Are They All Androids?

As Rio regained full wakefulness after the strange encounter, the maid with the prosthesis turned in a rather unusual way.

— I'm so sorry! I'm new in this building, I wanted to go to the bathroom and accidentally opened your room. Forgive me! — Rio said, bowing her head, embarrassed by what happened.

The maid, a little calmer after the explanation and realizing Rio was another maid, replied:

— No, no, don’t worry. We were informed in the meeting that two subsidized servants would be arriving today, so I understand the situation. The bathroom is the room next to mine — she said, bringing her hands to her face, trying not to laugh at the situation while giving Rio an amused glance.

— I’m really sorry! It won’t happen again, I promise! — she said softly, quickly closing the door after apologizing once more.

— Uh, um… — the maid couldn’t finish her phrase before Rio had already left.

Rio rushed to the bathrooms, and after a moment, the scene shifted to Rio lying on her bed, covering her face with a pillow, still embarrassed by mistaking the room.

— Even though she is an NPC, I don’t think it’s fair what she had to go through with me. If I see her again, I’ll make a proper apology, something to make up for intruding — Rio thought as she kept kicking and hiding her face in shame.

Tired, sleepy, and a little calmer after promising herself that, she decided to give in to sleep, hoping tomorrow would be a much better day than today.

Later, Rio woke up due to a mechanical noise coming from far down the hallway. Confused, since noises rarely reached such a large room, she decided to investigate.

She turned on the light and grabbed a flashlight from her nightstand. Once outside, the noise seemed to come from the direction of the ground floor. With caution in mind, Rio headed that way to investigate further.

The sound was coming from the room next to the common dining area, where a faint light glowed from beneath the door. The mechanical noise sounded like gears turning, so Rio decided to peek inside to see where it was coming from and, if something seemed out of place, report it.

Feeling motivated to be more useful in the mansion after her last embarrassing encounter, Rio braved up, slowly opened the door, and was dazzled by an office.

Inside, several drawers full of papers, and a desk. As she opened the door further, she saw the chief butler and maid. But something was very strange. Their voices, though familiar, sounded robotic and monotone:

— Maintenance scheduled for today. Confirmed — the chief butler said.

— Affirmative, chief — replied the chief maid.

The scene only got worse. The chiefs were removing body parts from themselves. The chief maid, holding her own metallic head in her arms, helped install the chief butler’s arm, which was partially stripped of its flesh-colored paint, revealing intricate mechanical components beneath.

To Rio, there was no doubt: they were androids, or some kind of advanced robots. Feeling uneasy and not wanting to get involved any further, she slowly closed the door as carefully as she had opened it.

— Creeeeak! Eeek!... — squeaked the door, which apparently also needed maintenance.

The noise alerted the chiefs, and Rio couldn’t believe her luck that day. The chiefs turned to look at the door and immediately spotted Rio, their gazes glowing an intense red, full of warning.

Rio didn’t stay to see any more; she slammed the door shut as soon as she felt those gazes, and nearly petrified by fear, couldn’t help but let out a loud scream.

As she screamed, the scene shifted. Rio was lying back on her bed, still in the room, drooling a little and with messy hair. She instantly realized she had had a nightmare and began to calm down.

She started to recall the events of the previous day; mentally exhausted despite having slept the whole night, as the sun was already rising on the horizon outside her window.

Reflecting on her emotions and trying to gain perspective, she analyzed what was affecting her so much:

— The culture of this world is pretty different from my hometown; I can’t get used to having an interface in my vision. I’m not used to interacting with people in a job like this, because where I’ve been, there were barely any employees — Rio thought seriously.

— And, most importantly, I can’t stand the idea that my “body” would take control if I become an NPC, and that my “body” would complete missions on its own — Rio reflected, since that’s how she perceived the concept of becoming an NPC and had come to accept it as her reality.

All of this, combined with the chores she had to do and the incident with the prosthetic maid, weighed heavily on her. Yet, at that moment, it was the feeling of companionship from Ren that filled her with renewed enthusiasm.

In contrast, Ren woke up cheerfully, opening his interface.

— Ah, yes! There’s a notification with a (3) symbol, I’m pretty sure those are the missions Sphere told us would arrive daily — said Ren, with a tone full of excitement.

— Let’s see what it’s got... — Ren thought before opening the notifications section.

The mission list unfolded before him. They were:

Complete a lesson from your instructors.

Speak with 3 new people.

Complete an introductory course of some self-defense workshop.

A small note appeared alongside the mission list:
These missions are not considered “work” but mandatory tasks assigned by the system to help you adapt and stay safe. While performing them, you must continue to behave as servant trainees. Deviating from your servant role in front of players is what breaks the rules.

A bit confused but enthusiastic, Ren closed the interface and got ready to see Rio, as he had promised to be there first thing in the morning for her.

He opened the wardrobe and realized there were dozens of suits, clothes, and shoes identical to the ones he was wearing when he arrived in this world dressed as a butler. He picked out a new one, changed, and, to his surprise, found it fit just as well as his original suit. He got ready, spritzed some cologne from the dresser, combed his hair neatly, and set out to look for Rio.

On the stairs, Ren spotted Rio arriving. She had been waiting for a while, and her worried expression was unmistakable; fear flickered visibly in her eyes.

— Rio, is something wrong? You don’t look well — Ren said, his excitement giving way to concern.

Rio shared everything: the incident with the maid and her prosthesis, the strange dream, and her thoughts upon waking.

— Ren, all this has me a bit stressed. Seeing that girl affected me more than I expected, and my mind played a heavy trick on me — she admitted, feeling calmer now that she could open up to her best friend.

When she finished, Ren gently embraced her, giving a few soft pats and light strokes on her back. Surprised by the sudden gesture, Rio’s cheeks flushed a warm pink, but rather than pulling away, she welcomed the comfort.

— Don’t worry anymore, Rio. Let’s take it easy; don’t let this situation stress us out. If you want, we don’t have to go to the instructors or pay attention to these missions. We can just enjoy this great mansion and all it has to offer—there are places we’ve yet to visit! So, don’t worry, okay? Everything will be fine — Ren said in a consoling tone.

— Okay — Rio replied, almost whispering.

Ren then let go of Rio, seeing she was already feeling better.

— You know what, Ren? I don’t want to feel useless. Let’s at least do the missions today, and while we do, help me think of a way I could apologize to the maid without an arm — Rio said, feeling more determined and self-confident.

— Of course, Rio. Whatever makes you feel best! I’ve already checked my missions. Have you seen yours yet? — Ren asked.

Rio opened her interface and went over each mission with him. The first two were the same as his, but when she mentioned the last one, Ren looked confused—it was very different from his...