webnovel

Chapter 2

After finishing clothing myself, I made my way into the shed then I started making preparations in case my waifu acted hostile. After all, I chose the "NO LOYALTY" intensity option.

Ok, I accept it sounds really stupid but I have a reason. You see bindings not only affect your Waifus but also affect your offspring. Not much as the Waifus but they would have a simpler version of the stamp's tattoo to ensure their "good behavior". 

I can stomach forcing my waifu to obey me for my own safety, but I can't stomach using the same thing on my children, even at the price of my own safety.

So, to protect my future children from company mind fuck, I need to earn the loyalty of my waifu in an old-fashioned way. However, I couldn't persuade them if they decided to kill me before I could speak to them. After all, I don't know how they captured. For all I know the agent who captured her could have killed her whole family before capturing her. Because of this, I can't summon waifus willy-nilly.

After I reached the shed, I started making preparations without wasting time. Actually, it's more of a tune-up than actual battle preparation because, unlike the canon world, my shed is a well-protected fortress that can protect me from a tier-six being for a month. But to avoid attracting the attention of the second owner, I resumed the actual defenses on standby.

And for the same reason, I will not activate all my bounden fields today. Just two. Because the waifu I plan to summon while is powerful but not to the point that I would all of my defenses. After all, she is only tier 5.

The defenses I will be using are simple: The first one is a personal barrier. when triggered, it forms a barrier around the owner of the bounded field, and the second one is an offensive formation that attacks anybody who triggers my first defense with a barrage of blades that rains down on the attackers.

 Of course, such a thing wouldn't be enough to defeat a hostile waifu tier 5 or otherwise, but it would buy enough time to negotiate her and most importantly it won't attract the second owner.

But this is my last resort, and after all, the waifu I plan to summon would like to kill herself rather than harm me. But am still acting cautious because even with all the powers and defenses the catalog provides, I will die when I am killed. 

"You only have one, Shirou. Think about the people who love you. Don't throw your life away with a reckless mistake," I said to myself like repeating a mantra.

Even after my past life's memories are back, some small part of me still hates myself for surviving when outer people could not.

 Even now that part wonders why I was the one who survived. Out of all the people who were burning in that hell, why did fate let me live? Kritsugu could have easily rescued another boy instead of me. And with Avalon, he would have the same element and origin as me. Either way, Allaya would have his janitor. But magic circuits are rare. Any other boy who may Kritsugu could have rescued problems would have them as much as me. Is it the reason I was rescued, because of my magic circuits? Is this why Allaya chose to save me? Is this my purpose? Like a lamb raised for slaughter, was Allaya guiding me to become his eternal slave? I don't know, but I will ask Archer when I meet him.

"And it's done," I said while questioning my free will and the genuineness of the events in my life, I finished tuning my bounded field.

It's no use to dwell on the past. My life before the catalog is over. Whatever is going to happen won't happen. So put your focus on the future and do not dwell on what could have been, or you will lose yourself. From now on, my choices are my own, and if, despite the catalog, my destiny remains the same, then I will rebel against the world to change my fate.

"And is there a better way to change fate other than to introduce another player to the game?"

I checked my defenses one last time, and then I took my phone and pressed the summon for the waifu. With a gush of light, a magic circle appeared, and within the circle, a young woman materialized in an instant.

The woman had short white hair and a heart-shaped face. Her eyes were covered with a black blindfold. Her almost inhumanly flawless beauty was accentuated by a small mole under her mouth. But this little flaw only made her more beautiful in my eyes; because this little flow only made her look more human.

She was dressed in gothic lolita fashion, with her jet-black dress to her leather high heels. Behind her, a katana and a great sword were floating in the air. Then a mechanical voice spoke, "Analyzing..." and then I noticed she wasn't alone. There was a box-shaped object floating above her head with two large arms on the back and two smaller arms on the front.

"Report, efforts to locate our current location have failed. Attamt to communicate with bunder have failed. Unknown particles similar to the maso particles in the air were detected. An unknown android using those particles was detected. Conculausion: please act with caution, until more data gettered end report."

Their attention was on me.

"Sorry for the poor welcome. But I didn't know what kind of response I would receive. Anyway, Pod 42, Unit B2, my name's Shirou, and I would like to welcome you to Fuyuki City. You guys came a long way from home."

"Before continuing our conversation, I would like to state that I am not an android. You may not believe me, but if you give me a second, I will prove it to you."

I picked a blade from a nearby table and made a small cut to my hand. If my act of self-mutilation disturbed B2 she didn't show it, as just she stood there without saying anything.

I put back the knife on the table, then picked up the small teacup I prepared beforehand and positioned it under my bleeding. After a few drops, I pulled my hand back.

"And this should be enough to prove I am not an android. Here let Pod 42 scan my blood, I know he can confirm my identity."

I put the teacup near the barrier's end and then carefully pushed the cup to the other side of the barrier.

 ----B2'S POV----

B2 looked at the cup that was filled with the male android's blood. She knew what this android was implying was impossible. Androids were made in the image of humanity, but they are not human. They can talk like humans, they can feel like humans, they can bleed like humans, but they are not humans.

She looked at the red-haired android with pity. She didn't see herself but she heard when visiting resistance camps for resuplies some older model android sometimes lose their sense of self and begin believing they are humans.

She looked at the red-haired android with pity.

'If I let the pod analyze the android's blood and force him to face the truth, maybe he can come to his senses,' she thought 'or it may cause him to act hostile. But I don't have a choice. I need to find out how I got this "Fuyuki" city and report the bunker."

"Pod, please analyze his blood sample."

"Unerstood please wait for results........ The report analysis is complete. The subject is 78% human. This unit cannot confirm whether the subjects were ever 100% percent human because data about the human genome is incomplete. Suggestion: Unit B2 should look for a way to contact YoRHa immediately."

 ----Shirou's POV----

After hearing Pod's confrimation B2's natural expression cracked for the first time

"But how all humans were supposed to be..."

"Dead?" I asked.

"Yes," she answered with a little hesitancy, then I continued.

To be precise, to you, humanity should have been extinct when the last Gestalt died in 4200 right? But you are not in the 11,000s."

I picked the calendar from my desk and showed her today's date. "Today's is May 26, year 2000. When I say you are far from home I meant this."

B2's mouth was open in shock. There was no trace left of her once natural expression. She quickly made her way to one of the windows of the shed and she looked at the night sky.

"Those are..."

"Stars? yes. The night sky can be breathtaking, isn't it? You can see it because Eart is still rotating."

"So everything you said was true?"

"Thinks about me being human and you and your compeins are time travelers. Yes, everything is true. But it's not the whole story."

 

I took a deep breath. Everything up to this point going perfectly. After this point, if I can play my cards right I can gain her loyalty. 

"The reason you are here is me. I summoned you from across time and space. And used some precious resources to summon you."

B2 remained silent for a bit, then asked the question I had been waiting for.

"Why? Why does such an esteemed being as yourself risk yourself with old magic to summon an android? We are failures, beings that cannot even protect their creators. So why do you spend all the effort to summon a failure like me-"

Without letting her say anything else, I did something she was not expecting. I hugged her.

"Wha-"

"You are not a failure. None of the androids are. Humanity was going to be extinct with or without androids. Project Gestalt was faulty from the start. But I guess you don't know that, do you?"

She shook her head.

B2, or her true name E2, was aware of the supposed extinction of the human race due to her role as Executioner, but her position wasn't high enough to know the whole truth.

"And even if it was the androids' fault, you and your friends aren't responsible for this. The androids who are supposed to observe Project Gestalt are long dead. You are never a failure, don't forget that"

I finished the hug, and then I held her hand. "But there is so much to speak. Let's continue our conversation somewhere more comfortable. Right now we are in my shed. So let's enter my home and continue our conversation with tea and snacks. Would you like tea? Because I wo-"

"Ugh!" I fell to one knee. A strange pain engulfed my body.

"Shirou!" I barely heard B2 calling my name, but I didn't pay attention to it.

"Trace on," I quickly cast Structural Grasp on myself to find out what's wrong. I checked all of my systems but I didn't find anything until I checked my magic circuits. There was a strange miasma that was acting like mana to connect to my circuits.

My mind went into hyperdrive as I searched my memory to find out what this miasma could have been then realisation hit me like a truck. I activated my dragon core immediately and flooded my magic circuits with mana in order to push Miasma out. 

I wasn't sure if it would work but it was my only chance. But despite my best hopes, miasma resisted my push and attached deeper itself into my circuits.

Then all of a sudden I began to hear an eerie singing in my ear. "Join us or wither in the dust." And in the same time, I felt a similar sensation similar to the time Kiritsugu was teaching me how to make Geases.

This thing was trying to make a forceful geas with me. A primal fear emerged from my heart, but then it was quickly vanquished and replaced with anger.

'How dare this creature threaten with death to make me his slave?'

As my blood boiled with rage, my core burned with an intensity that I never it could before. I getter up an enormous amount of mana to wash away this filth.

  "Be gone!" With a mighty push, my mana flooeded my cirtus compltyly and bansih away the evil. 

' I did it, I survived a thing that has a 100% death rate, but I couldn't rest, at least not yet.'

 Despite my legs shaking like a leaf, I ran out of the shed.

"Shirou, what happened? Are you all right?" I heard the concerned voice of B2 coming behind me. I turned around and saw the B2 running up to me, I quickly made a hand sign for her to stop.

"B2, no matter what, don't leave the shed."

"Shirou, I don't understand what is going on?"

"There is no time, I need to contain this quickly as possible, so please B2 remain in the shed. I will explain everything after I am done."

I quickly activated the bounded field that cuts mana inside from the outside. I set up this bounded field when I was experimenting with different bound field types. I usually dispose of most of my experiments after perfecting them, but I left this one intact because I felt it could be useful if I wanted to isolate mana in the shed as some rituals require a specific amount of mana.

"The bounded field is online. Things should be safe as long you stay in the shed." 

"Shirou, are you all right? If you are, can you please explain what happened earlier and what were you containing me for?" She went into full panic mode in contrast to her previous state.

"Everything is fine now. I am alright. Everything is fine now. I just need some rest. But my rest can wait because, after all this, I owe you an explanation. Not that I didn't before, after all, I brought you into my reality without your permission."

I took a deep breath.

"Anyways, I digress from the topic. 2B, I don't know any easy way to tell this, so I will say it bluntly. B2, you are carrying Maso particles."

B2's expression changed from worry to fear.

"But how? Maso should have been banished from my world long ago. How could I carry the demonic element?"

"I am by no means an expert, but according to my knowledge (Nier wiki I read before dying), while most of Maso is banished, androids of that time couldn't be completely eradicated the Maso. And with the failure of the project Gashalt, androids stop even trying. After all, Maso is only dangerous to humans so why use your precious resources to banish Maso when you could spend them on the war against the machines."

B2 seemed disturbed by my logic but she didn't object.

"And when the higher-ups got desperate, they decided to use Maso against the machines. After all, humans have already gone extinct, so why not use them against the enemy? With this in mind, they design all YoRHa units to be able to use Maso particles in order to change the tides of battle. This is how you're able to bend the laws of physics to your advantage, you are magic-user B2."

"But this my knowledge I didn't know YaRHa units could hold back up Maso with them. But I should have known, after all, that it is only logical to carry a backup. So don't bother your pretty head with this. This accident is my fault."

Damn, she blushed. I really underestimated the android's devotion to humans. 

"And as for what happened to me, Maso particles invaded my body. I managed to banish it from my body by using this world's magic power "mana" before it could turn me into salt. But not everyone in this world is so lucky. Only a small number of people could use magic, and not all magic users are powerful enough to banish Maso from their bodies like I did. 

The possibility of a WCS outbreak is very real, but don't worry. I made a bounded field around the shed to trap Maso particles. As long you stay in the shed, I will be able to help you and clean you from Maso. Don't worry everything will be fine."

"Shirou, I am really sorry, but we can't take that risk. I know you spend your precious resources on me but I am sorry I can't serve you."

Yeah well, that's definitely a blow to my confidence. *sigh*

"Well if you really don't want to stay with me-" "Shirou!" She called my name but her voice didn't reach me.

 "-I am sure I can arrange something-" "Shirou!

-but at first, I need to clean you from the maso parti-"

"Shirou!"

This time I heard her.

"Shirou, you need to evacuate the area immediately. I cannot endanger humanity's future. I am sorry, but you almost died because of me. I can't accept a human dying because of me. I will self-destruct. Please evacuate the area, immediately.!"

"Wow, slow down. You can't get rid of Maso by blowing it up. Humanity tried that before with nuclear weapons, but it only made Maso spread around more. So, before dooming my city, please cancel your self-destruction."

The things I said are a bit harsh, and they could fuel her self-hatred. But I know I can't persuade her otherwise. After all, in her eyes, humanity comes before her own life, and maybe even my life, a human life, is sacrificeable in her eyes if it means she could save mankind. 

Though I am not sure. After all, I don't know anything about Android priorities. It could be like Asimov's Laws, or it could be something entirely different.

 So, the only way to stop her from committing suicide and spreading Maso particles all around Fuyuki City is to tell her the truth. The cold hard truth.

After my explanation, she canceled her self-destruction.

"Huh, that was close. Now, that we are not in imminent danger, can I ask you What the hell were you thinking?"

"S-Shirou, I was only- I was trying to"

Die If They Are Killed

"You were trying to destroy yourself with my house. I can understand why you did that, but it's not why I am mad. I am mad because you tried to kill yourself before even trying to look for another solution. You are no longer in the far future. In here, you will die, if you are killed, you got that?"

"Yes-yes," she said meekly.

"I can't hear you. I said, do you understand that!"

"Yes, sir!" She said with a clear voice this time.

 After I saw her take my words seriously My harsh expression softened a bit.

"Now, now, you don't have to speak to me formally like that. You can call me Shirou like before."

"But, sir, back then, I wasn't thinking properly. After all, such a lowly being as myself could call a human by his name."

B2 felt her chicks heating up. This has never happened to her before. She decided to ask Pod later about this.

But on Shirou's side, things were different. 'Seeing her get flustered like that was worth it to almost turning into salt by an alien goddess. 

"Ma, ma, you are the stubborn one, aren't ya? But you can call me Shirou, I insist."

"Yes, sir! I mean, yes, Shirou."

I sighed. One step at a time, Shirou, one step at a time.

"Anyways, now that you've learned your lesson, we can talk about important matters."

I sat cross-legged in front of the shed's door and motioned for her to sit down too.

"So, before anything else, how much do 

you know about the parallel world?"

"Not much. I only know Maso came from another world, but I don't know how or why."

She made a thoughtful expression. Then I continued.

"Well, you see, parallel worlds could be very similar to one another, or they could be really different from each other. One thing that may be impossible here can be possible in another world. For example, your whole world was a video game in my past life."

"My homeworld was a what!?"

"A video game is a game in which the player controls moving pictures on the screen by pressing buttons." Thank you, Pod 42.

"I and my whole world was a-"

"A video game, just like this world," I finished her sentence. After that, she just stood there silently. And after a while, she spoke again.

"You said my life was a video game in your past life. Did you experience something old world religions called 'Reincarnation'?"

"Well, not exactly. In fact, the reason I am how I am is directly tied to the fact that question of how I was able to summon you."

I summoned my phone into my hand and showed her that. "B2, have you ever heard of The Company?"

 ----Skip----

"So, Shirou, let me get this straight. There is a multiversal slavery company that not only sells dangerous creatures and humans but also sells biological and mechanical upgrades too."

"Yes."

"Also, they made you because one of their contractors under dubious circumstances, yes?"

"Yes. I only made the build when I thought it wasn't real. So no old contractor or eldritch entity offered me a job interview or anything. One night I filled the catalog and poof, I was here the next day."

"Also, you bought me from this company because you thought studying with me and on me would expand your scientific knowledge."

"Yes." 'And also because of your heavenly booty.' But I won't say that.

"And also, you disabled all the safety protocols and control options the company had provided for you because it would your future children forcibly loyal to you." 

She looked at with an frustrating expression."By the humans! I can't believe I'm saying something like this to a human, but Shirou, are you an idiot?"

"Huh?" B2's question really took me off-guard.

"Why the hell did you disable all of the safety options the company had provided for you? Think, Shirou, what if you summoned a version of me who could catch the logic virus? You could have died."

"Come on now, B2, you know I prepared for something like that, remember my barrier."

But she ignored me and continued with her rant. "And let's not forget about your reasoning for this, not wanting to force your children to obey you. But Shirou, that's what children should do. A child should always obey what his elders say. "

Oh...oh, I got it now. It's surprising that I didn't notice it before. Despite her Western appearance, B2 is an Asian android at heart.

"Ok, I got it. What I did was very stupid but in my defense, I just didn't want to force people to like me."

The expression on B2's face softened. 

"I know you meant well, Shirou, but you should always prioritize your safety first."

Oh, the sweet irony. Just one hour ago, I was the one scolding her about self-importance. How the tables have turned.

"Oh, and B2, aren't you mad that I literally bought you?"

"Shirou, my whole existence is meant to serve humankind. In fact, a human such as yourself choosing me to serve himself is a great honor."

"I am happy to hear you are happy to be here, but B2, I don't want your servitude. The thing I want from you, much harder than mere servitude, which is..."

B2 held her breath as I teased her with my answer.

"Companionship. I want you to live with me, talk with me, spend time with me, and most importantly like you did before, I want you to call me an idiot when I attempt to do something stupid."

I looked directly into B2's eyes. And despite her blindfold, I could sense that she was doing the same.

"I want you to be my friend, B2."

My hand went through the barrier as I reached. B2, seeing this, she flinched from my hand.

"Don't worry, I already learned how to banish Maso from my body. You can hold my hand without fear. So, I will ask you, 2B, do you want to be friends with me?"

"I-I... I would like to be friends, Shirou." 

Then she took my hand. A bright smile covered my face.

"Then I am happy to make your acquaintance."

"Make your acquaintance?" B2 asked, appearing to be confused.

"It's a human saying. Don't worry, you will get used to them with time. Oh, and Pod, don't think I forgot about you. Just like your master, do you want to be friends with me?"

"This unit is incapable of having feelings, but I will accept your proposal."

"Thanks, Pod. I am happy to make your acquaintance with you too."

"Then come on here." I pulled both him and B2 into a group hug. Dispite being a machine B2 is sure soft. 'I could lose my this softnes but I don't want to spook her and also...' 

"Pod and B2, I am happy to have made friends with both of you, but I need to get out of the shed soon, my ability to deflect Maso is limited."

After I discovered, that I could push Maso with mana I found a simple but costly way to protect myself from the Maso which is constantly pushing mana out of my circuits to push away nearby Maso particles.

"Shirou, you said you learned how to banish Maso!" She said with a panicked voice.

"I did, but the problem is the energy cost. Without casting anything else, I can protect myself from the Maso for 30. But if I cast something during the duration, the timer would be halved. And I needed to make some tests on you to figure out how I clean you from the Maso."

"Suggestion: This unit can share its data about B2. There is no need for you to risk yourself." 

"Even if you have the exact data I need, it would require calculations to adjust my magic system. They could act similarly, but in the end, Maso and mana are different substances that follow different sets of rules."

"So even though it seems a bit risky, as long as I operate within my designated limits, everything will be fine. And Pod, I want you to keep track of how much time is left the moment I enter the shed."

"Understood

I turned my attention from Pod 42 to B2. "B2, when I enter the shed, I will make a deep scan of your body. It may feel very unpleasant, but please bear it for me."

I took a deep breath and said, "When I say 3, start my timer, and when I say now, halve my time."

"Understood," the pod said. "1... 2... and 3."

With 3, I entered the shed. I quickly made my way to my tool shelf and then picked up a seemingly unimportant notebook. And even if a magus were to pick it up, they would only see a blank notebook. Because it truly is a blank book. But it would help me understand how B2's black box uses and contains Maso.

Well, you see, about half a year ago, I was looking for alternative ways to practice my structural grasp, and when Grandpa Raiga came by for the regular tuning of his motorcycle, an idea came to my mind.

 I knew I couldn't hold the knowledge gained from the spell, as human brains' data capacity was limited, though I could hold any data without having to worry about its size if it were a sword but what if I could do to the machines? What if I could record knowledge manually instead of trying to download it directly into my brain?

With this idea in mind, I decided to see if I could write down the data I saw when I cast CG on Raiga's motorbike into a notebook. In short, I managed to write down the data while using the spell, but it required a lot of focus on my part. To a point that I can't feel the passing of time.

While normally, it's barely a side effect for such a useful skill, for times like this, it could be quite deadly. Normally, I would use my old trusty alarm clock, but it was damaged two days ago from one of my bound field experiments. Because of this, I will need to use the pod to keep the time for me.

With my notebook in one hand, I went back to B2's side. "B2, I will start. Be ready. Pod, wake me when two minutes are left. I am beginning with three.

1

2

3

Pod now!"