[Novel] For Risako | 063 | Thirteen, Rematch (3)
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Ever since Ryosuke and the others headed off to scout the mysterious area that had appeared inside the building, Risako had been unable to settle down, pacing back and forth in front of the entrance to the hallway.
Perhaps concerned by Risako's state, Obsius quietly approached her.
And the two of them naturally began to talk.
Is Ryosuke kind to you?
Yes. He has been a kind child since he was little.
I see. It's strange, somehow. I only know the AI Ryosuke. He was excellent as an AI, but if you think of him as a human, he was quite a jerk.
At Obsius's words, Risako recalled the Ryosuke from the simulation and gave a bitter smile.
It was true that the AI Ryosuke was quite a jerk. But there were times when he showed parts that made one think there might be human-like emotions there.
Ryosuke was a special AI to us... he was like a son. When I thought we had lost him in this incident, he appeared as a real, adult human, so I can't quite wrap my head around it...
In my memories, the human Ryosuke and the AI Ryosuke coexist... and yet, I find myself accepting it without contradiction... it feels strange.
Obsius nodded at Risako's words.
I am surprised by your inner strength. At first, I thought you might be a girl who was more mentally ill... but you survived such hellish times. For some reason, I feel no sense of incongruity regarding the fact that you are here in reality right in front of me. I suppose I must have thought of you as a human from the start.
...Thought of me as a human... At those words, Risako felt something warm welling up from the bottom of her heart.
While they were talking, Ryosuke and the others returned.
Seeing them safe, Risako felt deeply relieved. She realized that she had been more frightened than she had thought.
While she didn't want Ryosuke to know that too much, Risako couldn't help but approach Ryosuke and grip the hem of his shirt tightly.
Looking down at that hand, Ryosuke gently took Risako's hand in his.
It's true, there was a slope leading upward at the end of the fourth floor.
Takeru gathered everyone and said.
It looks like just a wall beyond that, but I decided not to enter the slope. Things might change if we go up.
A slope?
That's right.
It is said that it was built as if it had taken into account that Obscius would also be accompanying them.
"What do you think? Shall we go?"
Ryosuke said, looking around at everyone.
"Don't we have to go?"
Ice replied.
"I'm a little uneasy about going in our physical bodies, but we can't just hole up here forever."
Everyone agreed with this. The people here were those who had been fighting goats for many years. They wouldn't stop just because the situation had become a little mysterious. Everyone was equally afraid.
Risako honestly didn't want to go. But she felt she had to. Because she was probably the only one who could cut the goats.
"What about weapons?"
Gais said. Up until now, he had taken on the role of staying glued to the monitor as the command center, but it seemed he intended to accompany everyone this time.
"Weapons are..."
As he said this, Ryosuke suddenly thrust his fist into the air. Then, something like a Japanese sword in a scabbard appeared there and was gripped in his hand.
"What is that? How did you do that?"
Ryosuke shrugged at Ice, who had raised a voice of astonishment. It seemed he didn't understand how it happened either.
Ryosuke handed the sword that had appeared to Risako. When she took it, the sword felt like it fit perfectly in her hand. Risako held the sword with both hands and hugged it tightly to her chest.
"Can you bring out anything else?"
"No, I think this is it. I think it means this is what I should use."
At Ryosuke's words, everyone looked at Risako. Risako nodded firmly, trying to look as confident as possible. However, she couldn't stop her arms from trembling as she hugged the sword.
"Then, shall we go?"
Ryosuke said, and everyone went out into the hallway together. The building's elevator seemed to be working normally.
Obshius, Takeru, and Gais went up to the fourth floor in the elevator, while the rest of the group took the stairs.
At the end of the fourth-floor hallway was the ramp they had been told about.
It was a long, gentle slope that ended at a wall.
Ryosuke looked back at everyone, and they all nodded.
Then, they slowly began to climb the ramp.
Nothing seemed to happen while they were climbing.
When they reached the end, the words "DIG 13 FFDIL" were written in small letters in front of them.
Without thinking, Risako traced the letters with her finger, and suddenly the scenery changed, and the group found themselves standing in what looked like an old gymnasium.
In front of them was a stage with the curtain down.
Surprised, she looked at Ryosuke, and saw that he had turned into his 14 or 15-year-old self.
Turning around, she saw Obshius, Takeru, and the others standing there in the familiar forms they had when they were inside the simulation.
"What... does this mean?"
"We've connected to DIG 13 FFDIL."
As soon as Ryosuke said this, the stage curtain began to rise slowly.
It looked as if something large was crammed tightly onto the stage.
As the curtain rose and the full picture was revealed, everyone was left speechless, forced to stare at the impossible sight.
On the stage, two giants were crammed in, in positions that one would rather not think about too closely to figure out how they fit.
The two had identical faces but were male and female, and both seemed to have the same bobbed hairstyle. In any case, they were crammed onto the stage in such strange positions that the details were unclear.
"Hey, you guys finally made it."
"Geez, you're so late, I was tired of waiting."
The two giants began to speak in turns.
...The "System"...
Yes, it was the "System".
It was a different "System" from the one inside Risako.
(To be continued)
[Novel] For Risako | 064 | Thirteen, Rematch (4) →