Cyberpunk: 2075.

Chapter 783, Section 197: Blanca's Ambition
Blanca gazed at Haruko Arasaka—the girl she now finally felt she could stand on equal footing with.

Her gaze slowly swept over every detail of the other person:
Her skin was as pure as fresh snow, her face radiated youthful vitality, her long, smooth black hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her simple and elegant attire added to her refined and otherworldly charm. Every detail silently spoke of the beauty of youth.

Blanca unconsciously pursed her lips.

At twenty-five, one might still be considered young in the eyes of most people, but in front of this radiant young woman, she felt for the first time the true marks of time.

How ironic!

She subconsciously touched her carefully maintained face.

In terms of looks, she was confident that she was second to none, but what else? Family background, status, and the innate composure—things that she had struggled to attain with all her might—were nothing more than ordinary gifts to the girl before her.

Even this right to be on equal footing is a moment of equality that she has earned through countless days and nights.

The gap between people can sometimes be deeper than the skyscrapers of Night City.

But Blanca did not wallow in resentment—she knew all too well that she was not an outcast of fate.

Although her childhood was not exactly happy, compared to those who were born to struggle in polluted waters or barely survive on barren land, she was already a lucky one standing at the top of the pyramid.

At the age of 23, he was able to serve as the transportation supervisor in a key department of military technology. Such a starting point is something that ordinary people can hardly achieve in their entire lives.

Her slender fingers gently pressed on the table.

If it weren't for the resources accumulated by her family, how could she have met Karl, who was just a street mercenary at the time, at such a young age? How could she have had the opportunity to use her abilities to sit at this negotiating table? Even the resentment she feels now is a luxury.

Haruko Arasaka is like a mirror, reflecting all her limitations, but also the privileges she already possesses.

In this world, those who are indignant about 'injustice' are often the beneficiaries, while the unfortunate sometimes don't even have the strength or time to speak out.

Even when Saburo Arasaka, the god of business, took over Arasaka, it was just a company that couldn't even be ranked in Japan. It was Saburo Arasaka who personally brought Arasaka to the top.

Blanca stared at Haruko Arasaka, the gloom in his eyes gradually dissipating, replaced by a dangerous clarity.

Twenty-five years old—that number kept echoing in her mind.

She was even younger than Saburo was when she took over Arasaka, and her starting point was much higher. This realization was like a shot in the arm, making her unconsciously straighten her back a bit.

When Blanca looked at Haruko again, the subtle resentment he once felt for not being as young as Haruko was gone from his eyes.

There's still time. If the talks go smoothly, Arasaka, the new America, and military technology will all undergo new changes. As long as I can survive this chaos, I will definitely be able to climb higher. At that time, perhaps it will be my turn to look down on Haruko Arasaka.

It was like when the new US president Elizabeth Kress met Michiko Arakasaka.

Michiko Arakasaka is Haruko's mother, and she herself could very well become the next Elizabeth Kress.

Once this idea took root, it spread like wildfire in her heart.

Blanca's ambition burned within her, and her spirits soared. On the surface, she wore the same smile as Haruko.

She will not lose to anyone. Nobody!
And they would never let the person they wanted to hold escape.

Absolutely not.

She will not concede to anyone, and she will absolutely not allow anyone to surpass her in this regard.

Blanca's peripheral vision remained fixed on Mingzhi.

Her gaze had already pierced through Mingzhi's carefully constructed disguise—that false identity, that deliberately sculpted face—and reached the truth hidden beneath.

On the surface, his face had cold, hard lines and sharp contours, carrying a sense of seriousness unique to Arasaka. It was like a meticulously calculated perfection, but it lacked warmth.

'What an unpleasant appearance,' she scoffed inwardly. 'Arasaka's aesthetic is always like this, cold and pretentious. Karl looked much better in his original form—those eyes were alive, they could laugh, they could be angry, not like now, wearing a mask, even his breathing seemed like a pre-programmed sequence.'

Blanca admitted that she did have some of the stereotypes that military technologists had about Arasaka, but the thought of Karl looking like Arasaka made her feel uncomfortable all over.

And then, she saw someone who made her even more uncomfortable.

As the elevator doors opened, Blanca's gaze froze upon seeing who it was.

The woman who walked in was wearing a white, form-fitting dress, elegant yet aloof—that was Hanako Arasaka.

Although Hanako Arakawa, born in 1999, is 78 years old this year, thanks to cutting-edge biotechnology, her appearance is still maintained at the best state for a woman.

Her long, jet-black hair was meticulously styled into a low bun, and her brown eyes were deep and aloof, as if she were always scrutinizing everything around her. Her makeup was exquisite but not ostentatious, and the lines of her brow bone and cheekbone were carefully outlined, exuding an unquestionable majesty. Her golden prosthetic fingers swung casually at her sides, drawing golden arcs that lingered on her retina.

Blanca unconsciously frowned.

Unlike Haruko Arasaka—the girl she admired despite wanting to fight against certain issues—Hanako Arasaka embodied the stereotype of the surname 'Arasaka' to the extreme.

That nauseating arrogance, that suffocating sense of oppression, perfectly matches all the world's imagination of the Arasaka Corporation. But on second thought, as one of the actual power holders of the Arasaka family, this uncomfortable authority is perhaps only natural.

Hanako Arasaka walked with steady steps, escorted by Santayu Oda. She glanced at Michiko Arasaka and Haruko Arasaka, who were looking at her from the side at the conference table. No one else caught her eye, as if they were insignificant.

"Looks like I'm not late."

Hanako Arakawa calmly took the first seat on the left and said to Michiko Arakawa, "I thought you would be the last one to arrive."

"Maybe so, but I might just be in a slightly different mood today, so I might have come a little early."

Michiko Arasaka seemed indifferent to Hanako Arasaka, and there was little friendly atmosphere between the two.

"Your mood swings seem more unpredictable than I imagined."

Arakawa Hanako spoke in a similarly calm tone, then looked in the direction she had come from.

Accompanied by a mechanical footstep and two more footsteps, the true core of the meeting, Nobuyuki Arasaka, arrived at the venue under the protection of Goro Takemura and Adam Hammer.

(End of this chapter)