This was also the reason why he rarely wore the uniform issued by MAX-TAC.Walking down the street wearing this thing always drew some weird looks; most of them were filled with fear, and very few people ever showed any kind of excitement or adoration.As for treating him like air or just some passerby?Completely impossible.In Night City, how many people have you ever seen not taking a detour when they cross paths with the NCPD?Those who didn't take a detour either got pinned down on the spot or got riddled with bullets right then and there by American-style iaijutsu.The reason was simple: you assaulted an officer."However..."Suddenly, he drew out his words, the corners of his mouth curving into a handsome arc. "As for an apology, shouldn't you bare your chest to show your sincerity?""Eh?"The young girl was slightly stunned upon hearing this, and then let out a startled cry: "Eh?!!!""Haha, don't get excited, I was just joking." David chuckled and waved his hand, suddenly feeling much more refreshed inside.Sure enough, after being misunderstood, finding a way to tease the person who misunderstood you was a pretty good idea to vent.How come he hadn't noticed that before?"Oh right, how are you feeling?""...Never felt worse..."In every aspect.Sasha let out a soft sigh, still speaking in that mushy tone, completely different from her heroic look of yesterday when she was ready to die a martyr.It seemed she hadn't quite recovered from his joke yet, and many parts of her body still hurt quite a bit.Especially around her abdomen and legs.The stitched wounds had a tiny, nagging ache."Well, this is normal too. You're still pretty lucky; the bullet passed right through your original body parts without leaving behind fragmented shrapnel, nor did it hurt your internal organs or bones, but feeling uncomfortable is a given."David put his hands behind his head, gazed at the ceiling, and eloquently flipped through what he called his inner database of experience. "That feeling is probably like some object rashly barging into your body for the first time, leaving behind an expanded tear after it leaves, so even though it's back to normal, pain is unavoidable."Mower:???Sasha:???The two girls stared at him one after another, slowly popping out a few question marks.Why did it sound so weird?However, it also seemed to make some sense..."But it's okay. After Viktor's surgery, your body won't have any major problems. As long as you rest and recuperate well, you might be bouncing around and full of life by tomorrow."David flashed Sasha a signature smile belonging to Maine.Although he didn't know if it was because Night City's average physique was tough or because of some black tech, injured people basically recovered very quickly.Unless you were the kind of hard-to-heal major trauma, like the one Pilar had.Even an injured Jackie Welles could still follow Mighty V and slaughter their way through Konpeki Plaza."...Thank you. If it weren't for you, I might... have already died in the plaza.""You know it."David looked at Sasha, who was slowly lowering her head, and smiled helplessly.He had originally planned to pick this girl's brain and learn how to hack corporations and stuff.But looking at it now, it didn't seem necessary anymore.Because judging by her appearance, she didn't possess a complete plan at all, and her strength wasn't that great either; she just rushed in on a hothead.This style was basically similar to Mighty V in the game.But Mighty V could take a beating, not even MAX-TAC could do anything about them, and they could even tear Adam Smasher apart with bare hands."Right, I want to know how the data handed to you yesterday is doing? Did you give it to Miss Regina?" Sasha suddenly recalled what happened yesterday and her own request, and hurriedly asked.That thing was simply more important than her life."Rest assured, I've already sent a backup to Regina Jones, and by the way, sent a copy to my captain Melissa Rory as well, so you don't need to worry about it from here on out."As if he had just done an ordinary, everyday thing, David said quietly.But Sasha widened her eyes once more."You... are you telling the truth?""Of course. Is there any need to lie to you?""...Thank you, thank you so much. You really are a great person.""..."David raised an eyebrow upon hearing this.Did I just get handed a nice-guy card?"Oh right, I still don't know your name.""Didn't I already tell you yesterday? Didn't you remember?" David tilted his head in confusion.But on second thought, given yesterday's situation, it seemed quite normal that names weren't paid attention to, especially since this girl was severely injured.Her whole person was in a trance.However..."Before asking for someone else's name, shouldn't you introduce yourself first?"The young girl nodded seriously upon hearing this, highly agreeing with this statement."Sasha."She looked at David with those cat-like blue-and-pink eyes. "Sasha Yakovleva."Yep, she was definitely the Slavic girl Rebeccamentioned.Although he knew this girl's name early on, he still needed her to admit it herself; that was his habit.What's more, this Sasha had disappeared for several years, and there was also a possibility that Rebecca had mistaken her for someone else.But having said that, this surname...David slightly sized up Sasha for a moment, looking thoughtfully at her white-and-ruddy skin.Such a cute girl turned out to be a Slavic girl... It seemed a bit too rugged? Especially for a girl whose demeanor, facial features, implants, and even bob haircut all looked extremely like a kitty cat.It felt like calling this girl something like Kitty-head seemed even more fitting.After paying attention to the other person for a little while, he slowly opened his mouth to introduce himself: "I am David Martinez. Just as I said earlier, I'm with MAX-TAC, though I'm an external personnel."David flashed her a fairly benign smile: "You can call me David, or Martinez, either is fine.""Da... vid... Da... David?"She chewed on this name repeatedly, from taking it apart to putting it back together, as if reading some major information from it, and her eyes suddenly widened.This David, could he be...Although she had left Maine's crew, she would still occasionally drop by Afterlife to hang around and gather intelligence.She had heard the name David before, and he was also an external personnel of MAX-TAC; there shouldn't be any mistake."Could you be that person?!""Uh... huh?"This sudden, scorching gaze made David somewhat at a loss, especially the way the other person looked at him, as if her pupils were emitting light, sparking and flashing.Just like a cat that had caught the scent of fish?But what on earth was this girl named Sasha talking about?What person?After pondering for a moment, he shook his head: "I don't quite understand what you mean..."But Sasha turned a blind eye to his confusion and exclaimed, "Oh God, it really is you! You're actually the living legend chanted about by the mercenaries of Afterlife!""???"Now he understood even less.A legend and all that—he had never thought of himself that way, and even felt he was still far from it.Without hitting Arasaka once, without trading blows with Adam Smasher, how could anyone dare call themselves a legend?That threshold would be a bit too low."Hey-hey-hey-hey-hey-hey-hey."Sasha suddenly climbed up from the sofa, scuttled right up in front of him with a swish-swish-swish, and stared at him, her large, expressive eyes sparkling brightly."You know what? Rogue, the Queen of Afterlife, actually recommended you to me! She said you'd definitely be interested in an operation like this, and you'd definitely accept the gig.""Oh? You mean attacking Biotechnica?""Mhm!" Sasha nodded."That is indeed the case, I would definitely be interested, but..." He slightly looked the girl in front of him up and down a few times, "Why didn't you have Rogue contact me?""Because... I can't afford it."At the mention of this, the girl wilted instantly like an eggplant beaten by frost."I simply can't afford a big shot like you..." Sashashook her head regretfully, fiddling with her fingernails. "And I've already spent all my savings just to buy Regina Jones's contact info...""Heh, that cunning old fox Rogue."Hearing this, he couldn't help but sneer, pulled a cigarette out of his pocket, jammed it unhappily between his lips, lit it, and quietly smoked away.The billowing blue smoke gradually blurred his vision.He was indeed short on money, that was true; not doing things without pay was also true.But his pay wasn't limited to money; trading for items or corresponding favors was fine too—he had already told Rogue about this long ago.But that woman Rogue only had her eyes on money, because as a fixer, she couldn't get any benefits whatsoever from mere favors.Just like this whole business with Sasha, for Rebecca and Maine and the others' sake, he could have helped for free.But Rogue simply didn't mention a single word of it to him.What a profit-driven old fox, she was shrewd as hell.But speaking of which, there was one more thing he was curious about."I remember you used to be the netrunner for Maine's crew, right? But why did you leave them back then, and why didn't you ask them for help?""...This..."Sasha's expression was filled with hesitation, and after a long while, she whispered, "...Because I didn't want to drag my friends into the water. This matter is enough with just me doing it myself.""Didn't expect you to be quite loyal."This was very rare in Night City; being profit-driven had almost become synonymous with mercenaries."But what a pity. Although Maine is retired now, Maine's crew is led by me now, so now they already know all about your business.""Eh?"Sasha stared at him blankly for a couple of seconds upon hearing this, and then let out a startled cry: "Eh?!!!"It seemed this girl, despite valuing loyalty, was a bit lacking in her intelligence-gathering work...Chapter 77: Don't Cry, Kitty, I'll Help You (6K)"Gurgle~"Once she understood the current situation and the whole person relaxed, Sasha's stomach naturally growled.
Chapter 92Yet this unseemly sound caused the young girl to bashfully cover her stomach.But it was of little use; the sound still kept slipping out uncontrollably." Hungry, aren't you? " David smiled and glanced at Sasha, then pulled over the bag resting on the coffee table.This package was given by Viktor right before leaving, and it was packed entirely with medications and related items used to treat wounds." I have to say, Miss Sasha, you are very lucky. "" That gunshot to your abdomen didn't damage your organs; it just grazed past your intestines, so you can still eat a little something now. "Saying this, David fished out a tin packaging bag resembling a jelly pouch from the package and tossed it over." Here, eat this. "" This is... liquid food? "The packaging was clearly labeled as liquid food, and Sasha held the item looking somewhat curious." That's right. Although the bullet didn't cause excessive damage to your intestines, to be safe, you should eat some liquid food first, " David said calmly.These words were specifically instructed by Viktor.After all, no matter what, the bullet had left a bit of a scar, and for the girl's sake, it was safer to let her eat liquid food for a few days temporarily." Here, you haven't eaten breakfast either, have you? Let's eat together. "Following that, he casually picked up the bread on the coffee table and tossed it to Mower.Originally, this was breakfast he bought from a vending machine on the way here, but since he wasn't hungry now, he shared it with Mower.Rather than letting Mower sit there watching the two of them eat breakfast, it was better to leave the breakfast time entirely to them.After all, he wasn't some sort of demon, and he couldn't bring himself to do something like making Mower watch them eat all by herself." Thanks. "Mower wasn't one to stand on ceremony either. After uttering a word of thanks, she skillfully tore open the packaging bag and began eating in large bites." Tsk tsk tsk, for this woman to say the word thanks, that really isn't easy. "David muttered inwardly in complaint.But speaking of which, in this vast Night City, he had finally found food suitable for himself to eat.That was the emergency food that hadn't been phased out yet — bread.Although it couldn't compare in texture and variety to those in his memories, it was at least edible and lacked any weird tastes. Compared to those things on the streets and in restaurants, he was much more willing to accept this.This was also the real reason why he hadn't starved to death after coming to Night City for such a long time.Indeed, no matter when, bread was always the absolute best.It's just a pity that instant noodles and the like haven't found a suitable flavor yet..." Um... Mr. David, could you help me turn on the television? " Sasha stopped her sucking action, raised her head, and suddenly said.Yet her gaze never left David's body, the exact same as when she was just eating.To be honest, she truly felt surprised and curious that this youth who looked younger than her could actually be that famed legend.Just what kind of experiences had he gone through to make this youth become so powerful?" What do you want to watch? "David didn't pay attention to her gaze, instead picking up the PDA resting on the coffee table to operate it.He knew a thing or two about hacker abilities, but compared to that kind of ability, he was still used to manual operation.After all, this was life, and this way had a much stronger sense of reality." Oh right, and just call me David, no need to add the word Mr. You're a friend of Maine and Rebecca, so naturally you're my friend too. "" Okay, David... Then please switch it to News 54... " A trace of complexity showed in the look within Sasha's eyes.And when David heard this channel, the movement in his hands suddenly paused, as if he thought of something.But he had no intention of asking, instead continuing to operate it.However, not only him, even Mower stopped the action of eating bread, shifting her gaze onto Sasha, and quite subtly at that.Ding—A subtle sound similar to static electricity suddenly rang out, and the screen lit up accordingly.Just in time to catch the morning news of News 54." Welcome to watch News 54, I am Gillian Jordan, and next I bring you a major news story. "" Yesterday afternoon, the Biotechnica building located in City Center was attacked by terrorists... "Appearing on the television screen hanging from the ceiling was still that news anchor draped in a pink coat and wearing a golden inner lining — Gillian Jordan.Still carrying out the news broadcast with that everyday unvarying tone.Making it seem just like a robot; probably even an artificial retard could perfectly take over and replace this woman." According to informed sources, the attackers were two people, a male and a female. The male is an external personnel of MAX-TAC — David Martinez... "" What the fuck?! "Hearing the news broadcast mentioning his name, David, who had just picked up a water bottle to take a sip, almost spat it out.He hurriedly turned his head to look toward the television.He saw a photo appear on the screen, which was snapped when he was flying in mid-air holding Sasha.But under the effect of Kiroshi, plus the relatively far distance, it caused the photo to be extremely blurry, allowing only a vague distinction that it was two people.But the main issue was, how did he end up on the news?!And even became a terrorist attacking Biotechnica?!To be reasonable, if he were carrying out an attack, how could he possibly have only blown up the upper half-floor of the corporation? If he were going to blow it up, he would blow up the whole thing!He'd dig up your foundations too!Not a single root would be left for you!But fortunately, the content broadcasted on the news next put his mind at ease." MAX-TAC issued a statement to the outside world regarding this matter, stating: 'External member David Martinez conducted anti-terrorism exercises with Inspector Melissa Rory yesterday and did not go out.' Therefore, this incident is still under investigation. "Although this sentence was harmless and anyone with eyes knew what was going on, at least with these words, NCPD wouldn't dare issue a wanted warrant for him.When he had time, he would really need to thank Captain Melissa properly." According to news coming from Biotechnica, this terrorist attack has already caused losses in the hundreds of millions of euro, which includes new technology secretly researched by Biotechnica... "" Heh. "Seeing this, David couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.These corporate bastards really know how to extort people.Wasn't it just that the upper-level architecture was blasted? Yet hundreds of millions of euro—are you planning to rob a bank?And secretly researched new technology—besides the new fuel synthetic alcohol, what other technology does Biotechnica have?Even the military-grade inhibitors were co-developed by Militech and you guys.If it weren't for the existence of the synthetic alcohol technology, Biotechnica would probably have either been swallowed up by other companies or died who knows where long ago.How would it ever be Biotechnica's turn to stir up trouble in Night City for no reason.Still hundreds of millions of euro in new technology...A piece of trash living off past glories, what kind of big shot are you trying to pretend to be here." News 54 will continue to follow up on the subsequent progress of this incident for you. "" Next, we bring you international news... "With that, the news within Night City thus concluded.David's face was filled with disdain and disgust, while Mower remained indifferent, even though she knew that the photo on television just then was of David and this newly arrived girl named Sasha.Meanwhile, Sasha stared blankly at the television, the liquid food packaging in her hand having been crushed flat at some point, and the pale-yellow liquid food spilled out from the spout, slowly sliding down her pale, pinched fingertips.Even so, Sasha didn't have any reaction at all." Hey, are you okay? "Hearing David's call, Sasha snapped back to her senses at once, only her expression turned very ugly." Please, can you help me check their official website... "Her voice trembled slightly, her tone bordering on pleading." I suppose I can, but what exactly are you looking for? "David lowered his head and continued operating the PDA, entering the official website of News 54according to Sasha's request and clicking on the latest news." Anything is fine, as long as it's news about Biotechnica, anything at all! ""... "At this, David's action of operating the PDA stopped.He slowly raised his head to gaze at the young girl before him, saying ruthlessly in a completely unwavering tone: " I don't know what news regarding Biotechnica you are trying to find, but if it's for the news about that painkiller named securicine, I advise you to give up. "Patta—The crushed tin food packaging dropped to the floor, and the food spilling out from inside soiled the floor."... Wh-Why? "Sasha put on a forced smile, except this smile was uglier than crying, and the hands resting on her knees were also subconsciously clenched into fists, trembling slightly." I already sent all the shady secrets regarding securicine to them yesterday. "As expected.Just as he thought, this girl was truly naive to the point of foolishness, actually sending the shady secrets about Biotechnica to News 54, while Regina's side was merely the girl's backup option to prevent accidents.The most primary role was still accelerating the fermentation speed of the news.It must be said that such a strategy didn't have any problems in theory.Utilizing news and public opinion to damage the corporation's reputation and cause its stock to fall was indeed a good idea.But there were a few points the young girl didn't notice, or rather subconsciously ignored, leading her to choose the wrong target.First, she forgot what kind of behemoth the Biotechnica corporation she was facing actually was.Not a single company that could gain a foothold in Night City was a freeloader, or rather unfitting of its position; basically every single large-scale international enterprise was like that.Secondly was the relationship between Biotechnicacorporation, News 54, and Militech.The so-called News 54 was actually just a simplified abbreviation; its full name was Network News 54.The reason it was called Network News was because of their unique style —No matter which country's news it was, it would be broadcast by News 54.However, the news stations in Night City were not monopolized solely by News 54, being the sole dominant entity.It also had a competitor called WNS News.Aside from some ordinary news about Night City, WNS News would generally also broadcast some news concerning Arasaka, and WNS as a whole leaned toward Arasaka's side.Meanwhile, its sworn rival News 54 leaned toward Arasaka's old rival Militech's side.However, there was also a close cooperative relationship between Militech and Biotechnica; the two families were so close they practically wore the same pair of pants.Therefore, how could Militech possibly let News 54broadcast the shady secrets about Biotechnica?Even if Militech stayed silent, someone on News 54's side would press it down.Most crucially, News 54, just like Militech and Biotechnica, originated from NUSA, and those two behemoths were still major shareholders of the present-day NUSA.Just like those arms companies of the past.With these two points superimposed, even if employees inside News 54 had the immense courage of heaven, that group of corporate executives wouldn't have the guts to broadcast this outwards.Uncovering shady secrets like this was going against people's business in Night City.Cutting off someone's financial path is akin to killing their parents; although this phrase is an old saying, it's even more exaggerated here, reaching practically a point of irreconcilable hostility.
Chapter 93Furthermore, it was exposing the dark secrets of one's own superiors—who would dare do that?Unless an employee dared to bypass those higher-ups and broadcast it privately.But obviously, Sasha didn't choose this path at all, nor did she consider these things.On this point, Mower was well aware that the young girl was just doing futile work.Even the current Regina Jones was powerless against such dark secrets.Even though Regina used to be an independent journalist working for FTF Radio, that was already a thing of the past.Regina now was merely a little-known fixer, with no ability to go head-to-head with a behemoth like a corporation.Just like the Tyger Claws' attack on the fixer a couple of days ago; everyone knew Arasaka hired them, yet no one dared to retaliate against Arasaka.But the young girl still held onto that sliver of illusory fantasy."Right, didn't you say the files were handed over to MAX-TAC? MAX-TAC will definitely intervene, right? Right?"The young girl desperately hoped to get the answer she wanted from David.However, David didn't respond.He just silently watched her for a moment and shook his head helplessly:"No, MAX-TAC has already intervened. Just like the news broadcasted earlier, there is no record of you on it, and even mine was covered up by MAX-TACover there."Although MAX-TAC was an elite special operations department of the NCPD with strong autonomy and self-governance—somewhat like a state within a state—it was still influenced by major corporations and remained under the jurisdiction of Night Corp.Furthermore, this little material alone was still no way to topple Biotechnica; it couldn't even be considered hurting its bones and muscles, purely just scratching an itch.He didn't speak the subsequent words aloud, because the preceding sentence was enough to shatter the young girl's last shred of fantasy."How could... it be like this..."With a thud, Sasha slid off the sofa and collapsed onto the floor, her complexion turning incomparably pale.Bean-sized tears swirled in her eyes, finally spilling from the corners, sliding across her makeup, slowly running down her cheeks, dropping, and shattering into pieces on the ground.She never expected that all her efforts over so many years would go down the drain.Then what did her previous efforts count for?What did all the things she experienced before count for?For today, she joined the Moxes to modify herself, diligently learned netrunner and braindance techniques, and even hardened her heart to abandon her friends—what did all this count for?Now, she had received such an answer.She was unwilling to accept this.But what else could she do?Nowadays, Biotechnica had reached a level in Night City where it could cover the sky with one hand; what could someone like her possibly achieve?"I can't... do anything.""Mom... Mom..."While calling out to her mother, Sasha covered her face and sobbed aloud.Tears kept slipping from between her fingers.That appearance was just like a lost child hoping to find her mother and return to her warm embrace.That unforgettable pain of losing her mother had always been hidden away by her.But now, it was completely detonated."..."David just sat there quietly watching the young girl sitting on the floor sobbing loudly, with no intention of stepping forward to comfort her.Because he knew he wasn't good with words, let alone comforting people, so he wouldn't make things more aggravating for her.On the other hand, he hoped even more that the young girl could cry it out, just like this.This kind of negative emotion couldn't be held in; it had to be released.Because he had already seen far too many cyberpsychos.Among this group of cyberpsychos, not all of them went crazy from installing military-grade implants; in fact, the majority of them were caused by psychological trauma.People in Night City generally had some psychological issues. No matter how carefree and optimistic a person was, staying in this crazy city would give them a tendency to turn into a cyberpsycho.And the existence of implants happened to be a hotbed for cultivating cyberpsychosis.Therefore, this was also the main reason why there were so many cyberpsychos in Night City.Moreover, based on his experience hunting so many cyberpsychos, although the young girl before him seemed no different from ordinary people on the surface, she actually already had a tendency to turn into a cyberpsycho.Fortunately, up until now Sasha had not shown those thought problems of violent tendencies and self-destructive tendencies.That is to say, she could still be saved.This could also be considered good news.Furthermore, channeling was better than blocking.Vent it out, crying it out would make things better.Sasha was a strong girl; she would walk out of this shadow.I don't know how much time passed, but Sashafinally finished being emo, stopping her crying and turning it into silent sobs, her body trembling slightly one after another.The bit of vitality she had just recovered vanished completely amidst this emotional vent.Sasha became shaky once again, the whole person becoming trance-like, as if she would pass out at any moment.Seeing this, David slowly got up, walked to her side, and slowly squatted down. Unable to resist reaching out to stroke her head, he said softly: "Rest assured, this matter won't just end like this.""...Really?"Hearing this, Sasha stopped sobbing and slowly raised her head to look at him.Those lively, large eyes had turned bloodshot at this moment, and a few drops of tears could even be seen hanging on them, not yet falling.This tearful appearance couldn't help but arouse a sense of protectiveness in one's heart.He even wanted to hold this girl in his arms and pet her well, just like petting a cat.But he still stopped this improper thought.With a gentle smile on his face, he said: "Of course this is true. I swear in the name of David Martinez, I'll take care of this matter of yours."Hearing these words, Sasha instantly widened her eyes, and her morbidly pale lips parted, as if she wanted to say something.But in the end, she didn't spit out a single word.Holding it in for a long time, she only managed to squeeze out one sentence: "Thank you...""Well, you're welcome." David smiled: "However, I'm not helping for free here; you'll have to turn around and help me with something later..."However, this sentence did not reach Sasha's ears.Because this cute cat-like young girl had now grandly passed out again."This really is..."David scratched his head in distress: "Forget it, we'll talk about it next time."He bent down, slipped his arms under the young girl's back and legs to pick her up, walked over to the bed, and smiled as he said: "Big Sister Mower, could you make some room?""..."Mower looked at him without speaking, but still obediently left the bed."Thank you, Big Sister Mower.""..."Still no response.If he didn't know this woman could speak, he would really think she was mute, or that her language chip was damaged.How did he end up picking up such a reticent woman and bringing her back?His head was filled with bafflement.However, this wasn't bad either; at least his ears could get some peace and quiet, without any chattering and noisy clamor.You must know, even after recovering from cyberpsychosis, very few people could return to normal times.Most of them were like chatterboxes, annoying as hell.But speaking of which, regarding the matter between Sasha and Biotechnica, he did indeed think of a good idea, and even thought of a person.That person would definitely dare to broadcast the dark secrets about Biotechnica.That person was none other than Nancy, the former keyboardist of the Samurai band, who now went by the name Bes Isis and worked at News 54.He really had to thank Johnny Silverhand a lot for this.If it weren't for him wanting to reform the Samurai band in the game, he really wouldn't have known that News 54 had such a badass who dared to boldly enter Totentanz alone to do interview work."However, before that, I'm afraid I still have to go to Afterlife to meet Rogue..."He couldn't help sighing.As for Rogue, that old woman, he really wanted to see her as little as possible.An old fox, extremely cunning.Probably only for Silverhand alone could she pour out her heart, and only regarding Silverhand's matters could this woman let go of the interests in her heart.What a pity, the one Silverhand loved was Alt, not her.Despite paying so much, it was of no damn use."Tsk, your circle is so messy..."After David muttered softly, he turned his head and smiled at Mower, saying: "So Miss Mower, could I ask you to help take care of this Miss Sasha next?""I plan to take a trip to Afterlife.""Mhm."Very rarely, Mower replied to him with words instead of just a gaze.That really wasn't easy...Thinking this, David walked out of the door and headed towards Afterlife.Taking a day off today, headache, by the way settling the bountyNovember 1, 2022 13:13:30Monthly Votes (861) Recommendation Votes (10714) Tips (34016) Blades (314)November 8, 2022 16:23:17Monthly Votes (1074) Recommendation Votes (12687) Tips (39316) Blades (469)(2+2 + 1+1.5) * 2K = 13KWell, a total of 13,000 words are owed.78. Ms. Rogue, I Want to Give You a Piece of Advice (6K)Afterlife Bar.Still the same old look, noisy music, and hazy lights.Countless mercenaries drowned their sorrows here, waiting for fixers to find them and offer a big deal.And the largest fixer in Night City was currently sitting in a large private room deep inside."Hey, Rogue, long time no see."David was standing outside the private room, greeting an old woman inside who had short grayish-white hair that was neatly styled, and wearing a fairly fashionable yellow top.But unfortunately, the big brute standing outside the private room blocking the entrance stood straight there like a wooden stake, motionlessly barring his way."Hey pal, make way, didn't you see I'm greeting your boss?"
94"... "No response.He didn't even spare him a glance.This guy..."Tsk, looking for trouble?"David's eyes slowly narrowed into a dangerous arc.However, before he could make a move, Rogue's voice came from inside."Let him in."That big oaf moved aside and made way for him like a robot obeying commands.Yet David didn't go in, continuing to stare at the big guy."Come in. He's just a bodyguard doing his job, no need to bicker with him."Only after Rogue said that from inside did he slowly walk in.Without a shred of politeness, he sat down boldly opposite Rogue.Like the surrounding ordinary private rooms, there was nothing special about this place. Anyone who didn't know Rogue would probably mistake this seemingly ordinary woman for a nobody drowning her sorrows here.But unfortunately, anyone who could come here knew this distinguished Queen of the Afterlife.Yet before Rogue could speak, David took the initiative to complain on his own, "Ms. Rogue, I feel like you should change your bodyguard. Look at your status, the Queen of the Afterlife! How can you hire a guy who lacks basic awareness?"He didn't treat himself as an outsider at all, even picking up the wine glass on the table and draining it in one gulp, letting out a refreshing sound.Seeing this appearance of his, Rogue didn't say anything, merely smiling out of habit."I don't feel there's anything wrong with this bodyguard. It's you, instead—you made quite a big commotion this time.""How so?""Biotechnica, Sasha Yakovleva—do I need to continue?" Rogue also picked up another wine glass from the table, flashing a meaningful smile as she stared at him."Oh, you mean this..."David helplessly shrugged, spilling the whole thing without the slightest intention of hiding it."To be fair, this matter wasn't caused by me; it was just an accidental act of helping others."Saying this, his voice suddenly paused, and he said in a somewhat exaggerated tone, "But then again, your intelligence network is truly extensive. As expected of the underground queen of Night City."Since she could mention Sasha, it meant this woman knew Sasha was still alive.Moreover, Militech stood behind Rogue, and they were as thick as thieves with Biotechnica.Being able to sit here and chat idly with him now meant she also knew the whole process and treatment result of what happened."However, since you mentioned this matter, and brought it up in front of me... What, are you scared? Afraid Biotechnica's people will come looking for you?""Heh..."Normally, if someone spoke to Rogue like that, either they wouldn't see tomorrow's sunrise, or they would be thrown out of the Afterlife on the spot.Yet this time, Rogue's reaction was somewhat different. Not only was there no anger at all, but she instead burst out laughing."David... Kid, you really got guts... But looking at you, you shouldn't be here with nothing to do just to piss me off."She suddenly put down the wine glass in her hand and continued, "Spit it out, what do you want with me?"There was not a trace of tension or anger on her face, only more satisfaction.Although the two of them had cooperated a few times and dealt with each other, they weren't all that familiar with each other.Such gunpowder-laced casual chat was perhaps the first time, but it definitely wouldn't be the last."Well, before that, I want to bestow a piece of advice upon you.""Give me advice?"Rogue's expression gradually turned subtle, a forced, mirthless smile on her face that looked somewhat creepy.If the aura David exuded was like a beast ready to devour people, or a sharp sword drawn from its sheath, then Rogue exuded an inexplicable sinister aura all over her body, like a fox—a thorough old fox of the kind that might bite you at any moment.Perhaps a fox couldn't beat a fierce beast, but biting you when you weren't paying attention and tearing off a piece of flesh would be no problem at all."Don't look at me with that kind of gaze." David put on a helpless look: "After I finish speaking, you will definitely thank me.""Then let's hear it."Rogue glanced at him, picked up the wine glass again, held the rim in her mouth, and took a small sip."It's about Biotechnica's stocks. If you have any of their stocks in your hands, I advise you to dump them quickly. In the near future, Biotechnica's stocks will definitely plummet drastically."Hearing this, Rogue frowned slightly, as if she thought of something, and then immediately relaxed her brow."It seems Sasha has already gotten what she needed.""That's right, and this is also one of the two things I came to find you for."David picked up the wine bottle placed in the center, refilled his empty glass, and talked eloquently.He looked at the crystal-clear liquid swirling slowly in the glass and curled the corners of his mouth."How is it? Does this matter suit your taste, Ms. Rogue?""Speak, what do you want." Rogue didn't drag her feet either, cutting straight to the point without the slightest intention of beating around the bush."Not much, I just want one-tenth of the value of the stocks in your hands.""You really dare to make an exorbitant demand, David.""You can't put it that way either. If I hadn't come to remind you, the stocks in your hands would definitely crash and lose everything, right?"Saying this, he suddenly changed the subject: "However, with Queen Rogue's massive estate and vast business, you certainly wouldn't care about this little bit of money, right?"Although he really wanted to get Nancy Hartley's contact info, trading this kind of intelligence for just a contact info was a huge loss.What's more, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fleece Rogue; how could he possibly let it go?He didn't believe that Rogue, being someone on Militech's side, wouldn't hold Biotechnica stocks.This could also be considered getting back at her for Sasha, while collecting the reward for the job along the way."Mm, not bad. You've successfully persuaded me."After brief consideration, Rogue decided to accept this deal.An orange glow flickered within her pupils, apparently selling the stocks, and at the same time, a sum of money appeared in his account."Good grief, one million?!!!"Seeing the extra amount, he couldn't help letting out an inward gasp.Originally he thought Rogue would only fork out one or two hundred thousand, but it directly multiplied tenfold!As expected of the Queen of the Afterlife, she was wealthy and imposing. Probably any other fixer wouldn't be able to pull out such a huge sum of money."Alright, now let's talk about your other matter."Rogue nonchalantly took a sip of wine, as if the one million she had just tossed out was like a single dollar.However, what David said made complete sense.If David hadn't reminded her, then the loss wouldn't have been one million, but tens of millions.Furthermore, even if she gave this one million, in the days to come, she could still take it back through other means."I want to ask you to check someone's contact information.""Oh?" Rogue looked at him calmly."Nancy Hartley, formerly the keyboardist for the band Samurai. After Samurai disbanded, she changed her name to Bes Isis and works at News 54."David dumped most of the intelligence he knew all at once.Only when Samurai was mentioned, a trace of imperceptible fluctuation flashed across Rogue's face.Perhaps because that was the band formed by her former old flame.As for the name Nancy Hartley, it was known to everyone in the old days; even she, Rogue, was no exception, and because of Silverhand, they had even crossed paths."Wait a moment."Saying this, an orange glow flickered in Rogue's eyes once more, and she said imperiously to the person on the other end of the communication: "Check someone's contact info for me, Bes Isis.""Thanks. How much do I need to pay for this contact info?"David first thanked her, and then directly brought up the price.Because he was clear on one thing: wanting Rogue to provide a free lunch had a lower probability than Arasaka going bankrupt the next day."Never mind the price and all that for now. Before that, I need to confirm one thing."Saying this, Rogue put down her wine glass, slowly lowered her body, and stared straight at him: "You're in such a rush for Nancy Hartley's contact info; it must be about that intelligence on Biotechnica, right?""As far as I know, there are basically very few people in the whole Night City who dare to broadcast corporate dark secrets. Even Regina Jonescan't do it, because that's tantamount to going against corporations.""But Nancy Hartley, that woman is different. Ever since she pushed her husband down from the eightieth floor, her whole personality changed drastically. Although she still possesses an extremely strong desire for control, her actions are also particularly crazy.""She dares to do what others don't dare to do, and dares to report what others don't dare to report, which is why you plan to track her down, am I right?"Hearing Rogue say so much, he didn't intend to hide it either, directly nodding in agreement: "That's right, everything you said is very correct.""But I'm curious about one point: clearly you knew what Sasha was preparing to do, and you also knew that the path over at Regina's wouldn't work, why did you still sell her this phone number at a high price?"Hearing this, Rogue slowly raised her body, leaning back against the sofa, with a faint, elusive smile on her face."Very simple, she came to me precisely to buy Regina Jones's contact info.""As for whether it works out or not, that's not a problem I need to consider, nor is it something I should remind her of."Yeah, Rogue was completely right.This fucking is Night City, this fucking is the rules among mercenaries.One side puts up the money and makes a request, and the other side satisfies it—that's enough.As for the details, if you're not at ease you can ask more, but if you don't ask there's no problem at all.As a mature mercenary, his question was clearly somewhat irrational."Sorry, it was me who asked what shouldn't be asked.""Mmhmm."Rogue didn't care, or rather, she was too lazy to reply, just picking up her wine glass and drinking by herself.After a while, an orange glow flickered in her eyes once more, and she manipulated a few things slightly."Alright, what you wanted has already been sent over to you.""Huh? What about the price?" David was slightly startled."Not needed. Consider this a freebie for the 'advice' you gave me this time."Rogue seemed to harbor some lingering resentment toward the wording "advice", intentionally accentuating the word when she spoke.But what David cared about wasn't this."Holy crap, is Arasaka really going to go bankrupt tomorrow?"Rogue, this old woman, would actually provide a free lunch?!"What did you say?"The music outside was too noisy, causing Rogue not to hear his mumbling clearly."...Ah no, nothing, then thank you, Rogue."After drinking down the wine on the table in one gulp, David bade farewell to Rogue and walked out of the Afterlife."I didn't expect it to be this late already..."Raising his head slightly to look at the sky, he found it was already afternoon, and the high-hanging sun was now slowly moving toward the west.Unknowingly, another day had passed."Forget it, let's get down to business first."Saying this, he dialed the phone number he got from Rogue.
Chapter 95After a few brief busy tones, the call went through."Hello, is this Nancy Hartley?""Who is this? How do you know that name?"A mature yet not old voice, carrying a hint of doubt, came through the comms.Even across the screen, he could picture Nancy furrowing her brows slightly at that moment."I am David Martinez.""David Martinez? The one from MAX-TAC? What do you want with me?"Hearing David's name only made her more puzzled.Although the morning news on News 54 had indeed broadcasted something about David today, a corresponding explanation had already been given.Besides, she wasn't the one who reported it or interviewed him; logically speaking, trouble shouldn't be coming her way."Don't be nervous, Ms. Nancy. I don't mean any trouble. I came to you because I have an exclusive news story I want to sell you. I wonder if you're interested.""An exclusive?"The other end of the line fell silent for a moment. "Then let's meet and talk about it... Also, I haven't used that name in a long time. Please call me Bes Isis from now on.""Alright, I understand, Ms. Nancy."Nancy: "..."---One hour later.They arranged to meet at Toms Diner in Watson.Since they were discussing such an important matter, it was only natural to set the location at this legendary diner.Sitting across from him was a woman in a cowboy jacket. Although her hair was already graying, her eyes were full of vicissitudes, and her face bore indelible marks left by time.One could still tell that this person must have been a great beauty in her youth.It was just that her voice didn't quite match her appearance; it sounded quite young, at most around thirty years old.This woman was none other than the former Nancy Hartley, now Bes Isis."So, what news do you have in your hands?"Nancy—no, it should be Bes—asked.However, David leisurely sipped a drink he had ordered. Under the coercion of Bes's nearly impatient gaze, he slowly said:"Before talking about this matter, I want to discuss the pros and cons with you first.""This news might send you soaring, and it's even possible you could replace Gillian Jordan, the current head of News 54.""But at the same time, it might also cause you to lose your job and be hunted down by corps.""A corp?"Hearing this, Bes furrowed her brows slightly. "Which corp? It wouldn't be Militech, would it?"Since it would make her lose her job, she couldn't think of a second possibility other than Militech's dark secrets.But David shook his head. "Not Militech, but its old friend, Biotechnica.""Oh~"Bes immediately dragged out her voice. "It seems you really got something from there yesterday. Tell me, what kind of dirty secret is it.""..."Hearing the other party's words, the corners of David's mouth twitched involuntarily.Why does everyone think I was the one who spearheaded the attack on Biotechnica!I'm even more wronged than Dou E...It seems he really extorted too little from Rogue; his reputation was worth way more than just one million!However, what he didn't know was that this matter had already spread like wildfire on the streets.Everyone was talking about the attack he launched on Biotechnica, and it had even become casual table talk for some people after drinks.But then again, it was indeed him who caused massive losses to Biotechnica. If not for those few grenade launcher shells, the upper floors of the building wouldn't have been completely burned down to ashes."Sigh, forget it. Take a look at this first."David irritably pinched the bridge of his nose, then pulled a shard out of his pocket and tossed it over."This is top-secret data dug out from Biotechnica's servers, probably info on a drug called [securicine]. This painkiller should have been released over a decade ago, and it seems it's still selling quite well to this day. However, it mentions some unannounced side effects, such as neurodegeneration and the like."David tried hard to recall the relevant data he had seen and recounted them one by one.After Bes picked up the shard and inserted it into a slot, the content she saw was almost identical to what David had said.According to her memory, this painkiller was indeed released over a decade ago and was a bestseller.But this kind of side effect had never been seen before.Not a single person had ever spoken up about it.This also gave her a new appreciation for the influence of Biotechnica."How about it, can we do this?""...This dark secret of yours really makes it easy for me to lose my job."Bes pulled out the shard and put it back on the table, not answering his question directly and instead talking about something irrelevant.But David more or less understood what she meant."No good?"David shook his head regretfully, picked up the shard on the table, and said, "Alright then, I guess this trip was for nothing. I'll go see if WNS is interested."Since Nancy couldn't take on this job, he wouldn't force it, nor was there any need to complain.After all, this news was heavyweight stuff, capable of even shaking Biotechnica's delicate position in Night City.To put it bluntly, Nancy was just working for News 54, so it was normal for her to have her own concerns.He had already mentally prepared himself before coming.However, based on his understanding, WNS would definitely be even more interested."Wait!"However, just as he left his seat and prepared to leave the diner, Nancy suddenly called out to stop him."What? Changed your mind?""Yeah." Nancy nodded. "I'll take this news of yours."Woohoo.This was truly an unexpected pleasant surprise."Aren't you afraid of losing your job? As far as I know, both News 54 and Biotechnica originate from the NUSA, not to mention that Militech and Biotechnica...""I know."Before he could finish, Nancy interrupted his words. "Of course I know what you're saying, but this is also an opportunity...""I've long since been sick of those stinking assholes at the top of News 54, and now there's just a chance to stick it to those assholes... Fuck, if they have the guts, TMD fire me!""Whoa~"Nancy's hot temper...As expected of someone in a band, she was still Nancy, the keyboardist of the band Samurai, without the slightest change."Alright, it's settled. I'll personally write and handle your report article. How does that sound?""That couldn't be better."David sat back down in his seat, handed the shard to Nancy, and instructed, "If you really get fired or hunted down by then, give me a call.""No matter where those fucking corpo rats send you, I'll rescue you safely.""If you lack a job, come to MAX-TAC. We just happen to be short on clerical staff here.""MAX-TAC? That gathering place for cyberpsychos?"Hearing this, Nancy's eyes turned suspicious, then she smiled with relief. "No problem, I'll consider it."With this, the two of them could be considered to have reached a strategic cooperation.As for money and such, it was no longer necessary.After all, he had already scammed a million out of Rogue, and furthermore, she was risking her life to report it, so he wouldn't charge her.Walking out of the restaurant, he promptly called Mower."Hey, Mower, where is Sasha? Is she awake?""No, she's still sleeping."Mower's unique, nonchalant voice came over the phone.Even though she looked so pretty and her voice sounded so nice, she never showed any emotion.She was always well-behaved and obedient, except her expression was as cold as a piece of iron.Although this wasn't bad either, you would never know what such a person was thinking deep down.He even somewhat missed that cyberpsycho who was shouting about fighting and killing in the courtyard..."Since she's not awake, never mind. There's something I want you to help me relay.""Mm, wait a moment."David: "???"Hearing this, he slowly sent out a few question marks.What's the situation? Wait for what?And judging by the sound, it seemed like she was picking something up?After a few seconds, Mower's voice came over again."Alright."Judging by the sound, it didn't seem like communication via implants...But he didn't think too much about it and said straight out:"Please tell Sasha: 'The matter here has been settled, and there might be news in a few days.' Let her not worry anymore."30079. Who is backstabbing whom? (6K)"'The matter here has been settled, and there might be news in a few days.' Let her not worry anymore."David's voice echoed in the room."You should have heard his words already, right? You don't need to worry anymore."After hanging up the comms, Mower put the PDA in her hand back to its original spot, turned her head, and looked at Sasha lying sideways on the bed.Even though she said that, Sasha lying on the bed still remained motionless, as if she were truly asleep.But Mower knew clearly that Sasha had been awake for a long time; she simply hadn't exposed the act.Furthermore, her purpose in making David wait just now was to route the comms to the PDA so that Sasha could hear it with her own ears.After all, regarding this kind of matter, the effect of her relaying it would definitely not be as good as hearing it firsthand.However, judging from the effect, it didn't seem to be all that good?Mower gazed at Sasha for a moment, shook her head helplessly, and turned to walk towards the door."Think carefully about what you are going to do next."Leaving behind these words, she left the room.Not long after the door closed, the room returned to silence once again.
Chapter 96Lying on the bed, Sasha Yakovleva slowly opened her eyes, gazing at the old, slightly yellowed wall in front of her, wondering what she was thinking about.The only thing known was that the corners of her mouth were involuntarily curling into a beautiful arc, something even she hadn't noticed.Yet the tears swirling in her eyes slipped down uncontrollably.From despair to hope, and received from the hands of a boy she had only known for a day...---In the evening, the setting sun gradually sank westward, and Night City welcomed the night once again.For most people, a few hours later would be time to go home for dinner, but for David, now was the time to go home.Ding——The elevator reached the top floor, and David returned to his cozy little nest, but the huge penthouse villa appeared desolate and lonely."Hey, Lucy, are you there? I'm back!"His voice echoed in the silent room, and he could even hear the reverberations.But unfortunately, no one responded to his words."Huh? Where did everyone go? Could she have gone out?"David walked to the cubicle upstairs, but did not find Lucy's trace in the familiar bathtub.Then he walked downstairs, took a bottle of beer from the refrigerator, and sat on the sofa drinking to himself, but his heart was full of doubt.Although Lucy would usually go out behind his back, especially in the past few days, she went out almost every day.If he guessed correctly, it should be against those Arasaka hackers trying to recover the data.But today, she still hasn't returned at this time."Could something have happened?"David frowned slightly.No, that's not right, nor should it be.He had basically settled Kiwi's side; if Faraday made any move, he would definitely contact him at the first instance, unless this stupid woman still wanted to walk the old path, or even wanted to die at Faraday's hands.But this was almost impossible; Kiwi was a smart person, and she knew deeply that one could not afford to harbor any wishful thinking in Night City.Moreover, he was not the David of the past, and it was even less likely that he would show her mercy. She knew very well what kind of person he was and what kind of methods he would use.Otherwise, after experiencing so much, she wouldn't have been able to live this well until now.Then the question came, who else could it be?"Ding-ling——"Right at this moment, familiar music sounded in his mind.It was Kiwi's communication.It wasn't a call, but an email.After opening the message and glancing at the contents, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly into an amused arc."Oh ho, that old fox Faraday moves really fast. Can't he hold back already?"The general contents of the email were——Faraday had sent communication to Kiwi that everything was ready, and now they were preparing to capture Lucy.It also came with an address, which was where Faraday was preparing to catch Lucy.It had to be said that Kiwi truly stopped at nothing to survive.The relationship between her and Faraday was far deeper than the one with Maine and these people.But now, for the sake of survival, she could even betray Faraday.However, it wasn't that he couldn't understand.Because Kiwi was merely a netrunner, without any superb self-preservation technology, let alone being as notorious as David, where almost no one dared to provoke him casually upon hearing the name, and he even had the behemoth MAX-TAC behind him.All she wanted, standing alone, was to live well in this chaotic city.As long as this condition could be met, Kiwi would be more reliable than anyone else.David firmly believed in this point.But speaking of which, he had really endured enough of that old bastard Faraday.According to his past personality and code of conduct, he would have long since led people to crash into Faraday's den.If it weren't for the cyberskeleton experimental cyberware, he wouldn't have endured until now.And now, he could finally let go and do it!Thinking of this, he dialed two phone calls."Hey, the operation can begin. I'll send you the location..."---Meanwhile, in the slums near Charter Street in Kabuki, Watson.The night breeze carrying a somewhat salty and damp taste blew from the canal, gently stirring Lucy's short hair.At this moment, Lucy was standing on the roof of a certain building, her eyes flashing with orange light while watching the complex of buildings below.She had hacked all the surveillance in this area and was searching for the netrunner who triggered the honeypot she set up as camouflage and alarm.To be honest, she was a bit puzzled.She didn't quite understand why the netrunner hired by Arasaka would hide in such a place; normally, a netrunner would never hide in a place so easily found by others.Just like that legendary netrunner Rache Bartmoss, even in death, no one ever found his corpse.If David hadn't taken her to find him in the dump, it would probably still be a mystery to this day.But now she couldn't afford to think so much.She must find that netrunner as soon as possible and take him out.Absolutely no one must be allowed to contact and recover that experimental data, no matter who it was!Soon, Lucy determined the netrunner's location through the camera positions of the surveillance video network system, inside a warehouse-like house not far away.It completely matched the ID of the netrunner who triggered her honeypot, and they were currently in a stealth state.Indeed, it was the netrunner she was looking for."David, wait for me. After taking out this netrunner, we can be together forever! You must wait for me!"Icy chill flickered in Lucy's eyes as she resolutely leaped down from the top floor of the building.The young girl firmly believed in this.Because netrunners were extremely rare entities in Night City.And most netrunners were basically against corporations, especially Arasaka, so the netrunners Arasaka could hire were even fewer.Nowadays, most netrunners of Arasaka's Night Citybranch had been wiped out by her, and a large bunch of those hired externally had also been eliminated.She didn't believe that anyone would dare to risk their lives to accept this commission next.However, besides this, there was one more thing that made her feel rather vexed.That was about what Rebecca said regarding the rescued former netrunner member Sasha Yakovleva—offending Biotechnica just to save one person...And it even made the news early this morning.This made her grow anxious once again.Regarding saving people, Lucy supported David, because this was a rare quality in Night City.But offending a corporation... and a corporation that had unclear relations with Militech over there...When she got back, she must lecture David properly!Lucy had already made plans for the future in her heart, but had no idea what kind of danger she would encounter next.A few minutes later, she hacked into the warehouse's system and quietly opened the door.Tap, tap, tap——Her faint footsteps echoed in the silent corridor.In this dim and huge warehouse, according to the previous surveillance footage, she found that familiar shelf area. Located deep behind the shelves, behind plastic curtains, a netrunner wearing a netrunner suit was lying on a netrunner chair in stealth.Hiss——Lucy quietly pulled the glowing Monowire from her wrist, slowly approaching the netrunner with eyes full of murderous intent.This was the last one...However, just as she was about to wrap the thin wire around the netrunner's neck, an unexpected situation suddenly occurred.The netrunner, who was clearly still in stealth, showed her a weird smile.At the same time, a faint sound of current rang out, and the netrunner's face gradually distorted as if irradiated by radioactive metal.Gradually revealing a purely silver face."Damn it, it's a trap!"When she realized it, it was already too late.Other netrunners hidden in the warehouse had already hacked into her brain and uploaded a Daemon.With a crunch sound, as if machinery was malfunctioning, a few sparks burst from the back of her neck, and her cyberware was rebooted on the spot.Her whole body seemed to lose strength and instantly collapsed limply to the ground.Within her blurred vision, she saw a pair of black leather shoes, plus maroon trousers, slowly appearing from the shelf area."Fa... ra... day..."She struggled to raise her head and uttered that person's name.But the forcibly rebooted cyberware seemed to malfunction, forcing her into darkness."Hmph, I didn't expect it to be this easy."Gazing at the girl lying on the ground, a disdainful smile appeared on Faraday's face.Although Kiwi had said before that this might be recognized as a trap, she never expected this little girl to be so naive and take the bait so simply.Sacrificing oneself for a loved one—he hated such disgusting dramas the most, and found them the most ridiculous.This was Night City, after all; things like love and sacrifice were the most useless things."What an utterly foolish little girl..."But Faraday was also very satisfied with this result."The pass to Arasaka has finally been obtained by us. Good job, Ki..."Before he could finish his words, Faraday suddenly found his vision beginning to distort, his whole body out of control, and with a thump! he fell heavily to the ground.His cyberware was overloaded!His brain reacted immediately, but thinking of it now was useless.Because his body could no longer move."You... bastard..."Faraday struggled to turn his head, his four eyes filled with anger: "... You actually... betrayed me!""It's not me." Kiwi slowly raised her hands, indicating that she was innocent.But then she added another sentence: "However, Mr. Faraday, this can't be blamed on me. If you want to blame someone, blame yourself."A trace of fluctuation flashed across Kiwi's narrow eyes."Damn it..."At this moment, Faraday understood that this woman must have learned something from somewhere.Could Arasaka have betrayed him?No, impossible!
Chapter 97"I've made deals with top-level executives!"Faraday was completely baffled.But in reality, this all started back when David went to see Kiwi...After listening to the recording David made at Toms Diner, Kiwi's expression gradually turned ugly.Even the action of lighting a cigarette for herself began to tremble.Clearly Faraday had promised her that helping to catch Lucy would not only secure immunity from Arasaka Corporation, but also grant her a reward of two hundred thousand.That way, she could not only completely clear her name and go straight, but with this two hundred thousand, she could leave Night City and go live somewhere else.But the result... the result turned out like this!That sentence "Everyone who knows about the cyberskeleton must die" kept playing repeatedly in her mind.She and Faraday were old acquaintances; given Faraday's personality, he would definitely do such a thing without a second thought.In the end, she would definitely be discarded.However, Faraday wasn't exactly lying either; this could also be considered clearing one's record in another sense.Once a person is dead, past criminal records vanish like smoke...Thinking of this, the words David said to her back then seemed to echo in Kiwi's ears."So, how will you choose, Miss Kiwi?""...Do I have any other choice?""Of course, I am a very forgiving person. You can choose to continue following Faraday in his rebellion and die here, or you can turn against him once more.""This shouldn't be difficult for you, right? After all, you've already betrayed someone once, doing it to Faraday a second time shouldn't hurt."She even clearly remembered the expression on David's face when he said those words, a faint smile hanging on his face, yet his eyes were filled with an ice-coldness devoid of the slightest pity.The look he directed at her was as if he were viewing an insignificant object.That time seemed to make her reevaluate the boy named David Martinez, and it was also the first time she felt this boy was so terrifying.That was a shudder originating from the soul."...I want to live. What do you need me to pay? For example, my body?"She wasn't a fool, and she knew deep down that the other party wasn't either.Since there was a betrayal, naturally a certain price had to be paid.In her view, the only thing she had left to offer was this body.But as long as she could survive, what did giving up her body matter?"That is indeed a pretty good proposal."She recalled the feeling of David gently lifting the pink bathrobe she was wearing that day."But unfortunately, I already have Lucy, so I won't do that. I don't want to make her jealous, and besides, while your figure is indeed not bad, it's far worse compared to Lucy."These mocking words did not arouse her anger; instead, she inexplicably felt relieved."Then what do you need me to do?""Very simple, be my inside person and report all of Faraday's actions to me."Thus, she ended up standing here, not only sending all of Faraday's activities to David via email, but also holding back against Lucy by simply rebooting her cyberware.After all, acting requires commitment to the full script, which was how David had instructed her back then.Mainly because Lucy was also an outstanding netrunner, completely not inferior to herself.If she didn't do that, she would also encounter danger."Damn... bitch! Do it!"Faraday, who was merely in a cyberware overload state, hadn't fainted, and even issued a command to the doll lying on the netrunner chair.Upon receiving the command, the doll immediately jumped up from the netrunner chair and rushed towards Kiwi.Although Faraday had many dolls around him, their functions were quite comprehensive, such as moonlighting as bodyguards.But the next second.Bzz——That doll suddenly stopped moving, sparks spraying heavily from its neck. Just like Faraday, its cyberware was overloaded by an uploaded Daemon."Bang!"At the same time, a deafening gunshot suddenly rang out, and a sharp bullet tore through the air, blowing a hole through the doll's head."Looks like I came just in time."A rough voice came from the direction of the corridor.Kiwi immediately turned her head, seeing a burly man carrying a machete and wearing a braid on his head walking over from there. The bullet from just now had undoubtedly been fired by this person.The moment their eyes met, the burly man hurriedly raised both hands."Hey sister, don't get excited, I'm here to help," Jackie Welles explained.That's right, Jackie was the other reinforcement invited by David.Although before coming he was told that the sister named Kiwi in front of them was their own person, after knowing she was a netrunner, Jackie's actions unexpectedly became extremely cautious.He certainly didn't want to be attacked by a netrunner for no reason."Dammit..."Seeing that the other side had reinforcements as well, Faraday's expression turned extremely ugly. Orange light flashed in his eyes as he began contacting the dolls standing by outside the warehouse."Whoosh—— Whoosh—— Whoosh——"Suddenly, a black shadow flashed across the other side of the corridor.With a clang, a sharp blade stabbed into the ground, pressing right against Faraday's vein."Don't move!"It was Mower.The katana in her hand was still stained with wisps of blood, slowly sliding down the blade."Holy shit, that's cool."Jackie praised when he saw the woman wielding a katana dash in.This was only the second time he had ever seen someone use a Sandevistan. The last time David used it, it was much faster than this, plus the environment was too dim, which caused him not to see it very clearly.This time, he saw it clearly; it was just like teleportation, leaving a few afterimages on the ground as she arrived.This sister is so badass!"Mister, please don't make any more pointless struggles."Immediately afterward, another crisp voice came from the corridor Mower had emerged from.Sasha's figure could be seen limping out from there, orange light likewise gleaming in her eyes.The two cyberware overloads just now were both done by her, through the surveillance cameras.But this intense activity caused some of Sasha's freshly stitched wounds to tear open slightly, streaks of bright red staining the white bandages."Holy crap sister, you're out running a gig with such heavy injuries?!"Jackie felt somewhat surprised looking at this sister walking while leaning against the wall.But even more surprising was that David would even squeeze an injured girl. When he saw him, he definitely had to give him a piece of his mind.Advice from a good big brother.jpg"Hehehe, actually this was all my own arbitrary decision..."Sasha saw through the burly man's thoughts in front of her and smiled slightly as she explained.Indeed, this truly was her own idea.When she heard from Mower that David was going to do something big over here, she decided to follow along.Because besides doing such insignificant trivial things, she really didn't know how to repay David's saving grace.Join David's crew?She had thought about it.But after hearing that there was already a netrunner in the crew, and even David's partner was an excellent netrunner, she quietly dismissed the idea.Their crew didn't lack netrunners; if she went over, she would only be a substitute, completely unable to repay the favor.However, compared to this, she was also somewhat curious about the person named Kiwi."You're the netrunner of Maine's crew after I left. Hello, I'm Sasha, Sasha Yakovleva."Sasha dragged her staggering steps over to Kiwiand smiled as she extended her hand."Kiwi."She didn't reach out her hand, but simply nodded toward Sasha.However, inwardly she felt a trace of emotion.David didn't seem to tell the others about her being a traitor; perhaps he only mentioned the matter of her acting as an inside person."Kiwi?"Sasha's lively eyes revealed a somewhat whimsical and mischievous expression.Speaking of Kiwi, her first reaction was to associate it with the Kiwi bird she had once seen in books.That was the national bird of New Zealand and also the symbol of the country of New Zealand. The Kiwibird got its name from its sharp call "keee-weee".It just didn't have wings, so it couldn't fly.What a really interesting name.However, toward Kiwi's coldness, she didn't react too strongly.After all, netrunners were a rare profession in Night City; people who could become netrunners basically all had a bit of temper and personality of their own.Even she was no exception.However, Faraday lying on the ground saw the people surrounding him and could be said to be deeply trapped in despair.He never expected that one day he would also be backstabbed by the mercenaries under him, and that they would even pull off such a perfect coordinated response.Wanting to run away was basically impossible.Especially the knife-wielding woman pressing down on his body; if he remembered correctly, this woman should be Lieutenant Mower formerly of Militech.But clearly Militech had said this woman was already dead, so why would she appear here?!!!"Uh... beauties, what should we do next?"Right at this moment, Jackie spoke up to ask.The task David gave him was only to protect the safety of Lucy and this woman named Kiwi; as for everything else, he knew nothing about it.Hearing this, Sasha and Kiwi glanced at each other, then cast their gazes onto Mower.Here, it seemed only this woman knew what should be done next.However, Mower looked at Lucy lying over there, and then looked at Faraday pinned beneath her."Take him back."80. cyberskeleton, your dear Daddy David is coming~ (6K)Time quickly reached midnight.Most residential areas in Night City had already settled down, and the neon lights of the streets provided only a meager amount of light.However, inside the apartment villa next to the superskyscraper, it was brilliantly lit at this moment.Rebecca was sitting on the sofa, her petite body completely sinking into the soft couch, yet her gaze remained fixed tightly on David. Her mouth was even curved into a "へ" shape, and her small face was awkward to a certain degree, plastered with the words "dissatisfaction"."Hey, David, don't you have anything you want to say to me?"
Chapter 98Not knowing if she couldn't stand the loneliness or what, Rebecca spoke up first.But she was met with David Martinez's indifferent attitude."What are you talking about?"David Martinez replied indifferently, slowly getting up to walk to the fridge, taking out a few cans of beer and placing them on the coffee table, casually handing one to Rebecca who was sitting opposite him."Want a drink?""Thanks... Wait, no!"Rebecca subconsciously took the beer, but suddenly realized something was wrong. Bang! She slammed the bottom of the beer can hard onto the coffee table.Splashing foam instantly overflowed from the opening, flowing onto her hands.The cold beer slowly slid down the back of her hand, but Rebecca didn't care in the least, still glaring angrily at David Martinez."That's not what I want to hear!""Aiya, if you're not going to drink it, don't waste it. Look at what a mess you've made everywhere..."He still had no intention of directly answering Rebecca's question, instead brushing her off with practiced smooth talk.Then he popped open a new can of beer on his own, gulping it down in large mouthfuls and letting out a refreshing sigh.He completely turned a blind eye to the young girl's anger.Under normal circumstances, most people seeing this attitude wouldn't continue asking, and even Lucy would be the same.But unfortunately, the person sitting opposite him was Rebecca, a stubborn and unyielding girl."David!"Seeing his impudent attitude, Rebecca exerted a slight force with the palm holding the can, and with a creak, the can instantly deformed.But the next second, Rebecca released the beer can again, sinking her entire body back into the sofa.She knew that getting angry was useless, especially when it came to David Martinez.No matter how much she kicked up a fuss or vented her anger, even if she blew the roof off, David Martinez wouldn't be moved in the slightest.Besides, this matter didn't warrant blowing things up to that extent.Her heart was just feeling annoyed."I really don't get it, how could you conspire in private in this kind of matter with that old hag, and actually not bring me along? Aren't you being a bit uncool?"As Rebecca spoke, she cast peripheral glances at Kiwi, who was smoking in the corner, and Faradaynear the window, who was being sat on like a cushion.This was the version she had heard, but she had a feeling in her heart that things weren't simply like that; there had to be a deeper reason behind it.Especially regarding the relationship between Kiwiand Faraday, she knew it like the back of her hand.How could this old hag suddenly betray Faraday?"Well, don't you already know it pretty clearly? Besides, this operation didn't come with any pay."David Martinez smiled and shrugged, picking up a new can of beer again to take a small sip, and continued, "Besides, you suddenly brought so many people over to my place and scared the hell out of me."That's right, it wasn't just Rebecca herself who had come to his apartment.There was also Falco serving as the driver, retired Dorio and Maine, and she even dragged along her uncoordinated older brother Pilar.It made it feel like a formal trial of three judicial boards.In addition to them, there were Mower and Jackiewho had stayed behind after completing a mission.As for Sasha and Lucy, he had settled them upstairs.On one hand, Lucy hadn't woken up yet, and on the other hand, Sasha's body couldn't continue moving around and needed quiet recuperation.At this moment, they were being cared for by Misty.To be honest, it was the first time so many people had come to his apartment.If Viktor and Mighty V were to come as well, they could really take a family photo."Tch, aren't I just worried something might happen to you?" Rebecca pursed her lips and guiltily cast her gaze elsewhere, muttering softly, "And given the relationship between us, mentioning pay and all that... isn't that a bit too distant?""Rebecca is right, David, saying it like that makes you sound a bit distant."Dorio, who had been silent all along, suddenly chimed in in agreement.Indeed, the relationship between Rebecca and him wasn't as simple as mere collaborators.Rebecca could be considered to have entrusted her life to him.As long as it was something David Martinez wanted to do, Rebecca would never be absent.Everyone knew this point by heart.David Martinez also knew this deeply, which was why he hadn't told her, doing it for the sake of Rebecca's safety. But who knows which big-mouthed leaky guy leaked this matter out,causing Rebecca, this crazy little loli, to storm over to his doorstep.However, about all this, he naturally couldn't say it and could only offer a smile.However, what he didn't realize was that Rebeccahad long grown tired of that hypocritical smile, which only made her cross her arms even more displeased. Yet, she ultimately suppressed her inner dissatisfaction and asked with enduring patience:"Then what are you going to do next, David? You can't just tie this guy up and do nothing else, right?"In fact, Rebecca didn't know all that much either.She only knew that this guy Faraday wanted to turn them—or rather David Martinez—into bargaining chips to hand over to the corporation in exchange for profits.Other than that, she wasn't quite clear on the specifics.And what the others knew was about the same as what Rebecca knew.However, the most shocked person was still Maine.He hadn't expected Faraday to be such a bastard, selling out even past collaborators...Although selling people and being sold out in Night City was a common occurrence, practically a daily routine especially for mercenaries, having such a thing happen right around oneself still felt somewhat annoying, to say the least.Therefore, even up until now, Maine was sitting there without making a sound, just silently drinking."As for what to do specifically... I already have seven or eight parts of a plan in my mind. Next, it all depends on whether Mr. Faraday here chooses to cooperate obediently."David Martinez pointed to Faraday on the side who was being used as a cushion, while Jackie was the one in charge of guarding and sitting on top of him.At the very beginning, this guy Faraday still tried to struggle and make a run for it, but after getting beaten black and blue a few times, he completely quieted down.It's just that his mouth was still very stubborn—harder than a Beijing roast duck's beak.Just like right now..."Hmph, I advise you to let me go right now. I've already made a deal with Arasaka's higher-ups. If anything happens to me, none of you will get away."Faraday slowly swept his three eyes across the crowd, releasing harsh threats.This tone, this arrogance—he had completely no self-awareness of being a captive.Thinking this way was normal, especially for Faraday. To him, so-called fixers were just feeders responsible for keeping this group of cyberpunks fed, acting like breeders with their own halos.But nowadays, the pets being fed had rebelled, leaving him feeling a bit ashamed and furious.He was even plotting in his heart how to retaliate against these ignorant fellows once he escaped."I will definitely make Arasaka dispatch troops to clean out everyone here, especially that traitor Kiwi, and this David Martinez—they must not be let off!"As for being killed?He didn't believe these guys dared to kill him here.Unless they didn't want to keep mixing in Night City.You must know, the impact caused by killing a fixer for mercenaries was not a trivial matter...However, hearing this guy's words, David Martinezcouldn't help shaking his head, almost laughing out loud in his heart.Higher-ups?Could those counterintelligence department items from Arasaka even be considered higher-ups?Even the renowned Mighty V was countless levels higher than these guys, yet ended up just being a grunt working and risking their life under Arthur Jenkins.Since when did Arasaka reach the point where these guys called the shots?It's just that with no tigers in the mountains, monkeys claim to be king...He slowly got up and walked to Faraday's side, nodding slightly to signal Jackie to get up, then squatted down, reaching out to gently pinch Faraday's chin and turn it toward himself."Oh, my dear cyber god, Mr. Faraday's mouth is truly stubborn. I reckon if we cremated you right now, besides that pile of ashes and mechanical parts, the only thing left would be this mouth, right?""...So what? I don't believe you dare touch me." Faraday responded, putting up a bold front despite being weak inside.But clearly he underestimated David Martinez.Never provoke a sane madman; this phrase applied everywhere."Heh..."Hearing this, David Martinez chuckled softly, released the guy's chin, sat down on the floor and said, "That's right, you're right, I indeed won't touch you right now, but next time might not be certain, you know. My patience is limited after all."The corners of his mouth hooked up into a heart-palpitating smile.The subtext of his words was very simple: he would give the other party a few choices next, and whether he could survive depended on how Faraday chose.As a seasoned veteran of Night City, Faradaynaturally heard the subtext, and subconsciously asked, "What do you want to do?""Nothing much, just wanted to make a little trade with you..."---Early the next morning, in the Badlands outside Night City, dazzling sunlight spilled over the desolate earth, and hot, dry wind-blown sand slowly swept across the border.On this land filled with yellow sand, you could clearly see the ground cracking due to dryness.This was the nomads' territory, and also a place that no corporation inside Night City could reach—truly a lawless zone.Here, the forces were intricate and complex. Aside from the nomads who wandered and arrived here, there were also the exclusive gang forces of the Badlands—the Night Wraiths, and their subordinate outcast group, the Wraiths.This bunch of guys was even more vicious and cruel than the gangs inside Night City; even Scavengerscouldn't compare to them by a fraction.Because this bunch did every kind of job, from trafficking implants to robbing corporate cargo, there was nothing they didn't dare to do.Moreover, what this bunch was most enthusiastic about was double-crossing each other.Precisely because of this, almost no one dared to do business with these people.However, precisely because the Badlands were such a mess, that was why David Martinez was appearing here at this moment—Standing on the hillside near the cabin.Because he planned to pull off a big deal here: intercepting the military-grade implants transported by the Arasaka Corporation—the cyberskeleton.However, right now he was holding a PDA in his hand, flipping through it.Nothing else.It was just that in the morning, before he even set out, a communication came from Nancy Hartley, asking him to check out the new news on News 54at this time.And that was exactly what he did; the moment he opened the official website of News 54, a piece of news caught his eye."Shocking! Behind Biotechnica's best-selling painkiller, there unexpectedly lurks an unknown, fatal side effect..."The layout of this news report was very deliberate.The characters for "Shocking" were marked in oversized crimson font, and even used bleeding special-effect artistic characters, making them extremely eye-catching.In the reporter's name column, the name "Bes Isis" was clearly annotated. Seeing this, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curve upward."This is so typical of Nancy..."As he sighed, his gaze immediately turned toward Night City in the distance with its towering skyscrapers, and he even felt as though he could already clearly see the flustered state of those people at Biotechnica at this moment.To put it simply, Biotechnica had cracked wide open.To verify this, he specially opened the stock trading website and looked at Biotechnica's real-time stock price.Just as he had thought, Biotechnica's stock was taking a massive dive, plunging off a cliff.Refreshing every five seconds, one could see Biotechnica's stock plummeting at a rate visible to the naked eye.It could simply be called perfect."But it's a pity, doing this still isn't enough to bring down the entirety of Biotechnica..." David Martinezcouldn't help letting out another sigh of emotion.