Chapter 32 – External Distress Signals (2)
[This is Aegis Civil Disaster Prevention City Eup Type 1, abbreviated as Shelter. Receives and transmits a distress signal. I want to talk to the top decision maker about the rescue request.]
It was the first message sent from this side.
I did not know to what extent I could maintain communication over there, so I tried to contain the key content in short sentences. But that was an understatement.
[!!!!!!]
Because there was a huge response from the other side. It must have been a communication that was sowed close to the last lament in a hopeless situation.
However, when they received a reply that far exceeded their expectations, they seemed half-conscious.
I had to spend a lot of time calming down because I was talking nonstop and talking nonstop.
[Never cut off communication. I repeat, don’t cut off communication.]
“Do not quit. Calm down. Is that the decision maker? I want to avoid repeating the story two or three times.”
[I am Correction Officer Lee Se-young, who is temporarily replacing the prison warden. Please reveal your identity.]
“I am Jinsu Seo, the system administrator. I am also provisionally in charge of running the city.”
It seems that everything can be decided here.
“Can we maintain communication? The situation seems desperate.”
[The only abundant thing here is time.]
“They said it was a temporary prison chief, but what happened to the original prison warden?”
[There was no original. This is a place where male felons were detained. Due to the war against the monsters, both prisoners and prison guards were conscripted, and the facility became empty, and we entered there temporarily.]
On my PDA, there were relevant information edited and summarized by Artemis.
“I would like a detailed explanation of the current situation.”
[This is largely divided into the west wing, the central government building, and the east wing. The west wing and government office were occupied by prisoners. No deaths have been reported, but some prison guards have been taken prisoner.]
The uncontrollable situation was somewhat guessed from the contents of the rescue signal.
“How did the rebellion happen?”
[There are many prisoners and few prison guards. Even isolated in an unfamiliar facility. We are not trained for this situation. It is impossible to control the number far beyond the prescribed number.]
By the time they were rushed to the sea prison, the system was on the brink of collapse.
In the midst of the hectic evacuation of refugees and the conduct of war, female prisoners cannot be conscripted into penal units, and it is ambiguous to just release them.
Even at the time, Korea was rotting a headache due to smuggling. As they rushed to gather them all together and put them away in a corner, the work must have proceeded in a fist-pumping fashion, and the result was a concave concave.
[Public power only exerts its power when there is a halo of the country, and there is no such thing as the authority of prison guards now. If the hunger continues like this, I don’t know how to return.]
The general situation was not much different from our expectations.
“Even with the emergency shutdown, we had to endure enormous damage. Needless to say, how dire the conditions outside are. How are you all safe?”
[I do not know. He was sent here with the promise that he would be transported to the rear if he endured for a month, and after a while all contact was cut off. We are just prison guards, not engineers or anything. There was nothing I could do but wait. All we know is that cities that were faintly visible from afar turned into a sea of fire, endless explosions were heard, and at some point it became quiet.]
Did the people in charge who gave that order think they would win the war, or did they send it knowing they would lose?
[The land I saw before boarding the boat was like hell, so you could consider it lucky.]
“That’s right. That one is really lucky. They even got in touch with us.”
[I think this is a sufficient answer. Now it’s our turn. Can you respond to our rescue request?]
“I will ask and answer one more question. How many people are there in total?”
[Last check was around 3000. Among them, there are 252 prison guards. It should have been reduced now, but it is impossible to grasp.]
“You mean controlling prisoners over 10 times the number?”
[We know very well that this is nonsense. I asked for reconsideration several times, but to no avail. The only answer came back saying that we would allow unlimited means of suppression, so that we would somehow endure for a month.]
Except for the fact that the number of people was beyond our imagination, we obtained approximate information.
“Tell me what you are curious about.”
[There is only one. Is there a safe space for us to inhabit?]
“Yes.”
The color returned to Seyoung’s voice.
[Really?! What is the maximum capacity for that side? What kind of air defense city is that?]
I remember hitting the advertisement before the world was destroyed, but it seems that you don’t know about this place.
“It is an underground city within the size of a town with a semi-permanent closed circulation system. It can accommodate all of you without problems. There is enough food, shelter, and medical supplies, and it is completely isolated from the outside world.”
[Oh oh!]
“I haven’t decided to accept you yet. There is a lot to think about on our side as well.”
Over the communicator, the sound of breathing in vain was heard, followed by a moment of silence. Only the sound of rough breathing can be heard.
[…I understand that accepting us in their shoes is a great adventure. We know that leaving us alone is a much more comfortable choice. But please. No one wants to sit and wait for death. Even among criminal groups, there are many who have stumbled on the wrong foot due to a slight mistake. There are also prison guards who came here just to be faithful to their duties.]
Seyoung seems to be a pretty calm person. Even though the fate of survival or death was coming and going according to this side’s consent and rejection, she calmed herself down in a few seconds and was persuading.
In a situation where it is not strange to pray while crying or to raise one’s voice with an evil expression.
“It’s not like I’m denying it. It’s not something I’ll decide on my own. Any more questions?”
[There are a lot of things I’m curious about, but those are only meaningful when our settlement is accepted. Rather than wasting time on uncertain matters, it seems better to give them more time to ponder.]
There was an uproar over the communicator. There was an argument going to and from the castle and the sound of something breaking and pounding.
There must be things that the other side has to endure in order to maintain this communication.
“I get it. I will stop communicating for a while. We need time to make decisions on this side.”
[I’ll be waiting.]
“We will resume contact soon.”
Communication with Seyoung was cut off.
“Out of a total of 3,000 people, more than 90% of them are criminals.”
It’s more than I could have imagined.
“It looks like they were collected from all over the country and quarantined.”
[Even considering that, it is a number with a gap compared to the last National Statistical Office data. Those who are older or whose sentences are very light seem to have been released.]
Said Rose.
[The proportion of illegal immigrants will also be significant.]
In the midst of a national crisis, they wanted to repatriate smugglers to their home countries, but they couldn’t afford to do so, so they would have put them in a maritime prison.
“What would be the benefits and losses if we accepted them?”
The damage evaluation comparison analysis table was printed on the screen. The left side was about profit and the right side was about loss, but the result was unexpected.
“It’s more profitable than I thought?”
The left side was enough to fill the screen, but the right side was only about half full.
I thought it was unilaterally embracing the survivors on a moral level, but there were also quite a few practical benefits.
Each artificial intelligence was in charge of detailed explanations. Chloro, who is in charge of material management, came first.
[Currently, the factory utilization rate is about 35%. If some of them are put in, the utilization rate increases to over 90%. Actual production efficiency also increases only in processes where manual work is more efficient. The increase in efficiency is calculated to increase by 40% based on unskilled workers and up to 210% when calculated based on skilled workers after 6 months.]
The screen displayed by Chloro was the inventory of living materials and robots.
There was a quantity of supplies for humans that literally rotted away, but for robots, there was not a shortage, but it was not enough to say that there was an overflow.
[The material bias problem can also be solved. Unlike robots that require periodic maintenance, parts, and batteries, humans operate for a very long time if provided with a little organic matter and moisture.]
It was an assessment that made her feel a little cold, unlike her. Is this the difference between public and private?
“What is the level of security risk?”
[It can be sufficiently controlled under the cooperation of the current security robots and human prison guards.]
A blueprint for the security plan was displayed on the screen Rose had shown.
Security robots armed with projectiles and drones modified for combat are located in critical areas, and human prison guards with their arms on their backs control the prisoners.
In fact, there is no big difference from the actual prison operation method. It was just that the subject holding the weapon became a robot.
It’s ridiculous in the outside society, but now, in Korea, is there any other place that can be called society besides this place?
Currently, the total number of security robots available is slightly less than two platoons. Drones have mass production facilities, so they can be taken as much as they like.
[If they were male prisoners, I would have been against it. This is because male prisoners with strong physical abilities, organizational skills, and various specialized skills are a great threat in their very existence. It is because they create home-made firearms in poor prison working conditions and cause riots. However, it is very unlikely that female prisoners have such lethal skills or organizational skills.]
Rose’s reasoning may sound discriminatory, but she makes good sense.
[It’s not just the factory operation. In other words, a closed circulation city also means that a certain level of circulation must be repeated to remain healthy.]
“Are you saying that an empty house will soon become a haunted house?”
[As it were. Utilization of trivial parts such as human respiration and excrement is also part of the urban cycle. Not to mention the labor force that cleans the streets, removes rust, and continues production activities.]
“When you talk like this, you feel like a villain trying to make slave labor work for some reason.”
[Then ask the people outside. Do you want to come in and work? Will you stay outside?]
“Well, that too.”
No matter what, life here will be much better than life outside.
[There was a saying that those who do not work should not eat.]
“Well, nothing is free in this world. Besides, when people are hanging out, they keep thinking about something else. It will be easier to control the prisoners if you provide appropriate incentives for performance.”
[That’s right.]
I had one more question.
“I’ve been curious about it since before, what the hell is that option?”
He pointed to something like a button in the upper right corner of the damage parity analysis table.
‘Strength of Control: Normal’
It was like setting game graphics options.
Not that it wasn’t, it really was. When I touched the corresponding button on my PDA with the screen linked, I was able to change the option. I tried increasing the level of control.
‘Control Strength: Maximum’
Then, the list of profits and losses shown in the loss evaluation table also changed.
The profit part has increased so much that I had to scroll down the page for a while.
On the other hand, the list of losses has decreased significantly and reached the 10% level.
“…Artemis, what do you mean by maximum control strength?”
[Mandatory electric collars around the necks of all residents.]
It tells you something amazing from the start. The electric necklace can be seen as a lower compatible bomb necklace that appears in the movie Battle Royale.
If the wearer misbehaves, an electric shock is applied immediately to neutralize it.
It was a tool that could only be used in the concentration camps of 3rd world countries, but dozens of them were delivered here as well.
If it is Artemis, mass production will be possible through reverse engineering. She went on to recite the following items.
– Recycling of dead bodies of all residents without consent
– Imposition of maximum labor within the permissible range
– Immediate violence without warning
– Changed all food rations to dry nutrient powder
– Addition of short-term memory loss inducer and violence reducing hormone to food eaten
Besides that, I saw an endless list of items, each of which was an insane clause.
In terms of efficiency, it was a method of reaping the best profits and completely excluding risk factors, but even from the dictators of the third world, it was harsh.
“You really didn’t mean to do this, did you?”
[Of course, it’s just an option made by assuming all the cases. It’s obvious that you won’t accept it anyway. That’s why I briefed it as a normal option from the beginning.]
“Hmm.”
It is full of inhumane content, but there are parts that are ambiguous to throw all of them in the trash.
“It’s a what-if, very what-if story.”
[With a normal level of control, you can add any number of high-intensity options depending on the situation. With moderate addition, the probability of success is about 62%.]
Artemis was already reading my mind.
I don’t mean to do it. However, there is always a situation, and in a closed cycle, a small fire can lead to a major accident that cannot be undone.
There were also a few items that could be partially employed in an emergency. But 62% in a moderate way.
“What other way is there?”
In response to my question, she presented a 3D simulation.
Hundreds of female prisoners are seen protesting in unison within the shelter.
A guard platoon forming a line in front of them. Behind them were human guards holding electric collars.
In the upper right corner, the probability of negotiation is 62%.
As one of the prisoners approached, the guard robot swung his stock butt off his jaw before shooting the prisoner next to him.
He didn’t die because it was a salt shot, but he collapsed and wriggled on the spot. In an instant, everything becomes quiet.
The number of bargaining probabilities rose to 95%.
“That’s an extreme method. It works perfectly.”
[No, this is not a radical method. It’s the ‘normal’ way. Will you play the radical way too? That’s 100%.]
“…No, I think it’s enough without seeing it.”
I also checked the option with the lowest level of control, which guaranteed a standard of living that was in the mid-level even by the standards of pre-war Korea.
Of course, the profit tab almost evaporated, and the loss tab generated a huge amount of items. It was to the extent that it interfered with shelter operation and security, so there was nothing to consider.
We talked for a while, discussing the risks and control methods and the benefits of the city.
Afterwards, she resumed communication with Se-yeong and when he said that he would accept her residence, she was overjoyed.
