#also really fun

　…Not exactly a topic he was particularly keen to talk about, as it brought vivid memories of his first trial, of the shadow that had threatened him and that… detailed explanation, about the accuracy of those percentages shown among the names of candidates. The reminder of that ordeal haunted him already, so having to recap it back to a fresh flashback for someone else only brought him an excess of anxiety. There was surely a reason why he’d destroyed the screen meant for his AI…

　He looked at the question as if it was threatening him with a dagger, but decided to recover enough of his composure to give at least a cold response.

　　❝ …Have you ever heard about the primal rule of “survival of the fittest”? I’d imagine you were likely taught Darwinism in school, isn’t that right?❞  He paused to adjust his scarf a little, eyes turning away while he organized his thoughts logically for a clear response. ❝ Nature has a way to deal with things; all qualified as strong are meant to not only survive, but also feed from the weakest.❞

　His tone was growing colder, bitter. He was not enjoying this conversation, and neither was he thrilled for what was coming up next after having set down the context stage for the stranger.

　　❝ …I was weak, unlikable, and trust far too much and too fast. Naturally, my AI held these pieces of my old self―so when it was put at test, the eventual outcome was for him to die at the hands of those stronger. The ones with the highest rate of won games.❞  Sara was the first to come to mind, since her percentage was the highest out of all. But he didn’t feel like revealing more than he meant to, nor bringing up his rivalries at hand where they didn’t have a space.