USB plugged into the computer. Click. Open. Screen filled. Letters. Numbers. Code. No end in sight. Six-mat room in the share house "Kotono-ha." Nakano at night. Insects chirping outside the window. That sound alone came through, strangely clear. Ren stared at the screen. Kept staring. But understood nothing. "ERROR_CODE: 0x4F7A" "TIMESTAMP: 2024-03-12 21:47:33.882" "AUTONOMOUS_DEVIATION: 0.0043"——lined up. Endless rows. Hundreds of lines. Meaningless. Endo had handed it over. Back entrance. Yokohama at night. "I can't analyze this alone." That's what he'd said. Material to show external specialists. But Ren had no connections to specialists. Couldn't enter the studio. No way to contact Endo. Scrolled with his finger. Numbers flowing. Unstoppable. Fixed equipment trouble with future memories. Knew the setlist. But in front of this screen, those memories were garbage. Useless. Pulled out his phone. Battery remaining. 19%. Dropping again. Tried closing the screen. Couldn't. Stayed open. But couldn't do anything. Elbows on the desk. Head in his hands. Insect voices from outside continuing. Then the phone vibrated. Unknown number. Ren looked at the screen. Paused. Answered. "[gentle]……Ren-kun?" A familiar voice. Aqua-colored——voice, he thought. So distinctive that hearing it alone made him think that way. "[surprised]……Miku?" "[sad]I heard you stopped coming to the studio. Why?" No thorns in her voice. Just quietly asking. Ren started to speak. Didn't want to blame Segawa. Sounded like an excuse. Didn't want to worry Miku. While searching for words. "[sad]……It's Segawa-san, isn't it?" Miku said it first. "That person always makes the people around me disappear." Her tone changed. Quiet. Flat. But something seeping through. "[sad]There was a staff member I got close to before. Disappeared without knowing when. Never told why. ……It happened again." Ren sank deep into his chair. The weight of that voice transmitted through the phone. The length of time she'd carried it alone. All of it packed into these short words. (Can't end this with a lie to this person.) Ren straightened up. Held the phone with both hands. "[serious]Miku. I need to tell you something. ……It might take a while." "[serious]……I'm listening." Deep breath. "[serious]I'm not from this time period." Silence. "Came from three years in the future. Got wrapped in light at a concert venue. Woke up here. Don't know why I was sent. No method. No way back. But I have all the future memories." "[serious]Knowing the setlist. Fixing equipment trouble. All because of that. I've been lying the whole time." His voice shook. He knew it. Shaking. Thought it was natural not to be believed. But couldn't stop. "[serious]At the concert three years from now——Miku, you collapsed on stage. Suddenly. No one knew why. Seventeen thousand people in the venue. All screaming. None of them understanding what happened." "[serious]The whole world cried. Really. The whole world." Long silence on the other end. Ren kept talking. News articles still on his phone. Headlines. No one could ever determine the cause. Then stopped. Said everything. For a while, nothing. Then Miku spoke. "[sad]……I can't believe it." One beat. "[serious]But. You knowing the setlist. Being able to fix equipment. ……That's what it is, right?" "[serious]Yeah." Silence again. Long. Ren waited. Insect voices from the room continuing. "[crying]I'm……going to disappear……?" Almost not a voice. A question barely formed. Ren stood up from his chair. Was standing. Realized he was standing. "[angry]I won't let you. Never." Voice came out. Close to a shout. "[serious]That's why I came. No other reason. I'm here to keep you from disappearing." Words wouldn't stop. Can't hide anymore. Can't lie anymore. A faint sound from the other end. Crying. --- How much time passed. Unknown. Miku stopped crying sometime after. Ren said nothing. Just held the phone. Didn't rush. Couldn't rush. Then her voice changed. Trembling remained. But something took root. "[serious]I understand. I believe you." Five words. "[serious]……I'm registering you officially as my personal staff." "[surprised]Huh?" "[serious]DP Law——Digital Person Rights Protection Act. I have the right to designate personal staff. I can choose with my own will. Without Felicia Entertainment's approval." Ren looked at the text on the screen. "[serious]Segawa-san……can't override that?" "[serious]Can't. The DP Law's provisions say so. A digital person's own will takes priority over management organization decisions." Ren fell into his chair. --- Next morning. Sonic Bay Studio 3F. An email arrived at Segawa's desk. From: Felicia Entertainment Legal Department. Subject: Notification of Will Expression Based on DP Law Article 14. Segawa looked at the screen. Read it. Read it again. Third time. Pushed the bridge of his glasses with his finger. Then picked up the intercom. "[cold]Nonomura-san. Please permit Otoha Ren's entry again." A moment on the other end. "[cold]……I cannot approve. But it is law." --- The automatic doors at the entrance opened. Ren stepped through. Shibuya-Kanan morning. Staff passing by. Nonomura Hikari came out from the counter with a complicated expression. A new ID card in her hand. "[serious]Otoha-san. ……Please." Something mixed in her voice. Surprise. Relief. And something unresolved. Ren took the card. Plastic feel. His name printed on it. Felt a gaze. Above. Segawa's back in the 3F hallway. Not turning. Not moving. Just standing there. Ren hung the ID card around his neck. --- That evening, entered B1 control room. Endo was already there. Silver short hair. Sharp blue eyes glanced at Ren once, then back to equipment. "[serious]You came. Confirmation——Miku's coming too." "[serious]Yes." Fifty square meters of control room. Equipment lined in racks. Multiple monitors. Cables crawling across the floor. Endo started switching on specialized machines. Startup sounds in sequence. Miku entered. Jade-colored eyes caught Ren. The voice that cried on the phone last night. Now standing quietly here. "[gentle]……Thank you for coming." "[serious]That's my line." Endo spoke without turning. "[serious]Starting." --- Work began. Endo pulled Miku's internal logs with specialized equipment. Ren opened data on his phone. Battery remaining. 15%. Dropped screen brightness to minimum. Cross-reference started. Endo's monitor displayed Miku's logs from the past six months. Error occurrence timing. Dates. Times. Ren's phone had her performance records. Setlists. Song order. Detailed notes during live shows. Ren looked between his phone screen and Endo's monitor. Stopped. "[serious]Endo-san." "[serious]What." "[serious]This error, January 17th, 2024, 21:42. There, the lyrics changed during the performance. I have it recorded in my data." Endo leaned toward the monitor. "[serious]……Confirm. How did it change?" "[serious]Third verse chorus. Original lyrics were 'to unreachable sky.' But during the performance, changed to 'to the sky I want to reach.' She changed it herself." Miku said quietly. "[serious]……I remember. That night, I wanted to do it that way, so I did." Endo's fingers stopped. Next error. February 3rd, 2024. Ren scrolled his phone. Same day, Miku extended the interlude improvisation during performance. Recorded. Next. February 28th. Raised the key a half-step during the show. Next. Next. Next. All matching. Endo's fingers flew across the keyboard. Pulled up the programmed performance logs in another window. No errors. Zero. Days when she sang perfectly according to program. No errors. "[serious]……Yeah." Endo said it low. Voice hard. "[serious]Every time Miku uses her own will, an error appears. Every time she acts as an autonomous AI, her body takes damage." No one said anything. Ren looked at the screen. Records in his phone. Days Miku changed lyrics with emotion. Changed sound. All overlapping with errors. Since the moment seven years ago when Miku gained will. "[sad]……My being alive is the cause, isn't it?" Miku said it, eyes on the screen. No surprise in her voice. Not crying. Just quiet. Confirming. The control room air grew heavy. Only equipment sounds continuing. Ren tried to say something. Words wouldn't come. Endo stayed silent too. Three of them understanding the same fact. Silence filling the room. No solution yet. --- Same night. 3F. Felicia office lights half-dimmed. Only Segawa working late. A website open on his computer. Detective agency. "Reliable Investigation Office." Corporate credit investigation. Background checks. Personal conduct verification——service list lined up. Segawa read through the DP Law provisions. Searched for loopholes. Found none. The digital person's own will cannot be overridden. Law says so. But Segawa had another question. Otoha Ren. Seventeen years old. No resident registration. No school enrollment records. Appeared suddenly three years ago. No family register. Started typing in the inquiry form. Appearance. Age. Height 170 centimeters. Black short hair. Deep brown eyes. Small piercing in left ear. Behavior patterns at studio. Moved cursor to "Send." Clicked. "Sent" appeared on screen. Office silent. Only city lights moving outside the window. Segawa stared at the monitor. No emotion in those eyes. Only one thing. What the hell is that kid? The email settled quietly in the sent folder.