On the day the nanny robot was launched, Siren Technology held a new product exhibition, and Estelle invited Gavriel to attend.
The large exhibition hall was bustling with customers and salespeople, but Estelle and Gavriel didn't join in. They sat in a corner as if isolated from the world, sipping coffee slowly.
Gavriel asked, "Why did you ask me to come to Siren Technology's launch?"
Estelle said, "I saw that you were bored. You'd be idle at home anyway. It's good to come and see the nanny robot Sera made. It's pretty decent. If it weren't for Crescent at home, I would want to buy one."
Gavriel didn't say anything. After a while, Estelle asked again, "Have you found a job yet?"
"No," Gavriel said, "I offended Aiden. Jobs in the industry aren't easy to find."
"What's so difficult about that? I'm in the same boat as you. Later, I'll talk to Calvin and invite you to work with me on ducks."
Gavriel said, "Asked a man to developed these cute things as duck is improper."
Estelle paused, realizing what he meant, and laughed in exasperation. "It's Okay. Don't be so hidebound."
"Let's talk about it later." Gavriel smiled too. "I'm tired. I just want to rest now."
He had said exactly what she had said before. Indeed, engineers spent a lot of mental energy, and Estelle didn't push him any further.
She lowered her eyes and sipped her coffee. Suddenly, Gavriel said, "By the way, regarding what you said about Crescent last time, I think I understand some things now."
Estelle looked up. "What?" "What?"
"If there are other programs in his chip, it could explain his refusal of commands and his cooking behavior. As for what you said about him experiencing something akin to pain during service, this is because the PWL bionic organs are covered with numerous sensors and capacitive components designed to perceive the user's physical state and provide feedback."
"From the design concept of PWL, changes in body temperature and bionic reactions when a robot is excited are manifested through a rapid increase in electrical signals. Near the end, continuous high-intensity currents cause heating, and countless capacitors are continuously broken down, leading to a spike in the robot's body temperature and tremors in its body."
"Stella Technology's PWL only has sensors built-in without corresponding bionic sensation programs. Therefore, the sensor signals in ordinary robots are only used to convert data and do not truly produce sensations. However, Crescent should have very realistic sensation programs within him. Thus, after being combined with the PWL bionic system, he experiences a burning sensation as the current increases and intense pain when capacitors break down."
Estelle listened and nodded in acceptance. "I can understand these logics. But the biggest problem now is where these programs are stored. According to your hypothesis, emotional programs, cooking programs, sensation programs…these are not small numbers. Yet when PWL-000 was still under development by Team Ⅱ, the engineers collectively screened his code, and later, as a user, I also checked his memory—no one ever found these programs."
"Information layering." Gavriel said.
Estelle was taken aback. "What is information layering?"
It was a cryptographic method proposed over a decade ago, relying on highly advanced coding abilities and special chip technology. To put it simply, it involves storing encrypted code in a layered space. At the time, there were more ideas and assumptions than practical applications; the technology wasn't sufficient back then, and people with the necessary coding skills were rare. Even now, there are still many gaps in this field.
Estelle felt it didn't make sense. "How could they possibly have achieved results in such a cutting-edge field with so many blanks, and even implemented them in an abandoned robot? Even if it were true, this would already be at a level worthy of world awards. Why has there never been any news about it in the industry?"
Gavriel couldn't explain. After a long pause, he said, "I have some literature on information layering, all papers published over a decade ago. After the war broke out and global data was formatted, luckily, these were paper documents that I preserved. I hope they can be of help to you."
He took out the documents from his folder. The paper was worn and old, and he handled them carefully. Estelle realized something and couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity. No wonder she had never heard of information layering; it turned out that the only remaining documents in the world were clutched in his hands, as if he were a miserly old man.
Estelle took the documents and didn't have time to examine them when her phone vibrated. It was a call from Sera.
Ring after ring, like a summons to the grave, Estelle answered and asked what was wrong. Sera's voice was odd, as if eager to confirm, "You said you haven't done anything with Crescent, right?"
Estelle paused, not answering, and inscoffeed asked, "What's wrong?"
"Something happened at Stella Technology,"Sera said in a low voice. "It's being reported in the news. You'd better take a look yourself."
