Cyberpunk: 2075.

Chapter 721, Section 135: Expectations and Recognition

"A useless person who is more likely to cause trouble than to accomplish anything."

This undisguised sarcasm did not come from Mingzhi, but from the young female hacker on the team.

Her sharp words cut through the air like knives, immediately drawing murderous glares from the two combatants remaining at the base—the five, now only three, were members of the same combat team as them.

Faced with the anger that the two were feeling because their companion had been humiliated, the hacker girl responded with a dismissive sneer.

"Did I say something wrong?" She tilted her head, toying with a strand of hair between her fingers. "Disobeying Lord Akechi's orders and acting on her own, unable to even end her own life after being blocked and unable to escape, instead hoping that Lord Akechi would risk his life to rescue her—does this kind of trash deserve to be called Arasaka's elite?"

Her voice suddenly rose: "A true samurai should be loyal to Lord Akechi and Miss Hanako at this moment! Even if they can't kill the enemy, they should at least be prepared to commit suicide! What's the difference between them and traitors if they live like this now?"

Upon hearing the hacker girl's words, one of the combat team members slammed his fist on the table and stood up abruptly, his prosthetic arm emitting a dangerous buzzing sound, but he was held down firmly by his comrade.

The air in the entire safe house seemed to freeze, with only the faint electrical hum of the device in the hacker girl's hands remaining.

The hacker girl looked at the two combatants with disdain. The fact that one of them had almost attacked her just now did not make her panic in the slightest. If they really dared to make a move in front of Lord Mingzhi, the hacker girl would not mind letting them know through the connection how terrible it is to mess with a hacker when a hacker is connected.

While the rest of the squad watched the hacker girl clash with the two remaining combatants, Akechi spoke up.

The moment he opened his mouth, he drew everyone's attention.

"What they did was indeed against my will."

The first words spoken by Mingzhi brought a clear sense of joy to the hacker girl's face, as if she had been recognized by an adult. At the same time, it made the faces of the two combatants who heard Mingzhi's words look somewhat gloomy.

So even Lord Akechi thinks so? But thinking about it, it makes sense. My companions' actions were truly outrageous. First, they disobeyed Lord Akechi's orders and launched the operation on their own. When they encountered resistance, they couldn't even escape. It was indeed a disgrace.
It's a pity. Although I know they were wrong, they were still comrades who had carried out so many missions together.
Arasaka is a company where internal struggles are brutal and subordinates are constantly at risk of being overthrown. But even in mud, lotus flowers can bloom. The more oppressive the environment, the more precious the few remaining bonds of friendship become. Even knowing that his five companions have made a grave mistake, they still shamelessly seek his help. There is still some sense of camaraderie among them.

Just as the two combatants were feeling dejected and preparing to accept the fact that their comrade had been abandoned, Wise's next words suddenly lifted their spirits.

"However, as I have said, I will not keep this glory to myself."

Mingzhi swept his gaze over everyone who had been drawn to his words and looked up at him, his eyes filled with determination and encouragement.

"Wouldn't it be a shame if there weren't enough people to share this glory with me?"

"Your Excellency, Mr. Mingzhi"

The two combatants listened to Mingzhi's words, their eyes gleaming. Everyone understood Mingzhi's meaning at that moment: even though those few combatants who acted rashly were more likely to cause trouble than anything else, and shamelessly sought support, Lord Mingzhi still disregarded their disgraceful behavior and was willing to help them.

This friendship and this tolerance moved everyone present.

The hacker girl's gaze changed. She looked at Akechi, at the adult who had promised them glory before the battle even began, and her eyes became different.

Even such a useless person, would this adult be willing to show mercy and forgiveness? That would be far too weak.
Are you weak?
When the hacker girl had this thought, she knew deep down that her heart had changed a little.

That was because he was inspired by Lord Akechi's words, which stirred up a change in his excitement once again.

She watched as Akechi calmly adjusted her cuffs, and her heart began to race. This genius girl, who always had "waste" on her lips and acted with extreme arrogance even in Arasaka, was experiencing an unprecedented logical conflict. But a tremor faster than Sianwaystein's was creeping up her spine.

That was an ancient program called 'expectation' that she thought she had long since deleted from her mind.

If even this bunch of good-for-nothings is treated with such pity by Lord Akechi, does that mean that if I were in danger, Lord Akechi would come to my rescue?

In a workplace environment where one has become accustomed to darkness, salvation is such a subtle and precious word.

“Prepare the support team.” Mingzhi’s finger traced a path on the holographic map. “I will lead the team myself.” His voice was soft, yet it resounded like thunder in the safe house.

"Your Excellency, Mr. Mingzhi, you personally!?"

"Don't worry, I'm also capable of fighting, at least I won't hold you back."

Seeing the smile that appeared in front of them for the first time, and feeling a sense of conviction in that smile for some reason, the crowd was inexplicably persuaded.

The prosthetic eyes of the two combatants lit up instantly. They straightened their backs and performed a standard Arasaka salute, their metal joints making a neat clicking sound. Even the technicians who had been watching coldly began to silently adjust the equipment. A subtle excitement filled the air.

The hacker girl bit her lip, her eyes filled with a mixture of fanaticism and unreadable emotion as she looked at Mingzhi. She quickly typed a string of code into her terminal: "...I'll use their equipment to lure the Ghost Hounds here to cause trouble as much as possible." She paused, then added softly, "But if they mess up again..."

Akechi chuckled lightly, "Then let them atone for their sins for the rest of their lives." He reached out and took a samurai sword from a technician, bringing the argument to a close.

According to Mingzhi's information, he is a special agent who has been trained as a samurai since childhood and is proficient in swordsmanship. Although his swordsmanship is not suitable for dealing with specialized combat personnel because he has not been fitted with any combat-related cybernetic devices, it is more than enough for self-defense.

Amidst the busy figures of the crowd, the two combatants exchanged a glance, both seeing a kind of burning light in each other's eyes—a light too rare to be found in the cold, steel jungle of Desolate Hill—a determination to go through fire and water for someone.

(End of this chapter)