"I've told you, we're just travelers from beyond the skies. The Stellaron has blocked our path, forcing us to linger near this planet. To continue our journey, we must first deal with this Stellaron trouble."
Lynelle glanced at the still-wary Svarog and said, "Actually, you must realize—if I wanted to, I could take control of you at any moment."
"The way you're bypassing permissions and playing word games does allow you to attack me, but... well, that's only if I allow it."
"The moment I touched Belobog's first automaton, I already reverse-engineered your 'source code.' After all, your current automaton technology is built on the Company's pre-Stellaron disaster aid.
"Even the firewall Herta specially designed for me can't hold back my authority—let alone your" systems, which have been outdated for centuries."
"Reevaluating... Evaluation complete. Conclusion: It cannot yet be confirmed that your ability works on any automaton as claimed, nor can it be confirmed that you can bypass my newly updated self-defense mechanism. More evidence is required."
"Newly updated? You built a new protective measure just while we were talking? Impressive—you really are the most advanced intelligence machinery in the Underworld... Wait, no, that's not quite—"
Lynelle couldn't quite hold back the smirk tugging at her lips.
She'd just been thinking she might have underestimated Svarog's processing power, but it turned out he hadn't built a new firewall targeting her ability at all.
Instead, he was running a program specifically for logical error correction.
In other words, this program was useless for defending against Lynelle's power.
Its main purpose was to seek out his own bugs. Svarog clearly understood that his model wasn't the latest, so as long as he could locate vulnerabilities in his own system like before—allowing him to bypass Lynelle's control and forcibly open fire—he could effectively ignore her authority.
To this, Lynelle's reaction was... Nice try, but don't bother thinking that way again.
"Alright, in a way, this is a sign that you've developed self-awareness. A mere tool couldn't possibly reach this level. Perhaps now, you can truly be called an intelligent mechanical lifeform."
"But... this method really isn't useful against me. Since you want proof, I'll give you proof."
Lynelle snapped her fingers softly.
"Svarog, listen to me... Play the memory file with the most backup instances in your memory bank. If multiple files share the highest backup count, randomly select one with the highest priority to play."
"External command detected. Assessing necessity of execution... Initiating logical negation... Negation program failed. Beginning execution."
"Now playing: Record of Clara attempting to explain the human behavior known as 'sleeping in' during morning hours..."
"Huh... Wh-what?!"
Clara, who had been watching Svarog nervously, suddenly wore an expression that could only be described as priceless.
"Mr. Svarog, how is this the data you've backed up the most?!"
"All records related to Clara have undergone multiple backups for convenient access and retrieval."
"Aw, how could you..."
"If Clara has no further questions, I will continue playback."
"N-no, stop! Didn't Lynelle already prove her point?"
"But she has not issued a stop command."
It was only then that Clara realized the real mastermind was Lynelle, who was now grinning from ear to ear nearby.
After all, Clara wasn't completely clueless about machinery.
If Lynelle could truly bypass all of Svarog's defenses so easily, she would have known from the start which memory was the most backed up. The fact that she'd chosen this one could only mean...
Clara's shimmering crimson eyes turned toward Lynelle, filled with a mix of embarrassment and accusation, as she stared at the visibly amused girl.
Before Lynelle arrived, Clara had actually been somewhat hopeful about what changes this mysterious big sister might bring.
After all, she'd been trying hard to persuade Svarog to give up his one-sided "preservation" of the Underworld and instead help its people return to Belobog to face any potential disasters together.
So far, Lynelle's approach might have been a bit aggressive, but since she'd repaired nearly a hundred or so nearly-defunct automatons on her way here—and combined with Clara's own intuition—her impression of Lynelle had been fairly positive.
But now...
So mean! I'm going to glare at her!
This big sister Lynelle really enjoys teasing people!
Ahem... "Alright, alright, Svarog, you can stop now."
Seeing Clara's utterly pitiful expression, Lynelle felt a part of her heart melt, and she quickly ordered Svarog to halt the replay.
After all, having her sleepy morning attempts to fool Svarog broadcast in public was a bit too much for a girl as easily flustered as Clara.
"So, do you believe me now? If I wanted, I could take control of every machine in Belobog in an instant. If you're still not convinced, I could always have every automaton in the Underworld shout in unison, 'Miss Clara is our light!'"
"Processing..."
"M-Mr. Svarog!"
Seeing that Svarog was actually considering it, Clara quickly tugged at the corner of his coat.
"P-please don't push it any further. After all, Lynelle doesn't really need your permission to access your memory bank. If she's insisting on getting our agreement, it might genuinely be out of respect..."
"Rebooting assessment system... Converting variables..."
"Variable one: Clara's request... Variable two: The outsider's capability..."
"Assessment result updated. Probability of the outsider possessing the ability to save Belobog exceeds 99%. Decision-making authority will be transferred to the external variable 'Lynelle,' and access to Stellaron-related information is permitted."
"Phew... Finally coming around. So, does this mean we've reached a cooperation?"
Lynelle let out a sigh of relief and turned to Clara. "Thank you too, Clara... As thanks, let me tell you something~"
Her voice lifted with a playful lilt. "Actually, the way you blushed just now was also recorded by Svarog—backed up multiple times and saved in a folder named [Clara's Adorable Moments]."
"Wh-what? Mr. Svarog, don't use memory space to record such embarrassing things!"
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.