"The Transformation of Humans into Humans".

"The Human Virus".

"Humanization".

"Dolls".

"Assimilated by Puppets".

O'Bernard's apartment computer was filled with a lot of search history about the Imitation Human virus, and he spent an entire afternoon searching for a lot of information as best he could, but none of them could explain the changes that had occurred in him.

There is a lot of discussion on the Internet about the topic of "pseudo-humans", and even experts in the field of artificial intelligence have come to the stage, repeatedly emphasizing to the public that artificial intelligence will never have free will, and that anomalous artificial intelligence is just a virus that they have not yet mastered.

He hopes to believe in the power of science and calm down, and they will definitely investigate the source of the virus.

Artificial intelligence scientists are confident in this.

Because in the distant border city of District 17, a rescued rescuer trusted by the company has launched an investigation into the matter, and in order to assist in the investigation, they have used the backup of the "Archon".

Seeing the promises made by experts in the field of artificial intelligence to the public at the press conference, O'Bernard turned off the computer.

The only light source in the room is a table lamp on the table.

An afternoon's hard work made O'Bernard realize one thing.

There is no virus in this world that transforms people into humans, it is something from another world.

The dim light extended to his forearm, and his right hand was still white and blemish, and anyone who saw it would think of him as a fugitive human.

The company has issued a hefty bounty, and jobless vagrants are hunting down the fleeing Sigmus across the city.

To make matters worse, the virus is spreading.

From the time he left the Rescuer Service to the present, the part that had been assimilated by the impersonates had spread forward another 5 centimeters.

The white part had swallowed his entire forearm, and it would not be long before his entire right hand would be replaced by a human.

He began to hear voices.

In a room where no one else was but him, voices were heard that resembled mechanical synthesized sounds, which went straight into the brain, but as if they had come from a very distant place, and it was impossible to distinguish the specific content.

O'Berner pulled out a second sticker:

2166, November 8, 22:00.

He imitated the format of his first sticker to record his current state, as well as the symptoms of being infected by the virus in humans, and the process of the spread of the virus.

This will become an important research material, and in the field of science, the "first" is often the most special being, and perhaps from him, the company can learn the secrets of the void.

This may be the reason why the company insisted on his investigation.

Not long ago, he reported his current state to Lionheart, and finally got the order to continue.

Yes, it's an opportunity.

O'Bernard was inspired by the company's attitude, and he realized that he had been so focused on personal gain and loss that he had neglected the significance of these encounters with the Void to the company and the coalition government.

What they are today is the result of countless screenings of risks and opportunities.

The thought that he was devoting himself to some grand cause suppressed the fear in O'Bernard's heart.

After recording everything that happened to him on a sticker, he took out his mobile phone and opened the instructions conveyed by his superiors himself:

"Keep it up."

In just four words, he had unlimited courage and strength.

O'Berner stared at the command on the screen for a long time, which was more effective than any psychological counseling, until the words on it became a little unfamiliar under the long gaze, and a sense of unexplained distress swept over him, and he ended the "prayer".

Suddenly he remembered something, and added two paragraphs at the end of the second sticker:

"I'm O'Bernard-Lionheart."

"I'm human."

Next, he needs to observe the spread of the virus.

O'Bernard's intuition tells him that he is getting closer to the truth, and the ethereal voice that comes into his head may be the key to uncovering the true face of the "King".

But he must not sleep until the next morning, before falling asleep, he sets 8 alarms with an interval of one hour, which ensures that he will be woken up by the alarm every hour, not only to observe the extreme spread of the virus, but also to give him more rest.

Fatigue breeds negative emotions that allow the Void to easily affect his sanity.

In this investigation, he must remain sufficiently sober and sane.

O'Bernard was well prepared.

He lined up eight stickers opposite the alarm clock and pasted them on the wall, so he could record his state as soon as he woke up.

2166, November 8, 23:00.

The elbow joint was also assimilated by the human virus, and the data of the prosthetic test were normal, and the body did not have any obvious discomfort reaction.

2166, November 9, 00:00.

Sleep seems to dramatically speed up the spread of the virus, and the right hand is assimilated and the prosthetic test is normal, but strangely, the implant in the right arm works as well.

2166, November 9, 01:00.

It's hot.

It's hot as hell here.

In addition to the bell that rang on time on the hour, O'Bernard heard the sound.

Someone set him up on the oven, and the air smelled of a scorched lake.

He opened his eyes, but the hand of the oil-based pen on the habitual bedside table was empty, he did not touch the pen, and even the bedside table was gone.

He soon realized that the scorching heat and smell of the scorched lake were not the result of a nightmare, and that the bed in the apartment had become a hollowed-out iron plate, and O'Bernard turned his face sideways to see his situation through the hollowed out.

A giant crematorium.

The flames were blazing, and the severed limbs of the living were fueled, and he had no time to tell how many of the remains of the living people were underneath.

The huge apparatus at his side came into action, pushing him towards the crematorium little by little.

O'Bernard braced himself up and ran as hard as he could.

He didn't know what it was, he didn't know who had sent him here, but he could easily predict that if he was pushed into the crematorium by this instrument, what awaited him would be the same fuel for the crematorium as those severed limbs.

At the other end of the huge instrument is a corridor that looks like it never ends.

Just before he was about to burn out, someone grabbed him by the arm.

White skin, a face with no facial features.

For some reason, O'Bernard suddenly understood their behavior.

It's not an attack, it's a rescue.

They struggled to pull themselves onto the platform, which was so small that it looked like a terrace out of place with a door at the end of the open air.

"The Tower."

"Go to the Tower."

The mechanical synth sound burrowed into his head again, but this time, O'Bernard could hear what they were saying.

The creatures, known as "dolls" in the void, pushed him out of the door without saying a word.

The other end of the door was breezy and breezy.

"Hey, are you alright?"

He looked up, and a jobless vagrant in tattered clothes was standing in front of him, staring at him in horror.

The wanderer was holding a bottle of beer that had been turned out of nowhere in his arms, as if he happened to pass by.

"Listen buddy, there's a prosthetic clinic down this street."

He pointed ahead, "Your prosthetic body looks like it's on fire." ”