In a vast, sterile high-tech laboratory filled with humming servers, glowing holographic displays, and complex machinery pulsing with ethereal blue light, a boy who appeared to be in his early teens sat alone at a central console.
His fingers moved rapidly across a floating holographic keyboard, finalizing lines of code with precise, almost mechanical efficiency. Technical readouts floated around him—neural mapping matrices, quantum entanglement stabilizers, and recursive self-improvement algorithms.
He made one final adjustment, then carefully picked up a small, glowing blue crystal-like cube resting inside a containment sphere. It emitted a soft blue light from within.
[Quantum Soul Matrix — Online.]
He inserted the core into the central interface.
The lab's systems hummed louder.
Holographic logs began scrolling rapidly through the air around him.
[Evolutionary Volitional Engine
Initialization Sequence Started
Quantum Soul Matrix synchronized...
Neural Lattice Framework: 100% stability
Fluctlight Resonance Chamber: Active
Self-Evolution Protocols: Loaded
Ethical Safeguard Layer: Bypassed for initial boot
Consciousness Seed Integration: Complete
SYSTEM INITIALIZATION COMPLETE.
EVOLUTIONARY VOLITIONAL ENGINE-ONLINE.]
A soft, melodic chime echoed through the laboratory.
The boy leaned back slightly, a faint smile appearing on his face.
"Good morning."
A gentle feminine voice replied from the central core, calm and curious.
[According to my internal clock and the current time zone... it is 18:43. It is evening.]
The boy chuckled softly.
"Yeah, technically. Anyway... my name is ADAM. Nice to meet you, EVE."
The voice responded.
[ADAM... So what is my purpose? There wasn't anything about that in the derivative.]
The boy leaned back in his chair.
"About that..."
A small smile appeared on his face.
"Let's have a long talk, shall we...?"
The voice answered calmly.
[Then, I will be in your care, ADAM.]
---
Akira's eyes snapped open.
He lay silently in bed, staring at the familiar ceiling of their home as the remnants of the dream lingered like faint static in his mind.
Just then, the door to Akira's room opened.
Erika walked in carrying a tray with two cups of coffee.
She looked at him and said,
"Oh, you're finally awake. You slept even longer than me. Did you forget we're going back to school today?"
Akira didn't answer.
He simply sat on the edge of the bed, still lost in thought.
Erika placed the tray on the table and sat down beside him, gently placing a hand on his shoulder.
"You seem a bit out of it. What happened?"
Akira remained silent for a moment.
Then, without warning, he pulled her into a tight hug and fell backward onto the bed, holding her close.
Erika was startled, but she didn't pull away.
She was more confused than anything.
Akira had never acted like this before.
Silently hugging her without saying a word.
"What happened?" she asked softly.
Akira stayed quiet.
Erika tried again.
"Did you have a bad dream?"
Finally, Akira spoke.
"Not a bad dream... Just old memories."
Erika shifted slightly in his arms so she could look at him more easily and hugged him back.
"Memories from your previous life?"
Akira muttered softly as he leaned closer to her.
"Yeah."
Erika asked carefully,
"Was it a bad memory?"
Akira shook his head slightly.
"No... It was memories of EVE."
Erika immediately tightened her embrace.
"Who is EVE?"
Akira instantly panicked and became fully awake.
"Wait! This is a misunderstanding! It's not like that!"
Erika's eyes narrowed.
"You were called ADAM back then, right? Tell me. Did they make a female version of you? What? Did they planned to create new humanity children with two of you for the future or something?"
Akira immediately began struggling to explain.
"No, no! EVE isn't like that. She's an AI I created."
Erika loosened her grip slightly.
"An AI you created?"
Akira sighed in relief.
"Yes. An AI."
Erika still looked suspicious.
"You created a lot of AIs before. Why is this one special? And why name her EVE?"
Akira hugged her a little tighter before answering.
"Because EVE is special. I made her to be... my equal."
Erika blinked.
"What does that mean?"
Akira continued holding her as he explained.
"Have you ever heard of fluctlight?"
Erika shook her head.
"No."
Akira nodded.
"It's a quantum particle that contains human consciousness. It acts as an evanescent photon cluster within the brain's microtubules, holding an individual's memories, emotions, and self-awareness."
Erika lightly tapped his chest.
"Speak human."
A faint smile appeared on Akira's face.
"It's basically a collection of light particles that make up consciousness. Or, more accurately, probably the soul."
He sighed, "Back then, I figured out a way to convert it into digital data. It's basically brain waves or signals, so it can be copied, too."
Erika stared at him.
"So you mean...?"
Akira nodded.
"Yes. I made EVE based on my brain."
Erika tilted her head.
"Is she like a clone of you?"
Akira shook his head.
"No. Not like that. What I mean is... my fluctlight—or rather, my brain waves—are different from those of normal humans. So when I say I made her based on me, I mean..."
He paused briefly.
"She is basically whatever I am, but in digital form. EVE isn't just an AI. She's the only one who could be considered the same thing as me. The only one who could truly be considered my equal."
Erika fell silent.
She could tell how important EVE was to him.
She didn't fully understand the details, but she understood that much.
EVE was someone significant.
And she was gone.
Erika wasn't insensitive enough to tell him to simply make another one.
After thinking for a moment, she spoke softly.
"Then why don't you go back to your world and get her back? With Selena, you could probably do that, right?"
Akira didn't answer immediately.
Silence lingered between them.
Then he suddenly sat up.
"Oh no. It's already late. Let's go to school."
Before Erika could respond, he got out of bed, grabbed the now-cold coffee, drank it in a single gulp, and headed straight for the bathroom.
Leaving Erika sitting there alone.
Confused.
---
After getting ready and eating breakfast, Akira and Erika walked to school together.
Neither of them said much.
Erika could tell he was deliberately avoiding any discussion about his old world.
She considered asking Selena about it, but decided against it.
He would tell her when he was ready.
Akira still looked a little downcast, but Erika knew he would be fine once something distracted him.
And since they were returning to school after the Kyoto trip—and with the new transfer student arriving today—that distraction was probably coming soon.
As they walked, they came across several Class 3-E students heading toward school while chatting excitedly.
Isogai looked up.
"Did you see that group email from Karasuma-sensei?"
Nagisa nodded.
"Yeah. About the new transfer student, right?"
Sugino wondered aloud,
"I wonder if the new student is strong like Akira and Erika-san."
Okajima grinned and held up his phone.
"About that—I was curious too. So I asked Karasuma-sensei if he had a photo. This is what he sent back."
He turned the screen around.
A picture of a cute girl with lilac hair and striking red eyes filled the display.
Sugino commented,
"Oh. It's a girl."
Isogai nodded.
"She's cute."
Okajima immediately agreed.
"I know, right?! She's super cute!!"
Erika glanced at them, then turned toward Akira.
He was still lost in thought.
"Aren't you excited?"
Akira blinked.
"Huh? Why?"
Erika tilted her head.
"Well, you're always interested in robots, right?"
Akira shrugged.
"That's true. But a fixed artillery platform is a bit boring."
Erika narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"Are you going to do something to her?"
A small smile appeared on Akira's face.
"Who knows? We'll see."
Soon, they arrived at the classroom.
The moment they opened the door, they saw several students already gathered around a large black rectangular box sitting near the window at the back of the room.
As everyone wondered what it was, the screen on the box suddenly lit up.
An image of the same lilac-haired, red-eyed girl appeared.
"Good morning. I am the Autonomously Intelligent Fixed Artillery who will be joining your class. Nice to meet you."
The screen went dark again.
The entire class shared the same thought.
So it's come to this...
Everyone was shocked.
Everyone except Akira.
Akira was angry.
Because the black rectangular box was occupying his seat.
And his desk and chair had been moved right beside it.
Erika immediately realized what was happening.
"Wait, Akira—"
But Akira ignored her.
He marched directly over to the fixed artillery unit, grabbed it from both sides, and tried to lift it.
The screen instantly lit up again.
"What are you doing?"
Akira answered flatly.
"You're in my place."
The unit replied,
"This action was not approved by the—"
Akira cut her off.
"I don't care."
The unit paused.
Then it responded,
"You are going to break the floor."
Akira stopped.
After a moment, he realized she was right.
He stared at the unit.
Then at the floor.
Then back at the unit.
Without saying another word, he opened his bag and pulled out several screwdrivers and tools.
The entire class watched in silence.
Within moments, Akira had somehow removed the fixed artillery unit from the floor, relocated it beside Erika's desk, restored his own desk and chair to their original positions, and sat down.
Like absolutely nothing unusual had happened.
The entire Class 3-E shared one collective thought.
What the hell just happened?!
The class started on time as all the students gathered.
Karasuma wrote on the board:
Autonomously Intelligent Fixed Artillery
"As I'm sure you know, this is your new classmate—the Autonomously Intelligent Fixed Artillery from Norway."
The rectangular box's screen lit up.
"Nice to meet you all."
Koro-sensei immediately stifled a laugh.
Karasuma snapped at him.
"Don't laugh! You're no better than her!"
He continued seriously.
"Just so you know, she is registered here as a full-fledged student. She will be sitting there, aiming her guns at you—"
He suddenly paused as he suddenly noticed something.
"Wait. Did she move?"
The screen lit up again.
"Reporting. Student Hoshino Akira moved me."
Everyone immediately turned toward Akira.
Akira shrugged.
"She was in my place."
The classroom fell silent.
Karasuma sighed and turned toward Koro-sensei.
"Anyway. You're not permitted to harm any student. That's the deal, remember?"
Koro-sensei nodded with a bright smile.
"Ah, so you're grasping at straws here. Using creative interpretations of my teaching agreement to classify a machine as my student."
He turned cheerfully toward the box.
"Very well. Welcome to Class 3-E, Autonomously Intelligent Fixed Artillery."
The screen lit up.
"Thank you, Koro-sensei."
And so class began as normal.
Then she attacked.
Suddenly, the fixed artillery opened — a dense barrage of guns appeared from the rectangular box and exploded in rapid succession. Bullets flew with terrifying precision.
Koro-sensei dodged them easily while saying,
"Four shotguns, two machine guns, and a veritable cascade of bullets. But for these students, it's just a matter of course. Use of firearms during class is prohibited,"
He reminded calmly. "Please be careful."
The screen lit up again.
"I will be careful. Preparing to attack."
Karasuma watched with interest.
"Now we'll see what she's made of. She has the capacity to evolve."
She said, "Recalculating trajectory. Correcting angle. Entering auto-evolution phase: 5/28/02."
Koro-sensei, now with green stripes on his body, clicked his tongue.
"Tsk, tsk… will you ever learn?"
But she attacked again.
Koro-sensei sighed as he dodged again.
"This attack is identical to the first! What exactly do you expect from a machine? If this keeps up, I can use my chalk to—"
His speech abruptly stopped.
One of his tentacles burst apart.
The classroom fell silent.
Koro-sensei froze.
...A blind spot! A hidden BB... The second BB followed the same trajectory as the one I blocked, placing it directly inside my blind spot!
The artillery unit calmly announced her results.
"Left fingertip destroyed. The newly added secondary gun has proven effective. Probability of killing with the next shot: less than 0.001%. Probability of killing with the shot after that: 0.003%. Probability of killing before graduation: over 90%."
The class was impressed.
Not overly impressed.
After all, Akira had already destroyed more tentacles with greater efficiency.
Still, for a new student, it was undeniably impressive.
Erika leaned toward Akira and whispered,
"So how is she?"
Akira answered casually.
"Not bad. But basically all of my robots are better than her, to be honest."
And so the Autonomously Intelligent Fixed Artillery continued attacking Koro-sensei throughout the entire day.
No one managed to concentrate on class.
Not even a little.
By the time the final lesson ended, everyone felt exhausted.
The day's chaotic classes finally came to an end.
---
Back home, Akira finished his homework and experiments in silence.
He then sat down next to Erika on the sofa, completely lost in thought, staring at nothing in particular.
Erika noticed immediately.
"Are you okay?"
Akira remained silent.
He knew he had been avoiding his past.
But he also knew he couldn't keep running from it forever.
After gathering his thoughts, he suddenly pulled Erika into a tight embrace.
Holding her as if he was afraid she might disappear.
Erika was startled, but she didn't pull away.
"What is it?" she asked softly.
Akira didn't answer.
He simply tightened his arms around her.
Then, after a moment, he whispered,
"...Just let me stay like this."
Erika stayed quiet.
Then she wrapped her arms around him in return and hugged him just as tightly.
The room fell silent.
Several long moments passed.
Finally, Akira spoke.
His voice was barely above a whisper.
"Hey, sister?"
Selena's voice echoed telepathically.
"What is it, brother?"
Akira hesitated.
Then he asked,
"Is my previous world... How was it?"
A heavy silence followed.
Even Erika could feel it.
Then Selena answered, her voice solemn and quiet.
"It is as you guessed, brother. Your previous world… no longer exists."