Cyberpunk: 2075.

Chapter 778, page 192, the Seventy-Sixth Floor
The 76th floor of Arasaka Tower.

In the internal signage system, this floor is given a meaningful code name—'Jungle'.

As the heavy, bulletproof elevator doors opened, a wave of humid heat immediately rushed out.

The control and ambient temperature regulation system in the building perfectly replicates the subtropical rainforest ecosystem: water mist that is almost invisible to the naked eye floats in the air, the interlaced canopy overhead filters the artificial sunlight into dappled light and shadow, and electronically simulated insect chirps and bird calls can be heard from the dark places from time to time, with the sound pattern combination changing precisely every fifteen minutes.

In the center of this meticulously constructed primeval jungle, a circular clearing of about thirty square meters resembles a divine realm cleared away by an invisible force.

There stands a completely black stone conference table—made from Otani stone, a specialty of Otani Town, Utsunomiya City, Tochigi Prefecture.

This precious stone, with a history of mining for thousands of years, is known for its light weight and unique earthquake-resistant structure. It has always been used only in Japanese buildings. There are even cases in its history where buildings survived earthquakes and fires because of the use of Otani stone. It is a type of stone whose mining is specially restricted by the government.

However, this type of stone is generally only used in construction, and it is relatively rare to see it used in the manufacture of tables.

Beside this Otani Iwa table, there are twelve chairs, ten of which are arranged on both sides, neatly lined up like samurai. The most eye-catching are the two main seats at both ends of the long table, which are more special than ordinary chairs.

This layout conceals a subtle change: for the past century, this table has always held only eleven chairs.

According to Arasaka's tradition, there has always only been one chair at the center of power, until today—to welcome Rosalind Miles's visit, Arasaka's staff had to break with tradition and add a twelfth 'equality' chair in the position directly opposite Arasaka Yorinobu.

As sunlight filtered through the artificial canopy, casting dappled patterns on the brand-new chair, Mingzhi and his team arrived at the venue.

The 76th floor is where CEO Arasaka and the new US president will hold their meeting. To ensure the safety of the attendees, bodyguards and guards have arrived on the floor in advance to conduct checks. Among the many checkers, the Akechi team arrived the latest.

Akechi looked around the floors and found that in addition to the Arasaka personnel, there were also people with obvious New American characteristics. This was an incredible thing in the Arasaka Tower, which was regarded as the regional Arasaka headquarters. The last time New American personnel appeared was probably during the Corporate War.

But this arrangement is necessary today, as the weaker party, the new United States does have the right to inspect the meeting venue.

Although such inspections seem so futile on the other side's turf—if Arasaka really wanted to do something, how could a mere inspection possibly uncover it? But that's how politics is; even if you know it's just a formality, you still have to go through the motions.

Just like the extra 'chair of equality' on the conference table, it's nothing more than a tacitly agreed-upon performance.

Ironically, the new United States' high-profile security deployment was less about protecting Arasaka and more about saving face.

After all, if the president's safety still depended on Arasaka's protection while on Arasaka's territory, where would the congressmen's face be? —Although that face was already pretty much lost yesterday when the presidential plane crashed and the president awkwardly announced his safety in the middle of the night. Akechi looked at the FIA ​​agents, thinking about what he had seen yesterday, and felt a little curious.

I wonder how many FIA agents here are truly loyal to Rosalind Myers. Judging from yesterday's events, even within New America, Rosalind Myers doesn't seem to have complete control of the situation.

Such a thought only flashed through his mind briefly, but Akechi still carried out what Oda Santao had instructed him to do. He gave orders in the channel dedicated to their team, instructing his teammates to begin the inspection using their various methods, while he himself observed the bodyguards and guards who had arrived earlier for the other participants.

Although the most trusted and capable guards are usually by the participants' side, the people here are just pawns sent in advance. However, at this level of meeting, even the pawns have considerable status, so it's always good to take a closer look.

'In case a fight breaks out, we need to first identify and eliminate those who pose a threat.'

Shortly after Akechi and his group arrived, the elevator doors opened again, and a very familiar figure stepped out of the elevator.

He was a fit young man with visible signs of training. His black punk hairstyle was meticulously styled with hair gel, yet a few rebellious strands could still be seen sticking up at his temples.

He was wearing the standard uniform of the Arasaka Special Operations Unit, but upon closer inspection, one could find many differences in the details: for example, the special bulletproof material of his clothing was clearly much better than that of ordinary combat team members, the quick-draw holster on his waist had been specially modified to be very suitable for quick drawing of firearms, and even the anti-slip pattern on the soles of his boots had adopted a special new design.

A pair of matte tactical sunglasses covered most of his face, and only from his taut jawline and slightly upturned lips could one barely tell that he was a young man no more than twenty years old.

As he walked, a faint hum of servo motors could be heard from under his combat suit, indicating that the young man had undergone special prosthetic modifications or had some kind of device installed inside his clothing.

Akechi glanced at the information and saw that the man was just an ordinary combat team member who had been transferred to security yesterday. According to today's schedule, he was on the 76th floor and was a basic security personnel who did not participate in core security.

Of course, this is only the identity on the document.
As for this person's true identity...
Mingzhi's gaze briefly met the other person's gaze behind sunglasses, and for a moment, the air seemed to freeze.

The young combatant's lips twitched almost imperceptibly, as if he was about to smile, but he forcefully suppressed it. They simultaneously looked away in tacit understanding, as naturally as two complete strangers meeting each other's eyes by chance.

The two did not exchange a single word, and apart from that seemingly accidental glance, there was no further communication. Then, Akechi looked to the other side, and the young combat team member happened to walk in the direction Akechi was looking.

That viewpoint is the best in the area.

(End of this chapter)