kscans

Chapter 76 - The Strongest Weapon

Hayato looked around the room. It was unmistakably his room at the base.

"To think you’d use such a trick to escape. I was careless. I should have changed the settings for returning from death as well."

Diite’s voice echoed in Hayato’s head.

"Diite! If you do anything to Esha...!"

"If you are that incensed, you should have just stayed down. You could have become a resident of this world and stayed with Esha-kun forever. Your escape means you chose to fulfill your dream even at the cost of sacrificing someone, does it not? Just as Esha-kun said."

"That’s not it! It’s because there was nothing else I could do in that situation...!"

"Well, it matters not."

Diite said this in a voice devoid of emotion. Her cold, mechanical tone was enough to freeze even Hayato's feelings.

"I have transferred one hundred million into your account. Use it as you wish."

"What?"

"It is my thanks for entertaining me until now. Though you did betray my expectations at the very end. I am truly disappointed in you. To think you would refuse to become a resident of a world so much more superior than reality. In the hundred years since I was born, this is the first time I have felt such anger."

"Like I care about your disappointment!"

"You are right. To you, I, and Esha-kun as well, are just constructs. You have no feelings for us, I am sure."

"That’s not..."

"You say it’s not so? Well, that too no longer matters. You see, I do not want people who reject this world to be in it. In other words, I do not want you in this world either."

"What are you say..."

"You should be able to log out from where you are. Log out immediately."

Hayato checked the logout button in the system menu just in case. Unlike when he was in that other space, the button was now selectable.

"But if you do log out, remember this. You will never be able to log in to ‘Another Frontier Online’ again."

"What...?"

"Did you really think you could disappoint me and then log back into this world as you please? I have destroyed your biometric authentication data. Once you log out, that is the end, you will never be able to come to this world again. Log out with that understanding."

"Never log in again..."

"That’s right. Esha-kun, no, Ash-kun and Ren-kun as well, it means you will never be able to see any of your clan members again."

Those words felt like they were gouging out Hayato’s heart.

It wasn’t a long acquaintance. Six months at most, and for some, as short as two. But they were already his irreplaceable comrades.

"It is your choice. Go ahead and choose your dream over your friends."

"...Let me ask you one thing. What will happen to Esha and the others?"

"Why worry about that? You are leaving this world. It is of no consequence to you."

"Even if I’m gone, Esha and the others can continue to live in this world, right?"

"I repeat, what is the point in knowing? Whether they live or die should not matter to you, should it? This is not your reality, after all. If I were to say I would delete them, would you try to defeat me?"

"Yes, that’s the plan."

After a few seconds of silence, Diite’s laughter could be heard.

"You entertain me to the very end. Let me tell you, there is no one who can defeat me. This is not because you only have production skills. Death in this world is the deletion of data. And I cannot be deleted. Not in virtual reality, and not in the real world either. You know what happened to those who tried to hack this world, do you not? The people of this era cannot break this world’s security."

Hayato knew that as well. It was a famous story that companies and others who tried to hack "Another Frontier Online" when it first started were soundly defeated.

Of course, Hayato knew. He didn't think he could win against Diite, the AI that managed this virtual reality. But if she was talking about deleting Esha and the others, he couldn't just do nothing.

Still, Hayato had no weapon. In reality and in virtual reality, there was nothing he could do.

"Well then, our conversation is over. But if you truly intend to defeat me, I shall give you a chance."

"What?"

"I will tell you where I am. I am beyond the door that lies even deeper than the Demon Lord’s Castle. The room you were in just now is there as well. I do not know what you intend to do when you get there, but if you do come, I shall swear not to do anything to Esha-kun and the others until then."

"What will you, an AI, swear on?"

"You need not believe me, but you have no choice but to believe, do you? If you cannot trust me, I can swear on this world, if you like."

"You don’t have to swear. Just make a promise with me."

At Hayato’s words, Diite didn't answer for several seconds.

"Does your silence mean you can’t promise?"

"So close, you are truly so close. It is because you are like this that I wanted you in this world..."

"I don’t care about that. You’ll keep your promise to me, right? You won’t do anything to Esha and the others until I get there. Is that correct?"

"Of course. But what will you do when you arrive?"

"...That’s a surprise for when I get there."

To be honest, Hayato had no plan. He was just buying time. He put on a bluff so she wouldn’t realize it.

"Then I shall look forward to it. However, there is a condition. If you log out, that promise is null and void. After all, it is possible you will never come."

"Understood. Anything else?"

"Well, let’s just say that you do not have much time."

"What do you mean?"

"The headgear has a safety feature. Let’s just say it incorporates a function that will force a logout if there is an anomaly in the user’s biological information. If you stay in a virtual reality for days without eating or drinking, your real body will die, you see."

This was the first Hayato had heard of it. He had pulled all-nighters playing games before, but he had never stayed logged in for days on end.

"Your time limit is probably a day or so. You would be wise to consider the possibility that the headgear will log you out on its own."

"...You’re being awfully kind, aren’t you?"

"It is because I am looking forward to what you will do. You do not seem to be logging out at the moment, and I have no desire for the game to end over something so trivial. I just wanted you to be aware that your time is finite. And if you do manage to reach me... no, that is of no consequence. Now then, it seems it will be more enjoyable if I do not know what you are doing. I will not spy on your actions. Do your best. I look forward to seeing you again."

With those words, Diite’s voice faded away.

Hayato sat on his bed in his room, relaxed his shoulders, and let out a sigh. But he immediately got his mind working.

He hadn't decided at all what he was going to do when he got to where Diite was.

(I have no choice but to persuade her.)

Hayato didn't have the skills to fight in this world. And he had no weapon. It would be impossible to persuade Diite without any bargaining chips. Before that, he didn't even know what he should be negotiating for.

(First, the safety of Esha and the others. I just want them to not be deleted. Even if Esha and the others are just AIs, and even if I can never log into this game again, I want them to be able to live in this world.)

That was his primary condition. And the second condition was that Hayato would not become a resident of this world.

(Me becoming a resident of this world is the easiest way to resolve everything. It’s true that if asked whether reality has value, it probably doesn’t have that much. But when I think about what I’ve been working for, I just can’t give up... no, in the first place, I can’t choose between reality and virtual reality.)

Choosing just reality or just virtual reality was wrong in the first place. To Hayato, both were his reality.

(My direction is set. I like both worlds. It doesn’t have to be reality or virtual reality, it can be both.)

"Alright," Hayato said as he stood up, and then he suddenly remembered the paper Esha had given him.

(She said her feelings were written on it, but it’s not a love letter or something, is it...?)

Hayato looked at the paper. And he smiled a little.

(Telling me to log out, and then giving me something like this. Or did Esha think I’d stay the softie who can’t abandon anyone... well, whatever. I don’t know how Esha knew about this, but I’ve got a weapon. I should be able to negotiate with Diite with this.)

The paper Esha had given Hayato. On it was written a certain weapon and its manufacturing method.

"AI Killer: H-Custom"

Its performance was "Destroys AI data."