Robot Protection Zone Chapter 67

As the battery charged, I could feel my depleted stamina gradually recovering. But just because my power was being replenished didn’t mean my ravenous hunger would also disappear.

“I’m hungry….”

I rubbed my stomach weakly and stared blankly at the old ceiling.

I hadn’t eaten anything since leaving the house. I had occasionally drunk water from drinking fountains in parks or buildings, but that was hardly enough to soothe my hunger.

If I were human, I would have already collapsed from not eating for several days…. The more this went on, the more it seemed to just make the fact that I was a robot, not a human, clearer, and I became depressed.

The one small comfort was that the robots I met on the street were all kind to me. Strangely enough, they recognized that I was a robot at a glance.

I realized that all the kindness I had received so far was because I was a robot like them. The cleaning robot that brought me here must have given up the charging room for that reason as well.

Clank.

Suddenly, I heard a presence at the entrance. Startled, I turned my head toward the sound, and a huge shadow fell across the charging room’s entrance.

I tensed up, thinking it was a person, but what soon revealed itself was an ordinary robot. A cleaning robot, much larger than the one that had guided me here, was entering the charging room.

The huge cleaning robot rolled its clunky-looking wheels and approached me. But… isn’t that too close? Thinking it was strange, I watched quietly as the robot’s massive body charged straight toward me.

“Aack! Th-there’s a robot here!”

As I let out a desperate scream, the cleaning robot came to a halt.

When the wheels that had come right up to my nose stopped, I cautiously opened my eyes and looked up. The cleaning robot was looking down at me with a camera mounted high above. It seemed it hadn’t noticed me because I was huddled in the corner.

If I had been just a little later, I would have been flattened. Calming my pounding heart, I offered a greeting.

“Ah, hello….”

Overwhelmed by its size, which was several times larger than mine, my voice became small without me realizing it. The robot stared at me for a moment, then pushed its body the rest of the way to the charger, keeping a little distance from me.

We continued to charge side by side in that state.

Being two instead of one made me feel a little less lonely. Above all, I was relieved that its large body hid me, so I wouldn’t be visible from the outside. Even if the manager of this place suddenly barged in, they would leave without finding me.

As my tension eased, my head gradually drooped downward. As the battery charged rapidly, my consciousness loosened, and drowsiness kept washing over me.

I need to be diligent and keep moving today…. The thought that I might sleep the entire day away if I closed my eyes now crossed my mind, but I couldn’t fight the overwhelming sleepiness.

In the end, I closed my eyes.

“Aack!”

My body tilted sideways, and I tumbled onto the cold floor. At the same time, I felt the charger fall from the nape of my neck.

Startled awake, I looked around and my eyes met with the huge cleaning robot looking down at me from right in front. I belatedly grasped the situation. It seemed I had fallen asleep leaning against the robot charging next to me, and when the robot finished charging and left, I had tumbled to the floor.

“S-sorry. It’s nothing….”

To think I fell asleep leaning on a robot I’d never met before…. Embarrassed, I hastily wiped the corner of my mouth with the back of my hand. Fortunately, it seemed I hadn’t drooled.

The robot confirmed that I was getting up hesitantly, then moved its large body again and left the charging room.

After the robot left, I belatedly checked my condition.

Just a little rest had filled my whole body with vitality. I was still hungry, but at this rate, I felt I would be okay to set out on the long journey again. I packed the charger in my bag, plugged the original charger back into its spot, and left the old warehouse.

The sky, which had been bright when I started charging, had now sunk into darkness.

The area around the charging room was dark as there were no streetlights. Still, I started walking. In the past, my legs would have frozen at the mere sight of a dark alley, but after a few days of wandering alone, I seemed to have gotten a little used to the darkness.

I could feel that I was gradually getting farther from the city. The bright electronic billboards and tall buildings were slowly disappearing. For me, who remembered that there were no tall buildings around the mansion where I lived with my previous Master, this was a hopeful situation.

I was no longer afraid of the dark. I just walked the path I had to take.

If there was one thing I was afraid of, it was the fact that I was heading to a place I knew less and less. I had already gone the wrong way more than once or twice. I had circled the same place, and I had lost my way and wandered several times.

I had managed to reach the outskirts of the city properly, but from now on, I had to venture into even more remote areas. Once I left the city, I would never be able to return to Mr. William’s house.

I walked on, completely blocking out all thoughts. I knew it was dangerous, but it felt like my battery drained faster when my mind was cluttered. Perhaps because of that, I ended up in big trouble.

“Ah!”

I bumped shoulders with a person passing by. The collision was so strong that I lost my balance and staggered, and suddenly, my side felt empty.

Tap, tap, tap.

The sound of footsteps rapidly moving away. By the time I came to my senses and looked back, both my bag and the person who stole it had already vanished somewhere.

“My charger….”

The only thing I had brought from home, the charger, had been stolen.

Standing there blankly, I started moving my legs again. There was no way I could get it back even if I chased after them now. It was better to move even a little than to waste battery. The fortunate thing was that I had just finished charging.

It was doubtful whether I could even reach my destination properly before the battery ran out, but I moved anyway. Occasionally, the thought of returning to my Master’s house would rear its head. But I couldn’t go back anymore, nor did I have a way to. The only thing I could do now was to head toward my set destination.

“……”

It had been a week since I lost my charger. I was walking along a road lined with dense trees on both sides.

Eventually, I felt my battery reach its limit. My body started to feel heavy, and even without closing my eyes, my vision would occasionally flicker.

Deciding I could no longer move, I sat down on a nearby bench. And unable to hold back the tears that burst forth, I let them pour out.

They were the first tears I had shed since leaving the house. As if to pour out all the sorrow I had held back until now, the tears showed no sign of stopping.

“Ugh… sob….”

I was a mess. My clothes were splattered with muddy water from tripping over a stone, and a foul smell even emanated from my body, which was covered in dust from not being able to wash for a long time. I was covered in small cuts here and there, and the scratched skin revealed patches of red flesh.

“Are you okay?”

Someone approached me as I sobbed with my head down.

This was a remote street on the outskirts, so deserted that not even cars passed by. I thought it was an auditory hallucination from my low battery, but I could really see someone’s shoes stopping in front of me.

I raised my still tear-streaked face. Through my blurry vision, I saw the figure of a man. His warm, wheat-colored hair fluttered slightly in the wind, and his emerald eyes, directed at me, were filled with sincere concern.

“Is your battery low?”

“How did you….”

“Because I’m a robot too.”

The man replied with a faint smile.

I looked closely at the man before me again. He had facial features like me and looked exactly like a person. Yet, if he was introducing himself as a robot….

“Are you a Human-bot too?”

“My name is Enoch.”

He told me his name instead of answering.

Looking at the gently smiling man, I couldn’t hide my surprised expression. This was the second Human-bot I had met in this world. I had never imagined I would meet a Human-bot in a place like this, so I stammered, unable to continue speaking.

Just then, my vision went black for a moment before returning. Noticing this, Enoch looked at me with concern and asked.

“It seems your battery is out. It would be best to return to your owner… but you must have your reasons, right?”

I kept my lips tightly sealed and lowered my head. Enoch looked at my shabby appearance and didn’t ask any more questions.

“Then how about you charge at my Master’s house for a while? I can lend you a charger.”

“What…? Is that okay?”

“Yes. My Master is still young and kind, so I’m sure she will help you.”

I hesitated. Was it okay to trust a strange robot I’d just met and follow him to his house? I remembered my Master’s words, always telling me not to follow other people.

“Enoch!”

Just then, a child called out to him and came running from a distance.

It was a little girl who looked to be about five years old. Enoch spread his arms wide and swooped up the running child. The child giggled, nestled in Enoch’s arms.

Seeing the happy scene, my wariness instantly melted away. Before I knew it, I nodded, and Enoch smiled faintly.