2077: V really knows how awesome he is

Where is that?

"Another planet, the world of Witchers."

"Goodbye!" Vera hung up the phone decisively.

V smiled and sent Vera a message, saying he would talk to her about the commission tomorrow.

The man drinking with her at the table was a hooded man, but judging from the flashing lights in the nerve slots behind his ears, he was not a local native, but a "future person" who had undergone cybernetic modifications.

“This is a peaceful world, but the technology level is not high, so life will be relatively hard. Are you sure you want to stay here?” V asked.

The hooded man chuckled, seemingly in a very good mood: "Yes, this time I will live life my own way."

"Giddy up." The hooded man sat on the carriage and flicked the reins. Although he had taken off his expensive suit and put on rough linen clothes, he had also been freed from his shackles and gained his freedom.

V held a glass of tequila from the God of Wine, a slight smile playing on her lips as she toasted the departing figure.

"Relic is the root of all evil, from which demons are born. Is it a soul killer or a guardian of your soul? Technology has no good or evil; it is always humankind that has good and evil. Don't you agree, Arasaka Yorinobu?"

Chapter 158 The Democratic Republic of Nilfgaard

"So, that Arasaka Yorinobu came to the Witcher world and became a traveling merchant?" Ciri asked curiously. "When did you make a backup of him?"

V replied, "Didn't he momentarily lose focus when I gave him Vera's phone number? I hacked into his system and backed up all his memories and emotions."

“You really know how to act on your own,” Ciri rolled her eyes at V.

V chuckled: "At least the ending was alright. There aren't many people as naive as Arasaka Yorinobu. It would have been a shame if he had died."

Before Ciri could say anything more, Yennefer's voice came from the kitchen: "Dinner's ready."

"Okay, coming right away."

V, Ciri, Yennefer, and Geralt had dinner together, and afterwards they played Gwent. V deliberately lost a few rounds, making the old Witcher very happy.

That's right, V not only sent a prince who had become a coachman to the Witcher world, but also planned to catch up with Ciri along the way.

Eighty years have passed, and Geralt and Yennefer are long married. They bought a small estate in Vangeborg and live a sweet life. Neither witchers nor sorceresses age naturally very slowly, so they both look the same as before.

Ciri is a human-elf hybrid. Although she awakened powerful ancient blood, she did not inherit the longevity of elves due to some genetic defect. Her lifespan is similar to that of ordinary humans. In order to accompany V for a longer period of time, Ciri also underwent the Trial of the Grasses and became a Witcher.

"You're carrying an assault rifle, but you're going to use a bow and arrow? You're really something!" V couldn't help but complain about Ciri's incredible choice to become a Witcher, a girl from another time.

“Nobody said you can’t use a bow and arrow when you’re using a gun, and besides, I’m doing this for you!” Ciri gave V a light kick.

Now that they had finished their meal and the card game was over, the two of them were chatting leisurely in Ciri's room. As they talked, the conversation once again turned to Arasaka Yorinobu.

“By the way, Arasaka Yorinobu is a traveling merchant, right? What does he plan to sell?” Ciri asked.

V took out a small cloth bag: "He gave me some items as souvenirs, this is it."

"What's this?" Ciri opened it and saw some small, colorful granules, about the size of a fingertip, emitting a faint sweet and pleasant aroma. Curious, she picked one up and put it in her mouth, asking, "It's so sweet! What is this, candy?"

V was speechless.

Ciri was taken aback: "What, this isn't something to eat?"

She tried to spit out the "candy," but it melted in her mouth and turned into a fragrant liquid that she swallowed whole.

“Don’t worry, it is indeed food, but…” V hesitated.

Ciri was extremely anxious, feeling a surge of heat in her heart: "But what?"

V whispered something in Ciri's ear, and Ciri was immediately both embarrassed and angry: "A hero actually came to our world to sell aphrodisiacs?!"

"Where there's demand, there's supply. Arasaka Yoriyuki's financial and business acumen is definitely not a problem. Because he frequently buys from these manufacturers, he has good relationships with them and can get goods at low prices, which is a natural cost advantage. But don't worry, this stuff has been tested by the food and drug administration. It's healthy and safe and contains no hormones or additives. Just remember to moisturize after using it."

"You make it sound so easy, but what do we do now!"

"Sigh." V sighed, "What else can I do but offer myself as a sacrifice to help you detoxify? Or you can use the hilt of your sword."

With you by my side, why would I need a sword hilt?

Ciri glared at V and then used Flash to tackle him onto the bed.

Hearing the sounds of battle raging next door, Geralt & Yennefer: "..."

"Youth is wonderful," Geralt remarked.

Yennefer glanced at him and said provocatively, "You're not even as good as a young person, are you?"

So V and Ciri, who were next door, also heard similar shouts of killing.

The two rooms were engulfed in flames, and the entire manor trembled.

V and Geralt engaged in a strange contest, launching wave after wave of attacks, each determined to defeat the boss first. The final result was predictable: the old Witcher, exhausted, was defeated.

"You're really not as good as the young people," Yennefer said with a half-smile.

Geralt looked helpless: "Ye, I have neither ancient blood nor am I filled with prosthetics. I'm just an ordinary person."

"Haha, then take a rest, you ordinary person. I'm very satisfied with your performance."

The next day, Yennefer stewed a large pot of delicious, thick soup, supposedly a royal secret recipe with great nourishing effects.

Geralt's face turned green; he resolutely refused to drink it. When asked why, the answer was simply that he didn't need it.

V, being a victor, naturally had no such idol baggage. She drank bowl after bowl, praising Yennefer's cooking skills, which made Ciri kick her under the table in anger: "Drink less, be careful not to get a sore throat!"

"You're here for me when I'm feeling hot and bothered, aren't you?" V said with a grin. "I helped you detox yesterday, and tonight it's your turn to help me cool down."

Yennefer chimed in, "That's right, V's good health is a blessing. V, drink more, there's more if you're still hungry!"

Ciri was extremely embarrassed. After breakfast, he took V and said goodbye to his parents, embarking on a journey to the Democratic Republic of Nilfgaard.

Yes, you heard right, it's the Democratic Republic of Nilfgaard.

Emhyr, the Nilfgaardian emperor and Ciri's father, became so enamored with the power of technology that he even applied to study in Night City for three years.

Three years later, Emhyr's first act upon returning was to abdicate his throne, ending more than 1000 years of feudal rule in Nilfgaard and ushering in a complete transition to a democratic republic.

Through his studies, Emhyr has come to a profound realization of how feudalism restricts productivity. If he wants to go further, he must break free from these constraints and abandon the ancient and primitive feudal system.

Three years is neither a long nor a short time. To be honest, Emhyr still has many things he doesn't understand. But as an emperor who almost overthrew the world and unified the entire continent, Emhyr is full of courage and decided to fully implement all the systems of Night City. He will implement what he can understand and understand what he can't understand. It doesn't matter if he doesn't understand, as long as V understands. Any system that V can promote must be a good system. His job is to copy the homework.

Thus, the Nilfgaardian Empire came to an end, and the Nilfgaardian Democratic Republic was established. Emhyr became its first president. He abolished slavery and introduced a wage system. He used royal funds to buy all the tenant farmers' indentures and then burned them publicly, returning freedom to the people. He also reduced agricultural taxes and used the nation's resources to build roads and other infrastructure, allowing people to move from thatched huts into apartment buildings. In the context of the Middle Ages, he truly achieved running water and electricity for every household.

This led to a temporary drop in the national treasury's funds, but the advanced system also greatly unleashed productivity.

Slaves were no longer the private property of their masters; every bit of their labor was for themselves. This greatly increased their productivity, reduced time costs, and improved product quality. Nilfgaardian products immediately captured the international market, bringing back a large amount of foreign exchange for the country.

The employment system guaranteed the legitimate income of every worker. People who had accumulated a lot of money began to purchase various goods, which boosted domestic demand and promoted economic circulation. After getting through the initial difficult period, Nilfgaard quickly entered a period of rapid development. Various exquisite products emerged one after another, and more efficient tools also appeared in an explosive manner thanks to the wisdom of the working people.

The state protects its people, and the people, in turn, begin to give back to the state. Under this advanced system, the citizens of the Democratic Republic of Nilfgaard have created astonishing wealth for the nation, which in turn has been transformed into military power, greatly enhancing the country's strength.

Emhyr possessed superb diplomatic skills, which allowed him to transform his national strength into real international influence. Under his persuasion and urging, the southern countries chose to join him, and the entire south was thus truly unified. People spontaneously erected a statue in Emhyr's honor. Even after 80 years, with roads constantly being widened and buildings growing taller, this ancient statue still stands. As long as the people's hearts remain steadfast, it will never fall.

"Your dad is really awesome," V couldn't help but exclaim.

Ciri countered, "Which dad?"

"Uh, both dads are awesome."

The two rode their horses along the smooth asphalt roads of Nilfgaard. This technology wasn't provided by Night City, but rather developed by Nilfgaard themselves. The working people, how amazing!

The reason for choosing such a slow mode of travel as horseback riding was because Ciri wanted to spend more time with V.

“I told Emhyr that you were coming, and he said he would personally greet you.”

V was taken aback: "He's over 130 years old now, let's skip these formalities."

“It’s alright. His sorcerers aren’t just sitting around doing nothing. They have plenty of ways to live a long life. He’s in good health.” Ciri didn’t hesitate to tease her father at all: “Besides, your visit is a huge political asset for him. He can’t wait to get involved.”

V was both amused and exasperated. He had heard that Emhyr had always wanted Ciri to succeed him, but judging from Ciri's attitude, the chances were slim.

To be fair, Emhyr has done a good job. Regardless of whether he has any ulterior motives, he has at least improved people's living standards and stabilized the social structure. He can be called a wise and powerful leader, and V doesn't mind supporting him.

But the first one to greet V wasn't Emhyr, but the mermaid lady. This being, who was already known as the goddess of the lake, emerged from a muddy pond, wagging her big tail and rushing over like a silly roe deer, startling V into yelling, "Don't come any closer!"

Unfortunately, it was all too late. The mermaid opened her arms and hugged V tightly, turning him into a muddy mess.

Watching Ciri teleport away into the distance, V cried out in anguish, "You're so disloyal!"

Ciri apologized repeatedly, but she just wouldn't come over.

Well, it's already dirty anyway, so V just went for it. He patted the mermaid's head and scratched her chin, making her purr like a kitten—after all, she's his own child, so he'll spoil her, what else can he do?

"How have you been lately?" V asked.

Miss Mermaid raised her arms high and answered cheerfully, "Great! I'm so happy!"

"Is there something you need that you suddenly came here for?"

Miss Mermaid continued to raise her arms and cheerfully replied, "I'll support you!"

V couldn't help but laugh: "How are you going to help me hold the event covered in mud?"

Miss Mermaid raised her arms high again and answered cheerfully, "It wasn't me, it was them!"

"them?"

Just as V was wondering what was going on, a well-organized military cavalry unit approached from a distance.

They wore uniform armor, each warhorse was equipped with a horse coat, and their weapons were the most conspicuous: in addition to spears and shields, each of them carried a spiral steel bar at their waist.

V: "..."

She knew that the mermaid had formed a knightly order, and she also knew that the mermaid was distributing rebar to the knights as weapons, but seeing it with her own eyes... was worse than not seeing it at all.

However absurd this knightly order may be, its fighting strength is truly remarkable. Putting aside everything else, the rebar in 2077 was virtually indestructible given the technological level of the Middle Ages. Eighty years have passed, and the rebar has withstood countless battles, large and small, without a single weapon leaving a notch in it. On the contrary, it has become smoother and shinier due to the knights' daily use, simply put, it has developed a patina.

Emhyr had a good relationship with this knightly order, so it was foreseeable that his reforms would encounter tremendous resistance. The conservatives who had vested interests would certainly not stand idly by and watch their assets suffer losses.

At first they simply refused to cooperate, but eventually they even organized armed forces to violently resist and even sent assassins to kill Emhyr.

But the people's eyes are discerning. Enshir's reforms benefited the country and its people, and were in line with the will of the people. As the saying goes, those who are righteous will find many supporters, while those who are unrighteous will find few. Not only did the people stand by Enshir's side, helping him turn danger into safety time and time again, but the Steel Knights also stood up for justice, wielding building materials to fight against hundreds of enemies one by one, upholding justice. This is why Enshir finally defeated the conservative forces and successfully completed the reforms.

Afterwards, Emhyr attempted to recruit the knightly order, offering them high-ranking positions and generous rewards to integrate them into the national force, but the knights resolutely refused. They came from the people, and naturally, they should return to the people. If the Democratic Republic of Nilfgaard was a nation of the people, they would protect it even without Emhyr paying them a single penny or offering them an official position. Conversely, if the Democratic Republic of Nilfgaard betrayed its people, Emhyr would stand firmly on the side of the people no matter how much money they offered!

V was deeply impressed, never expecting that the most adorable mermaid among the three little ones could lead such a team.

The Knights of the Rebar also have great respect for V. They are now the third generation of members of the Knights. They have only heard of V's deeds but have never seen them, but they all know that V created the "Nymph of the Lake".

The world of Witcher is dominated by mysticism. After eighty years of development, the three little ones have truly been regarded as gods, and even a religion has been established. The knights originally thought that V would be a god among gods, eight feet tall and eight feet in circumference, but when they saw him with their own eyes, they found that V seemed to be no different from an ordinary person. He had neither the fish tail of the Lady of the Lake, nor the scales of the Dragon God, nor was he as huge as the Rock God.

V didn't know what to say about their fantasies. Although she didn't understand them, she respected them, after all, that's how their culture is.

After 80 years, science has gradually become more widespread in the world of Witcher. Although the knights respect the gods, they no longer kneel and worship as they did 80 years ago. The knights greeted V with proper etiquette and respect, and then guarded both sides. The commander of the knights stepped forward, first expressing his apologies on behalf of the mermaid, and then told V that there was a knight camp not far ahead where she could bathe and change clothes.

V expressed his gratitude.

Seeing that the young leader of the regiment was humble, polite, and steady in his work, she recently decided to cultivate the next generation and developed a love for talent.

What's your name?

"Thank you for asking. My name is Lancelot."

V: "..."

Chapter 159 Three Years and Two Months

V felt like he'd been kicked in the head by a dead memory.

But as it turns out, the Lancelot in front of me is an excellent and friendly young man, completely different from the one from back then.

Thinking about it this way, it was all more than 70 years ago, making V sigh at how time flies.

V knows how awesome she is, but she's not so arrogant as to be bothered by a name. Even if this Lancelot is not the same Lancelot as the other one, she's confident she can put that idiot back into hell!

With that in mind, V extended an invitation to Lancelot, hoping that he could go to the cyberpunk world to study.

Lancelot was somewhat flattered. In his view, this was undoubtedly a trip to the "Kingdom of Gods" for further studies. However, he couldn't make up his mind for the time being and only hoped that V could give him some time to consider it.

V agreed to the request.

Afterwards, the group went to the temporary camp of the Steel Knights to rest. V took a bath and changed into clean clothes. At her request, the mermaid also shed the mud and turned into pure water.

"This is much better. That lump of mud looked awful before!" V said, rubbing the mermaid's head.

Miss Mermaid, however, complained, "Mud, it's beautiful!"

V couldn't understand where its bizarre aesthetic sense came from. It even suspected that it was infected with some kind of virus, so it did a full scan, but everything was normal and nothing was found.

The temporary camp was not far from the capital of the Democratic Republic of Nilfgaard. The next day, V arrived at Nilfgaard, the capital of Nilfgaard, located on the banks of the Alba River. Because the rooftops reflected sunlight, the city was also known as the City of Golden Towers.