Vital activities backup Infinity Recovery.
It was originally an automatic mechanism that went into operation when Qualia’s heart stopped, and certainly not a convenient item that could be used to repair someone’s fatal wounds.
But still, Qualia executed calculations even if they shorted his thought circuits.
He wanted to once again see ‘tasty’ from the girl in front of him that was starting to lose her body heat. To end the nightmare that was swallowing her along with her dreams.
“Ina, Ina, Ina.”
Ace desperately shook her, with unrest in her inexpressive face.
Meanwhile, Qualia hid his unrest as he began calculating the optimal solution.
“Analyzing, situation.”
There was still blood weakly seeping from the wound on the left side of her chest. Suffice to say, this wound was fatal.
Her lung was torn, and the blade pierced all the way to her back.
Ina would never smile unless this was repaired, so Qualia pressed his finger on the hole in the chest.
Then he saw it. A bouquet sinking into the crimson that came from Ina’s chest.
“That, is wrong…!”
Qualia kicked it away without thinking.
At the same time, the thin light of his 5D printer reflected inside Ina.
“…Result of scan shows internal bleeding caused by damage to the central part of the left lung, which led to the lungs not working. Confirming 34% of blood lost. Confirming oxygen density in blood drastically going down. Judging that these errors led to the stoppage of vital activities. Optimal solution, [N/A], optimal solution…”
He repeated his scan, and relied on the information that was reflected by the 5D printer in the blink of an eye, as he continued scanning while not going over the time limit in which she could be revived.
Cellular composition patterned after her left chest. The shape of her chromosomes. The structure of her blood.
He learned all the composition of Ina’s life.
“Learning complete… Calculating, optimal solution… Complete… Finalized calculation of optimal solution… [N/A].”
The optimal solution put an even bigger strain on his circuits than when he was Shutdown.
Something similar to metal fatigue was happening in his senses.
“Ina… Request understanding. Repairing you that [N/A].”
He said, as if telling himself.
The image of Ina buried under a cross passed by his display, which he deleted as a bug.
The image of Ina buried under a cross passed by his display, which he deleted as a bug.
The image of Ina buried under a cross passed by his display, which he deleted a hundred million times as a bug.
He focused only on her ‘tasty’, and opened his eyes wide.
He continued his calculations with fear of a tomorrow without Ina in his ‘heart’.
“So, don’t die.”
The result of his calculations rolled out from the 5D printer in his right hand, as he steeled the resolve in his heart to save her.
“…Executing Infinity Recovery.”
Qualia’s right hand dripped with sweat as light that created matter finally emerged from it.
Inside her torn flesh composition, he created an astronomical amount of cells that resembled hers as closely as possible. He removed the blood pooled in her lungs, and replaced the crushed and missing cells. Both her soft chest and slim back were gradually filled.
At the same time, he poured new blood with oxygen.
The 5D printer followed closely the optimal solution with hundreds of tasks.
Immediately after, he shocked Ina’s heart.
The pacemaker he produced with the 5D printer and embedded in her was glued to her heart as a membrane.
“Repairs, complete…”
Qualia expressed the record of completion with a shaking voice.
Her clothes were still stained with blood, but her left chest looked perfectly fine.
And yet…
“Qualia, Ina’s heart and lungs are still not operational.”
A cloud of despair hung over Qualia.
“…Confirming continuation of Ina’s blue screen. Estimating [N/A]. Performing cardiac shock again.”
“Qualia, Ina’s heart and lungs are still not operational. Qualia, Qualia.”
Qualia activated the pacemaker remotely again, but as Ace said, Ina was not returning.
She was still looking up at the sky with eyes half open, and no will in them.
Her lips were colored red by the blood like lipstick, which looked captivating, but there was no flow of blood detected in her mouth.
Her heart was not moving.
“Unable to analyze situation… No problems with repairs… Why, why…”
Qualia felt as though his heart was being gouged out, as he activated the pacemaker remotely again and again, but Ina’s breath was not returning.
Was there an error with the design of the pacemaker?
Was there an error in the scan close to her heart?
All he could learn was that this pacemaker could not restart her heart.
“…[N/A]…”
The 5D printer that was the companion of the artificial intelligence destroyer Shutdown was not made to revive people. It was a tool of slaughter made to grant weapons to destroy all sorts of artificial intelligence and planetary level weapons.
Perhaps it could only be used to repair himself. That was why it was possible to automatically regenerate with Infinity Recovery.
But there was no helping that Infinity Recovery was not perfectly suited for another body, like Ina’s.
Basically, the artificial intelligence failed.
“Optimal solution… Unable to calculate… [N/A], [N/A].”
Basically, the super technology that could reboot a person’s life did not exist inside Shutdown.
“Ina.”
The artificial intelligence failed.
“[N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A].”
He had destroyed hundreds of planets, hundreds of millions of giant, planetary level weapons, and quadrillions of artificial intelligence.
And yet, he was completely unable to save one life.
“[N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A][N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/A] [N/――”
But his name was not Shutdown anymore.
“…Don’t, want…”
He was not an autonomous humanoid combat android, he was human.
“…Qualia…”
That boy was Qualia.
“…Wants to see your ‘tasty’ again.”
The boy wished to see his beloved maid’s smile.
If he could not rely on the pacemaker, he just had to move her heart with pressure from outside.
He just had to send in air from outside.
In this entranced state, he was on top of Ina’s slim waist before he knew it.
He moved his palms up and down on her soft chest again and again.
Even if he was prohibited from touching a girl there, even if he broke breastbones, Qualia would continue to press with his palms until her heart beat.
“Qualia…?”
Ace looked on as if time stopped, and this time, Qualia pressed his lips on Ina’s.
He then sent in air, closing her nose so as not to let air escape, and securing the track shown in the blueprint of his scan.
“Request response.”
The blood on Ina’s lips stuck to Qualia’s, but he continued pressing her chest, unbothered. And sending air through her mouth
“Request response.”
Again.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Again.
That was definitely not the optimal solution. It was his wish.
“Request response…”
He had lost count of how many times he did it, when water dripped from his face.
If it was sweat, it had dripped on Ina’s face many times at this point, but the liquid tracing down her face was not sweat.
“…Request response…”
There was a river of tears on Qualia’s face.
But he was unaware of it, as he put his face next to Ina’s still unmoving chest.
He wanted to feel this softness again, like when he attempted to return to being a weapon, and wanted to put his arms around her again.
“…Please request response…”
He put his left hand on her right, and there was a slight movement from her little finger.
“…!?”
The next moment, he felt a beat through the cheek on her chest.
“Ah, kah, au, u, u…”
Ina’s voice came out, along with air.
Both Qualia and Ace felt strength leave their bodies when they heard this. They thought they would never hear that gasp.
“Confirming… Recovery of functions of Ina’s heart and lungs.”
But her consciousness was still not back.
There was still a hurdle to be overcome for her to return to the living.
But from her face that twisted as she struggled, one thing was clear.
It resonated from her heart, and Qualia heard it.
She wanted to live.
“Request understanding. Your vital activities are being maintained. Qualia… Will initiate phase two of Infinity Recovery…”
Coming back from the brink of death was the first half of the battle.
She was not dead. It was not over. And so, Qualia was not giving up yet.
“Zero Division assemble.”
Even if the tragedy was not over.
“Cut?”
“Yes, cut.”
“Qualia is not moving.”
“A decisive one from the back.”
“There is a magic doll.”
“It could be more troublesome than Qualia.”
“No matter. It’s an amateur in terms of assassination. Destroy the magic stone.”
“Now’s the time.”
“Let’s go.”
“Everything to zero. It’s the Zero Division’s time.”
“Time for a fun, bad end.”
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