The World of 0 and 1 – 1

The earth, each piece different in shape, is divided into neat, square sections, and the uneven surfaces are made uniform with asphalt.

After painting over nature in such gray, green things are arranged at regular intervals.

Trees planted along the streets and flowers in the flowerbeds, placed at regular intervals, are responsible for the freshness on the gray canvas.

Weeds or flowers that unexpectedly pop up in unwanted places are plucked by cold, metallic arms, their lives ending then and there.

That is how the city, Aaru, is managed.

Filling the streets of this deserted city were only the wind, metallic arms, and things with wheels.

Often, birdsong fills the empty city, these being the ones that have nested in the city.

They diligently wander the secluded parts of the city to obtain food.

But despite their efforts, they have never succeeded in hunting directly.

They merely pick up what someone has scattered and fly to their nests.

-Chirp chirp

The male bird carries food and flies to the nest where his mate is. Until the eggs hatch, the female incubates them, and the male feeds the female.

It was a division of roles created by nature.

The surface of the eggs had begun to crack in the morning, so hatching was imminent.

Holding a small piece of finely chopped meat, the male soared into the sky.

Underneath the outdoor unit of a building where there was no one walking, was where the nest was located.

-Chirp chirp

The male, moving his glossy wings with a fluttering sound, landed on the nest.

The female, neatly embracing the nest, checked the male.

As if kissing, the male handed the piece of meat he had been carrying to the female.

The female swallowed the meat, and the male swallowed a little of the remaining scraps.

-Peep peep

From within the female’s embrace, the sounds of newly hatched chicks could be heard.

While the male was wandering around the city, all the chicks had hatched.

-Chirp chirp

Whether he was feeling paternal love or not, the male tilted his head and looked at the chicks peeking out from under the female’s belly.

And something rose from below their nest.

-Woooong

A rectangular parallelepiped, a single eye, and pincers on both sides. It was a square object making a bizarre sound.

Its eye moved back and forth, observing their nest.

-Chirp chirp

The chicks’ parents spread their wings and threatened it.

But even with their large wings and sharp claws, it didn’t budge.

[Scanning in progress]

A dry, emotionless voice flowed from it. But the birds did not understand it.

[Executing individual management process]

As soon as the notification ended, the pincers stretched out like octopus tentacles.

-Chirp chirp

The birds resisted, but they could not withstand the cold, metallic arms.

With the brutal attack forcing its way into their embrace, both the male and female had no choice but to leave the nest.

-Peep peep

The number of chicks remaining in the nest was five. It paused for a moment and examined the chicks with its single eye.

[Individual management]

The pincer arms snatched two of the chicks. And without looking back, it began to leave the nest.

-Peep peep

Despite the faint cries of the chicks caught in the pincer arms, their parents could do nothing.

The female, who had moved away, returned to the nest and embraced the chicks.

The number of remaining chicks was three.

That is how the city, Aaru, is managed.

The city management Drone, having captured two chicks from the nest, was flying to the designated coordinates.

The single eye attached to the Drone scanned the city.

The clean and magnificent scenery was converted into information consisting of 0s and 1s and entered into the memory.

The place where the Drone arrived was a waste disposal site on the outskirts of the city.

In the old days, when their creators thrived, it was a busy place, but now it had long since become a place where they occasionally visited to dispose of such ‘minor’ waste.

After dumping what it had brought into the trash can, the Drone flew to its next destination without looking back.

The birds that had fallen into the huge trash can were no longer crying, whether their lives had already ended or not.

The city’s excrement, piled up layer upon layer, formed a tower in the trash can.

[Designated value confirmed, starting pulverization.]

As if the birds falling had satisfied the conditions, the pulverizer began to move, revealing its teeth.

The trash can gradually tilted, beginning to pour its contents into the pulverizer.

-Kakakakakakakaka

The sounds of grinding, breaking, bursting, and crushing were heard, and traces of the city, reduced to powder, began to fall under the pulverizer’s blades.

The decomposed traces of the city flowed into the sewer, carried by the endlessly flowing wastewater, and began to flow out of the city.

Various wastewater from the city meets through the sewer pipes, bends, splits, and flows out of the city.

The thick, viscous wastewater is the river, and the rusty sewer pipes are the river streams.

And since ancient times, humans have gathered and lived near the river streams.

Of course, humans do not live in Aaru, but something else does.

The 32nd wastewater treatment pipe.

Something with a huge backpack was passing by the wastewater treatment pipe.

It was the road that the creators had walked before they took over the creators’ work.

“The pulverizer will be replaced soon.”

Looking at the incompletely pulverized debris, it foresaw the end of the machine, which had reached the end of its lifespan.

It continued to walk along the road. It was a terribly smelly wastewater, but it did not frown or anything.

It was not that it could not smell, but because it did not recognize it as unpleasant.

“There are no useful items.”

It says, looking around at the things that have fallen around it.

Thump, thump

A dull sound is heard from afar.

“Heterogeneous sound detected.”

The dull sound is getting closer and closer.

Thump, thump

The sound of something hitting the sewer pipe from the inside.

The individual with the backpack looked at the sewer pipe.

Thump! Thump!

And, the sound is heard right next to it.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Louder, and more urgently.

“Is anyone there?!”

And, the moment a voice is heard from inside, the one with the backpack reached out without hesitation.

“Recognizing an object sending a rescue signal. Commencing rescue operation.”

Bang!

Wastewater began to flow out through a hole in the side of the rusty pipe.

But the hole was too small to pull out whatever was inside.

Bang!

Once again, a fist is thrown, repeatedly extended.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

After punching the sewer pipe dozens of times like that, a large hole was created, and at the same time, something that was inside came out with the wastewater.

“Ugh! Cough! Cough!”

The person requesting rescue coughs, spitting out wastewater.

“Are you alright?”

“Ugh… Where am I….”

“Rescuer. Unidentified human confirmed.”

What came out of the 32nd wastewater treatment pipe was a boy with a youthful appearance.