Chapter 498 – Pocket Girls
“If you help me, I’ll personally reward you.”
“…Reward?”
“Yes compensation. It will never be a condition for you to lose money.”
Kyuhyun’s words that make your mouth water. Seong-il just looks at him with an innocent face, as if he doesn’t know anything.
“If you cooperate with my plan, I’ll give you the gym badges for Area D as well as Area E. Then you can relax and focus on the gyms in the remaining areas.”
“… Aside from the E area you’re in charge of, the badge for D area? Can you give it to Director Kyuhyun at will?”
Seong-il puts on an absurd expression when Kyu-hyun says that he will give him a badge for the gym in his district, even if it’s not for the gym in his district.
“Well… It’s not someone else, it’s because he’s half of my pupil, my younger brother. Since we usually watch each other’s gym, there shouldn’t be a big problem. If I had my guarantee, my younger brother wouldn’t complain too much.”
“I don’t think that’s the problem…”
“Haha…!! Don’t overestimate gym badges. The reason pilgrims collect gym badges while wandering around the shelter is for them to have a good experience, not for any grandiose purpose.”
“Hmm…”
“In addition, the director’s test is not standardized, so there is no problem. In the first place, it is not a battle between partners, but badges and certificates can be awarded as many times as the director judges.”
“Aha…”
When Seong-il seems fully convinced, Kyu-hyun proudly spits out the final condition to drive the wedge.
“Not only that! If you finish this exploration well! I’ll give you 10,000 credit points!”
“…”
While he was looking forward to what he would give him, Seong-il’s expression quickly cooled when Kyu-hyun suddenly said that he would give him credit points.
‘…Where are you going to use that?’
Things in the world of Pocket Girls are good, but if you pay customs duties and bring them to reality, Seong-il can produce minor-grade items with similar abilities as much as you like with Yuna’s power. Seong-il only looks at Kyu-hyun with a puzzled expression, since he has already received a lot of credit points for solving various cases.
“…Don’t you like it?”
“Would you like to see this?”
Seongil confirms the merit points recorded on the phone instead of answering. Not only Kyuhyun but also Sooyeon are surprised to see a large amount recorded in the status window with their mouths wide open.
“This… How can I do this!?”
“I told you earlier. You did a great job in stopping the Hyperdan terror. That’s the reward.”
Seong-il even showed the history of achievement points. The content is also evidence of what Seong-il has insisted on so far, so the two gym directors look even more surprised.
“…It was real.”
A murmur escaped from Soo-yeon’s mouth. Soon, Seong-il starts to be regarded as a talented person who must be included in the expedition from the position of joining the expedition while begging Kyu-hyun.
“Then, how about this? It’s about giving away the authority for valuable items obtained from the ruins.”
“!!!”
A tempting suggestion just by hearing it. Seong-il asks Kyu-hyeon with a 180 degree change of expression when he makes a proposal that suits his taste.
“Can I…? Shouldn’t all artifacts be donated to the shelter?”
“Oh, of course I can’t give you the artifacts essential to the shelter. I’ll give you the rest. I’ll give you priority too. What do you think?”
“Oh… If that’s the case, I’ll accept it unconditionally!!”
In fact, after completing the exploration of the ruins with Kyuhyun and revisiting the ruins using the portal ring, Seongil had the idea of robbing the artifacts. To Seong-il, who was greedy for the relics of the Pocket Girls world, Kyu-hyeok’s proposal feels very sweet.
“Whoops… I’m glad.”
When he is able to recruit a psychic with intelligence as a colleague, Kyu-hyeon also extends his hand to Seong-il with a satisfied expression on his face.
“Ha…”
And Soo-yeon sighs as she sees the two shaking hands. She looks at Kyuhyun as if her head hurts and says.
“It sounds like there’s some pretty sensitive stuff coming and going, can you step aside?”
“No. I don’t care if you hear all this.”
“Really? If it leaks out, you’ll be in trouble for your seniors, too? The shelter may object due to safety concerns.”
Soo-yeon asks him back with a slightly puzzled expression. However, Kyuhyun shook his head with a serious expression and replied.
“No. The place we’re going to is just as dangerous. Secrets are good, but there should be someone who knows our whereabouts in case things go wrong.”
“Hmm…”
“Since I’m going to explore a dangerous place for the sake of the world, even if I can’t rescue or recover my remains… Shouldn’t I leave someone in the world who knows about my last steps? If that’s an old friend of mine, then that’s perfect.”
“…”
The story of Kyuhyun that makes everyone quiet. The chanting, which contains determination, makes even Seong-il, who was happy and sad in anticipation of the profit to come, solemn.
“Now… Then, Seongil-kun. Shall we talk in earnest about the place we’re going to be together?”
From the black briefcase he is holding, he takes out materials he has probably prepared in advance to show to Soo-yeon and starts laying them out on the desk.
“Hmm…”
Seong-il naturally picks up the material he prepared and starts examining the contents. And Kyu-hyeon, who saw it, starts briefing about the historic site.
“There is the research institute mentioned earlier deep in the coast about 40km away from Shelter C-01. Based on the information I gained from observing this Shelter for a long time, I became convinced that there must be a facility that used to make ancient AI machines there.”
“AI machines…?! Those crazy machines roaming Area C right now?”
“Similar. Those who can think and make their own decisions. However, they are a bit different.”
“…By the way, what data did you confirm?”
In the original work, there was no setting that there was an ancient research center or factory near the C-01 Shelter, so Seong-il asks him with a puzzled expression.
“Oh, that? It’s simple. I told you this morning that there are a lot of AI combat weapons roaming around this area, right?”
“Ah, yes. Is that…?”
“Yes. That’s it. But it’s boring to just answer, so I’ll raise a question here. Why are there so many battle machines roaming around in this area? And why are they not spreading outside and only in this area?”
“Uh… Well…”
Kyuhyun’s question is quite difficult. Seong-il feels that there is a hint in what he has already said, and calmly thinks about it.
‘Why…? Why are there so many combat machines only in this area? According to what I heard in the morning, the machine is a structure that has no choice but to break down over time… It doesn’t make sense to survive with self-maintenance. If that was possible, there would have been a lot of AI combat machines going around in other areas as well.’
Because of this, Seong-il realizes that there is something in this area that helps combat machines move around without problems.
‘A while ago… Director Kyuhyun called the ruins to be explored a ‘factory and research institute’. A factory… Is a place where machines are made. No way…?’
A single thought passed through Seongil’s mind. Seong-il looks at Kyu-hyeon and quickly spits out his reasoning.
“…Are you still mass-producing AI combat machines in the place Director Kyuhyun said?! That’s why there are more machines roaming here than in other areas!?”
“Oh… Sharp? Almost right. Just half right.”
“…Half?”
I wondered if there could be a more accurate answer than this, but when Kyuhyun said he was wrong, Seongil frowned and put on a worried expression. Kyuhyun gave him a hint once again, as if that appearance was fun.
“Now, think about this. ‘Why does the number decrease when Shelter wipes out combat machines?’ And ‘Why is the utilization rate so high only here?’ Think carefully about these two things, then you will have an answer.”
‘If you deal with combat machines, the number will decrease. But what does that have to do with the utilization rate… Ah!?”
Seong-il finally understands the meaning of Kyu-hyun’s hint and answers him with a flashing expression.
“There is something in the underground factory you mentioned that repairs combat machines?!”
“Correct answer. This isn’t actually accurate, but it’s pretty close, so I’ll say it’s correct. To be precise, I’m assuming that the automated factory there makes the ‘multipurpose repair robot A-74’.”
“…A repair robot?”
The name of an unfamiliar machine that I have never heard of before. Seong-il looks at Kyu-hyun with a blank expression at the name.
“Yes. Repair robots. Perhaps the human race before the destruction predicted the coming apocalypse to some extent. So, they tried to restore the nature that would be destroyed, or to build a complex AI machine that could help the remaining human beings. That is repair. Robot A-74.”
“…Why are robots made to help people help crazy fighting machines?”
“That’s a bit complicated too. Originally…”
In this way, Kyu-hyeon calmly explains to Seong-il what he has inferred based on the information he has observed.
“The thing is… As expected, crazy battle machines with artificial intelligence wandered around and realized the existence of that place. Are you saying the repair robots are repairing them?!”
“That’s right. Thanks to that, the factory where the repair robots that were supposed to spread around the world and help restore nature and civilization has become a repair base for war machines that have gone mad. It’s an absurd situation.”
“Under…”
“If the number of crazy machines was low or the frequency of damage was low, the factory would have sent repair robots out of the factory to fix the area… The problem is…”
Kyu-hyeon blurted out behind his back, but Seong-il quickly understood what he was saying and continued.
“Isn’t that because the crazy fighting machines visit the factory every day, repair robots can’t be taken out?”
“In fact, ‘very few’ were taken out.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yes. Actually, I learned about the existence of the ruins based on the repair robot that was destroyed after being taken out.”
After that, Kyuhyun takes out a large tablet PC from his briefcase and uploads a video.
“Aha, this is…”
The presence of repair robots seen in the video. The machine, which looked like an octopus made of steel, was floating in the air for some reason. Then, the machine starts inspecting the broken machine with metal eyes protruding like tentacles from its round body.
“Oh…”
And a repair robot that stretches out four or five arms like octopus feet and brings them to the machine. After that, he manages to cut and paste the machine with strange liquid metal and cutting tools and starts fixing it.
“…Nanomachines?”
From the outside, it looked like an ordinary metal liquid, but Seong-il could be sure that the liquid it was spraying was nanomachines.
“Oh… You have an eye for it? That’s right. That’s a kind of all-purpose repair liquid that’s made in the repair robot’s factory. The robot analyzes the structure and logic of the machine it’s repairing, then sprays precise nanomachines with its mechanical arm in an instant. It’s to repair the damaged part. Of course, it’s not just that, but we continue to do surgical repairs with mechanical arms…”
“Ohhh…”
At first glance, the ability of a robot that looks incredibly good. Seong-il asks Kyu-hyun with a curious expression.
“Where did you find this guy?!”
“This? Between B Shelter and C Shelter, in the Endless Hell.”
‘It’s an inexorable hell…’
Kyuhyun spat it out casually as if explaining the neighborhood, but Seongil knew very well how bloody the place was through his explanation.
‘All kinds of ancient weapons of war, crazy psychics, and mutants. And a hellish place full of man-made plagues and radioactive contamination.’
“Perhaps I don’t know what the principle is, but this repair robot decided that the destruction there was the most serious and tried to go there and do restoration work. Well… It didn’t even start.”
“…”
“A battle machine spotted me while filming, and it went mad to kill me.”
“Under…”
“In the meantime, the repair robot stopped the combat machine by repeatedly shouting 『Attacks against civilians are prohibited!』, And was blown up by its attack. And I brought the wreckage of the repair robot back to Area E.”
“Omg…”
The story of Kyuhyun, if it is natural. I wonder if the battle machines there are friendly. They used to attack all living things that moved due to exposure to psionic storms and madness.
“Anyway!! I’m thinking of fixing the algorithm of the repair robots in this lab so that they can’t repair the crazy fighting machines.”
“Oh…”
“Then, rather than going to restore the most ‘severely’ contaminated areas first, I intend to seek development here by ordering the civilization of Area C to be ‘restored’.”
“That’s a good idea. By the way… If you check its location, wouldn’t it have been buried deep in the sea in a catastrophe before the destruction? How do you think such a place is intact? It could be that some repair robots were taken out by accident.”
While agreeing with Kyu-hyun’s opinion, Seong-il expresses doubts about his logic.
“That’s a good question. It’s a doable idea. But, the reason I’m going to excavate the place with such confidence is simple. It’s because of this.”
After he finished answering, Kyuhyun quickly took out a blueprint from his bag. Seong-il starts looking at it with interest.
“In the event of a disaster, are you defending the core facilities inside by covering the area with a strong, dense screen?”
“That’s right. After that, we constantly create repair robots to ‘redesign’ and ‘repair’ the structure. By doing so, we are trying to stabilize the factory. It’s almost impossible to go back to normal, but…”
“Is that possible because the machines produced here are super-high-performance AI repair robots?”
“That’s right. That’s how it was possible. That’s why I sometimes break through those crazy fighting machines and come out on the ground.”
“Ohh…”
Upon hearing the interesting behind-the-scenes story, Seong-il nods his head with a really funny look on his face.
“Now… That’s all the explanation, now I’ll explain the plan to enter in earnest.”
