The transport vehicle comes to a stop at the entrance to the village.
The night sky after the rain is clear and deep, countless stars forming the Milky Way, its finest details visible tonight.
The docking point in the village is still occupied, giving the two of you a chance to sit quietly and admire the shining tapestry of the stars above.
Sorry, we're a bit behind on loading. The last salt convoy hasn't left yet. I'm afraid you'll have to wait a little longer.
I'll let you both know as soon as the unloading area becomes available.
After seeing the worker off, you return to Teddy. She perches on the vehicle's hood, head tilted toward the boundless night sky.
Do I really look that sentimental to you?
Her mechanical heart skips a beat.
Then sit with me and stargaze for a bit.
Another figure joins her under the starlight.
We're lucky. If it were still raining, with clouds and lightning above, we wouldn't be able to see a thing.
But even when clouds cover them, the stars are always there. You just have to part the clouds to see them.
Like an inevitable result, a simple truth—just clear the mist, and you'll find it.
Just yesterday, Dorris told us that romance is foolish and laughable.
Maybe it is foolish.
But those people who "part the clouds" aren't exactly geniuses either.
Science is a torch passed from one generation to the next. Every pioneer stands on the shoulders of those before them, then clears away a bit more of the fog for those who'll come after.
Almost no research is ever done in isolation. Some find the right path; others spend their whole lives just ruling out the wrong ones.
The stars above us shine for ages, yet on the road to truth, each seeker can only walk a short distance. It's all those short paths joined together that form the map toward Veritas, the truth.
From that point of view, romantics and idealists don't seem so different. Both cast their small, finite selves into the infinite realm of imagination.
Teddy pauses for a moment, slightly taken aback.
That's how it should be...
From Aristotle to Galileo, it took humanity over two thousand years. Then, it took another three centuries to build the foundations of classical mechanics.
From the second great unification of classical physics to the birth of quantum theory, it took about fifty years...
And from the Zero-point Reactor accident until now... how long has it really been?
The Punishing Virus, Construct Tech, Ascension-Network, Hetero-Core, contaminating memetic—there's so much, I've lost count.
Upheavals that used to happen once a century now feel like an annual routine.
Have you ever wondered what that means for scholars?
It means the universe we trusted is collapsing. The systems we know could crumble by tomorrow. Things we can't comprehend might appear without warning, tearing through the laws we thought were unbreakable...
So many are pushed forward, forced to use rules they barely grasp—rules that might not even belong to this world—to hold together a crumbling order.
Beyond genius minds like Asimov, Rosa, the Engineering Force, and the few other key figures you might not know, there are countless ordinary scholars struggling to breathe amid the collapsing and rebuilding of their beliefs.
Science was meant to be an act of curiosity, a way to understand the world.
But now it's become a means of survival. Knowledge feels more like a parting gift left behind by disaster.
What if a whole lifetime of research only proves there was never a way forward?
At that moment, she realizes that behind all her doubts and struggles, there's always been guilt.
When I see people who believe in me, people who think I'm talented or capable, I get scared.
Scared that in the end, all I'll prove is that none of it mattered.
That same despair once carved into every bone returns to her voice. Across the long, desolate stretch of time, two hearts briefly share the same rhythm.
Commandant.
Her voice is faint, almost like a sigh.
I often fear that when I collapse, my broken body will serve no purpose, unable to pave the way for those who come after me.
Those burning, falling stars once lit the path of life. If even the stars lose their light, who will brighten this world?
When the system failed just now, you shouldn't have stepped in to help me. At the very least, you shouldn't have stood in front of me. Vice-Captain, please... don't ever do that again.
Do you even hear what you're saying?
No, I mean it. You're far more important to this lab than I am. The Engineering Force would be fine without an assistant like me, but if something happened to you...
Comrades who willingly became "shields," simply because "Teddy" was seen as more important...
Working for Norman was the most peaceful time in my life. I missed those days, so... I could never throw the card away.
Because of people like him, I still believe life will get better. Thank you, Miss Norman. Thank your family too.
The people who endure hardship yet remain optimistic, believing that we will bring them hope...
Then what's holding us back?
Because as "Teddy," we're not allowed to cross it. We can't be less than intelligent, less than rational, and we can never let emotion take over.
The world needs a useful Teddy. Not one who can be loved.
Time and again, she reminds herself to stay resolute...
Physical pain can be shut off through her pain inhibitors, and mental anguish can be eased through M.I.N.D. therapy. But if her will is weak enough to be swayed by someone else... what then?
Her memory module overflows with every moment she's shared with you—the wind brushing past her cheeks atop the car, her hair tied back, that almost-confession on the sea walkway. Just standing beside you makes her sink into that feeling, caught between wanting to stay and wanting to run.
I should be trying harder, shouldn't I? And yet... I still lose focus because of a certain someone...
I...
(I'm not allowed to have the kind of happiness Dorris found.)
The kind of happiness within reach is always the most frightening.
Within the M.I.N.D., the virus program Teddy created with her own hands spreads like wildfire. It feeds on every trace of anxiety and fear, stirring a storm far beyond what she expected.
The fears we hide best are the ones that hit hardest when exposed.
The stars above press down on the girl's trembling shoulders. It feels the same as years ago, when Dominik's era came to an end and the burden of a new age fell on her. It came in the name of family expectations and Norman honor.
Before your unspoken words of comfort can reach her, Teddy jumps down from the hood of the transport vehicle.
...Someone's coming.
She turns and smiles—the same smile she always wears.
Excuse me, have you seen a little girl around here?
A worker from the conservation area appears at the intersection.
Yes. She's from the salt-collecting crew. It's her first time out with her father, and we can't find her anywhere.
We're still looking. I'm so sorry for the trouble... Once the salt-collecting crew moves on, you'll be able to drive through and unload your cargo.
We'll help you look.
You both speak up at almost the same time.
Really? Thank you, that means a lot.
Let's split up. We'll cover more ground that way.
It sounds reasonable, but she looks away too quickly to be convincing.
She pauses, then nods lightly.
In the dense forest near the seaside village, moonlight filters faintly through the trees. From afar, the calls of those searching for the missing child rise and fall in the night.
I'm okay.
Her voice comes softly through the M.I.N.D. connection.
She's unusually quiet.
Even though the connection stays open, it still feels like she's completely gone from your side.
As the unease grows, a man's voice calls out from behind you.
Liz, where are you?
The voice draws closer, and a young man steps out from between the trees.
Uh... hello. Have you seen my daughter? She's gone missing.
Thank you. Thank you so much!
Together with the young father, you head deeper into the dense forest.
The moonlight feels sharper tonight, its cold glow slicing through stones and wild grass, scattering in thin reflections.
Teddy sits alone on a boulder, having remained motionless for quite some time.
Through the M.I.N.D. connection, she senses that you've moved farther away—your voice distant, speaking to the girl's father. She doesn't focus on the words.
The wind hums low through the trees, swallowing her quiet sigh.
Are you lost too?
A clear, childlike voice drifts over from behind her. Teddy frowns in confusion.
At that instant, the mental connection between you and her cuts off.
She turns cautiously. In the moonlight stands a girl, maybe eight or nine years old, smiling sweetly.
I'm lost, miss. Can you help me?
The forest is silent except for the whispering wind, until a soft tone sounds in your terminal.
Incoming communication request. Accept?
An anxious voice crackles through the comms. The moment the connection broke, you sent her an emergency call.
I'm fine, Commandant.
I... I think I found the child.
Who are you talking to?
I—
Before she can finish, her vision fills with a whirlpool of purple light.
Her voice vanishes from the channel.
Still confused, you hear the father searching ahead cry out in sudden delight.
Liz!
Daddy!
The missing girl runs straight into her father's arms.
What are you doing here? I've been looking everywhere—
A cold breeze sends a shiver down your spine. There's no time to think. Leaving the reunited pair behind, you run toward Teddy's coordinates.
The moonlight and shadows of the trees hide the girl's face. The forest at night looks eerie and forbidding, yet she remains perfectly calm.
You're from the salt-collecting crew, right? Liz? You got lost?
You've got the name wrong, miss. I'm... Chris.
Do you know the way back?
Of course. Your father's been searching everywhere for you.
Is that so? I'm sorry for worrying him.
Come on, I'll take you back.
The girl doesn't move.
Not coming?
Miss.
I can't walk anymore. Can you carry me?
Teddy bends down and reaches out to her. Moonlight spills across the child's gentle face, and for a moment, Teddy realizes she looks just like Victoria.
Chris reaches out too. Her cold, lifeless hands rest on the side of Teddy's neck.
You...
The girl's lips curl into a mocking smile.
Thud—
The realization hits the Construct girl like a sledgehammer, leaving her mind blank for a moment.
Like snapping awake from a nightmare, Teddy gasps for breath, but the hand at her throat has already tightened its grip.
Chris really does look like Victoria, but there was someone else, someone without a name, who looked even more like her. Christina.
She's choking her.
Ugh...
Sorry, but I've waited long enough.
At first, I couldn't understand. Why was the free personality a ridiculous doll, while the one suppressed was just a useless child?
But now I get it. A child's face lowers everyone's guard. And you, the one controlling this body, you're weak. A fool desperate to be loved.
Maybe that's the deal we made.
Permission for me to end our pathetic existence.
Thank heavens our little chat under the stars finally helped you figure it out. Now I'm free.
You...
Aren't you afraid that the rational part of you will betray the one you care for? Don't you wonder if it's wrong to ignore all the suffering and chase happiness on your own?
Aren't you afraid that wild, chaotic love will strip you of reason?
Don't worry. Once you disappear, none of that will matter. No love. No betrayal. No pain.
I'm not weak. I can't be weak. I'm not allowed to be weak.
When everyone else is helpless, I'm the one who stays clear-headed—the problem solver, the martyr.
Her hands tighten around Teddy's throat.
Passion is just adrenaline for mortals, but the enemy of reason and intellect.
We used to scorn that kind of thing, remember? But you forgot.
All because you crave that human's gaze—you'd let yourself drown in a storm of emotion.
What you desire will end up enslaving you...
Christina, I'm so disappointed in you.
Teddy's mind goes blank. She can't find words. A strangled breath catches in her throat, forcing tears to her eyes.
(Another simulated consciousness...)
(So Deerbear wasn't the only one...)
Even if it's just a projection from her hacked visual module, Teddy feels the suffocating pressure as if it were real.
Don't cry. I'll take care of this for both of us.
The moonlight pours coldly over Teddy's face, filling her eyes that spin like whirlpools.
Just as the last of her clarity fades, hurried footsteps break through the forest.
You rush toward her coordinates and are stunned by the sight.
Under the pale moon, Teddy's pink-haired body is choking itself, eyes shut tight, tears streaming as if she's trapped in a nightmare.
You step forward and grab her from behind, forcing her hands away from her throat and locking her wrists in your grip. Without waiting for her consent, you re-establish a M.I.N.D. connection.
You press your face to hers. Her tears soak your skin. Strands of her hair cling to your cheek, but you ignore them, calling anxiously into her ear.
Finally, the unstable connection steadies. Her body relaxes. She opens her eyes, the purple whirlpools within them settling into stillness. As if all strength has drained from her body, the girl gently falls against your chest.
...
She closes her eyes and lets out a soft sigh.
How annoying...
The feeling of losing control.
