kscans

Chapter 244 - Memory Area and Thought Area

With Noat joining the party, the speed of the Necropolis conquest increased dramatically.

Her support through song was diverse, but a type of song called a "Hymn," which debuffed demons and undead, was particularly effective. It was an amusing side effect that Damian and Ruth, being vampires, were also weakened by the song, but its overall benefit was greater.

Furthermore, she also provided support effects through dance, and the conquest was progressing smoothly.

As a result, the party reached what was believed to be the lowest floor in just three days.

The lowest floor was the 50th underground floor. The area was a vast open space, with a giant magic circle drawn in the center. There stood an altar that looked like it could be used to summon a demon, and an open book was placed upon it.

The open page had something like a spell written on it, and they figured it was a mechanism to summon a demon by reading it. For the time being, they returned without doing anything.

And so, it was decided that they would summon and defeat that demon tomorrow.

I’m sure the item to undo the undying sleep is on the lowest floor, but we probably have to defeat that demon to get it. Esha will join for the final battle. It's supposed to be a very wide space, so there shouldn't be any problems with our combat strength.

Tonight’s dinner was quite luxurious. He made whatever anyone wanted to eat, and dessert was all-you-can-eat.

Everyone was having a lively time, but they agreed that getting too carried away before tomorrow was not a good idea, so the party broke up at a reasonable time. They all promised to have another banquet once Mist woke up, and then returned to their respective rooms and residences.

And now, Hayato was alone in the dining hall. He was drinking coffee and waiting for Diite.

She had contacted him this morning saying she would come here. She wanted to talk, as she had learned various things.

Her voice didn’t sound grave, but it did feel like she was hesitant to speak… I wonder what she found out?

Diite had been investigating the circumstances of Mist's slumber. She was also looking into why an item to undo that sleep existed.

There were several possibilities, the first being that Diite’s backup, Hypnos, had done it. But if Ruth’s words were to be believed, this was something that had been considered before Hypnos was even activated.

Hypnos was supposed to have started moving after Diite was injured, when her program was damaged, but Ruth said she had received the information from God before that. This meant it was not a situation where Hypnos could have intervened.

Another possibility was that someone had created the item as a reward from God. This would be a similar mechanism to how Esha created the "AI Killer."

Clans that made it to the top eight in the previous Clan War were given a reward from Diite that allowed them to create an item with their desired abilities, albeit with some restrictions.

However, this item required the creator's own memories. It was because Esha was a programmer that she could create the method for the "AI Killer." Ivan, for example, could not have created it, even as the Hero.

It was possible that the item to undo the undying sleep was created using this mechanism, but there was the problem of who created it. Furthermore, the information that it was on the lowest floor of the Necropolis came from God, which made that possibility low.

Hayato racked his brain while drinking his coffee, but nothing came to mind.

Just as he was thinking that Diite would probably bring some kind of answer, the door to the base was knocked.

And then Diite entered.

"Hello, Hayato-kun, sorry to keep you waiting."

"It’s fine. By the way, if it’s alright, could you tell me what you found out? But first, have some coffee."

Diite sat across the table from Hayato. She took a sip of coffee and then smiled.

"Thank you. Then let’s get right to it. Though, I’m not sure where to begin… Right, let’s start with the reason Mist-kun fell asleep. To put it simply, the result is that it was always meant to be this way."

"Always meant to be this way?"

"When the progression of Mist-kun’s illness reached a certain point, she would fall asleep. That was part of the original contract, but it seems that setting kicked in earlier than the setting I had in mind."

"...Is this one of your usual slip-ups?"

"I’m in a bind if you put it that way, but in my memory, she was definitely supposed to fall asleep a little later. However, the value in my memory is off. It’s a strange thing."

"Um, is something like that even possible? It seems impossible for your memory and the actual value to be different, Diite-chan."

Hayato was not familiar with AI programming, but he thought that Diite’s thoughts and actions were an accumulation of the content in her memory area, and that it was strange for there to be a discrepancy between what she remembered and what was actually set.

"It’s difficult to explain, but I have what you might call a memory area and a thought area. Humans forget various things, right? But even if you can’t recall it, the memory is still there. It’s the same for me. I have all my memories up to this point, but they are managed separately from my thoughts. This time, it seems my thought area simply remembered it incorrectly."

Hayato tilted his head. It sounded plausible, but he questioned whether such a thing could really happen.

She remembered something she had no memory of, incorrectly. That would mean that Diite’s subjective assumptions were also implemented.

"Um, so there’s an area for memory in that thought area too? That’s what it means to remember something incorrectly, right?"

"You can think of it that way. My memory area is vast. Information is constantly being updated. I don’t access all of it in real time. You could say that frequently accessed information is placed in my thought area so I can retrieve it quickly. And that area, unlike the original memory area, reflects my subjectivity. This time, that subjective memory was simply mistaken."

It felt strange, but Hayato decided not to pursue it any further. Diite was prone to slip-ups anyway. He convinced himself that this was just another one of those slip-ups.

"Hayato-kun, are you perhaps looking at me with pity?"

"It’s just your imagination, so don’t worry. I understand the situation now, but in that case, do you know the reason why the item is on the lowest floor of the Necropolis, and who gave that information to Ruth-kun?"

"I will have to apologize for that. In the subjective memory in my thought area, there was no such information at all, but in my original memory area, it was recorded that I had done it. I am truly sorry."

"You did it yourself, Diite-chan?"

"It would seem so. When I looked through all my past information, it seems I gave instructions to Infinity. And it seems I was the one who told Ruth-kun. I don’t remember it, but it was definitely recorded that way in my memory area."

"So that means there’s no particular problem?"

"That would be the case. However, I have no idea why I gave such instructions to Infinity. It’s a bit unsettling not to know what I was thinking and how I acted to do such a thing."

At that, something occurred to Hayato.

Ruth had said he heard the information right after that Clan War. The thought occurred to him that he might have destroyed a part of Diite’s memory with the AI Killer.

"Diite-chan, could the AI Killer have something to do with it? Like I destroyed your memory area or thought area…"

"That possibility doesn’t exist. If my memory area or thought area had been destroyed even a little, I would be in a much worse state. I could have been rendered completely inoperable."

"Thinking about it now, was I trying to do something really dangerous…?"

When Hayato said that, Diite grinned mischievously.

"That’s right. Very dangerous. You almost inflicted a terrible wound on me. No, you did wound me. So much so that you’ll have to take care of me for the rest of my life. How should I have you atone for it?"

"Wha…?"

Seeing Hayato’s confused face, Diite looked like she was trying to hold back a laugh, but she finally burst out laughing.

"I’m joking. In the first place, that was because I tried to trap you in this world. I brought it on myself, and it wasn’t a major injury, so please don’t worry. It’s become inconvenient in various ways, but it’s not a problem. Besides, that is now a precious memory of mine. However, if you are concerned, I would like you to log into this game as much as possible and talk to me."

"Well, if it’s just that much."

"I have your word. I will cherish this memory. I will remember this forever."

"That’s almost scary… Well, if you have some free time now that your investigation is over, shall we talk for a bit?"

"I’ll be busy starting tomorrow with some more research, but I’m free right now, so let’s talk. Oh, by the way, I’m impressed you were able to clear the thirtieth floor of the Necropolis. I was expecting you to contact me, but I’m surprised you managed to clear it normally. Did you get advice from Ren-kun?"

"From Ren-chan? Why?"

"Hmm? Did you not challenge it while wearing cursed equipment? The Doppelgangers there mimic even your equipment, so it’s easiest to challenge them with cursed equipment. Wearing gear that gradually drains your HP when you don’t have a healer is the quickest way."

"So that’s the proper method? I went there alone. I beat it with a combo of self-destruction and resurrection."

"...My, my. But surely you couldn’t get to the portal on the thirty-first floor by yourself, Hayato-kun?"

"I managed that with items and leg strength. I thought I was going to die when the Hellhounds chased me…"

"That’s a shame. If I had known, I would have recorded it."

"If you did that, my login time would decrease, you know?"

After that, Hayato and Diite continued to talk about various things until late into the night.