Robot Protection Zone Chapter 85

After driving for a little over an hour, we arrived at his father’s house.

Passing through the entrance, we crossed the yard along a wide, stretching path. When we parked the car in front of the house and got out, a large, two-story mansion with a neatly tended garden appeared before my eyes.

So this is… where his father lives.

Hearing the sound of scissors from somewhere, I turned my head and saw a robot quietly tending the garden. Even as I watched, the robot trimmed a tree immaculately with quick, precise movements.

“Didi.”

“Yes!”

I was looking around, exploring my surroundings, when my master’s call quickly brought me back to my senses, and I ran to him.

“Welcome, Mr. William.”

As I entered the house with my master, a humanoid dressed in a suit like a person greeted us. It had the form of a person without facial features, like Sophia, but its smooth movements made me feel it was a slightly newer model.

“Hello… Mmph!”

I was about to offer my own greeting when my master’s hand urgently covered my mouth. A large, firm palm covered my lips. I was so startled that I almost dropped the wine I was holding.

Flustered, I looked at my master, but he threw a question not at me, but at the humanoid.

“Alpha, have there been any problems with your functions?”

“Currently, there are no issues with my functions.”

“…”

Silence fell after the concise response.

Even after hearing the answer, my master stared at the robot with a somewhat uneasy expression. I quietly assessed the situation, then, feeling breathless, I gently tugged on his sleeve. Only then did his hand, which had been covering my mouth, slowly pull away.

Was I not supposed to greet it? No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t guess why my master had suddenly covered my mouth, so I asked cautiously.

“Master, did I do something wrong?”

“Didi, don’t talk to the robots for a while.”

“Why?”

“There’s a reason. I’ll explain later, so don’t talk to the robots here.”

“Okay…”

My master added no further explanation and simply kept his mouth shut. I nodded my head, crestfallen. My shoulders slumped a little, feeling as if I had already made a mistake.

“Alpha, where is the family?”

“They are gathered in the dining room.”

“Who’s there?”

“Everyone has attended.”

My master, who had been walking into the house, stopped short and asked again.

“Without a single person missing?”

“Yes.”

“Damn it… For some reason, they’re all here.”

My master muttered under his breath and wrinkled his brow. He seemed reluctant to be in a place where the whole family was gathered. Considering he’d had almost no contact with his family until now, could it be that they didn’t get along…?

I walked silently behind my master.

Now that I was about to see his father, I was filled with worry. I’m a robot… I wasn’t sure if it was okay for me to join a birthday celebration where the entire family was gathered. What if I was only invited out of courtesy, and I had just tagged along without any sense? The thought kept bothering me.

The closer we got to the dining room, the clearer the sounds of cheerful conversation from inside became. Just as we nearly reached the dining room entrance, my steps slowed noticeably, and my master stopped and looked back at me.

“Didi, what’s wrong?”

“It seems like it’s been a while since your family has gathered… I’m not sure if it’s okay for me to join in.”

“What’s the reason it wouldn’t be?”

“Because I’m a robot.”

When I answered dejectedly, my master’s brow furrowed noticeably. His arm immediately pulled me in and pushed my back through the doorway.

“Don’t say such strange things and get inside.”

It was a serious concern for me, but he called it a strange thing… My legs were still hesitating, but I was easily pushed over the threshold by his strength.

As soon as I crossed the doorway, a completely different scene unfolded. We had only passed through a single wall, but this side had a warm atmosphere, like a glass conservatory. Beyond the floor-to-ceiling glass, the garden was visible at a glance.

At the table sat his father, his master’s mother, and people who appeared to be his siblings, side by side. Once my master and I sat down, the remaining two seats would also be filled.

But as soon as I entered the dining room, my mind went completely blank at the scene that unfolded before my eyes. Everyone, except for his mother… had the exact same face as my old master.

“Didi, welcome.”

His father greeted me with a bright smile. I belatedly came to my senses and handed the wine case I had been holding so dearly to his father.

“Father, happy birthday. This is a gift.”

“Oh, thank you. This is the wine I like. It would be good to serve it with the meal.”

His father gestured for a robot, then handed it the wine, telling it to serve it with the meal. The robot nodded, took the wine, and disappeared somewhere.

“Now, have a seat. The meal will be ready soon, so let’s talk for a bit.”

I sat down next to my master and cautiously raised my head. When I looked ahead, there was my master, and when I looked to the side, there was also my master.

It felt like I was surrounded by various versions of my master. For a moment, I became confused, wondering if I might have shut down and come to heaven.

Everyone’s eyes were on me. Come to think of it, I hadn’t greeted them yet. I quickly collected myself and offered a greeting, my face blushing.

“Ah, hello. I’m Didi…”

My face grew hot. As I barely finished my introduction, the faces that looked just like my old master smiled at me warmly.

Is this… heaven?

Everything was so dazzling, I thought I would go blind. I busily darted my eyes around, trying my best to calm myself down.

Perhaps noticing that I was earnestly sneaking glances at his family members’ faces, my master’s expression twisted in displeasure.

“This is why I didn’t want to bring you here…”

Tsk, my master clicked his tongue softly and drank the water placed in front of him.

“So you’re the human-bot that grandfather left as a memento? You look even more like a person in real life.”

My master’s brother said in admiration as he looked at me. I hadn’t mentioned the term human-bot, but it seemed everyone already knew I was a robot.

I once again cautiously observed the atmosphere. Fortunately, no one seemed to show any signs of being uncomfortable with me, a robot, joining them for a meal.

Reassured, I rolled my eyes around and met a sharp gaze. Startled, I reflexively looked away. The only person here who didn’t resemble my old master. It was his mother.

Brown bobbed hair and a charismatic aura. She had a completely opposite impression from his father, who wore a benevolent expression the entire time.

Only then did I realize. That among them all, my master resembled his mother the most. On the surface, he looked like his father, but his cold gaze and heavy atmosphere were closer to his mother’s.

When I looked up again, his mother’s gaze was on my master.

“William, the news about the new product this time is a great disappointment.”

“We plan to release a replacement product in the near future.”

“I hear the issues with the investors haven’t been resolved yet, either.”

“…They are being resolved.”

“Seeing this today, I understand. The reason you canceled the release right before launch must be because of that human-bot, right?”

“…”

I blinked and looked at my master. He had definitely said it was because of a defect… He canceled the launch because of me?

I looked at him quizzically, but my master remained silent with his lips sealed.

“Come on, Mom. Don’t push him so hard. It was already noisy because of ethical issues from the beginning. It would have been a bigger headache if it had actually been released.”

“That’s right. I know you both love to work, but how about we talk about something else since we’re gathered for the first time in a while?”

The conversation between my master and his mother was cut off, and the topic of the new product no longer came up. I, who had been perking up my ears and focusing on the conversation, felt a bit disappointed. Because the conversation was cut off, I ended up not hearing the exact reason for the launch being canceled.

As the atmosphere gradually softened while they exchanged pleasantries, robots began to enter the dining room one by one.

Five or six robots placed plates on the table in sequence.

There was a large piece of tenderloin steak on top of golden-brown grilled vegetables, warm soup with a side of bread, and a soup with a subtle truffle aroma. The large table was quickly filled with freshly made dishes.

I glanced at the robots. Just how many robots were there in this house? The robot tending the garden, Alpha who I met when we first entered the house, and the robots serving the meal now were all different individuals.

In a house where so many robots were working, each with their own divided roles… would there really be a place for me here? Besides, they all seemed so capable, unlike me. They probably didn’t make mistakes or were clumsy with housework like I was.

Of course, if I asked his father, he would probably accept me, but if he was only accepting a person he didn’t even need out of obligation… I didn’t want that. It felt like I would just be a nuisance, taking advantage of someone’s kindness.