Suisei had a troubled look on her face. From how she knocked on my door in this unholy hour, I knew there was a problem.
"Is something wrong?" I still asked her despite the obvious signs.
"I had a bad dream."
She sat on my bed and motioned me to sit beside her. After sitting down, she began talking.
"Inugami-san is nice. However, I still had nightmares."
"I see... What kind of nightmare would you have?"
"I would find myself in a forest and get chased around by monsters. It's an exact replay of what happened to me when I got sent here. If I'm lucky, I would wake up before I would get killed."
So she was that traumatized, huh? I mean... She was just placed in a life threatening situation. If I didn't arrive on time, she would be dead already. I could see how traumatizing it could be. She was just a regular idol living a normal life until she got sent to this Server.
An idea formed in my mind.
"You know... I can fix your trauma", I said.
"Fix it?" she asked.
"I am a Coder. Everything and anything can be broken down into codes and that includes your trauma. I can find the codes that cause you to have bad dreams and I can edit it", I said as a violet screen appeared in front of me.
"I refuse that offer."
"Eh?"
"It would be unnatural. My trauma is a natural response as a human. I'm relieved to know that I'm scared of something like that. If you take it away, I will no longer be a human."
That was a weird concept. Reality was composed of many lines of codes and that included what was "natural." I had the power to dictate what was "natural" or not. Or at least I could have the power to do so if I was given the privileges of an Admin.
But at the very least, I could decide what was "natural" for her. Her thoughts, her emotions, and other things that would come for her "naturally" could be changed if I wanted to. There was no need to wonder if it would be "natural" for her since I could freely decide it.
However, I should respect her wishes. If she thought it was "unnatural" for her to change how she "naturally" felt, then I wouldn't argue any further. And besides, Coders couldn't edit another sentient creature without permission. They would need to somehow have the same access as an Administrator to be able to do such a thing.
"So... What do you want me to do?" I asked her.
I was completely stumped on how I could help her. The only thing I could do was edit her codes but since she didn't want that, I couldn't think of anything else.
"Can you tell me more about being a Coder?" she asked.
"Why would you want to learn about it?"
"I don't really mind what we will talk about as long as it can get my mind off of things. The truth about the Coders is a huge deal."
She had a point. I was sure that the truth of the world would be a huge deal especially for her. Might as well tell her then.
"Alright then... Coders are special existences. For you see..."
###
Suisei was sleeping soundly on my bed after I told her about Coders. There wasn't any rule that said that we should keep our existence a secret. Even if she would spread it, no one would believe her unless they confirm it with me.
Talking about rules reminded me of that one. There was only one rule the Coders have to follow no matter what.
"You are not allowed to fall in love", I repeated the words of our teachers.
Because we were Coders, we were not allowed to have any attachment to any other lines of codes. We were immortal. Even my identity as Inazuma Jun was just temporary. Once I exhaust my life in this Server, I would be transferred to another one and the cycle continues until I would mature enough to be an Administrator.
Whatever happened to the Coders who broke that rule, I would never know. All I knew was that they were sent for "rehabilitation" until they were ready once more to fulfill their responsibilities. However, I've heard some rumors about what they did to those who ended up falling in love.
One rumor was that they were given a choice. If falling in love was forbidden for a Coder, one could just quit that responsibility. Although it was pretty stupid if you ask me.
Being a Coder, despite me denying it, was like being a god. The power and benefits that came with it was too much. If we wait for some time, we could even create our own Server. I wonder who was dumb enough to give up those things just for a few lines of codes?
I looked out of the window and saw a cloaked figure looking straight at my room. They ran away upon seeing me and I had a hunch that they were up to no good.
Gathering the mana inside me, I enhanced my physical capabilities to chase him after jumping out of my window.
That person was fast and I couldn't sense any magic coming out from them. They must be very athletic since they could run away from me. However, I had one advantage over them and that was the magic I learned by installing a Patch inside me.
"Thorn Bind Hostage!" I chanted the moment they entered my range.
Glowing violet ropes came from the ground and wrapped around my target. They could no longer move and it was time for me to confront them. The moment they ran away when they saw me, I knew that they had malicious intent.
But why would they even target me? Could they be one of the friends of the adventurers I almost killed back in Stonebell? If that was the case, then I would make sure to bring judgment to those two and to each and everyone who helped them in their petty revenge.
However, things became much more complicated when a red screen appeared near the person's hand. They pressed it and a square barrier surrounded us.
"This is Developer Mode!" I couldn't help but shout out in surprise.
The ropes wrapping around them turned red and disappeared. There was no mistake. They highlighted the magic and deleted it. In other words, I was facing a Coder.
They stood up and several red screens were floating around them.
I channeled my mana but there was no response. As expected, they already edited this zone to make sure that magic wouldn't exist.
Violet screens surrounded me and I materialized three missiles. They launched towards the cloaked person and exploded. However, there was a crumbling wall in front of them when the smoke cleared up.
The Coder pressed a few screens and violet screens appeared in front of me.
[Warning: Dump File detected. Size: 200 MB]
[Warning: Dump File detected. Size: 200 MB]
[Warning: Dump File detected. Size: 200 MB]
Three white wolves appeared. That bastard... They intentionally created Dump Files?!
"Who are you?!" I asked.
What were they? I heard from Mithra that this Server didn't have any Moderators yet and I was sure no Moderator would intentionally create a Dump File. However, I was also sure that they weren't the Admin since there was even no reason for the Admin to lurk outside and create these creatures.
I had an idea on what they could be but I always thought of them as rumors. After all, every Fledgling wondered what happened to the Coders who willingly disobeyed and disregarded their responsibilities. The teachers of the Academy all said that every captured Coder was sent to "rehabilitation." That was why some of us asked what happened to those who weren't captured.
In other words, I was facing a Hacker.
YOU ARE READING
Project: Alternative
FanfictionWorlds were designed to make traveling between them impossible. While there might be occasional accidents where a person could get sent to another world, it was impossible to travel from world to world. But a change was coming. To test things out, t...
