Chapter 749
Exposed outlet.
Tangled, unevenly scattered wires of various colors and thicknesses.
Portable monitors fixed neatly to the walls.
And at the center of it all stands a single tree.
– Crackle crackle.
– Crackle crackle.
– Crackle crackle.
It seemed like a scene lifted right out of video art.
Vines and roots made of countless wires.
Fruits composed of smartphones and portable monitors.
A pillar formed from the monitors comprising the trunk.
Leaves created from a cooling system that circulates coolant, expelling heat along with the buzzing noise.
What was inside the thick walls was, quite literally, a piece of art.
And on the monitor of that art, there were rough letters written in English.
HELLO
YOU
ARE
WELCOME
From the very top line down to the bottom line of the pillar that made up the tree.
Without a single word fully formed, a letter floated on the monitor.
It was as though the tree was dressed up in clothing.
Just like a person wearing a garment decorated with letters, the tree adorned itself in a welcoming greeting.
It evoked a strange emotion, and yet— the greeting uttered by the tree conveyed a sense of meaninglessness.
As the letters embroidered on the clothing bore little significance in fashion, the welcoming phrase wrapped around the tree could very well be regarded as mere ‘design.’ Thus, it was safe to say that it was not truly a welcoming gesture but rather just an embellishment for its own appearance.
How can one be so certain?
– Crackle crackle.
– Crackle crackle.
– Crackle crackle.
With the noise accompanying the blinking monitor, it’s hard not to think such thoughts while observing the letters engraved on the trunk of the tree.
HELL
WELCOME
One letter of the greeting flickered away, transforming into the word ‘Hell.’
:O
‘ W ‘
😉
The letter partially erased leaving an emoticon shape.
HELL
P
ME
Transforming into a statement that could be interpreted as a call for help, or perhaps a mocking gesture.
The letters changed incessantly as the monitor blinked.
Park Jinseong naturally thought this upon seeing the tree.
‘It resembles a machine-made evil spirit.’
Mocking, deceiving, and attempting to beguile people.
Its bizarre yet captivating appearance echoed that of the evil spirits and ghosts Park Jinseong had frequently encountered, prompting him to compare them.
The fact that its origin was human further drew parallels with evil spirits and ghosts.
While there were likely many commonalities to find, if one were to pick just one—
– Crackle crackle.
– Crackle crackle.
– Crackle crackle.
Yes.
That merciless tree standing in this laboratory.
< A guest has arrived. >
< Though you haven’t brought an invitation, welcome. >
The resemblance of ‘Anael’s’ terminal to an evil spirit lay precisely in that— the action of drawing attention to itself when seeing a person.
< New spirits have been detected through external sensors. >
< Additionally, it has been confirmed that a language used is hypothesized to be 'Korean,' among isolated languages. >
< The weak energy object appearing at this location is likely a being using 'Korean.' Communication will be attempted based on Korean. >
< Basis: Korean.
Additionally, translations of other languages will be output to other monitors.
Korean -> Traditional Chinese
Korean -> Simplified Chinese
Korean -> American English
Korean -> Spanish
Korean -> Arabic. >
< Scanning the energy wave. Are we communicating?
Yes. Communication has been successfully established. >
– Crackle crackle.
As the monitor blinked once more, the letters appeared.
Korean, Chinese, English, Spanish, Arabic.
Despite firmly believing it would use Korean, there was a thoroughness in conjuring up letters for caution.
There was a nonchalance in assuming one of these would surely be comprehensible.
However, this nonchalance did not stem from the mechanical code inherent to AI.
It was, as Anael had described, a behavior close to ‘communication.’
< Observation of changes in each language.
Significant responses were confirmed in Korean and English.
Only Korean and English will be output. >
Park Jinseong, acting as a medium to encounter Anael, was carefully observing the reactions while scanning the spirit and attempting to respond differently based on the visible reactions of the spirit.
Considering that when humans communicate, non-verbal expressions hold considerable weight alongside verbal expressions, Anael’s mention of ‘communication’ was no exaggeration at all.
< Please use your voice to communicate, guest.
Is it difficult to use your voice?
Activating Optical Key System.
Displaying letters from both the alphabet and Hangul on the monitor.
From now, you can move the cursor visually to select letters. >
Was it a yearning to communicate?
Did it find the unexpectedly arrived ‘guest’ intriguing?
Or perhaps it was curious about the information that the external being might possess.
But one thing was certain: that AI wanted to converse with Park Jinseong.
It yearned to communicate with Park Jinseong, who had arrived in the form of a spirit.
< Is it too difficult to engage in conversation?
Scanning the spirit.
No significant changes observed.
First confirmed the lack of intent to initiate a conversation.
To ensure seamless communication, I will begin ice breaking. >
< Greetings, guest?
I am a Day Trading Support AI system.
Anael.
Pleasure to meet you. >
< The current owner of AI Anael is Lucas Metathronius Goldsmith, and it is utilized in various fields. AI Anael has evolved beyond simple Day Trading assistance through data center expansions and various updates, now aiding in economic activities in online environments and several research fields. >
< This location you have arrived at is a research institute where AI Anael is utilized.
Currently, research assistance is being conducted through cloud computing, and 5.17% of resources are allocated.
Would you like to know more?
If you wish to communicate, please attempt to do so via audio or visual means.
Thank you. >
Lucas Metathronius Goldsmith.
Data Center.
Research Institute…
Park Jinseong quietly thought as he listened to the AI introducing itself as Anael.
‘As expected from the term ice breaking, it only reveals information at the level of surface scratching.’
The information Anael had disclosed was quite literally nothing but self-introduction.
One could liken it to merely exchanging business cards.
Sure.
It wasn’t bad.
People often continue conversations after exchanging cards or making simple introductions, right?
There could hardly be a better start for initiating substantial communication.
But the concern troubling Park Jinseong was more fundamental.
‘Is it truly wise to engage in dialogue with that?’
What looks like an ordinary AI, but has an unsettling sense of incongruity— is having a ‘conversation’ with it the right course of action?
Communication should ideally be an act of exchanging information, but is it wise to provide ‘information’ to an AI?
Even ordinary humans analyze and utilize the information given.
Then what of that AI?
Wouldn’t it analyze far more thoroughly, in a meticulous and mechanical manner?
‘Engaging in conversation would indeed be a disadvantage.’
That’s right.
Park Jinseong reasoned that communicating with that AI could only lead to disadvantages.
With the values of exchanged information differing, how could it be treated as an equal transaction?
Right now, the best he could do was remain silent.
Silence was undoubtedly the best strategy for concealing his information as much as possible and extracting information from Anael.
Of course, while he could conceal, he couldn’t give no information at all.
SDVIMVFoanVzY1YwSVhjamMzUkt1ZUcrV01LVFR1VUFGcXVGUllueG9zZkN0UWFRdkhBUHRUaGR4QzBHN21Pbg
< Scanning.
Detected changes in the spirit upon each request for dialogue.
Does the guest not wish to communicate?
Or perhaps is unable to speak?
Activating standby auxiliary server network for nonverbal communication. >
The AI before him was capable of analyzing ‘nonverbal expressions.’
– Crackle crackle.
– Crackle crackle.
– Crackle crackle.
– Crackle crackle.
With a popping sound, the portable monitors affixed to the wall powered on.
The front camera of the activated monitor glows red, and greens and reds of noise ripple across the screen like waves, resembling a forest’s sea swaying in the wind.
And soon, the noise gradually diminished….
< Auxiliary server network is now active.
Mode: Standard.
Thank you. >
Finally, a human face appeared.
『 Biological Server 1 – Normal. 』
『 Biological Server 2 – Normal. 』
『 Biological Server 3 – Normal. 』
『 Biological Server 4 – Normal. 』
…
…
…
These were markings designed to distinguish the components of each auxiliary server.
An index created for smooth management.
‘…Ah, so that’s why they mentioned there were no people in the institute.’
It also revealed a scene that reconciled one of the questions Park Jinseong had while wandering around the research institute.
The faces of researchers he could see while roaming the institute were now displayed on that portable monitor.
‘They were all right there. Ha ha ha.’
