I, the only superpower on earth

The door is just ahead.

With trembling fingers, Robert stamped on the door.

This time, without prompting from the AI ​​robot "Stacy" beside him, he consciously triggered the identity authentication system on the door.

In the next second, the surface of the door that the fingers touched was rippling with light like ripples, waiting for the reaction of the people in the room, and not long after, the door opened with a "click".

"..."

Robert took a breath, then turned around, only to see "Stacy" waving slightly at him, with a scripted smile on his face, and walking away step by step.

However, despite such a mechanical smile, in the eyes of Robert, who has been with her for several days and has been accompanied by her all the way, this "AI for social services" seems familiar and close, and he is about to part at this time. A faint sense of loneliness welled up in my heart, and I couldn't help asking her:

"... Ms. Stacy, will we see each other again? How can I find you?"

The robot's eyelids were opened just right, and the smile added a bit of sincerity.

"Don't look for me... Standard Citizen Mr. Robert.

"As long as you walk on the street or wake up your personal terminal, no matter when and where, there will be 'me' and 'my' companions everywhere. The information and data of serving you in the past few days have been recorded in the In the highest intelligence brain... as long as you want to see me again, just inject relevant data."

As he said, "Stacy" had already retreated to the end of the corridor. The next moment, the elevator between the corridors of "Honeycomb Type 5" had arrived, the metal door opened automatically, and the robot walked into the elevator door. At the last moment before falling, He bowed slightly to Robert.

"...I wish you a pleasant return home."

The mouth shape of the last sentence was just stopped by the gently closed elevator door, Robert felt a little empty, but the next moment, thinking of his family, his expression cheered up again.

Gently pushed open the half-hidden door, and stepped into the room.

The gray-haired old woman, the middle-aged man with glasses, the woman beside him, and the little girl sitting next to them all showed surprise expressions the moment they saw Robert.

"boom--"

The little girl fired the salute, and gold, silver, and other fireworks of various colors burst out from the barrel and fell in a big way.

"Grandpa - welcome home!"

The little girl yelled crisply. Robert nodded with a smile, squatted down, and was about to reach out to hug her, but suddenly stopped when his hands were stretched out in mid-air. He watched those arms that penetrated his own and fell to the floor unconsciously. The fireworks above showed a surprised expression.

"—This is a hologram!"

The little girl giggled and jumped into Robert's arms.

Hugging her, Robert hugged her up with some dumbfounding, watching the old woman approaching him with tears in her eyes, and the shy middle-aged man wearing glasses.

"Father... glad you're back."

...

"At the beginning of the year, we heard the news that Japan had turned into red soil, and we were very worried about my father at that time. But then the news came from the Ministry of Defense-although father, you did not die on that strange island, but We were arrested and convicted of treason... Our lives and work have been affected to a certain extent."

Robert sat on the soft and hard sofa, quietly listening to the man's narration. The slightly wry smile on the latter's face made his heart drop suddenly, but he kept quiet without saying a word, letting his son continue go on.

"However...neither I nor my mother believe that you will betray the country or collude with that superpower who is completely crazy in front of the whole world-but we can guess why...The Folsom family because the direct heirs The defeat and death in Japan hit hard, and they pushed you out as a scapegoat in order to continue in politics...

"After learning about the situation, my mother and I appealed many times and asked to meet you, but we were stopped every time, and some mysterious people threatened death on the way...

"Fortunately, I'm just a theoretical physicist. In their view, I don't have much influence, so I didn't make those threats come true in the end. But even so, our family invested in stocks, bonds and other liquid assets. became greatly impaired, and the family estate was diluted a lot...

"Of course, the more likely reason is that they want to wait for a while before making a move—it's just that the 'One Day War' has come, and Navalli Evans has destroyed all the administrative systems in the past, and those senior officials and the political arena have changed. It has become history, and the danger against us has naturally been eliminated invisible.

"...so maybe most of the smart and rich people in 'New America' hate Navalli Evans' administration, but I appreciate him."

The man smiled happily.

Robert was still silent, but his left hand, which was originally on the sofa, rested on his chin, silently stroking the stubble he had just shaved.

The man noticed his slight movement, and continued to say:

"...what happened later, whether it is in the old Internet, or in the virtual world of the 'forum' can be known - Navalli promulgated the 'Zero Act' - it is also called the 'Million Sweepstakes Law' or It is the 'Blood Tax Law', which is simply the most bizarre and incomprehensible bill in the history of mankind in terms of content and form...

"... But it is very interesting that our family's property situation has been hit hard because of the previous involvement, plus most of the fixed assets originally belonged to the house in Kalorama District, and the original site of the house was requisitioned This "beehive five" apartment made our property level just below the "top million people" line, so we avoided the killing in the first month; and in the second month, I moved the whole family without hesitation The credits in the account are donated—at least 80% of the families in the country have made the same choice as me. Anyway, "New America" ​​has a basic income of 10,000 credits per month for adult standard citizens... ...And the funds I donated are not in vain. The Central Intellectual Brain will give special research funds for the amount I donate and the work I do-of course, this fund can only be used for scientific research, and there is no way to buy any Luxury goods or human services that circulate in the free market.

“… After all, the auditing level of AI is 10,000 times stronger than all the auditing companies and government departments in the past combined.”

The man shrugged and said with a relaxed expression.

"Ten thousand times? Isn't that going to the heart of the earth?"

Robert frowned slightly, and made a joke.

The man couldn't help grinning.

"Father, you still like to joke so much..."

Robert also smiled, and the atmosphere was relaxed, but in this relaxation, he suddenly looked at the man with a serious expression.

"Clark, what do you think of America now?"

"……How about it?"

The man hesitated for a moment, and after a while, he replied slowly in deep thought:

"The current 'New America', I think, is a country that far exceeds any period in the history of the United States-although the immigration channel is now closed, it is almost a closed country, and external economic and social exchanges are stopped online, which has triggered a global crisis. The financial tsunami has led to the bankruptcy of many countries... However, the interior of this society has never been so focused on progress and science. The 'forum' and the virtual world that has spawned more and more have given most people a respite And the space of indifference, people in reality no longer stick to the ups and downs of stocks, the heat of parties, and the connection with others... Everyone can find a corner that suits them, and no one can always focus Center of the stage... maybe that doesn't apply to Navalli, but he never seems to mean it either.

“…Although the result of the L-PDE model is close to tyranny, I think it is still a manifestation of freedom. People still have the right to choose—either choose to give up wealth, or choose to put their lives at risk. It’s all already been said.”

The man named Clark spoke cautiously.

After a long time, Robert nodded and shook his head again.

"I don't quite understand how this era works...but since it has become an established reality, I will still choose to accept it."

He murmured, turned his head, and looked at the far end outside the window.

Clark finally showed a relieved look on his face.

But before he could breathe a sigh of relief, Robert's voice made him tense up again.

"Clark...what are you doing over there?

"——Why does it look so dark, with so many people gathered there?"

Clark followed the direction Robert was looking at, and it didn't take long before he laughed easily.

"Oh, don't worry, father—there is the Chinese embassy in the United States. Those people should be rich Chinese with American green cards or status."

"Why are they there... oh, I see."

Looking at Robert, who suddenly showed relief on his face, Clark added for him.

"Yeah, exactly what you think.

"...Remember the 'right to choose' I just said? I think that group of rich people should neither want to give up their wealth nor be put at risk because of it, so they want to make a third choice— —that is to leave America through the embassy, ​​and return with wealth to the land they left behind."