The sudden attack left the twins chilled to the bone. What had just happened? Was the human they were supposed to protect about to... "I'm fine."
A familiar voice rang out. The moment they heard it, the twins' stiff bodies relaxed slightly.
Looking at the sword qi that had dissipated while still several meters away from him, Xia Yu smiled. As expected, although there was hatred in her eyes, she hadn't intended to hurt him.
Or rather, the Androids of the YoRHa Unit simply couldn't harm him. After all, loving humans was the core logic of their existence. If they lost that logic, they would crash and self-destruct immediately.
He recognized this white-haired Android: A2, one of the three protagonists of nier: automata, and also the loneliest one.
While the protagonists 2B and 9S could accompany each other and become each other's reason for existing, A2 was all alone, left with only the choice of self-redemption or self-destruction.
Her goal in life was only to fight, and even after being resurrected after death, she remained alone without a place to call home. In the game, A2's final scene was leaning against a window, watching five pigeons fly away into the sunset; perhaps at that moment, she was reminiscing about her former companions.
"It's alright, let me talk to her."
Xia Yu stepped forward, gently pushing aside the twins who were blocking his path. However, before he could speak, a thought suddenly occurred to him.
There's a language barrier... The Android models of the YoRHa Unit aren't pure Androids, and they were created much later, so it's very likely they don't have old-era language plugins installed.
"Tsk." Thinking of this, Xia Yu patted Popola's shoulder. "Can you install a Chinese Language Plugin for her? I want to talk to her."
"But, Lord..."
"Be good."
Looking into Xia Yu's determined eyes, Popola opened her mouth but ultimately nodded in silence.
After exchanging a look with Devola, Popola held her weapon and approached A2 while speaking.
"Do you know what you just did! You tried to harm the Human Lord!"
"So what!" A2 didn't look at the approaching Popola; her gaze remained fixed on the black-haired human, emotions of love and hate intertwining in her eyes.
Originally, she had made up her mind to kill them all: the Machine Lifeforms, the Bunker, the Command Center, the Council of Humanity on the Moon... every single one of them.
However... at the moment she swung her blade, A2 hesitated. Betrayal required revenge, but was he really the one she should be taking revenge on?
A2 wasn't sure. She had expected to fight the two Androids next, but the human had said something to the Androids protecting him. Although she couldn't understand him, there was no anger in his eyes.
Why wasn't there any anger? Even though she had intended to harm him.
Furthermore, Androids like them were insignificant compared to noble humans. Forget harming a human—even having such a thought would lead to execution, and in severe cases, the entire model line would be destroyed.
"The Lord intends to speak with you, but there is a language barrier, so I will transmit a language plugin to you."
While remaining wary of the Android before her, Popola sent a link request through the local network. Receiving the request, A2 glanced at the red-haired Android and chose to accept.
She could have simply turned and left, but she wanted to hear what the human had to say to her. Would it be a haughty command? After all, they were just tools to be discarded at any time.
She was a prototype unit of the YoRHa Unit, a piece of scrap intended for experimental data collection. Every battle was planned, and every death was predetermined.
"Language plugin loading..."
"Language plugin loading complete."
"Is this the language the human was just speaking?" A2 spoke in very standard Mandarin. After installing the language plugin, she could not only communicate fluently but also clearly understand the meaning of every word.
"Can you understand me now? I want to talk to you."
Xia Yu stepped forward, ignoring the twins who were worried about him and the surprise in A2's eyes.
When he reached A2, Xia Yu looked at her evasive gaze and smiled. Then, he opened his arms and stepped forward.
"It's been hard, hasn't it?"
A beauty entered his embrace, but there was no soft warmth or graceful curves—only a hard mechanical body, traces of repairs, and the wear and tear of time.
He knew A2's story, and he knew how this originally kind girl had been forced to wear a cold mask. The cruelty of the world hadn't worn away the tenderness in her heart, so Xia Yu sincerely wanted to give her a hug.
Xia Yu's sudden hug was unexpected for everyone, but A2 was the most shocked. At this moment, her fusion reactor roared, and the system in her head almost crashed.
"The world is so beautiful. Whether for yourself or for others, don't give up on yourself so easily."
"I don't know what happened in your past, but if you've lost your reason for living, why not fight for me? I can be someone you rely on and carry your cruel past for you."
After whispering this into A2's ear, Xia Yu released his arms and let go of the stiff A2.
There was no need to say more. He had quite liked this strongest female warrior, who appeared amidst slaughter and was cold as ice, back when he played the game. Now that he was in this world, how could he not try to redeem her?
"You... I..."
A2 had never been as flustered as she was now. She looked at the human before her in a panic; his dark brown eyes held a smile, with no haughtiness, no hatred, and no indifference—only a gentle, all-encompassing acceptance.
It was a look she had never seen before. He was different from her former companions and different from the humans she knew from books. In books, humans were noble, solemn creators, objects of worship.
He is willing to be someone I rely on? But I just wanted to hurt him!
A2 turned her head away, at a loss. The human's eyes seemed to possess a magical power that made it impossible for her to think calmly.
The resentment intertwined in her heart vanished unknowingly under that burning gaze, and the loneliness and indifference accumulated during her flight were also driven away by the warmth of the embrace.
The cold mask she used to disguise herself gradually shattered, and the confusion buried deep in her heart found a home at this moment.
"You... Are you willing to accept me? Even though I just swung my blade at you?"
"Didn't you also decide not to truly hurt me? There's no need to worry about what just happened. I'm still waiting for your answer."
"Well? Do you choose to fight for me?"
The human's words were so soft, yet they rang so loudly in A2's ears. Her eyes gradually cleared, sweeping away the long-standing confusion.
"For humanity! May your glory last forever!"
Hearing A2's pledge of loyalty, Xia Yu reached out and took her hand. It was very rough because the artificial skin on her hands had long since peeled off due to a lack of maintenance.
Xia Yu led the still-bewildered A2 back to the twins. "Now, we have another companion. Greet each other."
Although the twins had reservations about A2 joining, since the human wanted them to get along, they wouldn't oppose his suggestion.
However, they still had to remain vigilant. This white-haired Android actually wanted to hurt the human; there must be a problem with her system. They would have to reinstall it for her sooner or later.
"I am Popola," Popola said coldly.
"I am Devola," Devola said coldly.
"I am A2," A2 said calmly.
Looking at these three confrontational individuals, Xia Yu felt somewhat helpless. He would have to take it slow; even as a human, he didn't have any good solutions for this kind of situation.
As I said before, this is my personal subjective interpretation of the plot and character personalities. If you think there's a problem with my writing, you can refute it or share your own thoughts.