Chapter 957: 167. Consciousness Transfer
"Alt?"
In Johnny's simulated "voice" came something rarely heard from him—a pause that was almost cautious, almost disbelieving.
Cautious.
Johnny could show that kind of attitude too?
Under Carl's gaze, Johnny seemed like a traveler who had crossed a desert for over fifty years, suddenly seeing an oasis in a mirage and not daring to approach, afraid it would shatter at a touch.
And in response to Johnny's call, Alt answered.
"Johnny."
Her voice remained calm, but beneath that calm, data churned visibly.
Her image was more stable, more "real" than Johnny's. She watched him, and those code-made eyes seemed to pierce through his data body and see straight into his deepest self.
"You're still the same," she said, with no telling whether there was sentiment in her tone. "You haven't changed at all."
"Changed?" Johnny gave a derisive laugh, but it came out terribly dry. "Changed into what? A ghost in this pile of code, like you?" His words were still barbed, but the thorns had softened, as though he simply could not put on that arrogant act in front of Alt.
In Johnny's stories, he had always been the domineering sort, whether he faced Rogue or Alt. Carl had indeed seen that in the way he interacted with Rogue, but now that he had met Alt, Johnny's behavior was different from what he had described.
Was it because he felt guilty toward Alt?
From what Carl had heard Johnny say, Alt had died physically because of him and had been forced to become a net ghost.
Alt ignored Johnny's seemingly sharp words, which were, in truth, as soft as could be for him.
"I looked for you for a long time, Johnny," Alt said. Her voice was like a warm rain, soothing all