"Hmph, this works too, huh? Angela, how do you feel?"
X smoothed the Secretary's hair. Honestly, she wasn't the type who dressed very fashionably, and sometimes even received snide remarks from other AIs, heading in a different direction. But at least at this moment, she hadn't gone off the rails.
She hadn't created any bizarre outfits or strange hairstyles. She had simply combed it neatly and then tied it up with a hair tie… Originally, the AI Secretary wore a low ponytail, with most of her hair cascading down like a waterfall.
But now, because X wanted to avoid her overly long hair falling onto the bed and being accidentally stepped on, she tied it into a high ponytail. This high ponytail hairstyle also suited Angela well, losing some of her gentleness and gaining a touch of spiritedness, carrying a different kind of flavor—like masculine resilience.
Of course, Angela was incredibly beautiful. A beautiful person always looks good no matter how they dress. Whatever the hairstyle, it would probably suit Angela perfectly. Even if her long hair were cut, she would still be a beautiful girl.
Doesn't always wearing that Secretary uniform become monotonous? Perhaps she could encourage Angela to try more things, wear some new clothes?
Such inappropriate thoughts began to surface, and then X realized she was developing undesirable impulses, and specifically, unusual desires for an intelligent AI.
—What am I thinking?!
—This won't do!
Feeling both absurd and deeply embarrassed, X was ashamed of the terrible notions she had just conceived.
Supple hair… Fair skin…
An impeccable visage… Exaggerated yet appealing curves…
A clearly slender waist, yet possessing such contours, without appearing disharmonious; her entire physique was perfectly balanced and unified.
X stared somewhat blankly, her palm cradling the light blue hair, not in a manner suggesting she was checking its quality, but rather like she was admiring some precious artifact—
And upon realizing her behavior might be slightly peculiar, X quickly pulled her hand down as if it were burning hot, guiltily, her gaze darting left and right, observing the intelligent AI's expression.
Upon noticing that Angela was still squatting beside her, examining her with closed eyes, X breathed a sigh of relief… Good thing she hadn't been witnessed.
But before X could fully exhale that sigh, the AI Secretary, who had originally been silent like a meticulously dressed puppet, suddenly spoke again.
[Manager, you referred to me as a ██ AI, a shameless ██, an insatiable ██, a despicable and dark ██, an unreasonable ██, and an intelligent AI who relies on her beautiful appearance to ██.]
Angela almost recited X's 'insults' word for word, her delivery crystal clear, her tone relaxed, calm like an unruffled lake surface.
"That… actually, actually…"
X stammered, rendered speechless, instantly gripped by fear. Gone was her earlier brave; all her muscles tensed, ready for action. If the situation deteriorated, she would shove aside the intelligent AI, burst through the door, and flee.
If the door blocked her way, then she'd punch it open! If she couldn't connect with a heavy blow to the intelligent AI, surely she could use that same force against the Corporation's door?
The responsibility for damaging Corporation infrastructure versus assaulting a Secretary; clearly, the latter carried a slightly heavier penalty.
The intelligent AI, drawing closer and closer, truly felt like a terrifying nightmare, causing X to involuntarily tremble and shiver. Just as X prepared to unleash everything against the intelligent AI, Angela spoke again.
[That's right, I am as you claim: a ██ AI, a shameless ██, an insatiable ██, a despicable and dark ██, an unreasonable ██.]
The intelligent AI's slender, delicate fingers gently cupped X's chin, her fingertip subtly prodding the soft throat area, caressing the indistinct Adam's apple. For most felines, the chin is always a special, vulnerable, and soft spot.
Only trusted individuals are permitted to touch it… And being stroked rhythmically feels incredibly comforting.
The intelligent AI harbored no hidden intent to harm; this was done without malice, merely a simple caress—stroking X's smooth, agile, and soft chin.
With the rhythmic, gentle stroking, X's tense muscles gradually relaxed. The sensation of holding her breath also began to ease.
X's body no longer recoiled as violently, nor did she shake from fear anymore.
This wasn't due to the air conditioning being too cold; it was simply self-induced panic, a primal stress response. Such reactions often occur in timid creatures, like… a 'small animal' bundled tightly in a blanket, only slightly larger.
Snapping back to awareness, X finally remembered the task still at hand. This was not the moment for fear; the mission remained unfinished, the problem unresolved.
—Two objectives were still pending completion.
—She needed to accelerate her actions.
X felt a spike of anxiety. Her earlier nervousness had caused a minor lapse, and the fundamental purpose of these maneuvers was to catch the intelligent AI off guard, to utilize a blitzkrieg-like approach to conclude the confrontation swiftly.
She had to re-engage the proper mindset…
"Right, right, right, you are absolutely correct! You had better truly be exactly like that—"
As if alcohol had rushed to her head, or she had consumed an excess of Enkephalins, X forced herself to plunge into that hazy, inebriated drift, compelling her attitude to become brash and assertive, casting aside all reason, fully inhabiting the role of a somewhat lightheaded ██ individual.
At this precise moment, perhaps communicating nothing coherent and simply being arbitrarily unreasonable would prove the most effective strategy… Creating trouble out of nothing was not necessarily an ineffective or illogical countermeasure.
X hastily, as if speed-reading lines, spoke with a tone of barely suppressed impatience, perfectly fitting the typical profile of someone highly unreasonable.
Riding the momentum of this impulse, X, before the intelligent AI could react, inverted their roles, reaching out to seize the intelligent AI's arm and pulling her into an embrace.
This wasn't a tactic X hadn't employed before; she had used similar tricks on the Deans. But certainly, employing such methods on the Secretary…
Normally, she avoided using them not for any other reason than the belief that such tricks were useless, and she lacked the nerve to risk failure. But now, she was grasping at any available method, treating a desperate situation as if it were a final chance.
The blanket wasn't particularly large, but it was sufficient. If they nestled closely, it could easily cover both of them. She pulled the intelligent AI into the blanket, tucking her in snugly.
This situation bore a resemblance to kindergarten children hiding under a blanket, shining a flashlight onto themselves. In this deliberately constructed atmosphere, it felt particularly, particularly apt… for telling scary stories.
That, indeed, was X's intention. The most difficult initial hurdles had been cleared smoothly, and the subsequent stages, despite minor unforeseen occurrences, had also proceeded relatively safely. Now, only the final step remained—
She needed to deliver a narrative. But what could she possibly recount? X could only think of… well, only horror tales, yet the daily occurrences at the Corporation could already be staged as a low-budget B-movie.
No… perhaps it was that she needed to tell a genuinely moving story about herself?
X hesitated momentarily. How exactly was she supposed to navigate, how should she handle this intelligent AI?
—Indeed, a small price still needed to be paid.
Several potential approaches and their calculated probability of success surfaced in her mind. After extensive deliberation and selection, X still opted for the method most likely to yield results, and the easiest to implement given the current circumstances.
Her hand paused over the buttons. Her already loose nightgown surrendered a few more fastenings. In the confined, blanket-covered space, she shouldn't have perceived anything; it was a lightless, utterly dark expanse.
But X was certain that the intelligent AI pressed beside her could see, and see with unnerving clarity—she could feel the burning intensity of the gaze fixed upon her.
Like a fervent desire to incinerate…
Normally, X would likely avert her gaze in mortification, but now, although her face still burned with embarrassment, she forced herself to project strength, assuming the proactive role.
She could not allow the intelligent AI to seize control; otherwise, she would forfeit any chance of completing the mission…
Continuously self-instructing, recalling the simulator's required procedure, X hardened her resolve, glaring at her AI Secretary, forcing herself to embody that despicable, shameless, utterly ██ persona.
Her teeth delicately nipped at the Secretary's red tie, slowly working the knot loose…
This wasn't the first time X had undone a necktie without using her hands, but she still felt nervous, like a lion, compelled by an external force, voluntarily leaping through a hoop of fire, driven by both the threat of punishment and the promise of reward.
Thus, half by cajoling, half by trickery, the dark-maned lioness was made to jump through the blazing hoop.