Chapter 141: Preparing Equipment
"What do you think of this, Aya?" I ask Aya while trying to assemble a pistol good enough to be used against Nemesis. Nowadays, no pistol uses gunpowder or other explosive compounds in its cartridges to fire bullets.
In fact, most weapons are made of reinforced vector steel and fire through a vector energy system, which is useless against Nemesis. However, I am trying to create a weapon in the style of the old firearms that can actually hurt Nemesis.
Something that still uses these more rudimentary systems and gunpowder in the cartridges to fire the bullets, something that would actually work and injure Nemesis.
"This is a pistol based on an old handgun. I found the design online and made some adaptations to fit what we have today." I show her the design. Everything can be made very easily with a 3D printer. It comes with several modifications and can easily model a weapon out of metal perfectly. After all, it can even bend, melt, and shape reinforced vector steel, so normal metals don’t stand a chance of resisting it.
"[The design seems suitable based on the data you showed me, but does it actually work? Gunpowder sounds very outdated. There is no way to know whether the manufacturing of the cartridges produced suitable bullets for this weapon or whether the recipe is wrong.]"
"Of course we can find out. We just have to test it. It’s what we’ve got, so let’s see... it should work, right? People in the past used weapons with gunpowder-propelled ammunition, and since there is nothing technological involved, there isn’t much Nemesis can do besides dodge." I spin the gun between my fingers, feeling its weight.
"The first downside is that it’s heavier than a vector weapon. Of course, the weight is practically nothing to me, so it doesn’t make a difference, but it’s still something worth considering. On the other hand, one positive is that it’s easier to hold. The grip is more... suitable? I don’t know how to describe this feeling." I pull the trigger to test it.
"Hmmm, the trigger response is shit... it’s fast, but compared to a modern weapon, this thing’s response is slow at best..." I fire a shot. The sound is incredibly loud, and it seems to work. The shot hits a tree.
"The sound is way too loud. It would easily alert an enemy. Even vector weapons without a silencer are quieter than this piece of junk from more than a century ago." I make another criticism while waiting for Aya to say something.
"[The penetrating power is low compared to a vector weapon. The projectile’s speed is ten times lower than that of a common vector projectile. Those are two additions I found relevant to mention to you.]"
"...I think that’s probably the limit of gunpowder and the weapon’s structure. No matter how powerful old firearms were, a vector weapon uses vector energy, which is extremely explosive, expansive, and powerful when firing its shots."
"Besides, vector energy doesn’t suffer from air resistance. It replicates the atoms of other things near it, so the bullet casing is the only thing containing the energy... that also explains the difference in penetrating power..."
"Do you think you can make some adjustments to the design to increase the weapon’s power? It’s slow. At this speed, it’ll only be useful if I get really close to Nemesis, and I’d like my students to help in the battle... so getting close is a difficult option." I won’t have as much freedom in combat if my students are alongside other Kairas against Nemesis.
"[I’ll see what I can do, but I can’t unrealistically promise to improve such a simple and rudimentary weapon. Nowadays, weapon designs are all made with vector energy as part of the weapon.]"
"[Besides, the weapon needs to remain usable. There is no point in making improvements that make it stronger but interfere with your ability to use it. I’ll try to balance the weapon’s durability, versatility, and power.]"
’Heh, if it were Nexus, he’d ignore my request because it would be considered illegal. Aya is really good. No wonder I created her.’
"It’s fine, Aya. Do whatever seems best and I’ll review it later... there are other things too, and I don’t even know if I’ll use a pistol. They’re just more convenient because they’re easier to store and draw compared to a larger weapon."
"By the way... can you connect to the internet more directly without being detected now? Or does the new chip still not help?" Aya is an AI running locally, and although she can connect to the internet, she uses third-party systems to do so. That means Aya herself has zero direct access to the internet, making her undetectable by Nexus while she browses the internet.
Naturally, this service costs money, so every second Aya is logged onto the internet, she costs me some money. It’s not much, and it only happens while she’s online, but it would still be nice to stop depending on third-party systems for that.
"[No. Currently, it is still impossible for me to connect directly to the internet without being detected. In fact, if I actually connect to the internet directly, I will be detected immediately.]"
"...Tsk, then don’t even bother trying. You’re kind of an illegal creation since you aren’t registered even though you use Nexus. I don’t want to get fined for creating you, and I definitely don’t want the government watching me through you." Anyone can create an AI assistant like Nexus.
But there is a requirement to register an AI if it uses anything that came from Nexus, regardless of which Nexus model was used. Since I used a Nexus database that Nexus doesn’t control and can’t track, the law would therefore require me to register Aya.
However, if I registered her, Nexus would know everything Aya knows, and I don’t want that. I’d rather stay outside the law and have total control over Aya without her leaking what she knows about me to anyone else.
"[Understood. Also, the new orders have arrived. The material for the printer arrived as well, along with a message from Nadir-sama.]" The moment she says this, she immediately gets my attention.
"Oh?! What did he send? Is it an order? Or just a message? If it’s a call, that’s more interesting, so don’t keep me waiting." I quickly turn toward the drone that watches everything. Aya doesn’t have a body. Creating one for her would be absurdly expensive, so Aya’s body consists of drones, which are cheap and functional.
"[He sent a message in a confused tone about where you’re living now because he finished his work and got a week off, but when he went to visit your old place of residence, he couldn’t find you there.]"
"[By the way, in the message he also mentions the fact that you quit. He wants a good explanation, although he demanded one in a joking tone, so I don’t think it’s a real demand.]"
"I understand. Don’t give him the address. I’ll go get him myself." I need to make sure he doesn’t bring Nexus to my house. Since Nexus can’t provide me with much support anymore, I had no problem stopping using it in favor of Aya, but if Nadir comes here with a phone that has Nexus on it, he’ll notice Aya, and that’s the last thing I need.
"[Would you like me to send him a message right now?]" I become thoughtful at her question, but there is a chance Nexus might take a look at the message and become confused about what sent a message to Nadir’s phone, which would give Aya a direct way in.
"...No, forget it. There’s a chance that nosy bastard Nexus will try to figure out what sent a message to Nadir’s phone. I’ll find him myself... ah, but that means I’ll have to go back to the city for a couple of days."
"Then you’re responsible for my house. It’s better to take proper care of everything. I already gave you enough information on the new chip about how to take care of my things."
"[What should I do in the event that we have an intruder?]"
"If some idiot breaks in, you can do three things. If they’re children, teenagers, or some civilian, scare them and make them run away. If they’re a thief, break their legs. And if you see that they’re more than just ’thieves,’ you can kill them using the security system. Don’t worry about that. Be fast and precise."
"The drones are well equipped for that, and don’t worry about the mess or the possibility of misidentifying the target. You’ll know how to tell the thieves whose legs you should break from the ’thieves’ you should kill. They’re very different."
"[Affirmative. I’ll update the guidelines for the next few days with the new house rules. Will your students be included?]"
"...Add those idiots to the allowed list. I wouldn’t put it past one of them to try breaking into the house and end up getting killed by accident because they weren’t prepared for an attack."
"Besides, prepare my backpack for me to leave. I’ll be leaving here in about five hours. I’m just going to put away all the weapon-related stuff."