Chapter 90: No Way Out!

Chapter 90: No Way Out!

"Alt, your name is Alt Cunningham. Strange… This is clearly the first time I've seen you, yet I know your name."

V was baffled. He didn't understand why he felt an inexplicable connection to Alt, as if they had been intimate partners for a long time.

The feeling was surreal.

"V, what I'm about to tell you may go far beyond anything you can imagine, so you must be mentally prepared."

Alt's expression turned grave, sending a chill through V's heart. His visible panic began to show.

"You… You can go ahead."

V struggled to steady his breathing, trying to calm his slightly agitated mind. But as Alt spoke, his face paled uncontrollably.

It turned out the memories in V's mind that didn't belong to him were data from Johnny Silverhand's engram.

When V was shot in the head by Dex, the Relic chip had begun its program.

Over the coming weeks, Johnny Silverhand's engram would gradually overwrite V's brain, while V's own consciousness would slowly fade away during the overlap.

Simply put, with the help of the Relic chip, V was being forcibly subjected to a "soul overwrite," assisting Johnny Silverhand in completing his rebirth program.

When V learned all of this from Alt Cunningham, he felt as though his world was crumbling. He couldn't believe that inserting a single chip could lead to the obliteration of his soul.

"Are you saying… there's a goddamn terrorist in my head, eating away at my consciousness bit by bit, planning to take over my body?!"

V's voice was incredulous, trembling with despair. His best friend Jackie's fate remained uncertain, he was entangled in Arasaka's patricide scandal, and then he was betrayed and shot by Dex.

Now, just as he barely managed to cling to life, he was being forced into possession by a terrorist. The constant blows were driving V's mental state to the brink of collapse.

"Why is this happening?! Can't this damn chip just be removed?"

V's bloodshot eyes stared at Alt. He didn't want to die so soon, especially not in such a bizarre and suffocating way.

It was too humiliating!

"I'm sorry, V. You can't remove the chip."

Alt Cunningham shook her head, her sorrowful gaze filled with pity. It was evident she didn't wish for Johnny Silverhand to reunite with her in this manner.

"When the Relic chip activates, it first consumes part of your neurons as a medium for data transfer, then gradually spreads Johnny's engram throughout your brain and begins reshaping your personality."

"From now on, you'll see Johnny's figure, hear his voice, and even your personality and thoughts will start to be influenced by him."

"If you forcibly remove the chip, you'll die quickly in excruciating pain. That kind of suffering… might be worse than death by a thousand cuts."

Realizing he couldn't remove the chip and couldn't stop its program, V suppressed his breakdown and tentatively asked Alt,

"Isn't there any way to stop this? Or… can't you just get this guy's engram out of my head?"

In V's mind, if the chip couldn't be dealt with, then surely the data within it could—like deleting a file from a hard drive.

V's quick thinking surpassed Alt Cunningham's expectations. She did know how to delete the engram, but it came with enormous risks.

Since the Relic chip had altered V's brain environment to accommodate Johnny Silverhand's engram, V's original consciousness was already being rejected by his body.

If Johnny's engram were deleted, V's brain would suffer severe damage. The best possible outcome would be becoming a frail, ordinary person.

But more likely, V's condition would worsen—perhaps a sudden brain condition could kill him within a year or so.

Moreover, V's brain would no longer support any cyberware, effectively rendering him useless as a mercenary.

And besides… that was Johnny Silverhand's soul.

Alt couldn't bear to destroy the engram of someone she loved deeply. If Johnny's engram were removed, no trace of him would remain in the world.

The biological samples of Johnny retained by the L.A. company would lose all meaning.

Even if Alt used the AI Queen's abilities to carefully extract Johnny's engram, there was no guarantee against data loss.

Missing even a crucial packet could turn Johnny into a fool, a lunatic, or a bloodthirsty maniac—or worse, render his engram incapable of restarting entirely.

Alt couldn't take any of those risks.

"Alt, isn't there another way? Please, help this poor kid… All he wants is to live, and there's nothing wrong with that."

Victor sighed heavily. Though he hadn't known V for long, the bond they had formed was as close as father and son.

Victor didn't want to see V meet an early demise.

"There is one other way… but it's extremely risky, and I can't guarantee the success rate of the procedure."

Alt exhaled deeply, her mood heavier than ever. It was clear she didn't even want to mention this terrible solution.

"Alt, just say it. Any chance is better than no chance at all."

Victor and V both looked at Alt Cunningham, hoping for even the slimmest hope of survival.

"Fine, I'll tell you."

Alt took out a separation chip and presented it to V. She began speaking slowly,

"Extracting Johnny's engram is hard, but extracting yours is much easier."

"Because your body is already rejecting your consciousness, the procedure will be far less complicated."

"I can remove your consciousness first. Then, once Johnny has fully adapted to your body, I'll figure out how to extract his engram and finally return your consciousness to your body."

"By doing this…"

Before Alt could finish, V flatly rejected the absurd proposal. This was madness! Two souls taking turns jumping in and out of his body? That was utterly ridiculous!