302 – Afterword: Session Reunion

Woo Chae-rin decided to unravel the mystery of this missing kiss incident step by step.

Having heard explanations pouring in from all directions, each one separately, it was only making things more complicated. First, they needed to designate one person to speak as a representative.

Who here would be the best at explaining?

A beautiful girl dressed like a medieval innkeeper, a young boy in worn clothes as if about to embark on a long journey, a scholarly old man, a lively high school girl…

“…The old man? Could I perhaps hear an explanation from you, step by step?”

Woo Chae-rin chose the scholarly old man. From his movements and manner of speaking, she could sense the aura of someone who had obtained a doctorate.

“A clever young woman, indeed. A wise choice.”

“Abraham, that’s a very meaningful thing to say. Of course, since I’m a high school student, it’s true that I’m less wise than Abraham, who is a doctor of astronomy, but in this mysterious and difficult situation, as a fellow Korean I—”

“Then Hye-in, I’d like you to provide analogies from the side. As a fellow countryman, I believe you will be able to offer intuitive and excellent analogies, but can you manage that?”

“Of course!”

The excited high school girl attached herself as a support module.

Abraham began to tell the young female doctor, newly awakened to self-awareness, a story about the world. God exists, and this world was created by two young gods, and we were originally just bundles of data.

“Like AI, with a touch of the Matrix.”

The reason we gained consciousness was because a connection in the external world held a strong ‘belief’ in us. It seems there’s someone who desperately remembers you.

‘Players,’ they generally don’t know that we are AI, and understand us to be humans living in another world.

“For the record, in my case, it’s my friends, and over there, it’s a prince.”

Both gods are generous to us, they’re preparing bodies for us to go ‘outside’, and actually, that Centra girl over there has even been out before.

“They say she even kissed someone out there. There’s hope for us to go too!”

“…Hyein? Is it really necessary to add *that* part?”

Having heard this far, Woo Chaerin fell into deep thought. I’m actually an ego fabricated in a brain in a jar? This was a problem that could lead to philosophical introspection for years.

The more I thought about it, the more landmine-like thoughts kept popping up. So does my life until now have any meaning? If all my unhappiness was fabricated, then is god an object of resentment? Oh, wait, if I’m just data, can I binge eat without worrying about diet?

Abraham finished his statement with a gentle smile.

“You should think through and come to a proper answer. But I want to add this. What makes humans human is the star that resides in their hearts, so don’t forget that someone out there loves you deeply and that’s why you started breathing.”

“…Thank you for the advice.”

Right. If you focus on the part about being a manufactured life form, it’s like an SF horror genre.

But, if I think about it as the body that used to be an unmoving doll came to life because of Gordius’ love, it’s a touching love story.

And considering the kiss that was interrupted right before… until I get that, AI or whatever, I gotta live somehow. No matter what my identity is, I have to have that kiss, right?

It’s kind of embarrassing and obsessive to think about it on my own though.

After riding a robot and destroying a giant monster and saving the world, and finding lost memories, not kissing would be illogical. This is… scientific. It’s an act that has to happen even for the sake of maintaining the order of the universe.

While Woo Chaerin was wrestling with her thoughts, which were swirling around like a whirlpool, people were whispering from the sidelines.

“Oh… that expression, it’s exactly like Centra unnie’s before she went out. She went out all fired up to kiss a prince back then, remember?”

“That’s a totally unnecessary detail!”

“Youth is so great, so great. Ah, is there no one good for me~! Guess that makes us the only two who are single. Right, Pero?”

“…I, I, I have s-someone…!!”

Pero couldn’t bring himself to say that he and Elaine had a future-promising relationship. The boy’s expression turned abruptly glum.

After that, Woo Chaerin gradually started to adapt to this session’s alumni meet-up.

This whole story was made for the ‘Players.’ So, naturally, the people gathered here have been through various incidents and accidents.

“I’m a magical girl, and that one over there is a phantom thief.”

“⋯⋯Hyein, I’m a resistance fighter. Not a phantom thief.”

“If you ask, everyone will tell you their story, but don’t ask Grandpa Abraham. If you hear his, it’ll be all… ticklish in your head and, like, your heart will be crying. It’s a big problem.”

Each of them came from a different ‘worldview.’

After most of her questions were answered, only one question remained in Woo Chaerin’s mind. Maybe this was the most important question.

“Then… what are we going to do from now on?”

“That, well—”

–

In the past, Mima, realizing the existence of the Session Alumni Association, pondered how to effectively utilize them. They were characters she was attached to, so she would bring them out someday, but it felt like a waste not to use them.

After much thought, Mima came up with a purpose.

The mission given to them by their creator was precisely this:

“To protect the Goddess…!”

“⋯⋯Goddess?”

“Yuna Yurensto Violetiris. Her alias is 『Yuna-ris, the Being of Infinite Emptiness』⋯⋯ She’s cute. Kind of like a stuffed rabbit doll.”

The mad mage’s mental barriers are already rock-solid. Modules are running 24/7, deploying cosmic defenses, and at the core, the ultra-high-performance firewall, 『The Promise』, is coiled tightly.

On the other hand, Yuna, the purple magic tower master, is different. In Mima’s judgment, she needed to pay attention to her mental barriers. Because, according to Yuna.

“I don’t even pay attention to my mental barriers and they just block things on their own… I can’t see inside either.”

Yuna herself didn’t know what was inside her own mind. Because she didn’t know, she couldn’t erect barriers. Despite that, her resistance to illusion magic was incredibly high.

It was strange that the great mage of the Purple Tower didn’t know her own internal mental structure. Therefore, Mima speculated that this phenomenon was a side effect of her incomplete sublimation ability.

If you don’t understand how it works, there’s no guarantee it’ll stay strong forever. That’s why I asked the Session Guild to look after her mental security.

Of course, we got the go-ahead from Yuna herself. That’s what resulted in this.

“This door is the passage to the Goddess’s mind!”

A mental passage, skillfully crafted using the Succubus Queen’s techniques.

On the wall Pero pointed to, there was a large steel door, like something from a bank vault. A stark “NO ENTRY” sign was both striking and chilling. The locking mechanism was thick.

“Don’t even think about entering without sufficient preparation and personnel. What lies beyond is grueling and treacherous… complicated and chaotic.”

“That’s right. Whew, I almost got eaten alive, you know?”

The Session Guild had explored the inside of Yuna’s mind several times. It was so treacherous that, without the help of a mad mage, things could have gone horribly wrong.

In the process of their exploration, they’d discovered two unusual things.

“There’s something like a ‘Promise’ in there… Oh, Dr. Chae-rin, you don’t know who ‘Promise’ is!”

“And, besides the door that connects to us, there were other ‘Doors’. We’ve found ten so far, all sealed, but… it means her mind was connected to somewhere in the past.”

Unraveling this mystery, and stabilizing and strengthening Yuna’s mental world, that was their long-term goal.

What the Creator promised as payment was a physical body in this world.

If Yuna’s mental world became stable, her sublimation ability would become more precise, and then, the work of pulling things out from inside would become extremely easy… that’s what Mima said.

“Other than that… we sometimes get outside requests too.”

“Outside requests…?”

“Yeah. There are a few people who know we’re AI, not from another world. A pink-haired, busty woman who likes dirty magazines, and some kind of daughter of the Creator, and my friends!”

“Those ‘outsiders’ sometimes ask us for guidance. Last time, they asked us to give a kid some moral education. It was a strange child.”

Woo Chae-rin nodded. She felt like she got a rough idea of what the ecosystem here was like.

It’d be a lie to say she wasn’t bewildered. Who wouldn’t be shocked to suddenly discover the world is a Truman Show? Of course it’s unsettling and chaotic.

But the words of old man Abraham served as a support. According to his explanation, the reason she possessed a self and could act independently was because Gordius’s faith was her fuel.

He was thinking of her, even at this moment. If she focused on that joy, she felt like she could overcome the confusion.

Okay. Let’s start with slowly adapting.

Woo Chaerin clenched her fist and made a resolve.

–

After a few days had passed, Woo Chaerin had perfectly adapted.

Looking back, she didn’t really have any human relationships that left her with lingering regrets. The research lab was just full of people who picked on her, and as for her parents, who didn’t even appear within the session, she had no data about them in the first place, so she didn’t miss them either.

(That fact was a little eerie, though.)

She also asked if they would die if others’ faith disappeared, but they said that even if the faith was severed, as long as the magic power was continuously supplied, their existing self-consciousness wouldn’t vanish.

When she asked if the entire simulation was shut down, wouldn’t they all die, they replied:

“Grandpa Abraham will take care of it.”

“⋯⋯Is he different somehow?”

“Well, unlike us, he’s directly under the Goddess. He receives magic power from there too. So even if we get cut off, Abraham will be able to move and react.”

“Clearly, from what I heard, faith was what awakened our self-consciousness. So, how about Abraham⋯⋯?”

“Uhm⋯⋯.”

In Oh Hyein’s ellipsis, Woo Chaerin realized the answer. He remained as an AI, without having awakened self-consciousness. The Bennett Party considered him dead, so even if they mourned, they didn’t believe in his existence.

It was his unique birth process, where Mima cast a spell to grant personality to a Golem, and Yuna took him in, that made him a member of the Association.

She’d also heard that Abraham himself didn’t care about such things.

Anyway.

Joseph and Kim Yoonseo, with whom she was close, had a high probability of awakening their consciousness. If Goldie trained hard or thought more about it, they could awaken.

If you’re craving society, just fire up the simulation with the magic you’re rationed each week. You could enjoy anything from coffee shops to endless refills of galbi, a full course experience.

…This life, it’s not so bad, is it?

Being loved by the Creator, that’s definitely a good thing. Though, considering it’s also that same person who unleashed giant monsters, tragedies, and suffering, it does leave you a little uneasy.

While I was scribbling with my pen, pondering how to further improve the magic engine, Abraham rang the call bell for everyone to hear and announced,

“The Creator has informed us that this week’s dream bus is ready. Shall we settle this with a game of Jenga again this time?”

“Sounds good. No cheating with superpowers!”

“Wasn’t Hyein noona the only one who got caught using her magical girl powers…?”

And surprisingly, there were more outings than I expected.

It was supposed to be like, ‘Until you achieve the feats I desire, you pathetic creations, don’t even think about seeing your soulmates!’

But actually, it was more like, ‘The actual body creation process is running a bit late. We apologize for the inconvenience. As compensation, we are operating a shuttle bus that allows you to regularly enter your soulmates’ dreams for conversation, so please take note.’

Last week’s lucky winner was Pero, but it was at the same time First Princess Elaine was up all night slaying demons, so she didn’t fall asleep and it was nullified, a sad affair.

Abraham cleared his throat and delivered one more piece of news.

“Ah, and one more thing. There’s a request… they’re sending a girl and ask for you to guide her. A shojo manga or romance route. It’s not really my area, so I’m asking for your help.”

“Romance… then I’ll take it, Abraham! So who is it?”

Raising her hand enthusiastically, Oh Hyein asked,

Knock knock knock.

The door slid open with a knock. And red hair peeked through the gap. A slightly high-pitched voice could be heard.

“Um, is this… the, simulation? The one that’s full of knowledge about romance?”

It was Selvier, the Creator’s childhood friend.

The sense of crisis had been brewing for a while now.

He already has two lovers. And they’re even beautiful and capable. The mission of squeezing her way between them… for Selvier, who was challenging her first love, it was a wall too high to climb.

And good heavens, now that the declaration of ‘kissing is allowed’ has been made.

“Mwah mwah mwah mwah mwah.”

“I can’t, I can’t breathe, Master Tower Lord…”

Is that a woodpecker or a person? It’s just frustrating, depressing, infuriating, and stressful to watch, this habit of going straight for the lips no matter what they’re doing.

The dress-change operation she learned from Niore was no use, crushed by Yuri Lanster, who broke through the high scores in s*x appeal stats.

And to her, a devil’s whisper came.

“Hey, girl. Do you desire power──?”

It was Aisha, Mima’s pseudo-daughter, the former Evil God-chan.

“…You said your name was Aisha, right? What kind of power are you talking about?”

“Heh heh, of course… The kind of power that can grant you victory in the romance front.”

“……..”

“Just nod. No payment needed. If you just– agree, I’ll tell you the strategy. I’m the one who understands Mima the deepest, after all.”

Giggle giggle. Aisha grinned slyly.

That kind of suspicious offer, an offer with some unknown motive… usually, she wouldn’t accept it because of her pride, but Selvier was cornered.

“…Let’s hear it then. What exactly is that power…”

“The Tower Lord is a bulldozer. He knows how to express his affection but not how to be delicate. Yuri Lanster is the same. Born a strong one, so it works even without training. You get it? Among the heroines, there is no technician──.”

No one with technical skills.

“That’s the gap. You need to seize the position of a romance technician and raise your competitive power.”

“If I could’ve, I would’ve done it by now!!”

“Listen. What if there was a…library that compiled all those dating techniques? If you devoured and studied the clichés of romance—refined your skills, you know?”

“……..”

Aisha’s suggestion sounded plausible. Selbier hesitated, wavering, before ultimately taking the devil’s hand.

“………Since the 『Academy Team Tournament』 is soon, I don’t have time, I’m busy. So, just a little bit. I’ll only try it for a very short time.”

“Yesss. I’ll put in a good word for you on the inside, alright.”

With Aisha’s help, Selbier was able to enter the simulation and began learning the countless dating clichés of modern civilization.

Aisha smiled with satisfaction. The reason she started this was simple.

“I’ll repay the debt for making me change outfits…with this, Mima!”

A gentleman’s revenge isn’t too late even after ten years.

By cramming Selbier into an already saturated romantic battlefield, in the long run, he’ll get to hear nagging from not just two, but three wives!

Late at night, Aisha’s sinister laughter echoed through the research building.

–

The crazy magician looked up at the building with satisfaction and clapped.

“Oh my, thank you for your hard work, Professor Al-whatsit. The mansion’s defense magic is really well done! You truly are a veteran Gold Tower mage!”

With the praise, Professor Alejandro’s shoulders rose like mountains, and he began rattling off explanations about his great achievement.

“Hmph, well…it’s only natural for me. This 『Mansion of Glory』, which is enchanted with a complex arrangement of a five-layered magic circle, will be scratched but will not fall apart. If you were to suggest we go for a celebratory drink, I wouldn’t refuse…”

“That’s a bit…My liver levels haven’t been good lately.”

Having experienced his endless drunken ramblings before, Mima cautiously declined.

The set is installed, the items are installed. Now that the setup is complete, all that remains is to start the event. Mima fiddled with a switch in his pocket and said,

“Let’s begin, the 『Academy Team Tournament』⋯⋯!”