Cyberpunk: 2075.

Chapter 663, Section 77: Too Little

V.

Speaking of V, Carl suddenly remembered.

Yes, V's identity has always been held by that cunning Kenichi Shiro. He's the captain of the second combat squad and still has a formal position. According to V, his account receives an extra salary every month, which is treated as a long-term part-time job.

“David, does your combat squad contract specify which squad you need to join? I remember that according to Arasaka’s assignment, the contract should clearly state your responsibilities.”

David, somewhat puzzled, looked at Carl, who suddenly seemed to remember something and asked a question. He then took out a device he had brought with him for the interview and reopened the contract: "I haven't looked at the details carefully because I don't plan to sign it. Wait a minute, let me take a look."

The titanium alloy shell gleamed coldly under the neon lights, and a holographic projection unfolded between the two people, with densely packed clauses standing like a steel jungle.

Employer: Arasaka Security Department (Registration No.: 2077-4-884)

Employee: David Martinez (Biometric ID verification effective)

Tactical unit assignment: Second Operational Squad (Status: Active duty/Personnel quota not full)

Personnel verification: Kenichi Kazuya
Kenichi and Kazuya, the second combat squad?
Upon seeing these two all-too-familiar words, Carl suddenly understood some of the reasons why David had been kept for so long.

"David, when you were interviewed just now, was the interviewer a middle-aged man who spoke very politely and looked very energetic?"

"That's how it is. What's wrong?"

David, seeing Carl's expression of sudden realization, still didn't quite understand.

"You can sign this contract."

Carl's words made David blink. He quickly recalled the information Mashi had mentioned earlier—V's position was captain, and his assigned squad...
“Wait,” his voice tightened slightly, “Is the captain of the second combat squad V?”

Carl nodded.

“That’s right, it’s just a nominal appointment.” He paused. “And the person who interviewed you was probably Kenichi Kazuya—our ‘old friend.’ He probably caught a whiff of something while looking through your file and gave you a backdoor, putting you in V’s team.”

David's breath hitched slightly.

"But V is not nonexistent."

“Yeah, nothing happened.” Carl sneered. “But there’s an old fox who refuses to be removed from the team. He’s nailed V’s name to the system like a memorial tablet. What’s even more ridiculous is that he’s still being paid, his position is still the same, and there are still a few old hands in the team—Oliver, Jack, they’re all just coasting along.”

A sense of absurdity washed over David. "Jack and Oliver are both here, so the interviewer gave me this contract just to get paid for nothing?"

Even the words sounded unreal coming from his own mouth.

David, who grew up struggling on the streets of Santo Domingo, has the most basic survival rules etched into his bones. These rules are somewhat similar to V's former simple ideas—work, get paid, it's only right and proper. But the contract in front of him is like a pass to get something for nothing, lightly overturning his understanding.

"That's about it, but it's not entirely free. According to what was said at the time, there should be some commissions later that they wanted you to take priority on. It's like a business transaction where you pay money to get excellent mercenaries, so it's not like you're getting it for free."

Carl was being very honest; in fact, he even thought that 100,000 a month was a bit too little.

It's worth noting that when Kenichi Shiro first approached him, he offered him 300,000 euros a month, and later even more. For V, Oliver, Jack, and David, who, although slightly less skilled, was still considered an excellent mercenary, this 100,000 euro monthly priority commission and trading rights seemed rather insignificant.

"It's not like you got it for free."

But that's 100,000 euros, a whole 100,000 euros.

One hundred thousand euros is not a small amount of money for David now. He sells Mewtwo and works as a mercenary, so he can't possibly earn that much in a month. However, his monthly income is not much higher than that. After all, he used to have to go to school, so there was a time factor. Now he can continue to work as a mercenary and still earn one hundred thousand euros. Moreover, he can continue to secretly do the Mewtwo business at the school gate.
After doing a quick calculation, David felt like his eyes were about to turn into the Euro symbol.

David had heard about the salary of another top mercenary squad that Mann had mentioned—the Brown Squad.

Now, even without travel allowances or extra income from dealing with assassinations and attacks by fanatics, they earn $120,000 a month as Kerry's bodyguards. And now, he can get about the same amount just by signing a contract.

Receive the same salary as members of top-tier mercenary teams
David doesn't have a clear understanding of his current strength. Since entering the mercenary business, he has always been surrounded by top mercenaries—from Karl to Mann, the signature figures from the "Afterlife" bar have always been the ones walking in front of him.

This is why his self-assessment of his abilities has always been vague. In his mind, he is at most capable of taking down a gang of thugs, so he always feels that receiving a salary on par with Brown's team is a steal.

But Carl didn't think so. In his opinion, although David was not yet as good as Andy—his old friend who was also a mercenary and whose skills were becoming increasingly terrifying—he was already on par with Brown and Mann. David was indeed exceptionally talented in the mercenary line of work: his prosthetic body was highly adaptable, he was young, and his potential was unfathomable. 100,000? That was indeed too little.

“I think we can negotiate the terms for you—the nomination and advance authorization are fine, but the money is indeed less.”

Carl was pondering whether to contact Kenichi and Kazuya when David waved his hand in alarm, refusing: "Enough, really enough! Since Carl says I can sign, then I'll sign. This money is already too much; if it's any more, I'm afraid something might happen."

"Is it really that exaggerated?" Carl frowned. He himself earned much more each month and didn't see anything wrong with it.

But seeing David's uneasy appearance, and that same clear-headedness that V had back then, untouched by the corruption of the industry—Karl ultimately just sighed and didn't insist any further.

He only gave David this final reminder: "You'd better talk to your aunt about the job offer. She wanted you to explore another path, right? You can go back and tell her that you've tried both paths and want both. Your aunt, who's been so eager for you to get a job at the company, should be happy."

(End of this chapter)