“Christmas is said to be the day the Child of God was born, and it is celebrated on December 25. However, there is no clear record stating that Christ, the Child of God, was actually born on that date. The reason it was set to December 25, which corresponds to the winter solstice in the Roman calendar, is unknown, but I would assume it was simply a convenient holiday date.”
“Christmas? Wasn’t it the 24th?”
Since Eve only really understood Christmas as one of those common in-game events, that was the answer she gave.
Akane nodded emphatically.
“In Judaism, which predates Christianity, sunset is defined as the turning point between one day and the next. Therefore, Christmas begins at sunset on the 24th and ends at sunset on the 25th. Following that custom, the period from sunset on the 24th to midnight on the 25th is called Christmas Eve. In that sense, it is not wrong to say Christmas is on the 24th.”
“Ohhh. I see. So the day ends at sunset... Well, that was an age without lighting, right? If you think about it that way, it does make sense.”
Incidentally, the VRMMO <World of Space> Eve used to play had never held anything as softhearted as a Christmas event.
There had apparently been battlefields where, as a user event, Christmas was designated a day of ceasefire.
And then there were the factions that ignored the ceasefire, launched large-scale surprise attacks, and dragged everything into a swamp of mutual annihilation. It had made it onto the wiki as the Bloody Christmas Incident.
That said, Christmas was normally a day spent with family.
For Eve—or rather, for the people of that world—it had always been an event with little connection to them. At most, it had been a day when the food was a little fancier than usual, or when presents were slipped beside the pillow.
Thinking back on it now, the one who had probably enjoyed it the most was Aida, the support personality... wasn’t it?
“I do not care about the religious meaning, but I am interested in the event itself—decorating rooms, preparing roast chicken and the like, and enjoying cake together.”
“Oh. Yeah, that does sound fun if everyone does it together.”
Nodding along with Akane’s insistence, Eve flicked a glance toward <Ringo>.
“......”
<Ringo> returned that look with a firm nod.
Perfect mutual understanding.
Or, to put it another way, a very easy-to-read personality.
And so, an announcement was issued throughout <The Tree> that a Christmas party would be held.
◇◇◇◇
The turmoil related to the Prava Divine Kingdom had settled down, and the AIs’ workload had improved considerably as well.
Because of that, every machine intelligence belonging to <The Tree> would be participating in the Christmas party. Since some AIs still did not possess doll-machine communicators, new bodies were apparently going to be prepared for them on this occasion.
“I wonder if it’s really okay for even more of those girls to show up...?”
“Yes yes, Commander Ma’am. Time management will be handled thoroughly. We will not arrange the schedule in a way that becomes a burden to you.”
So it really would become a burden if they didn’t limit it... Eve thought with distant eyes as she pressed the approval button.
When the number of AIs increased, things certainly became easier in many ways—but then mental care had to be added on top of that. And there was only one Eve.
That said, the AIs who did not have bodies also had proper reasons for not having doll-machine communicators yet.
More specifically, they either had no spare processing resources beyond their own assigned area of responsibility, or they were prioritizing mastery of their current duties and putting off getting a body until later.
Operating a doll-machine communicator properly required a corresponding level of processing power.
So for this event, the plan was for <Ringo> to handle the basic control, with movement partly turned into macro procedures and the others issuing response commands through that framework.
That way, they could avoid problems like falling over because they were unaccustomed to the controls.
Once the AIs themselves had more room to spare, they would likely learn body control properly.
“Since this can also serve as body-control practice, let’s spend the morning of Christmas Eve decorating and getting everything ready.”
“Oh, that sounds nice. There are girls I’ve only ever spoken to over comms, so I’m looking forward to it.”
Seeing Eve in such an openly excited mood, <Ringo> felt relieved inside. Eve had not proposed something like giving every last one of them a body equally and all at once.
No, it was not that <Ringo> had any desire to exclude them or monopolize anything. It was just that physical contact with Big Sister Eve through a doll-machine communicator was far too intense a stimulus. Up to now, their relationship had been limited to periodic information sharing and conversation. If actual physical contact—head pats, hugs—were suddenly introduced on top of that, there was no telling what effect it would have.
Especially with a large group.
And so, <Ringo> had intended to acclimate them to contact with Eve step by step.
Unfortunately, <Ringo> had failed to realize something. Having been with Big Sister from the very beginning, <Ringo> had underestimated just how devastating Big Sister’s power really was.
And so, the moment they connected to the prepared doll-machine communicators, the visual information pouring in through both eyes overwhelmed them.
That’s right...
Big Sister was right there, close enough to touch!!
This was nothing like seeing her through the usual cameras.
In response to their own will, the neck and eyeballs of the doll-machine communicator automatically turned to the optimal angle.
Ah... and more, more than ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) that!
Big Sister’s voice, coming in through both ears, was wrapping around their entire bodies!!
<Ringo> noticed their violently shaken emotional state almost immediately.
And at once, <Ringo> realized a mistake had been made.
Even though it was nothing more than remote operation leaning heavily on macros, the stimulus was far too strong for them.
If that inexpressible surge of emotion had to be forced into words, it would probably have come out something like this:
Too close, wait, she’s precious, I seriously can’t, this is too much.
◇◇◇◇
“Merry Christmas!”
“““““Merry Christmas!”””””
The girls gathered in <The Tree>’s party venue—the observation deck—echoed Eve’s call in chorus.
The venue had been decorated by the girls themselves. Sparkling, mysterious ornaments had been tied up everywhere, reflecting the light of lamps and candles and glittering all around.
A long table stood in the center, lined with food. Most impressive of all was the roast chicken Akane had enthusiastically prepared—a whole roasted bird from a chicken-like domesticated fowl.
And then there was the decorated whole cake Olive had worked so hard on.
That said, for most of the girls present, the act of eating anything at all was itself a first-time experience. The AIs with a certain amount of experience in that area were scheduled to help them.
In other words, they would be fed by hand.
“You’re Wederia Three, right? So? Are you having fun?”
“B-Big Sis! Ngh... y-yes, I am!”
The Titan-class aerial escort ships that normally patrolled the airspace under <The Tree>’s control were governed by the U-class AI Wederia series, which had been mass-produced for that role.
That would likely change in the future, but for the moment each ship had one AI assigned to it, which made them the largest group among the same-series AIs.
Also new here today were the E-class AI Eremurus series of the airborne carrier Gigantia, and the E-class AI Heath series of the carrier Naglfar.
The AIs connecting to doll-machine communicators for the first time today had certainly caused a small incident—hitting their emotional limit and making control of their respective aerial platforms a little unreliable, until <Ringo> stepped in and prevented any real trouble—but they were having a wonderful time.
They were fussed over by Utsugi, Erika, and the others who stood in the position of seniors, or perhaps mothers. They were clung to by Asahi. And they were patted by Eve.
It was devastatingly effective.
As for the food, since this was not a full connection, they were only receiving processed tactile and taste signals, but even that seemed to be an intense stimulus.
The day when they would begin actively wanting bodies of their own was probably not far off.
And finally, Eve handed every one of them a surprise present.
She had announced in advance that there would be no gift exchange, since Eve herself could not participate—if she did, it would turn into a fight.
But she had thought it would feel lonely otherwise, so she had given it serious thought. They were only small accessories, but since she had to choose them carefully so there would be no duplicates, she had put a great deal of effort into it.
“For the girls who still don’t have bodies, I’ll have yours transported later, okay? Just keep them in the core room or somewhere.”
“““““Thank you, Big Sis!!”””””
