Chapter 92: Number 744 is smiling
The gear car traveled on the tracks, approaching the towering Sky Tower slowly but steadily.
Gerard, like yesterday, sat in the cornermost seat, where no one wished to co near him because of the strong odor of lubricating oil emanating from him, but he could still overhear the enthusiastic conversations of the people in the car.
“Ah, you’ve got a new prosthetic, huh?”
“Yeah, it was just released three days ago.”
“What’s it good for?”
“You see, like this, you just press this button… and pop, a spring claw flies out from it.”
...
“Ah, that gave a shock… Is that all it does?”
“What do you an, is that all? Don’t you think it’s super cool? Isn’t that reason enough? Plus, it’s the latest model. Are you not considering getting one?”
“Hmm… It is very cool, but it also seems a bit too big. If I fitted one of those, I’d need to cut off more of my arm, seems a bit not worth it.”
Gerard glanced at the two conversing, who, by their ages, seed still to be children. One of them was enthusiastically showing off her spring claw to the other, while a hint of hesitation flickered in the latter’s eyes.
“Tis have changed,” Bai Wei’s leisurely voice erged in Gerard’s mind. “At first, it was only the warriors who lost their bodies to pollution who would fit tal bodies or limbs to ensure basic living. Later, all warriors would get them to enhance their combat capabilities. And now… It seems to have beco a trend among the general population.”
Gerard fell silent for a while and then said, “You know a lot about Lyra.”
“Just a bit,” Bai Wei replied. “This world is quite interesting, each sect has its very unique way of living, and among these, Lyra is indeed one of the most unique. You all use the power of the gods like this; in Rhein, it would be considered Desecration.”
Gerard did not speak; he simply turned his head and continued to gaze at the Sky Tower.
Last night, he had still made a deal with Bai Wei.
The contents of the deal were straightforward: he would borrow Bai Wei’s eyes to “relook” at the city. However, the cost of using the eyes was his responsibility. anwhile, Bai Wei would continue to recover within his body until all matters were resolved, for which he had the responsibility to find Bai Wei a new Host.
There were also a few premises under this deal.
First, Bai Wei did not allow the integration of more power into Lyra.
Second, Bai Wei did not allow harm to co to the people and objects of Lyra.
On the surface, this deal did not seem equal; Bai Wei was like a grandfather who asked for no return yet still had to accept these and those restrictions.
But both Gerard and Bai Wei were clear on what each actually wanted.
Gerard called this a “deal,” while Bai Wei terd it — “the first deal.”
With a first ti cos a second and a third. The current Gerard only wanted the perspective of that eye, not the actual power, which accounted for the favorable conditions.
What if he wanted more?
Bai Wei seed quite certain that he would want more, and so inevitably, there would be a second and a third deal.
Thinking of this, Gerard made up his mind.
No matter what happened, he absolutely could not crave more from him.
… Absolutely not!
The gear car ca to a slow stop, its doors opened, and the towering Sky Tower was now right in front of him.
Gerard took a deep breath, then got up and exited the gear car, walking toward the great tower.
…
The Sky Tower was the core of the entire Lyra.
The Lyra God gathered its own power here and disseminated it throughout Lyra, sustaining the characteristic tallized lifestyle of Lyra.
Moreover, it was also the “brain” of Lyra. All decisions of Lyra, all tasks, all were communicated from here to every unit of Lyra.
Gerard walked into the Sky Tower and imdiately attracted quite a bit of attention. Clearly, he still held a high profile here, but not a favorable one. Everyone who saw him first reacted with surprise or knitted their brows and then quickly dispersed, distancing themselves as if he had so unpleasant odor… Of course, he did indeed have an odor.
To keep the tal parts that had far exceeded their service life still operational, Gerard had been forced to apply a great quantity of lubricating oil.
Needless to say, it did not sll pleasant.
But Bai Wei did not care; he could not sll it anyway.
Gerard, too, had long grown accustod to everyone’s stares and silently headed toward the gear elevator to ascend to a higher floor.
And the higher the floor, the fewer the people.
By the ti he reached the fifth floor, there were not many left, and there he stopped.
Bai Wei observed the floor carefully; it was different from the floors below, resembling… the counter area of a bank.
To say it resembled a bank counter was because those seated behind each partition all wore the sa uniform, had the sa hairstyle, and even their faces bore a seven to eight parts resemblance to each other. But unlike a bank, they were very quiet. Without “custors,” they remained motionless, neither conversing nor engaging in any other activity, simply sitting there, appearing as if they were not living beings.
And behind them, following a long tube, was a huge column with a display akin to a mobile phone’s battery indicator, and now, the display was full.
Bai Wei quietly observed these won, then asked, “Are these what you referred to as ‘Affairs Officers’?”
“Correct.” Gerard did not fall silent at this juncture. Since he had already decided on the deal, there was no need to be stingy with his words and remain tight-lipped. As he walked towards the counter, he explained to Bai Wei in his mind, “Affairs Officers are a very special profession in Lyra. They were all normal won when alive but were conscripted as Affairs Officers after various accidents led to their deaths, with the consent of their relatives, and then underwent brain replacent.”
“Brain replacent?”
“Yes, we replace parts of the body, but they replace brains,” Gerard said. “This makes them appear more machine-like, yet they are able to retain their appearance from life, and also… a bit of their personality and mory.”
“I see,” Bai Wei said. “This procedure helps shield them from contamination, right?”
Gerard was sowhat surprised but nodded nonetheless. “Yes, a tal brain isn’t susceptible to contamination. Thus, they are able to receive each task, each instruction accurately and relay them precisely to every unit without fear of contamination errors that could lead to irreparable consequences. So strictly speaking, they are the least likely to make mistakes within the whole of Lyra.”
“Interesting,” Bai Wei inquired, “So, you ca here because the person who issued you that task was one of the affairs officers?”
“Yes, I have been looking for her.”
“Which one?”
Gerard recalled the girl with a mole at the corner of her mouth, who always couldn’t help but smile when she spoke, and answered, “Number 44.”
“Number 44?” Bai Wei looked at the numbers on each affairs officer and said, “I have only seen up to number 43.”
“Yes.”
Gerard approached the affairs officer closest to him and said softly.
“So I’m looking for number 44, I’ve always been looking.”
…
Gerard sat in front of affairs officer number 13.
As soon as he sat down, the previously daydreaming number 13 suddenly beca alert and looked at Gerard with a formulaic smile, “Good morning.”
“Good morning,” Gerard said. “I am Gerard from the Skeleton Corps’ seventh squad, reporting for duty.”
“Skeleton Corps’ seventh squad Gerard, identity verification successful,” responded affairs officer number 13 in a formulaic manner. “Your work has already been reported by squad leader Kude. Is there anything else I can help you with?”
Gerard stared intently at the face of affairs officer number 13. Despite having asked the sa question countless tis, he still instinctively tensed his body with each inquiry.
“I want to know…” Gerard slowly began, “information on affairs officer number 44.”
“Received, keyword affairs officer number 44, beginning search,” affairs officer number 13 said after a mont of silence, with an emotionless voice, “Search results are zero, affairs officer number 44 does not exist.”
Even though he had heard this answer countless tis, when he heard it again, Gerard still clenched his fists unconsciously.
Still… nothing.
Bai Wei’s voice rang out again at that mont, “I think, given your persistence, it is certain that affairs officers cannot simply resign, right?”
Gerard fell silent for a mont but still answered in his heart, “Of course, the number of affairs officers is fixed.”
“Oh?”
“Do you see the energy plate above?” Gerard also looked at the energy plate on the black pillar, “That represents the total energy distributed to the affairs officers by the Lyra God, and it also represents the total computing power of all affairs officers. It can only be lit if all the affairs officers are present and working normally. If there’s even one too many or one too few, it’s impossible.”
“I see,” Bai Wei understood. “So, as long as that energy plate is lit, it ans the affairs officers are at full capacity. And now, the personnel making it fully lit are 43 officers, yet in your mory, there should be 44. So, in a situation where affairs officers cannot make mistakes, either you are wrong, or…”
Bai Wei paused,
“She is still here.”
Interesting, really interesting.
Bai Wei looked at the affairs officer before him, then slowly “opened” his eyes.
The Bai Wei in his mind suddenly fell silent, and Gerard didn’t know what had happened; he had no choice but to continue his conversation with affairs officer number 13 in front of him.
For ten years, he had been here countless tis and asked every single officer.
But the results were always the sa.
No one knew who affairs officer number 44 actually was, just like the mission ten years ago that sentenced Night Star to its fate―the woman with a mole at the corner of her mouth and a smile that was slightly sweeter than the other officers’… as if she also did not exist.
“Affairs officer number 44, you should know her,” the repetition of identical answers day after day had worn Gerard down so much that his speech to affairs officer number 13 carried a hint of pleading, “Can you have her et with ? I really need to find her, she’s like you, fond of smiling, but…”
“Has a mole at the corner of her mouth, right?” Bai Wei’s voice suddenly sounded in Gerard’s mind.
After a brief mont of stunned silence, Gerard bolted upright.
He rembered clearly that he had not described affairs officer number 44’s appearance to Bai Wei, “You…”
“I certainly haven’t read your mories,” Bai Wei stated blandly, “She is right in front of you.”
Gerard was stunned.
“Heh, ready to open your eyes?” Bai Wei said gently, “Open, my eyes.”
In that mont, the pupil protected by the mbranous shield began to rotate.
The skies, the heavens, the pupil that could take in everything, at this mont, cracked open a slit.
But that was enough to clearly see this world.
In an instant, the entire world beca visible, and so did the affairs officer number 13 before him. Gerard saw through her cheeks, through her flesh, and into the depths of her chanically constructed brain.
There was a light-colored lump of flesh.
He was dazed for a mont, subconsciously glancing towards affairs officer number 12.
The sa lump of flesh was hidden deep within the brain.
Affairs officer number 11, number 10… all the sa.
“Can’t see through? Then let help you,” Bai Wei chuckled as he used the power of the eyes.
In Gerard’s view, all the lumps of flesh were “pulled” out by an invisible force and then rged together in front of Gerard, reconstituting.
Then, he saw the face with the mole.
Number 44, smiling.
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