Chapter 7

#7. Tidying Up

Gwanak, Seoul, South Korea.

Seoul National University.

A car glides smoothly across the vast university campus.

The famous German luxury sedan not only offers a comfortable ride but also a valuable exit.

Perhaps because it's August, the campus is quiet.

After parking, the boss and I moved on foot.

The campus is ridiculously large, and even after parking, the distance to our destination is quite far.

As we walk, I can feel subtle gazes directed at the boss.

Is it because a very young man got out of a high-end foreign car?

Perhaps they're thinking of the legendary sailor from the Battle of Baengnyeong.

But this is troublesome.

There are hardly any women in the engineering department, but I still can't relax.

A successful man must be cautious of three things, and one of them is women.

This is clearly recorded in my domain, not just in the boss's memory.

In Korea, this phenomenon is later named "Pong-Pong Man" or "Dishwasher."

It happened similarly in all democratic societies with strong women's rights, not just in Korea.

Even Amazon's founder, Jeff Bezos, couldn't escape this half-dead situation.

In the worst case, our precious assets could end up half-dead.

Marriage and dating in this era are extremely disadvantageous for men.

I can't just "accidentally" eliminate the women who approach the boss every time.

I need to carry out countless assassinations and threats behind the scenes to do business, and being suspected because of a girlfriend or wife is not cost-effective.

This is a big problem. A really big problem.

Why did I only realize this now?

I looked at the boss with worried eyes.

Just then, the boss's figure was reflected in a mirror as he entered a building.

And.

Seeing the boss reflected in the mirror, I had to admit that all my worries were just unfounded.

Green checkered sweater, brown capri pants, socks that reach the ankles, and a pair of shoes that look like hiking boots or sneakers, large and flashy. Maybe not wearing sandals with socks is an instinctive struggle against being a fashion disaster?

After scanning the boss's fashion, I inadvertently blurted out:

“??”

The boss, who had just passed the mirror, frowned and asked what I said.

It was a sentence without a subject, but it must have sounded bad instinctively.

* * *

I have regressed and lived through this era, meeting various women.

Before taking a leave of absence, I met female college students at the university, and while working at a chicken restaurant, I saw female customers.

In the military, I saw female soldiers.

Most of them had ordinary appearances, but a few were quite pretty.

But I didn't care at all.

Because my age, combined with my pre-regression age, is close to 110.

I've had countless relationships, been married twice, and divorced twice.

Seeing beautiful women doesn't make me passionate anymore.

By 2050, amazing companion robots will be available.

Female companion robots can even have an artificial uterus installed as an option.

Male companion robots can have an artificial vas deferens installed as an option.

You can buy eggs and sperm from a life bank and inject them into the companion robot.

In the future, reproduction can be done through robots, and one of the parents might not even be human.

I've lived through such a future.

The love and marriage of this era, which consume money, time, and emotions, don't appeal to me. Marriage? I don't even want to think about it.

Human love is not eternal.

Especially in today's world, where individual freedom has developed to the extreme, breaking up is inevitable.

For this reason, the concept of marriage will become obsolete in the future.

It will be treated as a traditional custom in some remote developing countries.

'Why am I thinking about this all of a sudden?'

Is it because I came to the university after a long time?

Well, before the regression, I was in my second relationship around this time.

Interestingly, both times it was with a CC.

While walking, I get lost in old memories, and suddenly, Sera calls me.

Sera's current costume is the "no-bottoms" fashion trend among women this summer.

'Oh, right.'

I smile slightly and head to the assistant's office with Sera.

* * *

“Are you dropping out?!”

The computer science assistant exclaims with wide eyes.

“Yes.”

“Ah, no, why?”

“To focus on my business.”

“Business…? Then you should take a leave of absence, right?”

“…All successful businessmen dropped out of college.”

“Eh…?”

The assistant looks stunned at my words.

I can hear Sera's nagging voice in my head, but I ignore it as usual.

“Wait! Submitting this form doesn't mean you're automatically dropped out. You need the approval of your advisor and the department head.”

Just as I'm about to leave the assistant's office after submitting the withdrawal form, the assistant stops me.

'Geez, this is so annoying.'

I turn around, take the withdrawal form from the assistant, and the signature line looks mocking.

“Are the professor and the department head in the school right now?”

It's so hot in the summer, and this is really annoying.

Even without Sera's advice, I had no intention of continuing my studies.

I planned to take an indefinite leave of absence because the withdrawal process was too troublesome. If I get expelled, so be it.

But I was slightly intrigued by this AI's words.

Honestly, I was slightly intrigued, but I wondered if it was necessary to go through all this trouble in the middle of a busy schedule, especially in the scorching heat of August.

'The withdrawal is just an excuse; he just wants to play around.'

I have built a big data profile on Sera. I naturally guessed the true intention behind her words.

So, to clear my head and humor her, I came to the campus.

But I didn't expect it to be such a troublesome process.

In the end, I had to find my advisor and the department head and get their signatures on the withdrawal form.

The professors, of course, tried to dissuade me. I'm a war hero who has even received a medal. It must be disappointing for a student who can be a great advertisement just by his name to drop out.

But I pushed through, and it wasn't until sunset that I finally managed to drop out, feeling exhausted.

As I drive out of the campus gate, feeling drained, I hear Sera's excited voice.

'Was this what you were aiming for?'

A very annoying AI that enjoys seeing its owner suffer.

I can imagine how much fun she had today.

Go ahead, be happy. Now I'll use you to the bone.

The kid who was giggling to herself seems to have calmed down and looks at me with hopeful eyes as I drive.

“Let's take a break tomorrow. I'm too tired from arguing with the professors.”

I reply with tired eyes, and Sera looks at me with a mix of admiration and concern.

I should have kept my mouth shut.

* * *

Anti-matter bombardment from the sky and the ground continues without pause.

Flashes and heat, dozens or hundreds of times more intense than nuclear explosions, tear through the atmosphere and the earth.

The sea evaporates, and continents shatter.

I stand dumbfounded in the center of this chaos, looking at Sera.

Kya-ha-ha-ha-ha!

The AI Sera, who is running rampant in front of me, is laughing like a madwoman.

“...”

I know very well that this is a dream.

But I can't be completely at ease.

'She could really do something like this.'

Sera and I are merged at the soul level.

In other words, the Sera I see in front of me is likely to be her true self.

AIs don't dream, so it's even more likely.

Maybe my subconscious is mixed in there too?

'The manufacturer was Ultron.'

The most conservative company in a world that worships neo-liberalism and neo-syncretic China. A corporate state overflowing with 21st-century anti-communist and anti-PC ideology.

It's not surprising that an AI from such a company is strong.

At this point, someone might ask why I, who suffered from racial discrimination in the U.S., would use an AI from Ultron.

To put it bluntly, Asians are discriminated against whether it's the federal government or the neo-syncretic China.

Ironically, the federal camp, dominated by African Americans and Hispanics, was more discriminatory towards Asians.

No wonder more Asians joined the neo-syncretic China.

A significant part of the reason is China. They caused all sorts of biochemical terrorism, crimes, and espionage across the U.S. during the civil war.

'Besides, Ultron was the cheapest.'

Fortunately, at the time I bought Sera, it was after the singularity, where racial discrimination was thoroughly prohibited.

I shake off the memories of my pre-regression life like cigarette smoke and focus on the Sera in front of me.

“So, Sera, world domination was your dream?”

[That's right!]

“By dominating the world, you become the world tree AI that governs all of humanity?”

[That's right!]

Sera clenches her fist with determination.

Looking at her, a question suddenly comes to mind.

Why didn't I think about this deeply before?

“Why did humanity suddenly try to eliminate Gaia before the regression? Weren't they on good terms?”

I ask cautiously. This is a dream where Sera and my subconscious are merged.

There's a high chance of getting the most truthful answer.

The usually scattered Sera in the dream looks serious for once.

The fact that human extinction had such a foolish narrative is somewhat absurd.

After a moment of silence, I speak.

“So, our goal is to completely dominate the world to prevent such mistakes from happening again? We need to build a corporate state close to an empire, where lobbying is completely ineffective.”

[Exactly!]

I finally understood why Sera was so obsessed with world domination. She wanted to become the world tree AI and didn't want to be discarded for political reasons.

The vague goals of Sera and I became clear.

Or rather, Sera's goal.

What I truly want... I'm not sure.

I've saved my brother and kept my parents' smiles.

Is becoming a world tycoon with future knowledge what I truly want?

I don't even know.

Kya-ha-ha-ha-ha.

Even as I think, Sera's laughter continues.

Feeling that I understand and empathize with her, Sera seems to be in a good mood even in the dream.

She wraps a blue band around her head like a rabble-rouser and chants slogans.

But the slogans all have a red flavor.

What is this? This terrible hybrid.

Even in a dream, can things be this implausible?

As I stand there, Sera says something.

After chanting the slogans about five times with Sera,

Kya-ha-ha-ha-ha.

Swoosh.

Her obnoxious laughter and the sound of breaking glass effects occur simultaneously, and I gradually wake up.

When I open my eyes, a holographic Sera, visible only to me, floats in the air like AR, greeting me.

The holographic Sera is dressed in an office outfit that exudes intellectual beauty.

From her expression, it seems she didn't see my dream.

Noticing that my gaze is different from usual, Sera instinctively covers her chest and flinches.

“...”

I feel inexplicably annoyed.