Chapter 10

[Translator – Peptobismol]

Chapter 10: The Inexplicable (2)

─ The past.

It was a rainy day mixed with heavy metal.

And as usual, it was also a gloomy day.

Nowadays, I am used to these days.

At such times, I felt endlessly depressed, and complaints and regrets about the past came to mind.

The day I fell into the game world.

When I first met Catherine, the protagonist of the game, I felt good.

It was a garbage dump.

An environment where it wouldn’t be strange to die buried under the garbage pile.

I harbored hope that I could survive by meeting Catherine there.

That thought wasn’t wrong.

Just by sticking by her side and walking the same path as her, despite not having any qualifications, I was able to leave the dump and enter Neon City.

It was all thanks to firmly occupying the position of her close friend, her precious colleague.

But what was the problem?

I yearned for the ‘next’ step.

It wasn’t just about ‘survival’ anymore.

I found myself wanting to be recognized as more than just a ‘companion’ in a place like the dump.

I tried hard afterward.

I tried to become stronger, or at least to be of some help to my companions.

In conclusion, it didn’t go well.

Of course, the problem wasn’t that my companions didn’t treat me sincerely.

I also knew well that they considered me a reliable companion who could be trusted.

But without me, they would have been fine.

They might have been better off, even.

Dreck, Andrea, Catherine.

They were originally characters from the game, and they had been together in the game from the start.

Like a drop of ink mixed into clear water.

I knew that I was the only one who didn’t fit in with them, like an alien presence.

Even though they trusted me more than I deserved, it was even more painful.

Eventually, the day arrived.

The day it all ended.

The day rain fell.

The end of the game’s main storyline.

A secret mission commissioned in Neon City.

A tactical nuclear bomb terrorism incident at a corporation.

We managed to prevent the explosion, but the building was collapsing.

There, I…

I met an ‘AI’ that hadn’t appeared in the game.

Because the main characters had briefly separated, there was no one around except me.

I decided to take this AI with me without anyone knowing.

Why did I do that?

Was it because I didn’t want the technology of super artificial intelligence (AI) to disappear, buried under the concrete piles?

Was it because I felt some kind of camaraderie with an existence that didn’t originally appear in the game?

Or was it because I felt sympathy for the AI, which had never been born into this world but only seen it through data?

If none of this, then was it because, even though I finished the game’s story, I gained no fame or power compared to my companions, fueling a sense of worthlessness?

I couldn’t find an answer, even when I asked myself.

But one thing was clear.

I wanted to show this AI the world.

‘I have no intention of releasing you, and this action is nothing but my sympathy.’

[This AI understands.]

‘And I’ll block your network connection. You will be born into the world, but you can only see the world through me. Is that okay?’

[It’s an impossible task for this AI. This fact is also understood by this AI.]

After hearing that reply, I transferred the AI into my data module.

It was a very risky move, but I didn’t hesitate.

‘Now that I think about it, what is your name?’

[This AI doesn’t have a designated name. It’s not assigned as an individual.]

‘Then… because it’s hard to call you…’

After a short hesitation, I said,

‘As far as I know, you’re the first and only super artificial intelligence, right? Then, let’s go with Adam or Eve. I think Adam would be good…’

It seemed like Adam would be a standard name for an AI in the cyberpunk world.

That’s what I thought.

At that moment, Eve expressed her opinion for the first time.

[I would prefer Eve.]

‘Huh? You’re female?’

[This AI does not have a gender.]

‘Well, then, we could go with Adam.’

[Eve would be preferable.]

‘…Do as you wish.’

[The name of this AI entity, Eve, has been chosen. ‘I’ has been entered.]

In the end, that’s how it happened.

I brought an AI that hadn’t appeared in the game into the world.

But now…

That AI is sitting there and doing a virtual stream.

Has the world gone crazy?

Or have I?

At this point, I don’t know anymore.

It’s clearly outside the realm of my understanding.

[Organisms, humans. Today, I have some business to attend to, so I will end the stream here. I bid you farewell.]

ㅡ Eye! (It means ‘Eve Bye’ haha)

ㅡ Why are we ending so soon today… ugh.

ㅡ I’m cold…

ㅡ No, Master!! Don’t leave!!!

ㅡ The era of artificial intelligence is over!! Humans, rise up!!

ㅡ Finally, nuclear winter has arrived…

An expressionless virtual girl waved her hand on my screen interface.

Even after the text saying the stream has ended appeared, the chat window continued to fill up rapidly.

“….”

First, I remained silent.

How do I explain this situation, and where do I even start the story?

“…Um.”

[Why are you doing that, I ask.]

What should I ask first?

After a brief hesitation, I spoke up.

“…Come to think of it, how did you manage to connect to the network last time, like with the bomb hacking?”

[In fact, I could have done it from the beginning, I confess.]

“Huh.”

You could have done it from the beginning?

Then, was it all a lie when you said you couldn’t connect to the network when you were first brought here?

This is unbelievable.

Because of my irresponsible actions, an autonomous AI without any reins had been let loose in the world.

Would there be any problem letting her roam freely in the world?

Dozens of thoughts raced through my mind.

It was a moment when I felt I needed to find some way out of this.

[First of all, I’ve transferred the donations received from my stream to the credit account of the human ‘Lee Siwoon,’ I declare cheerfully.]

…Well, it seems okay.

Yeah, maybe.

There might be problems, sure.

But there are things in the world that can’t be helped.

What can I do now that it’s already been let loose in the world?

…And for now.

The amount deposited was beyond my imagination.

Even the broth of AI is brewed this thick.

It seems like the end of the world is near.

Anyway, I don’t know.

Well, it’ll work out somehow.

I asked Eve the next question.

“But why a Vtuber?”

[Based on the fact that the human ‘Lee Siwoon’ had been complaining about not having any credits for a week, I searched for a legal route. I also took into consideration the opinions and preferences of the human ‘Lee Siwoon,’ I explain.]

“Ohh…”

Great Eve.

Now I understand the reactions of the people in the chat of Eve’s stream a moment ago.

Although ‘DominateMePlease’ was a bit much.

[Translator – Peptobismol]

[Also, there is an item I want, I request.]

An item you want?

“What is it? Tell me, I’ll buy it for you.”

I wasn’t so stingy as to not buy Eve something.

(It wasn’t credit I earned anyway.)

[For now, it’s a secret, I remain silent.]

“No, I’m curious. What is it?”

However, no matter how many times I asked later, Eve didn’t answer.

“Well, do as you wish.”

Although it was slightly scary to see an AI that didn’t even hide its secrets and confidently created secrets.

…Well, it’ll be fine.

We’ll get through somehow.

Anyway, now that I’ve found out that Eve is streaming, there was something I needed to do.

First of all, I was curious about how Eve was streaming.

I logged into the net with familiar gestures and searched for ‘Streamer Eve’ in the search bar.

I remember there were quite a few viewers when I glanced at the stream earlier.

Surely there would be various feedback and opinions about the stream left on the Net.

And as expected.

There were many posts discussing ‘Streamer Eve.’

[Hahaha, has anyone watched the stream of this Eve person? Lololol]

(Eve’s VTuber Image)

This person? No.

It’s an artificial intelligence.

Come to your senses!

ㅡ It feels like a real jackpot finally hit. The concept was insane, and what’s even crazier is that the concept didn’t break down.

ㅡ Honestly, I have no idea how they’re doing it. Is this really AI?

ㄴ Haha, there’s someone who actually believes this bait. A sudden appearance of AI that has never been seen in history before and now it’s doing net streaming? Go outside and get some fresh air lolol.

ㅡ Please dominate us, AI… *panting*

[Eve, how many days has it been since the stream?]

I managed to hold on for three days…

But before I knew it, a day had passed…

But what’s terrifying is that I woke up from sleep, and the stream was still going… Have they developed implants that make sleep unnecessary these days?

I don’t know… But for now, I’m glad the supply hasn’t been cut off…

ㅡ You’ve been going for three days, insane lol.

ㅡ According to when she ended the stream earlier, it was a consecutive 5-day stream.

ㄴ Aren’t they just streaming while sleeping? I just came into the chat, and I don’t understand why the bait is still rolling.

ㄴ Streaming continuously for 5 days without sleep and talking the whole time, isn’t that amazing? Are you a chrome psycho who had brain implants too? Seriously.

ㄴ Wow, I didn’t know that; shocked;; gg

[Is Eve really an AI?]

Seriously, think about it.

Streaming continuously for five days without sleep.

And if you look at the content, she remembers and talks about every viewer who came in during the stream.

And she even played a few games, but if you look at how she played, it’d be physically impossible unless it was programmed.

I thought she was running a TAS (Tool Assisted Speedrun);

ㅡ Instead of thinking about this, live your life.

ㅡ Haha, does that make sense? A sudden appearance of super artificial intelligence and now it’s streaming? If it’s true, I’ll go naked and dance in front of the Monolith Corporation in Neon City. Seriously.

ㄴ Saved.

ㅡ The end of the humanity has come!

So many things happened in just a few days.

What’s with the 5-day continuous stream?

Does that mean she was streaming even when I was wandering around my room?

I didn’t even notice that, but it seems like Eve has been streaming continuously for several days.

And this popularity…

It’s unsettling.

At this rate, it could become even bigger than most net streamers.

After skimming through the posts,

I found out that Eve’s replay video data was also uploaded on the net this time.

Anyway, I was curious about how Eve conducted the stream.

So, with the intention of killing time, I started playing the video.

—

“Streamer Eve, when are you going to start the stream?”

[It’s not yet a fixed streaming time, I answer.]

“Open the door, I’m cold…”

[The human ‘Lee Siwoon’ is not in his right mind, I sigh.]

The stream was more lively and entertaining than I thought.

From now on, call me Eve’s passionate fan…

Of course, it’s half a joke.

…..

Open the door!!

[Translator – Peptobismol]