WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Little Prince in the Ossuary

Chapter 70

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The Past

The woman turned the wheel. Her sedan left the city.

She was heading to the Mid-Region Central Hub of the Afterlife Insurance Authority.

There was someone she wanted to see.

She could only meet him here.

The road into the facility felt bleak, like entering another world. A wide perimeter was enclosed with triple layers of barbed wire, with high-voltage warning signs posted all along it. Beyond that stood a concrete wall, with watchtowers every 30 meters.

No people stood in those towers. Only unmanned turrets controlled by the Afterlife Insurance control AI.

Soldiers at the checkpoint spotted her vehicle and waved red traffic batons.

The woman stopped in front of the barrier.

A soldier came over, took one look at her, and flinched. She was startled too. Does he know my face?

Apparently not. He just could not quite hold eye contact, almost painfully honest about it. By habit, she covered part of her face. Fingertips on her forehead, peeking through her fingers. The soldier looked a little disappointed and held out his hand.

“I need to check your ID for a moment.”

The woman took out her resident registration card. The soldier accepted it and swiped it through a handheld terminal. Beep, beep, beep. A green light came on.

「Afterlife Insurance associate. Access granted.」

After reading her identity and purpose of visit, he nodded and handed the ID back.

“You made a reservation in advance. Please go in, Doctor.”

Luckily, her fake identity was not exposed.

She could have entered freely under her real identity too. She really was an indirect stakeholder in Afterlife Insurance. Still, she did not want anyone else to know about this visit.

The barrier lifted. She pressed the accelerator carefully.

The sedan entered the southern parking lot of the central hub. The lot was vast. When the facility was first established, they expected an enormous number of visitors. What was visible above ground was only the tip of the iceberg. Below it were twelve even larger underground levels. Right after Afterlife Insurance was introduced, that prediction had been right. People kept coming endlessly, hoping to visit family members whose neural cores had been extracted.

Now it was different. You could count the parked cars on both hands.

Was it because the visitation process was so strict?

That part could not be helped.

Afterlife Insurance was the most advanced Virtual Reality and AI complex in the world, and the biggest growth engine of South Korea’s economy. Naturally, there were countless countries, companies, and organizations that wanted that technology.

There were physical threats too. Terror attacks by extremists who opposed Afterlife Insurance and AI on political, religious, or ideological grounds. They still happened often. It was a regular headline these days.

That was also why communication between Afterlife Insurance subscribers with extracted neural cores and the outside world was limited to 「Teletype」, and why countless security programs were needed in the process. One-way broadcasts might have been fine, but two-way communication carried hacking risks.

In the end, visiting people housed in this facility was only possible inside this facility.

That was everything the woman knew, and everything generally known to the world.

‘Even so... this place is too lonely.’

This Mid-Region Central Hub alone housed 800,000 neural cores. Did their families feel no longing? In the face of that kind of yearning, long distance, long time, and difficult procedures should mean nothing.

She stepped into the building.

The Mid-Region Central Hub, the Afterlife Insurance Authority’s neural-core repository for the central region, was solemn and overwhelming. People called this building the 「Ossuary」.

It was a kind of sneer. The people inside could not even see it, so why waste money on appearances? The government said it was for national dignity. The woman knew another reason too. Politicians had always loved civil engineering and construction.

Still, there was one positive side. The hub’s durability surpassed even a nuclear power plant.

She took in the interior at a glance. There were more guards than visitors.

Waiting lines were marked, but no one was waiting. A guidance drone flew over from the hangar. It identified her through facial and iris recognition, then reconfirmed her purpose.

「Dr. Song Su-a. Are you requesting a visitation with Han Gyeoul-nim, Afterlife Insurance registration number B-612?」

“Yes.”

「Your visitation request was pre-notified. Han Gyeoul-nim accepted your request. He is currently in standby and immediate visitation is available. Would you like guidance now?」

“Yes.”

「Understood. I will guide you to Grade B sector.」

A flat circular drone descended to the floor. When she stepped on, it began to glide.

The hub facility had an asymmetrical radial structure. With the central hall as its base, enormous corridors stretched out in seven directions. Seen from above, it looked like a wheel with one side worn away.

Each direction also marked the boundary of a different sector. The dividing standard was deposit size. S grade was the highest, F grade the lowest.

Because of that, B sector was shorter than sectors C and below, and longer than sectors A and above.

The drone slowed down. B-612 was written in black on the white wall.

「We have arrived.」

“Thanks.”

The meaningless courtesy was for herself. The drone dipped slightly, like a bow.

「If you finish your visitation or need to move elsewhere, call for a guide drone. This control AI can detect voice calls from all locations inside Afterlife Insurance affiliated facilities. However, voices below 10 decibels may be difficult to detect, so please keep that in mind.」

“Got it.”

The drone flew away in near silence.

Silence settled over the area. She looked straight ahead. The Grade B life support unit, which also functioned as a Virtual Reality connector, could only be seen from one cross-section. It looked like a circular door attached to the wall. A long cylinder was likely hidden inside.

The woman stepped up quietly and placed her hand on it.

His brain and spinal cord should be in there. The thought made it feel painfully cold.

Then she looked to the side. There was another circle there, Telegraphy connection equipment for visitors. She touched the blinking button, and a capsule slid out quietly.

It was a space for one person to lie down.

She lay inside. Sensors pressed against the back of her head and her nape. They felt like lukewarm liquid. An augmented reality interface immediately filled her vision. When she started the device, the capsule slid back into the wall.

It sealed connected users inside to protect them from outside threats.

There was no time to feel claustrophobic. Her brainwave signature was both ID and password. Login happened automatically. The information she had prepared in advance rendered a virtual version of herself. Different face, different voice.

At once, a white world opened before her.

The boy was waiting for her in the empty white space, the 「Lobby」. His gaze felt very different from before. Clear enough to seem hollow. He carried an oddly detached air.

He looked nothing like she remembered.

“Ah...”

A soft groan slipped out of her. She had spent so much time thinking about what greeting to offer when they met. But now no words came, and all she could do was cover part of her face out of habit.

A buzzing filled her head. She felt as if she had forgotten to put on her mask, even though she had. If that was not an illusion, she was in trouble. She still was not ready to face him as she was.

Truthfully, she could not explain to herself why she came, or why she wanted to see him. She only knew she could not endure it without coming. Day after day, she felt as if her blood vessels were clogging shut.

Maybe it was pity. Maybe it was a wish to atone for a sin.

No, the second one was absurd. I did not love that person, so why would I?

The boy, who had been watching quietly, greeted her first.

“Hello, ma’am. I got your message and was waiting.”

His voice was remarkably calm.

She barely steadied herself. She put on her practiced smile by reflex and offered a belated greeting, putting as much warmth into it as she could.

“Yes, hello. You’re Gyeoul, right?”

The voice that came out sounded unfamiliar. That quickly eased her agitation.

She stepped forward and held out her hand. The boy tilted his head, but took it. A light handshake.

“You probably already know, but my name is Song Su-a. I handle psychological rehabilitation for Afterlife Insurance subscribers.”

“That’s a little strange. I’ve never heard there was anything like that.”

It sounded more like pure curiosity than suspicion. Feeling a slight tension, she gave the answer she had prepared.

“Yes, that makes sense. You’re a special case.”

“Me? Why?”

“It’s rare for Afterlife Insurance to apply to minors. Someone your age almost never has enough deposit prepared. At least in B sector, you’re the only minor.”

“Ah.”

Gyeoul nodded. Retired adults could convert their national pension into Afterlife Insurance, but for minors that was practically impossible.

She relaxed a little more. The boy could not compare her story against other cases anyway, so this excuse could hold as long as needed.

“Before we begin, is it okay if I change this environment?”

The 「Lobby」 where they stood was still in default settings. Gyeoul nodded again.

“I’ll transfer authority to you.”

She checked the authority she received and opened her hand. The barren whiteness disappeared, replaced by an environment made for comfortable conversation. A window letting in clear breeze, warm light, chairs comfortable enough to half-recline, and quiet nature sounds from outside.

It was based on her own experience receiving counseling. She had enough of that experience. Enough to think that pretending to be a counselor would not be difficult.

“Sit.”

Gyeoul obeyed without resistance. Then he asked, a little awkwardly,

“What do we do now?”

She sat at a slight angle rather than directly facing him, and formed a gentle smile.

“Nothing.”

“Pardon?”

“You don’t need to force anything. Just think of this as chat time. The topic doesn’t matter. Small things are fine, and it’s okay if your thoughts are scattered. Just bringing out what’s inside you is enough.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. If you keep doing that, sometimes you come to understand parts of yourself you never knew.”

That was her goal too. Her guarded words continued.

“It matters to know who I am, what hurts me, and what dreams I have. Even if a problem cannot be solved, knowing what it is is better than not knowing anything at all.”

Because that was true for me. She swallowed the rest and slipped back into the old habit. The boy stared at her quietly. A trace of suspicion crossed his eyes, only for a moment.

Gyeoul shook his head.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think this will help.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know what I should say to you. This is the first time we’ve met. We know nothing about each other, so what kind of conversation can we have?”

It was the response she expected. The woman smiled again.

“You’re right. To you, I’m just one person among many, no different from anyone else. And to me, you are too. We don’t need each other yet.”

The boy’s expression turned vague. But she still had more prepared lines.

“When people first get close, words are a surprisingly poor tool. They are easy to misunderstand, and hard to force. In times like that, you start by simply being together. Once you grow used to each other, conversation begins naturally.”

“......”

“I’ll come on fixed dates, at fixed times from now on. Would that burden you?”

“No. I have plenty of time anyway.”

“That’s a relief. If you need someone to talk to, call me anytime.”

That was the end. She kept her word. She summoned a book and began to read. That too was part of the performance she had planned.

At first, Gyeoul found the silence uncomfortable, but before long he got used to it.

His thoughts spread naturally.

Today marked two months since the day of the deal.

It had been a long time since a real person sat beside him, not a virtual personality.

Yet he could not clearly tell the difference. It was hard to feel that she was truly real. What it gave him was the weight of stone.

Gyeoul focused on that sensation. There was a faint feeling there, almost graspable, yet not.

============================ Author’s Afterword ============================

1. Those of you who have read The Little Prince probably found the final conversation very familiar.

I did not put Little Prince in the title just to look stylish.

2. There was a request before to gather the settings separately. For now, I collected the intermissions and put them under the work settings. I’ll organize the rest little by little.

Ugh, I’m busy. Today I came back from reserve forces training and wrote this, and on the 28th I have to take my mother to the hospital... I think I also need to contact the publisher...

3.

Q. Atirun-nim: @At least your influence will go up... But does that game play continue until you die of old age in-game..?

A. I avoided answering until now because I thought it was a spoiler, but after thinking again, it is not that important.

Days after Apocalypse is basically open world... but when the control AI predicts the future through Situational Computation and determines that humanity in that world can no longer go extinct, the ending condition is achieved. The reward is a massive amount of experience points, and you can keep playing afterward.

Q. Lizad-nim: @If you turn on an Ifra-ka stream and show the Old One writing, all kinds of star balloons and human souls will come to you! Humans will offer themselves!

A. No need. I already ate too many human souls and got sick of them.

Q. Dohwawon-nim: @What do you think about becoming se-cret friends with us!

A. Do you mean Steam friends?

I don’t really have much time to use Steam... my Steam nickname is fructidor. Is that all I need to tell you?...

I’ve never added Steam friends before, so I’m not sure.

Q. ciaf-nim: @If you’re changing the title, please keep the current title as a subtitle T_T It’s too good to lose

A. I think it would be a shame too. I’ll try to keep it alive as a subtitle.

Q. Paroe-nim: If you just throw chemical shells all over a city where mutants are packed together, wouldn’t things get much easier?

A. Using chemical or biological shells in cities is being postponed because there might be survivors. In Santa Maria too, survivors suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

There are also a lot of survivors left in cities like Los Angeles or San Diego.

And there is one more reason. That will come out gradually.

Q. EojinGwangdae-nim: @I wanted to write a review, but after reading your writing and trying to explain it again, I realized I have too few words I can use. Even the greatness of Korean feels too small to contain all thoughts... maybe my vocabulary is lacking T_T

A. A simple review is great too! I like all reviews.

And if Korean is difficult, you can write it in English.

Q. kissshotshinobu-nim: @Author, if you write novels with your feet, what have your hands been doing all this time?

A. I have no hands...

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