Chapter 169
“Yes. That woman is gone, so please get up now. I’m embarrassed for you.”
[Uahahahaha, this is embarrassing! To always be receiving help from the patron!]
Embarrassing my ass. I pressed my hand to my forehead as I looked at the godfather, who was laughing heartily as if he had no sense of shame while everyone around us stared.
“Since I helped you, why don’t you say something?”
[About what?]
“Why is it that every time I see you, you’re suffering at the hands of an Ever? Last time your arm got stuck, and this time you got beaten with coral… Are you perhaps on some Female Machine Community Blacklist?”
Did he commit some sex crime or something? If that were the case, the unconventional Rogue Monk side of him I’d seen so far would make sense.
Hmm…
My stomach churned as I imagined the insidious Machine Monk getting caught groping the smooth metallic buttocks under the skirts of female robots.
Is this the 22nd century?
[No, it is absolutely nothing like that!]
At my suspicious glare, the godfather jumped up and waved his hand.
[It is merely a coincidence. Among our race, there are quite a few who distrust Machine Buddhism.]
Machine Buddhism. It was another name for Techno Buddhism.
By 'race', he must be referring to the self-aware machines, the ravers.
Anyway, isn’t Techno Buddhism a religion for machines?
But there are actually many among the ravers who hate Techno Buddhism?
I don’t quite understand.
“Why is that?”
When I asked point-blank, the godfather trailed off.
[First, there is a mismatch in ideology and disposition, and above all, there is the original sin committed by our religion… Even if we are suddenly called cultists, we have no way to argue back.]
“Original sin?”
It was a rather gloomy tone that didn’t match his demeanor up until now.
[It is quite a depressing story to confess in such a glamorous banquet hall, so if you are truly curious, I will tell you later.]
I was curious, but it would be rude to pry further when he put it like that. I nodded and asked.
“Understood. By the way, have you seen Sey?”
[Huh? Was he not traveling with the patron?]
“So you haven’t seen him.”
Sey and the godfather had disappeared around the same time, so I thought he might know where they went, but as expected, this Derelict Monk was of no help.
And where did Sey really go?
He was someone who could do anything well on his own, so I wasn’t too worried about him going missing, but I felt a little hurt.
Didn’t he come with me to help me?
Because he disappeared in the middle, I had to handle Young Lady Schneider, Ms. Kim, the Isiho Chairman, and even clean up after this Shaolin Derelict Monk here… all by myself.
I was even in a situation where I might soon have to face the final boss, Eugene Schneider.
It’s reassuring to be with someone I trust, my ass. How could he just abandon me like this! I take back thanking him for coming with me.
“What should I do?”
What should I do now? I didn’t really know.
The super luxury hotel banquet was a feast for the eyes and mouth at first, but now it was starting to feel like wearing clothes that didn’t fit.
I was tired and my head was a mess, so if it were up to me, I’d just want to leave right now.
But I couldn’t do that, since Sey was nowhere to be seen, and there was no word from Eugene Schneider, who had invited me here.
[What is the matter? You look as though you have some anguish.]
As I was rubbing my throbbing temple, a large chrome head with a red dot on its forehead suddenly popped out from the side.
That startled me.
“It’s nothing. Just…”
I reflexively answered that it was nothing, but I was left speechless when I saw his bright mechanical eyes that looked like vermilion pearls.
“…Actually, I do have a bit of a worry.”
Right. You never know.
Even at his worst, he’s still a monk, isn’t he?
The godfather might surprisingly turn out to be a good counselor. He might even offer a solution that could instantly untangle this twisted situation.
“So here’s what happened.”
Figuring I had Nothing to Lose, I confided my worries to the godfather.
Of course, I couldn’t tell him everything exactly as it was.
Just the reason alone why I was worried about Eugene Schneider involved highly sensitive issues like the “Cyberdive function of the microchip that caused the activation of the Schneider Family heirloom Kokuyō Otto”.
Because of that, I had to adapt and condense the story appropriately. The same went for the secret matter regarding El Valentine.
[Oho, are you saying the patron saved Schneider’s precious daughter?]
“Saying I saved her is a bit much; I should say I gave her some help.”
[You uttered such vulgar profanity about the company right in front of Mr. Isiho? If I had not known better, I would have thought the patron was joking with me.]
“I wish it were a joke too.”
[Uhaha, as this Monk sees it, it seems fortunate that you did not meet your end right then and there.]
“…To explain it briefly, that’s how I ended up here.”
[Oho, I see. I was wondering why Mr. Schneider had invited the patron.]
I was a little surprised.
Surprisingly, the godfather was a good conversationalist.
Limited to when he was earnestly listening to the other person’s story, rather than when he was excitedly blabbering on his own, that is.
Unlike most 22nd century people I had met, he had a proper listening stance to listen to the other person’s words and chime in appropriately.
He had only shown his Derelict Monk side so far, but I guess a monk is still a monk.
I did worry if I was pouring my heart out too deeply to someone hired by Eugene Schneider, but for some reason, I had a vague intuition, or rather a conviction, that the story I just told wouldn’t leak out.
He was a truly suspicious godfather, but it always seemed like the weird ones were actually more trustworthy in this regard.
Dragon President was like that, and the Troublemaker Detective and Ms. Kim were the same.
“So that’s why I’m like this right now. I’m anxious, at a loss, and there are many things I don’t understand. I wish I could at least see the possible choices of what I should do, like in a game.”
It wasn’t something a person suffering after falling into a game world should say, but, anyway, that was how I felt.
The godfather fingered his thick prayer beads as if in thought, then spoke.
[Life is a sea of suffering and the World is a burning house, but the only one who can save you in Hell is yourself. Dwell on your own island, rely on yourself, rely on the Dharma…]
What is he saying?
As I blinked my eyes blankly, the godfather brushed off his robe once and spoke.
[There are such words in the scriptures. Truly, oneself is one’s own refuge…Only oneself can do what is for oneself.]
“Uh, yes?”
[I say this because it seems the patron is looking for a solution from others rather than himself. How can you make others your refuge? The Buddha spoke these words right before his nirvana.]
I had been slightly expectant, but hearing that explanation made me feel a bit sour.
It was because it seemed to boil down to a cliché conclusion like “the answer to the problem is within me,” the kind you’d find in a self-help book.
It sounded fancy, but didn’t it just mean, in the end, 'It’s your problem, so figure it out yourself'?
What I wanted wasn’t some head-in-the-clouds nonsense, but practical advice.
It was unreasonable to expect a grand solution from a monk I hardly knew in the first place, but…
[If your mind is complicated, dividing it is also a method. Think of it as making a list of things to do. What is the priority?]
My disappointment was brief; when the Machine Monk asked that, an answer popped out immediately.
“It would have to be Eugene Schneider… I guess.”
That was the reason I was here in the first place. The urgent problem tormenting me was, of course, the Iron-faced Family Head Eugene Schneider and the proposal he would offer me.
[Then you just need to resolve that matter first, and as this Monk sees it, the patron should be more than capable of handling it.]
“Yes?”
And that was it! No further explanation.
I let out a hollow laugh, dumbfounded by the sight of the Derelict Monk nodding his head in satisfaction.
“No, it’s not that simple a problem.”
[Why is it not?]
He tilted his head as if he genuinely didn’t know.
I take back what I said about him being a good conversationalist. He’s incredibly frustrating, this Iron Head Monk!
“No, I mean, the Schneider Family Head has to call me for us to meet or not…”
[If the Family Head does not call you until the very end, will the patron also not go find him until the event closes? Then you will have to shoulder the same problem forever.]
Uh.
Hearing those words, I realized my mistake.
I was slowly starting to understand what the Machine Monk was trying to say.
[If there is what needs to be done, do it. Do it with all your might. Excuses are useless… Did I not just tell you not to seek solutions from others?]
My god. I’m gradually being persuaded.
Come to think of it, he was right. Alexandra Amadeus Schneider, Kimberly Louise Lutes, Karin Isiho, and even Eugene Schneider…
Ever since arriving at The Consortium Club, rather than solving problems myself, I had only been dragged around by others.
I shouldn’t do that. If I Get Caught Up with others, things will only continue to get complicated and twisted.
A passive attitude solves nothing.
I have to do it.
Instead of digging myself into a hole because Sey wasn’t helping me, I had to step up since it was my problem.
“I’ve decided.”
[What is it?]
“I will go find Eugene Schneider myself.”
My heart pounded. As I made that decision and spoke, for some reason, confidence surged up like a flame. I felt like I could do anything.
[As expected! I believed in you!]
“Thank you for your help! It’s all thanks to you!”
From now on, I decide my own life!
After fully hitting it off with the Machine Monk, who had given me unexpectedly excellent advice befitting a godfather, I set out to find Eugene Schneider with confident strides.
At this moment, I feared nothing.
Stop right there, Iron-faced Family Head! Here I come!
…What on earth was I thinking?