Nobita's Time Heist

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

【OX Fortune Teller】: From the movie *Nobita's Dragon Knight*, this is a scientific marvel of the future, capable of providing absolutely correct answers. If the answer to the question is "yes," then O rises; otherwise, X rises. It can only provide a yes or no answer. For questions with ambiguous boundaries, neither O nor X will rise.

I get very angry when my accuracy is questioned.

Using this gadget, Doraemon located Suneo and further confirmed the existence of a huge underground cavity. This event sparked a grand adventure set in an underground dinosaur empire.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Now that we've confirmed Doraemon has nothing to do with this, let's move on to the next topic..." Gian swallowed hard and hurriedly asked, "How is Xiaoshan doing now?"

O and X did not react.

“Oh dear, Takeshi, I’ve already said this won’t work. It can only give yes or no answers; we need to ask more precise questions.” Shizuka shook her head and asked in a low voice, “Is Dekisugi Hideaki, who traveled with us, still alive…?”

The three boys looked at her with some surprise. None of them expected that Shizuka, who seemed so weak, had made the worst possible plan from the very beginning.

However, thinking about it carefully, Xiaoshan didn't bring anything with him! Although he's smart enough, what if he were thrown into an extremely unfriendly era...?

Fortunately, before the chill could creep up their spines, X slowly rose up, giving them a sense of relief.

"Is his living environment good now?"—The moment Nobita asked the question, he immediately realized he had made a semantic mistake. Whether someone lives "good" or "bad" is a very subjective judgment, and everyone's standard of measurement is different. Nobita might feel that he's doing well, but the same conditions might be unacceptable to Suneo. Questions like these, based on subjective perception, are easily unanswerable by the fortune teller.

Sure enough, the two brothers hesitated for a moment, and then O slowly floated up.

"As expected of Dekisugi!" Gian nodded, genuinely admiring him. "A truly capable person remains capable no matter where they go. He must have effectively utilized the knowledge in his mind to be able to establish himself comfortably in other eras, right?"

O continued to float.

"Haha, it seems we were too nervous." Xiaofu laughed along. "Judging from this, at least his life is safe for the time being."

……

O falls, X rises.

In an instant, the room fell into a terrifying silence. Everyone stared at the X; at this moment, it was no longer a simple divination tool, but a Damocles' sword hanging over their heads, ready to fall at any moment.

"I said, OX fortune teller..." Suneo said with a mournful face, "You make mistakes sometimes, don't you?"

Enraged, X flew down and smacked him hard on the head.

"He's still alive, and the environment isn't dangerous for the time being, but his life isn't guaranteed." Da Xiong summarized briefly, then tilted his head and pondered, "Has Xiao Shan become a kind of... sacrifice? Does he need to wait for the right time to be offered to something that will take his life?"

X falls, O rises.

Once the truth is clear, there's nothing left to hesitate about.

"We have absolutely no clue as to which era Xiaoshan went to... We can only turn to the Time Police for help." In a few breaths, Da Xiong had already formulated the next plan and said in a deep voice, "Everyone has been tired these past few days, so let's get some rest early tonight. Tomorrow morning, we'll leave this era."

"What about Doraemon?" Gian asked without hesitation. "We finally managed to track him down here, and now we're just going to lose track of him like this?"

"Xiaoshan's safety is more important right now!" Nobita prioritized the situation almost without hesitation. "If... the one who came to 1899 is really the Doraemon we know..."

His gaze traveled through the window and landed on the horizon that seemed to swallow everything. "He will understand me."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Just as he had instructed, everyone went to rest, but the light in his room remained on for a long time.

The light shone on the OX fortune teller, as if a demon was whispering in his ear. Unable to bear it any longer, Nobita stared wide-eyed at the two tools and asked in an almost lip-reading voice.

"Doraemon..."

"Are you a member of the Apairon Foundation?"

It was so quiet all around that Nobita could hear his own heartbeat, as loud as a drum, as if his heart was about to jump out of his chest.

A few seconds later, O, like a god of judgment, floated up.

The cold wind howled outside.

His heart almost stopped at that moment.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Let's rewind to an earlier time.

New Austin, the Elodia Mountains, a secret base in a mine.

"Damn it, I knew that mustache guy was unreliable. He managed to botch such a simple task." Moonlight shone on Norman's black trench coat as he walked briskly through the smooth mine shaft. He pulled a bunch of keys from his pocket and gently pressed a button.

"boom----!!"

The modified ground suddenly cracked open, and a small airship slowly rose, spewing out cone-shaped flames and blowing away the surrounding smoke and dust. The airship's hull was black, bearing several scratches and bullet holes, showing it had seen its share of storms. A blood-red plesiosaur pattern was branded in its center, giving it a chilling appearance from afar.

Once seated in his familiar old companion, Norman expertly adjusted all the necessary parameters before takeoff, pressed a knob, and adjusted the airship's orientation.

The AI's voice announced, "Please select the direction of the forward spacetime jump."

"As expected, the power of the Scarlet God has disappeared, and the spacetime blockade has been lifted." Norman looked at the changes on the instrument and said resentfully, "Nobita, you've been given another second chance at life."

"Enjoy this brief victory to the fullest. Going against the Foundation, death... is nothing but a gift to be received."

The airship changed direction, summoning a portal for time travel. In the last second before he was about to leave this era…

A burst of heat-generating fusion rays shot up from the ground and instantly pierced through it.

"boom------!!"

The dragon hunter and his vehicle vanished in the dazzling flames, becoming a brief flash in the night sky.

……

"Humph……"

On the mine, the blue cat-shaped robot snorted coldly and retracted its heat gun onto its back. Its abdomen was empty, without pockets, and it felt like something was missing. A pair of dark red eyes, gleaming with a cold light in the darkness, showed utter disdain for the exploding firework in the sky.

"A guy who's good for nothing but causing trouble..."

"You're really looking for death."

Chapter 83: Childcare Robots and "Humans in the Circuit"

"The robot that Shizuka and the others saw during the Warring States period was probably one that could no longer keep up with market demands but hadn't yet been destroyed. Based on the parts that Suneo and Gian brought back, we completed a preliminary matching, and the results were astonishing..."

Once again, we arrive at the 22nd-century Time and Space Management Institute, a grand building constructed of pure white bricks and stones, resembling an ancient Greek philosophical temple. Standing on a hill far from the city, composed of meticulous straight lines, columns, and triangles, it stands like a colossal work of art, isolated from the world.

The moment he stepped into the hall, Da Xiong could clearly sense that the atmosphere was no longer as tense as before. Groups of police officers and researchers were still coming and going, but their steps were more relaxed than last time, as if bombs could explode anywhere at any moment. Moreover, occasionally, people around them would recognize them and cast surprised glances. After they passed, there would always be a murmur of whispers, which were at least somewhat friendly.

Entering Flock's office, the young man was still fast asleep on a cot, wearing a classic party hat on his head and sashes draped over his shoulders. Spread-eagle-legged and snoring loudly, his peaceful yet unrestrained sleeping posture suggested he had been pulling many all-nighters lately.

It took a lot of effort to wake him up, and he was still groggy when the conversation finally began.

“Wait a minute, Floch.” Fat Tiger’s attention was completely off the case. Seeing the messy state of the office, he was clearly more curious about Floch himself. “Did you… just go to some party last night?”

"You live in the office?" Xiaofu glanced at the cot behind him and complained, "I thought there would at least be a dormitory."

"I'm so sorry, I didn't know you had an appointment today. I'm really sorry for being so rude." Flock scratched his head sheepishly, opened a drawer, took out a bottle of [Lazy Person's Cleansing Liquid], and slapped it on his face. "Just last night, the 'Timeline Dispersion Index' that has been bothering us suddenly dropped to 11.42%, which is very close to the safe threshold."

"Um... what does this discrete value mean?"

"It means the convergence of the timeline, it means that the crucial moments in human civilization have all occurred as they have in history! Cause and effect, regularity, everything is back on track! We no longer have to work overtime night after night to observe which timeline, which year, which month, which day, which minute, and which second went wrong. We are completely liberated!"

Flock clapped his hands, clearly excited about it. "This perfectly aligns with the 'anthropic theorem' that Dad summarized using the large spacetime model—time possesses something akin to 'consciousness,' and when it is tampered with, it will automatically choose a powerful force to set everything right. This is... how should I put it, an automatic antivirus system."

"Isn't this absolutely ingenious and amazing?!"

In their last adventure, the father and son initially viewed each other as enemies. Thanks to Nobita and his friends' intervention, they finally opened their hearts to each other and genuinely accepted one another at the last moment. More than ten years later, Floch can proudly recount his father's remarkable achievements to others.

Seeing this, Nobita and Shizuka exchanged a glance and smiled knowingly.

Being happy for the happiness of others—that's pretty much what it means.

……

"Uh...sorry, I got a little carried away." Realizing his emotions had gone too far, Floch scratched his head sheepishly, picked up a stack of documents on the table, and began to flip through them, saying, "Let's get back to the robots from the Warring States period. All the parts you submitted have been sealed and sent to the Robot Arbitration Association. It's a very complicated place there too. The official report will take a long time to come out. The one I have here is a special case, an incomplete version. Please don't circulate it."

He distributed the materials to Nobita and had them pass them around.

From a young age, Nobita had always felt exhausted whenever he saw something covered in writing, and it was still the same now. These things, clearly beyond his knowledge, were difficult to even read, let alone think about their meaning.

"The internal energy circulation system, manufactured at the Songzhi factory, shows signs of secondary modification..."

"The non-asymmetric X-element production device shows signs of secondary modification..."

"Simply put, the components inside that thing are completely unrelated and don't match up at all; it's more like a patchwork of disparate pieces," Flock explained. "Not only that, but it also underwent many modifications that contradict modern engineering principles, making it quite difficult to decipher. Rumor has it that it's incompatible with all of humanity's current technology."

“Similar cases have occurred before, where one of a batch of robots that were supposed to be destroyed suddenly activated ahead of schedule. The people who programmed it had overly advanced circuitry, making them aware of their predicament and even feel fear…”

He shrugged and said in a deep voice, "Driven by the will to survive, he might forcibly replace the parts inside his body to avoid destruction, thus evading electronic screening and disguising himself as a robot of another model. Although this will only work temporarily, with the power of the Arbitration Association, it's only a matter of time before they find it."

"A person is in...the circuit?" Nobita repeated, asking curiously, "What's that?"

“Something like this.” Floch pointed to his head, or more precisely, through his skull, to the front of his brain. “Most human emotions are controlled by the front part of the brain. For a robot to simulate emotions close to those of a human, it needs to be equipped with a ‘human-in-the-loop’. The stronger the loop, the more complex and diverse the emotions it can simulate, and the closer the robot itself is to a human.”

"However, due to the nature of their work, most robots don't require such a high level of human presence in the loop. The most advanced human presence in the loop is generally only used in entertainment robots, negotiation operator robots, and..."

He glanced up, seemingly casually, at the group photo on the office wall: "Childcare robot."

Da Xiong was slightly taken aback; in an unexpected place, he received an unexpected answer.

"That's right, robots themselves are not inherently superior or inferior; ultimately, they should be 'tools' for humans. But the birth of humans in the circuit shattered this inherent prejudice... When a robot, like a human, can genuinely feel joy and sorrow through its circuits, is it still just a simple tool? Can this companion who has been with you through so much now be regarded as a cold, metallic puppet?"

Floch changed the subject and said with a smile, "This is the brand-new course offered by the Robot Arbitration Association—'Robot Ethics'."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Wow..." Gian was utterly shocked, the kind of feeling one gets when they receive new knowledge and are completely overwhelmed. "No wonder I never thought Doraemon was a robot. So, among robots, he's actually one of the most advanced?"

“If the standard for judging high and low quality is the emotional value it brings to people, then yes.” Flock nodded. “In order to empathize with young children, the human on-loop systems carried by childcare robots are often the strongest of their time.”

"And the one trapped inside the samurai's body, harboring boundless hatred for humanity, is in the circuit..."

"It could very well have come from a childcare robot."

Chapter 84: The New Boss Arrives!

Hearing these words, everyone naturally felt a mix of emotions.

They all had a concept of childcare robots. Having grown accustomed to Doraemon's adorable, round face, the sudden appearance of one who seemed to harbor deep hatred for humans was quite jarring. Nobita couldn't fathom what a childcare robot must have gone through to develop such profound hatred for humanity.

It turns out that mistakes can happen not only to humans, but also to robots.

"The Arbitration Association will continue its investigation, but in my opinion, the chances are slim. The pieces he had were most likely pieced together, and we won't find any particularly valuable clues."

"As for 'Crimson Goddess'..."

Flock looked troubled. "We also conducted a thorough search on the internet, but we didn't find anything of value. It's possible that it's some kind of emerging belief."

"This isn't the level of a con artist. It's two different points in time, but it's the same group of people behind it, and even their methods are exactly the same."

Nobita emphasized, "They first find suitable targets, often the disillusioned of that era, lure them with words, and then give them a scarlet metal weapon. In order to resist the wheels of time, the disillusioned will eventually sacrifice their lives to the Scarlet God, and the final result is that they all become dragons and make a mess of everything!"

"Regardless of what the Crimson God is really like, he's obsessed with disrupting the timeline. Columbus's voyages were just the trigger; dates like 1615 and 1899 are the real bombs he's planted. If we don't catch him soon, the timeline's dispersion value will definitely skyrocket again!"

"..."

Floch sighed softly.

As a member of the Time Police Department, how could he not see the connection here?

However, the clues are too scattered, and Scarlet God is like the center of all the fog; apart from the name itself, they know practically nothing about him. Faced with an opponent capable of erasing all traces of himself from the world, even the Time and Space Administration is temporarily trapped in a dead end.

Just like the Air Traffic Control Institute, the Robot Arbitration Association is also a colossal new entity emerging in the future world. For two such massive transnational institutions to work together, share resources, and accomplish something is actually much more difficult than imagined.

Technological advancements do not equate to the evolution of human nature. For thousands of years, those who control the world have remained largely unchanged.

"Anyway... leave the rest to us, the Time Police. We will definitely make good use of the valuable intelligence you've provided." He patted his head, as if he had suddenly remembered something unintentionally, "Oh, right! By the way, your application has been approved. You can use the [Cross-Time Information Neural Network Retrieval Model] to find the remaining companion."

Floch roughly pointed in the direction of the door, "There are guide robots in the corridor that will take you there; that room is quite large."

……

Is that all?

Nobita felt something was off. From the very first sentence Flock uttered, something seemed to be missing. The information that reached him was inherently incomplete, causing his understanding and judgment to be flawed. As a result, after talking for a while, he was just dabbling in the conversation without hitting the point that Nobita really wanted to hear.

“Floch, just to be on the safe side, let me ask one more question…”

Nobita looked around and lowered his voice, "Do you know about the Apairon Foundation?"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"I know."

"...?" Nobita was taken aback; such a frank answer was unexpected. Did the mastermind behind two consecutive time hijackings really have no secrecy whatsoever in the future world?

"What's wrong, Nobita? Do you want to be a time policeman too?" Floch didn't notice the change in Nobita's expression and patted him on the shoulder with a smile. "Although we don't have a precedent for recruiting people from the 21st century, given the feats you've accomplished, it's not impossible. If needed, I can write you a letter of recommendation. A letter from the Time Management Institute carries a lot of weight over there."