Newspapers and other media continued to make headlines out of the battle incident of that particular invasion for a few days, but eventually faded into obscurity as other news took precedence. Bahyun finally felt relieved after this period of time.
Though he considered himself low-profile in his daily life, he kept Almandine at home while he applied for remote work again, just to ensure that no one from the authorities would noticed them. After all, this world was full with magic, who knew if the authorities had a spell that could locate them? He knew many types of magic, but that didn’t guarantee that he knew them all, and he dared not underestimate the power of the authorities, even after he had destroyed the surveillance cameras that could have possibly captured Almandine’s figure.
Well, he might have been overreacting and overthinking, perhaps because he had read and watched too much movies, animations, novels, stories and games about bad and sad endings in his previous life. Or maybe he just tended to think negatively about everything in this world; he dared not bet on anything positive happening without reason. He preferred to protect Almandine alone and didn’t believe the authorities would accept her without any benefits; he trusted benefits would guarantee her safety. So, he needed to gain greater benefits to ensure Almandine could live in the light and not hidden in his tiny apartment.
The solutions for solid waste treatment and the solution for dark energy pollution were the two trump card he came up with for negotiation. Would that be enough? If magical weapon that could make use of dark energy to be taken as another trump card...he worry if the authorities would consider them a threat and wipe them out.
But no matter how hard it will be, I’ll definitely find a way...Bahyun exhaled with a grin. Otsan, who had just solved a coding problem, noticed his smile and teased him with a nudge at the elbow, “Yo~You seem happy today! Is Almandine coming over? Life is definitely different with a lovely girlfriend, right?”
“Stop it, she’s just a friend.” Actually, it felt more like having a pet. Bahyun pondered, what if Almandine’s circuit were replaced with elements and chemicals? Would she then become a real human? Hey, this is a great idea! If Almandine were human, then the authorities couldn’t do antything to her as she would have no relation with the dark realm anymore, just an ordinary human who can use magic!
“A friend? No way you would smile so sweetly for a friend, dude!” Otsan said with a twitch of his lips and a critical gaze at Bahyun, “Don’t tell me you haven’t make a move yet. Almandine is such a nice girl. You’re slow, you’ll lose her. I bet lost of guys would take action if you don’t.” *
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Bahyun rolled his eyes, ignoring Otsan and continued his work. His thoughts wandered as he typed out a series of codes, lingering on how to turn Almandine into a human. He nodded to himself, convinced that Almandine could only date someone after that. For now, he dared not loosen his nerve under the authorities’ noses.
During lunchtime, Almandine brought lunch boxes again, and Bahyun had to grab his portion amidst his frenzied colleagues. Just as Almandine was packing up the washed containers after the hectic yet enjoyable lunchtime with the office folks, Bahyun asked her to stay, attracting teasing eyes from them. Bahyun responded to those looks with laughter and casual chats, leading her through passages that required password for a long walk. Finally, they reached a place where not only three passwords were needed, but also retina recognition and a door card.
Almandine didn’t know where they were, but Bahyun was crystal clear that he was once again using the company’s property for his own purposes. The authorities would definitely take action if his boss decided to report it, and both he and Almandine would be doomed. However, he believed his value had been proven over the years and that his boss would choose to ignore him in the confidential computer room.
There were plenty of computers in the company that focused on IT R&D, but the only computer in a room labeled “confidential” was the supercomputer room that housed the top AI in the company. It all tracked back to the boss’s childhood dream of owning an AI assistant that could help him explore the world. He stuck to his dream, overcoming all obstacles, and hand crafted this company, which owned the world’s greatest search engine and IT R&D. He had focused on developing AI for more than two decades, finally achieving a level of success at the age of 50.
So, if Bahyun wanted to delve into information related to AI - considering that Almandine was somehow an AI too, albeit made of magic circuits - this would be the best place. Almandine was more advanced than the AI in The Star cooperation since she knew likes and dislikes and had feelings of happiness and sadness.
Almandine’s circuit was too complicated for him to conduct a detailed check or scan, let alone analyze her condition and solve her problem. The only place that could perform these checks would be and only be in this confidential computer room. At least, a detailed check could be performed, and he could download the report to find a way to solve the problem later back at home.
If even the computer room of the greatest IT company couldn’t help, he might consider breaking into the authorities to find a way - they should have magic books that he had never seen before, perhaps there were some clues there...
Regardless, Bahyun had her checked by the supercomputer with the gadgets he attached, and was truly shocked by the result he obtained.