Cyberpunk: From Dogville to Legend

Chapter 212 Company Commission: The Scales of Justice (Part 4) [The author has been resurrected]

The car was started by Suzuki and driven towards the subsidiary campus in Watson District.

The others seemed somewhat lost and disoriented after boarding the hovercar.

“I heard those guys from the Next Life bragging that Westbrook’s top suites are only available to the elite of the Next Life, and that Delaman has a hovercar travel protocol that only big shots like us get—so we’ve finally made it big?”

Rebecca always puts satisfaction first in her little mind.

Such people will never have regrets in Night City.

Lin Yue smiled and said, "City King... Rebecca, you can't possibly only remember the taste of Coke, can you?"

Rebecca pouted, giving me an "of course I know" look, and excitedly turned her attention to the scenery outside the window. Even though this was only her second time riding in this luxurious vehicle, she still really enjoyed the feeling of soaring smoothly through the sky.

"Destination: East side of the Whole Foods factory."

Upon hearing Lin Yue's instructions, the AI ​​confirmed them and then placed a glass of low-alcohol, very palatable liquor next to Pila, whose stomach was churning.

Only Qi Wei sat opposite Lin Yue, her eyelids slightly lowered as she looked at this guy she could never see through.

As a hacker, she knew all too well the deadly crises that existed in the online world at that time... In those situations, she risked her life trying to make connections with the company, and Lin Yue, who was at the center of the vortex, was now sitting in front of her unharmed.

Incredible.

However, she never asks questions she shouldn't. For example, it's hard to say whether Rin has forgiven her for trying to spy on him with Lucy.

"Thank you so much."

Lin Yue nodded slightly, "Although Sasha's idea was too impulsive, you still helped me delay for a long time until Arasaka came over—did V give you payment?"

Qi Wei hummed in response, her distinctive electronic voice replying calmly, "It's only right to do things for money; you're just very lucky."

Lin Yue knew that if someone was risking their life, there had to be some kind of benefit involved…

He didn't hide anything, lit a cigarette, took out the documents Suzuki had prepared in advance from beside his chair, glanced at them briefly, and handed them to Qiwei.

Seeing that Qiwei seemed confused, he raised his hand and said, "Your criminal record is there: assaulting a company representative, stealing confidential company documents, and attempting to defraud banks by creating false transaction documents. Many companies outside Night City are looking for trouble with you—"

"But not tonight."

Qiwei stared at the documents in disbelief.

Every word the young man across from her rang in her ears: “Company employees have the authority to evade NCPD database scans. Everything you do will be considered an action initiated by the company. Once the subnet of the Watson District subsidiary is established, your identity information will be entered into the company’s employee list… I hope this is what you want, Ms. Qiwei.”

Pila and her brother may seem carefree, but they are actually very emotionally intelligent. When they saw Qiwei's hands start to tremble, they all seemed to have temporarily lost their hearing.

Lin Yue wanted to see what expression the woman with her head down had, but after thinking it over, he gave up the idea and silently lit a cigarette.

a long time.

"This is the most satisfying request I've ever received. Thank you, Mr. Rin..."

Lin Yue shook his head. "Perhaps in the company's eyes, you are disposable pawns, or maybe you are just rags to wipe up someone's feet—in any case, I don't like owing people anything."

"Hmm... Of course, there's another gift too."

As he spoke, his eyes flashed with a scarlet light, and the words "Uploading" appeared in Qi Wei's prosthetic eye. At the same time, in the NCPD resident database, Qi Wei's data began to be erased and re-encrypted. Anyone in Night City who scanned her again would only get a name and the identity of a company employee.

Lin Yue didn't want to reveal that he knew a lot about Qi Wei's background. "The company investigated you, and I'm very sorry about your past... I hope your new identity will give you more freedom in Night City, Qi Wei."

Qiwei's emotions were always stable, much like her ectomorphic physique, which was quite slender. But when she received this answer, she finally released all the unbearable thoughts from her mind.

The slovenly man's despicable face, the hand that tore his chin apart—everything seemed to begin to vanish like smoke.

"So you're still going to call me...?"

Qiwei raised her head, her eyes, which seemed more vibrant than usual, fixed on the man through her tears. "Qiwei, no one will know my old name. Those people all died at my hands. It's just... I didn't expect the company to investigate so thoroughly."

It wasn't that the company investigated thoroughly; it was simply that Lin Yue knew how to address the root cause.

[Cybersecurity expert, intelligence analyst]

This is the new position Qiwei will be taking on at the subsidiary, but Lin Yue has gained a new understanding of Qiwei's cautiousness.

It's worth noting that the team is quite famous and wealthy in the afterlife. Rebecca wears limited-edition shoes and spends a lot of money every day in the afterlife. She even got herself a leg prosthetic. On the other hand, Qiwei's modifications seem unchanged. She still has some kind of discontinued network access pod, and there are traces of her own modifications.

Perhaps it's because I mostly interact with people like V who aren't afraid of cyberbullying at all.

This made him forget that prosthetics seem like Pandora's box to ordinary people, and no one knows when cyberpsychosis will come knocking... However, his appearance seems to have subtly and completely changed the fate of many people.

I am like a catalyst, amplifying the microcosm of ordinary people struggling in this city, bringing their abilities to a bigger stage, providing them with stronger support, and allowing them to withdraw unscathed, thus marking a new beginning and a new life.

Just as Lin Yue was sighing, he noticed something approaching from the side.

"I want to be a company dog! Uh, no, I want to be a company employee, and you pay me a salary!"

Rebecca sat up straight, like a big creditor, and plopped down next to Lin Yue.

At this point, Lin Yue really wanted to tease the guy, "Cyberpunks all say you can't deal with companies. I remember you were so angry at companies at first—why are you so eager to come to the company now?"

"Or rather... why do you hate the company?"

Rebecca slowly shrank back. She couldn't possibly understand the grand principles of companies treating people like dirt, but she knew that the word "company" itself represented danger... In fact, if she wanted to join the company, she would run away faster than a rabbit if someone else were in charge.

But even though it was a joke, Lin Yue's intuition told her that something was wrong with the girl.

Rebecca, her face buried under the stand-up collar of her jacket, stared blankly at the floor of the hovercar. The contents of the chip that the "fake" Sunrise Dad had handed her kept replaying in her mind. She muttered to herself, "I hate the company, but... I don't hate you."

Lin Yue was somewhat taken aback. He glanced at Pila and then explained what had happened.

"Back in the underground facility in Dogtown, we... saw that guy who called himself our dad again."

Pila scratched his head, finding the whole thing too fantastical. These were clearly living, breathing people, yet they were like copied folders, running around everywhere…

Lin Yue was also a little confused. "Huh?"

After Sunrise's father handed over the military technology, he wasn't silenced? He's even still working for the company in Dogtown… This really baffled Lin Yue. But then Pila stared intently at him as she spoke her next sentence, sending a chill down his spine.

"Not the one from Arasaka... uh, it's hard to explain—"

Qiwei interrupted at this moment, saying, "It's a clone."

clone?!
Lin Yue felt as if he had been electrocuted. Qi Wei's expression was very firm. She continued, "I remember this is a technology that is explicitly prohibited internationally. It seems that someone caused quite a stir before mass-producing it."

After a slight frown and some thought, the answer to some of the illogical things in Dogtown became clear.

No wonder Morgan Blackhand in the underground facility had a strange feeling when killing Hanz. In short, the guy who could go toe-to-toe with Hammer was not a strong enemy who could kill him. Even with the Black Wall's support, would the old god of death with such a high success rate be so hasty?
The answer is obviously no, and the person behind this is very young. Although current technology can freeze time, the signs of aging are sometimes very obvious on the face... and their demeanor doesn't match either.

At this moment, Rebecca handed him a chip. Lin Yue felt that the answer might be here, so he separated the chip and read it.

The contents are not complicated; it's an offline digital money account, along with a bunch of things like first-person diary monologues and videos recorded with a prosthetic eye.

After seeing the chip, Lin Yue, even though he was just a corporate employee, felt that this kind of unethical behavior was no different from Sanlang's dream of resurrection... Everything made sense now; it seemed that biotechnology and military technology were being used extensively behind the scenes.

Lin Yue stroked his chin and held up the chip under everyone's gaze.

"Besides you few, has anyone else seen this thing?"

Although the words weren't harsh, everyone shook their heads seriously. They all knew this was no joke; if military technology and biotechnology found out about it, the consequences would be dire.

Lin Yue downloaded the data to his brain-computer interface database, and his strong, gorilla-like arms crushed the chip into dust.

At this critical juncture, Lin Yue still respected the opinions of Rebecca and Pila.

Lin Yue: "Check out the current laws, regulations, conventions... anything will do."

AI: "Currently, international law strictly opposes this technology. Since the beginning of the 21st century, there have been no related technology reports globally. The most recent information about this technology will be presented at the International Conference on Science Ethics in Birmingham, Europe, in 2037."

"Representatives from 97 countries and 50 business representatives issued a joint statement saying that once this technology is used, it will face unanimous condemnation from all global stakeholders, and any military action launched by any country, region, or company against a entity using this technology will be considered a legitimate act."

As the AI's voice faded, Rebecca, knowing this was a bad thing and feeling uneasy, remained silent.

Pila chuckled and looked at Lin Yue's questioning gaze, saying, "To be honest, I can hardly remember what kind of personality my bastard father had, but there's a saying in Night City: once someone is dead, don't disturb their peace... But I didn't expect the company to go to this extent."

"Does this mean the world is going to be messed up by companies from now on? That statement... is pure nonsense!"

"In my opinion, even the safety of the spirit couldn't bring down biotechnology. It's impossible for ordinary people to make these guys pay the price... Even you have suffered a lot of setbacks. I can see the situation clearly... At least we have a chance to survive if we follow someone reliable like you. As for if you really want to sell us out one day, then we'll accept it."

So these guys are planning to let bygones be bygones?
But Lin Yue had no intention of letting this go. At the very least, Saburo couldn't find out about this. Who knew what new absurd things that old guy would do in order to keep Arakasa prosperous under his control!

As for this thing, it will definitely make biotechnology pay a heavy price in the future—

But not now. In my current position, my abilities are limited, and I have virtually no influence over the company's decisions.

After all, in Lin Yue's eyes, biotechnology and military technology were mortal enemies...

Rebecca sighed. "I just wanted to know if it could really be true, because... he saved my life."

In the girl's mind, although these so-called fakes were all serving the military science, they were indeed the ones who saved her in the Rebirth Toilet and the Little Big Dipper facility in Dog Town—she, who was kind-hearted to begin with, cared a lot about this feeling of indebtedness.

Lin Yue rubbed the girl's head, and just then, the hovercar landed.

The moment the car door opened, Rebecca's expression changed instantly, and she skipped out of the car. Pila also jumped out of the hovercar with her hands in her pockets. It seems that the two siblings have extremely similar ways of dealing with things they can't understand.

Lin Yue withdrew his hand from mid-air and shook his head helplessly.

As he stood up to get out of the car, Qi Wei called out to him, "Mr. Lin!"

Lin Yue stood up, his body slightly hunched, and had no choice but to sit back down in his seat…

Qi Wei hesitated, her expression unnatural, and a sentence floated out from under her mask.

Where is Lucy?

If betrayal didn't incur a moral debt, Qiwei wouldn't have kept saying things like "don't trust anyone." On the contrary, the team's crisis was obvious in that situation, and Qiwei did what she had to do. It's just that some things in that fate's path can't be blamed on anyone else.

No one is immune to taking responsibility for their own future and life.

She was afraid that the young man would avoid the topic or coldly answer with a series of questions like "he was executed."

Lin Yue stared intently at Qi Wei. "Trust isn't difficult, Qi Wei... Maybe you can live safely in Night City if you don't trust others, but at least here, you have to trust us."

Qi Wei's expression shifted, unsure how to respond to Lin Yue's words.

Lin Yue looked at the industrial park, which lay sprawled like a giant beast in the night.

“She’s still here, and we haven’t handed her over to the Polish branch. V’s investigation of her is over, and they’ve reportedly extracted a lot of valuable data… As for how to deal with her, I think we should wait until this period is over before considering her case.”

After saying that, Lin Yue got off the hovercar.

Qiwei subconsciously reached out her hand, her pupils trembling, before dejectedly lowering it again.

"Can we please let her live...?"

Lin Yue, who had stepped out of the car, seemed not to have heard these words. He simply turned his back to Qi Wei, raised his hand and waved it behind him, and walked into the industrial park in front of him.

……

……

　My cold is getting better, thankfully I didn't stop updating.

　　Today's recommendation means that a large number of new readers will soon come in. Some may find it to their liking and give it a thumbs up, while others may find it terrible and start criticizing it, but for me, it's a good thing.

　　So, how about an extra chapter today? Eight thousand words. I hope you all enjoy it.

　　The book club group is below the description, come join us for fencing!!!

(End of this chapter)