Chapter 20 scene ten

"...That is to say, among the people who graduated from MAC, they have made outstanding achievements in Vitec without exception. I hope you can follow in the footsteps of these predecessors. Of course, I also believe that you can do it " The Minister of Personnel from Vitec is making a powerful speech.But the audience below us have tried our best to straighten our necks and listen carefully without dozing off.It's not a problem if you listen to one or two people in a good manner, but it's inevitable that you will be a little tired if you have three or four people in a row.Why do Japanese like to speak so much?Especially when it comes to this kind of occasion to inspire young people, the elderly people will flock to it, which is really annoying.

I turned my eyes to peek at the situation around me. A colleague in the front left was staggering, and the others were struggling to hold back their yawns.At the graduation ceremony of an ordinary school, there are many people dozing off, so it is not conspicuous if someone is sleeping, but there are only dozens of graduates in this room today.In order not to leave a bad impression on the HR department and affect future assignments, I tried my best not to let my eyelids droop. After everyone finished speaking, the certificate of completion was issued to everyone.This certificate is not as big as the ones received by ordinary schools, it is only the size of a postcard.After all, this is just a certificate to satisfy your sense of accomplishment, which is enough.

"Then the graduation ceremony ends here." The host ended the ceremony with dry words. After walking out of the venue, someone tapped me on the shoulder, and when I turned around, I saw Chihiko staring at me. "Heh," I said, "Where were you sitting? I thought you weren't here." I actually looked for him several times before the ceremony. "I was a little late and sat on the far end" "It's so rare that you guys are late for something like this" From a very early age, Chihiko, who has some inconvenient feet, always has more time for action than others.

"Because there's something wrong with the lab" "Laboratory? On a day like this?" "Yeah, that's right." After finishing speaking, he looked around and continued in a softer voice, "Would you like to go to the farewell party?" "I'm going" The Reality research team where Tomohiko and I belong to is going to hold a farewell party for us, and the venue will be at a nearby Italian restaurant. "What about after that?" he asked. "nothing planned" "Then" Chihiko licked his lips and said, "Can you stay with me for a while?"

"Can... what?" "I have something to say, it's a bit complicated." Zhiyan put his hand into his trouser pocket, scratched his nose with his left hand, "I want to talk to you alone, in a quieter place" Although Tomohiko's tone sounded casual, I felt a panic in my heart, it was definitely about Mayuko. "I see, so where are we going to talk about it?" "How about coming to my lab" "No problem" I nodded in agreement. The farewell party started at five o'clock in the afternoon. There were six graduates from the Reality Research Office, including the two of us.Gathered a party centered on these six people and drank many bottles of beer.

It took a while for Mayuko to appear. Although I really wanted to go to her immediately, many people around me wanted to talk to me, and I couldn't free myself for a long time.Finally, when I pretended to go to the toilet, I got rid of the crowd and approached her. When she saw me, Mayuko's body seemed to become a little inflexible, but instead of running away immediately, she stood where she was. "I thought you weren't coming," I said. "Of course I'm coming, after all it's a send-off for someone in care," she said, looking elsewhere. I nodded and squinted at her face, "It seems to be looking good."

"I'm healthy," she replied. Since the end of last year, not only have I not met her, we haven't even had a proper conversation.Of course, she was deliberately avoiding me, and the phone was set to answering machine mode. "I'll meet Tomohiko later today" I whispered.I could see that her cheeks were slightly tense, and after I noticed this, I continued, "I want to talk to you before this, can you spare me some time?" However, Mayuko did not answer, and suddenly put on a smiling face, passed by me, and walked to a man who was chatting with someone a little further away, "Yamamoto-kun, congratulations on your successful graduation, I will be much more lonely after you are gone." Talk to him loudly, but it seems a bit artificial.

"Hey, Tsuno-kun, what do you mean? Do you want to say that the person in charge of the banquet is not here?" The man named Yamamoto began to chat with her in a joking tone. I sighed and walked towards the toilet. The farewell party was held until seven o'clock.My instructor, Koyamauchi, invited me to have another drink. I told him that I had an appointment with someone urgently, but I politely declined. After walking out of the restaurant, in order not to let others find out, I took a long way back to MAC.When passing through the gate, the doorman asked me "forgot something?", "yes" I replied.

Finally, there were no overtime workers today. Although it was not too late, the entire research building was pitch black.I took the elevator alone, heard my footsteps, and walked to Zhiyan's research room, but he hadn't come yet. What is he going to say to me?I thought, could it be that they want me to give up Mayuko?For Zhi Yan who went to the United States alone, he must be most worried about her. It is impossible for him to be so dull that he is completely unaware of my feelings for her. However, I tried to consider other possibilities. To what extent has the relationship between Tomohiko and Mayuko developed?Can we still be called lovers now?

At this time, the sound of the elevator door opening was heard, and I turned my head to look at the end of the corridor, where Chihiko's slender body appeared, and he made footsteps with a rhythm different from ordinary people, walking towards me. "If you're here at night," Chihiko said while walking, "you'll feel that this place is in a different space from reality, and you'll be cut off from the world both in terms of time and space." "You mean to say that today you are finally freed from this world?" "How should I put it, we should never be able to escape from this world."

Zhiyan stood at the door of the research room, raised his right hand high, and took something from the silencer on the door. It was a key, which seemed to be glued on with scotch tape. He inserted the key into the lock, and the door clicked open. "Come in," he said, and he opened the door. Chihiko turned on the switch on the wall, and the laboratory was immediately illuminated by the white light of the fluorescent lamp.The desks and cabinets are tidied up, implying that the research has come to an end.The keyboards of several computers were covered. Compared with the coldness in the corridor, the air in the room still seems to have a trace of warmth, so I guess that Chihiko may have been here once today. "Two years is really a blink of an eye." Zhiyan sat lightly on the desk by the window, putting his hands in the pockets of his trousers. "That's right." I pulled up a chair and sat down facing him. "I always feel like it's over before I know it" "But the formal test has just begun, you have to work hard" "That's what I want to say, I never thought that you are going to work in the US head office" If Tomohiko didn't know that I gave up the opportunity to go to America, he should have shown a surprised expression, but his expression hardly changed, first lowered his head, then raised his head to look at me. "Chongshi, you seem to have rejected it." "Ok" Next, I must ask the reason, I guess, whether to make up a suitable reason to fool him, or tell him the truth about Mayuko's feelings, I hesitated. But Tomohiko didn't ask, "What a pity, I thought we could work together again." After finishing speaking, he nodded contentedly. It's not like him, I wondered, wouldn't he be curious about my reasons for refusing to go to America? "Chongshi, haven't you been in this room for a long time?" Zhiyan looked at the room and asked me. I nodded, "In this year, even if I want to come in, you won't allow me." "This is Sudou's order. Although I am a little unhappy, I can't disobey the instructor's rules." "The research content is top secret, right?" "Although I think it's okay to tell Takashi, but Sudou said that if you don't do this kind of thing, you can't keep it a secret." "Maybe he's right" "I'm so sorry for treating you like an outsider" "It's okay, it's over" "I feel more at ease when you say that, I thought you would hate me" "Hate you? Me? Stop kidding" I made a smiling face and exaggeratedly looked up to the sky and let out a long cry.But that was precisely to hide the ups and downs in my heart, because I did have a grudge against him for other reasons. "Actually, the reason I asked you to come here today is to tell you the research content that has been kept secret from you so far." "what……" I was a little surprised, because I was convinced that what he was going to say was about Mayuko. "But is this okay? No more secrets" "Of course, this is still a top secret, but I still want to reveal it to you first." "Heh" I didn't know what expression to make, and moved my head vaguely. "I believe Chongshi must also want to know what kind of research I am doing?" "Oh, yes" Chihiko nodded, and straightened his glasses again. "About going to the United States," he said, "I can understand Chongshi's refusal, and there's nothing I can do about it. If we change the situation, I think I will also refuse." I looked at Chongshi, what is he talking about?It seems that it is not Mayuko. "What's the meaning?" "I mean" Zhiyan pushed his glasses again, which is his expression when he is flustered. "Our ideal is to work in the United States after our research is recognized" After listening to this sentence, I still didn't understand what he was trying to express, and then Chihiko added. "If it were me, I would definitely not want to go to the United States after knowing that I am assisting others." This sentence finally made me understand his original intention. Tomohiko believed that the reason why I gave up going to the United States was because I learned that I was a supporting role. Immediately, various thoughts were going on in my mind: If he thinks so, let him go, at least the matter can be settled without mentioning Mayuko, but the words that came out of my mouth are completely contrary to this kind of thinking. "That's right, I was just your assistant. I was so happy when I learned that I was sent to the United States. Looking back, I'm so stupid." Even though I know my words are disgusting, I just can't stop. Chihiro shook his head slightly. "That's not the case. Although it's an assistant, it's also very important. It must be someone who is appreciated by Vitec. In short, the people who want to assist me in my research don't have enough strength." "It seems to be a fairly large-scale study." "Well, I'm confident, this research can fundamentally subvert the discipline of Reality" Looking at Zhiyan's confident expression, I felt a little incredible.This man used to be a person who never boasted and often underestimated himself. For my silence, Chihiko seemed to understand other meanings, and said these words quickly: "Oh, of course, Chongshi's research is also very outstanding, and it is also a very remarkable project." "Okay, don't comfort me anymore." I tilted my mouth, and a trace of disgust began to sprout in my heart. "I really think so. It just so happens that my research has been recognized this time, and Chongshi's research will also be well received in the future. Because down-to-earth is the foundation of success" down to earth?my research?Obviously he is doing the most cutting-edge research! Although I realized that my expression was twisted unnaturally, Chihiko didn't seem to notice it at all, and immediately said: "When I arrive at the head office in Los Angeles, I will recommend Chongshi's research to the people there as soon as possible, so that I can ask them to transfer Chongshi to the United States. How about it? Isn't this a good idea?" "You don't have to do that." I shook my head. "Why? Isn't it our dream to go to the US head office one day?" "That's what I said, but I want to fight for it with my own ability" "A person's ability is always limited, well, leave this to me. I promise that I will send Chongshi to the United States to conduct my own research in the near future. If I don't work as an assistant, I won't Did it hurt your pride?" "Pride?" "Isn't it?" Zhiyan said, his tone was a little stiff, "You don't want to go to the United States as my assistant, is that right? So I made a suggestion that doesn't hurt your self-esteem." An unhappiness similar to nausea surged up from his throat, and the control of emotional fluctuations fell short in the end. "No" I said, "It's not what you think" "Not what I thought?" "It has nothing to do with self-esteem, this kind of thing doesn't matter, that's not why I refuse to go to America" "What's the reason?" Chihiko stood up from the desk and stared straight at me. "What other reason could there be?" "You can't guess at all?" I asked him. "I can't guess at all," Zhiyan replied, his eyes became serious. I tried to get the control in my heart to work again, but the switch flicked off. "It's because of Mayuko" "Mayuko?" Tomohiko frowned, "What does it have to do with her?" I stared at Zhiyan's expression intently, what does it have to do with her, he said that, obviously noticed my intention. "I love her" After hearing my words, Zhiyan put away all the smiles on his face, and at that moment, I felt a breeze of chilly air.The two of us looked at each other in silence, and there was the sound of cars speeding in the distance. Zhiyan moved his Adam's apple, then opened his mouth. "What do you mean by that?" The voice was hoarse. "It's not interesting, I like Mayuko, that's why I decided not to go to the United States." Although my mouth was dry for a while, I continued, "You didn't notice my feelings for her, did you?" Zhiyan slowly shook his head, staggered back a few steps, and put his hands on the desk. "I don't know," he said, "I don't know anything about it." "nonsense" "I'm not talking nonsense, how could... Chongshi treat Mayuko... I don't believe it" I should be the one who doesn't believe it, it's impossible for Chihiko to be unaware. "That's what happened anyway," I said. Zhiyan propped it up with one hand, and turned his gaze to the window, but he couldn't see anything there, and the blackout curtain was tightly drawn. "I don't understand" he finally spoke, as if talking to himself, "Even so, Chongshi gave up the opportunity to go to the United States for this reason, I don't understand at all. Because she...Mayuko, she..." He Turn your head around, move like a puppet, "Mayuko is mine" "I want to get her no matter what, so I want to do it while you and her are in different places, and I want to add" I took a breath and let it out slowly, and then said, "She doesn't belong to Anyone, not yours" "She's mine," Chihiko whispered, but his voice was sharp, "She only belongs to me." "no!" "Even if Chongshi you have such feelings for her." Chihiko turned around again, and from the stiff shoulder movements, it can be seen that he is out of order, "Mayuko will not obey you, she only belongs to me, absolutely, 100% He swallowed, "She must only love me, and she will never, never be with you" He blushed, and I watched him stand up, for sitting still in the chair had become an ordeal. "It is true that she is not opening up to me now" "You see" "But it's because of you" "What did you say?" "She didn't want you to be hurt, she didn't want you to suffer the double blow of losing a friend and a lover at the same time, that's why she refused to see me" Chihiko clenched his hands into fists, and the eyes inside his glasses glared at me. "Do you want to say that Mayuko really likes you?" I nodded my jaw, "I have no doubts about it" "I don't believe it, there is no basis for such a conclusion" "I have a basis," I said quietly. Zhiyan seemed to realize something, opened his eyes wide, and after blinking a few times in a row, raised his right fist from his chest, trembling uncontrollably. "You... have slept with her?" Zhiyan asked in a barely audible voice. After some hesitation, I replied, "Yes" It may be that the teeth are clenched, and the flesh of Zhiyan's jaw keeps twitching. "You lied to me" "It's true, at the end of last year" "last year……" Zhiyan opened his mouth halfway, breathing rapidly, and his face turned pale. He looked around with dull eyes, and picked up the phone from the table.Then he took out a note from his pocket and began to dial the number recorded on it. "Who are you calling?" But Tomohiko didn't answer.After a while, it seemed that the phone was connected, and he said first, "There is a woman named Tsuno over there, can you call me?" It looks like a coffee shop somewhere. After waiting for a while, Chihiko spoke into the microphone again. "Right now, Chongshi and I are in the research room. I hope you come over immediately, right now, I have something important to tell you" After hanging up the phone, Tomohiko said to me without even looking at me, "She's at a nearby coffee shop, ten minutes is enough to come over." "Where did you make an appointment to meet?" "yes" "What did you call her here for?" "I want to hear her sincere words." After finishing speaking, Zhiyan sat down on the chair, "Chongshi, you should also want to hear it, right?" I remained silent and sat down on a chair a little further away from him. I'm not at all confident that I did the right thing in confessing to Tomohiko that I like Mayuko.Because Zhiyan didn't notice this, it was beyond my expectation.But I still tried to convince myself: this must be said one day. "Let's continue what we said just now," Zhiyan said again, "How does Chongshi feel?" "What did you say just now?" "It's the fact that I was deprived of my lover and best friend. What do you think?" I let out a long sigh. "I feel helpless, I myself have been tortured, but in the end I still can't give up on Mayuko" "yes……" Then I kept my mouth shut, and I closed my mouth too, feeling a coldness in the air. After a while, Zhiyan finally opened his mouth, "I" I turned my head to him. Zhiyan lowered his head and continued, "I haven't slept with her even once..." I lowered my gaze and remained silent. There was a sound of footsteps getting closer in the corridor, and I couldn't help but think of Mayuko wearing high heels.Although it felt like a long time had passed, when he looked at his watch, it was only 12 minutes since Chihiko put down the phone. The door opened silently, and Mayuko walked in.Her eyes were terrified, as if she already knew the general content of our conversation. "I'm sorry for asking you to come here," Chihiko said. "What's the matter?" Mayuko looked at our faces one by one. "I have something to ask you about you and Chongshi" Mayuko looked at me with an angry and sad expression. "Chongshi told me everything, I want to hear your true heart," Zhiyan said, "Who do you like? Is it me, or Chongshi?" Mayuko stood stiffly, gripping the strap of her handbag tightly.The pupils are dark and erratic. "This kind of thing..." she said painfully, "I don't want to talk about this kind of thing" At this moment, looking at her is getting more and more uncomfortable, I can only turn my face to Chihiko, he should have realized from Mayuko's words just now that she is no longer his lover. "Really... I don't want to say it" Zhiyan's eyes became gloomy, and his lips were tilted to one side at that moment, as if a smile appeared.I don't know if it's a sarcastic smile or a self-deprecating smile, but with this expression, he stood up with a huff, and then walked forward. "Where are you going?" I asked him. Chihiko stopped and looked back at me. "This is the end of the matter, does it still matter to you where I go?" I don't know how to answer. "Leave me alone for a short while, we'll talk later," Chihiko said, disappearing into the inner laboratory. I stared blankly at the closed door, and there was a 'hum' sound from inside, which was the sound of a cooling fan. "Why did it become like this?" There was a voice behind me, and when I looked back, Mayuko was staring at me, her eyes were already red, and there were tears on her cheeks. "Why do you destroy such an important thing so easily? Didn't I beg you not to do something irreparable? I don't understand, I don't know what you are thinking at all" "I like you, no matter what. Chihiko is also very important, but you can't have your cake and eat it too. I don't think it can be done even if I sacrifice my friendship with him. I have already done all of this. Well mentally prepared” "I..." Mayuko almost yelled, and then took two or three deep breaths to calm down, "After today, I plan to never see you both again." "why?" "Because this is the best solution, no matter who I choose, the three of us will not be happy" "If you choose me, I can quit my job at Vitec so that I can never see Zhiyan again" Mayuko kept shaking her head. "You don't seem to understand anything, that's how misfortune happens to everyone. Haven't you considered how he'll feel when you put him out of your mind like this?" Her words were like a sharp arrow piercing my chest, I was speechless and could only stare at her lips. "You must have noticed it yourself," she said calmly, "Sacrificing your friendship with him, you still can't do it in the end, right?" I lowered my head, unfortunately, I didn't want to refute her words, even though I thought 'no such thing' in my heart, I still felt a hesitation in my heart and didn't say it out. Am I doing something wrong?This thought began to reverberate in my heart. Click, there was a sound behind, and the door of the laboratory opened.Tomohiko, who took off his coat, turned his pale face to me. "Chongshi, come here for a while" "Is it just me?" "Well, I want to talk to the two of you alone" I glanced at Mayuko and entered the laboratory. The room is full of experimental instruments, and there are many analysis devices lined up against the wall, and the coaxial optical cables extending from these devices spread on the ground like a large group of 'Indian' snakes.In the center of the room was a chair, like the ones that patients sit in in a dentist's office, which seemed to be the subject's seat. "I'm here to fulfill the promise I made just now," said Tomohiko, "tell you the content of the research" "It doesn't matter anymore." I shook my head, "There are more important things than this—" "It's okay if you don't listen." Zhiyan interrupted me, "If you don't listen, the conversation can't continue. Anyway, listen to me first." "but……" "Please." Zhiyan looked at me with serious eyes, "Listen to me" I crossed my arms and looked around the lab again.I don't know what kind of mood Chihiko is in right now. "Okay, I'll listen." I spread out the old stool against the wall and sat down. Chihiko nodded, and sat down on the subject's chair. "I remember I mentioned it to you a long time ago. The cause was a small incident. At that time, the subject of the experiment - Shinozaki's memory had some deviations. I misremembered the teacher in elementary school from the actual middle-aged man. became a young woman" Indeed, he had said this before, and I nodded silently. "Why did this happen? The reason is the first step of this research. I found the answer soon, and it was surprisingly simple after I knew it." Zhiyan raised his legs and clasped his hands on his knees. "Deep in the consciousness, or the vain thoughts that arise from the wishes of the subconscious mind, can have an impact on memory" "Fantasy versus memory?" "It's not special, everyone has experienced it in daily life. For example, unpleasant memories are forgotten after a long time, right? In hindsight, you will think that they are also very good memories. In fact, we will put My own memory is unconsciously processed into a form that I can easily accept, and most of the pain at that time will be lost in my memory.” "There is also a theory that the brain is affected by anesthesia" "I have the same feeling. Brain anesthetics are closely related to memory tampering. Let me give another example. Chongshi should have had this experience. When conveying a message to someone, he will slightly exaggerate the content according to his own understanding." "I can't say I haven't experienced it before." I thought about it and replied. "Right? I'm the same. For example, I was targeted by bad boys on the street and robbed of money. When I mentioned it to someone later, in fact, there were only two people on the other side, but you would say it was five people. In the future I will try my best not to contradict this point.” There was indeed such a thing, I thought about it while listening to Tomohiko's words. "You will tell this to many people, and in the process of retelling it many times, the scene in your mind will gradually take shape. Of course, in that scene, the opponents are five people, and the story becomes more and more organized. When I think about this incident after a period of time, what emerges in my brain is no longer the actual fact, but a picture I made up later. However, I mistake it for a 'real memory', Answered confidently, 'Delinquent boys are five people!' and didn't feel like I was lying" "Is it just a tampering of memory...?" "A certain book once wrote: Among the criminals who were arrested by the police but insisted that they were innocent, there were not a small number of people who gradually developed this illusion. Although they actually committed a crime, in the process of repeatedly making false statements , and gradually believed it to be true.” "I've heard about it" "Perhaps these can all be explained as the instinct of human self-defense, and then I think about how to use this instinct. How to create this effect through artificial means. During this year, I have been doing research, exactly this" Chihiko stood up and handed me a stack of papers, which was a bound report. I skimmed it and no, 'skimmed' is not the right word, I was pretty shocked by what was written there. "That's also written above, as long as there is a picture that can constitute a fuse." Zhiyan said, "The brain function model used by the person involved in the brain imaging will record this picture, and then input this content into the memory field. To Here, the basic steps are completed" "After that, it's up to you to deal with it independently...?" "I will unconsciously remove the flaws in the memory and gradually change it into a more self-explanatory form. Because the evolution of this memory is serial, it is called the domino effect" "I'm really surprised." I raised my head, which was looking down at the report, "It's amazing." "It was just luck," said Tomohiko. My eyes fell on the report again, the first report on the discovery and application of the domino effect—— It was by no means lucky, I thought, if the same situation had been in front of me, I would not have made this discovery, Tomohiko Miwa is a genius. "I finally know why Vitec chose you," I said, "the absolute first choice" "I am very happy to be praised so much by you" "This is true" I put the report on the instrument aside, feeling extremely heavy in my body, and the frustration made me lose all strength. "Chongshi" Zhiyan said, "Do you want to experience this domino effect experiment?" I looked at Zhiyan, not knowing the purpose of his words. "Treat me as a test subject" "What did you say?" "I'm not joking." Zhiyan showed a sense of urgency on his face, "I hope to change my memory." "Chihiko!" "That's why I explained the device to you." He took off his glasses and put them on the side shelf. "I want to forget about Mayuko. She was not my lover from the beginning. I want to make the memory like that. Otherwise it can't be done." survived as before" "So that's what it means..." "Hey, Chongshi, please, I think you will help me" I can't help but feel that this is indeed a good solution. If erasing Mayuko's memory is for his sake, why not do it? "Aren't you going to ask Mayuko for advice?" "I hope you can explain her side, because I couldn't do it at that time" "But……" "Please," Zhiyan said, looking at me with pleading eyes, "Memory sometimes binds people, and it is memory that is tormenting me now. I hope you can help me eliminate it." He bowed his head and clasped his hands together. "Don't do this," I said, "you don't need to do this" "Then you agree to my request?" I pressed the corners of my eyes and thought about it.Although there are many lines in my mind, such as "abandoning memory is a despicable act", "don't try to escape from reality", but I don't want to say it at all, because there are too many hypocritical languages ​​in the world. "Okay, I do" I said hesitantly, "but can I do it?" "Of course, it's simpler than a game console" Tomohiko took out a handwritten operation manual and explained the steps to me.This is really not difficult, the important thing is to grasp the timing. After explaining it, Zhiyan finished setting up all the equipment and sat down on the chair of the subject in the middle.First, the body is fixed with straps, and a mesh helmet full of electrodes called a 'brain mask' is worn on top of the head.Then the head leans against the back of the chair and is also secured with straps. "Okay" he gestured to me. I turned on the first switch, and then a huge barrel-shaped helmet slowly fell from above, covering Chihiko's chest all the way.The brain mask will sense the activity of the brain and control its operation through the magnetic force of the helmet.This helmet also has the effect of blocking external electromagnetic waves. "Part one, verification," I said, and began to check whether each machine was working normally.There seems to be no problem. "Verification ended, no abnormality" "Okay, let's get started," Tomohiko said. "Have you selected the memory as the fuse?" "Well?" Tomohiko thought for a while, and then said, "Let's start from the time I first introduced Mayuko to Takashi, okay?" "Okay" I replied curtly, "That's the beginning" "Ok" I first issued a command to output signals from the brain, and then different triadic images appeared on the screens of the four computer screens. "Element one" I looked at the operation manual and started to ask, "Where is the location?" "...a coffee shop, a coffee shop in Shinjuku. I forgot the name of the shop." Tomohiko in the helmet replied. There was no particular change in the picture on the screen, so I moved on to the next question. "Element two, when is that?" "One year ago, in the spring after one year in MAC, in March" "Element three, what are you doing there?" "Meet Takashi... Tsuruga Takashi" "Element four, why meet?" "To introduce him as a friend, to introduce Tsuno Mayuko to Tsuruga Takashi..." At this time, the screens of the four computers changed drastically, one of them lost its three-dimensionality and became a flat graphic, and the words 'ERROR' appeared. "Something went wrong, Tomohiko!" I said. Chihiko immediately sighed, "Start again from the beginning" "Got it" I zeroed all devices. The reason for the error is obviously the word 'friend' used by Tomohiko. The scene where Mayuko is introduced as a friend cannot be clearly imaged. The second time, an error occurred in the same place, because this part is different from the facts, so it is not surprising. "It's not going well," Chihiko said anxiously. "Would you like to rest for a while?" "No, go ahead—hey, Chongshi" "What's wrong?" "Are there really friendships between opposite sexes?" I was taken aback and looked back at Zhiyan, but I couldn't see his face clearly because of the helmet. Is it stuck at this point?It suddenly dawned on me, that's why I couldn't image clearly. "Hey, what do you think?" he asked again. It's a hard question to answer, and I don't have a right answer, and people have been arguing about it since a long time ago. Soon I realized that what I have to do now is not to solve this question, but to dispel Zhiyan's doubts. "Even if you like each other, sometimes you can remain friends" I replied. "What's the meaning?" "As long as you hide your sincerity, it will not develop into a relationship other than friends, at least in form" "Really..." Chihiko slapped the armrest of the chair with the fingers of his right hand, "As long as I don't confess my love to her, I can continue our friendship? Just on the surface?" “This kind of thinking is also very common” "No, I already know it well, and I seem to be able to imagine it, let's do it one last time" After Chihiko finished speaking, I repeated the steps from the beginning.Restore all computer data to their initial values. However, there was a strange wave in my heart, and I felt blocked.Staying friends without expressing your intentions?Isn't this what I should have done myself?If I had done this a year ago, I wouldn't have ended up in this situation. And in order to get rid of the current situation, I made a request to Chihiko that I couldn't do, obviously I am the one who knows best how much pain I have to endure. "Element one, where is the location?" However, I did not open my mouth to stop the attempt. Zhiyan's third attempt to make a memory tampering fuse finally succeeded, and his thoughts at that time were also recorded in the computer.After that, just input it into his memory center and locate it. "I want to ask you something," I said, "after this experiment, you will encounter some contradictions with the beginning memory, and you will not know what you are doing here, so what should you do?" "Oh, you said that" He sounded like he had thought about it, "After the end, he will probably fall into a state of slight amnesia. Then he will slowly start to understand the situation and change it into the memory that is most suitable for him. How exactly? I can’t imagine the memory of it now, so Chongshi, you just need to be fully consistent with my caliber.” Doing so is tantamount to gambling. "What about Mayuko? She doesn't know that you changed your memory!" "You can explain the situation to her later." "But--" “对了”智彦打断了我，“我希望你收下一样东西，你看到我挂在那椅子的上衣了吧？” "Ok" 那是一件制作精良的深蓝色西服。 “那衣服的内袋里应该有一个相架” 我拿了出来，是一个又薄又小巧的相架，里面放着麻由子的独照。她身穿黑色T恤和休闲裤，还戴着红色耳环。 “那是在迪斯尼乐园拍的，是我最中意的一张照片” “你要把这个给我？” “我希望你收下，我想给你应该没问题” 真是一个令人为难的要求，只要我还拿着这张照片，我的自责感就不会消停。但这可能是智彦最低限度的报复了吧。 “好吧，我收下” “这个太旧了，你把他换到一个新的相架里去吧” 这话挺像思维细腻的智彦说出来的，我明白了，我回答。 “那接下来我们开始吧”智彦说，“方法你知道吧？” “嗯，没问题”其实我要做的，只是敲几个电脑键盘而已，剩下的都是机器的活儿。 “好了，开始吧” “那个，智彦……真的没问题吧？” “没关系”他静静地说着，“真的没关系” "So" “嗯，开始吧” 我闭上眼睛，作了个深呼吸，然后睁眼按下了键盘。 四个电脑屏幕一起动了起来。 作为导火索的记忆影像输入只需要一分钟，是该说'花了一分钟'呢，还是'一分钟完成'，我完全不知道。反正这一分钟我都花在凝望智彦给我的这张照片上了。照片中的麻由子，确实美丽动人，熠熠生辉。 我不认为自己现在的行径是正确的，甚至还感到有些卑鄙。可还有其他的解决办法吗？理想言论或冠冕堂皇的话无法解决任何问题。 然而，目睹到智彦做出的这个悲怆决意时，一个念头开始在我脑海里孕育成形。那就是，我也应该忘记麻由子。这样就形成赢家一个都没有，每个人都是输家的局面。 这个主意并不坏，我认真地考虑了一下。然后摇摇头，无法否认自己有种临阵脱逃的心情。 智彦，你家伙太强了——我抬起头，自言自语道。 就在那时，我发现情况有些异常，四个画面中的两个显示着脑功能不正常，而剩下的两个则出现了错误的字样。 我看了看手表，已经过去了三分多钟了。我慌张地翻着操作手册，查找起发生异常时的对应来。可是，哪里都没有写遇到当前这种情况该如何应对的方法。 我打开门高声呼喊，“麻-由-子！” 只见麻由子正坐在凳子上发呆，眼神飘忽不定。 “你快来，出大事了！” 她倒吸口气，快步走了进来，“怎么啦？” 我不知该如何用语言解释，只得让她亲眼目睹实验室里发生的事，当她看见坐在实验者用椅上的智彦时，整个人僵住了。 “为什么他会……” “详情我待会儿跟你说，先不说这个，他的脑机能有点奇怪” 麻由子看了看屏幕，不由瞪大了眼睛，“这个是……” "What's wrong?" “智彦给我看过和这类似的图像，这个是睡眠状态，而且永远不会醒来” “什么……那我们该怎么办？” “不知道，以前我们是在模拟状态下做的” “没办法？……”我飞快地打着键盘，操作手册上记录了紧急中止的办法。 系统停了下来，罩在智彦头部的头盔也升了起来，但他还是双眼紧闭、毫无表情。 我飞奔过去把固定住他身体的皮带解开，然后呼喊道： “智彦，智彦！快回答我！” 但他没有任何反应，身体像人偶一样摇晃着，一点没有劲儿。 “智彦，你为什么要这样……” 我顿时明白了一切。 这件事完全在智彦的预料之中。失去了恋人，又被至友背叛之后，他选择了长眠不醒。永远处于睡眠，不就是死亡么？尽管有呼吸，脑电波也没停止，但这和死完全没有分别。 我一个趔趄，靠到了身后的装置上，于是放在上面那副智彦的眼镜掉在了地上。我呆呆地望着它，然后捡了起来，一块镜片跌碎了。 悔恨和悲伤如同海啸般潮涌，并以惊人的速度袭来。 “我杀了智彦！！” 这是从内心深处迸发出的呐喊声。 -------------------------------- Note: