Lobotomy Corporation but with Simulation System?

"Angela, the screen in the Manager's room… has it… been replaced?"

But often, curiosity and the desire to explore the unknown would overcome the survival instinct. Especially lately, for some reason, X had become much bolder, her words a bit reckless.

This question, which had been bothering X for days, finally slipped out— because she had eaten too much, her reaction was a little slow.

The AI Secretary responded to X's question in a calm tone.

[Manager, there's a clear difference between "half full" and "half empty." It took me a long time to understand the difference between the two.]

The AI Secretary almost never answered directly. This clearly required X to think and understand on her own.

"Okay, I asked too many questions. Let's look at the Abnormalities to be contained today. I hope they're not troublesome."

After almost a week of working together, X had figured out the Secretary's personality. If Angela didn't want her to know something, she wouldn't answer… Or perhaps, she would only answer half of the question.

X could only know what the AI Secretary wanted her to know. In other words, the information X had access to was what Angela was willing to reveal. X's only sources of information were the Secretary and the Department Deans.

But if Angela didn't want X to know something, the Department Deans would absolutely comply, they wouldn't tell X. Even Netzach, the laziest and most unruly Dean, never told X any useful information. Her mouth was very tight on important matters.

About Angela… about herself… she only complained a little about the Corporation.

Perhaps they didn't want X to know, or perhaps it wasn't time for X to know.

Lobotomy Corp appeared to be an energy company. X also felt it was an energy company. It was just that the methods of obtaining energy were a bit strange… But that was normal in the city.

She had heard that there were methods for extracting energy from Hell. If Lobotomy Corp was just refining energy from monsters, it was still within the realm of understanding. As for the methods and processes, the cost was negligible compared to the energy obtained.

Well… extracting clean, non-polluting energy from monsters called "Abnormalities." Good quality and cheap.

Although Abnormalities were certainly not green, high-efficiency generators, this was just a small price to pay for valuable energy. It was worth it…

1. [O-02-56]

[People have been committing sins since long ago. "Why do they commit sins, knowing it's wrong?"]

2. [Fragment of the Universe]

[You see a song in front of you. It's approaching, becoming more colorful by the second…]

3. [The Heart of Aspiration]

[Excessive aspiration would bring about unwarranted frenzy.]

Unlike normal Abnormalities, Tool Abnormalities emphasized how to use them, not how to manage them… In most cases, they were relatively harmless. Because as long as employees didn't "use" them, there wouldn't be any accidents.

"Oh, let's choose [O-02-56] then. It's an Abnormality I haven't seen before."

X didn't think much about it. She just chose the Abnormalities that weren't likely to be recorded in the Corporation's files, even if they were troublesome or had some quirks.

This Abnormality, Subject Number [O-02-56], would be housed in the Training Department, to be received and managed by the Training Department.

[O-02-56] was housed in the newly expanded Containment unit of the Training Department. It was a harmless-looking little bird, completely white, with only a red patch on its stomach, like a crimson mark.

Inside the Containment unit was a small, living tree. The small [O-02-56] perched quietly on a branch. It looked just like an ordinary bird, very cute.

The purpose of placing the small tree was probably to prevent stepping on the little bird. After all, it looked very small. It wouldn't be good to accidentally injure it.

Everything looked fine. All that was left was to greet the Deans before officially starting work and see if they needed any help, or if there were any tasks for X.

"Good morning, Manager. You're in good spirits today."

"Good morning, Malkuth. Let's work hard together today! Oh, right, do you need any help? Maybe I can lighten your load a bit."

As usual, X greeted the Control Department Dean enthusiastically. To be honest, she hadn't visited Malkuth for several days. She had been busy with the affairs of other Department Deans. X felt vaguely embarrassed about it.

Yesterday, she was supposed to have a get-together with Malkuth. But because of some "unexpected matters," the party hadn't happened. Most of the wine was drunk by X… influenced by Netzach.

Usually, for celebrations, she didn't have any good excuses to request another bottle of champagne from Angela…

If she kept asking Angela for things, X always felt that she would be punished by the Secretary for pushing her luck.

X didn't want that. She didn't want to be punished. Fortunately, as long as her work was fine, as long as she didn't mess up the important things, Angela wouldn't punish her, at most just a verbal warning.

As for the inspections, the hugs… those were minor things that were almost negligible, as natural as breathing.

Who would deliberately think about how they breathe? Who would consciously pay attention to how they walk?

Hugs, occasional kisses… these little things were no longer worth paying attention to in X's opinion.

Perhaps this was the benefit of being slow-witted. As long as you're oblivious, you won't fall into a state of panic… After all, the implications of these actions were easy to misunderstand.

Of course, this also meant that X couldn't usually detect other people's subtle changes.

"Oh, Manager, I can handle it myself. Unlike before, I'm very capable now! Look, I remember so many things… I remember saying that I've had this notebook for a long time."

Malkuth, the Control Department Dean, showed X her notebook in front of the screen. She had repeatedly emphasized this "notebook" many times, always mentioning it in front of X.

She was insistent, as if she wanted to show X something, and stubbornly refused X's help, thinking that she could do it all by herself.

Perhaps X should have continued to inquire about the reason, but she simply praised Malkuth as usual, not holding back on her compliments… Perhaps it was indulgence. Encouragement was necessary, but strict criticism was also essential.

When you find a problem, you should point it out. When you sense something is wrong, you should pay more attention to the other person.

Perhaps… why was she always so slow?

"Well, Malkuth is really working hard."

X only commented on the Control Department Dean's busyness and didn't manage further… Often, "busy" didn't mean "diligent," and "diligent" didn't mean "results."

Working hard didn't necessarily guarantee returns… A donkey pulling a millstone, going in circles, couldn't be considered progress. It was just staying in the same place.

And there was also such a thing as "fake studying." It appeared diligent, but without any results. More often than not, these actions were a form of self-comfort, reassuring themselves, using this repetition… to gain a sense of security.

X knew that Malkuth had done a lot of designing for the employees. There were always many, many meetings. She would hold a meeting with the employees every morning, and submit many designs and reports after work.

She was a very hardworking and diligent Dean… She was also an optimistic and positive Dean.

But that was all. X had never focused her energy on Malkuth. Her praise was mostly perfunctory. She paid more attention to Yesod than Malkuth.

Except for her first day in office, when she had acted like a frightened quail seeking comfort from Malkuth, X hadn't proactively gone to Malkuth's office.

She was no longer that naive Manager who would panic at the slightest disturbance. X was now a mature Manager, able to calmly deal with her AI Secretary and the quirky Deans. Naturally, she wouldn't focus her energy on Malkuth, the most normal and friendly Dean.

Although it wasn't nice to say, it was true… the most troublesome person would get the most attention. To keep the most troublesome person in check, they would always be given extra rewards.

And originally, this was just doing her job.

It was like a child who always failed. The parents' only requirement was for her to reach a passing grade. Once she passed, she would get some candy, or even a trip to the amusement park—

But for a child who scored eighty or ninety on tests, those scores were taken for granted. There was only verbal praise, nothing else.

Perhaps, one day, she performed abnormally, only scoring sixty or seventy. Not only would she not receive comfort, she might also be scolded…

Human inertia is like that. Most people can't fairly distribute every piece of cake. Most people can't sincerely care for others.

Having someone truly care for you is a very, very rare thing.

In the city, gentle people are admirable, like a dazzling sun rising in the darkness, bringing warmth and light.

"Yesod, please take care of Netzach today. Be more tolerant of her, for my sake… Oh, of course, I'll compensate you, Yesod. But we'll talk about the specifics after work."

When X mentioned the word "compensation," she was pinched on the waist by the AI Secretary, so hard that X almost lost control of her expression.

It would be too embarrassing to cry in front of the Information Department Dean… It would look like she had suddenly developed a serious illness.

It's not like Angela had suddenly pinched her waist, and it hurt so much that she cried…

The waist was a relatively sensitive area, very receptive to touch, so the pain was very distinct, almost like stepping on a nail.

X didn't understand why the AI Secretary always liked to pinch her…

Had she said something wrong again? The AI's grip wasn't light. If X hadn't really trained her Fortitude, it would have hurt for a long time.

Although the pain came suddenly, X's endurance was strong. At least, she maintained her composure and didn't make a scene in front of the Information Department Dean.

"Yesod, are there any tasks for me today?"

X rubbed her waist, still feeling the lingering pain. Not everyone could enjoy the AI's "care." X imagined… if it had been Angela, she would have been completely suppressed…

She would be the victim of domestic violence.

—No, no, why was she thinking about that?

X repeatedly banished these absurd thoughts. This was work, working hours, how could she afford to be distracted by such things? Even if she was single, an AI shouldn't be an object of affection, right…? But the AIs of Lobotomy Corp…

—No, no, she shouldn't even be entertaining such thoughts!

—What was wrong with her? Why was she constantly getting distracted? So what if Angela was attractive? What was so special about it?

"Manager, are you even listening to me? [Repression] work is essential at times, suppressing an Abnormality's existence and desires… It's suitable for controlling an Abnormality's urges, or those things that are difficult to articulate, negating their value."

"Constantly indulging desires is a mistake. Appropriately suppressing an Abnormality's desires is immensely beneficial to containment procedures. And during this process, the employees also gain a clearer understanding of their direction, eliminating confusion."

The Information Department Dean was explaining something, while X was lost in her own random thoughts. Realizing Yesod had been staring at her for quite some time, X scrambled to recover, like a student jolted awake after dozing off in class.

"Right, I understand. We're collecting observation records of Abnormalities' reactions to [Repression] work today, correct?"

X's tone was uncertain, lacking conviction. Unsurprisingly, this earned her the Information Department Dean's ire.

She had been speaking seriously for so long, yet the black-haired woman in front of her had been distracted, not hearing a word… She despised irresponsibility, especially when she held even the slightest expectation for this person. The disappointment was magnified.

Even though it was a minor matter, the Information Department Dean was stubborn, always taking things seriously.

The screen changed. X didn't even have a chance to explain.