In a crossover anime, do you believe that a machine spirit can defeat a fake human?

"What kind of company calls itself 'Commander'..." Kluge retorted without any inflection.

"Is this a difficult question? I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked." Seeing Chen Yi's prolonged internal turmoil, Kato kindly changed the subject.

"Actually, it's nothing. Sister Luo Lei is in the company's counterintelligence department, and nominally my subordinate. Given her mischievous personality, she's bound to tease me a bit."

Chen Yi had no choice but to open his eyes and start making things up.

"Wow, that's amazing. So Chen is already managing a company. I wonder if I'll be able to get the job?"

Kato sighed softly.

Even if you really want to come, I don't have a human resources department that can apply for you.

Chen Yi mentally complained.

"If Kato-kun wants to come, we might have to wait a while."

"Just kidding," Kato said, waving his hand.

"The main problem is that most of the positions available right now are technical, so if Kato is really interested, you might need to get some training."

"Oh... what exactly is the project? Are they drones?" Kato suddenly became interested again, changing the subject.

"More or less, the so-called company at present is still just a small workshop or studio."

"Yes, I'll consider it." Kato looked very serious.

That should have gotten away with it... right?

"Commander, if Kato really intends to apply for the job, I suggest we hire another chef, because there are already quite a few people in the house, and the kitchen is under a lot of pressure for lunch and dinner."

Kroos kindly reminded her.

"The pressure right now isn't that great, but if that's the case, I don't trust the skills of outsiders. Maybe I should just research a kitchen assistant."

Delegating repetitive and tedious steps to robots is not a problem.

"Kitchen assistant... could that be considered part of 16LAB's services?" Lorelei joined the conversation with great interest.

"I'm afraid that won't work." Chen Yi pondered for a moment.

"Ordinary families might not be able to afford it, and wealthy people have dedicated nannies and cooks, so they don't need it..."

"However, if we can reduce costs, it's not out of the question," Chen Yi explained, spreading his hands.

"Simple, just sell to individual catering services, right? They also need to process ingredients efficiently," Kroos suddenly thought.

"..."

Chen Yi thought about it again and realized that it was indeed a feasible solution.

"Well, when you have time, try to research a solution, the most important thing is to balance cost and ease of maintenance."

Chen Yi jotted it down in his notebook while continuing his casual conversation with Kato.

......

Just like in my previous life, the animal species here are also quite similar. Many of the so-called unseen species can be easily identified by their names.

"The monkey is so stupid, it actually carved something on the stone."

"It seems like she wants to keep track of how many bananas she has, but in this weather, bananas will rot in no more than a few days if left outside, so there's no point in storing them."

Chen Yi overheard the chatter of the female tourists passing by.

The news traveled through his nerves like an electric current, and Chen Yi turned around, walked to the edge of the previous exhibition area, and peered intently inside.

There was a monkey with its back to him, holding a stone slab in its hand, seemingly carving something on the stone, with a few uneaten bananas at its feet.

The monkeys in this world are much smarter than those in my previous life...

"Commander, it's probably because the pressure of survival in the wild is greater, so the animals are trying to make the most of their strengths."

Klukka explained after searching for information online for a while.

"If we were to define it, early pseudo-humans were apex predators far superior to tigers and leopards, and their dominance over other animals was terrifying."

"I see......"

This is not surprising given the survival-of-the-fittest principle.

......

When there were fewer people at lunchtime, the group went to the panda enclosure.

As Yuihama mentioned before, pandas are indeed very popular and trendy in Japan.

Even Kato, who usually seems the most composed, unusually took out his phone to take pictures.

After glancing at the chubby panda in the display window, Chen Yi found a quiet corner by himself, opened the drink he had just bought, and sipped it slowly.

Although there were fewer people than before, the crowd was still quite dense.

"You're back, Lorelei." Chen Yi waved slightly as he saw Lorelei walk into the venue.

Although theoretically Lorelei could find him even if he didn't wave, it's just a personal habit.

"Did you find anything?" Chen Yi glanced at the bag she was carrying.

"Commander, I didn't find anything."

Lorelei shook her head.

"...?"

Lorelei's tone was off, but she didn't offer any other explanation in her mind. Why was that?

"Klukka, do you know what's going on?"

"...Commander, I have some bad news to tell you."

Kluke did not answer Chen Yi's question directly, but remained silent for a while before answering.

“I had been hacking into the park’s surveillance system and found nothing unusual, just like Lorelei’s investigation found.”

"Hmm, and then?" Chen Yi took out the map that he had folded up earlier and slowly unfolded it.

"I was only able to be sure after carefully searching online forums that this zoo might have an aquarium, if Chiba doesn't have another zoo that is exactly the same."

PS: Today, Calvin Cat

Revisiting Izu: Chapter 222 Undercurrents

Chapter 222

"Didn't Yuihama say that all the results found were advertisements?"

Chen Yi sat on a chair in the rest area, feeling as if he had a thorn in his side.

“Commander, I said ‘maybe,’ but in fact, all the comments about entering or taking pictures of the aquarium are probably severely misled.”

The key point is not whether the aquarium exists or not, but the cognitive interference.

The trouble is big.

“Commander, don’t be afraid, take a look at the gift I have for you first.” Lorelei gently placed her hand on the back of Chen Yi’s hand to comfort him.

"Lorelei, let's not waste the time limit for materialization. The danger here is unknown. Protecting the commander is the top priority."

“I know, but the commander also needs a calm mindset.”

"I can recover on my own." Chen Yi slightly raised his hand to refuse Lorelei's kindness, took the bag from Lorelei, and took out a bottle of dark red liquid in a glass bottle.

"what is this?"

"I bought this at a small shop near the aquarium construction site. Judging from the price... it was probably Coke or Sprite."

"...The ability of the left eye?" Chen Yi understood why his perception did not match reality in less than two seconds.

"When I found these liquids, they were randomly placed on the shelves. I think they must have been disguised as different beverages."

"Krooka, what did you see?" Chen Yi asked.

"Commander, I'm using your perspective now, please wait..." Kroos's phantom appeared out of thin air, without anyone around noticing.

"now what?"

"...It's still the same."

It seems this path won't work.

“Perhaps it’s because our perception has been permanently altered, like some kind of optical illusion game? ... ‘If you look at it backwards, you can never go back,’ or something like that.” Lorelei thought of an example.

"Then ask them what kind of drink I'm holding..."

“It’s a bottle of carbonated juice,” Kato Megumi suddenly said.

"Kato, you were here all along?"

"Student Chen and Miss Lorelei are studying the drinks, and they seem quite engrossed in it."

Kato Megumi's tone revealed a hint of curiosity or something else, and she quietly took a step closer.

"So this isn't carbonated juice, is it? What is it then?"

"...Kato, this might be..." To be honest, Chen Yi didn't know what it was either, so he looked at Lorelei.

"...Commander, why don't you describe this thing using the closest analogy of a liquid?"

"...This is ketchup." The word that came out was squeezed out as another common household condiment.

"So this is ketchup... No, that's not right..."

"If it were just regular ketchup, Chen wouldn't be so serious... but this is definitely ketchup..."

Kato's eyes glazed over for a moment, then he fell into a logical contradiction.

Chen Yi, Luo Leilai, and Kelukai exchanged glances, realizing something even more serious.

"Kato Megumi, listen to me." Chen Yi reached out and pressed on Kato's shoulder, speaking earnestly, word by word.

"I made a mistake. This isn't ketchup; it's a bottle of chicken blood."

Kato's eyes, which had been troubled, gradually regained their clarity.

"Chicken blood? So, did Chen discover something?"

It's over.

The conclusion made Chen Yi feel even worse.

"A plastic cognitive filter?" Kroos threw out a concept she'd never heard of before.

“The perception that everything I see and hear is fabricated out of thin air is truly chilling,” Lorelei commented.

"So, how do we break through this cognitive filter?"

Seeing Kato listening attentively, Chen Yi sat down again to think.

No wonder Yui Hama readily accepted the premise that Lorelei was her distant cousin and believed her wholeheartedly about the truth about the aquarium. It's likely that their cognitive filters were influenced by some external force the moment they entered the zoo.

Looking at the bustling crowd around him, Chen Yi no longer felt relaxed.

"Commander, Ms. Kato seemed conflicted after hearing about ketchup. It seems that her cognitive filter was affected, but her logical thinking is still functioning normally."

Lorelei's analysis.

"She was wondering why I was looking at a bottle of ordinary ketchup with such a serious expression, as if I were dealing with a fake human incident, which conflicted with her understanding."

"Metacognitive correction mechanisms."

Chen Yi immediately deduced a way to break the deadlock.

However, just to be on the safe side, Chen Yi still opened the bottle and smelled it. The familiar scent made him completely give up hope.

"Kato, this is a bottle of murky human blood. Listen, it's not safe in the zoo." Chen Yi's brief words jolted Kato awake. Her expression showed surprise and seriousness for a moment, before returning to calm.

"...I understand. Do we need to use some 'reason' to persuade the others to leave?"

She recalled her actions and understood part of the cause and effect.

It's currently noon...

Chen Yi remembered the map and unfolded it to examine it.

Blurry, unclear printing.