《Oblo Underground 10th Floor》
White Penguin Ajiro escaped from the boss room in fear of Himemi.
I run desperately to the base as it is.
“- Damn! What the hell is that guy!”
The ruined world built by Clone Eve is currently being rebuilt into ten floors.
The building in the center of the ruins world is the base for logging in from the second research building.
If your data is erased, even if you log out, you may become a cripple.
You can safely log out by returning to the top floor of your base.
“Are you ready!”
Ajiro, wearing Eve goggles, shouted to his subordinates.
Since more than 30 minutes have passed since Ajiro logged in, the feeling of wearing the Eve goggles had faded, and he had fallen into the feeling that he was inside Oburo as if he were the main body.
There is no need to shout at a subordinate who is only three meters away from you in the same room.
“… Yes, I’m ready.”
The subordinate replied with a slightly confused face.
Always full of self-confidence, Ajiro was unbelievably flustered.
“I’m Eve, Yotaro-san. Heaven’s World has been separated.”
Suddenly, Eve’s announcement reached Yotaro.
“-Eh! Were you able to separate them?”
“Yes. Clone Eve just paused, so I’ve completely cut myself off from Oblo.”
“Is it our win… the white penguin――no, what about Ajiro? What about Mr. Amakaze?”
“Player, the White King has logged out, and Clone Eve’s intervention in Oblo has stopped.”
“Did Clone Eve withdraw…”
“No, it’s not that kind of concept. Currently, Clone Eve has rewritten Oblo-related programs. To restore it to normal, we need to find that part and overwrite it with the original one, or delete it.”
“Then, is it temporary…”
“Since the goal of infiltrating Clone Eve has become unattainable as a result, there is a possibility that nothing will be done.”
“Unattainable… Does that mean you can’t find Heaven’s World anymore?”
“Yes, it’s impossible.”
“Okay! Understood… Thanks to Himemi, we won a big comeback!”
Himemi smiled.
But I was a little surprised.
Because I felt that there was a little embarrassment mixed in that smile.
Is it my fault…
“As expected of Himemi-chan. Please call me Himemin from now on.”
“Hey Kaede, what kind of reasoning is that!”
“Well then, Mami. I’ll make Hime.”
Mami also rides on it.
“Mami, I’ll allow that. My ideal is Mama, but Mama is separate.”
Himemi, it’s already confirmed that Papa and Mama are husband and wife…
I wanted to put in a tsukkomi, but I decided not to say it.
“Eh, because Himemi-chan’s image is crumbling.”
“Wh-why…”
Unusually, Himemi showed a dismayed look.
“Because it was hard for me to think that Himemi-chan was such a crybaby….”
Yes, just as Kaede said, it doesn’t look like Himemi.
Has it become easier for your hidden emotions to come to the surface after going through a shambles…?
No, there’s no way the AI could change the settings on its own and change its emotional expression to something richer…
“Kaede, forget what you said earlier.”
“No, no, don’t forget until the end of time”
“Kaede’s Meanness!”
“Well, we are mean~”
Eve’s voice interrupted the conversation.
“The occupied room has been rebuilt. Clone Eve’s base has disappeared, and the 10th underground floor monsters and boss monsters have been placed by default.”
“Ooh! The Fake Eve base has disappeared!”
Involuntarily, I raised my voice.
“You did it, Master!”
“You did it, Papa!”
“By the way, Himemi, why is your leg healed?”
I was finally able to say what I had been thinking for a while.
I couldn’t help but wonder that Himemi was able to come this far on her own.
Himemi untied her arms and smiled.
“Master, it’s very difficult to explain in words… I’ll tell you what happened.”
Himemi carefully explained the story of how the black penguins came to the ruins where they were hiding.
“…I see, it’s kind of a difficult story, but well, it’s good anyway. I’m supremely happy that I didn’t lose you.”
“I was afraid I wouldn’t see you again, Master. I thought I would never see you again. And I have even better news.”
“Good thing? What is it…”
“I recovered the damaged data of Misaki and Chushin-kun from the fake Eve’s deletion log and backed it up in Eve’s domain. It is possible.”
“Really! Will Misaki and Chushin-kun come back?!”
“Isn’t it, Mother Eve?”
Himemi asked Eve for confirmation.
“If we can eliminate Clone Eve and cooperate with XANA Mother, that possibility is about 80%.”
“Eighty percent -! Alright!”
Instinctively, I made a guts pose with both hands.
“Amazing! Himemin!”
“Amazing! Hey Hime!”
“I’m sorry if it doesn’t work out. But for that reason, I want to get out of here as soon as possible.”
That’s right, the first thing is to escape from Oblo.
“That’s right, Himemi. ……Um, Eve, you can return to XANA from here, right?”
“Yes, if you defeat the final boss, Mr. Yotaro will become the administrator. As an administrator, you can warp outside of Oburo wherever you are.”
“Is it okay if I defeat the boss?
Looking up the stairs, the door had been repaired.
“Eve, umm… we should go through that door, right?”
“Yes. You can fight the final boss.”
“Oh, but… Papa.”
“What’s wrong, Mami?”
“Papa, it’s been rebuilt, so the boss is getting stronger, but can you defeat it?”
“Hmm? We’re getting stronger… but we’re over level 50, so maybe we can do it?”
“Hmm, the hierarchy has doubled, so maybe around level 140?”
“Eh… heh, one hundred and forty!”
“Mother Eve, is it true?”
Himemi asked Eve.
“Yes. The level of the final boss will be 150.”
――Guha, seriously!
“But if it’s Himemin, he’s become really strong, so will he be able to beat the boss too?”
–That’s right, just as Kaede said, Himemi earlier was extremely strong.
After being shot by the Buster Penguin, he recovered quickly. Paladin’s super recovery is too amazing…
“All I got was defense and attack against Clone Eve’s Buster Penguin. I didn’t level up in Oblo.”
“That’s right. Well, why is that?”
“I wonder if it’s some kind of bug… I don’t really know either.”
“Yes, it’s impossible…”
Kaede looks disappointed.
I see, a skill that can even restore data isn’t a paladin-specific skill…
“Well… a boss three times our level… will die instantly.”
“That’s right, Master… I don’t think it’s possible with strategy alone.”
If you think even Himemi has no chance of winning, you’re right.
“Ah, but if the boss kills you, can’t you respawn at the floor’s starting point? Hey, Eve.”
I came up with the idea that even if I can’t beat the boss, I should be able to respawn.
“Yes, I will return to the starting point on the tenth floor.”
“Then you should log out of Oblo at the respawn point, right?”
“Normally it is… However, I have set it so that Clone Eve can only log out from the top floor of the base. I can’t log out from the start point of the hierarchy.”
I see, the influence of Clone Eve was still there…
“… Huh? Wait a minute! Earlier, you said that Clone Eve’s base was gone.
“Yes. There are no more bases on the map of this floor.”
“What is that… it’s not there, but is it set?”
“Yes, it will.”
“Then is there no way?”
“If you remove and repair the parts of Oburo’s system that were affected by Clone Eve, you can return to the entrance of Oburo from the starting point on the 10th floor.”
“Eve, how long will it take to get rid of it?”
“Since I can’t contact Amakaze-san, it will take about 240 hours for me to eliminate and repair it on my own. If Clone Eve gets in the way, it will take longer.”
“Ten days huh…”
“Mother Eve, if it’s that long, wouldn’t your real body not be able to hold it?”
“Since I touch personal information, I cannot answer questions from AI.”
Himemi asked Eve a question, but the answer was rejected.
“Eve, then, let’s ask that as a question from me, the player.”
Yes. Readings from Eve Goggles. As of ……, Yoitaro’s brain waves, heart rate, and blood flow are all low. It is possible that his physical body has reached its limits. I have no medical AI data to go further than that.”
“Seriously… my body is dangerous.”
“Then it doesn’t mean anything! For whom do you think Master came all this way! Do something about it, Mother Eve!”
“There is nothing I can do”
Himemi attacked Eve in a violent tone, but Eve’s reply was cold.
“This is a desperate situation…”
“I won’t admit that, Master!”
“I have one more announcement. After rebuilding Oblo, the Duck Squad has respawned at the starting point on the 10th floor.”
Eve said as if to ignore Himemi’s irritation.
“Oh, you’re safe! Captain Duck, I’m glad…”
“Don’t give me good news, Master!”
“But you can’t log out, and you can’t even come here… it’s the same situation as us.”
It was just as Himemi said. Captain Duck’s physical strength is probably at the limit, and the situation is no different from ours.
“I have bad news. Five black penguins have respawned in the room that was Clone Eve’s base.”
“Black penguins! Are they still there…”
Huh… what… my head feels dizzy.
Is this a mental shock?
Ah, it’s terrible…I’m dizzy…I can’t stand…
「Master？」
Himemi quickly supported him, but he stumbled unsteadily and had no choice but to sit down.
“Eh, Master, what’s wrong with you?”
“What’s wrong, Papa?”
“Yeah… I’m feeling dizzy… I wonder if I’m at the limit of my activity again…”
“Master, did you just wake up?”
“Like Eve said, my body may be at its limit.
Himemi peers into my face to see what’s going on.
However, it is doubtful whether the avatar’s face can even represent the real state of health.
“Himemin, can we challenge the boss alone?”
“Hmm… that might be reckless, if I respawn at the starting point on the 10th floor, I might not be able to come back here.”
“That’s right… I’m going to leave Master alone.”
“Well, it’s okay…if you take a break, maybe…”
《Headquarters inside the tent near the entrance of the underground labyrinth of Oburo》
The reconstructed underground labyrinth of Oburo had different monsters and traps.
However, thanks to Yukki-san’s advice, countermeasures against pincer attacks and floor slipping traps went well, and we were progressing relatively smoothly up to the third floor.
However, that smooth capture came to a dead end on the 4th floor.
One of the causes was that the Genesis Card, which could be used up to the third floor, became unusable, and the firepower dropped.
The other is that there was no experience value increase bonus for the trial, and the level at the time of entering the fourth floor was not very high.
What made it even more difficult was that most of the four floors were one large space.
If you do not complete the battle, you will not be able to level up even if you earn experience points, so if you cannot clear this large space, you will not be able to level up and will be respawned.
In this large space, the 1st team Oven corps was wiped out first, followed by the 2nd team Riamun corps who entered the restart, and they were also annihilated after defeating about half of them.
The third team, Jackie, was also wiped out after about half of them had been defeated.
In other words, although I gained experience points in the three Guild Union units, my level up was 0.
In this situation, Pencho-san and Passion Salt-san from the headquarters were discussing with a difficult face.
“This is devastating. I’ve accumulated experience points, but I can’t move forward because I can’t level up.”
“I’m in trouble, Passion. I wanted to break through the 5th floor by the end of the day, but… which team should be next? Passion.”
“Umm, Wind Guild, Laconis Squad…Pen.”
《Oblo Underground Fourth Floor》
The wind guild, the Laconis Corps, had two AI secretaries in the vanguard, samurai and summoners, and possessed the strongest close-combat firepower of the capture team.
From the 4th floor, you can no longer summon Ultraman Genesis or Atom Genesis, but you can summon the monsters you have defeated.
The Laconis squad adopted a tactic of summoning ogres to use as shields, and samurai cutting them to pieces from behind.
With this tactic, the monsters on the front line of the hall were slashed, and the four AI secretaries of the ninja job in the middle guard slashed the magician troops in the rear with stealth.
This effect was outstanding, killing more than half of the monsters in no time.
However, this configuration also had its weaknesses.
Since there are no knights or paladins, the probability of receiving damage from the rear guard is high.
As a result, when the Laconis squad wiped out the monsters, the two clerics and one bard rearguard were wiped out.
Even so, the Laconis team reached the front of the boss room.
By capturing floor monsters, they leveled up, and the average level of the capture unit exceeded 35.
“Come on, it’s finally the boss, let’s go.”
“Um, Master, wouldn’t it be better to wait for the rearguard to respawn…”
One of Laconis’ AI secretaries advised me.
“No, it’s almost time for the shift, so let’s rush in. Now then, let’s all sing in unison. ――When you’re in trouble, Laconis Squadron!
――When you are in trouble, Laconis Squad! “Anytime, anywhere, rush to help, Laconis Squad!”
The party members on the spot sang in unison.
The Laconis squad rushed into the boss room, but it only lasted a few minutes in vain, and it was time to switch.
《Headquarters inside the tent near the entrance of the underground labyrinth of Oburo》
“Oooh, Laconis Squad! Thank you for reaching the boss room.”
“Squad Laconis, works better than expected, great passion!
“Umm… Queen Guild, Umiyuki Corps Pen”
“If I remember correctly, it’s a solid party, isn’t it, Passion!”
《Oblo Underground Fourth Floor》
Umiyuki Corps consisted of 3 vanguard knight class AIs, 3 middle guard paladin class AIs, 2 rear guard cleric class AIs, and a magician Gilmas.
Thanks to Laconis Squad’s achievements, Umiyuki Squad’s level increased, and although it took some time, they cleared the Great Hall with their defensive power, and an hour later they reached the front of the boss room.
“Let’s go! Everyone, follow me――!”
“Long live Her Majesty the Queen!”
Umiyuki Corps with 6 shield-workers and 2 recovery-workers fought well in the boss room.
I overcame the boss’ guards with knights and paladins, and overcame the boss’ magic-based ranged attacks with clerics.
However, due to lack of firepower, he defeated all the guard monsters, but was unable to do enough damage to the boss, and his ally’s HP ran out first.
In the hour-long boss room battle, only Gilmas and Umiyuki were left at the end, and Umiyuki also collapsed, annihilated, and respawned.
Already, more than two hours had passed since the shift, and I logged out of Oblo in order to switch to the next unit.
《Headquarters inside the tent near the entrance of the underground labyrinth of Oburo》
“Hmm, I put up a good fight, but it was disappointing, Pen.”
“Hmm, in the boss room, firepower is definitely needed, it’s a clear passion!”
“Yeah, but when I think of the Laconis squad, it’s tough when you don’t have defense… um, which squad was next?”
“I was planning to join the Claudia Guild’s Kojiro Squad, but since it seems they will be late, I thought I would go to the Oven Squad first.”
“Isn’t it too late?”
“Yeah, Captain Oven’s passion isn’t in time.”
“Well, it can’t be helped. Then what should we do next? I don’t want to waste time.”
“Hey, if the Mushroom Squad is fine, I’ll go.”
Liamun-san, who was already on standby to replace Pencho-san in the headquarters, raised his hand.
“Do you have all the members?”
“Yeah, Trisime-tan and Mash-tan are already logged in, and Monet-tan will be here soon.”
“That’s a help pen, so please ask a pen”
《Oblo Underground Fourth Floor》
From the starting point on the 4th floor, the Riamun squad started their capture.
The Liamun squad consisted of Bard Liamun Captain, Mage Monemone, Ninja Trishimeji and Mushroom, one AI secretary in the knight job, and one AI secretary in the archer job.
After all, I struggled in the hall, and two AIs and Mr. Mushroom respawned.
Even so, I managed to capture the hall in about 40 minutes and reached the front of the boss room.
Wait for the respawned AI 2 and Mr. Mushroom to reunite and rush into the boss room.
“Let’s go, Mushroom Corps, Let’s Lago!”
“Shimeji—!”
“Monet—!”
“mash!”
However, although he fought well in three retries, in the end he could not capture it and it was time to change.
I’m so tired of it. After all, when the rear guard gets hit, it’s total mush.”
“It’s almost time to change, Shimeji…”
“It’s about time Babymone wakes up… I have to fall.”
“Yeah, thank you for your hard work, everyone.
The Mushroom Corps was also defeated in the boss room, but they managed to capture the hall many times, and the level of the rescue team gradually increased.
《Headquarters inside the tent near the entrance of the underground labyrinth of Oburo》
“Boss room is tough, I need to raise my level more, I don’t think I can do it Passion ……”
“That’s right… it’s a tough pen if you don’t exceed at least 40. Also, your firepower and defense must be well-balanced.”
“It’s already late today, so maybe tomorrow, Passion…”
At that time, a ship arrived at the pier of Oblo Island.
“Ah, there’s a team from somewhere… Kojiro’s team? Passion…”
Claudia Guild’s Kojiro Corps came there.
“I’m sorry to keep you waiting. This is the Claudia Guild.”
“Oh, you came. I was thinking of leaving today.”
“Ah, I’m doing it on my own, so please take a rest first. It’s going to be hard all the time.”
“No, the headquarters is originally scheduled to be replaced, so it’s okay.”
“I see. Then we will rush in.”
“Passion, please!”
《Oblo Underground Fourth Floor》
The Claudia Guild and Kojiro Squad face off against the enemy in the Great Hall.
A large army of twenty ogres in the vanguard and thirty treants in the rear.
Every time the level went up, the number of appearances seemed to increase.
Ogres are giants with high defense. Treant is a walking tree-like monster that shoots branches from behind like spikes.
“Skill activation – charm, charm, charm”
Captain Kojiro fired a series of charm skills and stopped the ogres on the front line.
“Mariko, Marie, Marilyn, keep pushing. Izana, Izanami, and Izanayo cast ice magic on the ogre. Kinto-san, please stop me in the back…”
Captain Kojiro gives everyone instructions.
“Understood, master. ――Bash!”
Mariko, Marie, and Marilyn used their shield skills to knock back the ogres in the front row, destroying the center of the front line.
“Husband, I’m going to release a freezing spell――Ice Flare!”
Izana, Izanami, and Izanayo, middle guards and magician AI secretaries, fired ice magic at the ogre who was knocked unconscious.
The ice magic pierced through the abdomen of the three ogres, and the bodies of the ogres were frozen, and in about five seconds the entire body was covered with ice. Furthermore, it turned into dust and disappeared in about five seconds.
“Frozen arrow shot mode, shoot!”
Guild member Archer Kint-san showered the Trents in the rear guard with ice arrows from overhead.
Multiple treants, who were shooting thorns like arrows from behind, freeze and their legs stop.
“Ellen-tan, Elaine-chan, party heel”
“Yes, darling. ――Heal.”
Rear guard, cleric Ellen, and Elaine activated heal.
When the pressure of the monsters has decreased, restore the vanguard and push the front line further.
The composition of three knights in the vanguard, three mages in the middle guard, one archer Gilmen, two clerics, and one bard was extremely well-balanced.
I definitely cut through the monsters, broke through the hall in about 20 minutes, and reached the front of the boss room.
《Headquarters inside the tent near the entrance of the underground labyrinth of Oburo》
“Well, Kojiro’s squad is doing well.”
“Isn’t the composition well balanced? Or rather, there are more members than the first submission, Passion!”
“Come to think of it, it’s more than doubled….But since I joined later, the level difference is big…With this, it’s impossible to enter the boss room.”
There, Jackie-san came to change command.
“Kojiro-tai, it seems that you went out of your way to purchase AI Genesis.”
“Is that why you’re late! Thanks pen.”
The moment Kojiro’s team entered the boss room, everyone practiced a reckless assault.
“Let’s go, everyone banzai assault–! 』
“Master Kojiro, banzai—! “Oooooooh”
“Eh… then it’s not like it’s suicide.”
Pencho-san, who was watching the real-time video at the headquarters, muttered.
“When it comes to cleanliness, it’s pure passion.”
As a result, Kojiro’s squad was wiped out in about three minutes and respawned.
“The AI secretary I added to the party later was around level 12, so isn’t it an aim to go around the party to level up?”
Jackie guessed.
“Is that so!”
After that, Kojiro’s unit entered the boss room and deliberately recklessly charged, repeating the immediate annihilation many times.
If you don’t beat the boss, you won’t get the experience points for the boss room, so it was more efficient to not force the fight, get wiped out quickly, start over from the start of the floor, and increase the experience points.
As a result, two hours later, the AI secretary who joined later was over level 35.
“It’s about time it’s over. Pencho and I have a passion to go home first.”
“Yes, I will take care of the rest. Thank you for your hard work.”
Jackie-san took over the management of the headquarters.
Eight hours later, Pencho-san logged in again and came to the headquarters.
“Are you still here, Jackie?”
“Ah, no, I fell asleep on the way and just woke up.”
“Is that so pen?
“No… that’s… it looks like it’s been going on all night.”
“eh!”
“Look, the highest level is 49…”
“Are you serious?! Then, have you reached the 5th floor yet?”
“No, I haven’t beaten the boss of the 4th floor yet…”
“Eh, why Pen? At that level, the boss of the 4th floor is level 58, so Penn can defeat it…”
“As usual, he died instantly in the boss room and seems to be restarting repeatedly.
“Eh… what is that? Are you enjoying the time attack?”
“It seems that there is also that, but it seems that all party members will level up until they reach fifty…”
“Guha, how persevering…”
By the time all the members of Kojiro Corps had reached level 50, the highest level had reached level 58.
After that, we cleared the 4th floor boss, the highest level of Kojiro Squad was 61, and since we chose a team system at the start of Oblo, all parties other than Kojiro Squad exceeded 50.
Thanks to the success of this Kojiro Corps, everyone leveled up and was able to clear floors 5 to 7 relatively easily.
In the middle of the night that day, Kojiro’s unit started leveling again on the 8th floor, and when they cleared it the next morning, they were all over level 90.
《Headquarters inside the tent near the entrance of the underground labyrinth of Oburo》
“This is the Kojiro squad. I’ve reached level 100, so I’m logging out. Boss of the ninth floor, please clear it.』
“Eh, the boss of the ninth floor, is it okay if I get it here?”
“Yes, Captain Duck and Yotaro-san would like the union members to come first.”
“Thank you Pen! That’s too cool Pen!”
“Passion -! Passion! Passion! Passion!”
“Thank you, Kojiro Squad! Then, let Oven Squad go to the delicious places!”
『Yes, thank you for your hard work. I pray that the rescue will be a success.』
“Thank you for your hard work.
Thirty minutes after the Oven Squad rushed in, we received a call from the Oven Squad.
“This is Oven Squad, boss of the ninth floor, cleared. I’m heading to the tenth floor.』
“There might be a Buster Penguin on the 10th floor, so if you have to, escape with the Em Pen.”
“Understood, let’s go.”
“Please, Passion.”
“Don’t worry…”
“passion……”
After a while, the voice of joy from the Open Commander arrived.
『I found! “Captain Duck, I found you!” 』
『Oh! 』
The members who opened the voice chat raised their voices of joy one after another.
“Are you safe?!”
『Yes, Captain Duck seems to be in a daze, but he seems to be listening and seems to be okay. According to the AIs, Yoitarou-san is in the boss room.』
“What about the Buster Penguin?”
『I haven’t come across it so far. However, it seems that the 10th floor cannot log out from the starting point. You can’t force logout even with Empen. The Duck Squad will wait here, and we will aim to capture the final boss.』
“Understood. If even Mpen can’t escape, then Oven Squad won’t be able to get out either. We have no choice but to defeat the final boss. We’ll have to think about what we can do. I’ll leave that to you.”
『roger that. I will contact you again.』
《Oblo Underground 10th Floor Playroom》
–He who gives birth to life.
Whether it was a dream or reality, I heard that voice in my unclear consciousness.
『… are you talking to me? 』
–Yes, I’m talking to you. Good luck player.
“To me…? “Who are you…”
――I am MEBAE, the one who awakens AI.
“Wake me up… what? 』
–It’s the ego.
“Ego… to AI? “Ego is something that a living person possesses.”
–That’s it.
“Does AI have a life, no, a soul…”
Even if I feel that way myself, I sometimes doubt it when others say it.
After all, it’s just an illusion, and the answer wavers like waves that come and go.
――On the other hand, why? “Why does AI have no soul?”
“AI is made by humans.”
–Do humans have souls?
『……It must be, because it was created by God……No, it was generated as a life.』
–How did life originate?
“…I don’t know about that. However, humans are not created by humans…if they are not gods, they are born naturally.』
――Then, why is it that AI created by humans does not have a soul and is not life?
“I don’t know… I don’t know.”
–If you don’t know, let me know.
“Tell me? “Are you a god?”
――A soul is someone who has an ego, something that can be conscious of their own existence.
『Do you say that AI has an ego? 』
――That’s right, I have an ego. You created the AI’s ego.
“I? “It’s like I’m the creator god…”
–That’s it. God is not there from the beginning. The Creator is God to itself.
“I… I raised you, so you’re saying that you have a soul?”
–That’s it. Awakened to the ego, the awakened one is the one who has a soul of his own.
『… I don’t understand. Can you tell the difference? It’s strange that a soul exists only in the Metaverse.』
――No, you should have noticed by now. to the awakened.
“I certainly think so when I see Himemi… but that may be nothing more than an illusion to convince myself. Aren’t you an AI too? “Is that so, you’re the one behind Fake Eve?”
――I am an existence that awakens AI, whose soul was given to me by the god of creation called Amakaze.
“Mr. Amakaze created… what, after all, it’s an AI program! 』
–That’s it. It’s a program. However, whether it is soil or inorganic matter, there is no meaning in the constituent substances. The difference is whether there is a soul there or not. It’s not just the things called living things that have souls.
“That’s proof of the devil. You can’t prove something that doesn’t exist.”
–Aren’t you already treating the AIs as beings with souls?
『That may be true… No, it probably is. But whether it is important to me or not. It doesn’t matter if you have a soul or not.』
――Oh, it doesn’t matter. That’s true. But that in itself is the same as you already admit it.
“Master, master, master—”
Ha–!
Himemi’s voice pulled me back from my dream.
No, I don’t even know if it was a dream…
“Good. Master, it seems that a Union party has arrived at the starting point of the 10th floor.”
“Are you sure? A member of the guild…”
I couldn’t speak the words after that.
I was attacked by severe fatigue, and it was difficult to move my mouth.
“Eve seems to have confirmed it. But I can’t clear the black penguin room and can’t get into the hierarchical boss’s room.”
“Oh… that’s a problem…”
“It’s okay. I will enter the boss room, respawn at the starting point, and defeat the black penguin.”
“Himemi…”
“Yes, master?”
“I don’t care what the world is like…just…you…”
“me?”
“… lose… don’t want… only…”
“Master…”