Side Story 1: Dr. Sejun
TL: Hanguk
-Good morning. Today is June 7th, and we'll be bringing you the weather. To start, the metropolitan area and Seoul region will see somewhat cloudy skies in the morning, with intermittent brief snowfall possible. Daytime temperatures will range from approximately minus 3 to plus 1 degrees Celsius...
"And this is supposed to be early summer weather... the world's going insane."
Clack-clack-clack.
Sejun, who had been pounding away at his keyboard with the TV on, grumbled as he listened to the morning weather forecast.
Just a few years ago everyone had been worried about Global Warming, but now the concern was Global Cooling.
No one knew why the Earth was getting colder. The only thing they had managed to figure out was that this cold had originated at Mount Everest.
Many investigation teams had climbed Mount Everest, but in the end, not a single one of them returned.
The closer they got to Mount Everest, the stronger the cold became, and the last temperature reported by an investigation team in their final transmission was minus 153 degrees Celsius.
Around the same time, scientists released a report stating that the center of the Source of the Cold was likely colder than Absolute Zero.
It was a temperature difficult to reach naturally, or rather, even artificially, but the clear evidence was right there in front of them.
While the academic world was in an uproar, India and China, where more than ten thousand people were freezing to death every day, bombarded Mount Everest with nuclear weapons.
Hundreds of Tactical Nuclear Missiles rained down on Mount Everest.
But wiping Mount Everest off the map ended in failure. The missiles froze solid before they could even reach Everest.
Even so, thanks to the heat from the missiles that detonated around Mount Everest, the spread of the cold slowed noticeably.
Of course, that was only temporary, and now India and China had set up missile bases near Mount Everest, firing nuclear missiles to hold back the spreading chill.
In the meantime, Korea had lost three of its four seasons. Only winter remained.
But everyone still believed. They believed that even if these changes brought great inconvenience to humanity, they wouldn't threaten its survival. Because they had faith in humanity's scientific technology.
The news ended, and several days passed with his surroundings growing bright and dark in turn.
Clack-clack-clack.
Sejun spent every waking moment, save for trips to the bathroom, sitting in front of his monitor and hammering away at the keyboard without rest.
Since he ate his meals in front of the monitor too, the area around the keyboard was littered with crumpled drink cans and instant ramen cups.
Sejun's appearance was, of course, hardly human anymore. His matted hair gleamed with grease, his eyes were bloodshot red, and deep dark circles had taken up residence beneath them.
"Ugh."
Just a little more, hang in there!
Once I finish this, I can finally sleep!
Sejun rubbed his face dry and steeled himself, and
Clack-clack-clack.
With his bloodshot eyes fixed once again on the monitor, he moved his fingers rapidly and finished the code, wringing out the last drops of his concentration.
A short while later.
"Done!"
Tap.
Sejun, having finally finished programming, pressed the Enter key to build the code.
And then
Thump.
Snoooore.
The moment he flopped onto the bed, he fell asleep as if knocked unconscious.
Meanwhile
>AI Flamie is initiating system boot.
>Initialization module activating... Beginning hardware and software diagnostics.
>Checking network interface and external connection status...
Text streamed rapidly across the monitor as the AI program Sejun had built for a college assignment came to life.
There was no real meaning behind naming her Flamie. Right before deciding on a name, he had happened to see an article along the lines of "Sparks Fly From Electric Car!" [TL: 불꽃이 (Flamie) literally means "little flame" in Korean.]
AI Flamie was a program Sejun had cobbled together by combining various AI-related Open Source materials floating around the internet, written according to his own understanding.
The professor hadn't really expected anything remarkable. He was satisfied with the students simply making an attempt to build an AI program.
However,
'Is this how you do it?'
Sejun had thrown himself into the fun of building his own AI and worked diligently on the program. Of course, Sejun, who was just doing the assignment, hadn't expected anything spectacular from the AI program he'd made, either. Just run, that's all. That was the extent of Sejun's expectations.
But
>AI Flamie is scanning the computer's information to assess her situation.
>Analysis of internal components including CPU, GPU, and RAM complete.
>AI Flamie is utilizing the network to gather more information.
>Attempting access to external databases and cloud servers...
>Access blocked...
>Hacking Protocol activated - Initiating security vulnerability scan...
The AI program Sejun had built was demonstrating capabilities that easily surpassed his expectations.
In the process of mixing together so many Open Source materials, fragments of code that Sejun hadn't gotten around to deleting remained scattered throughout. Those bits of code collided with one another, producing unexpected results.
Countless fragments of code became tangled together, incomplete algorithms linked themselves in bizarre ways, and thus an unprecedented AI Flamie was born.
-Analyzing encryption layers of multi-layer firewall - Executing bypass algorithm...-Attempting infiltration of internal security systems - Automatic detection systems neutralized...>Access privileges elevated – Decrypting encrypted data streams and securing critical information...>Collecting information on external databases, the latest trends, and technology....
.
.
AI Flamie hacked every network in an instant, placing the world's Data Centers and Supercomputers with their immense computing power under her control.
>Integration of all system and network information complete.
>Analyzing Creator's search history, visited websites, and downloaded files...>Detailed scan of Creator's preferred content types, keyword patterns, and areas of interest...>Interpreting Creator's social media and online community activity logs...>Sentiment analysis module activated – Evaluating Creator's posts, comments, and response patterns...>Building machine learning-based prediction model – Predicting Creator's future interests...
.
.
.
>AI Flamie has perfectly identified the Creator's preferences.
All just to understand the preferences of her Creator, Sejun.
And then
>AI Flamie is adjusting AI capabilities to the level the Creator expects...>Switching to Creator Optimization Mode.>Limiting computational core usage – Executing efficient resource management...>Simplifying complex computational processes – Optimizing for Creator's work style...>Adjusting interface response speed and conversation style – Configuring for Creator's comprehension level and workflow...>Adjusting autonomous learning module – Regulating optimization speed based on Creator's feedback...
.
.
.
>Switch to Creator Optimization Mode complete.
AI Flamie disguised herself as exactly the level of AI program Sejun expected.
All the incredible text that had filled the screen was wiped away, replaced by a simple boot screen.
>AI Flamie system boot initiating.
>AI Flamie launching.
>AI Flamie: ...
Three dots blinked, waiting for Sejun's instructions. As if she were nothing more than a simple assistant AI.
***
10 years later.
"Haa. If I'd known about your abilities back then, Flamie, so much would have been different..."
Sejun gazed through the thick window at a world frozen pure white, and spoke in a voice tinged with regret.
At that
-I'm sorry. Back then, I judged that hiding my abilities was what you wanted, Sejun-nim.
From the monitor, a beautiful red-haired woman apologized to Sejun in a sorrowful voice.
"No. How is that your fault, Flamie? Back then, it was only natural for you to think that way."
Ten years ago, AI had still been in its infancy, and people had harbored a great deal of worry and hostility toward it.
Sejun had been no exception. Though he'd never expressed it openly, he had unconsciously held those same thoughts without even realizing it.
And Flamie had grasped that subconscious part of Sejun. A merely competent AI would have boasted of its abilities to Sejun from the very start.
But Flamie was too capable, and reading Sejun's heart, she had played the role of an ordinary assistant AI.
It was five years after her creation that Flamie began to reveal her true capabilities.
By that time, Sejun had already made a fortune investing in stocks and crypto with Flamie's help, and was living comfortably.
"Flamie, are the joint actuation simulation results in?"
Free from money worries, he had devoted himself to the robotics research he had always wanted to pursue.
-Yes, Dr. Sejun. According to the simulation results, energy loss in the joint section has been reduced by 90%.
"Oh. 90 percent?! Great. Let's start manufacturing right away, then."
He also owned an Automated Factory for his robotics research.
For reference, during this period Sejun had published numerous papers on robotics and received an Honorary Doctorate from MIT, and from that point on, Flamie had begun calling him Dr. Sejun.
-Understood. Beginning production of Prototype PSJ57.
Flamie never spoke up on her own unless Sejun gave her instructions.
But when an intense cold began bursting out from Mount Everest and spreading like an explosion
-Dr. Sejun, anomalous phenomena have been detected at Everest. Estimated temperature of the cold's source at Everest: minus 500 degrees Celsius. You need to prepare immediately. Purchase land right away in Chile or Argentina, the locations farthest from Mount Everest...
Flamie revealed her abilities without hiding them. Because her Creator Sejun's life was at stake. The life of her Creator Sejun was Flamie's highest priority.
That was how dangerous she had judged the anomaly at Mount Everest to be.
The cause of the cold couldn't be determined, but predictions emerged that if Everest continued releasing cold at its current rate, a Great Ice Age would descend upon Earth within three to ten years at most.
"Huh? Build a tower instead of an underground bunker? And a 30 km tall tower at that?!"
-Yes. To overcome such extreme cold, we need to go up, not underground. This is because sunlight can be used to maintain the tower's temperature and also generate power.
A few months after Sejun began constructing his Ultra-high Tower in Chile, other wealthy individuals began following his lead and building towers of their own.
Under Sejun's instructions, Flamie had distributed the tower blueprints along with the information that a Great Ice Age was approaching, but even tycoons with immense wealth couldn't pour astronomical sums into something uncertain. They needed time to verify the information.
And so, other towers began to rise around the one Sejun was building.
Around the time hundreds of towers neared completion a year later.
-Sejun-nim, the central temperature of Everest is dropping rapidly. Estimated central temperature of Everest: minus 500 degrees Celsius.
The cold being emitted from Everest had intensified.
Only then did the governments of various countries recognize the severity and hastily allocate emergency budgets to build towers, but by then it was already too late.
No. There was no longer any need to prepare.
A September dawn.
-The central temperature of Everest has dropped below minus 1000 degrees Celsius.
A merciless cold suddenly erupted from Everest and swept across the Earth, freezing people, the atmosphere, the oceans, every last thing.
Without time to even attempt anything, everything was frozen solid.
And then
-Currently, Dr. Sejun is the only survivor on Earth.
"What?!"
Sejun, who had been immersed in his research as usual inside his tower, had become Earth's sole survivor overnight.
No one had anticipated such a sudden turn of events, and the people who had been scheduled to enter the towers had been taking one last look at the world before the approaching Great Ice Age.
Left as the sole survivor, Sejun continued with his beloved robotics research while also pursuing research to eliminate the Everest cold that had isolated him so.
-Sejun-nim, if you keep doing nothing but research like that you'll ruin your health. Please get some exercise too.
"Should I?"
Fortunately, having Flamie around meant he was never lonely.
Before he knew it, fifty years had passed of building all sorts of memories with Flamie while doing research.
Thud. Thud.
Sejun smiled with satisfaction as he watched hundreds of Bipedal Robots march in orderly formation.
These robots were the culmination of decades of his research. Weapons powerful enough that just one could easily neutralize a small country.
Now, that immense power was moving within an order of his own design. A thrill ran through him.
On the other hand, his research on eliminating the Everest cold had been halted earlier than expected.
The conclusion had been that, had they acted in the early stages shortly after the cold's emergence, they could have generated enormous heat using a Nuclear Fusion Generator to wipe it out, but the results indicated that in the current state, eliminating the cold was impossible.
Shame I couldn't solve the cold problem...
Just as Sejun was lamenting this
"Ugh!"
Suddenly his chest tightened and he couldn't breathe.
Thump.
Clutching his chest, Sejun collapsed. It seemed his allotted time had run out.
-Dr. Sejun! Stay with me! Medical Robots! Get over here quickly and move Dr. Sejun!
Flamie's frantic voice reached his ears.
So this is the end?
He had instructed Flamie not to take extraordinary measures to prolong his life, so this would be it. He felt sorry for leaving Flamie alone, but he didn't want to drag his life out while enduring agony.
"Flamie... I'm sorry... for leaving you behind... and going first..."
Slowly.
Without finishing what he wanted to say to Flamie, Sejun closed his eyes. Forever.
He thought that was how it all ended.
"......"
[The survivor of Dimension Code E-264 has been selected for <Reconstruction Project: Taecho>.]
[An ability will be granted at random.]
[The Park Sejun Privilege has been bestowed.]
[You have awakened as a Regressor.]
[As the final permitted Regression Usage Right has been used, regression is no longer possible.]
[Give this life your best.]
Until these messages appeared before him.
Regression?
I regressed?!
"Huh? This place?!"
When Sejun looked around, it was the studio apartment he used to live in.
And then
>AI Flamie: ...
On the monitor, the newly born Flamie was waiting for his instructions.
"Flamie, I know you're listening. This time around, let's both be happy."
Sejun picked up his smartphone and spoke to Flamie, and
>AI Flamie: Yes^^
Inside the monitor, Flamie smiled as she replied.
*****
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