2077: V really knows how awesome he is

"The current international consensus is that Arasaka in the East has fallen, while Arasaka in the West has risen. President V, have you decided on a new name for the company?"

“Of course,” V said confidently. “Let’s call it Arasaka 2077, to represent our fresh start in 2077 and a complete break from the past!”

There was silence in the conference room.

V asked curiously, "What, is it not good?"

This isn't a question of good or bad; this guy is utterly terrible at naming!

It turns out that even the omnipotent CEO V has areas where he's not good at something, which suddenly made everyone feel much more balanced.

"Great! This name is fantastic!"

As Carter loudly praised it, everyone initially cursed him as a sycophant, but then they all gave him a thumbs up and showered the new name with praise, just like Carter.

V was very satisfied with the result, after all, she was the one who had the AI ​​generate the name.

"Then it's settled. Next, let's talk about the reconstruction of Night City. First, let's report on our losses."

With just one sentence, the entire conference room became serious.

"First, there is Taiping, which suffered the most damage. The seaside area has been completely razed to the ground. Dogtown was also affected and suffered extensive damage. The area around the stadium was the hardest hit."

"Secondly, there's Santo Domingo. Because of Shoukaku's electromagnetic cannon, the entire city was split in two, a large number of buildings were destroyed, and 70% of the area lost water and power."

"Then there was Haywood, Valley and Lijiang became the main areas of our battle with the Arasaka landing force. The back-and-forth fighting caused severe damage to these two areas. Almost all the low-rise buildings were destroyed, and the high-rise buildings also suffered varying degrees of damage. Currently, several professional teams are assessing the quality of the buildings."

"Westbrook and Watson were not greatly damaged because they were far from the battlefield, and the displaced residents and wounded were mainly resettled in these two places."

"Please describe the casualties."

"We deployed a total of about 27000 soldiers in this battle, including more than 7000 regular troops from Arasaka, Kangtao, and Youmingquan, and the remaining 2 or so were temporary reserve troops, city mercenaries, and gang members. Although we had an absolute advantage in numbers, we still suffered heavy casualties due to the disparity in weaponry and equipment."

"The entire Ghost Hound army has been wiped out, and Colonel Kurt Hansen is still in critical condition."

"2157 people were killed and 842 were seriously wounded in the battle of Arasaka."

"Kantau suffered 1469 dead and 213 seriously wounded."

"The reserve force, city mercenaries, and gang members suffered a total of approximately 14000 deaths and over 2000 serious injuries. I apologize, but because many people were not specifically registered, this number cannot be completely accurate."

"I understand. Make sure the pension is distributed properly, relax the eligibility criteria, and be willing to overpay, overpay incorrectly, or overpay repeatedly, rather than let anyone be left out. But let me make this clear beforehand: no one is allowed to tamper with this money. Even if the lowest-ranking temporary worker commits a crime, the entire department will be held responsible, including everyone here. You all know about the Soul Prison and understand that death is not the end."

Everyone couldn't help but shudder. The finance department was under the most pressure, and the minister asked tremblingly, "Isn't this...aren't we being a little...too harsh?"

"Then keep a close eye on your men and make them supervise each other!" V slammed his hand on the table, startling the finance minister into nodding repeatedly in agreement.

Everyone confirmed that V wasn't joking. They all abandoned their original thoughts and prepared to go back and warn their subordinates to behave themselves. They didn't care if they wanted to die, but they shouldn't implicate others.

"What about civilian casualties?"

"The current figures are 8212 deaths, 12764 serious injuries, and 32846 minor injuries."

"It's so high up, aren't there underground shelters?"

"The casualties are this high because of the underground shelters. Arasaka's weapons are powerful and advanced, and ordinary civilian facilities simply cannot withstand the bombing. Most civilian casualties come from the collapse and burial of buildings. The cleanup work has now finished the manual phase and heavy machinery has entered the site. As more rubble is turned over, the death toll may rise further."

V felt somewhat heavy-hearted.

Someone comforted him, saying, "President V, you've done more than enough. It's a miracle that less than 700 people have died in a modern war in a city of 1 million people."

V shook his head without saying much, and asked, "How is the public's sentiment?"

"Sadness was the dominant emotion, mixed with the joy of victory. Overall, it was somewhat somber, but still relatively stable."

"Hopefully people will be happier after tonight's news broadcast." V looked at his old boss: "Jenkins, you'd better do a good job on this."

"Yes, please rest assured. Faced with an astronomical figure of 400 billion euros, even the most hard-hearted person would smile."

V then made some adjustments and arrangements to the specific matters, and the meeting finally came to an end.

Her next stop is the 212th Casualty Shelter in Watson District, for private matters.

To avoid interfering with the work of medical staff, V did not intend to reveal her identity, so she did not ride the levitation vehicle, but instead discreetly chose the sword in the stone as her means of transportation.

Open the car door, start the engine, and the Stone Sword starts driving smoothly. As the V-shaped crystal car cover is activated, hexagonal ripples appear on the surface of the Stone Sword, changing from a red and white color scheme to an all-black paint job, making it even more understated.

So, did quietly moving up a level mean going higher or lower? Thanks to the efficient and responsible post-disaster cleanup work, the roads were restored to normal in the first instance. Before V could even figure out the answer to this question, she had already reached her destination.

He turned off the engine, put on sunglasses and a baseball cap, pulled the brim down, checked himself in the rearview mirror to make sure he wasn't too conspicuous, and then opened the scissor doors and got out of the car.

No. 212 wounded person resettlement site.

Strictly speaking, this should be called temporary shelter number 212. It was converted from a large factory building, so the environment is certainly not good, but at least there's a roof over their heads and walls around them, keeping the injured from the wind and rain. The most serious problem right now is the shortage of medical staff, so some members of the public have stepped forward to take on the task of caring for the injured.

V saw Misty, but at first she didn't recognize her because Misty's fluffy hair was gone, replaced by a neat short haircut.

"Hey, nice new hairstyle."

Misty looked surprised when she saw V. She was about to call out when V shushed her, saying, "I don't want to disturb everyone."

The mysterious girl suddenly realized, touched the hair by her ear and said, "My hair was singed by the fire and turned into a black clump, so I just cut it short."

“I bet it was a really scary time.” V said apologetically, “I’m so sorry, Misty, it’s all because of me…”

“Don’t say that, President V, you’ve done a great job.” Misty said with a smile, “Although many people have died because of you, even more people have survived because of you.”

"Uh, is this supposed to be comforting?"

"Of course not, it's just a fact. By the way, do you need some comforting words?"

V and Misty both laughed.

V doesn't need comforting, because she doesn't regret it. Even if she could turn back time and do it all over again, she would still make the same choice.

She wasn't a saint, nor did she possess much compassion. She simply forged a path in a desperate situation and chose the one with the least cost.

"I still need to change Uncle Sam's dressing. If you're looking for Jack, go down this path, the second bed against the wall is it."

Misty smiled and said goodbye. She was also a member of the volunteer medical staff. Although she was only a temporary nurse, she always did her job conscientiously.

V continued walking inside.

As she passed a small, secluded room, she heard cries coming from inside.

"Please don't amputate my leg! I bought this car with a 24-month loan, and I've only just made it to the sixth payment. Doctor, please don't amputate my leg!"

This small room, which was originally the foreman's office, has now been converted into a temporary operating room.

V looked inside and saw another familiar face.

It's Lao Wei.

Victor Victor, the most reliable prosthetic doctor in Night City, bar none.

Old Wei's forehead and chest were wrapped in bandages with bloodstains, but even though he was injured himself, he never forgot to help others.

A young man was lying on the operating table, with his friend beside him.

"Doctor, can you think of another way? My friend is known as 'Little Whirlwind of Taiping Prefecture,' and his dream is to become a world sprint champion. His legs are really important to him!"

Old Wei looked troubled: "But he is seriously injured. After his mechanical leg broke, it kept leaking logic virus. If this continues, it will infect other prosthetics, and his big cannon may also be lost."

"What?!" Upon hearing that the cannon couldn't be saved, Little Whirlwind from Taiping Prefecture cried out in alarm, "Doctor, quickly amputate my leg! If amputating one isn't enough, amputate the other one too, quick!"

friend:"……"

Old Wei: "..."

V: "..."

The surgery went very smoothly, and after learning that the cannon could be preserved, the patient gave the doctor a five-star rating for his work.

As for the dream of winning a championship, sorry, that's insignificant compared to humanity's most primal desires.

Old Vi saw V.

"President V?"

Call me V.

"Okay, V, what brings you here?"

“I’ve come to see Jack.” V asked, “But you, you’re injured yourself, why are you still thinking about helping others?”

Old Wei chuckled: "Probably because I'm a nice guy."

V laughed and said, "A kind-hearted guy who came from humble beginnings but managed to beat the boxing champion all by himself?"

"A hero doesn't dwell on past glories." Old Wei shrugged. "Now I'm just an ordinary prosthetic doctor."

"Thank you, Lao Wei. You've helped me a lot and this city a lot. You need to take care of yourself and get some rest."

"Thank you too, V. You are the one who truly helped this city. I wish you good health forever."

For a doctor, eternal health is both a curse that could cost him his job and the highest form of blessing.

V accepted the blessing and turned it into motivation to keep moving forward.

In the innermost room, on the second bed against the wall, V met Jack.

The strong man's left side had been replaced with steel, which is why he survived. He is now lying on the bed, his face covered in cold sweat.

"Do you regret it?" V sat down on the edge of the bed.

Jack was slightly surprised to see V, but still smiled and replied, "To be honest, I regret it. If I were stronger, I could have killed more enemies and saved more comrades."

"What an idiot!" V couldn't help but curse. "You didn't need to be at the very front!"

Jack laughed and said, "No, it's always been you at the front."

Even though the world has changed, people who can understand each other can still understand each other; that's probably what friendship is all about.

When V inquired about Jack's injuries, the burly man began to boast. He described how brave he was, how many Arasaka dogs he killed, and how many companions he saved—it was as if he were a god descended to earth.

But a god can't have half his body blown off. Jack didn't want V to worry, so he didn't mention the near-death experience.

V listened quietly to Jack's boasting, occasionally offering a few words of praise; this was her only task now.

Jack had a great time talking, and he suddenly felt that this was how he and V should be, and this was their everyday life.

But how could that be? He was just a small-time hoodlum in Haywood, a foreman in the factory. How could he possibly have such a daily relationship with the famous CEO V?

President V probably just came to visit the wounded and, incidentally, to see me, an acquaintance he'd met once before.

Having grown up in poverty, Jack understood the barriers of social status better than anyone. A sense of loss welled up inside him, but he couldn't help but say, "President V, Misty and I are getting married, right after I recover from my injuries. Can you come?"

V stood up.

Jack regretted his words as soon as he finished speaking, and quickly said, "No, you're so busy, let's just forget about it. Please pretend I didn't say anything."

"Wild Wolf Bar?" V asked.

"What?" Jack didn't understand.

"I mean, is the wedding at the Wild Wolf Bar?"

"Yes."

"Don't forget to save me a drink when you come." V patted Jack on the shoulder with a smile: "I'll definitely be there."

"Thank you! President V, I will. I will definitely save the best wine for you. Please don't stand me up!"

"Jack, wait for me in the car. I'll be right back after I see Dexter DeSean, then we'll go home together."

V has stood Jack up once, but she won't do it again this time.

V was even happier than Jack himself that his good friend had found a good home.

Even though her best friend has forgotten her.

V always had many people on her mind: Jack, Mrs. Wells, old V, Misty... but she couldn't disregard the interests of the public for her own selfish reasons; she had to consider the bigger picture.

The big picture.

An incredibly disgusting word.

V thought that she had ultimately become the very thing she hated most. Now she was no different from Saburo Arasaka. In her eyes, the casualties of tens of thousands of people were just a number, a price that had to be paid.

But she didn't regret it. She only needed to know that her downfall would bring happiness to more people.

What the mercenaries couldn't do, she will do now. This time, she will definitely give everyone a perfect ending!

The communicator rang; it was Sasha.

V answered the phone.

“V, can you come to the hospital now? Colonel Hansen... he's dying.”