Lucy.
Although only 13 years old, her appearance was already mature enough to attract attention.
Her large, moist eyes, combined with her delicate posture, had been the trigger for the old Eduard to lose all sense of limits.
The original Eduard was definitely not a gentleman.
He had lost his virginity at 12 and, from then on, had sunk into excesses.
He had seduced, coerced, and abused his position countless times.
He had slept with more women than he could count.
In his father's lands, he was known as a living disgrace.
Pregnant maids and slaves.
Problems muffled by money and authority.
When I finished rummaging through those memories, I rolled my eyes in disdain.
It was obvious that the former Eduard was used to acting without consequences in his own territory.
And, upon seeing Lucy — a princess, someone beyond his usual reach — he simply lost control.
After mentally belittling that decadent version of myself, I noticed something else.
No reference to the United States.
Nothing even remotely resembling the modern world.
This was, without a doubt, a completely different medieval world.
I sighed and set that thought aside.
— Be that as it may, I still have to thank you.
— Emily, do you have any medicine?
I stood up and stretched my body.
It still hurt in several places, especially my forehead.
But nothing that truly hindered my movements.
— Heh heh… I knew you would need this!
Emily laughed as she tossed a small bottle in my direction.
— This is a secret product of my family.
— It's usually used in the training of knights.
— It's extremely effective against bodily injuries.
As she spoke, she glanced around furtively.
— It's almost dinner time.
— I'll go ahead.
— Apply the medicine quickly and come too.
— And remember: don't tell anyone about our friendship!
Before I could respond, she ran off.
Fast as a gust of wind.
I watched her figure move away, her skirt swaying until she disappeared through a door.
I carefully massaged my forehead.
This Eduard had truly stirred up a hornet's nest.
But… would it really be such a serious problem?
The memories indicated that people in this world were relatively open regarding sex.
Even so, there was nothing I could do now to remedy the situation.
I let out a deep sigh.
I removed my clothes in a hurry and began spreading the medicine over my wounds.
— Ugh… how cold…
— Damn it, Emily.
— Couldn't she have helped me apply this before leaving?
I released several chilled breaths as I applied the liquid.
The effect was immediate.
A refreshing sensation spread across my skin.
And, little by little, the pain simply vanished.
After dealing with the injuries on my body, I carefully adjusted my clothes.
Before walking into the ship, I paused for a moment.
I looked beyond the bow.
And saw something that definitely did not exist in my previous world.
There they were.
Beautiful women, with exposed skin, long fish tails replacing their legs.
Mermaids.
I then noticed something strange.
Collars fastened around their necks.
From them, thick chains extended to the ship's hull.
They were the ones pulling it.
— Who would have imagined… — I whispered.
— That one day I would be in another world watching a group of enslaved mermaids pulling a ship.
I smiled slightly.
My engineer's mind was already beginning to wonder how the anatomy of those creatures worked.
Muscles.
Breathing.
Adaptation between water and air.
But now was not the time.
I turned around and headed in the direction Emily had run.
I passed through the door and entered a narrow corridor.
The floor was covered with simple carpets.
There were windows along the walls, displaying the blue sea outside.
I ignored the view.
My memories guided me.
I headed toward the dining hall.
After passing through two more doors, I finally arrived.
The place was full.
Young people everywhere.
Some laughed.
Others talked excitedly.
But the moment I appeared, I felt the shift in the air.
Several gazes turned toward me.
Filled with contempt.
— Fuck… — I muttered.
— I died fighting androids in another world, you brats.
I walked without hesitation toward the line forming to get food.
It didn't take long until it was my turn.
That was when I felt the hairs on my arm stand on end.
The man behind the food table…
Was wrong.
Nails driven into his head.
Parts of his body stitched together.
Crude scars, as if he had been assembled.
A living aberration.
Even so, I remained steady.
I showed no reaction.
It was at that instant that an unmistakable voice echoed in my mind.
["Bip!"]
["Initializing program..."]
["Checking system integrity..."]
["Loading essential modules..."]
["Establishing virtual environment..."]
["Optimizing graphical interface..."]
["Synchronizing with database..."]
["Preparing analytical tools..."]
["Running initial diagnostics..."]
["Biochip successfully initialized."]
.
.
.
.
["Beep!"]
["Danger alert!"]
["Danger alert!"]
["The host body is extremely close to a radiation source"]
I almost let my bowl of food fall from my hands.
The broth rippled dangerously.
— What…?
— Impossible.
My thought was instantaneous.
That voice.
It was exactly the same voice as my biochip from my previous life.
Same cold tone.
Same mechanical logic.
How could something like that have followed me here?
It made no sense at all.
My world had been obliterated.
My body, vaporized.
And yet…
As my mind spun in confusion, I issued a mental command.
— Biochip, examine my mind and locate the biochip hardware.
There was a brief silence.
Long enough for my heart to race.
Then, the response came.
["Bip! Analysis complete!"]
["No unknown existence found within the host's mind."]
I frowned.
I glanced around quickly, trying to disguise any strange reaction.
No one seemed to be paying attention to me.
— This world truly makes no sense… I muttered.
I adjusted the weight of the plate in my hands and stepped away from the creature behind the table.
If that was technology…
Or something imitating technology…
I needed to understand it.
I sat alone at a table in the corner of the dining hall.
A large wooden pillar partially concealed me from the others.
My eyes fixed on the food.
A thick soup.
Chunks of meat and vegetables floated on the surface.
The smell was comforting.
But my mind was far from there.
I lightly touched my forehead, pretending to be in pain.
At the same time, I issued another mental command.
— Biochip, perform a deep analysis of my current body.
— Then provide a real-time report in status format.
— Something similar to an RPG.
The response was almost immediate.
["Request accepted!"]
["Beginning process..."]
I felt a slight vibration within my mind.
Not physical.
Something deeper.
["Initiating subatomic analysis..."]
["Particle scanning in progress..."]
["Quantum data processing: 98% complete."]
["Bip!"]
A strange sensation coursed through my body.
As if I were being observed from the inside.
It wasn't painful.
But it was… invasive.
Even so, I continued.
There was no turning back.
["Anomaly detected: stable subatomic energy flow."]
["Carbon atoms at optimal levels."]
["Calculating..."]
["Systemic body pressure."]
["Status: real time."]
["Bip!"]
My hands trembled slightly.
Every cell.
Every reaction.
Everything was being read.
["Blood pressure identified: 120/80 mmHg."]
["Values within normal range."]
["No critical anomalies detected."]
...
["Request completed."]
Finally, after a few minutes, the analysis was concluded.
The constant sense of alert within my mind simply dissipated.
I wasted no time.
— Biochip, if it's really you…
— Show me the report.
Immediately, the familiar mechanical sound echoed through my consciousness.
["Status"]
["Name: Eduard Edson."]
["Sex: Male."]
["Age: 15 years."]
["Strength: 0.4"]
["Agility: 0.5"]
["Vitality: 0.4"]
My jaw tightened slightly.
Weak.
This body was absurdly weak.
Far below even an average human from my previous world.
But then came the part that truly mattered.
["Condition: Hemorrhage in the frontal region of the head."]
["Extensive soft tissue injuries."]
Before I could react, something happened.
A three-dimensional holographic projection appeared before me.
Translucent.
Unstable.
Like a distorted mirror made of bluish light.
It was my body.
Or rather…
Eduard's body.
Muscles.
Bones.
Organs.
Tissues.
Everything mapped with obscene precision.
The injuries were clearly highlighted.
The frontal part of the head.
The neck.
Microfractures.
Internal inflammations my hands would never be able to perceive.
I observed it in silence.
I took a deep breath.
With what I knew now, there were only two options.
Wait for the body to heal naturally.
Or trust that Emily's medicine was truly effective.
I opened my eyes again.
The hologram disappeared.
This type of biochip was indispensable for scientists in my previous world.
Because of ethical issues involving human rights and artificial consciousness, this technology never had intelligence of its own.
It did not think.
It did not decide.
It only obeyed.
Its purpose was simple and extremely efficient.
It has several functions.
Data storage.
Data analysis.
Aimbot.
Virtual laboratory.
Under the direct command of the host, the biochip analyzed information, collected samples, compared patterns, and ran complex simulations to produce logical deductions.
No intuition.
No will of its own.
Only pure calculation.
Everything the host experienced through the five senses was recorded.
Sight.
Hearing.
Touch.
Smell.
Taste.
Everything was archived.
Empirical data showed that the biochip possessed enough resources to store more than ten thousand years of continuous experiences.
A perfect memory.
Infallible.
— Why did the biological chip and my soul merge…?
I thought for a moment.
Then, I pushed the idea away.
— Fuck it.
— I'll think about that kind of question in the future.
— When I have the ability… and the qualifications for it.
For now, one thing was certain.
With this biochip, I was not completely defenseless in this world.
On the contrary.
The corners of my mouth slowly lifted.
A sincere smile.
Radiant.
I knew it.
In this medieval-like world, possessing technology derived from a futuristic civilization is a cheat.
...
1613 Words
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