I Am Not a Robot. Beep-bop

Chapter 3: The Day Rust Rain Fell… 2

I am dead, yet I am not dead.

Even though I move, it doesn’t feel as though I am moving.

Where am I supposed to go?

Where do I belong?

I have no destination, so I cannot know where I am heading.

-Creak.

-Screech.

These steps are anything but natural.

It is as if strings are attached to a doll, and a child is clumsily pulling them to force the doll to walk.

Alice moved in that manner.

This place is not his.

No, it is not its world.

It is neither the first life she lived as an ordinary office worker, nor the second life she lived as a Demon King.

She has no home, and without a home, there is no sanctuary.

Without a place to stay, she had no idea where she was headed.

She merely walked, aimlessly and endlessly, step by step.

-Crack!

Her rust-worn shoulder and leg broke apart under the weight of the rust rain.

When the fallen clockwork mechanisms and strange screws rolled across the ground, Alice would collapse alongside them, twitching slightly before coming to a stop.

But Alice’s pauses never lasted long.

The broken and worn parts would automatically repair themselves, and the cogs and screws, submerged in rust rain moments before, would seemingly reverse time and return to her body.

However, the bio-organic tissues that mimicked human skin did not fare as well.

The skin scratched by the rust rain slowly slid off, and as the skin peeled away, the inhuman metallic surface beneath was increasingly exposed.

“I… have… no… home. Where… should I… go…”

Alice muttered as she walked, her voice like the screech of grinding metal. Then, suddenly, she looked up at the sky.

Although she seemed to have awakened in a scrapyard, she had now wandered into a forest.

There was still no sign of any human presence.

You could use “debris” instead of “refuse” in this context. Here’s how it would sound:

Far from Ark and the city, the scrapyard was where all of Ark’s debris and waste were dumped.

Of course, due to the highly toxic gases and severe pollution, it was not a place humans could approach.

While drones and AI regularly visited to maintain it, Alice, having awakened here for the first time, had no way of knowing that.

“Could… this trash… heap… be my… home…”

Even though there were no humans here, other beings did exist.

“Maybe… under the… sewer… could be… my home.”

Monsters.

Offspring of Calamities that crawled out of dungeons and Gates.

Beings that should not exist in this world.

They harbored hatred and hostility toward all living things, including humans, and began to creep into view, sensing Alice’s presence.

The rust rain, capable of easily tearing through human skin, continued to fall, but monsters remained mostly unaffected unless struck by an attack imbued with mana.

For the monsters, the rust rain was like an invitation for an outing.

“Grarrr…”

Emerging from beyond the bushes was an orc clad in rusted armor, its limbs wrapped in salvaged scrap metal.

Ordinary orcs, classified as C-rank in the city, were dangerous enough to warrant immediate evacuation for unarmed civilians.

But a Scrap Orc was a further evolved monster, reinforcing itself with discarded human metal and equipment.

Some older Scrap Orcs were rumored to reach B-rank danger levels or even grow to a size rivaling small villages.

“Keeh?”

“Kihee-hee!”

Beside the Scrap Orc, goblins treated it like a master, tinkering with wrenches and screws as if playing with toys to repair its armor.

It didn’t take long for them to notice Alice.

“Kree! Kreeah! Kreeek!”

“Kikik!”

The orc stepped forward to block Alice’s path.

Who are you to trespass in my territory?

Though no words were spoken, its expression conveyed the sentiment clearly.

“…….”

Alice slowly tilted her head upward.

Her first reaction was a faint scoff.

“Ha, now even the likes of this…”

Still caught in a dreamlike haze, with her self-awareness dulled, Alice was yanked back to reality by none other than the Scrap Orc before her.

It was ironic, considering Alice, in her second life, had stood at the pinnacle of power as a Demon King.

Her memories of that time were vague, like watching someone else’s history, but the strength and abilities from that era were ingrained in her like old habits.

Now, a mere mutated orc dared to block her path.

“If it were… the old me… you wouldn’t… even dare… look at me.”

Though she wasn’t naturally arrogant, having an orc, clearly hostile, bar her way was enough to provoke incredulity—and anger.

“Ah… I’ve learned… something new. Even… with this tin… head… I can feel… rage.”

How fortunate.

To live without proper emotions would have been a terrible existence.

Human life is built upon joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure.

Since those emotions are the foundation of all things, Alice felt a rare sense of satisfaction.

“So, I’ll end this quickly.”

Once she made her decision, her words flowed without hesitation.

Alice closed her eyes.

In the blink of an eye—no, in an instant shorter than that—her inner self awakened.

In her second life as the Demon King, Alice had reached the pinnacle of power and magic.

As a Demon King, her strength and might were only natural.

Though her memories weren’t perfectly intact, her life as the ruler of countless monsters left a deep mark.

Those marks included combat techniques and instinctive habits of magical manifestation.

Even if her body and the world had changed, as long as she remembered how, eliminating these trivial creatures posed no challenge.

Now, what should she do?

With a snap of her fingers, she could roast them.

Or freeze them?

Perhaps she should rot their flesh away?

If she wished to avoid filth, she could simply crush them with wind or telekinesis and scatter them far away.

“Hoo… hoo-hoo.”

As countless methods of execution flitted through her mind, Alice faintly smiled.

Ah, yes.

Her emotions were vivid and undeniable.

Elation, omnipotence, and the sense that this third life was becoming real filled her with joy.

Feeling her physical strength, knowledge, and emotions intact, she thought this third life might be even richer and more fulfilling than her second life as a Demon King.

Perhaps this life could truly be one of romance and wonder.

In that fleeting moment, as countless scenarios of joy played out in Alice’s mind, she opened her eyes.

“Grrk!”

The Scrap Orc appeared enraged by Alice’s dismissive behavior.

Ah, there they are.

In the slow-motion world of her thoughts, Alice glared at the Scrap Orc, who bellowed at her, and the goblins clinging to its body like trinkets.

Yes, now is not the time to celebrate.

That pathetic creature dared to block my path and even look down on me.

Even if my body has become this tin-can scrap, I will not tolerate being disrespected by such an insignificant beast.

Yes, I’ve decided.

“I’ll melt you all down.”

If the opponent had been an intelligent being, she might have hesitated.

But no compassion arose for mere monsters or vermin.

Still, she wouldn’t prolong their suffering.

After all, they had become the catalyst that brought her emotions and memories into sharp focus, pulling her into reality.

Even vermin have their uses.

Alice directed her internal magic and began to act.

“What I desire is a magic for bodily reconstruction.”

Deconstruction of form.

Dissolution of flesh.

Collapse of the body.

Numbing of pain.

With the rain falling, your dissolved bodies will seep into the earth as nutrients.

If these useless vermin can at least serve as fertilizer for the land, then they will have fulfilled their purpose.

Alice’s lips curled into a smile.

Magic formulas?

All good.

Pentacasting five simultaneous formulas?

No problem.

Her knowledge and habits remained impeccable.

It seemed unlikely she would lack power in this third life.

She only needed to channel her magic and manifest the formula to melt the pitiful orc and goblins in one go, then continue on her way.

Alice thought so as she activated the magical formula.

– Beep…!

“Eh?”

At that moment, Alice’s vision tilted downward toward the ground.

“…Wh-what?”

Her body wouldn’t move.

Something was wrong.

The sequence and structure of the magic formula were flawless.

Before questioning her knowledge, the magic that flowed effortlessly from her gestures and habits should have activated as the pinnacle of efficiency and perfection.

However, the moment Alice injected magic to manifest the formula, her body collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut, kissing the ground deeply.

‘Wh-what…?’

What’s happening?

What is this?

Why did I fall?

This can’t be happening.

“Kikik!”

“Kihee-hee!”

She heard the Scrap Orc and goblins mocking her.

No, seriously—what is this?

Why?

Why can’t I move? Why can’t I activate my magic?

‘Could it be… mana depletion?’

Amid her panic, something appeared in Alice’s flickering vision.

—

[Emergency Battery Activated]

[Main System Emergency Shutdown]

[Media Array – Object Creation Initiated]

[Initial Values are being Reconstructed.]

—

“This… what… is… this…?”

—

[Battery Level Currently at 0% – All Emergency Power is being used to maintain consciousness.]

—

Her vision blinked incessantly.

Even though her eyes were open, Alice felt her sight flicker thousands of times in less than a second.

Within the strobe of light, Alice saw objects.

Familiar and strangely welcome objects.

—

[Input Parameter Data]

[Simulation Initiated]

[Delete – Recreate – Execute – Compile – Restart – Recreate – Enclose – Engage – Set Thresholds]

—

And countless system messages.

—

[Companion – Configuration]

[Communicating with Main Frame.]

[Based on the most recent stimuli and information, auxiliary support is deemed essential in the current situation.]

[Companion – Activating Auxiliary Frame.]

[Completing Auxiliary AI.]

[Rejection]

[Rejection]

[Execution]

[Reset Command]

[Main Frame Authorization Required.]

[Execution Necessary]

[Confirming Conditions for Auxiliary Frame Release.]

[Implementing]

[Implementation Required]

[Main Frame Request: Shall we release ‘Auxiliary Frame – Semi-Permanent Companion Personality’?]

—

‘Damn it, what the hell… is that…?’

Even though Alice wanted to ask what it was, her body, now limp like a broken puppet, left her grinding her teeth internally.

But there weren’t many options.

Before she could even question it, the idea of the Scrap Orc sneering while attempting to “collect” her was far more revolting and humiliating.

There was no need to speak the words of consent aloud.

The intuitive system embedded within Alice understood her intent.

—

[Releasing ‘Prison.’]

[Main Frame Awakening Confirmed.]

[Generate – Create]

[Object Creation – Object Reassembly]

[Risk Variable – 0]

[Confusion Variable – 0]

[Magic Variable – 53]

[Executing]

[Executing]

[Implementing]

[Implementing]

[Releasing Auxiliary AI ‘Theresa.’]

—

【-ᅟHello, Main Object.-】