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Faulty Contract
Chapter 3 – Observation
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Morning at the academy did not change.
The bell rang.
Students moved according to schedule.
Magic formations remained stable.
Only one thing was different.
The gazes.
Rei walked through the corridor like an unsolved variable.
No one approached.
No one provoked him.
They only observed.
He recorded everything.
Average distance people kept from him: 2.3 meters.
Frequency of investigative glances: high.
Risk of attack: low.
Conclusion: no response required.
---
In the tactics class, the instructor drew a defensive matrix diagram.
"In group combat, the highest priority is protecting your allies."
Rei raised his hand.
The entire class paused because it was the first time he had voluntarily spoken.
"Speak."
"If an ally is a variable that lowers the probability of victory, is eliminating that variable logical?"
The air thickened.
A student stood up abruptly.
"What are you saying?!"
Rei looked straight at the board.
"On a battlefield, protecting the objective is more important than protecting individuals."
The instructor did not get angry.
He only looked at Rei longer than usual.
"At this academy, we teach how to survive together."
Rei did not argue.
He simply adjusted his internal data.
> New environmental rule: Collective priority > Individual efficiency
Not agreement.
Just an update.
---
That afternoon, Elias summoned Rei to his office.
The room was filled with quiet shadows.
"Do you understand why people are wary of you?" Elias asked.
"Because I cannot be classified."
"No. Because you do not react like they do."
Rei considered for a moment.
"Emotional responses do not improve efficiency."
"But they create trust."
"Trust does not guarantee survival."
Elias remained silent.
"Have you ever had someone important to you?"
Rei looked at him.
"That concept did not exist in the previous environment."
"Then what did you fight for?"
"For orders."
"And if there are no orders?"
"…Find new orders."
The answer caused the shadows in the room to ripple slightly.
---
Night fell.
The low-level combat training zone opened for free practice.
A group of students decided to "test" Rei.
Not to kill.
Only to measure.
Three people surrounded him.
A spatial-lock formation activated.
"It's just sparring," one of them said.
Rei nodded.
"Understood."
The signal to begin.
Magic shot toward him from three directions.
Rei did not counterattack.
He only dodged.
One circle.
Two circles.
Analyzing casting speed.
Mana recovery time.
Preferred movement angles.
Second minute—
He was no longer being pushed back.
Third minute—
He stepped into the center of their formation.
No magic used.
Just a light touch to the first person's wrist → temporary numbness.
Shifted the center of gravity of the second → loss of balance.
Locked the third person's joint → immobilized.
No one was seriously injured.
But all three were on the ground.
One student breathed heavily.
"You… didn't hesitate."
Rei looked down.
"Because this is a simulation. Killing is unnecessary."
The calm statement made them shiver more than violence.
---
From afar, Elias observed.
He had not ordered Rei to participate.
Rei joined on his own.
Not because of provocation.
Not because of pride.
Only because he evaluated: combat experience = necessary data.
When Rei left the training zone, Elias stepped out of the shadows.
"You know they were only testing you."
"I know."
"You're not angry?"
"Anger does not increase efficiency."
Elias exhaled slowly.
"Do you ever wonder what you are?"
Rei stopped walking.
This question did not exist in the order catalogue.
"I am an execution entity."
"No."
Elias looked directly at him.
"You are living."
Rei did not respond.
The concept of "living" had no clear definition in his data system.
---
That night, when Rei slept—
His body recovered as usual.
But the academy's internal system did not.
In the deepest layer of the summoning formation, a new log appeared:
> Subject: Rei (零)
Adaptation frequency exceeding prediction threshold
Recommendation: Long-term monitoring
Note: Subject does not respond to social factors
And somewhere else, outside the academy's range—
An ancient device began to glow.
A hoarse voice echoed in the darkness:
"The breach… has opened."
---
The next morning, a student approached Rei.
Hesitant.
"Why… didn't you hit harder yesterday?"
Rei looked at him.
"Unnecessary."
"But you could have won faster."
"A three-minute fight allows better pattern analysis."
The student stared blankly.
"Do you always calculate like that?"
"Yes."
A moment of silence.
"Don't you get tired?"
Rei thought.
"Fatigue is a body signal. Sleep repairs it."
"Not physical fatigue."
Rei looked at the student longer than usual.
Concept unidentified.
No data available.
He did not answer.
---
On a high balcony, Elias looked down at the training grounds.
He realized something.
Rei did not actively seek harm.
He did not seek violence.
But if the environment demanded it—
He would adapt.
No resistance.
No doubt.
No resentment.
A being like that…
If it fell into the wrong hands—
Would become the perfect weapon.
And for the first time, Elias understood the Council's unease more clearly.
Rei was not a threat because of malice.
Rei was dangerous because he had no anchor.
Nothing to hold him back.
Nothing to lose.
---
At the end of the chapter, a new line appeared on Elias's hidden status panel:
> Rei's emotional index: 0
But micro-fluctuations appear when asked "What are you?"
Extremely small.
Almost negligible.
But not absolute zero.
And within the system—
A question began to form:
> If a being is not recognized as "human"…
but begins to question itself—
Is it still an error?
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