For some reason, listening to Sogo Doma complain, Ryunosuke Akasaka felt utterly exhausted.
Come to think of it, this was probably one of those strange rich-people quirks, right? He'd heard that Shuchiin Academy, the elite school Kaguya Shinomiya attended, even had a club dedicated to teaching students how to ride the train, supposedly so they could experience the life of ordinary people...
Compared to that, Sogo-san's little sister playing video games didn't seem all that unusual.
"Sogo-san, we can leave it at that, right? There are a few traces, but I'll clean them up. The Shinomiya Family won't suspect you, no matter what." Ryunosuke was still testing him. He'd seen the Shinomiya Family suffer several setbacks, and their textbook-worthy schemes to dig pits and bury their targets had been breathtaking...
But Sogo Doma clearly wasn't going to fall for the trick.
"Akasaka, that's enough. Keep this up and I'll shut down and disconnect from the internet." It was a simple threat.
Disconnect from the internet? There was no way he could do that. If he did, Umaru—his Imouto, now turned into a hamster—would suffocate him. Ryunosuke didn't need to test him any further for Sogo to know that.
"Tch~" Apparently dissatisfied that he hadn't gleaned anything useful, Ryunosuke lowered his head.
Sogo Doma: "??"
After a while, the Smart Maid popped out again.
"Lord Sogo, Lord Ryunosuke says he understands. You really are thorough, Sogo-san. Lord Ryunosuke wonders why you gave up your technological advantage back then to study at Totsuki... Lord Ryunosuke doesn't quite understand."
Sogo Doma: "..."
Ah, why? He glanced at his skill list.
Programming: LV6 (1/9999999) Try creating true life.
How was he supposed to explain that? So it wasn't just Ryunosuke who was baffled; even Keiryu Doma had flown into a rage back then.
A career like piano playing—something that could be cultivated, but didn't matter if it couldn't—was still something Keiryu could accept. The Doma Family wasn't a family of musicians, after all. They didn't need a pianist to bolster their status. Capital came first.
But programming? That was obviously a new and emerging industry. Get even a small piece of it, and you'd be rolling in money. And Sogo's programming skills were clearly ahead of their time—but he'd just given it all up. Keiryu couldn't get over his anger.
We were the first to master it. We should've claimed it for ourselves long ago. But because of Sogo's stubbornness—or rather, his helplessness—the Doma Family could only give up the fat piece of meat they'd already had in their grasp.
Sogo Doma vaguely remembered that he'd spent over a month in bed after that.
Then, while training at Kondo Dojo, he happened to find the dojo's members making hot pot. Unable to resist, Sogo Doma showed off his cooking skills.
Keiryu Doma and Umaru Doma, who arrived soon after, couldn't stop eating.
"Onii-chan, this is so yummy! You should eat more, too." Back then, his Imouto hadn't yet turned into a good-for-nothing and still knew to serve him food.
Looking at the meat piled up in his bowl, Sogo Doma ruffled his sister's hair. "Come on, you should eat more, too. This stuff's easy to make. If you want some again, Onii-chan will make it for you."
"Mm, mm!" The little hamster was still innocent.
But their conversation annoyed Keiryu Doma, who was sitting nearby. He was already furious that Sogo Doma had given up programming. Now he found out the kid had abandoned it to become a cook?
What the hell, that was completely neglecting his proper business!
Was a cook what the Doma Family lacked? Wait, there was also that contract with Totsuki.
Keiryu Doma immediately straightened his face. "Sogo, a man of the Doma Family shouldn't rely on his cooking to—"
Before he could finish, Sogo Doma waved a hand.
"Relax, old man. I'm not trying to win you over. I just want to make delicious food for Umaru. Umaru, do you like it?" By the end, he'd turned to ask Umaru.
"Mm, mm!" Young Umaru nodded as she stuffed food into her mouth.
Watching this, Keiryu Doma felt his head ache.
After a while, he slapped the table.
"Enough! If you like cooking so much, then go to Totsuki and study properly!"
Sogo Doma: "Huh?"
Looking back now, it seemed he'd been tricked at the time.
But if even Keiryu Doma couldn't get an answer out of him, then Ryunosuke Akasaka... Wake up. Come on, wake up. Time to stop daydreaming.
"That's personal information. I can't disclose it."
Fortunately, Ryunosuke didn't press him on the matter. He continued, "Sogo-san, what do you think it takes to create true intelligence?"
Sogo Doma: "@_@!"
Are you messing with me? You already have Shaqiang's source code and even created such an impressive Smart Maid, and now you're asking me what true intelligence is?
Ryunosuke Akasaka was quite earnest.
"I can't understand a lot of Shaqiang's code. And as for the Smart Maid... it can carry out most commands, but when it comes to double meanings, it's very likely to malfunction..."
"For example... 'Bring me two buns, and if you see anyone selling watermelons, buy a pound of watermelon.' The Smart Maid would carry that out as, 'Bring me two buns, and if you see anyone selling watermelons, buy a pound of buns.'"
Sogo Doma: "..."
Put that way, he understood. It was the difference between AND and OR. The human brain could tell the difference, but a program...
Still, if programs ever developed to the point where they could understand even that, it seemed pretty scary.
For safety's sake, Sogo Doma said with a serious expression, "I'm still researching that myself..."
"Sogo-san, if you're still researching it, could you tell me why Shaqiang doesn't make that kind of mistake?"
"Perhaps it's a miracle from the Creator." Sogo Doma was perfectly serious. He wasn't lying. He'd been reincarnated a second time with a cheat ability. It was a pain in the neck, but it was a miracle from the Creator.
Ryunosuke Akasaka: "..."
What the hell, a miracle from the Creator? If I hadn't seen you create Shaqiang with my own eyes, I would've almost believed you!
"I have another piece of information, also about you, Sogo-san. Would you trade me an explanation for it?"
Sogo Doma: "..."
This guy really had learned to play dirty.
But to trade an explanation of the intelligent program for that? Forget it—Sogo didn't dare bring it up now, and even if he did, he still wouldn't trade.
Seeing Sogo Doma about to close his laptop, Ryunosuke Akasaka gave in.
"Fine, I'll give you the information for free. There are a lot of bounties out for you on the black market right now. Apparently, anyone who can beat you up and take a photo can claim a bounty of up to five hundred million yen."
Sogo Doma's hand, poised to shut down the computer, paused. "H-huh? Five hundred million yen?"
What the hell! What did he do to make someone hate him that much? They were offering five hundred million yen just to beat him up? C-could the Shinomiya Family be behind this again?
As if he'd guessed what Sogo Doma was thinking, Ryunosuke Akasaka added, "By the way, the bounty wasn't put up by the Shinomiya Family..."
Sogo Doma: "..."
What the hell. Now there really were all sorts of miscreants trying to harm me.
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