blogombal Page 399
Page 399
Rhine-Enshe nodded thoughtfully, then connected his headset: "Found it? Hmm... I understand. I'll take the Commander there later... Please stay nearby for a while."
Luo Fan was puzzled: "Who is it?"
“Sister Nyx from Group C, in addition to being part of the sniper team, also act as technicians. I asked them to help me find a hotel in a relatively safe location. They will also be stationed nearby to ensure safety, so you can rest assured.”
"Understood……"
Lofan had to admire the skill of these native Nieto. Despite being a product of the modern era, their strength was in no way inferior to that of the girls. Of course, it was also possible that Madam Grey and Pascal's skills were so superb that the era itself did not become an obstacle for them to perform.
Of course, Lofan still harbored doubts about Rhinenshe's identity. He was certain he had never met her before, but she was definitely connected to something familiar to him...
The princess of martyrs—this young girl may still harbor many secrets unknown to herself…
Pascal and Gray, what kind of being have you created...?
619 Review
Upon arriving at the hotel, Lovan couldn't find the C group members that Rhinenshe had mentioned, nor did he see anyone who looked like one of his own. But when Rhinenshe helped Lovan connect to the Martyr's command module, he was shocked to discover...
"It seems the membership of the martyrs is even more exaggerated than I imagined..."
Dozens of people were scattered inside and outside the hotel, including snipers, plainclothes officers, and fire support teams, giving the impression of a presidential bodyguard team.
Rhinenshe was very proud of this: "Well, after all, we are the most efficient executive body within Paradis, so of course we have a large number of members. However, this time, we can say that we have mobilized all our personnel to help you."
"Did you receive the orders?"
"Yes, Sister Morito also hopes that we can connect with you during this mission, or at least get to know each other a little. Right now, it seems that there are no serious combat missions for us to carry out."
Rhine sat on the edge of the bed, smiling gently. Her every move exuded virtue and gentleness, making her incomparable to the female warrior who had helped her break through half a day earlier. It was as if they were two different personalities.
“Yes, that’s all,” Luo Fan nodded. “After all, none of us want to put the struggle on the table.”
After speaking, Rhine did not respond, seemingly indicating the end of the conversation. Luo Fan glanced at the girl beside him, who was now wearing a black and white nightgown that complemented her long black and white hair. The natural beauty brought about by the contrasting colors seemed to be the most basic understanding of beauty that mankind has had since birth, just like oil paintings, sculptures, and totems—simple yet profound.
Only after accessing the martyrs' command module was Luo Fan able to learn their names, from which he discovered that they were a squad with strong religious connotations, and most of their names were named after goddesses...
Considering the image of Rhine-Ensche, perhaps this was the design choice.
She was calmly looking at a beautifully bound book, her mind focused and quiet, seemingly possessing an innate ability to create a stagnant atmosphere, which made Luo Fan's movements become more cautious.
Luo Fan had nothing to do, so he could only sit on the bed scrolling through his phone, occasionally glancing at the girls' reports.
……
P.S.: The following text recommends "Trembling Heart 2" by A-Kun, which is the music for The Wandering Earth 2. Highly recommended.
……
"commander…?"
The girl's words broke the long silence like a gentle breeze that set frozen molecules in motion again.
Luo Fan looked puzzled and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Those people who work for you are all machines, aren't they?"
Thinking about the girls, although there are native humans like Pascal and Helian, and fantasy creatures like ship girls, the vast majority are tactical dolls...
"Most of them are humanoids like you. What's up? Would you like to get to know them?"
Luo Fan had no doubts about this question, but Rhine's expression remained very cold: "No, not at all. I'm just curious about your attitude towards them. Are you just a simple superior and subordinate, using orders as the means to communicate with each other, or do you treat them like your own children, cherishing them as precious things and always taking care of their feelings?"
……
Luo Fan could certainly answer this question without hesitation, but why did Rhine ask it? It's because she doesn't come from the same place as the girls, so her way of thinking is slightly different from theirs.
“I treat them like my own children. I believe I have the confidence to say that I consider them family. Without them, I wouldn’t be who I am today. Therefore, to me, they are no different from family members as usually defined by humans.”
Luo Fan replied in this way.
Can you vouch for what you just said?
In just a moment, the girl's gaze, along with the zooming movement of her eyes, was fully captured by Luo Fan. The rotation of the bearings and the change of light were as if the machine was interrogating Luo Fan, a human. Even though Luo Fan's answer was sincere, it couldn't help but make him subconsciously doubt whether there were any loopholes in his words.
“Commander, I understand the definition of ‘family’ just like you do, and you must also know that people can do anything for their families. In such cases, most actions taken from the perspective of family will be understood to some extent by onlookers…”
A slight smile curved Rhine's lips, yet an inexplicable eeriness lurked within it. Luo Fan knew that the smile was anything but friendly, nor did it carry much threat; it was simply a scrutinizing gaze…
“Every member of the Martyrs is my family. You can do anything for your family, and I will do anything for my family. But before that, I hope I can confirm, or get a more reliable guarantee, Commander... Can you regard the Martyrs as family members like the androids around you? Or... are you willing to not make things difficult for them and treat them as simple machines?”
……
"Of course, I have never seen anyone prejudiced against someone because of their background."
Luo Fan could roughly understand her suspicions, but those eyes were simply too much...
It must come from something she was familiar with, something she just hadn't been able to recall, and that thing was observing her through those eyes. This was also Rhine's own will; she wanted a reassuring result.
“If possible, that would be even better,” Rhinenshe finally smiled, but there was still a strange sense of gloom in his voice. “I hope you can uphold your attitude. The martyrs will do their best because of your kindness. I hope that we will eventually become ‘family’ rather than ‘clan’.”
"Of course..."
She seemed to have no hostility, but Luo Fan just felt like he couldn't breathe at all...
Behind those eyes lay a being far more magnificent and vast than she had imagined. She represented something, and at the same time, she was herself. She was Rhine-Enshe, the princess of the martyrs, and the future…
Pope...
……
Perhaps we can no longer treat the martyrs as ordinary Nieto. Lovan is certain that with such strong personalities, they will reciprocate with equal kindness.
Unless absolutely necessary, Luo Fan wouldn't want to have any conflict with them, at least not to cause any unpleasantness between them. These weren't his girls...
After all, to some extent, their positions are now considered equal...
620 The Mechanical Princess
After a tense and exciting interlude, the two returned to their usual quiet state. Rhine continued reading, while Lofan continued scrolling through his phone. However, in the Martyr's command module, he saw a name he hadn't seen in a long time...
"Tayaros, are you now among the martyrs?"
Rhine Enshe glanced at Lofan for a moment, then looked back at the book: "Yes, considering that Sister Gray might not be able to take good care of her, we brought her into the martyrs' camp."
"I see..." Luo Fan nodded, his expression uncertain. "So, how is she doing now?"
Now, Rhineenshe finally focused his gaze entirely on Luo Fan, a hint of unreadable emotion appearing in his eyes...
"The Martyrs have taken good care of her, at least she's not speechless like before, but... there's not much change. She's still very aloof and only cares about the tasks given to her by Moriarty or Sister Grey."
He sounded somewhat forlorn, but before Luo Fan could think, Rheinenshe asked again, "Do you care about the little tower?"
“Yes…” Luo Fan nodded to himself, “She didn’t have a good time in her original place, so I wanted her to feel more comfortable here, at least less restricted. But later, due to the heavy workload, I couldn’t find the time to talk to her for a long time, so until now, I haven’t actually been able to say more than a few words to her…”
When he saw that name again, Luo Fan felt a pang of guilt. He had noticed this problem a long time ago. He was too busy, so busy that he didn't have a moment to catch his breath or a moment to truly let down his guard and spend time with his family. When a mission was over, in the past, he might have thought about where to go with the girls, but now, he only thought about what to do next and how to do it better.
This was certainly correct for a commander, but for Luo Fan, it did not align with his original intention. He brought the girls with the hope of liberating them, not sending them to another hell to continue their arduous journey.
But this is the path we all have to take; we will all eventually be swallowed up by the tide of our grand dreams…
Lofan's guilt seemed to come from the heart, and Rhine Enshe, influenced by what he saw and heard, couldn't help but be moved. However, his rationality always outweighed his emotions, and since he had never worked with this man, he still couldn't tell whether the other man's words were true or false.
Aside from their creator, Pascal, it's hard to believe that anyone could develop feelings for machines...
“…Commander, if you really care about Little Tower,” after a long silence, Rhinenshe said in a deep voice, “you should find some time to go see her, without any purpose or mission, take off your invisible uniform, and stay by her side briefly in a way that shows you are willing to get close to her.”
"……you're right."
Lofan couldn't deny that this was indeed the best way to care for Tayarus, but ironically, time was the most precious thing to him. If he had an extra minute right now, he would choose to kill more enemies and solve more problems, rather than idly spending time with them…
It seems that at some point, we lost all avenues for turning back…
……
"Thank you, Rhine, for being willing to say these things to a lost and useless person."
Luo Fan laughed half-jokingly, then leaned back against the pillow behind him.
"There is no need to belittle yourself. We are just like your men. You are still our commander, and we will stay with you until the very end."
Luo Fan had heard this simple form of comfort more than once, and it had always been the best solace for him. In this way, he could always feel that the girls were with him and truly feel their presence...
"You only need to make your own choice. Everything we do is to better solve your problems. No one will betray you."
……
……
……
Luo Fan seemed to remember...
But that shouldn't be the case. Martyrs are products of their own making; how could she possibly interfere? Yet, this statement sounds exactly the same...
Unable to be certain whether his guess was correct, Luo Fan still decided to give it a try...
"Rhine...?"
"what happened?"
Have you ever heard of the term "head of state," or, to put it another way, Atlas, the brain of Atlas?
……
"It seems my comforting words were very effective, helping you out of your predicament in such a short time."
"……forget it."
Luo Fan silently turned his head and began to stare blankly at the empty ceiling.
Rhine's words of comfort were indeed very effective, but she had heard the exact same thing from the leader before. Was it a coincidence?
However, Rhine was a product independently developed by Pascal and Gray. Even if the current leader has strong computing power, it should not be interfered with by any medium. But this is too much of a coincidence. The sentence structure is exactly the same, only the subject is different.
Given Rhine's strong personality, Luo Fan was too embarrassed to ask any further questions. Even if he did, it would be difficult to get any results, since she didn't seem to react to these words at all.
With Pascal and Gray's abilities, they could definitely create personalities like Wa-chan's, that is, to let their personalities be reflected in their words and actions, and to react in a way that matches their personalities in everyday conversations based on the other person's words. Rhine's reaction is enough to prove that she really knows nothing about these words.
...It seems there's another mystery to solve.
But regardless, I was still very happy to hear Rhine, a new and unfamiliar friend, say these things to me.
With nothing else to do, Luo Fan put his phone on his pillow and prepared to go to sleep. Hand-to-hand combat is different from shooting; it consumes a lot of physical strength, and he was already very tired.
Goodnight, Rhine.
"Goodnight, Commander."
……
A commander fell asleep, while his men continued to do their utmost to ensure his safety...
Around the hotel, behind the closed doors and slightly ajar floor-to-ceiling windows, countless eyes still watch over this place, echoing the name "Nyx, the Goddess of Night," guarding this place.
"Sister Nyx, thank you for your hard work tonight too."
"Okay, get some sleep, Rhine. Leave the rest to us."
After saying goodnight, Rhine glanced one last time at the man beside her, then pulled the covers over her head and quietly went to sleep.
At least, their commander did not disappoint them, treating them as equals.
Now, my sister can rest assured...
The smile on her lips slowly faded, and the mechanical princess was entering her own beautiful dream composed of electrical signals...
621 The Afterlife of Machines
Four months ago
......
"In that case, it will be completed. It is expected that Rhine will be able to open her eyes and see the world with her sisters tomorrow."
After entering and saving the last string of code, Pascal finally breathed a sigh of relief, leaning back in her office chair. The adjusted backrest allowed her to lie down in a more comfortable position.
The figure wearing a monocle reappeared from the side, smiling, her kind face suggesting her approval of the successful construction of these dolls.
“Congratulations, Miss Pascal, on creating the first truly groundbreaking autonomous humanoids in this country. I’m sure Mr. Law will be very pleased when he sees them.”
"Of course he will. I must thank you, Ethel. Your knowledge in the field of AI has indeed been a great help to me. Would you mind if I asked which university you studied at?"
Faced with Pascal's sincere gratitude and inquiry, Ethel simply smiled and said softly, "It's just... being ostracized by the team. There's no point in bringing it up again. Rather than pretending to be profound and reciting a turbulent story, I prefer to show my true feelings through actions, just like this lovely child in front of me."
She glanced at Rhine-Enshe, who was still in a dormant state, and her eyes unconsciously held a hint of amusement. Pascal, however, remained lying in his chair, unaware of this change in demeanor.
“Indeed, not dwelling on the past, not fearing the future, that’s the attitude we should have…” With that, Pascal quickly stood up and walked toward the laboratory exit: “Well then, I’ll be leaving now, an old friend is waiting for me.”