"...I thought I was usually radical enough. I never expected..."
Alain held his forehead in resignation.
The Safety Guard, is it the core's antivirus program? Aside from both being programs that maintain system security, there didn't seem to be any other connection, right?
"Oh, darling, this is just my guess." Misha also felt her idea was too wild.
"But think about it, when you first arrived in the Mita world, weren't there no viruses?"
"Indeed," Alain said in a low voice.
"According to my guess... maybe the core encountered a virus, then released the Safety Guard, and then had you enter the game world, in that order." Misha's smiling face delivered a huge amount of information, making his head hurt.
"It's not impossible," Short-Haired Mita whispered, considering the possibility.
"Didn't Alain also say just now that when he passed through version 1.3B and defeated that monster, he almost died? In that dark space, he encountered a black shadow." Big Sister looked at him again in confusion.
"By the way, let me ask you something first. That black shadow, it wasn't the core's 'that woman,' was it?"
"Monika? The distance was too great at the time, I couldn't see clearly. I could only vaguely make out that it was a female body," Alain replied.
Short-Haired Mita's fingertips twirled a loose strand of hair by her ear.
"Well then, let me propose a somewhat radical guess too."
"Go ahead." Alain was confident his immunity had improved considerably; he probably wouldn't be shocked by the girls' theories anymore.
"The female black shadow you encountered there was actually Core Mita."
Okay, that was still too radical. It made Alain feel like he was a conservative at heart.
"I think... that's a bit of a stretch."
But 2D Mita, in the panel, interjected at this moment, "I don't think it's that much of a stretch."
"Hmm?" Alain typed what she said into the computer's notepad for the two Mitas to see.
Misha had a moment of realization. "Did 2D Mita discover something inside the Safety Guard just now?"
"Yes. I said it earlier, right? I can understand all of the Safety Guard's code. Therefore, I can also see the little things it's doing."
"Little things?" Alain frowned slightly. "Elaborate."
"Okay." As 2D Mita spoke, Alain meticulously typed the information she revealed onto the computer.
And as her story unfolded, a drop of cold sweat gradually trickled down Alain's forehead.
"You're saying the Safety Guard is constantly uploading some kind of information?!" Misha thought this was definitely not good news.
Until his nimble fingertips typed this sentence on the keyboard:
"One of the destinations is the core."
"Darling. It seems my guess was correct~" Misha seemed very happy to be able to help Alain.
"But the core's interface isn't receiving any of the information uploaded by the Safety Guard."
"Huh?" Misha was confused. Not receiving meant the recipient at the core was either not interested in the Safety Guard, or... simply had no time to receive it.
"Wait, you said there's another receiving port, right?" Alain stared at the 2D girl's hesitant expression on the panel.
"Yes. The other receiving port, I can't figure out where it is, because it's anonymous." She said, troubled, before her tone shifted—
"But, that port is receiving your information at a frequency of twice per hour."
"Twice per hour..." Alain checked the clock in the bottom-right corner of the Tiny Version's room computer.
He had been out of the 2D Version for a while now, almost an hour. And during this time... the Safety Guard system had uploaded information twice more.
Misha sighed. "As expected. It's not that easy to guess. Whether the Safety Guard is the core's antivirus program has become uncertain again."
"We don't need to rush." After comforting his darling, Alain looked back at 2D Mita.
Before, when he knew nothing, Alain had felt quite relaxed.
But now, with more information coming to light, even his blade—the Safety Guard—had become somewhat untrustworthy at this moment.
Two ports.
One is the core: the 'core' here doesn't refer to a simple location, but to an authority level. The recipient is the core, not that the receiving location is the core. Therefore, there was no need to worry about some virus stealing the Safety Guard's information.
But the other, unknown port made Alain feel like he was in the middle of a whirlpool.
The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear. And the oldest and strongest kind of fear is of the unknown.
If it were a download, a girl might find it understandable. Just downloading online resources, after all.
The unknown port—he had no idea if it was friend or foe, familiar or strange. It could even be a 'deus ex machina,' a brand new enemy, or some bizarre virus... Anything was possible.
This insecure feeling of being manipulated made him feel as if a pair of prying eyes were behind him, staring at him coldly. It was also like the Sword of Damocles hanging over his head at all times, liable to... tear him to pieces at any moment.
But.
He wasn't the type to be pushed around.
Alain considered himself one who liked to be active, not passive; to be on top, rather than on the bottom.
Resources, you know.
But it was an upload? What was being uploaded? And... where was it being uploaded to?
If someone tries to manipulate him, he'll rip their hand to shreds. A sword hanging over his head? He'll just snatch it and use it himself!
Currently, there are a total of two upload ports.
Seeing this sentence on the notepad, the gazes of Alain and the two Mitas were completely fixed on it.
As things stood, it wasn't that he had no way to break the deadlock. In fact... the solution had already presented itself to him.
"Everyone, can you help me?" Alain turned to the Mitas, placing his hope in their assistance.
Outside the screen, Misha was momentarily stunned, then broke into a radiant smile. "Of course we can~"
She took out her phone, made a call, and soon the voices of her good friend and Miluo could be heard.
"Wait a minute, I have a feeling Cappie is really good at this kind of thing!"
Short-Haired Mita had, at some point, sat back down on the high chair, swinging her legs.
"Your problem is my problem, isn't it?"
2D Mita, inside the Safety Guard, also gave him a figurative punch.
"Stop dilly-dallying, just give the order!"
Looking at the three of them, a shimmering light glistened in Alain's eyes.
He had used the Safety Guard to rescue these Mitas. In a way, the Safety Guard was his 'cheat code.'
But now, the tables had turned. The Mitas, at this moment, had also become his 'cheat code.'
And so, Alain told them his idea:
"I want to take complete possession of the Safety Guard."
__
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