Chapter 67

That day, after meeting in the “Hopeless” VIP room.

Ciel’s condition started to become increasingly strange.

No—if I were to judge by this world’s standards, it wasn’t so much that she was becoming “strange,” but rather that she was “returning to normal.”

-It’s getting worse by the day.

I told her to explain in detail, and she began recounting the things she had experienced one by one.

-Ever since you told me “that,” Aaron, I was so scared that I deliberately disabled all my biological parts. I tried my best not to think about anything related to them. The “Junk Chip distribution operation” was scrapped anyway, and my work disappeared, right? So, I spent my time traveling around the city.

This city, even if it was a Sodom and Gomorrah rotting from the evils of capitalism, had one of the few redeeming qualities: plenty to see.

Even though gloomy weather was common, the flashing billboards and store displays along the bustling streets were constantly filled with fascinating new products and unique foods.

Even with an android status, as long as you had Credits, there was more than enough to enjoy, and Ciel said she had spent quite some time sightseeing with the allowance I had given her. Of course, this was something I permitted on the condition she stayed under surveillance.

-But you know? My mood started feeling weirder and weirder. This body I was so satisfied with—strong, tireless—started feeling like shackles I wanted to throw off.

-So what did you do?

-When I came to my senses, I realized I had put my biological parts back on, the ones I had hidden away from sight. And the thought of wanting to become human again just wouldn’t leave me.

Ciel spoke, trembling with fear.

-Just recently, when I was walking down the street, some man asked me to lend him money. He was a stranger, and his face looked suspicious as hell. Obviously, I should have ignored or refused him, right?

-And?

-I just said “alright” and gave him the money. Even I couldn’t understand why I did it. But there’s only one explanation for it, isn’t there?

Right.

Because that’s exactly how Ciel acted in the original story.

Even after she gained self-awareness, she was a character who retained more of her maid robot habits than other androids.

One of those habits was that she could not easily disobey a human’s command.

To the extent that if a stranger asked, “Give me money,” she’d smile and say, “Yes!” and hand it over.

That’s why one of Ciel’s nicknames was ATM. Even after she became the protagonist’s companion, that trait was often used for comedic effect.

If this were just a novel, it could be laughed off, but the problem was—this was the reality we were facing.

-I can feel it clearly.

Ciel buried her face in her hands.

Her trembling hands weren’t covered in ordinary synthetic protein but in skin made from living cells.

-I’m gradually becoming Ciel.

Not the Transmigrator who entered Ciel’s body—

But Ciel with the Transmigrator’s knowledge.

She was becoming closer and closer to the original.

If this had nothing to do with me, I might have been glad, even amused.

After all, having a random human’s mind stuck inside a character I liked was something I found unpleasant.

But this applied to me as well. This was only my speculation, but the reason Ciel seemed to be more strongly affected than I was probably had to do with the “order of the scenario.”

“Right now, right after Act 2 of Part 1 ends, it’s Ciel’s main episode.”

At present, Silence was in the hospital receiving treatment from the effects of the Junk Chip. Once he got out of bed, Act 2 would end, and Act 3 would begin.

“And then it’ll be my turn…”

I would probably awaken as a villain.

Not the Transmigrator in Aaron’s body—

But Aaron with the Transmigrator’s knowledge.

“That’s the worst-case scenario.”

Of course, my module specs still weren’t at their peak. But thanks to Miyu’s nanomachine “Pandora,” I had cured the terminal illness that was my biggest obstacle, and my pure specs had risen by over 20%.

I had also restored my most important modules, [Cloud Spider] and [Techblade], along with other core modules such as [Corpse Eater], [Tungsten Skin], and [Weapon Recognizer].

“…Even if the protagonist came back alive, they couldn’t beat me.”

In the original, Aaron’s worsening illness prevented him from drawing out the full power of his modules.

Even then, the combined forces of the battle genius protagonist, Iri, and Silence were completely overpowered. If Aaron’s illness had been even slightly lighter, it would have been the protagonist’s party that died, not him.

That meant that my current specs couldn’t be stopped by Iri and Silence alone. Asking them to “stop me if I lose control” would be pointless.

And if they had to subdue me “without killing me,” the difficulty would increase severalfold. In short, clearing Part 1 Act 4 by just leveling up the main characters was impossible.

That left only one option.

“I’ll have to fight myself.”

After returning from the dwarf’s workshop—

And after completely removing the stench from the scrapyard—I headed to Miyu’s room.

Her room, which I hadn’t visited in a while, looked like a junkyard, with tools scattered everywhere.

But the various tools filling the place were all top-of-the-line, the kind that were almost impossible to obtain on the market.

“Miyu.”

“Ah, you’re hereee…”

Miyu, who had been writing a report alone at the table in the corner, stood up as soon as she saw my face. Then, when she muttered, “Computer,” the workshop began to transform once again.

The cluttered tools all moved neatly toward the walls, and from within the wall, a large glass capsule emerged.

Inside the capsule was a greenish, murky liquid, with dozens of long needles pointed inward.

“How’s the progress?”

“W-Well, not bad so farr…”

Bzzzt.

Small sparks crackled from the ends of the needles. Each time that happened, bubbles rose in the liquid, and small fragments began clumping together, forming a new shape.

“Once the nervous system is complete, the rest—organs, muscles, skin—will be quick to makeee…”

“The specs?”

“I designed it to be as strong as possible… but since I had to make it in a rush, its lifespan won’t be very long… and if we replace organs or muscles with new materials, it’ll get even shorter…”

“That’s fine.”

It was going to be scrapped once the plan was complete anyway.

I placed my hand on the capsule and carefully looked inside. Something floating within slowly drifted toward the front, as if reacting to me.

That was when—

Thud!

The thing inside slammed hard against the capsule wall. For an instant, the murky liquid parted, revealing its form.

It was a skull.

It had only one golden eye, and below the spine, patches of muscle were slowly forming.

A grotesque yet bizarre sight.

“So this is what I look like without my skin? Quite an unfamiliar feeling.”

“Heeek…”

At my words, Miyu let out a strange sound, as if she were a little frightened.

I didn’t know why she would react like that when she was the one making it.

Well, whatever.

The identity of this skull was me.

To be precise—my duplicate.

The one that would become the core of my plan.

After learning of Ciel’s ever-changing condition, I had to prepare a way to resolve this before my consciousness was completely taken over.

And the method I came up with, prompted by my experience in the “Virtual Training Ground,” was this:

“Defeat myself with my duplicate.”

There is a technology called cyberization.

A fictional technology that often appears in the sci-fi genre—its details differ from work to work, but it generally means creating a copy of a person’s personality as a single program.

Fortunately, “cyberization” technology also existed here in New Valhalla City, and I decided to use it.

“Back up my consciousness before it’s taken over, and install it into the duplicate. Then, after I lose myself, this thing will stop me.”

But simply copying my personality wouldn’t be enough. Naturally, to stand against the overwhelming might of Aaron Stingray, the duplicate would need specs to match.

So I asked Miyu.

I told her to use every bit of technology she had to create the strongest prosthetic body possible.

“But even that isn’t enough.”

With only its base specs, the duplicate would never overcome the physical ability gap created by my modules.

That’s why, as soon as the duplicate is complete, I plan to transfer my current modules to it.

“The problem is, Aaron won’t sit still…”

It was obvious what I would do after awakening as a villain. I would take back the modules transferred to this duplicate, regain my strength, and rampage as I pleased.

“The biggest threat is still the two Game Changer modules.”

Game Changers—Lv.5-class Arcane Modules.

[Cloud Spider] and [Techblade].

No exaggeration—knowing how to properly wield even just one of them could allow you to single-handedly wipe out half a sector.

If such power remained in my hands—in Aaron’s hands—there would be no chance of winning Part 1 Act 4.

The reason I asked the dwarf to duplicate those two modules was also to weaken myself in advance after becoming a villain and to raise my duplicate’s odds of victory.

“Hoo… Let’s hope this works.”

I had to fool myself.

I had to fool Aaron, who knew everything about me.

Even if I knew all the plans in advance, I had to make sure Aaron couldn’t escape the trap.

Otherwise…

“All scenarios end here.”

The strongest enemy was drawing near.

In preparation for that moment—

I had to be ready to defeat myself.

Stingray Technology Division, Head Module Researcher’s Office.

There, Maria glared at the person before her with such force it looked like she might slam the desk. For someone who normally stayed calm, she was unusually agitated.

“This won’t do, young master.”

“So now you’re trying to betray me?”

“This isn’t betrayal. I’m telling you that we can’t proceed with the plan like this. This isn’t an assassination—you’re practically declaring war.”

“And is there another way? Do you honestly think it’s possible to secretly kill that monster?”

“…”

Maria was momentarily at a loss for words. As he said, assassinating Aaron was close to impossible.

But it was also certain that Benedict’s method was far too extreme.

He wasn’t talking about hiring outside mercenaries—he wanted to gather high-level soldiers within the group and face Aaron head-on.

Even if this plan succeeded, the losses would be too great.

“This is a matter that should be handled quietly within the group. If you turn the city into a battlefield like this, it will inevitably draw attention, and regardless of the result, our group will be left staggering.”

Say they succeeded in killing Aaron?

Even if they made his various crimes public to justify it somehow, including his death and the sacrifices needed to kill him, the resulting power vacuum would be too severe to ignore.

On the other hand, if they failed?

Then it would truly be unmanageable. Aaron’s wrath would strike the traitors, and the group would be engulfed in flames once again.

“Either way, the plan you’ve mentioned is far too reckless. We either prepare much more thoroughly, or think of a quieter way to handle it.”

“And you want to drag this out longer? Sounds like you’re telling me to throw away the opportunity entirely. You know that now that monster’s illness is cured, the more time we give him, the worse it gets for us.”

“There is a quiet way.”

“And that is?”

“Keep young master Aaron alive.”

“What?”

Benedict frowned, and Maria placed a data chip on the table in front of him. When Benedict scowled at it, she added an explanation.

“This is Aaron Stingray’s birth record.”

“What did you say?”

“More precisely, it’s the record from when young master Aaron was ‘created.’ It contains the research data from that time.”

“You actually found a record from nearly thirty years ago? What, did you completely ransack the tech division archives without me knowing? I’ll admit you’re competent, but that’s overstepping your—”

“Young master. Please look at it.”

Maria spoke seriously.

Benedict reluctantly inserted the chip and began skimming through the contents. Maria continued explaining.

“At the time, the chairman wanted to make young master Aaron into a ‘human weapon.’ Following the project’s goals, the scientists…”

“Manipulated hormone levels, removed and reattached organs including the frontal and temporal lobes… Heh, amusing. This isn’t human—it’s a Frankenstein’s monster.”

“Young master Aaron is a war machine made by human hands. And this data reveals the flaws from his design stage.”

Maria spoke with conviction.

“That means we can fix them.”

“Fix them?”

“This is the quietest, cleanest way to handle it.”

The reason to eliminate Aaron Stingray was that his violence endangered the group as a whole. But if, to erase him, the group itself was engulfed in the flames of civil war, that would be a complete reversal of priorities.

It would be better to seek a way to coexist.

“I know well that young master Aaron is an irritating rival to you, young master Benedict. But with the method you’re thinking of, even if you win, the cost will be too heavy.”

“So you’re saying just leave him be? That bloodthirsty war machine?”

“I’m saying it’s better to attempt repairs if they’re possible. You have another method—are you really going to ignore it and jump straight to military conflict? Especially when that’s his area of expertise?”

“Haa… So in other words…”

Benedict let out a deep sigh.

His gaze turned to Maria.

“You think that murderous lunatic can be reformed?”

“It’s not reform. If the violence was something implanted from outside, then it should be possible to forcibly remove it. Then we could choose an option that doesn’t involve military conflict.”

“So, you just don’t want to fight.”

“Young master…!”

“You’re mistaking something important, Maria.”

Benedict spoke coldly.

“Even if you make a man-eating monster behave nicely, that doesn’t make its bloodstained fangs and claws disappear. It’s safer to end its life.”

“Even if those acts were committed without his own intent? And he’s not a monster—he’s your brother, young master!”

“Enough. Talking more is just a waste of breath.”

No matter how she appealed, he wouldn’t listen.

Their words ran in parallel, never meeting.

Maria was slowly realizing something.

That Benedict feared, envied, and was wary of Aaron far more than she had imagined.

If killing his brother meant he could place the Emperor’s crown upon his own head, he wouldn’t care even if the empire’s lands became a wasteland.

“…”

“Are we done here?”

“I understand your words, young master.”

“Do you still have more to say?”

“No.”

Saying anything more was pointless.

It was only vague suspicion, but… could it be this man had known everything from the very start?

“The Technology Division Head Module Researcher…”

Someone in such a position couldn’t possibly have been unable to access information she herself had managed to uncover.

Perhaps Benedict had known it all and still let Aaron’s crimes go unchecked…

“…No, that would just be meaningless speculation.”

What mattered now was that Benedict was making an emotional judgment about Aaron—and that judgment would drag the entire Stingray Group into danger.

“…If that is your opinion, young master, I have nothing more to say. I will follow your words.”

Maria bowed her head respectfully. At the same time, other scenes rose in her mind.

Aaron’s changed demeanor after getting out of the hospital bed.

The way he treated students.

The way he treated staff.

“He has changed.”

She couldn’t say exactly why.

The most likely reason was that the terminal illness that had brought him to death’s door had disappeared.

What should she do?

She didn’t know.

She truly didn’t know.

If Aaron could change—

Should she forgive him?

Or should she still hold him accountable for his crimes until the end?

“…I will take my leave now.”

She had already come too far.

She was lost in thought, wondering what she should do, when—

“Where do you think you’re going? After spouting such things, did you think I’d let you walk away so easily?”

Benedict’s voice.

In that moment—

Maria felt a tremendous dizziness, as if the floor itself were pulling her down. Soon, she collapsed forward helplessly.

“I won’t take your life. When this goes wrong, someone will need to take responsibility.”

“Bene… dict… young… master…!”

“Get plenty of rest.”

By the time you come back out—

A new Crown Prince will have been born.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep