X opened his eyes in the "Inner" world again.
The familiar décor of the Control Team's main lounge greeted him—yet his mind still carried the fatigue he'd gone to bed with.
Strangely, walking in this "Inner Lobotomy Corporation" did help him forget the day's exhaustion—for a while.
Maybe being here already counted as a form of rest.
But tonight was different.
Because the moment he woke, someone sat directly opposite him—chin propped in both hands, eyes bright, staring at him with unblinking focus.
A girl in a white lab coat.
Around her neck was a black choker. The hem of her coat was embroidered with gear-shaped patterns. Several mechanical arms floated around her like drones, holding assorted items.
Her eyes were red, and in their centers were gear-like designs.
Compared to Angela—an actual AI—this girl looked even more like a machine.
…
Silence stretched between them. Awkwardness thickened.
"…Uh. Hello?"
Noticing the armband on her arm—so similar in style to the Sephirah armbands he knew, though the letters were unfamiliar—X tried a cautious greeting.
"Are you Angela's consciousness avatar inside the Inner world?"
"Angela?"
At the name, the girl's calm expression stiffened. Her hands froze.
She lifted her head, staring straight at X. Clear irritation flashed—something close to offense.
"Perhaps I should call you X."
"Yes, X—do not lump me together with that kind of machine."
"I am human. A real human."
"A human who can earn your gaze. A human who can walk under the sun of the City."
Her sarcasm was sharp.
X now knew: she absolutely wasn't Angela, and not some derivative of Angela.
Her voice, tone, emotion—none of it matched.
"Sorry."
X apologized sincerely.
"I was wrong to assume you were someone else."
"Then—what's your name?"
"My name…?"
The moment X apologized—earnestly—and then asked, her prior anger and mockery vanished as if erased.
The shift was so fast it almost felt staged.
She raised one hand to her chest in a formal gesture.
"Farad," she said. "That is my name, X."
"I'm not Angela. And I'm not 'B.' I'm Farad—Sephirah of the Observation Team in the Inner Lobotomy Corporation."
She paused, her eyes flicking briefly toward the top of X's head—then away.
"You weren't supposed to meet me this early. But when you entered tonight, you triggered the Observation Team's sterilization protocol. I had to come personally."
Her gaze drifted, as if uneasy.
"But the moment I saw you, I understood why you triggered it."
"You mean this?"
Following her glance, X touched the top of his head.
The thorned crown was there again—returned the instant he entered the Inner world.
"Is it dangerous?"
"Not dangerous. At least, the E.G.O accessory that Abnormality gave you isn't dangerous."
"But I don't like it."
For reasons X couldn't quite name, he caught a faint edge in her words—
Something almost like jealousy.
As if something that should have belonged to her—or should have held a certain place—was now occupied by something else.
"You may think Abnormalities can be communicated with," Farad said, eyes returning to the crown. "You may think that, at times, they're more genuine… more reliable… than humans."
"That isn't entirely wrong, because Abnormalities are—"
She cut herself off.
Again.
Just like B—always stopping right at the core.
X's head throbbed. The deliberate withholding was infuriating, and it only fed his curiosity.
"In any case," Farad continued, "here's what you need to remember. Even if you chat with Abnormalities as if you're best friends, you must keep a line in your mind."
"Abnormalities are, fundamentally, beasts assembled from desire. At any moment they can turn feral and do something irreversible to you."
"That's all."
She stood.
"If you like interacting with them—and if those interactions strengthen you—then I have no reason to stop you."
"Feel free to interact. Here, you are not as fragile as the employees outside."
With that, Farad turned and walked toward the exit.
She did not give X the slightest opening for questions.
"Okay…"
X nodded reflexively.
"…Wait—no!"
Only as she reached the doorway did he realize he had a mountain of critical questions.
What was the Inner Lobotomy Corporation?
Why was B so focused on telling him about it?
What did the Observation Team "observe"?
"Farad! Wait!"
He rushed after her.
But when he pushed open the door into the corridor, Farad was gone—no footsteps, no retreating silhouette.
Only the echo of his own voice lingered in the empty hall.
-------
Enjoy 20% off our Patreon membership to celebrate Christmas. You can join starting today
My : pat*eon*com/RuneA
I, Herta's Fiancé, the Universe's Number One Male Fist (114 Chapter (Simulpub-Full) )
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Succubus in Sixth Street (400 Chapter)
Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (254 Chapter)
MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (140 Chapter)
BLEACH: Blade of Purification (158 Chapter)
Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (400 Chapter)
My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (140 Chapter)
The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp (172 Chapter)
Watching Yu-Gi-Oh! short videos is making the veteran players lose...(80 Chapter)
Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live (200 Chapter)
Zenless Zone Zero The Random Kamen Rider (200 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: It All Began With Me Being Stepped On by Arlecchino (120 Chapter)
Naruto: I Can Synthesize Summoning Beasts (96 Chapter)
Demon Slayer: The Great Swordsman's System, Disciple of Yoriichi (140 Chapter)
My Wife is a General, but I'm an Emanator of Abundance! (160 Chapter)
Type-Moon: My Nine-Fold Path (140 Chapter)
Uma Musume: They're Peeking at My Diary, and All of Tracen is Panickin (Ending)
The Wild History of Type-Moon world (70 Chapter)
Reborn in Conan, But I Refuse to Be the Bad Guy (80 Chapter)
Ruan Mei is begging me to go back? But there's no going back anymore (140 Chapter)
Just a Slacker at Tracen Academy (165 Chapter)
Survival in Blue Archive (70 Chapter)
Kimetsu no Yaiba: Doma Wasn't Hated Today, Either (100 Chapter)
The Vibe of This Chat Group is a Little Off (100 Chapter)
Heartbreak Simulator: I Broke Them and Made Them Cry (80 Chapter)
The Talentless Trainer Doesn't Want to Restart (80 Chapter)
A Journey Starting as a Quincy (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: The Master of Romance Obstruction (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: You Can't Be a Hero Without a Little Chemical Enhancement (40 Chapter)
Honkai Impact 3rd Your Boyfriend is Really Amazing (40 Chapter)
Warhammer 40K: My Fiancée, Fulgrim (180 Chapter)
Classroom of the Elite: Trying to Capture Me! (120 Chapter)
Genshin Impact My Named Senji Muramas (150 Chapter)
A Chef, the Vice-Captain of the Rocks Pirates? (160 Chapter)
Naruto : My Uchiha Girlfriend is Too Tsundere (130 Chapter)
Type-Moon: Reincarnated in a Lostbelt, I Became the Alien God (90 Chapter)
The Way These Horse Girls Look at Me Is Terrifying! (160 Chapter)
Naruto: Tsunade's Deskmate (130 Chapter)
I Just Want to Live a Normal (50 Chapter).
Genshin Impact: A Hundred Confessions? It's Just a System Task (70 Chapter)
OnePiece : Starting as a Veteran of the Roger Pirates (60 Chapter)
Uma Musume : I Have Special Horse Taming Techniques (180 Chapter)
Uma Musume : My other self is a Horse Girl (110 Chapter)
Jujutsu Kaisen : All Affection Stats Maxed Out (190 Chapter)
Satou Kazuma's Decision to Live by Swindling, Starting from Re:Zero (60 Chapter)
Bleach : Ichigo! Take Over the Soul Society (78 Chapter)
Crossover Anime: The Master of Plagiarism with a 'Love Obstacle (130 Chapter)
Arknights Succubus Nurturing System, But I'm a Quiet Office Worker (80 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: Using My Personas to Break the Hearts of Players (50 Chapter)
One Punch Man : i am King? (140 Chapter)
Genshin: My Stats Are Irresistible (50 Chapter)
Naruto: Master of Dream Fulfillment! (60 Chapter)
Why Are All My Chat Group Friends Spin-Off Characters? (100 Chapter)
Arknights : Batman System (30 Chapter)
Chat Group: Swapping Bodies with the Bad-Ending Herta from the Start (49 Chapter)
DanMachi: Why Did My Dungeon Turn Into a Soulslike Game? (55 Chapter)
Losing Money on Uma Musume...What Do You Mean You Actually Won? (72 Chapter)
I'm Gotou Hitori—Who Are You? (40 Chapter)
Were You Ever Even a Uma Musume? Stop Making Things Up! (51 Chapter)
Moon Project: A Full-Time Love Adventure for the Lobotomy Corporation (50 Chapter)
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it