In an instant, every eye in the room was fixed on David.
"Him? What can this kid even do?"
Maine, though still visibly shaken, couldn't hide the disbelief in his voice as Silver Wolf pointed a finger at David.
"Don't underestimate him. David's talent is better than you think. Hmm... he's actually quite impressive for a regular person."
She looked David over, her eyes scanning him up and down before giving a nod of approval.
"No!" Gloria's voice cut in, full of resistance.
"David's still young. And he's still in school! This kind of thing is far too early for him. Besides... this implant is far too dangerous."
As she spoke, Gloria looked at David, her eyes filled with worry.
She had always cared deeply for David. Why else would she work herself to the bone just to put him through school?
And David did have talent. But the inherent class divide between the poor and the wealthy kids at his school had made him a target for bullies.
"Well, it is dangerous, that's true," Silver Wolf shrugged.
"After all, this implant is still a prototype. It's not really meant for human use. Even for someone as exceptionally gifted as David, the end result wouldn't be great if he installed it."
Then why even suggest David should...?
Gloria stared sternly at Silver Wolf.
To be honest, if Silver Wolf hadn't just saved both of their lives, Gloria would have already lost her temper.
Installing a dangerous implant in my son? Wouldn't that just be sending him to his death?
"Gloria, after today, you can't go back to the life you had before."
Silver Wolf toyed with the implant in her hand, speaking calmly.
"Besides, I'm not stupid. I wouldn't do anything to harm David. If anyone else installed this, they'd die. But David absolutely won't. This implant is experimental, true, but its potential is also very high."
"With just a few modifications, I can reduce its side effects to a minimum. With David's natural talent, he could use this thing with zero drain."
A confident smile played on Silver Wolf's lips as she spoke.
In the original story, the Sandevistan David used was just a test model, far inferior to the official versions others used. Yet even so, David managed to withstand its intense side effects for a full year.
Now, with Silver Wolf's modifications, David could do even better.
(T/N: before you say bout how mc didn't watch edgerunners, she didn't. This is 3rd pov, so it's easier for the readers to understand if they haven't watched edgerunners either)
"She's right," Dorio chimed in, patting a tense Gloria on the back.
"What happened at the hospital today was big, Gloria. Even if I had a netrunner wipe your data now, people would still find you two easily. Maybe we should hear what David thinks."
"What David thinks..." Gloria hesitated for a moment. "What's on your mind... David?"
She looked at him, her expression vulnerable, her thoughts unreadable.
"Mom... I don't want to go back to school. I'm sick of it. I want to make money. I want to lighten your load."
After only a moment's thought, David's voice was firm.
If this had been yesterday, David might have chosen to listen to his mom, to reassure her.
But after everything that happened today, after nearly losing his mother forever, David's perspective had subtly shifted.
He wanted to earn money, to make something of himself, and then... give Gloria a better life.
"But—"
Gloria started to protest, but Silver Wolf cut her off. "Why do you want David to stay in school, anyway?"
"So he can get a good job in the future! Even if he can't get into a corp, at least he wouldn't have to struggle like I do..."
"But now, a shortcut to the top is right here. Once he gets this implant, I guarantee you, with his talent, he'll be somebody in a year. If there's a faster path, why should he keep swallowing his pride at school?"
"But... it's too dangerous. For David..."
"I'm not afraid of danger, Mom."
David stepped forward and took Gloria's hands in his.
"I don't want to put up with those idiots at school anymore, and I can't stand watching you work yourself so hard... Trust me, Mom. I'll make it."
David looked into Gloria's eyes with unwavering determination, willing her to believe him.
"..."
Gloria was silent for a long moment. Then she turned to Silver Wolf. "Can you really promise me this implant won't get David killed?"
"This is an implant modified by my hands. It's definitely better and safer than any other piece of chrome in this world."
Silver Wolf thumped her chest confidently.
"In that case... what reason do I have left to stop him?"
Letting out a soft sigh, Gloria looked back at David. "Promise me you'll prioritize your safety above all else. Don't forget, someone is waiting here for you to come home."
She gave David a slow, gentle nod.
Truth be told, under normal circumstances, Gloria would never have agreed to this. But after the series of crises today, she understood clearly—their old life, poor but safe, was gone for good.
If that was the case, it was better for David to have the power to protect himself. With this implant, at the very least, his chances of survival would be much higher.
"Come here."
Silver Wolf beckoned to David, then spun him around, pressed down on his back, and fitted the implant against his spine.
Under the effect of Ether Editing, the implant merged perfectly with David's body.
There wasn't even a seam.
A normal surgical installation would have left obvious marks on the skin.
But in Silver Wolf's hands, it became effortless, as simple as putting on a hat.
For someone who could literally craft bodies by hand, this was child's play.
"Is it... done?"
The pain he'd expected never came. David looked down at himself in amazement.
"Hey, you think it'd hurt with me doing the installing? Of course not."
Silver Wolf raised an eyebrow beside him.
"Alright, let me give you the basics on this thing's functions. I don't need to explain the core ability, right? It's speed. On top of that, I've modified it to grant even greater power. For example... even when not active, it enhances your perception, lets you observe the world with sharper clarity."
"With this ability, you'll have enough time to counter your enemies, read their moves, and decide how to take them down."
Actually, Silver Wolf had considered adding a time-stop function to the implant, but she'd eventually decided against it.
For this world, super speed coupled with enhanced senses was more than enough for David to dominate. Let alone this upgraded version she'd created.
"Don't use it too frequently. With your current physical condition, the safe limit is five times a day. Any more, and the feedback will affect your brain, push you toward the edge."
"Of course, as you get stronger, the number of times you can use it will increase. For now, just enjoy the advantages this power gives you!"
Within the realm of near-frozen time, Silver Wolf explained everything with casual flair.
"Well, it's getting late. We won't intrude any longer. See you, Gloria."
Dorio glanced at the time, paused for a moment, then spoke calmly. She turned to David. "Once you've made your decision, give me a call. Since you're Gloria's son, Maine and I will take good care of you and show you the ropes for her sake."
"Yeah, I will."
--+--
"So, what do you say? Want to join us?"
After leaving David's apartment, Cole and Genji looked at Silver Wolf eagerly.
If they could bring Silver Wolf into their crew, their chances of success would skyrocket.
"Join... you two?"
Silver Wolf looked at them, her expression a bit odd.
"That's right. We have another teammate who isn't here right now. So, want to meet him? I think if you met him, you'd agree with our vision."
"Not interested."
Silver Wolf puckered her lips slightly and shook her head.
"Really won't consider it?"
Cole grew anxious. They'd witnessed Silver Wolf's power today. If not for her, they might've been captured. And he still couldn't figure out how she'd pulled off those incredible tricks.
"Nope. Not considering it. At least, not right now."
Silver Wolf nodded firmly, then checked the time, shoving her phone screen in Cole's face. "Seriously, do you have any idea what time it is?"
Her cheeks puffed out slightly as she slowly drew out her words.
Looking at the screen showing 11:00 PM, Cole finally caught on. "Sorry, it's been a long, chaotic day. It is pretty late. How about this: we all get some rest, and we can talk everything over tomorrow morning."
He thought for a moment before proposing.
"Nuh-uh. Who said anything about it being time for bed? This is prime gaming time! Mornings are for sleeping. I just bought a bunch of new games I haven't even touched yet! I'm planning to pull an all-nighter and finish every single one of them tonight!"
Eleven PM was the perfect time to game. What kind of sensible person goes to sleep at midnight? Isn't that when you're most awake?
"I guess our sleep schedules are just... different."
Cole's mouth twitched into a wry smile. "So, when should we meet again?"
"Let me see... I'll probably game until around 5 AM, then sleep 'til noon."
"How about we meet in the afternoon, then?"
"No way, no way! It's way too hot in the afternoon. I don't wanna go out!" Silver Wolf refused immediately.
"Evening. Let's link up in the evening. At least wait until the sun's almost down, 'kay?"
Silver Wolf said with a grin. "Fine. Whatever you say."
Cole sighed and nodded. Well, she was the expert here, so they had to defer to her.
Soon after, the three parted ways at a crossroads.
Cole and Genji had been through a lot that day, and some of their implants had taken damage. They needed to get them repaired to avoid malfunctions the next time things got hairy.
An implant failing mid-fight was a sure way to get killed.
And they weren't ready to die—not before achieving their goal.
Meanwhile, Silver Wolf returned to the Konpeki Plaza.
When it came to material comforts, Silver Wolf saw no reason to suffer unnecessarily.
In her last world, she could at least share a place with Elysia. Here, she was truly on her own. Fortunately, her mind was currently full of games. Women? They'd just slow down her button-mashing!
Are women even as fun as games?
That was Silver Wolf's current philosophy.
Back in the top-tier suite at Konpeki Plaza, Silver Wolf popped a disc into the console, grabbed her controller, and dove right in.
This world did have full-immersion VR games, but Silver Wolf wasn't really interested in those. After all, once you could manipulate things directly, even the hardest game lost its challenge.
Silver Wolf always preferred a good challenge!
--+--
One hour later.
Silver Wolf: . . . . .
"The developer must've been pecked by a chicken as a kid, then got chased down and hacked up by a bunch of monsters after killing it..."
"The developer must've woken up as a kid, tried to eat breakfast, got hungry again after thirty seconds, then went to take a dump only to find the bathroom door couldn't be opened from this side..."
Staring at the greyed-out screen again, a thoroughly exasperated Silver Wolf let out a cold snort. Enough pretending! Cards on the table!
The next moment, she rewrote the game's code. The character on screen now had cleaving basic attacks with guaranteed crits, effortlessly one-shotting the boss that had taken Silver Wolf a grueling half-hour to even make a dent in.
"Hmph. Must've been a bug earlier. No way a normal monster would be that tanky and hit that hard..."
--+--
Elsewhere, in the penthouse of Konpeki Plaza, the room of Yorinobu Arasaka, the current emperor of Night City.
He sat in his chair. Before him stood the same subordinate who had reported to him earlier.
"Any news?"
His raspy voice carried a tinge of impatience.
It made the woman beside him tense up.
While the two shared a... special relationship, the woman knew full well that if she failed to satisfy him, a single word from him would be enough to topple her from her current position.
Then, left with nothing, she might have no choice but to rely on the very implants she'd installed to please Yorinobu Arasaka to now please other men.
The mere thought of letting those filthy men defile her refined body filled her with revulsion.
"Lord Yorinobu, just a short while ago, I dispatched two more netrunners to investigate. But, as expected, they were killed."
"Do you really need to bother me with this?"
His voice, dark and oppressive, dripped with menace. That single sentence was enough to drench the woman's back in cold sweat.
"Lord Yorinobu, this time, although we lost two netrunners, it wasn't without gain!"
The woman hurriedly explained. "The cause of death for these two investigators was different from before. You could even call it a bizarre locked-room murder. They didn't die in the net."
"In fact, Lyra had already exited cyberspace. But at that moment, for some unknown reason, Lyra went berserk, killed his partner Quentin, and then his own cyberware was fried."
"So? What's your point?"
Yorinobu frowned, annoyed by her cryptic delivery.
"Lord Yorinobu, the target possesses the ability to kill remotely, bypassing net defenses. However, their deaths were not in vain. We managed to recover an audio recording from the scene."
As she spoke, the woman placed a datachip before Yorinobu. He took it and inserted it directly into his own port, accessing the audio.
A youthful, somewhat cute voice filled his mind.
Perhaps due to carelessness, or perhaps because she simply didn't care, the sounds of Silver Wolf's avatar eliminating the two netrunners had been clearly captured by the room's recording equipment. Of course, the cameras still showed nothing—her form remained a featureless black silhouette.
"Just a voice... that's not enough to find someone. The voiceprint analysis came up empty, I assume?"
Yorinobu pulled the chip out and snorted coldly.
Yet, a greedy glint flashed in his eyes. No, it was more accurate to say he was internally ecstatic.
What kind of ability was this? Corporate netrunners were no amateurs. And he had already logged out. How could the attacker still kill him?
Moreover, judging by the audio, the speaker had appeared in the room out of thin air. What kind of technology was this?
"Lord Yorinobu, we haven't located the target yet, but please, give me one more week... no, three days! I will definitely find them! As long as they're still in Night City, now that we have their voice, I will track them down!"
The woman pleaded anxiously.
"One day."
"W-what?"
"I'm giving you one final day. During that time, you have access to all of Arasaka's resources in Night City. But you must find this person. Otherwise, your position as head of intelligence... well, it's time someone else warmed that chair."
Yorinobu's tone was sinister. "Oh, and one more thing. Don't alert the target. If you find them, report to me immediately."
A trace of apprehension crossed Yorinobu's face.
The target's methods were too mysterious, so advanced that even his top technicians couldn't figure out how they were done.
Combined with that undetectable capability, Yorinobu had no desire to provoke a situation where the target, upon learning they were exposed, would simply use that power to eliminate him remotely...
Furthermore, he needed to act fast. An incident of this magnitude would spread quickly. He had to capture the target and seize their power before the old man arrived in the city!
Otherwise, whether in terms of resource allocation or anything else, he would hold no advantage against the others.
"I understand, Lord Yorinobu. If there's nothing else, I shall take my leave."
The woman nodded hastily and prepared to withdraw, but Yorinobu stopped her.
He patted his thigh lightly. Understanding the gesture, the woman obediently walked over and settled herself gracefully onto his lap.
"I heard you recently upgraded your implants. Last time was rushed. This time, let me... properly examine this new piece of chrome you spent hundreds of thousands on."
"It would be my pleasure."
A seductive smile spread across the woman's face. Pleasing the man before her was her top priority.
If she could truly satisfy him, perhaps even failure wouldn't necessarily condemn her to the life of a joytoy.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.