Transformers: Survival of Defective Products

Chapter 39 I Don't Want to Drag You Down

As the vector rushed back, the brain module didn't think too much.

The wind brushed past the sides of the assault boat, and the guide vanes sliced ​​the night into segments.

Zhen Tianzun's words were so concise that they made her even more uneasy.

When she rushed outside her residence and landed in robot form, she was still slightly shaken by the momentum. As soon as she opened the door, her first glance swept over the room.

The lights were on, and there were no signs of a struggle.

Zhen Tianzun was inside, leaning against the living room, as if he had just finished something unpleasant. His outer armor showed no damage, but his expression was very cold.

He pulled the vector through the door, which closed behind him, and quickly asked, "What did they say?"

Zhen Tianzun looked up at her, his gaze lingering on her for a moment, as if to check on her condition on the way back.

"Close the door first."

"It's already closed."

"Then come and sit down." His tone wasn't aggressive, and it didn't have much variation. "Don't stand there like you're about to rush out and find an opportunity to have a good fight."

Yin Vector walked over, but didn't actually sit down, leaning against the table and staring at him: "What exactly did you say?"

Zhen Tianzun remained silent for two seconds, cutting out a bunch of unnecessary nonsense that he didn't need her to hear, leaving only a few straightforward sentences.

"It's a bit more direct than before."

"This time it's not just about telling me to tone it down," he said, looking at her. "They've started mentioning you."

The vector's eye twitched slightly.

She had actually guessed it, but hearing it from Zhen Tianzun's mouth still made her furious.

"How did you bring it up?"

Zhen Tianzun looked at her for a while before saying calmly, "I told you that you've been getting too close to the backstage staff lately. And your access records aren't looking good either. A small mecha that shouldn't be so conspicuous is now attracting too much attention."

"and then?"

"Then they reminded me that, especially in times like these, I shouldn't keep unstable factors around me."

Upon hearing these words, Yin Xiangzong's face couldn't help but darken.

She really hates being used as a variable.

She leaned against the table and remained silent for a few seconds before speaking: "They really think highly of me."

Zhen Tianzun glanced at her, his tone indifferent: "They want to test whether I'll find it troublesome."

The vector rises to the top.

"So they were implying something along the way," he said, "that it wouldn't be too difficult to cause some small machine to have an accident on the road."

A moment of silence fell over the living room.

She simply stared at Zhen Tianzun, the optical mirror tightening little by little.

Zhen Tianzun seemed unprepared to say more, only leaning back with an even colder expression than before: "In short, I understand what they mean. They want to pry you away from me, or make me create distance myself."

The vector stared at him for two seconds, then asked bluntly, "So, what did you reply?"

Zhen Tianzun gave a soft snort.

"What else can I say?" he replied casually, as if he were just throwing out a nonchalant retort. "Tell them to stop trying to do things they shouldn't."

The vector knew him too well. If it were really that light, the message she received wouldn't have been in that format.

She stood there without moving for a moment before saying in a low voice, "You must have said something much harsher than this."

Zhen Tianzun glanced at her: "Whether it sounds bad or not doesn't affect the result."

"What was the result?"

"The result is that they were kicked out today. But this isn't over."

He spoke calmly, then remained silent for a moment, nestled in his chair, resting his hands on his knees, staring down at his interlaced fingers.

"Okay," she said. "I understand."

Zhen Tianzun looked at her, said nothing more, and after a few seconds said, "From today onwards, report back when you come back at night. If anything seems amiss on the way, turn on the radio first."

Yin Xiang looked up, a slight twitch at the corner of his mouth: "You're really starting to resemble someone who's just filling in the gaps in regulations."

"If you'd been a little less demanding lately, I wouldn't bother being the management system."

"Um."

She unusually didn't retort, and after she finished speaking, neither of them continued.

But the chill that had accumulated in the room did not dissipate; it was like a very thin layer of frost that could not be peeled off, quietly buried there.

-

For the next few days, everything seemed normal on the surface.

But now, when she walks, she not only subconsciously glances at the street corner surveillance cameras, but she also changed her route twice before returning to her residence, memorizing the most convenient routes again.

The tension in the brain module was constantly running high.

That day, she went to Iron Castle simply to change her environment, sort out the pile of things Red Spider had recently given her, and finish flipping through the files she hadn't fully understood last time.

The terminal on the road suddenly vibrated.

When Yin Vector looked down, the projection interface slid open by itself, and a new private channel popped up at the top.

Only two words.

【alert.】

She didn't even need to check the source to guess which machine it was, but what bothered her was that the sound waves didn't use their private frequency this time, as if they were avoiding something.

The vector didn't stop, but its brow furrowed.

...That's it?

This person, who usually speaks as if she's throwing a conclusion at someone's face, has now sent a separate private message just to give her two words?

She tapped the projector twice with her fingertips.

Have you suddenly learned to use fewer words lately?

There was a two-second silence on that frequency.

Then it jumped to the second line.

[Management's actions do not stop there.]

This time it's much clearer than before.

The vector optical mirror contracted slightly, and the surrounding traffic and street noises seemed to recede a layer in that instant.

She stood still and looked up to scan her surroundings.

Nothing was found.

After being reminded of this, even the air has become questionable.

She lowered her head and replied, "Understood."

After thinking for a moment, I added: "This time, at least you gave a normal reminder."

This time, the sound waves didn't respond.

I turned off the interface and continued walking towards the archives, the restlessness in my heart becoming clearer and clearer.

Even the sound waves made a point of interjecting to remind us, indicating that this matter was no longer something she and Zhen Tianzun could simply discuss at home.

Upon arriving at Iron Fortress, she first relayed the message to Zhen Tianzun.

Without elaborating, I simply added: "[The sound wave was just emitted.]"

Zhen Tianzun replied very quickly.

I saw it.

Two seconds later, another line appeared.

Avoid taking detours on your way back today.

Yin Xiang stared at that line of text, making sure to memorize it.

-

The Iron Fort Archives remains unchanged. Neat and orderly, with an absurd number of rules.

After the vector was introduced, the process of passing through the mill's authentication and partitioning was followed. Carrying the access board, I went inside. I had just pulled up the data layer projection when I heard footsteps stop not far away.

She looked up and saw Orion coming from the other end of the admin area.

The light-colored outer armor looks quieter here than elsewhere.

"I'm here a little earlier than the previous times." He glanced at her, his tone as calm as ever.

"No traffic jams on the road," Yin Vector replied, turning his gaze back to the interface.

Orion seemed to be about to casually open a certain partition entrance for her, but after taking two steps closer, he paused almost imperceptibly.

"You haven't been doing well lately."

The vector finger was still resting on the edge of the projection screen. Hearing this, it paused for a moment before looking up at him: "Is it that obvious?"

"It's a bit quieter than usual," Orian said. "And you've been staring at the same index for a long time without moving."

Pointer vector: "..."

That's quite an observation skill.

She looked down and scrolled down the page, as if she had just been lost in thought: "I've been a bit busy lately."

Orion didn't immediately press for answers; he simply stood there, his gaze fixed on the spot, neither pressing closer nor casually brushing the matter aside.

"Is it related to that area you've been frequently researching lately?"

The vector's hand movements paused for a moment.

A few seconds later, she shook her head: "It's related, but not in a way that the archives can resolve."

She spoke very vaguely, almost as if she had said nothing at all.

Orion stared at her for a while without asking any further questions. He simply brought up a search path on the side and casually placed it in the corner of the main interface for her.

"Then at least finish investigating what needs to be investigated today," he said. "Don't let other problems mess things up here too."

As Yin Zong looked at the path he had traced, the tension and anxiety in his heart suddenly eased.

She let out a soft breath, looked up at him, and instinctively complimented him directly: "You're a guy who makes me feel very comfortable."

Orion seemed slightly amused by her words, and the corners of his lips twitched: "Thank you, making you feel comfortable makes me feel comfortable too."

The vector paused for a moment.

Orion looked at her, remained silent for two seconds, and then said gently, "If you ever encounter anything you don't want to handle alone, you can come to me."

The vector control stopped again.

These two sentences were spoken lightly and directly, without being offensive, and didn't even require her to respond. Precisely because of this, it made the opportunity even more difficult to seize.

She looked at Orian, then looked away a moment later.

"I know," she said, "but not yet."

Orion nodded and didn't pursue the topic further.

"After you finish your check-up today, remember not to leave the museum too late."

"You've been talking more and more like a notice lately."

"Didn't you just say that my voice made the machine feel comfortable?"

The vector glanced at him and finally managed a smile.

"Alright," she said. "Then I'll take this as a friendly reminder from a normal machine."

Orion didn't say anything more and gave the space back to her.

Before returning to the retrieval position, my gaze fell once again on the hierarchical archives and technical indexes, and my mind was filled with a myriad of thoughts.

There are some things Orion shouldn't have gotten involved in.

He was too clean. He was very sensible and understood complexity, so she didn't want this mess to involve her or him.

The trouble she's in now is something that could really drag her down into the furnace.