[Novel] For Risako | 056 | 11. Development (5)
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When I woke up the next morning, Ryosuke was already up and making breakfast.
Since there was almost nothing in the refrigerator, I wondered if he had gone out of his way to buy ingredients.
When Risako sat down in a chair at the dining table, scrambled eggs and bacon were served.
After staring at the perfect breakfast for a while, Risako looked up at Ryosuke.
Ryosuke was looking at her with a proud expression, as if expecting praise.
“This is…”
Risako said in a small voice. Ryosuke nodded and brought over toast slathered in butter.
“Yes, this is Grandpa’s breakfast.”
Ryosuke said this looking genuinely happy, like a child wanting to be praised by their parent.
Risako returned her gaze to the glossy breakfast and began to cry, tears streaming down her face.
Ryosuke rushed over to her in a panic.
“Hey, why are you crying? Did you not like it?”
Risako shook her head vigorously to deny it.
“…That’s not fair…”
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m happy.”
Goodness, this boy… Risako thought, suppressing her surging emotions, and felt that this was truly like Ryosuke.
Both the human Ryosuke and the AI Ryosuke would do things like this out of the blue.
Risako wiped away her tears and took a bite of the breakfast. It was delicious.
It tasted like Grandpa’s cooking.
“It’s delicious.”
When Risako said that, Ryosuke looked relieved and sat down next to her.
Before she knew it, he had prepared a breakfast for himself as well.
“I’m glad. Eat plenty. Eating this restores both physical and mental strength.”
"What is that? It's just like a game."
"That's not it. Games are what model reality."
Risako stopped eating and looked at Ryosuke.
…Games model reality??
Coming from Ryosuke, who had become a being beyond human understanding, this was a slightly chilling way to put it.
Risako observed him for a while, but Ryosuke didn't seem to realize he had said anything strange, and was happily eating the breakfast he had prepared.
So, Risako decided not to think too deeply about it and just eat her breakfast.
The breakfast Ryosuke had prepared was truly delicious. It seemed exactly the same as Shigeo's, down to the last detail.
Since she didn't think Ryosuke could have made this from scratch, she understood that he must have used some kind of special ability.
As she ate, Risako's mind became increasingly clear.
Although she could vaguely understand the structure of the world Ryosuke had shown her last night, she naturally couldn't grasp it as a tangible reality.
A world just like being inside a game...
"Hey, I think I've met two types of Grandpa so far..."
"The Grandpa in this current timeline... the Grandpa who is my grandfather, and the Grandpa who is inside the 'Goat' capture simulation, the one who was your grandfather in the 2354th test you remember. Those are the two, right?"
Ryosuke answered immediately.
"Yeah, those two. So, are they the same person?"
At this question, Ryosuke stopped eating and pondered for a moment.
It felt like he was thinking about how to explain it so Risako would understand.
"The answer is, 'they are not the same.' In this world, for some reason, phenomena where things around you synchronize in various places tend to occur easily. That's why people who look like Grandpa appear from time to time. However, they are not the same individual. The synchronization rate between the two Grandpas you're talking about is 4%. Data-wise, they aren't even close."
"Are they that different?"
"Yeah, the other one is completely an AI. Oh, there's one more Grandpa on that level, but... the synchronization rate for that one is even lower, at 1%..."
"Another one? You mean a third Grandpa?"
"That's right. Grandpa has the most points of contact with us, so there are quite a few of him. But they are not the same."
Risako carried a spoonful of scrambled eggs to her mouth and tried to imagine that state.
It was difficult.
"Then, are you and I also on every level?"
At this question, Ryosuke was silent for a moment and looked at her.
His expression was impossible to read.
"You are... how should I put it. I'm not sure if I can explain it clearly, but... you exist on every level, yet you are only you. Do you understand?"
"I don't..."
"I thought so... You are special in this world. One of a kind. You can go anywhere. And you are always you. You are one person, but at the same time, you exist in every place."
Risako could not understand what Ryosuke was saying. However, she understood intuitively that no matter how much the surrounding situation changed, the fact that Risako was Risako remained the same.
She had experienced various fluctuations until now, but Risako had always been one continuous Risako.
"...I don't really get it, but... I feel like I sort of do. I'm in every place but I'm the only one in the world... Is it like Mickey Mouse?"
At this, Ryosuke laughed out loud.
"That might be close."
"Then, is Ryosuke the same kind of thing?"
"No, I'm different. I'm more like a program designed to execute something. I can interfere with almost all information in this world. Except for you and the 'Goat'..."
"Except for me and the 'Goat'?"
"Yes. I have never been able to enter you, even before now."
"Weren't you able to access me before the 'Goat' capture simulation went wrong?"
"...That might be true, but... I don't have any memories from before that chaotic simulation, the 2354th test. I assumed I did, but when I examined it carefully, I realized I didn't. I suspect... I might have been born at that moment. I might have existed before that, but it seems I became this version of myself at that time."
Ryosuke started saying something philosophical, like a Zen riddle, but Risako felt she understood that part a little.
"My memories also start around that time... I think..."
"Regarding memories, perhaps my state and yours are similar. I feel like I existed before that, but in reality, I didn't..."
"I understand... I feel the same way. Does that have something to do with the <<Goat>>?"
"Hmm, I'm not really sure about that. The <<Goat>> is bizarre. I can read the code, but I can't interfere with it. Moreover, that code was unknown. I've mostly deciphered it, but I haven't been able to decode everything. For that matter, there's a possibility that I've misinterpreted all of it."
At this point, Ryosuke fell silent for a while, lost in thought.
Risako wasn't sure if she wanted to know what he was thinking or not.
Before long, Ryosuke began to speak again.
"Originally, I was a specialized AI created to decipher the <<Goat>>, which is an unknown source code. Just an AI made by a genius named Gais. However, by coming into contact with you, Risako, I became something else. It's likely that the same thing is happening to the <<Goat>>. But that side isn't complete. That's why the <<Goat>> is still looking for you even now. The <<Goat>> doesn't belong anywhere in this world. Perhaps... I don't know if such a thing is possible... but I think it might have come from the outside..."
Hearing that, Risako felt a chill.
...What does 'from the outside' mean????
"Oh, and the <<System>> as well, I suppose. Actually, I don't even know what the <<System>> is myself."
Ryosuke said this while peering into Risako's face.
Was he speaking to the <<System>> that he believes is listening inside Risako?
Ryosuke seemed to be probing inside Risako like that for a while, but then he suddenly smiled, his expression shifting from that of an AI back to something more human.
"Well, it's better not to think about it too deeply. Risako is Risako. Everything is just as it has been."
She nodded at his words and finished the rest of her breakfast.
Once breakfast was over, Ryosuke told her to get changed because they were going out.
When she looked in her room's closet, she found various clothes hanging there before she knew it.
It felt a bit like when she was in the simulation with the AIs... she thought, and Risako accepted them immediately.
She chose a white dress from among the clothes she assumed Ryosuke had prepared and put it on.
It was a dress she had a memory of wearing somewhere.
When Ryosuke saw the dress, he smiled and said, "That one."
It seemed there was indeed some meaning to it.
"So, where are we going?"
"After yesterday's conversation, I've been really curious about 'MIHO'."
"Is 'MIHO' the twin uncle from the dream?"
"Yes. Let's go ask them... Oh, I didn't confirm something important. If you don't want to go, Risako, we could just stay here as a normal married couple..."
"Of course I'm going."
Risako interrupted Ryosuke and said.
Ryosuke nodded with an expression that seemed to have gained confidence.
"But how are we going to get there?"
"We can get to 'MIHO' the same way as before. Though, I don't know if I'll be able to accompany you until I try..."
Risako thought about stopping her questioning of Ryosuke right there.
After all, nothing he said made any sense. The more she asked, the more new questions arose.
For now, she decided to just follow him in silence.
The place they arrived at after transferring trains was the internet cafe Risako had fled to before.
Back then, her father had suddenly turned into green sludge and melted, and she had run away in a daze.
That internet cafe was looming right in front of her.
...I see, so we're going there the same way...
Risako felt as if she had begun to understand the structure of this world a little.
This internet cafe and the one Risako entered before should be similar but different, but as a place connected to Risako, it must have some special function.
Ryosuke turned toward her, so Risako nodded to show she understood.
The two of them took each other's hands and entered the internet cafe.
Once inside, Ryosuke walked past the reception desk and headed straight to the back.
The staff and other customers couldn't see the two of them... or rather, it felt like they could see them, but didn't comprehend their existence.
It's just like being in a game, Risako thought.
Conversations don't start unless you initiate them.
"This is it."
Ryosuke stopped in front of a certain private room.
Risako looked left and right, but since every room had the same layout, she couldn't tell if this was the right one.
Ryosuke entered the room without hesitation.
There was no one inside.
When Risako used it before, she felt like it had been a CRT monitor computer, but what was on the table now was a computer with a large LCD monitor. It was not turned on.
The chair in this room was a comfortable sofa type.
She thought it had been different when she came before, but she couldn't remember.
It was still just as cramped as before.
Ryosuke sat on the sofa first, then pulled Risako onto his lap, holding her as they sat together.
"Well then, let's get started right away. You're going to get sleepy, okay?"
"Wait, hold on, we're going already? What should I do if I'm all alone over there?"
"Yeah, I'll probably be able to go too, so it should be fine, but if that happens, just have them send you back to MIHO."
"Also, I'm not sleepy at all right now."
"It's okay, you'll get sleepy."
Ryosuke gently placed his fingers on Risako's eyelids.
Then, an intense wave of sleepiness washed over her.
"What is this? I thought you couldn't interfere with me?"
Risako said, her consciousness fading.
"This isn't interference, it's hypnosis. Don't resist, or you'll start feeling sick."
The last few words sounded as if they were echoing with a delay.
And then, Risako lost consciousness.
...
When she opened her eyes, Risako was in an unfamiliar place.
...No, it wasn't an unfamiliar place.
As she sat up, she saw the twin old men sitting on the other side of the low table, looking at her, appearing exactly as they had the last time she saw them.
"Oh, she's awake."
"She's woken up."
The twin old men said this simultaneously.
(To be continued)
[Novel] For Risako | 057 | 12. Evolution (1) →