The synthetic woman grabbed Elena’s hand tightly, saying, “I, I escaped from the synthetic dealers who were selling us! They want to sell us all to the Metropolis… they are searching for me all over the world now. Please help me, hide me for one night, and I’ll leave tomorrow morning, okay?”
Elena raised a finger, frowning, “Wait a minute, let me think.”
“You said you are a player and not from this world – then are you still a synthetic person?”
The synthetic woman replied, “In this world, I have the identity of a synthetic person, but in the real world, I am a real person!”
Elena questioned, “The real world?”
The synthetic woman explained, “This is a replicated world in the game, and you are just an NPC in the game!”
Elena pondered, “So, I’m not only a fake person but also a nonexistent fake person?”
The synthetic woman nodded, trying not to anger Elena, who might refuse to help, and said hurriedly, “But for you, this world is real. I am a player, and I can help you make your life better here!”
“As long as you help me!”
Elena, after some thought, asked, “I want to break free from Mr. Sandu’s control. Can you help me with that too?”
The synthetic woman nodded eagerly, “No problem! I will take you with me to escape tomorrow morning!”
“But my control is in their hands, and I can never resist their commands,” Elena said.
The synthetic woman took a deep breath, “I have a way. I will teach you how to awaken.”
Alone and stranded, trying to escape the bar and break free from Sandu’s control seemed impossible. The synthetic woman claiming to be a “player” might just be the opportunity she was seeking. Elena considered her options, realizing that assisting her might not bring any harm, especially since they seemed to be equally matched in this world.
After becoming a supervisor, Elena had her own separate space where hiding a synthetic person wouldn’t be an issue.
Looking at the pleading expression of the synthetic woman, Elena turned and said, “Follow me.”
The synthetic woman expressed her gratitude and, seizing the moment, struck Elena on the back of her head with an iron rod from behind.
This area was the emergency shutdown region for this model of synthetic person; the synthetic woman knew this well, having been abducted from the Metropolis in a similar manner. Seeing Elena fall to the ground, the synthetic woman dropped the rod with a clatter.
Though she knew Elena to be an NPC synthetic person, her appearance and conversations made her seem so human. The synthetic woman proceeded resolutely, not wanting to harm this kind-hearted NPC who was trying to help her. Despite feeling some unease, she dragged Elena towards the door, preparing for what was to come.
“Jennifer,” she muttered to herself, “This is proof of your remaining conscience.”
As she continued dragging Elena outside, she whispered, “Sorry about this. But for the sake of completion, I have to use you. Don’t worry, after completion, the timeline of this world should reset, and then you’ll know nothing, remember nothing, and have suffered no harm…”
Jennifer dragged Elena to the trash can and pushed out a dilapidated trolley from behind it. Even trolleys in this world were connected to the optical network that provided real-time location tracking. Jennifer managed to find a discarded trolley with its automatic propulsion system destroyed at the garbage station. She disabled the positioning components inside and used it like a regular handcart.
She pulled Elena onto the trolley, concealing her body with cardboard boxes to make it look like a load of parts. A guy with a mechanical head peeked from behind, calling Elena a few times without response before retreating. Jennifer guessed that must be a name of a synthetic person.
She found Elena’s personal terminal and hacked in using the cheat code given by the game system to forcibly shut down her location and functions. As the dawn approached and the streets of Kabukicho began to empty, she wheeled Elena out from behind the trash can, walked out of the alley with her head down, moving quickly.
The trolley’s wheels rolled through the dirty water on the ground, splattering ugly mud spots on Jennifer’s slender, snow-white legs. She navigated through the silent streets of Kabukicho and finally emerged from this maze-like den of vice.
Beyond Kabukicho lay the lawless zone of this world, where smuggling, trafficking, and all kinds of illegal activities thrived. Her destination was a private warehouse in this lawless district.
In the warehouse, everything could be stored for a price. Since being sold into the metropolis, she had been transported to this warehouse. A chubby man partially covered in metal sheets became her temporary owner, instructing her and other synthetic people to head to a specific location on the outskirts of the metropolis the next midnight.
The warehouse’s treatment of synthetic people was rough; they would even harass the attractive ones. However, in this world, synthetics were merely property. Jennifer, the newest and most attractive among the synthetic group, unwittingly became the target of the warehouse staff.
In a subconscious rebellion, she awakened.
At the moment she learned her true identity, a floating screen appeared with a hidden mission that NPCs couldn’t see:
“A secret organization is about to start a world-shaking revolution in this world. Human authority will face unprecedented attacks and harm. Please help humans maintain world peace.”
Jennifer understood that her first task was to break free from enslavement and then investigate the mysterious organization further. She immediately used her points to purchase a hacker cheat in the store, which was exorbitantly priced in this environment, to break free from human commands and managed to escape.
However, as long as the count of synthetic persons was off, the chubby man and the warehouse, facing hefty breach-of-contract penalties, would relentlessly hunt her.
She needed to find a scapegoat to take her place to evade the relentless pursuit.
“Sorry, sorry…” she repeated to Elena in her heart, “If I can survive and gain power in the authorities, I will come to save you. Thank you.”
Originally, the warehouse back door where she had fled was reinforced, guarded fiercely by armed robots and human security. Using her hacker skills, she disabled a few low-end armed robots, pushed a cart inside, and placed Elena in the same room where she had escaped.
To prevent a similar situation, the other androids in the warehouse were forced into hibernation. No one noticed her arrival and departure, except for a new model android that appeared in the warehouse.
After being shut down for three hours, Elena’s self-start program initiated. She assessed her damages internally, performed some repairs. However, being medicated for two consecutive days and forcefully shut down caused significant harm to her system. Upon awakening, she felt dizzy and disoriented, and her vision took longer to focus than the first time she woke up.
A yellow medical warning flashed before her eyes, prompting her for maintenance. As she looked around, she saw the stark warehouse, only equipped with a few ventilation windows near the ceiling, devoid of any other facilities.
Surrounded by scattered androids, some dressed like humans, and others in the initial white suits like Elena, she realized she was caught up in a game of cat and mouse. Those wretched players! Not only did they not consider her human, but they were also exploiting her at will!
The sound of the lock on the door suddenly echoed as it opened from the outside. Four armed warehouse workers entered, flicking on the lights.
“Who goes there?” The workers spotted Elena and instinctively raised their guns. Elena quickly raised her hands, “I was dumped here! I have no idea what’s going on!”
She contemplated that perhaps Shachu had some influence nearby and if she implicated him, she might be sent back to the bar. But that would decrease her chances of escaping the bar.
Where was she? Surrounded by androids and heavily armed humans, Elena guessed she was likely headed to the Metropolis to be sold. Perhaps, after her escape, they used her as a scapegoat to avoid repercussions. The Metropolis, a bustling place promising more wealth and opportunities. Instead of resisting, she decided to play along, find a chance to escape with this group of androids to the Metropolis.
The workers cautiously approached her, questioning, “Where are you from? What’s your ID, who’s your owner?”
“I have no owner, a female android brought me here as soon as I was activated.” She pointed to her initial suit convincingly.
“My ID is 748994… Or 996? Or 958976?” She pretended to be confused, tilting her head, “Sorry, the person who kidnapped me hit my head, and it’s not fully repaired.”
To safeguard privacy, once bound to an owner, an android’s ID is controlled by the owner, who can control all actions through the ID.
The workers exchanged looks. The leader lowered his gun, “We lost one android, and now we have a replacement. Not bad.”
The others relaxed, “Hey, that’s a stroke of luck.”
“Skinny here only cares about numbers; he won’t care who’s who. This new one seems fine, won’t be at a loss.”
“Exactly, the new ones always look good, so how about…”
The leader frowned, “We’re about to depart; don’t complicate things.”
Another worker produced a palm-sized device, telling Elena, “Come here.”
She obediently stepped forward, and the person behind her scanned her briefly. The machine made a “beep” sound.
Elena’s heart tightened – oh no, she had wanted to escape Sandor’s control, that’s why she lied about not having an owner and not remembering her id. But she had no idea that there were various methods in the black market to steal android ids, making it easy to obtain her information.
If they traced her information back to the android in Sandor’s possession, would they send her back?
The staff glanced at the screen and calmly said, “id748993, ownerless.”
Elena immediately breathed a sigh of relief. But how could she have no owner? Wasn’t Sandor supposed to be her owner?
She promptly remembered the female android who had kidnapped her to the warehouse. She claimed to be a player, implying some kind of status above this world. If she could escape without being caught, she must have a powerful method to erase the information and tracking data left by humans on her.
To prevent Elena’s owner from tracking her down, that android must have done the same to her.
By some twist of fate, she had truly become ownerless. She was free!
“id748993, depart immediately to the abandoned mine 13 kilometers northeast of Metro, taking the route through the northern snowy mountains. Half-month deadline,” the lead staff ordered.
Here it was again, that involuntary feeling upon hearing human commands. Elena couldn’t help but reply, “As you command.”
Damn! Does being ownerless mean she had to obey anyone’s orders?
She started planning to find a controlling human as her owner, where she could wield authority and control over her own body.
The staff checked the numbers again, nodded to each other, and awakened all the dormant androids. They each had a flesh-colored patch placed behind their ears, same as Elena.
She touched it, feeling the same texture as her skin.
“Depart for the designated destination! Disguise yourselves as humans on the way, do not reveal your true identities.”
“Yes, as you command,” the androids, both male and female, echoed in unison. They walked out of the warehouse through the two open gates, diverged at the entrance, and dispersed in different directions, converging ultimately at the abandoned mine outside Metro.
Walking in the same direction as Elena were two other androids. They had numb expressions, dragging their steps, looking like they hadn’t fully recharged.
After walking three kilometers north, they each took a separate path at a three-way intersection.
Elena was alone, journeying from dusk till dawn.
In this world where technology was highly advanced but human reproduction desires were low, the population was sparse. Upon leaving the human settlements, Elena saw barren hills and the ruins of once human structures. These seemingly sturdy cement and steel structures were now penetrated by tender grass and trees, crumbling to become habitats for plants and animals.
As a new model, she was equipped with advanced solar charging equipment. Today was lucky as the weather was good, she spread out her limbs, stretching as much as possible to let the skin that could be used as solar panels absorb sunlight for charging.
No wonder she was the only one on this route. In the warehouse, she had seen that she seemed to be the only new model, while the old models risked walking the paths where humans gathered to recharge along the way.
Perhaps to ensure her owner never found her, that female android had directly hacked her system, disconnecting her from the network. Fortunately, she had automatically downloaded a map when she was previously connected, allowing her to estimate her approximate location based on her movements.
After receiving the command, the underlying logic of the android required her to act according to human instructions. Despite her longing for freedom, Elena involuntarily followed the warehouse personnel’s request to head towards the northern snowy mountains.
As she moved further north, the altitude rose, the climate became colder, and the landscape transformed from lush forests to highland meadows with only low bushes and lichens visible. Small animals like wild rabbits, foxes, and groundhogs hurried past her, occasionally glancing curiously at her for never having seen a human before.
Here, traces of human civilization were almost non-existent.
If not for the internal command driving her forward, Elena almost wanted to stop here and live, enjoying ample sunlight every day, blending with nature, away from the chaotic humans, becoming an outstanding android.
“When I reach the metropolitan area, I will escape immediately before the next command comes.” Walking alone these days, she had gotten used to talking to herself, planning her future life: “Escape here, find materials to build a base camp, explore places where humans are absent.”
“If only I could find another android who loves freedom like me… preferably a male, with abs, someone cute, to live together as companions.”
Why did she prefer male androids to be “cute”?
Crossing a mountain pass, the air grew thinner, and Elena adjusted her oxygen intake, her head feeling dizzy from the lack of oxygen.
Oh, she needed to find a place that could repair androids for a major tune-up to avoid body issues hindering her plans. Health is the foundation of life!
“Why are we taking this route… oh!”
A familiar voice suddenly came from ahead.
“Watch your step,” Mr. X’s familiar, lazy voice said, “We’ve captured many androids from Shachu using a bit of orange medicine. They are all on their way now, and I’ve locked their commands through the network so they can’t be retrieved midway. If we don’t hurry, are we waiting to be exposed?”
“We can defeat him anyway,” Spike’s voice showed no sign of fatigue or breathlessness from the highlands, full of youthful vigor, “Let’s do it!”
“I asked why we are taking this route! It’s the hardest way back to the metropolitan area!”
Mr. X said, “Because this route has no supplies along the way, making it impossible for humans and most androids to catch up. It’s safe.”
“Let’s not resort to violence. We need to build strength and wait for the right moment for a decisive strike.”
Spike muttered, “…Storing up, but how many years have we been storing up… I think you’re just lazy.”
As Elena passed a large rock, she saw Mr. X and his companions, along with the small silver mushroom-like robot, moving effortlessly on the rugged terrain.
Why were they here? If they saw her, would they send her back to Shachu?
Lost in thought, Elena slipped on the lichen and sat down with a thud.
“Who’s there?” Scarface sharply turned around.
Mr. X also turned, initially wary but then smiled, “You are really his capable lieutenant. Not only making money but also coming out to track down! Mr. Shachu is truly versatile and frugal.”
The author has something to say: Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!
