The Paranoid Robot Was Me All Along - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The Examination | Relax, Master

Luo Mian gripped the bionic’s wrist until he saw the transparent conductive gel secreted from the center of its palm. Only then did his furrowed brow relax, and the stern expression on his face softened.

He let go and lay back down. The horizontal position made him feel an instinctive surge of heart palpitations, leaving his voice weak. “Do it. Keep your movements light…”

“Please rest assured, Master,” the bionic replied quickly. “I will be gentle.”

In the past, when undergoing quantum resonance cardiac imaging at the hospital, the equipment parameters—including the temperature of the probe and the gel—were usually preset by medical staff. While the gel wasn’t freezing, it was still uncomfortably cool for someone like Luo Mian, who was naturally sensitive to the cold.

Considering this, when designing the bionic’s function for releasing liquids like gels and medicines, he had specifically added an initial temperature regulation device. The raw materials were heated during the synthesis process inside the body, allowing the final product to be dispensed at any comfortable temperature.

Luo Mian preferred it a bit warmer than his own body temperature—warm like a hot compress, which provided a great sense of security.

Thinking of this, he opened his eyes again and instructed, “Set it to forty-three—”

Before the word “degrees” could leave his mouth, the bionic’s palm pressed against his skin. Hearing him speak, the bionic immediately looked up with clear, somewhat innocent blue eyes and asked softly, “Is the temperature alright, Master?”

“…” Luo Mian found it quite magical. The temperature of the gel was neither too high nor too low; it was exactly what he wanted, flawless in every way. “…Continue.”

He saw the bionic give him a happy, almost silly smile. The machine looked adorably foolish as it lowered its head to apply the gel even more seriously—with a touch of meticulous caution, as if terrified of missing a spot, getting it on the sheets, or accidentally hurting him.

This machine seems decent, Luo Mian thought, finally feeling a bit relieved.

Reflecting on the time since leaving the Institute, he had occasionally felt the bionic was a bit slow, almost as if it were lagging or crashing. He had worried that perhaps the programmed functions were too powerful for the machine’s capacity to handle. Now, it seemed he had overthought it. After all, he had meticulously written these programs himself. Every physical parameter, stability rating, and sensor data was rigorously calculated. There couldn’t be any stupid bugs.

Perhaps the AI’s personality was just a bit simple.

“Relax, Master.” After evenly applying the gel, the bionic skin on the palm peeled back toward the sides, revealing the quantum resonance probe hidden within.

“To clearly scan the cardiac quantum states and 3D imagery, you may need to turn to your left side after the supine scan. The entire process takes about ten minutes. The probe will release pulses; if you feel any discomfort, please tell me at any time.”

Luo Mian gave a faint “Mm.” “…I know. You need to check for subtle defects in the interventricular and interatrial septa, right? I’m more familiar with this process than you are.”

The Bionic: “…………”

Despite his words, Luo Mian couldn’t help but reach out and grab the Snini Cat plushie beside him. This pillow, which had accompanied him through countless nights, provided immense peace of mind.

He had always hated heart exams. Having a hard instrument poked into his soft chest made his heart feel frantic, giving him a near-death sensation that he just had to endure. He was almost at the point of PTSD regarding standard hospital probes. However, as an ordinary patient, he didn’t want to affect the staff’s work due to personal reasons; he hated troubling others.

So, when creating the bionic’s probe, Luo Mian didn’t use an external device that required cables. Instead, he made it internal—and also temperature-adjustable. Since all the equipment was housed inside the bionic body, it was incredibly convenient and free of messy wires. He could use it anywhere as long as the bionic was with him. Afterward, there was no cleanup; the bionic would wash and disinfect itself.

He hadn’t thought much when designing the probe’s location. Whether for convenience or theoretical analysis, the palm seemed the most appropriate spot. After all, a smart mechanical bionic was just a machine; as long as it didn’t interfere with function or aesthetics, it could be installed anywhere.

Luo Mian felt the probe slide from top to bottom across his sternum, pausing slightly at the apex of his heart. The pulse waves emitted a faint vibration—the pressure was slow and gentle, causing him no discomfort at all. It felt as if his heart were being bathed and wrapped in rays of warm sunlight. His tense body unconsciously relaxed, and the hand gripping the plushie slowly loosened its hold.

As he experienced this, Luo Mian let his thoughts wander.

Setting aside the secret experiment, the cutting-edge medical equipment inside this bionic alone was enough to secure a place in Blue Planet’s high-tech medical field. Most importantly, such a convenient machine could help many people solve their daily health issues without constant trips to the hospital. If he could eventually overcome the challenge of mechanical rejection in humans, it would be even better.

The thing I built is actually quite useful… even if he is just a failure.

Luo Mian felt the pulses gently thumping against his heart. Dizzied by the rhythmic pressure of the probe, he eventually allowed himself to drift off to sleep.

Beside him, the “useful thing” only wished he had designed a function to turn off his consciousness.

Although this bionic body had been controlled by the AI mind since the gel application—meaning none of its actions were born of his free will—he couldn’t close his eyes to avoid it. He was forced to watch everything through those mechanical blue eyes, watching his own hands touch his own body.

The bionic knew himself too well—since childhood, he was a combination of OCD, germophobia, and haphephobia (fear of touch). He could hold pillows, dolls, or pets, but humans were absolutely off-limits. A single touch made his skin crawl; even with family, it was the same.

Clearly, the only reason Luo Mian could uninhibitedly lift his shirt and have “physical contact” with him was because he didn’t view him as a person at all.

“…………” The bionic felt a mix of anger and helplessness, yet he understood perfectly. This was himself, after all. If the experiment had truly failed and he were still the original Luo Mian, he would likely treat his creation the same way. Who else could understand him better than himself?

However, that didn’t make it any less surreal.

Controlled by the AI, the bionic’s left palm slid slowly toward the left border of Luo Mian’s sternum. He stared at the long, faint surgical scar on the fair skin. Though repairs had made it less obvious, an indescribable pang of bitterness surged within him again.

He suddenly realized—no matter what he had been doing all these years, he had always carried this surgical scar. If he hadn’t observed himself from this angle today, he might never have remembered that there was a wound here that once made him cry from the pain.

The bionic pursed his lips. He reflected that perhaps he had been too focused on experiments and research, obsessed with achievements that weren’t even for profit, yet he had never stopped to truly care for himself, body or soul.

During those major surgeries as a child, he told everyone it didn’t hurt at all, that he’d just sleep through it. But how was that possible? The silent tension and fear before being wheeled into the theater, the suppressed agony after waking from anesthesia… only he could truly empathize with those feelings. And beyond the physical pain, he knew the mindset of refusing to be labeled as “weak” by outsiders.

His long-standing drive for strength and perfection was woven into his marrow. Even now, while running a fever and undergoing an exam, his original self was probably thinking about how to eliminate mechanical rejection in humans.

Was I really as harsh on myself as Xu Weilin and the others said?

Lost in the past, the bionic forgot what he was doing until a notification “Examination Complete” popped up on his internal screen. He snapped back to reality and saw—his bionic left hand was still firmly pressed over his original self’s heart!

While the sensations of this mechanical shell were different from a human’s, it was still clear where there was a curve or a rise…

Suddenly, an overwhelming sense of shame, guilt, and trepidation flooded his consciousness.

“…” The bionic quickly accessed the hidden system, switched back to autonomous mode, and jerked his hand away as if he’d been burned.

This AI program is something else. The exam is over, the probe is cleaned and retracted… what was the point of keeping the hand there! It seemed he needed to recalibrate the settings.

The bionic then fell into a spiral of self-doubt. Is my fear of touch so severe that I even reject touching myself? No, the feeling wasn’t exactly rejection… it was just a sense of “transgression.” This was his most primal body, and this bionic shell was, in the end, just a machine. In the face of his Creator—even if it was himself—such an action was indeed a bit over-the-line.

After careful analysis, he decided that was the reason.

After a long while, the bionic gathered his scattered thoughts. He reviewed the medical report, his blue eyes dimming slightly. He grasped Luo Mian’s arm, and after disinfecting the area, he deployed the nano-agent injector from his bionic finger. He gently inserted it into a vein.

The warm medicine, housed in absorbable targeted nano-capsules, flowed from the bionic’s fingertip into Luo Mian’s bloodstream. At the same time, the bionic lowered his eyelashes, watching his sleeping original self, terrified of waking him. He controlled the flow rate, infusing some nano-robots that could perform real-time blood analysis. The data was uploaded directly to his internal instruments for monitoring.

Once the procedures were finished, the bionic tidied himself up. He noticed the Snini Cat plushie was about to fall off the bed, so he quickly grabbed it and held it in his arms for a moment. Finally, he carefully tucked the familiar pillow back into Luo Mian’s arms and pulled up the covers.

…

When he woke up the next day, Luo Mian felt as though he had slept for a century. He opened his eyes, set down the plushie, and sat up.

Bright sunlight poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows, filling the clean, tidy bedroom. The slightly shimmering floor, free of even a speck of dust, reflected light into his eyes. The air was filled with the familiar scent of cedar mixed with sandalwood, bringing a long-awaited sense of refreshment as his fatigue vanished.

Clearly, the room had been meticulously cleaned. While Luo Mian wasn’t a messy person—he was actually quite the germophobe—he had been too busy with the secret experiment lately to organize anything. Now, his models, books, frequently used instruments, and blankets were all neatly arranged according to his preferences.

This LM-111… he cleaned the room without even receiving a command. What a diligent, well-behaved mechanical puppy.

Luo Mian threw off the covers and hopped out of bed. His dizziness and palpitations had improved, his fever was gone, and his mind was clear. A good night’s sleep really did make a difference.

After washing up in the ensuite, he walked barefoot to the window to look into the distance, letting the warm sun bathe him. The warmth suddenly reminded him—last night, had LM-111 performed an exam on him?

Luo Mian was curious about the results. Not because he wanted to check his vitals—those wouldn’t change much—but because he wanted to review the rigor of the medical report. Though the AI module was mature, he wanted to see if anything needed upgrading.

He turned around, intending to go to the living room to find his mechanical puppy.

“Master…”

Just then, the “mechanical puppy” pushed open the bedroom door. He was about to ask how his body felt and offer a birthday wish when his blue eyes landed on the bare feet. The words died in his throat.

He had always had the habit of running around the house barefoot because he knew the floors were perfectly clean and warm. But at this moment, the sight was incredibly jarring.

Luo Mian saw him freeze at the door. He brushed his damp hair back and walked toward him. “I was just looking for you. Show me the report from yesterday—”

Before he could finish, the bionic interrupted him. Using a voice identical to his own, the bionic spoke in a low, serious, and almost commanding tone:

“—Put your shoes on.”