Chapter 347: D-64

It was chaotic, to say the least.

But it sounded like music to the ears of three people who had been stuck with just each other for a very long time.

There was the Duke who wouldn’t let up and followed everywhere like a puppy or a duck, depending on who you asked.

Then you’ve got an angry assistant who was shifting between thankful and hysterical as she listed all the pros and cons of why getting skewered on her behalf was not the most efficient way of doing things.

And this anger really would’ve been believable had she been able to control her sniffling and angry tears.

But Cece just grinned weakly at everyone. She really had no regrets. Not when the people around her now were like this.

She’d even do it again if needed. Or maybe at least prepare a few shields so that she won’t get scolded again.

“Can’t a woman get a pass at least for today?! You keep scolding me, then blame me for your wrinkles?” Jabbed the pale patient who apparently didn’t mind living dangerously.

“Ha! You better start acting better, because the moment the doctors clear you, we’ll be having this discussion again! We’re going to the hospital!” screeched the assistant who declared their immediate schedule.

Butler Gary had to mediate between the two and decided to hurry them by saying that if they took too long, they’d miss the possible tour.

“?”

“!!!”

The horror!

Obviously, that was out of the question, and even the dwarf who was planning on pretending to be in more pain even after that miraculous pill decided to hustle behind the butler.

“You should’ve started with that, you know?!” Said Cece, who looked ready to join a sports event.

“…”

“…”

The cadets just looked at each other before Kyle decided to drag Ollie for a change of clothes. Bloodied starry pajamas may be a look, but it was not one he’d want to walk around in, just like Luca, who only looked neater because his suit wasn’t as easy to stain as Ollie’s pajamas.

But that was apparently a pipe dream for one older brother had been boiling at the sides since earlier.

And really, maybe Kyle was the one who needed a change of clothes, as his brother chased him all over the place.

“What are you so angry about?! I didn’t run! We were taken!”

“Taken! You hear meeeee?! HEY! HEEEEY!” Screamed the adjutant, who really didn’t deserve this.

It was a rough time for the Chief of Staff, who had no plans of holding back.

And yet, despite the likely injuries, Kyle may actually be doing better than Jax, who has entered into a standstill with a new threat.

This was apparently a goat.

And while he heard that goats also produced milk and other good things, he was unsure if it could be enough to justify the eyes that looked at his children in a dangerous way.

He could already tell.

And the ultra-great-grandfather couldn’t move, as that bleating thing looked ready to run.

“Maybe we should get this one a barn?” Asked Luca who was worried about the two parties.

“Yeah, we’ll have to observe and check it for possible issues. Maybe some sort of quarantine until we’re sure,” replied Xavier, who had begun storing back the mechas that needed repair.

Now, Xavier encouraged Luca to freshen up while waiting for D-29.

Yeah. By now, they were waiting for the little system who apparently had to look for that annexed dungeon.

It was something they realized after Cece had come through.

They were back here, and so what could’ve happened to that collapsing space?

A whole lot apparently.

D-29 was not even sure how to reach out to this other system manager, and was really trying to prepare all sorts of maneuvers in case it planned on staging something like a coup.

But after seeing the data transmitted with this one, D-29 could only be glad if it were capable of speaking.

For D-64 underwent a factory reset.

Now that would have been alright, but for some reason, D-64 might have encountered a problem when resetting because it had reverted into this.

This being an AI with hardly any knowledge, save for knowing that it was called D-64.

And the little system couldn’t even find the manual that should’ve been used for this supposed manager.

“Host. It seems like there is a problem with D-64.”

“Huh? A problem? What’s wrong?” Asked Luca, who was suddenly worried at this development.

It’s been a while since he actually heard from D-29, and they’ve even managed to inform Steward Han and Head Maid Gloria that his mother and Gisella were now back.

The reunion was definitely for the books as the hardy Head Maid even fainted at the good news. But even after that, D-29 still didn’t get back to him with any news.

And now this.

A problem.

D-29 hesitated, which honestly wasn’t a comforting sign.

“D-64 is… well—” the system paused again, almost as if it were trying to figure out how to phrase it delicately, “—practically like a baby.”

Luca blinked.

“A baby?”

“Yes, Host. It seems it underwent a factory reset.” D-29 sounded uncharacteristically unsure, as if it hadn’t fully accepted it yet either. “But somehow, it knows only the most basic prompts.”

“…That’s not supposed to happen, is it?”

“No, Host. No, it’s not.” D-29’s tone turned dry. “Systems like us are built to inherit knowledge from databases, to auto-sync and re-integrate archived functions upon reboot. But D-64…didn’t.”

“So, it’s blank?”

“Not completely. It knows it’s called D-64,” D-29 admitted. “It knows the term ’dungeon.’ But everything else? It’s learning…from scratch.”

Luca frowned deeper. “Could something have gone wrong during the reboot?”

“That’s what I suspect,” D-29 replied, voice steadier now as it settled into analytical mode. “Not only did it reboot, it wiped itself. Maybe the corruption damaged its core memory banks. Maybe the annexation process forced a purge to prevent contamination.”

Luca’s brows furrowed, and the little system started to get a bit worried.

“It could still learn, host! It might take some time, but I think it doesn’t have to be fired!”

“Fired?” Asked the dungeon owner, who wondered why and just how a system could be fired.

“Why would we fire it?”

“Oh! You mean you’re not firing it?” D-29 sounded faintly surprised.

“What? No!” Luca’s answer was immediate, baffled. “It’s not D-64’s fault. If anything, it’s amazing it even survived at all.”

D-29’s silence stretched a beat longer than usual.

Maybe it also wouldn’t be fired? Thought D-29, who stored the data for review.

But just as the temporarily safe manager was about to thank its host, a faint ping echoed across its interface.

“Host…” D-29’s voice lowered. “I think you’ll want to see this.”

On his screen, a visual feed blinked to life.

There, hovering awkwardly beside Sid’s massive form, was a tiny cleaning bot, vibrating nervously as it tried to scrub a speck of soot off Sid’s plating.

Oddly enough, this cleaning bot was marked “D-64”, its rounded eyes flickering as it watched the other cleaning bots.

And upon successfully imitating its cleaning methodology, the little bot did a triumphant spin.

Luca watched this, realizing that, like D-29, it was able to possess different machines.

“Do you think we should make a temporary body for it? Probably not a mecha, but something?”

D-29 processed the information and agreed, especially saying that it might be for the best, as the annexed space was still initializing and couldn’t be opened.

Hm.

It was a long shot, but why did the little money grubber feel like this had something to do with the dungeon’s level and CP?

Was this the instinct of someone about to spend money?

Apparently so.

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