noffsinger Chapter 562 [Empire] I need to confirm
Chapter 562 [Empire] I need to confirm
I looked up and gazed at the office door.
The door was ajar, and the light from the outside corridor shone in, casting a cold white band of light on the floor. Occasionally, shadows would flit by, but no one came in.
The military doctor has already left.
It's not leaving the post.
Instead, he was transferred.
My previous remarks clearly didn't change that, and might even have hastened his departure. The front lines need doctors, especially experienced ones with combat backgrounds and the ability to handle high-pressure situations. His presence is far more valuable than simply being deployed and waiting in the rear.
I know that.
I've always known.
But when this actually happened, it didn't bring me the relief I expected.
Only emptiness remains.
I sat alone in my office, surrounded by the still-on war zone projections and medical data interfaces, like some kind of borrowed stage set that no one had taken back. And in the center of the stage, there were no actors.
just me.
A more acute reality—
If something happens now, I won't even be able to ask for help.
It's not because no one will come to save me.
It's not because I can't send out an effective distress signal, but because I'm unable to do so.
There is no quantum computer.
No communication permission.
There is no identity interface.
I can only look for people with my eyes, shout with my voice, and move with my body.
Like an individual from a pre-technological era.
This perception is not romantic.
It only made me feel extremely uncomfortable.
Because I've never been the kind of person who's used to being "seen" by the world.
I have always existed through the system.
Access granted.
Through the interface.
Through tactical networks.
By being tagged, located, tracked, and scheduled.
That is a highly structured way of being.
At least on this planet, there is nowhere to escape.
Now that this structure has been suddenly removed, I realize how much my sense of existence depends on it.
It's not because I'm weak.
This is because the world was not designed for individuals without a system.
I rested my chin on my knees and looked back at my hands.
The fluid in the IV bag was still dripping slowly.
a drop.
a drop.
It's like a very slow but irreversible countdown.
I know that if I were to leave this hospital building now, I wouldn't even be able to confirm the city layout of this planet.
Unable to query the area security level.
Unable to confirm the Zerg's activity range.
Unable to obtain the coordinates of the nearest supply point.
It is impossible to determine whether the current period falls under wartime traffic control.
Unable to identify friend or foe markers in public systems.
I will become an extremely high-risk variable.
To oneself.
To others.
For anyone who is performing a task.
what does this mean?
This means that even if I stand up now and want to "return to the battlefield," it's impossible.
It's not because no one approved it.
It's because the system doesn't allow it.
The premise for the system not allowing it is that it no longer recognizes me as a part of it.
This could be more terrifying than simply losing the ability to fight.
Losing combat effectiveness simply means a decrease in ability.
Losing system identity means that the structure has been dismantled.
I slowly closed my eyes.
Consciousness was not clouded.
On the contrary, it was exceptionally clear.
It was so clear that I could distinguish the chemical residue of disinfectant in the air, the low-frequency electrical sound of the instruments running, and the irregular rhythm of footsteps in the distant corridor.
The clearer it is, the more it seems that there is an insurmountable membrane separating the world from me.
I suddenly remembered those two plants.
They weren't once equipment. They weren't weapons.
They are more like something... something that breathes with me.
No authentication is required.
No system call is required.
No identification is required.
They only recognize me.
Follow only me.
It only responds to my mental field and supernatural energy fluctuations.
They are not with me now.
I lost "synchronization".
That kind of connection method that requires no intermediaries, no authentication, and no external structural intervention.
That kind of connection is actually more primal and more stable, although it may come with its own set of consequences.
It felt like I was thrown out of two coordinate systems at the same time.
This makes me unsure how to define "where I am now".
It's not in a geographical sense.
Rather, it has a meaningful existence.
I looked up and my gaze fell on the war zone projection screen that was still on in the office.
The red zone is still flashing. This indicates that the front line is still advancing. This indicates that casualties are still occurring. This indicates that the system is still operational.
But I am not among them.
This realization made my throat tighten, but I didn't shed a tear.
It's not numbness. It's a more calm and rational judgment forming.
If I have nothing, then I can't do anything.
If there's nothing I can do, then all I can do is wait.
Waiting has never been my strong suit.
I slowly exhaled, rested my forehead on my knees, and closed my eyes.
I need to confirm, after losing the system, losing my identity, losing my combat partners, losing my permissions—
Can I, by myself alone, constitute a still valid existence?