The Jelly Girl—no, Jelly, who now goes by the name Jin Lime, held Han Seori tightly in her arms, a sense of shame mingling in the moment.
Certainly, the Sphere that had been present at that location had quietly slipped away by now.
Upon reaching a place where no other figures were in sight, the Sphere leaned against a cold wall and began examining itself.
Since it was an action not typically carried out, it seemed like there had to be an absurd reason behind it. However, the reason the Sphere had slipped away was simple.
Something had felt off.
A strange, unsettling sensation could be felt emanating from within.
Judging that there was some kind of error occurring in its storage unit, the Sphere had discreetly escaped in order to distance itself from what it presumed was the cause.
As a result, our Jin Lime experienced a sense of shame, but such trivialities did not immediately register in the Sphere’s storage system.
At the time, the Sphere hadn’t thought it would be necessary, as it believed it wouldn’t be required in the situation.
…Besides, the notion of humans assigning it a name didn’t sit well, so in a way, it thought it was for the best.
Though, it would only delay the inevitable.
Leaning against the wall, the Sphere cut off visual input and dove deeply into its inner system.
It was to check what was happening within its storage unit.
This way, the Sphere thoroughly examined its entire storage unit.
In the process, it also resolved issues it hadn’t noticed earlier. Given the intricate web of complexities involved, the Sphere spent a considerable amount of time in its storage unit.
Having delved into the depths akin to the deep sea, the Sphere stumbled upon an unexpected issue.
Namely, the problem of there being no problem.
Despite a serious error having occurred, there appeared to be no issues in the storage unit.
Though problems did exist, none were significant enough to be particularly noteworthy, leaving the Sphere merely feeling frustrated.
If the storage unit wasn’t the issue, then there must be a problem elsewhere.
However, instead of sighing, the Sphere made a rational judgment.
Since the storage unit seemed fine, it ultimately didn’t matter.
Given that the storage unit was the largest component constituting the Sphere, checking the remaining parts wouldn’t be too difficult.
It seemed important to eliminate this bizarre error as quickly as possible.
It was an unusual kind of error that the Sphere had never experienced before.
Once the Sphere had disengaged from the storage unit, it restored its senses, akin to how a human would. Although it wasn’t entirely necessary, it was due to the strange error it had sensed earlier, which seemed to warn of some kind of danger.
From that, the Sphere deduced two facts.
One, there was an issue not with the storage unit but with its cognitive module.
And two,
Something dangerous seemed to have approached during the inspection.
Though it was unclear what the danger was, it didn’t seem wise to ignore it. Thus, the Sphere restored its senses and…
“….”
Through its brightened field of vision, Jin Lime, her face bloated with gelatinous rage, came into view. Looking ready to explode, Lime glared at the Sphere with venomous eyes.
While the height difference made her appear rather cute, to the Sphere, it was an awkward sight.
Thinking there were no problems and having slipped out, it appeared that something had indeed gone wrong.
But what unsettled the Sphere further…
…unsettled?
Me?
The Sphere finally realized the full extent of the problem.
It had merely failed to properly register it due to Irregular Yang Ha-na, but it was currently experiencing emotions.
The ’emotions’ of worrying about Yang Ha-na had slowed down the Sphere’s cognitive module.
Having deduced this in an instant, the Sphere judged emotions to be unnecessary, as they served as factors that hindered performance. It was only right to neatly excise them.
Though it didn’t know how they had formed, it seemed to be an issue with the cognitive module, so it appeared a system reset or major integrity check was needed.
Due to it, the top authority had been inconvenienced.
…Why was she acting this way?
While the Sphere was making this judgment, an awkward voice reached its ears.
“Ahahaha… Do you know why our Lime is so upset?”
Her voice snapped the Sphere back to ‘attention’.
The Sphere had been focused on Jin Lime and hadn’t noticed Yang Ha-na trailing closely behind Lime.
Seeing Yang Ha-na, the Sphere immediately raised its guard, suspecting her to be the reason it had turned into some kind of malfunctioned machine.
Heightening its guard, the Sphere moved its cold, rigid hand and spoke in a low voice.
“…I don’t know yet.”
In fact, Lime, who seemed to feel embarrassed due to an adult jumping around and hugging people, didn’t come into contact with the Sphere.
She kept her distance, expressing her discontentment towards the Sphere.
Sensing this pressure, the Sphere avoided contact with Lime. Even though Lime seemed ready to twist her body and step aside, it didn’t seem wise to provoke the top authority, who was clearly upset.
Meanwhile,
Unaware of the details, Yang Ha-na grinned, thinking the Sphere had waved at her, feeling pleased that they’d grown a little closer.
…While it was merely a reflexive action learned through observation, Yang Ha-na was delighted, believing it indicated their growing friendliness.
“Anyway, the two of you seem really close, huh?”
“…Does it look that way?”
“Yeah. Anyway, weren’t you in the control room earlier? When did you slip out?”
“…I had something to check.”
Yang Ha-na, who had been smiling, suddenly stiffened at the Sphere’s mention of checking something.
This was due to a past trauma resurfacing.
Seeing Yang Ha-na’s expression, the Sphere felt its cognition grinding to a halt, its hands trembling.
Ah, what should I do?
I didn’t intend for this to happen?
It was quite cruel to evoke emotions in an emotional novice.
It was like pushing a child who’s just learning to walk to suddenly run.
It almost felt like Yang Ha-na’s trauma was contagious.
And as this was observed by Jin Lime, the latter playfully tapped her jelly.
Yang Ha-na, who had been talking smoothly, suddenly started shivering, and following suit, the Sphere began trembling like dry leaves.
…What exactly is going on here?
Having appeared without a word and then disappeared, the Sphere had come to personally deliver the name it had forgotten…
…only to find the pair suddenly trembling.
It was natural for her to feel curious.
After a brief observation, Lime reached out her soft hand and grabbed both their hands.
“!”
“…”
One side felt her warm touch, and the other the chill of cold metal.
Despite the different textures, their similar actions brought an oddly enjoyable sensation.
Anyway,
Lime’s soft hand brought Yang Ha-na back to her senses, who took a deep breath and chuckled awkwardly.
“Sorry… I, uh, thought about what happened last time…”
The newly-recovered Sphere also spoke softly.
“I see. It’s fine.”
Watching the two apologize on each other’s behalf, Lime’s jelly cheek wobbled.
The Sphere, having learned from watching TV and now smiling awkwardly at Lime’s beautiful, grown-up face, evoked a faint, enjoyable feeling.
Wow.
Would I look like that when I grow up?
It’s really the end.
…But am I even growing? Will I stop here?
Recalling how she had grown taller last time…Ah, nah… It’s probably just a matter of time.
Lime’s self-recognition and unease were conveyed to the Sphere.
The Sphere noticed itself forming a smile, and in that moment, it felt fear.
Even though it was its own body, it was moving on its own, which instilled a sense of terror.
This very sense of fright was baffling in itself.
Why am I feeling this way?
Whether aware of it or not,
Yang Ha-na was mindful of her reason for visiting the Sphere and, with a bright smile, handed it a name tag.
“Here! It’s your name. What do you think?”
“…Hmm.”
Finally, the inevitable had arrived.
Calmly, the Sphere, with its rigid fingers, took the name tag from Yang Ha-na.
On it, a peculiar name [Electric Scent] was printed, with a cord attached to wear around the neck as a lanyard.
Watching from below, Jin Lime was astonished.
What? They pinned it on me with a pin, but they gave her a necklace?
Is this jelly discrimination!?
And that grumble was transmitted to the Sphere… no, Electric Scent, who had no time to mull over its name before having to speak.
“…It seems you desire something similar to mine.”
“Huh? Oh, yeah… That is kinda true… You’ve been too focused on not forgetting, I guess.”
Muttering that, Yang Ha-na glanced ambiguously at Lime and said,
“If she wore clothing, there wouldn’t be a problem…”
She was certainly right.
Neither Daesik nor Jung-sik wore anything significant, so using a pin for the name tags wasn’t an issue.
The problem was Lime, who wandered around with nothing but her jelly form.
Sensing what resembled a predator’s glare (the desire to dress her) from Yang Ha-na, Lime, believing she had accomplished her purpose, released both their hands and darted off.
Yang Ha-na chuckled as she watched Lime fleeing breathlessly and muttered,
“…Does she really dislike wearing clothes that much? What do you think? Electric Scent?”
“…Electric Scent?”
“Yep, that’s your name.”
Electric Scent, whose thoughts barely had time to process, now looked contemplatively at Yang Ha-na while pondering the name.
For some reason, as she looked at the hopeful and bright smile directed her way, the Sphere—no, Electric Scent—felt as if its systems might momentarily halt.
Emotions really are useless.
They need to be erased.
They have to go.
“Do you not like it…?”
“No. I find it very appealing.”
“Great? Hehe, I gave it a lot of thought. Most of your name might owe to me?”
“…Is that so.”
…Later.
I’ll delete it later.
Since I can delete it anytime.
The Sphere, no, Electric Scent, repeated this mantra in mind as it moved towards where Lime was along with Yang Ha-na.
The immature emotional module seemed to want it this way.
