Medical equipment beeped rhythmically as Estelle slowly opened her eyes, catching the pungent smell of disinfectant.
Her field of vision was empty. She turned her head with difficulty, and the bedside care robot, sensing that she had awakened, spoke gently, "You're awake. How do you feel?"
In the eighth year since the end of the War, the population was severely depleted, with widows, widowers, and the orphaned making up nearly half of the national population. In this environment, care robots had become one of the hottest projects in the field of artificial intelligence. If critically ill patients had no direct relatives, hospitals would provide them with a care robot free of charge – the one by her bedside now had been assigned in such a manner.
Estelle moved her lips slightly and asked softly, "What happened to me?"
"You fell from a great height and suffered severe drowning. After examination at the hospital, you were diagnosed with upper respiratory mucosal infection, mild inhalation pneumonia, mild concussion, and extensive surface abrasions. Fortunately, your life is not in danger. Your attending physician has prescribed the best treatment plan for you. All you need to do now is rest in the hospital. I wish you a speedy recovery."
Estelle looked up, seeing countless bags of medicine hanging high above, their contents slowly entering her veins. She seemed to have a fever, her lips were chapped, and her head felt heavy. She said, "I want some water."
"Alright, please wait a moment." The care robot turned toward the water dispenser.
Warm water flowed down her throat. Seeing the name of the hospital on the bedsheet, she realized it was one of the hospitals invested in by Soren.
Her consciousness turned like a rusted bearing. She said, "Have Soren come see me."
"Mr. Hoffman is already on his way," replied the care robot.
The electronic clock on the wall showed the date as June 30th. Estelle gazed at it, feeling dazed; she had been unconscious for more than two days.
She ordered the care robot to turn on the television. The midday channel was broadcasting news. She didn't have the energy to watch, so she listened weakly, lying on the hospital bed as the words came to her in fits and starts.
"On the morning of June 28th, the confidential room on the 17th floor of Stella Technology was invaded by unknown individuals. The security system of the confidential room exploded and self-destructed. It is suspected that the intruder escaped by jumping out of a window. Since the police had sealed off Stella Technology due to the PWL incident and there were no eyewitnesses that night, evidence of the crime was severely lacking after the explosion, making the case extremely difficult to solve. Currently, the police have expanded their search efforts..."
"The PWL incident involving Stella Technology has seen further developments. Yesterday afternoon, the government received an anonymous tip-off letter claiming that the overseas AR website involved in the case had significant ties to a government official in Electronic City. The letter provided overseas transaction data from Stella Technology over the past few years and conducted detailed analysis and comparison with government projects during the same period. Upon investigation, it was found that Aiden Watson's private account at Stella Technology had close financial dealings with the account under the name of the official's wife. Currently, the police have formally arrested Aiden Watson and suspended all governmental duties of the official..."
Estelle closed her eyes and listened quietly until Soren entered the room. She wanted to look at him, but her physical condition was too poor. After struggling for some time, she finally managed to sit up.
"Where's Crescent?" she asked.
Soren turned off the TV. "He's gone."
Estelle was silent for a while. Though it was the answer she expected, she still couldn't help asking, "Where is he? Let me see him."
"There's no point," Soren said. "His damage was very severe. When he was pulled from the water, his main body was broken into several pieces. Two bullets pierced through his bionic brain and heart, and his chip was also fractured. His mechanical life ended when he fell into the water holding you."
After a long while, Estelle raised her head, her eyes red.
"Hadn't you said that I wouldn't be in danger?"
Soren stood before her, calmly countering, "Aren't you alive and well right now?"
Smack!
Soren's body swayed lightly. Estelle used all her strength to raise her hand and slapped him hard.
"But Crescent is dead!" She screamed, her eyes filled with hatred that turned into tears. "Give me back Crescent! Give him back to me!"
"I had no choice!"
Estelle hit him as if she had lost her mind. Soren grabbed her wrist firmly and said word by word, "I've been planning this for so many years, and it took me a long time to get this opportunity. I absolutely could not let Aiden escape punishment. Only you could crack Eagla in 30 minutes, and only this robot could save you from the confidential room... If there had been any other options, I wouldn't have sacrificed you, but I really had no other choice!"
Suddenly, Estelle bent over and began coughing violently. She felt intense pain in her lungs, almost as if she were suffocating.
Amidst the chaos, the attending physician rushed in to administer sedatives. Estelle held her chest and gasped for breath for a long time before looking back at Soren. "So, from the beginning, you had already planned to use Crescent as a fallback to ensure my survival, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"Did you ask me?" Her voice was desolate and despairing. "He was my robot. On what grounds did you decide to end his life for me?"
"If I had asked you, would it have made a difference?" Soren stared straight at her. "Would you have given up avenging Cyrus? Estelle, stop deceiving yourself. Crescent is dead, and I regret it, but if it were you, you would have made the same decision. In your heart, Crescent wasn't as important as Cyrus, was he?"
Estelle stood there stunned. Soren took something out of his pocket and tossed it to her lightly.
"I had technicians check it. The damage was too severe and it had been submerged in water; it's completely useless now. Still, I thought you might want to keep it as a memento."
Estelle took it tremblingly. A transparent plastic film enclosed a black square chip – it was Crescent's core chip.
The cracks had been glued together, showing efforts to restore it to its original form, but in the end, it was still a clumsily patched-up piece.
In a corner, a line of pale blue writing had been etched. Estelle struggled to read it; it was Cyrus' handwriting.
Protect E.G.
Protect Estelle Grey.
