ch76

Before the technological singularity, before the Great War, in the past.

So… roughly the common perception around 2010, 2020. Even in a world with the potential to become cyberpunk, I think it wouldn’t have been that different from the original Earth.

For example, the internet is a space where anonymity is guaranteed, so everyone can be honest! Or something like that.

There must have been theories like, the network will become the main stage for future human activity!

Anyway, the internet community functioned excellently as a gathering place for all kinds of human beings, and that was the same even now, with 2196 right around the corner.

Always inseparable. There is never a person whose outside and inside are always the same.

Even a saint, even someone who has only spoken the truth their entire life, will sometimes hide their true feelings under the guise of modesty or some other excuse.

I’m not trying to say that’s bad… but I wanted to tell them not to be too ashamed if their embarrassing past or secret personal tastes, left in the archive (Archive; an information repository that separately backs up internet pages, articles, images, or videos),

their glorious records as the ultimate attention-seeker or villain, were exposed.

…Of course, that’s if the sad misfortune of the people involved finding out that there are censors who can easily identify them doesn’t occur.

To the average network user, only the title and content, bickering comments, and nicknames are visible, but to us, hired network censors, more detailed information appeared in our field of vision.

The names of the base stations that the posts went through to be written, the address of the connection port used.

If they used a communication implant embedded in their body, and even if there was a record of the procedure, the writer’s citizen ID information would automatically pop up.

The social security number was covered up out of courtesy… but if there was a crazy opportunist or a mercenary dreaming of restarting in some remote village, dozens of financial crimes could occur in an instant.

Well, I’m an engineer and hacker who’s second to none, so if I wanted to, I have the ability to investigate the personal information of time chaebols who spew nonsense and bullshit like machine guns.

But I think it’s a completely different story when such bare faces are revealed so blatantly, even in the midst of passing by without a second thought.

For example….

[ lol I woke up and was looking for delivery food to eat, and I just noticed it’s Christmas after seeing the discounted items. ]

: ㅁㅌㅊ? (What’s the score?)

That bastard must be living a good life… judging by the fact that he’s skipping holiday overtime….

Should we kill him? Master???

Idiot. He’s probably lying in bed after finishing his dawn shift on Christmas Eve and not even getting holiday pay lol.

First of all, the location of this friend who wrote this post is displayed as an apartment complex in the mid-level area.

I don’t know if the statement that he just woke up is true, but it was clear that he was lazing around at home.

And the two who seem to be grinding their teeth… the fact that their yellow-grade citizen IDs are displayed suggests that harsh living conditions have elicited a prickly reaction.

…The last guy is making a pretty specific inference?

Judging by the fact that the radio base station he’s using is in the factory area, he’s probably out of his mind from working all night…?

[ Net loser… my side is cold again this year…. ]

: But I don’t want to buy a sex droid… I miss the warmth of a real person… I’m spending another year lonely in tears….

Either you implant a bunch of shit and take a bunch of antibiotics to become a similarly messed up human being vs. a pure savior of lust prepared only for you with sincerity.

……Huh?????

[ Still, it’s a company-designated holiday at the end of the year. Shouldn’t the AI manager get some rest too? ]

: Definitely not angry because the mating video I was watching was deleted due to anti-corporate propaganda detection. Definitely not.

Does… our friend have absolutely no sense of crisis in realizing that he’s screwed?

Yeah~ I turned on the VPN~ The manager doesn’t check encrypted data~

Oh, shit. Why is a fine notice flying in? Are you crazy???

[ Ha… how unlucky do you have to be to get fired on Christmas?? ]

: (Image of lottery winning notification). Well, you got fired because you didn’t come to work lol! Are there still people whining about not being ready to escape from the cement-smelling old town single room after 10 years of service?

If you don’t win the pension lottery next week, I’m going to find you and kill you first.

I did! You bitches! I did!!!

“Pfft….”

But the bare face of the virtual world, which was far from formal and close to a mess, was so stimulating that I wondered if that’s why net junkies were being mass-produced endlessly.

Moreover, if you just stand there and watch them playing among themselves, it feels like there’s a way to enjoy a life here that’s no different from the original Korea, and I felt a strong nostalgia and a weak heart welling up.

“Is something fun going on?”

“……Not really!”

I received a disposable cup from the broker, who had returned before I knew it.

As the marshmallow-flavored cocoa went down my throat, my will returned a little.

…Okay, let’s stop fooling around.

It’s not like I’m a corporate stooge.

I don’t really have a sense of mission to interfere with Five Eyes activities, but it’s a request, and it would be a waste to miss out on a money-making opportunity like a mini-game that gives you Credits for every post you catch.

Buzz…!!

I put the cup down on the floor and composed myself.

As I slowly increased the signal strength, the sound of electricity sparking from the terminal circuit tickled my ears, but it soon disappeared as the connection stabilized.

Recalling the memory of almost having a brain hemorrhage when I foolishly tried to search the entire city database in the past, I clearly set the scope of the operation this time.

As it was a one-off request to combat the spread of illegal propaganda. There was no proper division of labor or guidelines, but I had experience performing quests related to Five Eyes.

It’s impossible to spread the ideology of an underground organization and expand its size through simple hints or subtle nuances.

People don’t resist the system with just emotion and romance.

But what if you subtly insert links to full-fledged propaganda materials into ordinary articles or videos, creating the result that they found it themselves, attracting attention and stimulating interest?

And what if you present a new ideology that beautifully packages only the good parts of history and seems to solve all the irrationalities of reality?

Whether it sprouts or not depends on the individual’s aptitude, but at least it’s clear that seeds that are unwelcome to the company are being sown widely.

Kugugung….

With a heavy roar, the mental image moves.

As I extend the walls of the study – control area – far away, bookshelves full of new books – data – appear one after another.

I explained it grandly, but in the end, what they do is a kind of club promotion. ……That might be too much of a leap, but anyway.

Then all I have to do is list the communities and bulletin boards with many users in order and grope through them one by one.

“First of all… exclude materials where the author’s identity is certain.”

As I actively used my censor authority, more than half of the books were suddenly engulfed in flames and expelled from the study.

I have the feeling that this is a task that overworks my brain, but the feeling that it’s like magic hasn’t disappeared even after doing it several times.

…Finally, I’m just sad that I can’t show off to anyone even though I want to brag that I’ve become a great wizard as I get older.

“…I’m suddenly angry.”

When I burned the articles that only contained pure text from the remaining pile of books, the amount was reduced by half again.

From there, I incinerated any chatter that didn’t include encrypted code, images, or videos.

After filtering up to this point, the amount of other materials was greatly reduced, but it was a little funny that the hacker community materials were almost the same. These would-be criminals.

Chrararak—!

The remaining books are opened and their contents are broken down.

From now on, in order to leave a record of my performance, I first report to the higher-ups and delete the data containing suspicious information. Delete, delete, delete!

I’m not abusing my power without checking.

Since it will be completely deleted so that it doesn’t even remain in the archive, I entered the external links they threw and proceeded with the work after determining the substance.

‘The United States of America, that hot and brilliant name!’, ‘The Tragedy and End of Dictatorship’, ‘Mega Corp, the Blooming Evil’, etc., all the names were dizzying.

It’s not like companies didn’t exist in the old days, so it was a little funny.

……Still, I enjoyed reading the propaganda ‘The Miracle on the Han River, after all, the driving force behind maintaining society is the citizens’.

The role that companies played was infinitely reduced to the point of omission. It was the same in that it greatly emphasized the framework and principles established by the state, and the sacrifices and efforts of the citizens.

I didn’t expect to see them say that our society is now worse than a weak country in East Asia 200 years ago!

…Oh, right. I must not forget to stop by the Korean restaurant in the food alley before I leave.

How much longer did I maintain such an ironclad censorship?

When the scoreboard of the mini-game, which would not end until the other side gave up, exceeded five digits.

Chrararak….

Perhaps sensing something strange, the indiscriminate distribution of leaflets by the forces presumed to be Five Eyes, which had been scattered haphazardly, falters.

The battle in the field of security is completely opposite to the old defense and offense. I’ve always believed that the battle between white hackers (defenders) and black hackers (attackers) should always be in favor of the black hackers….

“I won’t interfere next year. Just step down quietly.”

Didn’t the teacher say that?

The development of technology has not only failed to bridge the gap between people, but has rather led to the birth of superhumans.

So, I’m sorry, but as an aspiring superhuman in the virtual world, I had no intention of easily giving in unless I was facing a major character or a named hacker-level opponent.

The bookshelves in the study, which had stretched to the horizon, were now empty.

Compared to the gateway information warfare, where the rights of dominion and control were directly attacked, the amount of information processed was large, but the burden was much less.

So, what to do… I was wondering whether to watch the parade as ordered for the remaining time, or to read more nonsense, when.

“Huh?”

A book that matched the set filter was suddenly summoned in front of me.

But this time, instead of a link to a bizarre propaganda material, a link to a private chat channel was elaborately encrypted.