Cyberpunk: 2075.

Chapter 869, Section 79: Everything is normal.

After the high-ranking researchers swore allegiance, the other researchers quickly followed suit.

To be honest, they are all highly skilled, and it was precisely because of their genuine abilities that Hansen recruited them. Having a skill means that they can establish themselves anywhere—in other words, they never lack opportunities.

In terms of loyalty to Hansen, perhaps there was some, but when faced with life, death, and the future...
It's not that Colonel Hansen wasn't good enough, but compared to him, they felt that standing on KK's side obviously offered a brighter future.

Compared to the researchers, none of the Ghosthound's elite were willing to compromise with Karl.

They certainly deserved Hansen's trust, and Karl had no intention of killing these unyielding men.

If they had been eliminated during the previous chaos, that would have been fine. But since they have already been spared, killing them now would seem superfluous.

Since they are loyal to Hansen, we might as well wait until Hansen falls and see what happens. If they still refuse to submit by then, we can deal with them together with the remaining Dogtown comrades.

Loyalty to one's former master is not a fault, but this stubbornness always reminds Karl of the 100 ninjas he had just dealt with—since they are willing to wallow in the past, let them leave the stage with the old era.

Of course, if they change their minds, Carl wouldn't mind recruiting them again, perhaps assigning them positions like new security guards in Dogtown, which would make the best use of them.

The NCPD is already short-staffed. Although there has been an expansion of recruitment and the reinstatement of the Terrorist Mobile Unit, the shortage of personnel cannot be resolved in a short time. If the Ghosthound personnel could be reinstated to manage Dogtown, it would save a lot of effort.

After all, only a minority of the original soldiers under Hansen were in the Ghost Hounds. Most of the Ghost Hounds now are locals from Dogtown. It would be easier to manage Dogtown with the help of locals.

Moreover, even if these people loyal to Hansen harbor hatred, their target of hatred may not necessarily be Karl.

Carl genuinely admired Hansen; he was indeed a capable person, but his ambition was far too great, to the point that his abilities could hardly keep up.

Carl had no intention of eliminating Hansen himself. In fact, the plan he and Hanz agreed on was to observe the inevitable conflict between Hansen and the New United States, and then take over Dogtown once Hansen was defeated and killed. Carl was more like a neutral third party waiting for the right moment to appear.

It would be a shame not to take over Dogtown, which is now unclaimed. Neither Chester Bennett nor Gago Zab has the ability to become the king of Dogtown on their own. In the end, the chaotic Dogtown will naturally be occupied by the most capable person.

Karl's gaze swept over the bound members of the Netherhounds once more. If they were unwilling to submit, so be it; Karl didn't mind.

Anyway, when the King of Dogtown collapses, they'll just be a few stones that are supporting things but have nowhere to go. They can move them wherever they want, or do whatever they want.

“Lock them up,” Carl instructed Jack and Oliver, his voice calm and even. “Just keep them locked up for twenty-four hours. As expected, that should be about the limit for the president to take action. The matter will be resolved soon.”

He spoke indifferently, as if stating something that had nothing to do with him: "When that time comes, whether they want to assassinate the new president of the United States or seek revenge on any capable person under the president—it's up to them."

If they still want revenge later, Karl wouldn't mind sending these loyal men on their way.

However, he ultimately did not say those words aloud.

The personnel at the base quickly split into two groups and began their operation. The experiment supervisor, who had already sworn allegiance to Karl, thoughtfully suggested, "Mr. KK, the current number of personnel might attract the attention of Hansen's inspection team. We might need to arrange for some people to impersonate members of the 100 Ninjas and the Ghost Hounds. If you agree, we can use some technical means for disguise." He referred to the Ghost Hounds personnel casually, clearly no longer considering himself one of them: "However, we might be somewhat lacking in numbers. If necessary, we can use guard robots in conjunction with optical camouflage for disguise."

"That's not necessary."

Karl shook his head slightly: "I've already called my men over."

Since the plan is to take over the entire Dogtown after Hansen falls, Karl naturally can't rely solely on himself and Hanz.

Putting aside whether Hanz would take advantage of Karl's manpower shortage to expand his power in the unclaimed Dogtown and turn it into his own Dogtown, Karl would need enough authority and manpower just to bring Dogtown back to Night City.

The NCPD was naturally part of this, but sending them into Dogtown before Hansen's official downfall would be tantamount to declaring war. Therefore, Carl chose the forces that were currently well-manned and completely obedient to him.

"Mr. Carl, it's been a long time! It's so good to see you again."

With an indescribable joy, the entire former Akechi Squad arrived—because they had nominally pledged allegiance to the "Chicken Faction" during the last company coup, except for a few who remained in Arasaka, the rest of them had been dismissed. However, judging from their equipment, they were still fully armed, clearly having received assistance from some "mysterious individuals." The hacker girl in the team, Xizi, greeted Karl enthusiastically, her tone filled with barely concealed excitement.

"It's been a long time, everyone."

Karl smiled at the loyal team. He had called them when he realized he could take over an underground base, and they did not disappoint him. They successfully evaded surveillance and arrived at the location from Night City.

Clearly, the experiences of some members in Dogtown have had some influence on them, making them more efficient and adept at handling Dogtown now.

Who are the right people to play the role of the 100-person ninja group?
Aside from those who came from the Ninja Hundred, the only others are those who came from Arasaka Middle School, received similar training, and personally fought alongside the Ninja Hundred.

And clearly, what Karl has in abundance is precisely this kind of professional manpower.

Hansen's inspectors arrived quickly—ostensibly to inspect the circuits, but in reality to secretly verify the base's condition.

Under the direction of Carl, the former leader of the 100-man ninja group, and with the cooperation of professionals familiar with the internal procedures, the entire response process was flawless, and the inspectors quickly replied to Hansen that "everything is normal."

In the scene they witnessed: the 100-man ninja squad was still on duty, and the members of the Ghost Hounds were as usual. The only slightly "abnormal" thing was the group of researchers who were angrily berating the inspectors because the "experiment was damaged due to a power failure"—everything was just right.

Out of caution, Hansen had already divided the intelligence to be checked and carried by different people to ensure that no one had all the information and to prevent any possibility of defection. However, precisely because of this, no flaws were found in the parts checked by each inspection team.

After the inspection team left, Carl finally had some free time to look around the base.

The 'Dodo' is considered the only successful experimental subject.

(End of this chapter)