Cyberpunk: From Dogville to Legend

Chapter 148 Fairy Tales and Good Medicine (8K)

Dogtown.

The room was filled with a hazy, gray smoke, the source of which was the crumpled, unextinguished cigarette butts in the rusty ashtray.

The young man on the sofa looked wearily at the animated young woman, a slight smile playing on his lips.

What she was saying was no longer important; what mattered was that he had returned unharmed from a group of swordsmen.

This gave him a sense of security.

It's a good time to close your eyes and sleep.

Lin Yue firmly believes in one sentence:

There are no people in this world who are insensitive to emotions, only idiots who pretend to be deaf and dumb.

He didn't know what the future held, nor did he dare to easily succumb to his hormonal urges. He could only close his eyes and listen to the girl's commotion.

How long can this kind of life last?

There is no answer.

Lin Yue felt his consciousness fading.

The girl's cheerful voice gradually faded away...

call.

A gentle breeze brushed against my forehead and ears, making my skin tingle slightly.

The air was filled with the aroma of wine mixed with a unique sweet scent, and the sensation of his eyelids darkening slightly when someone approached... Lin Yue could feel every breath the girl took, and with each rustling sound, a slightly cool coat was draped over her body.

Rebecca leaned close, scrutinizing the guy, and even tugged at her ponytail, afraid that a strand of hair would fall onto Lin Yue's face.

"Good night."

Her words were soft, as if she were sincerely wishing that there would be no worries in her dreams.

The instant the automatic door closes.

Lin Yue, who was leaning back on the sofa, opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling of the room, seemingly lost in thought.

……

Lin Yue sighed and pulled himself out of his thoughts.

Rebecca had barely taken a step when she was immediately pulled back by the tall, slender woman from the company beside her.

Rebecca wiped away her tears, and the world in her eyes finally became clearer—she was looking at Rin, who was sheathing her sword in the distance, with a mixture of confusion, surprise, and fear in her eyes.

"Don't go there yet."

V's voice was cold.

Perhaps Rebecca wasn't the only one who was afraid; the head of the counterintelligence department felt the same way.

The characteristic of roving AI is its ability to deceive. Unless V has something like a logic trap, she can't accurately identify the other party's identity. Even so, it would still require a lot of investigation beforehand to grasp its unique characteristic.

Therefore, V dared not gamble.

Rebecca nodded.

She had already seen Lin Yue's importance from V's actions.

Let's just do it for Lin Yue's sake.

At this moment, V was ready to contact Lai Xuan at any time.

Everyone is silent.

The world suddenly seemed to fall silent...

Lin Yue clenched his fist, feeling a sense of powerlessness.

It seems that V does not believe the results of the state's investigation. From the beginning, V believed that the AI ​​that stood up in the lab to resist the massacre of researchers was a roving AI... but it turns out that it was Lin Yue's stress response.

He was unwilling to watch his body be dismantled, and he feared spending many years in the dark, timeless servers and cyberspace, so he chose to resist.

However, this also sowed the seeds of distrust between the two...

Lin Yue was trying to shut down the Desolate Moon, but it would take a little longer.

At this critical juncture, even Rebecca, who is usually good at expressing herself and acts carefree, did not act rashly. Instead, she wiped the tears from her face with her arm and looked at the guy anxiously.

What happened to Lin Yue?
This was Rebecca's biggest question.

Time passed by minute by minute.

The eerie red and black light in Lin Yue's eyes slowly faded.

His head still felt prickly and itchy, just like before, and he knew he might have lost something from the depths of his memory again.

He was determined to keep the thing in his head under control until he found Little Beidou, but just like the cards Misty had given him: the wheel of fate had turned, and it was playing tricks on the travelers of this world.

V glanced at Lin Yue, then at Rebecca.

"Is that really you?"

Lin Yue nodded. "Are you alright?"

V nodded, "It hit my shoulder, but it's alright."

This clever woman then noticed that Lin Yue's eyes were lingering on Rebecca for a considerable amount of time.

V's restless state of mind made him want to leave.

then…

Within her prosthetic eye, the trauma team's program suddenly sprang to life.

Lin Yue, aware of the other party's wariness, slowly explained, "V... they will only brainwash me, but they will not replace me."

V's question came quickly, "Did you take care of the soldiers who besieged you in Dogtown Lazarus... or them?"

Lin Yue answered without hesitation.

"It and I each take up half."

V: "What about Honshu?"

Lin Yue: "Me."

V spoke very quickly, as if he wanted to ask all the questions to put his mind at ease.

"Where's the Azure Mansion?!"

Lin Yue remained calm. "The ones attacking me are high-level agents from Dangerous Girl... Only they can be used to deal with them. I'm just responsible for providing the body."

Rebecca's head spun around, trying to figure out what they were talking about.

Just then, Rebecca felt a strange sensation on her shoulder.

Ouch...it hurts.

Rebecca felt V's hand on her shoulder tighten unconsciously.

V glanced down, her lips slightly pale, and she seemed to offer an apologetic smile.

She realized that her subconscious actions were bothering others, but V immediately looked away.

The beautiful woman with cold, aloof features in Rebecca's eyes whispered, "Rin...you're too bold. Do you know what your behavior is like?"

Lin Yue admitted, "Yes, making a deal with the devil—"

"And it happened several times."

The calmer the other person's tone, the faster V's heart beat, pounding against him like the deep, bone-deep pain of the gunshot wound in his shoulder.

V gritted his teeth. "Then what will be your price?"

There was silence.

Lin Yue pointed to his head with his dark finger, as casually as if he were talking about what he had for dinner.

"memory."

He looked at Rebecca.

“Take her for example… I’ve forgotten how I met her and her squad in Dogtown. I can’t even remember how I got the information about Dogtown from Slide.”

"Maybe after tonight, I'll forget even more."

He didn't want to tell V that what he hadn't forgotten was those so-called "strategies" from before his reincarnation, which stared down at this world like a high-dimensional observer.

Misty was like a prophet; all her words came true perfectly in Lin Yue's case.

"As long as you remember this moment, that's enough..."

But V doesn't think so.

She looked at Lin Yue with disbelief, "What will you do when you can't even recognize yourself anymore?"

"Ok?"

Rebecca deduced the current situation from the few words she heard.

With a slight tremor in his voice, V seemed to be saying... was he going to become a cyber psychopath?

Lin Yue…

On the dark, gray street, colleagues from two companies stood silently to each other.

Lin Yue didn't know how to explain.

Meanwhile, V on the other side only then realized how far away that guy was...

From beginning to end, V could never fathom the meaning behind Rin's every decision, nor did he understand what Rin was seeking.

If the residents of Night City described them as corporate dogs, then Rin would undoubtedly be the most fitting one.

What Rin is about to do is something that only the gods can know.

V's smile was sarcastic—

In that instant!

The road suddenly lit up with a bright red light!
The matrix's red indicator lights shone, and the roar of the hovercars echoed overhead.

Lin Yue reached out to shield his head from the fierce wind; it seemed that V's trauma team had arrived.

Rebecca felt a gentle push from behind.

The women in the company had never looked so cold.

She left Rebecca with only one sentence: “Tell him…you’ve seen what he looks like. From now on, you either belong to the company or you’re out—and if you still want to be a mercenary, for the company’s benefit, you’ll only appear in the Night City ossuary.”

V had barely finished speaking when the warning sound of the hovercar rang out.

"Attention! We are currently docking!"

Lin Yue slowly stepped back a few steps. The trauma team members who came down from the hovercar raised their guns and jumped off the hovercar, slowly forcing Lin Yue back as he tried to stop.

It must be said that trauma groups also know how to treat people differently; they generally won't take drastic measures to force out corporate employees.

This is because in the past, company employees frequently used the trauma team mechanism to attack each other. Therefore, since those incidents, the trauma team has always investigated the situation and, if company personnel were present, prioritized saving lives.

They weren't even willing to fire a few shots randomly and ask customers for the cost of bullets for the smart guns.

Lin Yue continued to retreat under the threat of the [Classic] smart weapon's gun barrel; it seemed the trauma team was very afraid of this kind of sudden attack from a company employee.

He knew perfectly well that it was V who summoned the hovercar.

at this time.

Lin Yue is now farther away from V than before.

at this time.

Only Rebecca stared blankly at all of this.

"Inspection passed."

The trauma team's scanner obtained V's insurance information, and the muscular man whose face was hidden behind a mask reached out to grab V's arm—

Snapped!
V opened the door to the trauma group member who wanted to help her up.

She glanced deeply at Rebecca beside her, stepped over the stretcher on the ground, and sat down in the trauma team's hovercar seat... Her profile looked somewhat indifferent against the red emergency lights inside the bed-based team cabin.

She never looked at Rin again, nor at the man she had tried to pull back.

Ugh…

Her sighs were perhaps only audible to herself.

call!
The hovercar roared into the air and disappeared into the night of Night City.

……

Lin Yue stared at it for a long time.

Perhaps David felt the same way he does now back then.

Someone was working hard for you, but you let that person down.

It seems that nothing can be as perfect as in fairy tales.

"oi~"

The girl's soft, sweet voice rang out.

Lin Yue slowly lowered his head and saw a girl two heads shorter than him, with bright yellow and pink prosthetic eyes, holding up his gorilla-like prosthetic arm.

"Hello~ Welcome back, you little rascal."

Rebecca looked very happy.

Seeing that Lin Yue didn't react and just stared blankly at him.

So she puffed out her cheeks and looked at Lin Yue and his exquisite suit with suspicion, her eyes, one big and one small.

"You'd better be busy with something really big, or I'm going to shove a gun up your ass!"

For some reason, Lin Yue always felt a little more relaxed whenever he saw Rebecca.

So he bowed slightly.

Arakasa's improved prosthetic arm and Rebecca's hand joined together, just like their first meeting in Dogtown, where he was preoccupied with his own thoughts.

He said, "It is indeed a very important matter. As for me... I'm sorry, a lot of things started because of me, so I can only use this prosthetic body to cover myself up."

Rebecca withdrew her hand and nodded thoughtfully.

She moved nimbly, tugging at Lin Yue's clothes to look him over from left to right, as if checking for any injuries.

Having received a satisfactory answer, she nodded and said:
"Hmm, it seems you're quite formidable now. Even Old Man Sunrise can't handle you."

"I knew you were the strongest mercenary in the squad! Although I told Mann back in Dogtown that you and Rin's movements were so synchronized that they were like one person."

Lin Yue could only manage a stiff smile.

Rebecca lowered her voice.

"Ms. V said... you have some problems right now? How much do you remember... and who is that 'it'...?"

Lin Yue noticed the complex emotions in Rebecca's eyes and realized he was being treated as a cyberpsychotic.

Finding it uncomfortable to lean forward while speaking, he simply squatted down and looked at Rebecca, saying:

"It's not that complicated. It's just that there are some roaming AIs in my head. I can handle it."

A roving AI?

Rebecca didn't understand this. She knew how to assemble guns, how to add various attachments to her beloved weapons, and she could even polish parts herself using Pila's machine tool, but she just didn't understand the intricacies of the online world...

Lin Yue didn't get impatient; instead, he continued to explain earnestly.

Rebecca was stunned.

After he had said everything he needed to say, he asked about the strange lone wolf who had just retreated.

"And what about you, Rebecca... are you sure that's your father?"

Rebecca hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"Hmm... I've only known him for less than two hours, but... he knows a lot about my brother and me when we were little, so it must be him."

"After all, he just tried to snatch me away from Miss V."

Seemingly remembering that V had been injured because of her, she scratched her head and whispered:

Honestly, I'm sorry.

So that's what happened.

Lin Yue felt a little relieved, as long as it wasn't someone who wanted to kill Rebecca.

"fine."

He was unwilling to criticize a girl who seemed to belong to a different city.

"However... Arasaka's intelligence experts judged that your father might be a lone wolf in military technology."

Rebecca waved her hand dismissively. "I don't have a father... that guy called Sunrise Daddy, go to hell!"

Ok.

After Rebecca's further explanation, Lin Yue finally understood everything.

It must be that Rebecca's father, whom she didn't know, had appeared.

The effects of the global upheaval were greater than he had imagined.

That being said:

Lin Yue used to think that companionship was of no use, but now it seems that even a former star lone wolf from the city of Ye Yuan could not solve the problem of the lack of family affection.

If Lin Yue knew all this, he might make the decision to let Rebecca leave tonight.

After all, the sunrise was meant to make her leave this place.

I was too impatient and made a mess of things.

“Actually…” Lin Yue hesitated, but seeing Rebecca’s curious gaze, he finally decided to speak.

“This city is not suitable for you, Rebecca.”

Rebecca was stunned for a moment, then her forehead veins throbbed as she used her gorilla arm to punch Lin Yue repeatedly.

For Lin Yue, whose reaction speed is extremely high, this was basically like slow motion. He shook his head and dodged the punches.

Rebecca yelled, "You really are an infuriating person! You could have told me! With so much happening, just tell me! I won't tell anyone else!"

"Bastard! Unforgivable idiot!"

Rebecca's punches gradually slowed down, and the sound became softer.

She couldn't hit Lin Yue, nor did she dare to utter the term "cyber psychosis."

Mann had said long ago that too many prosthetic bodies could lead to cybernetic psychosis... Judging from Lin Yue's appearance, his prosthetic body is probably quite advanced.

She slumped her hands down in despair.

“I just don’t want you to think about all these things by yourself. We’ve come this far from Dogtown… I hope you remember me—”

"And of course, Mann and the others! They all miss you..."

The stubborn girl would never admit to missing him alone.

Lin Yue explained, "Company matters are troublesome no matter where you go... Since military technology has suffered losses, I can't show my face in Night City. I'm afraid that one day Night City's 'Herbalance' will read the data and allow military technology to intercept the traffic, and the consequences will be very serious."

He spoke while helplessly spreading his hands.

"This is to protect you, and Mann too—"

Before Lin Yue could finish speaking, his prosthetic arm was slapped away by Rebecca's gorilla arm.

This opportunity seems like it could slip away at any moment.

Rebecca didn't want to wait another second.

She had seen V and Lin Yuecheng together more than once. With her keen mind, she could see the struggle and worry in Ms. V's eyes.

In fact, Rebecca had always thought she would respect other people's feelings, but for some reason, she felt dizzy and like she had drunk a lot of alcohol.

I must have had my system tampered with by Old Man Sunrise, that must be it!

After all, as a five-star model citizen of Night City, it would never choose to take such a rash action...

but.

His scent was so familiar.

Rebecca even rubbed her face against it.

"Damn bastard!"

"You just feel like there's nothing we can do to help you!"

Rebecca's voice was muffled.

Lin Yue felt the girl's small, round body against his chest, and her soft breath...

It seems that he, who has lost his humanity, has always held a very high affection for Rebecca.

He didn't know why—

Perhaps... it might be those regretful thoughts from before reincarnation?
Anyway, I'm glad everything's OK.

Rebecca's hug came quickly and went quickly.

She said earnestly, "I've made up for the hugs Mann and the others gave you! Mercenaries from Night City always give each other a big hug after not seeing each other for a while!"

"The rules for the next life."

Lin Yue looked puzzled, but then understood. He didn't intend to say anything to express his feelings, so he didn't expose Rebecca's dwindling stubbornness.

He simply smiled slightly and said, "Really? This is the first time I've heard of such a rule."

Rebecca waved her hand. "There are plenty of things you haven't heard of! How can Arasaka compare to Night City?"

……

Rebecca had a relatively happy childhood.

At that time, Sunrise was considered a prominent figure; his mother, brother, and he lived in a large house in Westbrook.

Little Rebecca loved catching cockroaches in the corridor elevator, but she also loved listening to the fairy tales told by her mother—that gentle woman.

The story goes:
Possessed by a demon, the prince journeys towards the demon king's lair, hoping to reunite with his beloved with a pure soul.

Full of hope, he set off with the princess, but encountered many difficulties and obstacles along the way.

However, the princess silently stayed by the prince's side.

Even at the final hurdle, the princess found herself in grave danger.

Just as the princess was filled with despair and silently praying...

The prince fended off the demon king who descended from the sky and saved the princess.

Just like the man standing in front of me right now.

……
-
The baseball bat dragged across the uneven floor of the cold basement.

It made a clanging sound.

A company employee with puffy eyes looked up at the woman in her black swan-like gown and her perfectly beautiful face.

The glaring incandescent light behind him kept him awake for many hours, but this was just one of the little tricks the animal gang used to torment him.

far away.

Angie paced back and forth behind Emma, ​​arms crossed.

She kept touching her forehead, looking very anxious.

At present, things are extremely bad, and we don't know what's wrong with this crazy woman.

Emma seemed very anxious about Mr. Rin's game.

The company dog ​​spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva to the side, its mouth gaping open, revealing dark red gums with several teeth missing from its scabbed mouth.

"Anqi...you bitch, you've finally changed your tactics?"

"Cough... So now you're asking me to find a sex doll to give me ultimate pleasure?"

Angie really wanted to strangle this stubborn company dog.

At this critical juncture, why provoke this mentally unstable woman?

Angie had told Rin about Emma's situation, but Rin simply let it go.

What the leader of this animal gang didn't know was:
Rin knew Emma's determination better than anyone else.

If she could hear Lin Yue say it himself, then Lin Yue would give An Qi an old saying: "Use people without suspicion, and don't use people you don't trust."

Under Angie's unpredictable gaze.

Emma bent down and pinched the company dog's chin with her icy fingers.

The company dog ​​glanced down and immediately noticed the curves beneath Emma's dress—stimulating his already weary nerves.

A natural aphrodisiac?
This company dog ​​swears that Emma is much prettier than the sex dolls on the billboards.

The company employees were very confident, and Angie was at a loss.

I still need to use myself; that bitch wouldn't dare kill me.

At this critical juncture, his company still had a deal with Kurt Hansen, and now that he's dead... the colonel won't let this woman go.

then.

The company jerk continued his taunts, seemingly courting death: "Why do your hands smell like blood? Did no man take care of you? Let me go, lady, I can serve you."

Emma stared intently at the guy.

for a long time.

Even the office worker started to feel guilty.

She suddenly smiled and said, "Hmm, you guessed right."

"You're being stubborn because you know money can bind the colonel, but I... can also bring him money."

She stood up, leaving behind a trail of elegant perfume.

Emma put her hand on the company dog's shoulder as she walked and said, "I'm here today to tell you some good news. My intelligence network has caught your subordinate."

The office worker was silent for a moment.

But he immediately understood what the other person meant.

Is this an attempt to threaten me?
He chuckled and said, "Offline? So what if you know our business? Do you dare to touch it? You're just hoping I'll peacefully hand over the business to you. Listen... the company is watching my life too. Hansen needs me to run errands."

"You're tying me up here, but I can't hand over the company's business to you. Why don't you just tie up our CEO instead? You two idiots, you're wasting your time, understand?!"

Angie finally spoke up at this moment.

“He’s right, Emma. I told you that tying up this idiot was a mistake—”

"There's a way from above... so what's the rush, Emma?"

No hurries?
Emma's expression instantly turned sour.

She suddenly turned her head and stared at Anqi with a strange look, causing Anqi to immediately choke on her words.

Emma: "Then tell me, why does Mr. Angie want you to stay? You just wait to be fed, what right do you have to stay in Dogtown?"

Angie's expression was stiff.

屮…

This is insane!
Emma then said to the company dog, "The Colonel has already noticed that Hansz, who seems to be preoccupied with something, is in trouble. And you... you're not some company business liaison; Hansen is discussing with you how to replace Hansz—"

Am I right, darling?

This…

The company employee who had been stubbornly arguing for dozens of hours finally fell silent for the first time.

it works.

Emma smiled gently and patted his shoulder lightly, causing the office worker to tremble involuntarily.

"Are you suspecting that I learned this from your downline?"

"No... I just checked one of your company's projects—you've taken a lot of money, and it was only a matter of time before the company found out."

"Actually, you're right... You have no family, no weaknesses, just this one life."

Emma brought her bright red lips close to the company dog's ear.

"It's no different for the company to kill you than for us to kill you. You need to be mentally prepared before you act so recklessly—"

"But now, darling... I think I've discovered something: you talked to the colonel for so long to get a chance to live, so... wouldn't you say that's your weakness?"

Emma leaned closer, gently smoothing the office worker's messy hair with her fingers, and whispered in his ear like a lover:
"Nothing is more painful than the destruction of hope—"

"The tougher you are, the more I like it."

The company dog's face slowly turned red.

He finally lost control of his emotions.

"屮!"

He even started to struggle.

Angie, who was in the distance, was stunned for a moment, then her face instantly lit up with joy.

Then he was even more surprised by Emma.

It seems this woman has been quite busy lately.

Emma smiled as if she had won a victory. She slowly straightened up, and the baseball bat in her hand began to lift off the ground.

She took a step back, and Angie's expression immediately changed—

and many more?

Emma raised the stick high in her hand.

What the hell?!
Angie wanted to stop this woman.

Emma whispered to the company dog:
“But I won’t keep you here… Your head is my ticket; I need to use your face to get into the Sapphire Blue Gate.”

屮!
Emma used all her strength, and the stick made a whooshing sound as it slammed into the side of the company dog's temple amidst his terrified glances!

Bang!
Angie rushed forward to try and stop Emma.

However, Emma mustered all her strength and tried again!

Bloodstains splattered onto Emma's face, and coupled with her crazed gaze, her smile grew increasingly unrestrained.

Angie shoved Emma away, and the stick clattered to the ground.

I could hear Emma's maniacal laughter.

"What are you doing?! If this idiot dies, the company will be in big trouble! You're going to Baoshiqing? Are you crazy?!"

Angie looked at the man's sunken side bone, her breathing quickened, and she knew there was no way to save him.

After a long while, her chest heaving, she looked into Emma's eyes.

Angie squinted, trying to figure out what this woman was going to gamble on.

In her view, as long as the company dog ​​confesses, she can take her time and give the information to Mr. Rin, which would be a great achievement. Why... do it this way?

however.

Emma was also staring intently at Angie.

She parted her red lips slightly: "You know what? I'm increasingly enjoying the thrill of risking my life, it's like..."

Emma didn't mention the suppressed excitement she felt when she saw Rin reaping lives with a knife inside the Azure Building.

She seems to have found her own remedy.

From a purely financial standpoint, Emma doesn't see this move as risky, because she's now confident she can win over Hansen and pave the way for her husband!
In a sense, madness and calmness may not be antonyms.

Emma's laughter was strange. "Angie, what you want is business, status, to live like a human being in Dogtown... I'm different. I want revenge. I want to take everything and then give it all to Rin like a slave."

"Then I begged him to give me something to eat, and begged him to let me live."

"I love the way I humbly beg for help..."

Angie subtly took a step back.

屮…

Angie didn't know if she was scared.

This kind of madman who has mastered power seems too terrifying.

Having witnessed countless deaths and injuries on the streets, the animal gang leader understood for the first time a truth: madmen and normal people cannot communicate...

Emma said, "Now, leave everything to me."

“Once Mr. Rin arrives, the kingdom beneath Dogtown will belong to him, and he will continue to arm wrestle with the Colonel.”

Emma lifted her skirt and pulled the short dagger, filled with memories, from the straps on her thigh.

She once plunged this knife into her own palm to give false testimony for a lover who never existed.

Emma stroked the dagger.

She had a lover she never dared to hope for—

Emma felt only that she was dirty.

She could no longer confirm the memory of that time at the Azure Hotel.

Is Rin's face a figment of her imagination from when she was sick, a bug in the sex doll chip, or... is it real?

I know I have an illness, but I have no cure.

This is the greatest suffering in the world.

Emma's chaotic gaze seemed to calm down a bit.

Angie swallowed hard, watching Emma's movements—

Are you suggesting I do it myself?
Suddenly, the crazy yet beautiful woman looked up abruptly.

The effects of the excessive dose of the drug had not yet worn off.

At that moment, in Emma's eyes, the young man seemed to be standing right next to Angie, watching her.

He nodded in satisfaction.

“Well done, madam.”

Emma plunged her knife into the neck of the already dead company dog ​​and slid it gently.

She was also responding to the other person's greeting.

Emma murmured:

"It's so good to see you again."

……

　[Logical Trap]: A concept in cyberpunk board games, referring to the problem in AI code that is prone to logical conflicts, leading to AI malfunctions.

　　Okay, all the romantic storylines are now complete.

　　The killing will begin tomorrow and will continue for several days.

　　It's the end of the month. If you think the author updates frequently and the quality is good, please give them your support!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)