Malfunctioning Utopia

Chapter 69: Elation

The speed of BCPD’s Unit 3 exceeded Sun Jack’s expectations. Within half a minute, their officers hadn’t yet arrived, but a swarm of drones with flashing red-and-blue lights was already blocking the truck.

“BCPD! Pull over immediately! Upload your dashcam footage! Comply with the investigation!”

The next moment, all the drone rotors abruptly seized up, and they plummeted to the ground like fallen leaves—clearly hacked.

The warning ignored, the assault began. Thunderclouds above suddenly parted, and two missiles screeched through the air, aimed directly at the truck’s cab.

“What the f***! They’re just blowing it up with missiles? Unit 3 is this heavy-handed?” Sun Jack muttered, startled by the sudden escalation.

But before the missiles could strike, the hover vehicle trailing behind the truck activated. A radar-like black device extended from its underside, causing the missile warheads to shake violently. Just before reaching the truck, they detonated prematurely.

The massive shockwave pushed the truck from the left lane to the right. But this was only the beginning. Two jet-black fighter jets burst through the clouds, heading straight for the hover vehicle.

With the battle unfolding overhead, Sun Jack knew this was the perfect chance to slip in unnoticed. Riding Tapai, he rushed to the truck’s left side and activated his cybernetic eye, glaring sharply.

“Xiao Ting%! Run! Unit 3 is here!” Sun Jack shouted as he blasted open the trunk and rushed inside.

But as he entered, he was greeted by a grisly scene: shattered brain matter scattered across the floor, equipment in disarray, and chaos everywhere. The headless woman who had been there was gone.

He hadn’t anticipated her being even more cautious than he’d expected. As soon as things went south, she had fled—without needing his warning. It was perfect for his plan.

With no time to waste, Sun Jack shoved aside dangling data cables and rushed toward the mechanical chair. “AA! Watch the perimeter!” he yelled.

Tapai quickly retracted his wheels and darted to the control panel. His sensor lines acted like fingers, rapidly typing away on the keyboard.

Sun Jack lay back on the chair as the data lines pierced into the back of his head. The sharp, searing pain shot straight into his brain. “Hurry up! Faster!” he urged.

“Shut up!” A red notification flashed across Tapai’s display. “Overclocking mode activated.” Thin streams of white smoke began to seep from the seams in Tapai’s armor.

As Sun Jack felt something drilling deeper into his brain, memories began flooding back uncontrollably, accelerating until they overwhelmed his consciousness. It was like being submerged in a vast ocean.

“Done! Data extracted! Memory and logs deleted!”

At those words, Sun Jack grabbed a blade and slashed the connections from the back of his head. Without hesitation, he dashed out of the shipping container.

As he exited, he couldn’t resist turning back to aim his prosthetic arm at the equipment behind him.

Lightning crackled, piercing the air. Electric arcs whipped and lashed at the machinery, sparks flying as explosions and flames erupted. Watching the destruction with satisfaction, Sun Jack fled the scene with his team as quickly as possible.

The battle in the skies continued, but Sun Jack didn’t care who won. He was only interested in stealing what he needed during the chaos.

To avoid being tracked, Sun Jack took several detours, wandering for hours before finally returning home.

As he stepped inside, his heart was still pounding. Today had been a rollercoaster. The plan was risky, but he had no other choice. Fortunately, it had all worked out.

Ignoring his exhaustion, Sun Jack urged Tapai to send him the extracted data. Moments later, a flood of dense data logs appeared on his system interface. But Sun Jack only cared about one line:

“User 1394 hippocampal place cell search rate: 100%. No signs of editing detected.”

Seeing this, Sun Jack felt an immense weight lift off his shoulders. He exhaled deeply, and a grin spread uncontrollably across his face. He began laughing out loud.

“Haha! My memories are real! They haven’t been edited! I’m just suffering from amnesia! Just amnesia!”

“Is it really that exciting?” Tapai remarked from the side.

“Of course!” Sun Jack exclaimed, flipping in the air with glee. “Damn, I’ve been terrified! Ever since I started doubting my memories, I haven’t been able to eat or sleep properly!”

He pulled out his phone, scrolling repeatedly through old screenshots. That sense of unreality disappeared. These snapshots of his past now felt warm and familiar again—genuinely real.

“AA’s still here. Put your phone away,” Tapai reminded him.

Sun Jack glanced at AA, who seemed utterly fascinated by the unfamiliar mechanical device in his hand. Smiling, he tucked the phone away and patted her on the head. “Today’s a celebration. What do you want to eat? My treat—let’s feast!”

He was genuinely overjoyed, far more than he had anticipated.

“No, no,” AA quickly declined. “Boss, I can’t let you treat me. I didn’t even help much earlier.”

“Are you with me or not? Stop being so formal!” Sun Jack slung an arm around her shoulders and another around Tapai, dragging them both outside.

That evening, Sun Jack and AA stayed out late, drinking heavily. By the end, both were red-faced and thoroughly drunk. The cost? His bank balance sank into the negatives again.

But Sun Jack didn’t mind. True, he could never go back to his old life. Yet, even in a world a thousand years ahead, he needed to believe that the things he once cherished were real—not fabricated.

Those memories meant infinitely more than a bit of money.

Half-conscious, Sun Jack babbled nonsense to AA, his words growing more cheerful as he spoke. It had been ages since he felt this happy.

He didn’t know how much time passed before exhaustion overtook him. Drooling, he curled up against one of Tapai’s charging legs, drifting off to the sound of rain pattering against the window.

At some point, he felt unbearably hot. Jolting awake, he realized his right hand was on fire.

Panicking, Sun Jack could only watch as flames consumed his body. He struggled desperately, sweat pouring down his face, until his eyes snapped open.

It was just a dream.

But relief was short-lived. Even though the flames were gone, his arm still hurt—despite being wide awake.

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