I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

Meeting Himari's light purple eyes, which were gradually brightening, Amamiya calmly nodded and added to Himari's 'guess': "However, outside of Giwatos, there's a saying: 'The line between genius and madness is very thin'..."

"Ichinose Hisane is, in a sense, Sophia's biological mother, and also her creator. But... this 'creator' has difficulty understanding human emotions, doesn't understand what the human heart is, and was despised and rejected as a child..."

At this point, Amamiya paused, then, seeing Sofia's slightly disappointed expression, continued softly, "He created a 'prison' that almost destroyed all of humanity."

"Prison, huh..."

Having already gleaned some information from examining the code stamps copied by Sofia, Riju began to mutter to herself.

If she wasn't mistaken... it must be a cage woven by terrifying AI life forms that possess human intelligence but lack human emotions... imprisoning the collective subconscious of all humanity.

"That AI life form named 'Emma'..."

Clearly, Himari has learned about the small portion of the 'adventure logs' that Amamiya leaked through Noah's channels or the game department's channels.

Compared to Sophia, whose emotions are extremely obvious—she experiences sadness, loss because of the past, guilt and grief because of the 'mess' left by her creator—AI life forms with extremely vivid emotional responses...

Himari has every reason to believe that "Emma," which currently only exists in the story's narrative, is more likely the "Cross God's Name" that she is currently investigating and searching for.

Perhaps because of Sofia's rich and touching emotional expressions, Himari felt no 'warning' towards this girl who was essentially an AI life form—rather than seeing her as an AI life form, Himari preferred to treat her entirely from a 'human' perspective.

“Ai Liu Er (II) Yi Liu Ba Er Ya Ya... It’s really... surprising.”

"Humanity's best friend"...?

'She truly lives up to her unique self-designation.'

Himari, lost in the sentimental world she had created, couldn't help but glance at the AI ​​girl who was sitting on the screen with her hands wrapped around her knees, with a rather 'compassionate' and even maternal gaze.

Then, she continued to examine the source code she had received.

"Oh...this algorithm...is it a new algorithm that has never been seen before in Kiwatosne...?"

"Even I, the strongest super genius, the sickly and beautiful hacker of the millennium, have never touched this field..."

After analyzing for a while longer, Himari raised her head slightly with a somewhat intoxicated expression and looked at Amamiya.

"Sensei... Do you know the name of this special algorithm?"

Amamiya nodded.

Because of the relevant field, he did indeed talk to Ichinose Hisane after the incident ended and she 'finished her prison sentence'.

According to her own account, the algorithm she used to write Emma and Sophia was a special, highly efficient algorithm that she developed herself, which she called the "emotional algorithm."

"According to that AI researcher, she named this algorithm the 'emotional algorithm,' which is a very difficult-to-understand encryption algorithm... and AI life born from this emotional algorithm can almost all become beings with rich self-emotions under the condition of being shaped later... like Sophia."

"..."

Riju took a deep breath.

【~???~】

No one understands better than her how the code data currently stored in her smart wheelchair could be a disruptive force for the entire Kivotos.

Obviously... if someone with such an algorithm wanted to do something... it would be too easy.

Even if they just created a copy of Emma, ​​the impact on the entire Kiwatos would be unimaginable.

But if it were given to someone with even more talent and a more insidious intellect... the resulting creation would be... terrifying.

Riju knows the secret arts of numbers.

She dared not even imagine what kind of tricks they would play with this technology if it were accidentally revealed to the secret arts.

“Sensei…you…”

"This has really given me a difficult problem."

After a silence of more than ten seconds, Riju decisively stopped reading the code page and transferred the code she received to a more secure and isolated special device.

Clearly... Sophia's source code is a real 'hot potato'.

However, it is undeniable that the "emotional algorithm" contained in this code, if reverse-engineered, would indeed be an almost priceless treasure—even if the algorithm is only slightly modified and then deployed to some smart devices, it would be an unimaginable technological advancement.

To be able to run such an artificial intelligence life form smoothly on an old, outdated mobile phone is itself an extreme example of optimization.

"Jok, what's wrong with her?"

Amamiya couldn't help but chuckle at Himari's over-the-top, startled reaction.

"You, Grandma, are probably just amazed by the level of your coding skills."

Himari, who had keenly noticed the term 'grandmother', immediately became unhappy and showed signs of being slightly defensive.

"Sen~sei~! Calling a genius girl under eighteen 'grandma' is...that's really impolite, you know?"

"Whether you're a 'phantom thief' or a 'Sensei'... your identity requires you to maintain elegance and politeness, doesn't it?"

If it weren't for the fact that she was a bit lazy, and that doing so might ruin her long-standing "persona", Himari would have wanted to stand up and confront Amamiya.

Amamiya: ...

After all, no matter how much knowledge she has, she is still just a seventeen-year-old minor... and she still has the characteristics of a girl in this age group.

I can't handle you?

He decisively instructed Sophia on the phone, "Sophia, call her Mom."

Sofia seemed to sense Amamiya's thoughts and immediately nodded in agreement.

She approached the screen with great energy and called out to Himiko with an almost embracing warmth that melted hearts.

"Himari-mama~!"

'puff……'

For a moment, Riju felt as if a sharp arrow had pierced her heart.

【~???~】

She couldn't hold it any longer.

Suppressing the urge to agree, she took several deep breaths to calm herself and decisively steered the conversation back on track.

"Let's get down to business..."

A faint blush, whether from anger or embarrassment, had risen on her cheeks. Riju lowered her eyes and spoke.

"The question is about the 'Game Development Department'... right?"

“Sensei…have you heard of the ‘Names of the Cross’ and…the ‘Nameless Gods’?”

Chapter Twenty-Eight: So here's the question: Does Rion have a palace?

“Sensei…have you heard of the ‘Names of the Cross’ and…the ‘Nameless Gods’?”

The two terms that Himari mentioned made Amamiya frown slightly, and she began to search for the information she could find using the "déjà vu" function.

"...I've learned a bit about it."

After some consideration, Amamiya felt that although this "celebrity Himari" was indeed a little narcissistic, she was also a very worthwhile person to befriend and help.

"I learned this from the Federation student council president, who is, to you, in a state of 'disappearance'..."

"oh……?"

Upon hearing this, Riju frowned slightly.

Amamiya added, "In fact... before coming to Giwatos, I briefly met that [Federal Student Council President]... However, when I saw her, she was covered in wounds. And it was just a fragment of her memory, not her in person."

"I briefly saw her on the train to Kivotos and heard her words of advice."

That's all they said; it seemed like the main points of the conversation were left unsaid, and Amamiya certainly couldn't reveal a single word.

Himari fell into deep thought, her head slightly lowered in silence.

"..."

"Is this so?"

After the brief incident, Himari temporarily glossed over the matter of 'Amamiya meeting the Federation Student Council President'.

"Then let's continue with the 'Names of the Cross' and the 'Nameless Gods'..."

Himari gradually adopted her distinctive smile again, which was somewhat irritating due to its excessive 'arrogance'.

"Sensei, since you're here for the game development department, let's start with 'The Nameless Gods'."

"As things stand, our understanding of the 'Nameless Gods' is also in a state of 'knowing very little'... so the information I can tell Sensei is only..."

After taking a breath, Himari continued, "Regarding the 'legacy of the nameless gods'..."

Since the "Special Phenomena Investigation Department" is currently in its early stages of establishment, it doesn't actually possess much intelligence... However, compared to other major academies that know almost nothing about it, Himari's "Special Phenomena Investigation Department" has already established a very clear intelligence advantage.

In some ways, she even possesses information that even the most secret techniques are currently unaware of.

Within the 'outer ruins' of the Millennium Science Academy lies a creation highly suspected to be the "legacy of the nameless gods"...

The "Ancient Era Civilization" once controlled by the Nameless Gods, and the "Princess of the Nameless Gods," a tool used by the Nameless Priests to connect with and worship the Nameless Gods, are very likely sealed in this area.

If the 'relics' left behind by ancient civilizations could be found and analyzed in detail in advance, we might be able to learn more about the long-lost stories and gain some insights into the technology of ancient times...

Furthermore, this operation may also uncover traces of what appears to be the "followers of the nameless gods" currently operating behind the scenes.

……

After listening to Himari's long explanation that she needed to rest every now and then, Amamiya was a little confused.

No wonder his "déjà vu" ability couldn't uncover the 'origin' of Giwatos... Giwatos really does have a civilizational gap!

Moreover, it is an "extremely powerful civilizational gap".

In addition... part of Kiwatos's current 'technology tree' is built on the technology left over from the ancient civilization... which is why it is so 'epoch-making', but some of the technology seems so out of place.

It seems like this is truly a worldview where 'technology relies on archaeology'.

Amamiya was speechless.

This worldview of "technology relies on archaeology" always made him feel like he had traveled into a special worldview of "when in doubt, archaeology is the best approach"—any technology that couldn't be explained was simply attributed to an ancient civilization discovered through archaeology.

"That is to say..."

After listening to Himari's explanation, Amamiya raised an eyebrow and concluded, "You... originally planned to use the legacy permissions I obtained from the Federation Student Council to search for clues left behind by the 'Princess of the Nameless Gods' in the ancient outskirts ruins?"

"That's it."

Since there was nothing left to hide, Riju readily admitted it.

"Sensei... Right now, the millennium is on the verge of destruction. Don't you think so?"

"If what remains in the millennium ruins is truly the 'Princess of the Nameless Gods'... and she happens to be awakened by something like some kind of arcane art, or perhaps by a follower of the Nameless Gods... what do you think will happen to the Millennium Technology Academy then?"

Before Amamiya could give an answer, she continued with her own 'guessing': "...Perhaps, it will truly be annihilated by the destruction of the 'Princess of the Nameless Gods'?"

It's really possible.

Amamiya thought back to when they were crossing the narrow bridge, where the Phantom Thieves could easily fall into the trap set by the false god if they weren't careful.

Back then, the Phantom Thieves were truly in a precarious situation; one wrong step and they would be doomed.

The situation is similar now... even after a thousand years.

The shadow of destruction has been gathering in the sky for a thousand years, yet most people remain completely unaware of it...

"So, I noticed you...Sensei."

Himari spoke with an air of entitlement, as if to say, "You are the chosen hero: Your 'heart-stealing operation,' your 'persona'... everything about you convinces me that you have the ability to resolve this crisis."

"You are the 'Trickst' in the story... the one who truly escaped destruction and turned the tables on their master."

Himari looked at Sofia on the screen, who was making various cute little gestures from time to time, her eyes filled with the loving affection of an 'elder' for a 'junior'.

"With 'humanity's best friend' as your companion... you should be able to guide what should have been destruction toward a better future..."

"Perhaps this is also the reason why the president of the Federal Student Council chose you."

After spouting a string of words that sounded like something out of an RPG game, urging the protagonist to embark on a journey, Himari seemed a little tired. She let out a long sigh and remained silent for a moment, as if giving Amamiya some space to think.

"Well... Sensei, now you understand my intentions, and the true 'painstaking efforts' of this genius, beautiful hacker girl?"

Looking at it this way... Himari's strategy of indirectly getting Amamiya "involved" through the game development department might be somewhat malicious in its actions, but its intentions were good...