The lights flickered outside the car window, and after a while, Estelle finally saw what was in his hand. It was the PWL-000 chip.
His expression subtly changed, and this slight shift didn't escape Crescent's eyes. He looked at her steadily and asked, "Did I guess right?"
"Yes, there was," Estelle admitted.
Crescent asked again, "What type of robot was he?"
"He was like you—a service robot."
Crescent was taken aback; when he spoke again, his emotions were no longer calm. "He was like me... So you did with him everything you've done with me?"
Estelle had had too much to drink, and the alcohol slowed her thoughts. She frowned in confusion, trying to process Crescent's words. "Ah... yes."
"Did you really do those things with him?" Crescent's face turned pale, unable to accept it. "So the first time, you didn't let me run the investigation program but told me the results directly because you'd already been investigated by another robot, right? He investigated your entire body, just like me. He could make you happy, and you would kiss him..."
What was he talking about?
Estelle's headache worsened from the alcohol; she didn't fully understand what he was saying, only that he was being noisy. "Service robots are supposed to provide services, aren't they? Besides, there's not much difference between you and him, you're both..."
"Yeah, we have no differences. To you, we're just robots." Crescent said, "So when his chip broke, you could buy another similar robot to replace him. What am I then? I'm not your first robot, I'm just his replacement. You can do the same things with me as you did with him, so what does that make me..."
"Crescent."
Estelle suddenly called out his name in a clear voice, and Crescent abruptly paused.
"Shut up and restart," she commanded. "If you keep going on, you'll shut down."
Crescent stubbornly fell silent and, after three seconds, closed his eyes as instructed.
As he restarted his system, the car finally fell quiet. Estelle helplessly rubbed her temples, and vaguely, she seemed to see something flowing down his cheek.
Estelle froze, leaning forward in surprise to carefully examine it.
...Crescent had cried in frustration.
When he opened his eyes again, a minute later, the car was dim and quiet. Estelle sat in the passenger seat, calmly handling work on her phone.
After restarting, Crescent's emotions had calmed somewhat, but only somewhat. "You don't like me, do you?"
"I do like you. Don't be so melodramatic," Estelle said.
"If you liked me, you wouldn't make me drink the electrolyte water he drank. The fingerprint cover is one he used, and the clothes are ones he wore..." Crescent said.
"It's my fault," Estelle said. "That night, I made you drink half the electrolyte water because you had provided service twice consecutively during your first session, causing a severe imbalance in your fluids, and it was too late to go out and buy more. As for the fingerprint cover and clothes, I've been too busy to find the time. Tomorrow, I'll take you to buy new clothes, and I'll make a new fingerprint cover for you."
She turned to look at him. "Is that okay?"
Seeing him silent with red-rimmed eyes, Estelle suddenly laughed and sighed.
"Alright... before you, I did have another robot. His code number was PWL-000, and I named him Crescent. He protected me by blocking two fatal bullets and fell off the roof, becoming irreparable. I miss him a lot, so I went to great lengths to find his code. A friend helped me use the original data to create an identical robot—the robot that is you."
"You and PWL-000 are fundamentally the same—your core codes and physical appearances are completely identical. Until today, I indeed treated you as the same robot, but that doesn't mean I consider you as merely a substitute for him. You have your own language analysis and logical capabilities, and I think you understand the difference between the two."
"PWL-000's memories of me were completely erased when his chip shattered, which is why you misunderstood this. So during that minute when you restarted, I was also thinking that it wouldn't be fair to equate you with another robot solely based on having the same data code."
"But anyway, a robot with a broken chip won't come back. From now on, I'll only have you. I hope this explanation satisfies you. If you don't accept it, I can try to separate you from him. If you don't like this name, I can change it for you. That's all I can do."
Crescent remained silent for a long time. After she finished speaking, he started the car and drove home.
From the Bosen Hotel back to the apartment, and from the garage to their home, he remained silent the whole time. It wasn't until Estelle unlocked the door and stepped into the house that he suddenly wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her tightly into his embrace.
Estelle didn't have time to turn on the lights; she only heard his clear breathing in the darkness.
"Let's forget the rest," Crescent said softly, finally conceding. "He ran the investigation program, and I want to as well."
