kscans

Chapter 83 - Aina

"Uh, um… What’s going on? If I remember right, Aina-san, you’re the AI who advised Shinonome-san to send me to rescue Rena, right?"

That’s what Rena had told me before.

"That’s right. This is Aina."

'Yes. I am Aina.'

"An AI, you say. How impressive. It speaks just like a person."

It wasn’t just her words. The movements of her mouth on the screen and her gestures were all human-like. I could almost believe she was a real person, calling in remotely from somewhere.

But I didn't dwell on that for now. More importantly, I wanted to thank her when I met her.

"Um, thank you for telling Shinonome-san to use me. Thanks to you, I was able to save Rena, and we were even able to start dating."

It was no exaggeration to say my happiness was thanks to Aina-san. I was truly grateful.

'Not at all. I am the one who should be thanking you. I adore Rena-sama as if she were my own sister. So thank you so much for saving my sister.'

"She says I’m her big sister. Isn’t she cute?"

"Yeah."

Maybe she looks like Rena because of that sisterly setting.

'Now, if I may, shall we get to the main topic?'

"Go ahead."

Rena led me and Amaterasu-sama by the hand to the living room sofa.

'To help you consider whether to entrust me with Amaterasu-sama’s buddy 3D model, I will now demonstrate my skills.'

Aina, who had been speaking from the center of the large living room TV, slid slightly to the side. What looked like 3D modeling software launched in the middle of the screen, and a human body was modeled at incredible speed, starting from the tips of the toes.

'I hac... that is, paid a little visit to the FWO management servers and investigated the permissible range for custom 3D models.'

Did she just start to say she hacked them?

'I also reviewed the information on buddies obtained in real-world dungeons and examined to what extent a human can be replicated in a 3D model. As a result…'

An expressionless, uncolored humanoid buddy base model was completed. Its external appearance wasn’t too different from the buddy we obtained, but its internal structure was completely different. The muscle fibers and skeleton, like something out of an anatomical chart, were modeled almost perfectly.

'I have determined that a model of this level can operate within a dungeon.'

"Wait. Does this mean you’ve already finished the modeling? That wasn’t a concept video or something?"

'Yes. I completed it in real time. If this model fails to operate, I will take measures such as simplifying the muscle fiber models. If that is not necessary, I have judged this model to be sufficient for Amaterasu-sama to possess for dungeon exploration.'

"I would have no issue even without the muscle fibers. But the more moving parts there are, the greater the maximum power I can exert. Just as Juuzo did for me, it is a great help to have it crafted as close to human form as possible."

Apparently, my master had created Amaterasu-sama’s current body by almost perfectly mimicking the human skeleton with dirt and wood chips. Master, aren’t you a little too amazing?

Though Aina-san, who created it in an instant, is also amazing.

'I have output the 3D model data to a ULCS, an ultra large capacity storage medium. It is on the table, so please load it into the buddy base model.'

In FWO, you could adjust the appearance and skeleton by having the buddy base model read a memory card with 3D model and design data recorded on it.

Apparently, the model Aina-san created had too much data for a memory card to handle. Can it even read a ULCS?

Well, let’s give it a try.

I picked up the device said to contain the data and headed for the light workbench.

"Um, I think in the game it was like this…"

Just as I had done in FWO, I brought the storage medium close to the buddy base model.

"Whoa!"

"It got sucked in."

"Behold, it is transforming."

The buddy base model, which had been about 150 centimeters tall, shrank to about 120 centimeters. The same height as Amaterasu-sama.

Its ball joints were now covered with something like skin, giving it a smooth, human-like surface. It had no genitals, but its body looked slightly like a young girl's.

'I am relieved there seem to be no issues. All that remains is to make minor adjustments to the body shape according to the design data.'

"Thank you, Aina."

"This is incredible, thank you so much!!"

It was finished before we even started looking for a 3D modeler.

I was hoping to ask a popular modeler to leverage their influence to raise Amaterasu-sama’s profile and make it easier for her to gain faith, but…

"So this is my new body. It is wonderful. I am quite fond of it."

It seemed Amaterasu-sama was pleased. In that case, let’s go with this.

'If you wish to project Amaterasu-sama’s current appearance onto the buddy, I can handle the design as well. What would you like to do?'

Hmm…

That would probably be faster, but I already said on social media that I’d be looking for someone.

Even though I said I’d start the search after confirming if we could apply an original model to the buddy, I’ve already received several DMs.

"My current form was made at my request by Juuzo. However, neither I nor Juuzo are particularly gifted in the arts. If possible, I would like to entrust my new form to one with an artistic soul."

'Understood.'

"Ah, then let’s recruit a designer as planned."

"Right. If we have a famous illustrator handle it, that alone should boost Amaterasu-sama’s popularity."

I’m glad we reached an agreement. We should probably all discuss how much to offer as compensation. With Aina-san here, we can probably leave things like researching the market rates to her. By the way, can I consider her a member of the Hayate-Style Four-Sword Style Promotion Office?

If she officially joined, she could help us with a lot of things from now on.

I wonder if Aina-san would join us?