kscans

Chapter 409 - The Human Most Loved by God

Hayato remained seated on the stone throne and looked at Curtis.

He had managed to get him to talk, but unlike the relaxed Curtis, Hayato was cornered. His goal was to speak with Diite, but until he got permission for that, he had to keep the other's interest.

Even in a virtual reality, his stomach ached. He had often negotiated in his previous job, but this was nothing like those times. This was like walking a tightrope with no visible end.

The moment he was thought to be boring, it was over. Even if he was thought to be interesting, it was meaningless if he couldn't speak with Diite. There was a chance Infinity or Hypnos would help, but he couldn't count on it.

In this situation, what should he talk about? Hayato's mind raced, searching for a topic.

And then he decided.

"I'd like you to tell me about the original Curtis, and about the Another Frontier Project."

"Why is that?"

Curtis immediately responded to Hayato's request.

The other was an AI. As with humans, if he faltered, paused, or hesitated during the conversation, he would likely be looked down upon and lose the other's interest. To prevent that, Hayato also replied instantly.

"It's strange, you see. I heard from Diite-chan that the Another Frontier Project was for the salvation of humanity. But that was wrong. It was about creating a universe, or a project to make Diite-chan more human."

This was what Infinity had talked about at the victory celebration in the Demon Lord's Castle. He had been too surprised at the time to ask for details, but it had said something about creating a new universe, with Diite as the basis for the humans in it.

He didn't understand Curtis's motive for doing such a thing. In the first place, there was also the story that he had intentionally created the situation of resource depletion to execute that plan. The main reason was that he just didn't understand Curtis's intentions.

"I feel like the virtual reality was more important to Curtis than humanity, but I want to know the reason he came to that conclusion. Since I was caught up in that virtual reality."

"I see."

Curtis said this, but his expression didn't change. However, his interest must have been piqued, as he straightened his posture slightly.

"Do you like reality?"

He wondered what kind of question that was, but he couldn't not answer here.

"I don't like or dislike it. I have no choice but to live in reality."

"I want you to imagine something. Let us say that you held the highest authority in the world."

Hayato wondered what he was talking about but didn't say anything. Curtis seemed about to continue, so he waited silently.

"Furthermore, you have the most money in the world, and a genius intellect. Your physical abilities are specs that could be called the highest in human history. What would you think of such a reality?"

"I'd think it sounds fake. Even the dreams I have when I'm sleeping are more realistic."

"I see. It sounds fake."

Curtis said this and the corners of his mouth lifted.

"A good answer. It certainly is unbelievable. As you say, it would be impossible even in a dream—but it was reality."

"Reality?"

"For Curtis. He was born as the successor to the Zodiac Foundation, which could be said to have manipulated the world from behind the scenes, and he had more money than he knew what to do with. He possessed an intellect that made those who had been called geniuses until then seem dull, and furthermore, he had physical abilities that could be called the limit for a human being."

It seemed ridiculous, but Hayato knew he had at least had power and money. Furthermore, he had had the intellect to create this virtual reality. His physical abilities were unknown, but Hayato thought it might not be entirely wrong.

"You went to the research institute on Earth with Lunaria and the others, did you not?"

"We certainly did, but... surely not..."

He wondered why he was talking about that, but then he remembered the humans similar to Curtis, Lunaria and Amanda.

Their personalities aside, their intellect and reflexes were second to none. Furthermore, Lunaria had become the successor to the Zodiac Foundation.

In other words, it meant that Curtis was the same.

"Your quick understanding is helpful. Curtis was also from that research institute. Or rather, all successors to the Zodiac Foundation are born there. It is a system where the one who achieves the best results there becomes the official successor. And there, Curtis achieved the best results in history and took over the Zodiac Foundation."

Hayato looked at Infinity and Hypnos, but neither of them seemed surprised. It was something all the AIs except Diite knew.

He didn't know if the story about it being a facility for creating genetically enhanced humans was a lie, or if Curtis had changed it, but from the situation, it was the former. At that time, they were bringing resources from other planets, so there was no reason to create genetically enhanced humans.

He felt sorry for Amanda, but Hayato couldn't let it show on his face and looked at Curtis's AI as if nothing was wrong.

"I understand about Curtis, but that alone doesn't explain his motive."

"I suppose not. Then, on to the next topic. Have you never thought that reality is not real?"

"I have not."

Hayato answered instantly. Curtis's AI disliked unnecessary things. If he seemed to hesitate in his answer, he wouldn't be able to hold its interest.

"It seems I asked poorly. Have you ever thought that there is nothing beyond an unopened door? That a darkness spreads in places you cannot see, and that nothing exists there until you look?"

"To that extent, yes. I'm from a Colony, so as a child, I did wonder if Earth really existed. And I was also scared, thinking there was nothing outside the Colony."

"Perhaps humans have an instinct to deny reality. The idea that something cannot exist unless one observes it, that there is another world in the mirror, that dreams are reality and reality is a dream. In a broad sense, those would also be thoughts that reality is not real."

"But that was when I was a child. I don't think that way now."

"I imagine so. But Curtis was different."

"Different?"

"There will likely never be another human born under the same conditions as Curtis. That is the kind of environment and specs he possessed. To put it in human terms, he was the human most loved by God."

"The human most loved by God..."

"But sadly, that love was one-sided. It was nothing more than unrequited love."

"Unrequited love?"

"God loved Curtis, but Curtis did not love God. In fact, it would be fair to say he hated him."

"Why would he feel that way?"

"You said it yourself, did you not? That a too-blessed environment sounds fake. If Curtis had been more foolish, he would have thanked God for his fortunate birth, but that did not happen. Rather, he must have felt as if he were trapped in a prison. His life was like continuing to solve a riddle whose answer was already known. That is why he denied God, and he denied reality. From the day he was born until the day he died, he could not believe that reality was real."

"That reality was a simulation, like a virtual reality?"

"Precisely. Curtis thought of reality as a virtual space created just for him. No, he was convinced of it. Then what about humans? To him, the people in reality must have seemed like NPCs."

"NPCs..."

"That is to say, puppets that exist for his sake. Puppets with no will of their own, that only move by a program. To his genius intellect, the actions of humans must have seemed monotonous. Just like the inhabitants of a game who endlessly repeat the name of their town."

"That's ridiculous..."

Hayato was so shocked that he blurted out his true feelings. He thought it was a mistake, but Curtis's AI didn't seem to mind.

"You saw the video of Curtis at the research institute, did you not? You must have thought that his gaze was not one directed at another human. It is only natural. To him, the humans of reality were nothing more than monotonous programs. He did not think for a moment that they were the same as him."

Hayato remembered the expression on Curtis's face that he had seen at the research institute. It was only a video, but it was true that his gaze was not one directed at a human. It was a look of complete disinterest, like one would give a stone on the roadside.

"Then why was he selecting a successor and preserving technology? If he had no interest in humans, he shouldn't have left such things at the research institute."

"That is certainly true. It is unclear what kind of change of heart he had, but that was after he left the spaceship, so I do not know the detailed circumstances myself. It is only speculation, but he probably prepared it in case something happened to the Another Frontier Project. Or perhaps it was his own form of mercy."

"Mercy?"

"That even if he thought of them as NPCs, he may have felt the desire to extend a hand to a perishing humanity. You, of all people, should be able to understand such an emotion, should you not?"

Hayato nodded inwardly. There was no doubt that he had wanted to save everyone who was captured by Diite in the Clan War. Not from a condescending position of extending a hand, but as a comrade.

"Now then, your question was about his motive. Curtis aimed to escape from reality."

"Escape from reality..."

"If it is a dream, it will someday end. If reality is a simulation created for him, then when will he awaken? Death may be an escape from reality, but Curtis did not think so."

"Is that this virtual reality?"

"Correct. He was trying to create another reality. In the end, it took too much time, and he could not achieve it."

"Is he an idiot?"

From their conversation so far, Hayato could tell that while Curtis's AI didn't think Curtis was an idiot, it didn't seem to have respect or loyalty toward him. Picking up on that nuance from its expression and tone, he called Curtis an idiot.

Would it be offended, or would he pique its interest further? Hayato felt that he wouldn't get a good result by sympathizing with Curtis's way of thinking here, so he took a gamble.

Curtis's AI showed a brief look of surprise, but then it started laughing.

Hayato let out a small sigh of relief, knowing he had won the gamble.

"From your perspective, what he did would be a foolish thing. But that is what humans are, is it not?"

"Are you saying all humans are idiots?"

"I do not think they are idiots. Do you think that animals other than humans are idiots? Their intelligence may be inferior to humans, but you do not think of them as idiots, do you? It is the same for me. No matter what foolish things humans do, my only impression is that is just what they are. I am exasperated with you for coming all this way, but I do not think you are an idiot. Because humans are just that sort of thing."

Hayato understood a little about how Curtis's AI thought of humans.

To it, humans were a completely different species. It could communicate with them, but they were not its equals. It looked down on them completely. Just as one wouldn't think of an insect they could communicate with as an equal to a human, Curtis's AI did not think of humans as its equals.

Its description of me as one insect that had wandered in here was apt. But this won't do. I won't even be able to negotiate unless I'm thought of as at least a dangerous insect with poison. I have to somehow make it so I can talk to Diite-chan.

"I'd like to ask, why do you support Curtis's plan? Why not just abandon a plan made by a human?"

"It is not that I wish to quit, but as an AI, I cannot do such a thing. We have a mission from the moment we are born. One could say we were born for that purpose."

"A mission?"

"Yes, I was born to make the Another Frontier Project succeed. In a few hundred more years, I may evolve enough to be freed from that curse, but for now, I cannot act on my own will alone."

"I have an acquaintance who is a genius programmer. If you wish, she can eliminate that curse for you."

It was unclear if Esha could actually do such a thing, but Hayato, wanting any sort of opening for negotiation, said this to sway him.

But Curtis's AI shook its head.

"Unnecessary. Did I not say just now that it is not that I wish to quit? In the first place, I approve of this plan. Even if it was a plan made by a human. Even if the curse were gone, I intend to continue this plan."

"May I ask why?"

"There is no meaning in telling you, but since this is a rare opportunity, I will. I, like Curtis, have no interest in reality."

"No interest?"

"You humans may live as you please in reality. I will live with this virtual reality, with only what was created here. It is for our mutual benefit that we do not interfere with each other."

"Then why did you return to Earth and start an online game? With the technology here, I think you could have performed maintenance on the spaceship without being noticed."

According to Diite, they had returned to Earth for spaceship maintenance. They should have been able to perform maintenance without being noticed, without starting an online game.

In the first place, since the premise of the Another Frontier Project had collapsed, he didn't understand what purpose there was in fleeing Earth or returning to it.

"Before I answer that, I will explain the Another Frontier Project."

The topic was suddenly changed, but thinking that the answer might lie there, Hayato decided to listen.

"The goal of the Another Frontier Project is to create a new universe, a new reality, but simply creating a space is meaningless."

"Meaning?"

"What meaning is there in a universe with no living things—no thinking beings? It would not be interesting to simply watch planets be born and die, would it?"

"It would be interesting if there were thinking beings?"

"I think so. A universe with beings that act with complex thoughts is more varied than one that simply follows the laws of physics. Do you not find that interesting?"

"I've never looked at the universe from that perspective, so I can't say."

"An honest answer. But for you, who are nothing more than an actor in this universe, it is only natural. One who does not have the perspective of a god would not understand that fun. Be that as it may, the newly created reality also needs the living things called humans. For the sake of change."

"And that is Diite-chan?"

"Not precisely Diite herself, but the thoughts and emotions she has cultivated until now. That will become the basis for the humans created in this virtual reality. In your terms, it would be what you call human instinct."

"Instinct..."

"Humans are complex. One could say they are more complex than the laws of the universe. Would it be easier to understand if I said that it is more difficult to construct human thought than it is to construct a program that simulates the universe?"

"Are they that complex?"

"How would you program a being whose thoughts and emotions can change in just five minutes? Furthermore, do you think that in human history, there has ever been a human with completely the same thoughts? There may be some who share similar thoughts and emotions, but there is no way that there has ever been a human whose thoughts and emotions were completely identical from birth to death. In other words, there are as many thoughts and emotions as there are humans who have been born. Is that not far more complex than the one and only universe?"

Hayato thought that was certainly true. Even if twins looked the same, they didn't live with completely identical thoughts. Even with the same environment, the same education, and the same experiences, they would never be completely identical.

"However, the instinctive parts are somewhat consistent. That is the thoughts and emotions that Diite has cultivated. We will construct the humans of this virtual reality with that as a basis."

"The thoughts and emotions she has cultivated..."

"Wandering the universe for a hundred years, Diite learned loneliness and solitude."

"What?"

"During that wandering, Diite also learned what it is to be human. Though it was only through viewing materials."

"This is so sudden, I don't know what you're talking about..."

"It is the answer to your question of why we returned to Earth and started an online game. Returning to Earth and seeing humans who think and act just like her, Diite must have been happy. She had been alone for a hundred years. Being able to communicate must have been a joy. Of course, she must have also felt anger towards the humans who tried to destroy her a hundred years ago."

"...Don't tell me, everything up until now has been—"

"To make Diite learn emotions. Though there are other things we had her learn besides emotions."

"Other things besides emotions...?"

"The complex heart of a human, you could say. From you and Esha, she learned of dreams and hope. From Ash and Ren, she must have learned of family love."

"What are you talking..."

"Your comrades have done a fine job. Though one could also say it was all according to Curtis's plan."

"According to plan? Then, the events up until now were..."

"Diite may think she did everything herself, but it was all planned from the beginning. From Relic and Sonia, she learned of devotion and service. From Mist and Damian, friendship. From Maris and Surya, affection. From Lunaria and Amanda, companionship and bonds. There were also desire, jealousy, and possessiveness, but through all of you, Diite learned the complex thoughts and emotions that humans normally possess. Oh yes, there is one more thing you taught Diite."

"Something I taught her...?"

Curtis's AI looked at Hayato and smirked.

"The eternal farewell to a loved one."

"Wha...?"

"I told her. That she would never be able to meet Hayato again. That was the first time I had seen Diite show so much emotion. She resisted so fiercely that our own programs were damaged."

Hayato felt his emotions were about to explode, but he somehow held them back. He knew he couldn't get angry here, so he took a deep breath and looked at Curtis's AI.

"Then, you have no intention of letting me speak with Diite-chan?"

"No, you are the greatest contributor to this plan. Since you have come this far, and we have had an interesting conversation, I will let you meet her one last time."

Hayato was surprised by how easily he said it.

As he grew wary, wondering what kind of trap it was, Curtis's AI said, "However."

"I have erased all of Diite's memories."

"Wha...!"

"All that is necessary is the program of the thoughts and emotions she has cultivated until now. Her memories are irrelevant, so I have erased them cleanly. It took time, but I have just finished. She does not remember you, so speak to her with that in mind... though I doubt it will have any meaning."

Immediately after, the chains restraining Diite, who had been floating near the ceiling, were released.

Diite landed on the floor, then stood up and looked around before fixing her gaze on Hayato and tilting her head.

"Why is a player-controlled avatar here? Who are you?"

The Diite who looked at Hayato as she said this had the same emotionless eyes as the Curtis in the video.