I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

He had no doubt that when he got close, Alice, who was already crouching there, would pounce on him with a "whoosh" and give him a 'surprise'.

After making some preparations, Amamiya deliberately made footsteps and slowly approached the corner where Alice was, but then stopped at the extreme angle and distance just before he was about to get close to Alice's 'attack' range.

Amamiya didn't take another step forward, but instead asked quietly, "When Alice plays Dark Souls, do you often press the lock-on button to check if there are any targets within your field of vision?"

The petite and adorable girl in the corner paused only slightly before Amamiya heard her energetic reply: "Alice has always had this habit to prevent enemies from hiding in corners... Ah!"

Alice stopped mid-sentence, covering her mouth with both hands and looking distressed.

"...Alice has been deceived!"

"It was clearly a good opportunity to strike first..."

Wearing a classic school uniform and with long hair trailing on the ground, the girl maintained a typical "bitter" expression characteristic of the game development department as she slowly shuffled out from around the corner.

"Alice answered Sensei's question, but was discovered by Sensei because of it... Next time, Alice will definitely improve her stealth level and learn from this experience!"

Amamiya smiled gently and bent down to stroke Alice's long, textured hair.

"Alice, don't forget, I'm the 'Phantom Thief.' I possess extremely high stealth and anti-stealth levels... Even so, Alice, are you still going to try a 'surprise attack'?"

"Woo..."

Alice, who was being patted on the head and felt very comfortable, let out a 'unwilling' whimper.

"Alice is a hero... A hero cannot be defeated by temporary setbacks! No matter how difficult it is... as long as there is a possibility of repeated challenges, Alice will keep trying until she succeeds!"

Amamiya smiled, then pinched one of Alice's cheeks encouragingly, "Then Alice, good luck! Alice knows about the 'Dynamic Difficulty System,' right? Alice's level will increase, and mine will increase along with it."

"Therefore, Alice shouldn't just rely on levels and the stat increases that come with leveling up, like a hero. She also needs to learn to be like a true 'player,' utilizing every 'mechanism' she can control."

【~???~】(Alice)

【~??~】(Kay)

Alice blinked innocently, her halo of naivety in her azure eyes quickly replaced by a seriousness that suggested she was learning something new.

She nodded quickly: "Yes... Alice understands!"

"Later, Alice will ask Yuzu and the others to write 'false advice' to mislead Sensei!"

Amamiya smiled but didn't say anything.

First of all... Alice, this kind of behavior of directly stating what you think is not good for planning.

—That being said, both Sofia and Alona occasionally have this problem…

Could this be the unique 'straightforwardness' of "machine girls"... or rather, AI girls?

Secondly... Alice, why would you be so sure I would be fooled by "false advice"?

The 'false advice' that Alice mentioned, like the 'locking mechanism' that Amamiya mentioned earlier, comes from a special system in Dark Souls.

In this series, players who access the online mode can see "advice left by players from other worlds".

These pieces of advice can sometimes point out hidden treasures or enemies lurking around the corner, making them very useful.

For example, "Watch out for the left ahead," "A powerful enemy ahead," "A huge treasure chest ahead," and so on.

Players are diverse, so their advice can be both good and bad.

Some false advice will point out the wrong enemy, or even point directly to a cliff: "There is a hidden path below," inducing those who see the advice to jump down.

"So... Alice, are you ready?"

The AI ​​girl whose cheek was pinched by Amamiya immediately replied without hesitation, "Mmm... Alice had already communicated with Kai beforehand!"

"Kay said he is ready to cooperate with Sensei's operations at any time!"

After saying that, she looked straight at Amamiya with a bright and curious expression in her eyes.

"Alice... wants to see how Sensei 'creates life'!"

Amamiya paused briefly, then beckoned to Alice: "Since Alice wants to see... then come with me."

"Creating life".

Especially the creation of powerful life forms imbued with mystery...

This is a special authority that can only be obtained in a higher level of domain.

With Alice by his side, Amamiya arrived at a makeshift room that looked like a pottery studio.

The room contained clay figurines of all sizes, all lifelike. The largest of these figurines looked almost exactly like 'the unpainted Alice'.

"So many dolls..."

Alice looked around curiously at everything she could see, and soon focused her attention on the largest clay figure in the room.

After carefully observing the clay figures, Alice immediately thought of some resurrection spells she had seen in RPG games.

"Sensei, are you planning to use a 'resurrection spell' to 'revive' Kai?"

Amamiya nodded and then shook her head.

"The specific implementation method is somewhat different from the method Alice recognized, but it can be understood in this simple way."

With Alice standing face-to-face in front of his clay figure, Amamiya pressed one hand to his cheek, and clusters of eerie blue flames emerged from the shadows of his face.

“Psona…”

'call……'

The eerie blue flames transformed into a whirlwind, howling as it swept across the land from the sky.

An unprecedented chill descended simultaneously with the goddess's compassionate embrace.

"...Nuwa!"

【Psona - Nuwa (Arcana: World)】

[Introduction: Also known as Nuwa. The creator goddess in mythology.]

She was a goddess with a truly unique aura. Legend has it that she molded life from yellow clay in her own image. And when the world collapsed and the earth caved in, she melted colorful stones to mend the heavens.

She is not only the goddess who created all things, but also the creator goddess who mended the heavens and saved the world, and is widely and anciently worshipped.

The fewer the words, the more the story.

The less information a character has about them... sometimes it's not because they 'don't have enough information' or 'don't have enough to introduce,' but because they're so famous that they 'don't need an introduction' at all.

A goddess in red robes with golden eyes appeared behind Amamiya, accompanied by eerie blue flames.

The mere appearance of the Goddess of Creation caused the lifeless clay figures in the room to tremble slightly, imbuing them with a sense of life and spirit.

After observing the situation inside, the Golden-Eyed Goddess narrowed her eyes slightly, then extended her index finger and pointed it at Alice's clay figure from a distance.

The clay figure was instantly imbued with a powerful sense of "mystery," and then the seven-colored light emanating from the goddess's fingertips gathered in the area behind its head, forming a halo that was exactly the same as Alice's.

After the clay figurine was painted, the golden-eyed goddess's eyes revealed a moment of emotion, and then her figure faded away, disappearing as a dark blue flame gathered.

So far, this clay figurine sculpted by Nuwa has everything a normal body should have, except for a consciousness that can drive the body's actions... or rather, a soul.

Amamiya looked at Alice, whose pupils were gradually turning red, the color symbolizing Kai, and who was standing there watching this scene with great interest.

"Kay, let's double-check..."

"How do you plan to assist Alice afterward?"

After much deliberation, Kai calculated his new physical data and searched through the databases he could access for several solutions.

"Um……"

"If my calculations are correct, this body you 'created,' Sensei, is practically indestructible under normal circumstances, isn't it?"

Amamiya nodded.

This body was originally a clay figurine, made from the most ordinary clay.

But now it is a clay figurine touched by the goddess Nuwa, a clay figurine transformed into a real one by the goddess Nuwa.

Since it has been blessed by the goddess Nuwa, how can it be easily destroyed?

"That……"

Realizing that the "implant" strategy was probably out of the question, Kay sighed softly.

"Afterwards, I will commission the Special Phenomena Investigation Department and the Engineering Department to work together to manufacture special equipment that I can wear to establish contact with the princess."

After making the decision, Kai's red eyes reflected her closed-eyed 'self,' and her tone was noticeably more expectant.

"Sensei, next... can we..."

Amamiya hummed in agreement.

"Hmm. We might lose connection briefly... Kay, be prepared."

Guided by Amamiya, Kai closed his eyes and reached out to touch 'his' forehead.

A wisp of pale blue light, resembling a data stream, converged with Kai's touch, wrapped around her fingertips, and then flowed towards Kai's 'own' forehead.

Amamiya watched this scene with a confident air.

Only when Alice, with her eyes closed, had completely lost the light swirling around her fingertips did Amamiya speak softly.

"Rise again... Kai."

Chapter Sixty: Resurrect, My Kai!

"Rise again... Kai."

With Amamiya's soft call, the final bit of progress in "data transfer" was completed.

Alice's arm, which had been resting on her body, fell naturally to her sides. Then the halo above her head quickly went out and lit up again in a different color.

Upon regaining consciousness, Alice's first action was to quickly survey her surroundings, and then immediately focus her gaze on Kai, with whom she seemed to have established a strange connection.

After waiting a little while, Alice noticed that Kai still didn't open his eyes, but he had begun to breathe calmly, which made Alice a little anxious.

She looked at Amamiya, anxiously and repeatedly asking for confirmation: "Has the 'save transfer' finished?"

"Don't worry..." Amamiya smiled and waved to Alice, "Kay is just adapting... he'll be fine soon."

From a "steel body" controlled by an "AI with emotions and intelligence" to a body imbued with mystery and a tactile system that is far beyond the simulation of ordinary machines... just how big is the change?

The magnitude of this change is beyond description...

The transformation from 1 to infinity... must begin with 0 to 1.

The change from 0 to 1 may have a greater magnitude than the change from 1 to infinity.

"..."

Kai slowly opened his eyes, and the mechanical halo in his red pupils quickly disappeared.

In an instant, her originally dull eyes began to be imbued with extraordinary brilliance.

"This is……"

Like a baby opening its eyes for the first time, Kay's first reaction was surprisingly the same as that of an ordinary baby—its eyes stung, its vision blurred with tears, and it was on the verge of crying.

The overwhelming sensory stimulation was too much for Kai to handle, even though he had prepared himself.

"The feeling of the body..."

Kay choked up, her voice almost a sob, and she sighed softly in a particularly 'disappointing' tone.

"how do you feel?"

Amamiya leaned forward, waved her hand in front of Kai, and then kindly offered him a handkerchief to wipe his tears: "Kai, how does it feel to 'become human'...?"

After instinctively taking the handkerchief and wiping her eyes, Kai sniffed and answered haltingly, "It's...strange, I can't explain it...I don't know what's going on...I can't understand it..."

"Senses, some..."

“The sensory system takes decades to become familiar with... It’s normal to feel uncomfortable when you suddenly gain such clear senses.”

It turned out to be like this...