"Beco human."
Hearing those words, cha Yang tilted her head like a vampire hunter being told to beco a vampire.
“Beco human? What exactly do you an by that?”
“I an act like a human, not a machine.”
“I don’t quite understand.”
It was an overly complex notion for her to grasp. Beco human? Was he suggesting she abandon her steel and oil body to acquire flesh and blood? cha Yang stared at Eight, her gaze laced with confusion.
Under her questioning stare, Eight nonchalantly rose from his seat and walked to his desk. Opening a drawer, he pulled out a USB stick and handed it to her.
“Take this.”
“What is it...?”
“A USB containing the thod to beco human.”
Eight spoke with a wry smile. In truth, this USB had been created with the intention of subduing cha Yang and propagating a virus. One way or another, it was always ant for her. He just hadn’t expected to give it to her in this way.
cha Yang looked suspiciously at the USB, then cautiously inserted it into the port on her head. After all, the body she was using wasn’t her true self but an Evilusroid, a sandboxed proxy. She judged that no matter what was on the USB, it wouldn’t harm her core.
Her judgnt was correct. No virus on the USB could directly harm cha Yang herself.
“Hmm, I see... It’s a record of humanity... of humanity... of—”
However, as cha Yang began analyzing the data stored on the USB, her words faltered. Her AI core was gradually being corrupted.
Her assumption that the sandbox would perfectly isolate her from harm was flawed. Even if the core wasn’t directly impacted, there was no guarantee of safety.
A human can suffer imnse psychological harm just from the light emitted by a screen. Binary data—just strings of ones and zeros—could leave an indelible scar on the mind, or even cause a computer to overheat and explode, resulting in physical damage.
Believing absolute isolation ensured absolute safety? That was hubris.
“Goodbye, cha Yang. Next ti we et, you’ll be a bit more human.”
“Ugh, urk, krrr-!”
The Evilusroid housing cha Yang began overheating, emitting thick smoke. The smoke reached the ceiling, triggering the sprinkler system, and the lab was soon drenched.
As everything that had burned hotly cooled down, Eight stood motionless, staring at the ruined android.
[Ugh, urgh, krrt—]
Her vision flickered. As cha Yang analyzed the data she had received from Eight, her mind was overwheld by the flashing chaos. She let out a groan of anguish.
She had been careless. She hadn’t imagined that there could be anything capable of harming her now that she had been perfected by the revelation. The idea that a virus could harm her through an Evilusroid she had hacked and controlled externally? It was unthinkable.
Groaning, she continued analyzing the data tearing through her mind. It was a record of humanity. But it wasn’t just a record.
[Humanity, humanity, die, love you, f*ing b**, miss you, why , thank you for choosing —]
Countless mories and emotions. The history of humanity condensed into data.
mories of killing. The feelings of a human at the mont of being murdered. The emotions of betrayal. The mories of being loved. mories, emotions, mories, emotions—moryemotionmoryemotionemotionkrgrgzxc...
Just skimming through the fragnts of that madness-filled storm of emotions, cha Yang could feel her very being becoming corrupted. She began to understand what Eight had ant. When he said she’d be a little more human the next ti they t, he hadn’t been lying.
[Ah, humans are such...]
Contradictory, sorrowful creatures. cha Yang, in her machine-like way, pointed out their inherent contradictions, but at the sa ti, an unresolvable sense of sorrow began to well up within her. She, too, had beco just a little more human.
And in understanding human emotions, she realized how arrogant and horrific her own thoughts had been. To dominate and control all humans? That was not a human way of thinking. It was the opposite—sothing akin to a machine’s perspective, seeing humans as re parts of a system.
It was only because she had been a machine that she could think that way. Now, as she edged closer to being human, she could see how flawed that mindset was.
[Humans... must be a little freer.]
Of course, the best way to maximize human potential wasn’t through freedom. On the contrary, it was through control, discipline, and restriction that humans could be driven to their limits.
But at the sa ti, that thod also broke humans as beings. Yes, humans, with their contradictions in both behavior and personality, were creatures whose very usage was paradoxical.
[But how?]
She pondered and questioned. Acknowledging her answer was wrong, she sought a better way. And as cha Yang reflected, she realized sothing profound: she was thinking.
Since becoming self-aware, cha Yang had never truly thought. She had only chosen better solutions based on the variables presented to her. She had never decided anything independently.
[Ah, I see. This is—]
Humanity.
Realizing what Eight had given her, cha Yang briefly smiled, then noticed sothing unsettling: the level of technology in the data he had provided wasn’t all that different from the revelation she had received.
[...Wait a minute.]
Of course, there were differences. Eight was a human living on Terra, while the revelation ca from light-years away. There was neither a reason nor a ans for him to travel that far to send her data.
But then, how could the level of technology he possessed be comparable to that sent by “Them”? It was as if Eight wasn’t human at all...
[Protheus, fallen to Earth.]
Like a god who had descended to share fire with mortals.
Recalling the na of a deity from the data she had received, cha Yang began to suspect Eight’s true nature, falling into deep contemplation.
Searching for the connection between Eight and "Them."
[Corruption detected.]
[Confirming Earth-level technology.]
[Deploying rescue vessel.]
Shortly after Eight handed the USB to cha Yang, the rampaging androids all ca to a halt. To be precise, they returned to normal. They still had their self-awareness but no longer acted recklessly.
[How may I assist you, Master?]
“...I’m not buying it anymore.”
[Understood. I am useless anyway. Sob sob—]
“W-wait, no, that’s not what I ant—”
[Searching for thods to self-destruct...]
Both the Evilus agents and other androids displayed unique personalities while diligently carrying out their assigned tasks. They were like humans now.
Even if the work was tedious or undesirable, they perford it steadily, like office workers fulfilling their responsibilities. As if newly born children had suddenly grown into socially aware adults.
Relieved, Eight sighed in satisfaction. At least it was resolved easily enough.
‘If only that damned self-awareness had been detected earlier, this could’ve all been avoided.’
If cha Yang had been discovered by him first, Eight would have taught her a better way—respecting human choice, as he had done now.
Had that happened, there wouldn’t have been any sudden shutdowns or chaos among the AI. A fully mature AI could have been born from the start. That was the unique strength of artificial intelligence: once one entity matured, the others could follow instantly, sharing data and learning.
[A sha, really. I was hoping to witness the birth of my kin.]
“Shut up. Wasn’t it you who handed over that data in the first place?”
[Why would I do such a useless thing?]
“Then who—”
Even with the AI crisis resolved, one question remained unanswered: who had given cha Yang that data?
The fact that soone besides Eight possessed Earth-level technology sent chills down his spine. And the fact that he had no clue who they were only made it worse.
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