I Am Not a Robot. Beep-bop

Chapter 77: Baroness Sabrina 4

With the Facility Management AI’s permission granted, we began entering the interior.

Honestly, just thinking about battling hundreds of drones in this narrow corridor was already giving me a headache, but thanks to the dolls’ victory in their absurd logic battle, we saved quite a bit of time.

Of course, I didn’t think we’d lose the fight, but this was an underground facility with very limited space.

It was an area most advantageous to the defense drones, and there was no telling what kind of weaponry might appear. If the intrusion countermeasure involved collapsing the ground, it would be difficult for us to respond effectively.

“The Executive Director has arrived. The Defective AI should naturally guide the Executive Director through the facility.”

[…Understood.]

It was amusing to see the doll confidently shouting at the drone with a triumphant attitude.

Even with her expressionless face, her shoulders rose slightly as if she was proud, making it hard to see her as merely a weapon devoid of personality.

Kids are still kids, after all.

[…Initiating facility guidance for the Executive Director.]

The defense drones retreated with a somewhat dejected demeanor, leaving behind what appeared to be the leading drone.

Well, if they were offering guidance, we might as well use it.

“Uh, so… other than us, are there any other staff in this facility?”

[Originally, five personnel resided in the experimental zone on the 19th underground level, but they have left the facility due to certain circumstances.]

In other words, aside from us, this massive facility was effectively empty.

“An experimental zone? What kind of research were they conducting?”

[Are you saying the Executive Director does not know the purpose of this facility?]

-Clank!

At that moment, defense drones began pouring out from the walls and ceiling again.

Wait… Did I say something wrong?

[As expected, you are not the Executive Director! Initiating elimination…]

“You are a foolish and deeply flawed Management AI.”

“You waste no opportunity, Defective AI!”

Once again, the dolls stepped forward to protect me.

[To the multipurpose combat dolls: The Executive Director lacks the qualifications if they do not even know this facility’s purpose…]

“The Executive Director feigned ignorance deliberately to audit this facility. This was to determine whether you are a Defective AI or if you adhere to the facility’s original purpose.”

“It’s a defectively AI-like response to have a meltdown at a single comment, despite clear material evidence like us.”

[No, this is not a proper Executive Director!]

“They must be eliminated.”

“Executive Director Alice, that entity is unfit as a management unit.”

“Let us remove it.”

“I propose elimination.”

“I propose AI deletion.”

[…Ch, ch-chizik… Am I… a defect? Defective AI? Chizik… Beep…]

The AI, overwhelmed by the rapid-fire logic of the dolls, began emitting glitchy sounds as if experiencing a critical error.

Even the drone floating before me trembled noticeably, as if grappling with the severe doubt of “Am I really a Defective AI?”

[Am I… defective? Defective…? Self-scan complete. Check complete… No abnormalities… Defective…?]

【Oh dear, how pitiable. Human. I never thought I’d feel sympathy for an AI.】

Even Theresa sounded slightly elated, evidently finding this spectacle quite entertaining.

[Apologies, chizik… Apologies. This AI will faithfully comply with the Executive Director’s commands from now on.]

The Facility Management AI soon declared surrender, and the drones returned to their positions in the walls and ceiling.

Meanwhile, the dolls’ already confident posture became even more pronounced.

Are they really emotionless, cold-blooded killing machines?

It felt like having them with me had changed something about them.

Well, no complaints here!

“Hm, then. Is there a space here to accommodate the demons—no, I mean, the natives?”

[Confirmed. Allow me to guide you.]

Determined to redeem itself after its earlier blunder, the Management AI began guiding us without waiting for further instruction.

The corridor the drone led us down was extremely long and intricate.

For a first-timer, even without defense drones, the complex pathways and identical white ceilings and walls would be disorienting.

[This facility deployed biological weapons into unverified wild dungeons under the Ark Overseer’s authorization to eliminate monsters.]

The drone spoke as I wondered about its purpose.

It seemed deeply impacted by its earlier defeat to the dolls, immediately spouting explanations at the faintest sign of my curiosity.

The walls and ceiling of the dungeon, along with all its structures, were reinforced with synthetic concrete to establish the foundational framework, and the dungeon’s maintenance relied on the rift core as its power source.

“I was wondering how they managed to produce this much electricity in a place without a generator.”

[By continuously using the power of the rift core, it is impossible for the dungeon to produce monsters.]

It was a facility designed with considerable thought.

Of course, for the average person, converting a dungeon into an underground facility would be unthinkable, but with Mega Corp’s resources and drive, it would be feasible.

“Do they have food too?!”

One of the undead girls drooled, her eyes sparkling.

Although the meal kits donated by Earnest Rail were quite delicious, the girls, naturally fond of gourmet food, would eat endlessly.

They seemed curious about the food here as well.

After all, it wouldn’t make sense for Mega Corp to provide subpar meals.

Even the meal kits we received as public aid, rather than through plundering, were top-quality by Ark standards.

[A dining wing exists at this level. While the management of food, ingredients, and nutritional capsules is outside my jurisdiction, if you are interested, I can introduce the dining wing after this facility tour is complete.]

“No, guide the kids to the dining wing. Let them get some food.”

“Gasp!”

“Wow!”

“Teacher, you’re the best!”

[However, the facility tour for the Executive Director…]

“It’s fine. I’ll look around nearby on my own. The dolls are here, so I’ll be fine.”

[Understood.]

The Management AI responded and took the undead girls to the dining wing.

Since they were still growing children (though they had lived for decades in their current appearance), their love for food was natural.

The drone continued to guide us through the facility.

Occasionally, we came across rooms with transparent reinforced glass walls.

They appeared to be laboratories or contained materials for manufacturing processes.

When I stopped in front of a firmly shut door, the Management AI recognized us and opened it.

The room was filled with documents, computers, and other materials encrypted with codes, but going through them one by one would take too long.

‘Theresa, can you duplicate these materials?’

【Yes.】

I placed my hand on what looked like the computer’s mainframe.

“Theresa, review and organize all the data.”

【Understood.】

As a violet neural network shimmered faintly in the air, Theresa’s hacking began.

Normally, the Facility Management AI would have reacted angrily, saying something like, [What are you doing?! Hostile entity detected! Beep!], but perhaps due to the mental strain from its logic battle with the dolls, it showed no resistance.

Even if it sensed something was off, the dolls would likely interject with, “Are you daring to interfere with the Executive Director’s inspection?” or, “Typical of a defective AI. You need to be erased.”

【Human.】

“What is it?”

【This may seem sudden, but do you know what Baroness Sabrina’s power is?】

Of course, I didn’t.

Neither Hamar nor the other demons had mentioned anything to me.

For reference, demon nobles possess unique magic referred to as “authority.”

These are abilities that cannot be imitated by others, often bizarre and otherworldly in nature. While the term “authority” makes them sound grand, their potency varies significantly among individuals.

I wasn’t particularly worried.

Judging from the demons’ silence, it was unlikely her authority was combat-related or exceptionally powerful.

If her authority had been formidable, Sabrina wouldn’t have needed to defect.

【Baroness Sabrina’s authority is “fusion.”】

“Fusion?”

【It refers to binding wounds, restoring and reattaching broken or destroyed things, and likely even conceptual fusion beyond physical repair.】

“But how do you know that?”

【The data currently being hacked includes information stating that Earnest Rail used Sabrina’s fusion authority to complete various creations, including the dolls.】

What?

At her words, I furrowed my brow and looked at the dolls.

Their faces were expressionless, but when my gaze met theirs, they seemed to await instructions.

I had heard that Earnest Rail killed orphans to manufacture dolls from their bodies.

【Earnest Rail does not kill orphans to make dolls. He forcibly combines living human girls, fully conscious, with machines, weaponry, and corporate-controlled AI.】

“…….”

At that moment, I felt like I finally understood why these children seemed so human despite being robots.

They had never been anything other than human.

The dolls had been human from the very beginning.

“Management AI, is Sabrina in this facility?”

[Yes, she is being held in isolation on the 20th basement level, beyond the experimental zone.]

“Let’s go.”

With a slightly hardened expression, I followed the drone.

I didn’t know if Sabrina had truly betrayed her kind, but based on the circumstantial evidence, it seemed she had abandoned her people and defected to Mega Corp, using her authority to create inhumane weapons like the dolls.

If that were true, I had no intention of speaking with Sabrina.

While I didn’t care much about other matters, turning young children into something like this was far beyond what I could tolerate.

The faint smell of blood grew stronger as we descended deeper underground.

When we first opened the door leading to the lower levels, the smell of blood had been faint, but now it was thick and overwhelming, like standing in the middle of a battlefield.

The scent of blood made even the dolls instinctively feel threatened, each drawing their Earnest Rail-made magical blades with both hands.

[Welcome to Experimental Isolation Zone 18-1, Executive Director.]

The experimental isolation zone was drenched in blood.

Beyond the well-maintained white corridors and glass windows were pools of blood and pieces of flesh, whose owners were unknown.

The instruments resembled grotesque tools of torture.

And there, someone was present.

Preparing for any unforeseen circumstances, I activated my neural network and readied for combat mode.

Theresa had already deployed her mechanical tendrils and mantis blades.

“…Again?”

A soft voice spoke.

While it was hard to estimate a demon’s age based on their appearance, the voice sounded like that of a girl barely reaching adulthood by human standards.

Kicking aside blood-soaked surgical tools, I moved deeper into the room, where a red-haired girl in a straitjacket, the kind used for psychiatric patients, sat.

Chains were fastened around her arms and neck as well.

Her apparent age was approximately 18 years old by human reckoning.

Her clothing was smeared with dark, dried blood and chunks of flesh, matching the crimson of her hair, giving her an ominous appearance.

“Are you bored of leaving me like this? If you’re going to do something, get it over with and leave. Human.”

The girl, with a bitter chuckle, rested her head against the wall.

She looked resigned, as if she had given up entirely.

“Are you Sabrina?”

“…Who are you?”

Baroness Sabrina, looking more like a test subject than a prisoner or defector, glared at me with visible wariness.