2077: V really knows how awesome he is

"Why complain now?" V immediately said, "Run! Activate time stop and run!"

Vera never imagined that she would one day be the one running away from Kais Anwaystein, but when you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head. Facing a well-organized mech force, she knew she couldn't win. As the saying goes, revenge is a dish best served cold, so she decided to slip away first.

The two activated Sianweistein simultaneously, and the world instantly froze. They thought everything was foolproof, but then a small destroyer in the sky suddenly burst out in a white light, severely damaging V and Vera's systems. The frozen world shattered with a crash, and time began to flow again.

"Damn! What is this thing? I feel like someone is twisting my head with pliers!" Vera said in pain as she knelt on the ground.

V was equally distressed: "It's a time stabilization module, used to stabilize the time channel and also to counter S.A.W.S. users. We're still in the design phase, but we didn't expect them to have already successfully implemented it here."

"Damn it, what's going on with this Night City in 2077? How come it even has technology that we don't have!"

The giant mechs clearly had no intention of answering the question. Instead, they simultaneously raised their guns at the two men. Just as the other was about to fire, a burly black figure suddenly burst in from behind, instantly obliterating dozens of giant mechs. The burly black figure was clearly using the Sianwistan, capable of such speed. The small destroyer above attempted to repeat the tactic, but a flash of white light appeared, and the black figure emerged unscathed, its shoulder cannon aimed, and fired an energy blast that struck the small destroyer's stern, piercing it through and sending it fleeing into the clouds with its tail between its legs amidst a cloud of smoke.

All that talk took only two or three seconds. As the small destroyer retreated, the remaining massive mechs also withdrew. Only then did V and Vera see clearly who had rescued them. Even though they were used to all sorts of things, they couldn't help but be shocked and exclaimed, "Holy crap, Adam Hammer?!?"

That's right, it was Adam Hammer who saved V and Vera.

The opponent was still a heavily modified robot, but compared to the bulky, dark body of the past, Adam Hammer was now wearing a more "aesthetically pleasing" suit of armor. His limbs were muscular, his body streamlined, and fewer cables were exposed. The overall style had a touch of Chinese influence, which significantly reduced his Arasaka-esque aura.

Vera clicked her tongue and said, "A new look, huh? Heavy Hammer."

V also asked, "Did Arakawa fall out with the Night City government? Why are they starting to fight each other?"

Adam Hammer glanced at the two men, a hint of disappointment on his face, but instead of answering the question, he made a request: "Come with me."

"Where?"

"Rebel camp".

"Why are even rebels emerging? Rebels against whom, Arasaka Saburo?"

"No."

Who is that?

"Rebel against the supreme ruler of this world—V."

Vera looked at V beside her and opened her mouth wide in surprise.

The rebel camp was located inside the sewers.

Many people live inside the narrow pipe. Although there are a few small lights, the light is still scarce. The dark and cramped environment contrasts sharply with the high-tech city above, as if that is heaven and this is hell.

Several children ran past V and Vera, laughing merrily; their smiles were almost dazzling.

Okay, take back what I said earlier, maybe this is paradise.

"Uncle Adam, you're back? Did you go to Earth again? How many bad guys did you defeat this time?"

“A lot,” Adam Hammer answered steadily.

"Great, then we'll be able to get back to the ground soon, right?"

“Yes.” Adam Hammer remained as steady as ever.

The children, however, seemed to have long been used to his behavior. Instead of realizing it was a lie, they cheered excitedly.

With a snap, Adam Hammer's thigh opened, and instead of knives and guns, he pulled out a bag of candy. He handed the candy to the children, saying calmly, "Eat up, it's sweet."

"Thank you, Uncle Adam, I like you the most!"

The children left happily, darting through the pipes like little sewer mice, full of energy.

“To be honest, I’m a little confused.” Vera scratched her head: “Adam Hammer who gives candy to kids, I can’t even imagine it.”

V frowned as well: "What exactly is going on?"

“I’m not good with words,” Adam Hammer replied. “The leader will explain to you.”

Who is the leader?

"Michiko Arasaka."

V was shocked: "Michiko, she..."

“She’s been waiting for you for a long time.” Adam Hammer opened a door. “She’s inside.”

V took a deep breath and went inside. Vera looked at Adam Hammer, who nodded, and she followed him.

Inside was a dark room filled with pipes, and Vera almost tripped over it, which annoyed her.

"Where is she? Didn't they say Michiko Arasaka was waiting for us?"

Vera stood next to V as she spoke, only to find that V's gaze was fixed straight ahead. She followed his gaze and saw a huge glass vessel standing in the center of the dark room, filled with green liquid, in which a human brain was submerged.

"Holy shit!" Vera exclaimed, startled. "What the hell is this?"

"Michiko?" V called out tentatively.

"Hehe." A familiar soft laugh rang out, but it wasn't from a human vocal cord; it was mechanically synthesized. The room lit up, the most prominent feature being a cracked screen displaying a cat-eared girl in a sailor uniform, pleated skirt, and small leather shoes, smiling and greeting the two.

"Sorry, I was just joking. Living in this dark underground environment, we have to maintain a healthy mindset."

V glanced at the brain in the jar, then at the little figure on the screen, and frowned: "How did it get like this?"

"For freedom," Michiko replied.

"Freedom?" V didn't understand.

"It's a long story, and I'll tell you about it later," Michiko said with a smile. "It's been a long time since we last met. Since you've come from afar, why don't you rest for a bit and have something to eat? I've already prepared rooms for you."

V was taken aback: "Have we met before?"

"We had a brief conversation in 2076, which was about David Martinez."

V was taken aback: "You're Michiko from that world?"

"It is an honor that you still remember me."

"Only three years have passed where I am, it's not a long time for me. I never expected to come back to this world. But you guys are developing so fast, you even have a space elevator. Did some unexpected technological breakthrough happen?"

"No, we are just developing step by step."

"Following the established procedures? How could Night City have become like this in just one year? Even we in 2171 couldn't just casually deploy hundreds of humanoid mechs."

"Because it's not a year."

"The last time I came to this world was in 2076, and now it's 2077. It's only been a year, isn't it? Even Vera could calculate such simple math."

Vera: "???"

"Hehe." Michiko chuckled lightly, "It seems that our two worlds are indeed very similar. Our Miss Vera is also famous for her intelligence of 3."

Vera was very annoyed: "Get to the point!"

"Okay, let's get down to business. 2076 to 2077 is indeed one year, but we are not in 2077 now."

"A guy on the street just told me it's 2077. Was he lying to me?"

"He didn't lie to you; he just didn't omit the full year."

"What do you mean?"

Michiko made a startling statement: "It's not the year 2077 AD now, but the year 2077 in the V calendar. It's been 2178 years since the two of you last came to this world!"

V and Vera stood there dumbfounded.

Chapter 181 Male V Vincent

"V calendar year 2077? It's over two thousand years in the future?" Vera exclaimed in surprise.

V frowned deeply: "What exactly is going on? The maximum time travel I set is only 100 years."

"I was the one who brought you two here during this time travel, and I'm truly sorry for taking it upon myself to do so," Michiko sincerely apologized.

V was slightly surprised: "So you guys also have time technology?"

“Yes, our development process differs slightly from yours in details, but the major events are almost identical,” Michiko said. “Arasaka’s invasion of Night City, the European Space Agency’s bombing of New Africa with meteorites, Lancelot’s formation of the Human Supreme Council, the Mechanism AI turmoil—all these conspiracies were thwarted by V, ultimately leading to the establishment of the Human Federation. AI was integrated into the management system, Ciri’s arrival allowed us to obtain the C-particle, and Vera’s appearance made time travel possible.”

"So there is a V in this world, but I just heard Heavy Hammer say that what you are going to rebel against is the V."

"That's not the same V, no, you could say it's the same V."

V glanced at Vera, who immediately understood: "Riddler, get out of Night City 2000 years in the future!"

Michiko smiled and said, "Ms. Vera is as witty as ever. No wonder you can be a pillar of support for everyone. Even now, many elderly people still miss you."

“Me? A pillar of support?” Vera couldn’t help but retort, “I’d rather believe I’m the guardian of time.”

However, V noticed a crucial point: "If Vera can be a pillar of support, it means V is gone. What happened to me in this world?"

Michiko replied, "In 2171 AD, V disappeared during a time travel experiment."

Vera was taken aback: "The time travel experiment in 2171, isn't that this one?"

V, on the other hand, was much calmer: "Because you've transported 'me' to more than 2000 years in the future?"

"That's right, I'm very sorry, but that wasn't my intention."

"Did you do it anyway, knowing this history, and still did the same thing? In other words, did you have a reason to do it?"

"As expected of V, so perceptive." Michiko sighed softly, "The reason I did this is because you are the only one who can save this world."

"To defeat V, who currently rules the world?"

"Yes. Just as only a company can overthrow a company, only V can defeat V. This is a conclusion we reached after trying it ourselves, a conclusion we drew with blood and lives."

"Looks like you had a tough year in 2000. Tell me, what did this V do?"

"He dismissed AI and restored his dictatorship."

"It doesn't sound like anything new. History always spirals upwards. It's sad to go back to the way it was, but it's also normal."

"If it were just a normal dictatorship, monopolizing power and resources would be a normal change, but what V is monopolizing now is knowledge."

V was slightly taken aback: "What do you mean?"

“This all started with the origin of the V we know today.” Michiko recounted everything in detail: “Our world’s V disappeared in 2171 AD. In order to avoid causing turmoil and panic, the human decision-makers and AIs at the time decided together to let Vera rule in your place, and only announced to the outside world that you had been working too long and needed to rest.”

Vera panicked immediately: "Just hearing that sentence gave me a cold sweat. What level am I at? How could I possibly manage something as big as the affairs of all mankind?"

"Please don't worry, you are just a figurehead to stabilize people's hearts. After all, V's reputation is too high, and the only one who can succeed her is you as her 'sister'. In fact, the real administrative decisions are still handled by AI. You only need to attend various occasions as needed and make pre-written statements or speeches."

"A human-shaped stamp?" Vera wiped the sweat from her brow and nodded repeatedly. "Thank goodness!"

Michiko continued, "In the initial period, everything was normal. Technology developed rapidly, humanity lived in peace and prosperity, the interstellar expeditionary force successfully left the solar system and reached other star systems, and the whole society flourished."

"By 2177, mechanistic AI had made a comeback, but the biological super AIs joined forces and defeated their predecessor in just three minutes. Humanity was completely free of worries, and to commemorate this historic moment, humanity changed the era name to New Era."

"The year 2178 AD was designated as the first year of the V calendar. In this year, the first baby born with a biological AI was born through natural childbirth. He was born with the ability to connect to the network and directly download various kinds of knowledge. Compared with ordinary humans, he had a stronger network affinity and was called a true cyberpunk, a network traveler."

"Over the next three hundred years, the number of Network Walkers increased dramatically. They surpassed traditional humans in every aspect, successfully ushering in a golden age. But during this glorious period, a deeply tragic event occurred: Miss Vera passed away in her sleep at the age of 425. From Earth to Mars, from the solar system to the Centaurus system, all of humanity grieved over this devastating news, and everyone mourned the passing of this great leader..."

"Wait a minute!" Vera suddenly raised her hand to interrupt Michiko: "The theoretical lifespan of humans in my area is over 600 years. Even though I smoke and drink, it's too short of me to kick the bucket at 425."

"You and V participated in the time travel to 2171. V did not return, but you did. However, you returned severely injured, which seriously affected your health. In fact, for the last fifty years, you were almost paralyzed and could only move around with the help of a smart wheelchair."

Vera was taken aback.

V glanced at her.

Given Vera's personality, you'd be better off killing her than keeping her in a wheelchair for 50 years.

"So the 'I' here was killed by V from another world, and Vera here was injured by V from another world, is that right?" V asked Michiko.

"According to Miss Vera's description after she returned, that's correct."

"Then why did you bring us back? Do you want us to get ruined like those two unlucky guys?" Vera frowned.

“I’m sorry,” Michiko apologized again, “but only you can save this world, and we have made preparations based on Ms. Vera’s description. We will definitely win this time.”

"Tch, it's not like you're the one risking your life, of course you'll say that."

Vera was very unhappy, but V remained calm: "Tell me about this V."

"Hey, you're not really going to listen to her and fight V here, are you? Didn't you hear her say you'd die here?" Vera exclaimed in surprise.

"That is just the history of this world, not ours. Time is biased, and we are not without a chance."

"But the way to win a bet is not to gamble. I rarely disagree with you, but listen to me this time. This is one of the few wise things a street kid has!"

"Thank you, Vera. I know you mean well, but I have my reasons for doing this."

"What reason?"

V did not answer, but looked at the brain in the glass jar.