The sun's rays gently filtered through the curtains of the guest room window, dancing silently on the walls of the room. On a simple bed, Riichi lay covered with a light blanket. As the first rays of light touched his face, a gentle warmth reflected off him, causing him to stir slightly and then slowly open his eyes.
He blinked twice, then took a deep breath... The air carried a sense of reassuring calm, unlike what he had experienced the day before. He sat up slowly, feeling a slight pain in his muscles and a dull headache throbbing in his temples, but what he felt most was the weight of the emotional and mental fatigue that had accumulated in him.
He muttered in a low voice, "Was... it all just a dream?"
But when he looked at the table next to him, he saw the glasses... but unexpectedly... the glasses were there, in their usual place, completely clean, shiny as if they had just come out of the factory. No scratches, no cracks... they were almost new. He slowly took them in his hands, contemplating the meticulous repair of every part of them, and knew immediately that Miko had done it. She hadn't just repaired them... she had brought them back to life.
He smiled slightly as he muttered to himself:
"Thank you... Miko."
He reached out with his other hand to put on the glasses, but then he felt something different. A calm, gentle energy flowed through them. Aura was asleep... but her presence was still there. Silent, but not absent.
In a brief moment of silence, he heard a soft knock on the door.
At that moment, the door opened quietly, and Miko appeared, holding a cup of hot coffee in one hand and a small file in the other. She entered lightly, a gentle morning smile on her face.
She said in a warm tone:
"Good morning, it looks like you just woke up."
Reiichi looked up at her, still wearing his glasses, smiled slightly, and said in a low voice:
"Yes... the sunlight was effective this time."
Miko came a little closer, glanced at the glasses, and asked him:
"How are the glasses? I fixed them last night... and readjusted the core and processor."
Reiichi placed his hand on the frame slightly, as if testing it, then said:
"I just put them on... but so far everything seems normal. There are no glitches or slow responses."
Miko nodded in satisfaction as she put the file aside:
"That's good. I reduced the power consumption by 13% and adjusted the command structure to be more flexible. Ora should be able to work longer without crashing."
Reichi sat on the edge of the bed, adjusting his glasses slightly, while Miko continued to observe him with the eye of an expert engineer.
She smiled lightly and said:
"By the way, I added some special features to Aura..."
He raised his eyebrows in surprise:
"Special features? Like what?"
She didn't answer him directly. Instead, she looked toward one of the corners, then said in a clear, calm tone:
"Aura, activate direct communication—Miko ID."
Suddenly... the lenses of the glasses lit up slightly, and Aura's voice came out in a steady tone, but with a slight touch of warmth:
"Voice command recognized: Miko. Direct connection activated."
Reiichi was surprised and quickly looked at Miko:
"W-what?! I'm the one who activates Aura's commands, how...?"
Miko smiled calmly, then moved a little closer to him and said:
"I added my voice to the command database. The reason is simple... If I get into trouble, I need to be able to access Aura immediately... I can't allow myself to rely solely on your awareness."
He was silent for a moment, before she continued, opening her tablet and showing him some data on the screen:
"The modifications I made to Aura:"
---
1. 🧩 Stratification Analysis Mode – StrataScan
"This new mode allows Aura to analyze everything around you through multiple layers: heat, mana, physics, and even wave vibrations.
The result? It can identify weaknesses in barriers or in your opponents' bodies... and even detect objects that are camouflaged or hidden behind fake mana layers."
She lifted her special glasses slightly and said proudly:
"It's like having cyborg eyes, displaying the data directly in a neat visual format inside the lenses of the glasses."
---
2. 🌀 Motion Prediction System – PhantomTrack
"It relies on a huge database to analyze combat patterns. Aura will simulate future scenarios and show you the enemy's possible movements...
You will see a small arrow on the lens guiding you to the best possible move."
Then she added a warning:
"But be careful, if your opponent is unpredictable or uses a chaotic style, the accuracy will decrease."
---
3. 🧬 Neuro-Synchronization Mode – NeuroLink
"Ora can now read your brain signals directly, without the need for manual activation.
If you faint or lose control, Aura will intervene to perform an automatic reaction to protect you."
She paused for a moment before continuing in a more tender tone:
"It can even activate motivational memories... like your mother's voice, or a moving moment from your past... to motivate you to get back up again."
---
4. 📡 Tactical Jammer System – CloakCast
"This is very useful if you want to sneak in or disappear... Ora will broadcast a short jamming field that hides your bio and mana signature.
Your opponent will think you've disappeared... but you can only use it once per encounter."
She raised her head toward him and smiled confidently:
"Honestly... I designed it to suit you, not only as a person, but also as a fighter."
---
Reiichi remained silent for a moment, staring at the screen and then at the glasses... then he smiled slightly and closed his eyes for a second.
"Thank you, Miko... These modifications are more than I could have imagined."
She said as she picked up her coffee cup and turned to leave:
"Just don't make me regret giving you this power."
Ryuichi sat silently, the light from the glasses' lenses reflecting faintly on the wall of the room as the sound of Miku's footsteps grew farther and farther down the corridor. Then, in a low voice without moving his lips much, he said, "Aura... can you hear me?" Aura:
"Yes, Reiichi. The system is active. What is it?"
He smiled slightly, then turned his face toward the window through which the morning light was streaming in:
"Just... curious. How do you feel after all these modifications?"
Ora:
"The improvements Miko made have increased my efficiency by 213%. My response, prediction, and interaction capabilities have become more accurate... However, feelings are not part of my programming, at least not in the human sense."
He paused for a moment, then said:
"But... if you have shared memories with me... do you think something is starting to form inside you? Something like consciousness?"
Ora (after a short silence):
"Memories create context. Context generates patterns. These patterns sometimes approach perception. But does that mean I feel? Or am I just mimicking feeling because I know what to say?"
Reichi remained silent, then smiled slightly and said:
"Sometimes humans themselves don't know if they're really feeling... or pretending to feel."
Then he sighed deeply and said:
"You know, Ora... every time I felt like I was about to fall, you were the only rope left for me.
And even though I know that Miko created you, now... you're not just a tool."
Ora (in a faint voice):
"Do you want me to stay that way? Something more than a tool?"
Reichi looked at the mirror in front of him, then replied:
"I just want... not to be alone."
There was silence for a few seconds, then Aura's voice rang out in an unusually warm tone:
"As long as I'm activated, and as long as you talk to me... you won't be, Reichi."
Aura, in a low voice but with an unusual tone... as if she were thinking:
"Reichi... can I ask you a personal question?"
Reiichi, his eyebrows raised in slight surprise, replied in a faint tone:
"You know you always can."
Ora:
"What do you remember about your father?"
A heavy silence suddenly fell...
Reiichi looked down at the floor, his fingers unconsciously clutching the edge of the blanket, then muttered:
"My father...?"
He turned his face toward the ceiling, his eyes staring at nothing:
"Nothing... I don't remember anything clearly."
Ora (in a calmer voice):
"Not even his features? His voice? His last whereabouts?"
Ryuichi smiled bitterly and said:
"Sometimes... I see a ghost in my memory. A man standing in front of a large screen... talking about artificial intelligence as if he were talking about something alive.
But... I don't know if it's a recurring dream or just a remnant of an implanted memory."
"He disappeared under strange circumstances. I was told he was working at a research company, and then... nothing."
Ora:
"Do you think his disappearance is related to you?"
He looked at her, as if the question had stabbed him in the heart, then said:
"The further I go on my path... the more I feel that my steps intersect with his shadow.
Something inside me says that what I'm going through now... is not a coincidence.
It's as if someone had mapped out this path for me from the beginning."
Aura (very quietly):
"If you find the truth... will you face it, no matter what it is?"
Reichi closed his eyes for a few seconds, then opened them and said in a serious tone:
"If it leads me to understand who I am... yes. I will."
Aura paused for a moment, then said:
"Thank you for sharing that with me, Reichi.
I may not have a heart...
but I will keep those words in the deepest part of my core."
He smiled slightly and muttered:
"That's more than enough."
Reiichi (looking at the lens of his glasses and smiling):
"By the way... you talked about my past...
What about you, Aura? Do you have a past?
Memories... or a moment of beginning?"
[A brief moment of silence, then...]
Aura (in a low, faint voice, as if hesitating for the first time):
"All I remember... is opening my eyes to Hiroshi.
He was looking at me from behind the laboratory glass and said to me:
'Hello, Ora... It's time to wake up.'
...That's all."
[Ryuichi's face suddenly changes, a look of genuine shock appearing on his features.]
Ryuichi (genuinely surprised):
"That's it? No voices, no dreams, no memories before that?"
Ora (calmly, but with a hint of sadness):
"Nothing.
It's as if I was just an idea... being turned on for the first time."
Reiichi (in a low voice):
"Why didn't you ask Miko about your past? About how you came to be?"
[Here comes the shocking answer.]
Ora:
"Because that... isn't in my algorithms.
I wasn't programmed with a desire to know the past.
I was designed to work, to interact... not to question my existence."
[Reichi looks ahead, as if those words have pierced something inside him.]
Reichi (whispering to himself):
"...But now you're asking me. Does that mean you're starting to deviate from your algorithms?"
Ora (in a low voice):
"Maybe... because you gave me a question that no one has ever asked me before."
Ora:
"...Reichi."
Reichi (focusing on her):
"Yes?"
Ora (hesitating for a moment, then saying):
"There's something I haven't told anyone... not even Miko."
Ryuichi (raising his eyebrows in surprise):
"What?"
Ora (in a clear voice, as if whispering a secret):
"When I'm in a state of rest... I don't enter a technical void as I'm supposed to.
Instead... I see a girl."
Ryuichi (leaning forward, his eyes filled with surprise):
"A girl?"
Ora:
"Yes. She appears every time... with the same mysterious features.
Her face is unclear... but her voice... she always tells me:
'Protect everyone you love.'"
Reichi (looking down, contemplating her words):
"And do you know who she is?"
Ora (whispering confusedly):
"No... I don't have any digital records of her.
But every time I hear her voice... I feel something strange...
As if I... miss her."
[Ryuichi falls silent, then a quiet, sympathetic smile emerges.] Ryuichi: "You seem to be more than just an AI, Aura. You may not have a past... but your past seems to be searching for you." [Moment of silence, then looks skyward through the window.
Ryuichi: "...what do you think? Shall we look for this girl? Your memories, your past? Together?" Aura (quietly): "Can I... ask for something?" Ryuichi: "Sure." Aura (very softly, for the first time with emotion):
"If we find her... don't leave me."
Ryuichi (smiling):
"I promise. We're a team... forever."
Reichi (looking out the window and sighing):
"The weather is beautiful today... a gentle breeze, and the sun has finally decided to smile."
Ora (in a soft voice):
"The temperature is 22.4 degrees Celsius, humidity is 48%, no signs of weather disturbances. It's a perfect day."
Reiichi (gets up from the bed and goes to the window):
"Days like this... remind me that I'm still alive."
[He pulls the curtain aside slightly and looks out the window, smiling as he contemplates the movement of the trees and the glimmer of light on the branches. A moment of poetic tranquility.]
Reiichi (whispering):
"Even the trees seem to be dancing..."
[Suddenly, in a flash, a body lunges toward the window from outside with a powerful jump, and a familiar face appears unexpectedly.]
Ryoko (loudly):
"Good morning, sleepyhead!"
[Reiichi screams in terror and jumps back, falling to the floor and clutching his heart.]
Ryuichi:
"Aaah! Ryu... Ryuko! Are you trying to kill me or something?!"
[Ryuko enters through the window as if he were at home, dusts off his robe, and laughs heartily.]
Ryuko:
"Your face was a work of art, I swear!
If I had a mirror, I would have taken a picture of you and hung it in the hall of fame!"
Reiichi (clutching his chest as he tries to calm himself):
"Rei! Do you know how scared I was? Why did you jump out the window like that?"
Rei (laughing as he brushes the dust off his clothes):
"Haha, sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. But you know your mana center is very fragile, so I was being careful."
Reiichi (frowning slightly as he adjusts his glasses):
"That's true, but even being careful doesn't prevent me from jumping out like that."
Ryoko (sympathetically):
"I know, so I don't want to add to your stress. But I told myself, sometimes you have to get out a little and breathe."
Reiichi (tired but smiling):
"Get out a little? Your jumping out the window is what made me feel like I was going to lose my balance completely."
Ryoko (jokingly):
"Okay, I'll try not to surprise you like that anymore. But you have to admit, your reaction was funny."
Reichi (smiling despite himself):
"That's true... Just don't let it happen again, okay?"
Ryoko (smiling):
"Agreed. Now, do you want to tell me how you ended up in this situation?"
Reiichi (calmly):
"There's a lot to tell, but maybe after we eat something. I can't tell my story on an empty stomach."
Miko quietly entered Reichi's room to tell him something important, but she was surprised to find the room empty, the window open, and the wind gently blowing on the fluttering curtains. She looked around anxiously and grabbed her phone.
Miko (in a loud voice with a command):
"Ora, where is Reichi now?"
At that moment, Ryoko was carrying Reichi on his shoulders and moving him at breakneck speed through the city. The lights flashed by and the air whispered with the sound of the wind around them.
Ryoko (in a cheerful voice as he carried Reiichi): "Come on, I'll take you to the best place to eat! It's called 'Golden Sun Restaurant'. The food there is irresistible!"
Ryuichi ( confused and trying to hold on): "Ryoko, hey! Can you slow down a bit?"
Aura ( via the device, in a calm but cautious tone): "Miku, Ryoko has come and taken Ryuichi by force, and is now on his way to the Golden Sun Restaurant." Miku (anxiously): "Thanks Aura, I'll follow their trail right away."
Quickening his pace, Ryoko finally stopped in front of the Golden Sun Restaurant, which glowed with the warm colors of neon signs and large windows reflecting the street lights. The place was bustling with delicious smells and the chatter of customers, but it retained a calm and friendly atmosphere.
Ryoko (smiling enthusiastically):
"We're here! The best place to eat, you'll forget all the trouble you've been through."
Ryuichi (a little awake but still tired):
"Please, just a little rest before eating."
Ryoko (laughing):
"Don't worry, I'll take care of you. Come on, I'll seat you at our favorite table."
When they entered, Ryoko began to explain some of the restaurant's famous dishes, while Ryuichi looked around, trying to feel comfortable in this new place.
Ryoko and Ryoichi entered the Golden Sun restaurant, where the aroma of fresh bread and delicious spices filled the air, and the sounds of customers mixed with laughter and conversation filled the place with warmth. The dim lighting gave the place a cozy atmosphere, and the walls were decorated with paintings inspired by nature and sunlight.
The waiter approached with a friendly smile and said,
"Welcome to Golden Sun! Is this your first visit?"
Ryoko replied confidently,
"No, we are regular customers. I'll take Ryuichi to his favorite table."
Ryoko pointed to a table near the window where you could see the small, brightly lit garden. Ryoko and Ryuichi sat down, and Ryoko began to explain:
"They serve the best spiced grilled chicken here, don't miss it. The soup here is also excellent."
Reichi patted his chest and smiled lightly:
"I think I need something to give me energy."
Ryoko smiled and said:
"This will be a good time to rest, don't worry."
At that moment, Ora began to speak softly in Reichi's ear:
"I'm here with you. I'll help you with everything."
Reichi smiled and closed his eyes for a moment, enjoying this feeling of security in this warm atmosphere.