Chapter 169: I Am a Remnant of the Old Era, and the New Era Has No Place for Me
"Well done, Alex!"
Myers , overjoyed, immediately approached the radio and instructed Alex to fine-tune the receiving channel. She urgently needed to gather information about the outside world.
As the President of New America, constantly juggling countless tasks and crises, Myers was accustomed to handling a whirlwind of information and events. Being idle all of a sudden made her feel restless and anxious.
However, now trapped in an unfinished building in Dogtown, she was temporarily cut off from external information. This isolation was driving Myers to the brink of frustration and madness.
To her, a smooth flow of information was like the lifeblood of her political survival. If this lifeline was severed for too long, unforeseen incidents could arise in Congress back in Washington at any moment.
After all, power knows no vacuum.
Soon, under Alex's adjustments, the radio began broadcasting news from various media channels.
#Intel Brief: According to the latest network monitoring investigation, the internet outage in the Russian cyber district was purely accidental and showed no evidence of hacker intrusion!#
...
"Next."
Myers frowned in frustration. This was not the news she wanted to hear.
The outage in Russia—such a trivial matter—had somehow captivated these European companies for so long. It was absurd, a sign of people desperately looking for something to do.
Alex quickly pressed a button and switched to the next media channel.
#WNS: LA Company has formed an alliance of interests with corporations across the European Union. As of now, 23 major companies have joined the LA Alliance!#
...
"Hmm? An alliance between LA Company and European companies? What's going on here? What exactly is this LA Alliance?"
Myers was puzzled. Her initial thought was that Li Ang had probably hosted another tech product launch event, attracting European corporations into his business circle.
Just like the previous polymer launch, companies worldwide had chosen to collaborate with Li Ang —even at the cost of giving up shares—just to cling to LA Company's coattails.
To Myers , this seemed no different.
She didn't realize that the purpose of the LA Corporation was to replace the European Union. She assumed it was just another one of Li Ang 's commercial schemes.
Unfortunately, this still wasn't the kind of news Myers was hoping for.
"Keep switching," Myers ordered.
Alex continued adjusting the radio until finally tuning into the signal of N54 News, New America's state media.
This time, Myers finally heard the news she had been waiting for.
**#N54 News: The Air Sky One airship has unexpectedly crashed in Dogtown. Military Tech CEO Lucas Harford has temporarily taken over as acting president of New America.
Harford publicly stated that troops will station near Night City to send a warning to Dogtown's warlord, Hansen. Additionally, an elite unit will be deployed to fully dedicate itself to rescuing President Myers .#**
...
Upon learning that the presidency had been temporarily handed over to Lucas Harford, the CEO of military technology and her right-hand man, the previously suspicious Myers finally felt relieved.
She had feared that the old Congress members would seize power in her absence and sideline her. However, it now seemed her concerns were unfounded. Harford was one of her trusted allies; otherwise, she wouldn't have appointed him as CEO of military technology and her successor. With Harford monitoring Congress in Washington, Myers could confidently issue commands to the troops and agents in Dogtown.
By tomorrow, once Reed retrieved the communication device, Myers believed she could regain control of the situation.
Observing Myers ' relaxed demeanor, V, curious about the truth, couldn't help but ask through the AI White Queen:
"Mr. Li Ang , is this for real? I can't help but feel things are developing a bit too smoothly."
V found it hard to believe that any company executive would remain indifferent when such a powerful position—the presidency of New America—was suddenly within their grasp. Especially one that involved governing millions and controlling vast North American territories. V doubted Harford wouldn't be tempted to stab Myers in the back.
"The news is indeed true," Li Ang replied, "but who's to say the elite rescue team Harford sent isn't actually here to kill her instead?"
Li Ang 's words sent a chill down V's spine.
What if this was a smokescreen planted by Harford to mislead Myers ? If so, her chances of regaining power were slim. Harford might already be orchestrating a coup.
In that moment, V felt as if every ambitious schemer had stepped forward, each deploying their own nefarious plots. Even the indomitable President Myers seemed unable to escape betrayal after betrayal.
"So, it's possible Harford is secretly staging a coup, taking advantage of Myers ' confinement in Dogtown to overthrow her," V speculated, but Li Ang remained silent.
Li Ang knew that the less V understood, the more efficiently he could execute the next steps. A pawn burdened by too much knowledge was rarely useful.
All power struggles were inherently brutal, exposing the ugliness of human nature under the dazzling glow of ambition.
In reality, V's suspicion wasn't far from the truth. Harford was indeed busy purging Myers ' loyalists with the support of LA Corp. It was Li Ang himself who provided the list of targets and backed Harford's plans for seizing power.
With LA Corp. behind him, Harford's hunger for power had grown boundless, enabling him to act with impunity.
Meanwhile, reassured that Congress was under control, Myers began devising her next moves.
In addition to retrieving the communication device through Reed, her top priority was recapturing Song Zhao Mei. Myers would not allow this "nightingale" to slip through her fingers.
"Reed, I trust I don't need to emphasize how crucial Song Zhao Mei is to our agency," Myers said with a stern expression. "She's a key figure in the North Star Project and your protégé."
"Now, your apprentice has dared to run off without authorization. Isn't it your duty, as her mentor, to bring this wayward lamb back into the fold?"
Reed could sense Myers ' fury at Song Zhao Mei's betrayal. Her tone made it clear: she wanted Song Zhao Mei dead or alive.
For New America, Song Zhao Mei was a strategic asset akin to a mobile cyber weapon, one of the few capable of utilizing the Blackwall. If Myers couldn't have her, she would rather destroy her than let anyone else acquire her.
"Yes, I'll do everything I can to bring her back," Reed replied, his tone weary and defeated.
Watching this exchange, V couldn't understand Reed's unwavering loyalty to such a ruthless superior. As far as V knew, Myers had once abandoned Reed and Alex, leaving them for dead.
Had LA Corp. not intervened, Reed would have died under Arasaka's gunfire. Yet, despite surviving against all odds, Reed returned to the agency to continue serving Myers .
V couldn't help but suspect Reed was suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. In his place, V would have sought revenge against the heartless president long ago.
"Alright, you're all dismissed for now. We'll begin the operation first thing tomorrow morning!" Myers declared.
Having dismissed her subordinates, Myers remained alone in her room, refining her strategies. Meanwhile, in the main hall, V received a long-awaited text from Song Zhao Mei:
[Meet me at the top floor of Sapphire Hotel the day after tomorrow.]
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Time flew by as everyone prepared for their tasks. By the third day of V's tenure at the agency, he had been juggling communications with Li Ang , dealings with Song Zhao Mei, and interactions with Reed and Alex.
V's natural charisma made befriending Reed and Alex easy, even managing to break through Alex's icy exterior. One evening, she confided her true dream: to become an opera star and appear in Braindance productions.
V supported her wholeheartedly, even joking that becoming a Braindance actor was a perfect second career for a former spy.
Elsewhere, in a small basketball court, V and Reed sat on the bleachers, finalizing their plans for extracting Song Zhao Mei from Sapphire Hotel.
After mapping out the operation, Reed suddenly sighed deeply. Turning to V, he said, "You know, I understand why Zhao Mei would choose to betray Myers , even aligning with Dogtown's warlord Kurt Hansen."
Reed's voice was heavy as he continued, "The system molds everyone into the same shape. Whether it's me, Alex, or Zhao Mei, as long as we stay in the agency, we're bound to serve New America at the expense of our lives. But how many of us are truly willing to bear such crushing pressure and suppress our true selves to be joyless tools?"
For a moment, Reed stared into the distance, his gaze filled with melancholy.
"Sometimes, I wonder: is sacrificing everything for a long-dead America truly worth it?"
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