns were analyzed.

Only NB was able to understand all of Aaru’s blind spots that even the outstanding Ark could not identify.

In other words, in order to observe the changed path of the drone without being detected, it was safe and efficient to move NB alone.

– Buuuung.

Drones fly in pairs over NB’s head. Judging from the speed and direction, it appears that no abnormal phenomenon was observed.

After sending out a few drones, the unregistered android began to move around Aaru cautiously.

NB’s movement did not stop until sunrise at noon.

In order to cool down his overheated body for a moment, NB’s seams opened and the hot overheated body escaped as he hid himself in a shaded area.

This destination was the library. Thanks to Kang In-ho’s interpretation, I read all the novels brought to the base, so I wanted to pick up new books.

– Buuuung.

Watching the drone fly again, NB looked into the air in front of him as if there was someone in front of him.

Perhaps due to a malfunction of the time sensor, a face suddenly appears and then disappears.

“Judged to be a temporary error in the visual sensor due to overheating. There is no problem in continuing the mission. Stay for another 5 minutes to cool.”

These were the first words NB spoke after entering Aaru today.

After 5 minutes, NB stood up after confirming that all organs in his body were functioning normally.

The brown mat he was using as camouflage flowed down.

NB entered the library through the path he always took. Although we observed an unexpected drone flight, no untoward incident occurred due to quick concealment.

With the library’s entrance in front, I went around the building and saw the hole that NB had made earlier. NB entered the library through there.

Since the library’s CCTV was installed only at the entrance, people could move around freely from the library.

NB started looking for books to take with her.

There was no research related to dimensions published in paper books, and the only scientific books that NB could refer to were basic science.

Fortunately, all the basic science was moved to the cave at the beginning of the expedition, so most of what was in the bag now was novels.

Then, NB’s fingers scanning the desk stopped in front of a book.

[What makes a person]

It looked like a book related to the human body, but a label on the bookshelf caught my eye.

[novel]

NB took out the book and dusted it off.

When I turned the cover, I saw a sentence from the author sitting in the center of the page.

“Only love makes people call themselves human.”

NB read the sentence, tracing it with his finger, and it was the second thing NB said today.

“Love.”

NB replayed yesterday’s memories.

[Because it is one of the strongest emotions that humans can feel.]

As Kang In-ho said, and as he seems to be trying to say in this book, ‘love’ seemed to be important to humans.

“What is love?”

The only thing that came back to me when I asked a question without a listener was the silence of the library.

NB put the book in his bag.

[Myth, its history], [Humans and Androids], [A cookbook that even beginners can easily follow], [On first aid]

I put a few more interesting books in my bag and left the library.

When I came out of the library through the opening, the sun was setting.

NB realized that he had stayed in the library longer than expected, so he picked up his pace a little and started to return to base.

There were a few drones moving, but just like the day NB first entered Aaru with Kang In-ho, NB was able to avoid their eyes without any hesitation.

“We will now return to Base A-11.”

NB hoped that there would be dishes in the cookbook that could be made with the ingredients available at the base, so the speed was further increased.

***

Exactly 18 hours after changing the drone’s patrol route, Ark discovered something.

It was plastic that had fallen into the bushes.

Ark pulled the drone’s lens to get a closer look at it.

[Analyzing]

The colorful LED panel begins to blink.

[Confirmed with the packaging of energy bars produced at the factory]

[Check for residue inside the packaging]

[Assumed to be traces of an organism]

[Based on the opened state of the packaging, it is unlikely that this was the act of an uncontrolled wild animal]

[Calculating]

[Confirmation of the possibility of the existence of an intelligent body. Probability 2.46%]

[Search for intelligent bodies begins]

[The range is… the entire area of Aaru]

As soon as the ark’s calculations were completed, the doors to the hangar on the outskirts of the city began to open.

A light came on in this place where the drones to be used in case of emergency were gathered, and the drones that had been placed on the ground in a shutdown state began to turn on.

One, two, three…

One thousand, twelve hundred, thirteen hundred…

[Period of search, discovery of an intelligent body or discovery of clear evidence that there is no intelligent body]

With Ark’s instructions, 7,800 drones in the hangar simultaneously flew into the air.