Crossing the World
XV - Underworld (Karen)

My gaze was still dark, but the familiar voice of AI began to sound in my mind. He probably intended to explain the situation.

[Avatar Deus has been active, is starting the process of matching the resurrection time]

Resurrection time? Whatdoes thatmean?

[I have led humanity by using the avatar of the archaeologist, Aria. Thanks to this, I managed to get humans to pick up the gem that would be used as the trigger for the release of Avatar Deus]

Wow, she replied to the question I was asking in my mind?

[Of course. The virtual world is connected to the shelter database. All your thoughts are transmitted to me]

Horrifically. I need privacy too! You can't enter my mind as you please!

[Don't worry, I have absolutely no interest in reading your boring thoughts]

Ugh .. how could you say such cruel words to a girl? You are not polite!

[Let's go to the main topic. The time ratio in this world had been frozen a few hours ago. Right now, the trigger jewel was being grasped by the King of Elucia and it happened that the coordinates of the Boss Raid of the Ancient Dragon King Ziz were also there. Are you ready to play the role of a god?]

Is that so? So, I can get everything done quickly, huh?

But wait a minute. What does that mean with trigger gems?

[It was the jewel that triggered Deus's appearance. When activated, Deus will appear as if summoned by the jewel]

Ahh~ so it is, huh? It's like an ultraman. When the trigger was pointed at the sky, it suddenly appeared ultraman out of nowhere. Honestly, it's ridiculous. How could a robot of that size come out of nothing?

By the way, ultraman's a robot, right?

[Where do I know]

You even responded to a question I didn't show anyone?! Please stop that lowly stalker base!

Ah, let's forget about this matter first. Can I be Deus now? To be honest I'm a little impatient to do an epic fight against a dragon.

[The login process will begin. Stop freezing time .. finish. Performing the last calibration .. completed. Checking Deus body .. finished. Please enjoy your fight]

Along with the completion of the sentence spoken by the AI, my gaze began to be filled with a dazzling light.

My eyes were closed, but my body began to feel a cooling sensation from the wind. I think Deus' body can even send a signal to my brain that serves to capture stimuli.

It felt like I was inside an exoskeleton armor. Justjust wonderful.

I slowly opened my eyes, trying to make both my eyes adjust to the light from the outside. By the time my eyesight began to improve, I could only stand still in astonishment at what I saw.

All my views were covered in a vast land without a single building. Why is there so much smoke around me? The ground too, was plenty of moss and small rocks, but there were no trees and animals as far as the eye could see.

Shouldn't there be buildings, trees, and living things? Why can't I see anything?

AI suddenly responded to my question.

[Actually, you see through the height of 20,000 Meters]

What's?! Why is my perspective so high?!

[Well, you know? Deus is actually a giant humanoid robot with a total height of more than 21,000 meters. So, it's only natural that his eyes are at an altitude of about 20,000 meters, right?]

What is natural?! Why would I have to control such an unreasonable giant robot like this? At least let me know first before I dive!

[Keep aside the matter first. The freezing of the world is back to normal. If you don't take care of the boss raid immediately, the world will be destroyed]

Also true! One of my goals was to defeat Ziz. But where is Ziz? How do I find him?

As if responding to a question I asked inside my head, AI spoke again.

[You see that insect flying down there?]

Without a second thought, I looked down, seeing something like a lizard flying towards me. It was a bit reddish in color and from his mouth came a small spark that hit my feet.

Honestly, I think lizards are disgusting animals.

What kind of question is that? Killing a lizard is not going to be difficult. I can even do it with my bare hands.

Well ... let's kill this lizard first because I'm also bothered by its presence.

My right hand caught a strange lizard still flying around me.  Then, with a little energy, I squeezed it to the point of disintegration and dropped the body just like that.

Now my hands are dirty with blood and flesh. However, it doesn't matter as this is just a virtual world. My hands can come back clean just by asking the AI to clean them through program manipulation.

Just as I was about to ask the AI to clear my hand, suddenly her voice preceded me.

[Congratulations, you've already killed the Ancient Dragon King Ziz]

W-what did you say?! The lizard was the boss raid that had been threatening the world all this time?!

[Have you forgotten that your body is now a giant 21,000 Meters tall? It is only natural that you consider a monster of 7,000 Meters as a lizard]

The AI speech is correct. But why do I still feel upset. I thought there would finally be an epic fight going on. It ended anti-climax.

[Quite complaining. Now you must declare yourself a god. Do your best]

Yep, yeah. I-i know.

How else, the rice has become porridge.

[Nation? A pulp? Your speech is getting more varied. I began not to understand]

Forget that! Dsn again, don't respond to my babbling! You stupid stalker program!

All right, let's forget about this damn AI first. I had to say something before they misunderstood me and considered me an enemy.

Hm .. What should I say at a time like this? Do I have to start a long speech for hours? Or just saying a few sentences that create a mysterious impression?

I'm confused what to say. I'm not used to talking in front of a lot of people.

[People are starting to get scared. If you don't talk soon, they'll think of you as a new enemy]

I know, I know! Ahh, let's say something without needing to think too much about it. The most important point is for people to regard me as a god and to give them protection.

Well, then, I guess these words would fit.

"I am an artificial god, ex-Machina, Deus. The god who represents knowledge. Blessed are you, inhabitants of this world. Together with you, I will lead you to eternal peace."

Is that enough? I acted like a mentally diseased earthman to give the impression of great wisdom. Well, a few days ago I saw this type of mental illness on the internet. They call it a high school illness or something like that.

[What the fuck is with that embarrassing word selection? Do you intend to be the clown that brings happiness in a ruined world like this?]

Be-noisy! I don't want to hear any protests from you!

I'm sure my face must be red right now. It was fortunate that my body was currently just a giant pile of metal. So, no one will know.

But ... can't AI read my mind?

[Look down, I didn't read the embarrassing part before]

Uhh! Until when are you going to keep teasing me?!

Forget about this problem. I don't want to talk about it anymore.

AI, please build a metal chair that is fit for Deus to sit on. Ah, too, build a protector around Deus' body where only humans can get through. We're going to establish this area as a safe zone. In the future there will be a big city built around here.

[ Understood. However, the crime rate would still be high if it was only a shield and I am not sure they can build a suitable workshop to fight against monsters. What if we let go of a human-sized robot to maintain order and send some drones that will teach knowledge to humans?]

Yeah, yeah, that's good. I'm giving you complicated details.

[Understand]

A metal chair suddenly formed right behind me. I who noticed it immediately sat there and did the logout. I left Deus' body sitting on the giant chair of a skyscraper.