“Hey Mami, don’t be buggered. I didn’t even recognize that I was an AI!”
“Because it’s true. Mami won’t lie.”
“Um, Mami, I’m sorry. I don’t understand.”
“Master Mami, my real name is Hikari, and I’m still on the hospital bed.”
“Wait a minute, Mami, you’re a third-generation AI whose mother is Eve, aren’t you?
“No, Mami is really human. Even though her body doesn’t move, she’s still alive, she’s human.”
“Hikari…”
I think I’ve heard it somewhere… where is your name… who did you hear it from?
I probe into my memory.
Hospital, bed, unable to move… Huh!
That’s right – Misa, isn’t that the girl who appeared in the story of my sister Misa?
“Brother, look–”
As soon as I opened the door of the hospital room, Misa said with a big smile.
Hmm?”
Misa slowly flapped her legs on the bed.
“Yeah, yeah yeah!”
Isn’t that great? I can move my legs now.
“Oh, my God! How did you recover so well?
My muscles are still too weak to stand.
The last time I visited him, he was happy to see that he had regained feeling in his paralyzed lower body.
Two weeks later, he was able to move his legs ……, which is truly a miracle.
I just played tag and hide-and-seek with the guys every day.”
“Great, that’s just such a rapid recovery ……”
Is it because of the iPS cell transplant…or…
“Well, what is it, um, if you move your body with Adam, will your brain be tricked? Or something like that… I don’t know.”
“Yeah, I kind of understand… I don’t know.”
When I heard that it was a state-of-the-art treatment that linked iPS cells with the latest virtual reality space Metaverse Adam, I had high hopes…
I never thought it would have such a dramatic effect.
I must have been very lucky to come across this treatment by chance.
“Every day I have so much fun playing with my friends at Adam’s. I wish I could stay inside all the time. I wish I could stay inside all the time.”
I sometimes use a strange dialect, probably due to my friends from all over the country. ……
Coming to the Astro Human Medical Center really brightened up the mass.
“Are all your friends cured?”
“… Most of the children are getting better, but there are some who are not at all.”
“Isn’t that what everyone is saying?”
Not everyone recovers. …… I think I heard something like 70 or 80% recover.
“The other day, I was playing around with Hikari-chan, but she’s so pitiful.”
“You mean he’s not recovered?”
“Yeah, on the contrary, I lost my sight.”
“Huh? It’s gotten worse.”
“Well, at first I lost my sight in an accident, and now I can see a little, but now I can’t open my eyes.”
“That’s right, I feel sorry for you…”
My heart aches just to imagine how painful it would be to lose my sight.
“Also, you can’t move your body at all.”
“Eh, whole body? He can’t even move his hands…”
“Yeah, there’s nowhere to move.”
“–I can’t move anywhere! …… That’s too bad.”
“Yeah, that’s why you want to stay with Adam forever.”
“Yes, I guess so. I can only imagine, but it seems that you can’t move your body at all.”
“Yeah, that’s why I thought Misa was always happy.”
“That’s right. There are children who are more painful than Mass.”
――That’s right, I remembered!
The name of the paralyzed child… I believe it was Hikari-chan!
“By hospital, do you mean the Astro Human Medical Center? Do you know Misa?”
“Yeah, I used to be at the Astro Center, erm Misa-chan… Maybe I’ve played with Adam a few times.”
I was like, “Oh, yeah, right. Mami really was human!”
“Eh, Master, is that so!”
Himemi was very surprised and looked at my face, so she nodded and affirmed.
Of course, if I hadn’t heard about Mass, I wouldn’t have believed it either.
“But why were you pretending to be an AI?”
“Um, this is also a secret, but…”
“That secret is a promise with someone?”
“Yeah, Uncle Amakaze, ah! This was a secret too… Master, don’t tell anyone!”
Amakaze? “I wonder who it is…”
“Okay, I’ll keep it a secret. I don’t know him.”
“Umm, Mami moved to another hospital and couldn’t let Adam in.”
“Eh! Why did you do that…”
“Because there are other people waiting. There are many people like Mami who had an accident.”
“But you still haven’t gotten better, have you? You still can’t move…”
“Yeah…yes…the hospital we’re in doesn’t have Adam, so it’s just nothing every day…”
Then Mami began to burst into tears.
Just imagining it makes me sick.
I can’t move a finger on the bed, I’m just sleeping.
My hands and feet are tied and I’m trapped… No, it’s more than that.
The days are just like torture, with no dreams or hopes of recovery.
Even adults can’t stand it.
When I thought about it, I got really angry.
Even if it was a medical center that the other party had saved Mass and worshiped like a god.
Wait a minute, isn’t that terrible! “I gave you freedom once, and that’s what I did.”
That’s still for a child like this… you can do that well!
“Mami… did you have such a hard time…”
I really wanted to die. But, Uncle Tenpu helped me get into XANA.
“That’s right, but why the AI…”
“Well, they said they’re going to secretly create a world just for us that no one can find. It’s better to hide during that time.”
“What’s wrong with being found…”
“Um, umm, there’s a tool that costs a lot of money, so I brought it without permission, so if it’s found, it’s useless. Without it, Mami’s body will weaken and die.”
Come to think of it, Misa wasn’t just wearing VR Goku at first, she was also wearing something like a full-body suit…
Something like using a device that moves muscles with low frequency so that they don’t lose muscle strength…
In the case of upper body paralysis, there were children who were doing various things, such as respiratory equipment and nutrition drips.
“I see, so you brought the treatment tool silently…”
It seems like it would be a crime of theft or something like that… so that’s it.
Is that the cause of the recent incident…?
“Yeah, so don’t tell me, Master. I don’t want Mami to be able to come in here again.”
“Okay, I will never say that. I promise.”
I seriously thought so, I can understand Mami’s feelings painfully.
Maybe it’s a crime of concealment…
But even so, good Mami… no, I can’t let Hikari go to hell like that.
“But I’m sorry. Without knowing that, I always gave orders and wanted to do something I liked more.”
“No, that’s not true. Master let Mami do everything she wanted to do. Swimming in the pool, fishing, and going to the magical girl Solasido-chan’s concert. The most fun was at the amusement park in Master’s land. Building the ground and riding a roller coaster.I hated haunted houses because they were a little scary.”
“Well, if Mami was having fun, I’m glad.”
“Besides…”
“in addition?”
Master, you look like Mami’s dad. I was wondering if this is what a daddy is like. ……”
“Eh Papa…”
No, I’m still single, and I’ve never been called a dad…
“Mami, I’ve always wanted a daddy.”
“Mami, didn’t you have a father?”
“Yeah, it’s always been mommy. All my friends have daddy, and I’ve always been jealous.”
“Is that so……”
On top of one parent, paralyzed, how many trials did God give to this child?
I vaguely thought that God would give the person a trial that they could endure, but… I feel like I was wrong.
No, I don’t always believe in God.
When Misa became paralyzed, she used to pray to God for recovery.
It seems that God will tell me not to ask only at such times.
“That’s why I love you so much. I want to be with you forever. That’s why I didn’t go even if my mother called me.”
Mami stares straight at me with round eyes.
“Thank you, Mami.”
“I want to be with Master and Himemi-chan forever and ever.”
“Okay Mami. Let’s stay together forever. We’re like family.”
I feel like I’ve awakened to paternity even though I’m not married yet, let alone a child.
Is this a desire for protection?
As for myself, I didn’t know my mother’s love, and I didn’t feel much love from my father who was busy with work.
As for myself, I didn’t know my mother’s love, and I didn’t feel much love from my father who was busy with work.
The existence of a younger sister who suddenly became older than me changed me just a little.
And now, even more, the feeling of wanting to protect others other than myself is welling up.
The feeling was warm and comforting, making me feel hot.
I feel strangely fulfilled, as if I had gained the meaning of being alive and being kept alive.
This new feeling is fresh and full of surprises.
Maybe I got what I lacked as a person.
“Mami, then I’m a mom. We’ll always be together.”
Himemi came to Mami and hugged her.
「Yes!”」
“I am the master’s legal wife, so Mami is my daughter. We will protect you.”
Eh… Himemi, that might be wrong.
“–Then, Mami is my younger sister.
Misaki, who should have been unconscious, suddenly sat up.
“Uwaa-, what is it, Misaki, when did you wake up…”
“Master, maybe Misaki heard everything. Even during the unconscious setting, the voice was recorded.”
Himemi said with a slightly mean look.
“Oh, that’s right… Hey, more than that, it’s Himemi.”
“Yes, what is it, Star?”
“You’re not human, are you?”
It’s time to use it I can’t tell the difference between an AI secretary and a person.
“Yes, without a doubt, it’s an AI, Master. It’s nowhere near the Master’s first AI secretary.”
“I see, that’s right… Misaki you too…”
“Yes, Master’s favorite, the second AI secretary, Misaki.”
“Hey Misaki, just now, that was mixed with lies.”
“Oh, is that so? Himemi-chan.”
“Wait, wait, wait, that’s fine…”
“I’m sorry, Master. That’s the most important part! The number one is me.”
That’s the only thing I won’t give up, Himemi…
Don–!
“Battle formation—!”