NOVEL NEXT Chapter 75
‘Eve’ detected something strange about Lee Siwoon.
For Eve, who was still secretly observing and recording Siwoon’s biometrics, that wasn’t a difficult task.
Increased breath rate.
Elevated heart rate.
Checked pupil reaction.
Based on all these objective results, Eve deduced that Siwoon was uncomfortable in this situation.
What could be the reason?
Eve began to hypothesize.
Higher frequency of adjusting his collar compared to usual, physical response of bowing his head to avoid the gaze of surrounding organisms detected.
This was similar to an emotion commonly felt by organisms—embarrassment.
But for some reason…
Eve instinctively felt that Siwoon’s ‘actions’ weren’t due to ’embarrassment’.
Illogical.
Despite that reasoning, she couldn’t find any other results.
Eve called up past data.
Back when Eve didn’t have a body, the atmosphere Siwoon brought back after being diagnosed with grade 3 depression strongly resembled the present.
Siwoon jokingly said, “I’m going to stay home and play games for a week,” and he actually followed through with it.
What commonality could there be between then and now?
Analyzing data… Failure. Illogical thinking not calculable yet.
As she reached that conclusion, Eve felt a tingling sensation in the heart of her body.
She lightly diagnosed her sensory systems.
No problems detected.
Yet the pain remained.
Through the net database, this reaction could be described as having difficulty breathing.
She genuinely felt emotion and pain.
Just like when she requested a reward from Siwoon.
She wanted to hug him tightly and comfort him, seeing him look so down.
But Eve couldn’t do that.
There was a reason all this analysis stemmed from her ‘illogical calculation’.
And there were many organisms around her.
…Conclusion drawn: Communication with related organisms necessary regarding this part.
If there were things she didn’t understand, she would learn.
Eve finished her thoughts and decided to discuss Siwoon with the surrounding organisms.
—
I struggled to gather my thoughts.
If someone caught onto my oddness, things could spiral out of control here.
…This is why I moved.
I took a deep breath, trying to calm my heart.
Maybe the sky sensed my struggle?
From the entrance of No Answer’s 3rd floor, the only exit, a giant man walked out.
“Oh, everyone’s gathered here.”
Standing at 2 meters tall.
A neatly tied gray beard.
A bald man wearing black sunglasses.
Drake grinned at us, showing off his golden teeth.
As he casually glanced around, Drake’s eyes locked onto me.
With a thud, thud of heavy footsteps, he approached.
“Hey, what’s the deal with that message? Is it true that you received an apology from the chairman and it’s all over?”
…Well.
If we’re talking about whether it makes sense or not…
…It doesn’t really, but it is the truth.
I contemplated.
How should I convey my opinion along with this truth clearly?
Luckily, my pondering was short-lived.
I pointed a finger at Eve.
“You saw it back then too.”
When I say ‘back then’, I mean the time when all the ‘ninjas’ around fell, and the territory controlled by the megacorp, Kojaka, ranked 2nd in global market cap was hacked.
“……”
Eve and Drake locked eyes like a staring contest.
After a moment, Drake nodded.
It seemed my simple and clear explanation got through.
“…Yeah, anyhow, I’m glad it’s resolved.”
Drake scratched his head.
With no hair, there’s no itchy spots.
Just as a side note, hair transplants are a fully commercialized technology in the cyberpunk world.
In Drake’s case, he’s a bald skinhead purely for fashion.
So it’s legal to tease him.
Would he even get that?
His sharp green mechanical eye glared at me above the sunglasses.
The round mechanical light swirled.
“Is it really all over?”
I shrugged lightly at Drake’s words.
“Who knows?”
“……”
Even with that blank expression, if Drake had been there, the result would’ve still been the same.
Of course.
“You can’t just pop the chairman’s head and walk out.”
Though I did see Eve’s SD character on the monitor furiously beating up the character of Pete Mc, the chairman of Kojaka.
The sense of impact was quite satisfying.
“…Haah, still clueless as ever.”
Drake frowned.
He was an intimidating figure at 2 meters tall, but among us, he was actually the most meticulous and careful person.
“By the way—.”
Drake opened his mouth but paused, looking back at me.
His serious expression was interesting, but he looked scarier than the vagabonds wandering around the lower-class streets.
He lowered his head and slowly examined my face hidden under the hood.
“Hm.”
If I hadn’t been wearing a mask, managing my expression would’ve been difficult.
Well, why?
A few seconds passed.
Drake then raised his head again.
“So, is the story all over?”
“For now, at least.”
“Then let’s go together for a bit.”
Huh?
It was clear he was referring to me.
But Drake moved his gaze to the others as if he didn’t need my consent.
Natasha, Catherine, Andrea.
Finally, he sought Eve’s permission.
Wanting to just stay home and play games, I naturally shouted out refusal.
“No way, what? It’s late; where are we going now—?”
Drake cut off my words.
“I told you last time, my girlfriend said we should have a meal together next time.”
“…Oh.”
I guess that did happen.
Specifically, it was around the time we planned to kidnap the Kojaka vice president.
Drake, who halted his actions, leaned in closer to me.
Maybe it was his size, but that action felt like a hefty impact.
In short, it was quite burdensome.
“Since it’s dinner time too.”
Drake rose me up from my seat, continuing.
“Sorry to your girlfriends, but I’ll borrow this guy for a bit.”
“?”
Girlfriends?
I didn’t know what offense I was trying to cause with such absurd remarks.
But it was strange.
For some reason, no one opposed Drake’s words.
Even Natasha, who was the most composed here, looked momentarily softened when she heard the word ‘girlfriend’ as she tried to stop Drake’s domineering actions.
“Then since the story’s over—.”
Drake gestured to me.
No, my consent…
Drake gently pushed my back towards the elevator while continuing.
“Anyway, we have to eat at least once. Unless you have something urgent to do?”
…
No, I didn’t.
“…Alright.”
Let’s go, then.
I could at least eat.
It had been a while since I’d seen Drake’s girlfriend, Lorenda.
It was also a timing when I needed a change of mood.
I nodded farewell to my remaining comrades.
“See you later at home.”
“?”
Natasha frowned at my farewell.
She soon turned to Catherine sitting beside her.
“…Do you guys live together? In that tiny house? Not just next door?”
Oh.
I naturally backstepped.
Hurrying to follow behind Drake towards the elevator.
—
*
Habitually, I sunk into the comfy car seat.
I settled into the chair like lying down.
“Phew.”
That was a close call.
Inside Drake’s car, refreshing city pop music with a rhythm similar to his phone’s ringtone flowed softly.
“Oh, this song is nice.”
“Right?”
“Is it an a cappella? The vibe’s good.”
“They say it’s a one-man a cappella band singing with five implant vocal cords, it’s pretty good.”
“……”
I feel like I’ve heard this somewhere before.
Anyway, the song was good.
I turned my gaze to the window to enjoy the music and the outside scenery at the same time.
Outside was dark.
The red sunset scarcely peeked through the gray clouds.
At this time of day, the city lights were brighter than the sun that illuminated the sky.
A hologram of a dragon danced between the skyscrapers.
On the wall, a geisha’s face occupied the space entirely, and moving advertisements made up of letters shifted in between.
Then.
“Hey.”
Drake, focused on driving, spoke to me.
“What?”
I replied absently, still gazing outside.
“Are you worried about something?”
…Worried?
“Oh?”
This was quite an unexpected question.
In that moment, I realized.
Being a dwarf, he must be quick-witted.
He might’ve noticed my gloominess at No Answer’s 3rd floor.
Hmm.
I casually answered.
“What worries could I have? Ah, I’m a little worried about Catherine and those guys. Have I mentioned it? We’re living in the same house now. Because of that, it’s not easy—”
“No.”
Drake moved his eyes to look at me.
I wished he would focus entirely on driving without relying on the autopilot system.
“Not that.”
…Hmm.
While his tone could sound sharp, I could sense a concern for me behind it.
Drake was one of those rare good people ranking among the top 3% in the cyberpunk world.
Except for the times he forcibly takes me for cyberware scaling, he’s generally a decent guy.
…He wouldn’t go this far to ask me.
I should probably say something.
“Uh, well…”
“Yeah?”
Drake seemed to utter the words to ease my burden.
“People around say I’m a lucky mercenary who knows good friends. That’s true because I haven’t really done anything. I feel bad for hanging out with you guys—”
Right when I was about to finish that sentence.
Iiiiiiik!!!
“Whoa!”
Weight and gravity pulled towards my seat belt.
My whole body jolted with the sudden brake of the car.
If a car was following us from behind, it would’ve definitely been an accident.
“Ow, what the hell, why did you stop suddenly?”
“Hey.”
Drake took off his sunglasses and called to me.
The expression on his face was filled with a rage that was a departure from his usual demeanor.
“What the hell.”
“?”
For a moment, I was taken aback by the sudden profanity.
Drake continued speaking.
“Your condition’s serious; naturally, I was thinking whether we should stop somewhere first, but no. We have to go to my house right now.”
Cars honked loudly behind us.
Drake, who talked to himself while driving, refocused on the road.
This wasn’t a vibe to start a conversation, so I kept my mouth shut and scratched my nose.
I only said my thoughts because you asked me to.
Why the cursing?
I felt slightly wronged.
—
*
“Oh my, who is this?”
“…Haha, long time no see—”
“Our family’s benefactor! His benefactor! The benefactor of my life! The benefactor who doesn’t have to feel obligated to have a meal for such a simple request! It’s been so long since I last saw your face, I saw you on a broadcast I mindlessly turned on and it made me and him happy! So, you’re the benefactor who made me think about recording that broadcast and sharing it with others?!”
“……”
I already wanted to go home.