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Chapter 4: Shinjuku Underground Labyrinth 5
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- 96
ArataHey. You notice that?
Player...
ArataListen up, you, or should I say, "sleuth." Something's been following us for the last while.
Player?!
ArataI don't know exactly what or who it is. A Digimon, or a ghost, or maybe it's her.
ArataShow yourself! Come on out!
Panicked VoiceOh my, I've been found out!
Panicked ManOh dear, oh dear, good day to you!
Panicked ManWhoa, easy there. Let's not be hasty. I'm nothing to be scared of, I assure you!
ArataWho are you? What are you doing here?
Panicked ManMy name is Akemi Suedou. I'm a researcher for Kamishiro Enterprises.
ArataYou're alone?
SuedouYes, I am alone.
SuedouI'm very much the only specialist capable of making these breakthroughs, though I'd still very much appreciate it if they gave me an assistant.
SuedouI tell you, it's a terrible company.
ArataWhy were you following us?
SuedouI hadn't thought there were humans who'd made it farther in than I had. I wanted to observe things for a bit.
SuedouDid I happen to unsettle you? There's no excuse for that. I apologize.
ArataWell, I guess it's no big deal.
ArataBut if you're in the mood to apologize, tell us what this is. We want to know.
SuedouOh dear. Put it that way, and I can hardly refuse.
SuedouI trust you won't go around blabbing about this to anyone?
ArataSure thing. Right, Player?
SuedouVery well, then. I shall tell you!
SuedouBut my tale comes out of my work process and is, at best, the result of inductive reasoning.
SuedouI caution you that it is not a final conclusion.
SuedouTo begin, let's discuss the space we are in.
SuedouThis space exists within a certain phenomenon. We're in the whirlpool of a special Digital Wave.
SuedouYou know what I'm referring to? A Digital Wave?
ArataIt's a flow of energy that carries digital information, correct?
SuedouBrilliant! Straight from the textbooks.
SuedouThis may still be the real world, but it's still a world made up of digital information.
SuedouTo put it in the very simplest of terms... The real world has transformed into cyberspace.
SuedouAs a result, everything here has become data. Even human thought.
ArataThat's quite the leap of logic, isn't it?
SuedouTee-hee. I won't deny that. My colleagues often deemed my ideas rather... heretical.
SuedouSome even compared me to Nikola Tesla.
SuedouWell, that's more than well and good, but I do try not to let the praise go to my head.
SuedouBut enough of that. Have a look at this.
SuedouThe irregularities of this internal structure should indicate right away that we're dealing with digitized data made from human memories.
SuedouThey merged with reality, giving rise to this bizarre and complex space. That's my theory, in essence.
SuedouNow, allow me to ask you a question.
SuedouHave you encountered an Eater yet?
ArataAn Eater? What is that?
SuedouThat's the term I've coined for these entities that devour and eat away at things.
ArataDo you mean that thing that looks like a black and white nautilus shell? That freaky program?
SuedouPrecisely!
SuedouTo have escaped an encounter with an Eater unscathed... You don't know how lucky you are!
SuedouWhen an Eater preys upon something, all its comprising data is eroded away, and becomes glitched.
ArataGlitched? What does that mean?
SuedouAll structure and algorithms become disordered data. Glitched, completely defective.
SuedouAnd once that data becomes glitched, it cannot be restored.
SuedouOh dear, how frightful that would be! How truly frightful indeed, indeed!
ArataSo you end up being eaten.
SuedouThat's the common theory, at any rate. I do not happen to agree, however.
ArataWhat?
SuedouThere must always be a way to restore data. It is illogical to assume otherwise.
SuedouNot in the metaphysical sense, mind. I'm talking about actual digital phenomena!
SuedouAnd in THAT case, bugs are a thing we are well aware of!
SuedouTherefore, I am pressing on with my Eater research!
ArataHey, mister, calm down!
ArataLet me get this straight. Kamishiro knows about these Eaters? That doesn't sound good.
SuedouThat goes without saying. That's why I'm pursuing this research.
ArataCrap! So they DID know about them! Those admin creeps have been stonewalling me.
SuedouWell, they are a business providing a service. There's lots that needs to be kept confidential.
SuedouI told you it's a terrible company, didn't I?
ArataThere's more I want to ask on that front.
SuedouYes, I see. If I can provide an answer, I shall. Ask away!
SuedouBut before that...
SuedouYou appear to be hackers, am I correct? You possess the Digimon Capture program.
SuedouAnd you have marvelous Digimon programs as well.
ArataWhat's it to you?
SuedouFrankly put, I want to fight off the Eater that is likely roaming around here somewhere.
ArataWhat? An Eater is here too?
SuedouDid you not see a strange apparition before? Perhaps you know it as the "Ghost of the Pale Boy"?
Player?!?!
SuedouThat is indicative of an Eater's presence. A harbinger, I suppose you could say.
SuedouAn Eater's existence both impacts the Digital Wave and serves to induce it.
SuedouThat's my thoughts on the matter, at any rate. That the Digital Wave itself might impacted by these Eaters.
SuedouIf so, we cut off the head, and the body should wither away!
SuedouTo back up this theory, I'd like to ask for your assistance, if I may.
ArataYou're a researcher, aren't you? You should have secret weapons at your disposal, right?
ArataA camera watch that can detect hidden objects, or a ball we can stuff captured creatures into?
SuedouThose are some oddly specific examples, there.
SuedouIt turns out that, at present, our best weapon against the Eaters are Digimon programs.
SuedouThose program are particularly bug-resistant. They can resist erosion with little difficulty.
Player...
ArataYeah, but... Mr. Suedou, it's not that I don't believe you...
ArataBut you want us to wipe that thing out, right? Well, that just happens to be our goal as well.
SuedouOh, excellent! Best of luck to you, then!
ArataWell, then. We're off for revenge.
ArataAnd let's find our way back to the regular world. The longer we're here, the weirder my head gets.
SuedouI shall await you here. If you have any questions, come and seek me out.
SuedouThe regular world, you say? And where exactly might that be, I wonder?
SuedouI am currently studying this strange phenomenon.
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