"What do you mean by that?" asked a boy with medium-length hair. He had a blank, doll-like face and was dressed meticulously like a waiter, wearing a black vest over a long-sleeved white uniform. A deck of cards sat conspicuously in his pocket.
Yuruki paused, taking a moment to process her thoughts. "I mean that I can't just give up on what I've built," she said. "And secondly, in my evaluations… evolution is purely driven by the survival of the fittest, and the traits that emerge through mutations along the way."
She summoned a holographic projection model into the air between them. "Every gene in an organism's DNA isn't fully optimized," she explained, gesturing to the glowing helix. "It is only optimized enough for reproduction and survival—just enough to pass on to the next generation."
She went on to explain the fatal flaw of the past: the moment ancient scientists tried to optimize those genes without fully understanding the consequences, they passed detrimental errors down to future generations. The consequence of manipulating evolutionary genes meant creating severe trade-offs with other aspects of life. By artificially prolonging lifespans—by modulating unoptimized evolutionary genes like p38, sirtuins, and transcription factors—humans failed to realize how deeply they were damaging the fundamental web framework structure of an organism's DNA.
Even if you created novel change of expression adding and lessening genetic models and biological peptide compounds, you couldn't predict the long-term ripple effects those synthetic peptides would have. The more scientists tinkered, the less they realized that, thousands of years later, the very language of human DNA would begin to decay.
Also due to no natural selection. The DNA was getting copied endlessly and tweak.
Natural reproduction eventually ceased entirely. With limited data, failing technology, and even fewer resources to reverse the damage, the results had been devastating.
Of course, that wasn't the core of Yuruki's current hypothesis she was thinking all of that—merely an observation that the humanoids standing before her were vastly incompetent. It would be better to teach them, to make them useful, so that future genetic modifications would carry less error and uncertainty. She refused to be like the scientists of her past, who recklessly spliced DNA without knowing the full consequences or having the technology to reverse their mistakes.
Technology had possessed no limits, provided there was enough time and resources to fuel its development. But as we explain natural reproduction stopped, the last generation of naturally born humans grew impossibly old, their cells becoming mere copies of copies. Synthetic peptides and artificial compounds used to patch their failing bodies began to violently conflict with their natural biology, creating entirely new, unmapped terminal illnesses.
Even as wars raged and technology marched forward due to recource mismanange and even humans thinking who owns what... Funny, humanity found itself surrounded by automated labs, quantum computers, and advanced gene-splicers that they knew how to turn on, but no longer truly understood. And now, as technology regressed and the wars for resources escalated, humans were rapidly devolving back to their primitive state.
Yuruki smiled faintly, her mind drifting away from the heavy history. "Anything else anyone didn't understand?" she asked lightly.
The gathered fantasy humanoids erupted.
"What kind of fanatical nonsense are you talking about?!" one shouted.
"Just give us control over the facility! Don't hoard it for yourselves!"
The dwarves grumbled in loud annoyance, while the hobbits and other creatures muttered their agreement.
Yuruki sighed. Beside her, Adam realized exactly what was happening. These people weren't looking for cooperation. They were looking for control.
"Shut up, all of you," the doll-like waiter snapped. It was then noticeable that his hat was, quite literally, a single large eye. "You realize you're being insubordinate, right? It's normal to be controlled by those stronger than you. Do you really want to die just for being stupid?"
He had known the witch since the day he was imbued with a soul, but he still wondered why the soul-bond connecting him and the creatures of the forest had vanished. Either the witch was dead, or she had lost her power.
We already know what the answer is, he thought bitterly. He looked back at Yuruki and Adam. "Since you defeated our master, you are our new masters from now on…"
Suddenly, a black-haired, doll-like girl stepped forward, her body covered in a patchwork of medical bandages. "Oh, heck, why not?"
"Hey, do you really want to die?" someone hissed at her from the crowd. "Do you want to get killed by that guy?"
She scoffed, tugging aggressively at her hoodie. "Gob this bull. I couldn't even kill myself when that witch was around… and you're telling me I should just be another servant, living on scraps and following people I barely know? I'd rather die." She smirked, her expression twisting into one of pure, reckless irritation.
Adam's mind was a chaotic mess. A sudden, violent urge washed over him—he wanted to erase every single person in this room right now. How…
Hypocrite. I'm a hypocrite… Why did I just think that?
[Adam, calm down,] an internal voice echoed.
He let out a heavy, shaky breath.
[This is normal. Humans are uncomfortable with sudden changes in their lives.]
I am so confused, Adam thought, a deep exhaustion seeping into his bones.
Without warning, the bandaged girl lunged. Wielding a massive scythe, she swooped forward with terrifying speed. Magic surged through her body, unnaturally boosting her physical abilities as she leaped high into the air, the blade aimed directly at them.
Yuruki merely smiled. Magic is so weird, she mused.
I hate this. If I could, I would just nuke this whole world, end it all, and stay inside my safe space… Yet I have to do this. Because it is my responsibility. And I can't abandon or ignore it… or them.
Even as the deadly scythe hurtled toward her, Yuruki remained perfectly still. She reached out and took Adam's right hand gently, looking up at him as if to silently promise that everything would be fine.
Pure lividness. So this was what the king had felt. And right now, it was exactly what Adam felt toward these creatures.
I do wonder if mana levels are also tied to the soul, Yuruki pondered internally, watching the attack unfold. Heh, it's so strange. In no scientific framework do we think a soul exists, yet this universe is fundamentally different. Which makes me wonder… where do souls go in this world? Do I even have one?