Cyberpunk: From Dogville to Legend

Chapter 233 Violence for Violence (Part 2)

"Pfft."

Seeing the man get out of the car, Pila seemed to clear her head a bit and threw the half-dead Tanaka Katsuo to the ground; David's expression became even more unpleasant after seeing the man.

David had fantasized countless times about meeting Mr. Rin after receiving an award for excellence at school, or about making remarkable progress in other areas and being noticed by this benefactor…

But given his current disheveled state, he was completely unable to think straight.

However, aside from David and Pila, everyone else could only see that the guy getting off was well-proportioned, wearing a sharp bespoke suit, and his face was blurry, like an electronic component distorted. But when paired with the streamlined sports car behind him, everyone subconsciously felt that this was what a corporate employee should look like—

This atmosphere, cultivated entirely by long-standing internal struggles within the company, has even led some members of the underworld who have committed offenses under the company's nose to consider leaving...

"I…"

David didn't seem willing to sit idly by. This was the second time he had failed to act like a good student in front of the benefactor who had supported his studies. He wanted to explain that he had been troubled by school bullying for a long time and that Mr. Rin had been insulted by Ms. Tanaka Katsuo first.

Lin Yue, his leather shoes clicking on the slightly shiny black floor of the city center, walked step by step toward the blue-haired boy lying on the ground, his hands in his pockets, unsure if he would ever catch his breath.

The trauma team's guns malfunctioned for a moment, and they all felt that their client was in danger. As a medical company in Night City that would take people back and save them for money, they had no choice but to wait for reinforcements at this moment.

They didn't dare to easily stop the hacker. Who knew what kind of puppet it was? If that guy hadn't known that attacking the trauma team members would lead to a lot of problems later on... the moment he made his move, the individual helmets of those trauma team members connected to the audiovisual system would have burned their brain-computer interfaces!

"Ah…"

Katsuo Tanaka, who had been motionless on the floor, suddenly twitched.

Even though he lives in a mansion on Charter Hill in Night City, the wealthy heir of a company still can't avoid inhaling the toxic air polluted by the floating vehicles in Night City, so his lung function and oxygen supply system are excellent.

However, Pira was more precise; he knew how to make this arrogant, outspoken fellow remember this incident.

As Sheng Nan gasped for the polluted air, the various data within her brain-computer interface began to appear normally. However, the first thing that caught her eye through her blurry vision was a pair of leather shoes slowly approaching.

Tanaka recognized the shoes.

They are all like his father, a board member of Arasaka Academy, or a high-ranking executive of Arasaka Corporation.

Sheng Nan swung her legs, trying to climb forward and grab the ankle that was like a lifeline...

Everyone held their breath.

They knew very well that this newcomer could really kill the child at any moment. Even the security guards from Arasaka Academy stopped advancing—because they noticed that the counterintelligence personnel hadn't moved, which meant that this guy, whose face was disfigured by advanced cybernetics, was very likely someone above the ministerial level…

At this moment, the more intelligent Arasaka students began to re-evaluate the boy named David Martinez.

Anyone could see that this company clerk didn't seem to have any intention of causing trouble for David.

No one knows what this mysterious guy is thinking—

David was about to open his mouth when he saw Pila's slight head-shaking expression, so he had no choice but to shut up.

"Katsuo Tanaka, this doesn't seem to be the first time you've done something like this."

The moment the man's voice entered her ears, Katsuo Tanaka pulled her hand back as if she had been electrocuted!
This sound…

He slowly raised his swollen face, which had been punched by David, and looked at the blurry light and shadow with fear and confusion, as if there was a vicious gaze and a cold smile behind him.

Lin Yue was in a bad mood; he knew what Sheng Nan had said.

In his eyes, Gloria was an outstanding person and a strong mother.

Even Arasaka Academy doesn't have any entry requirements for people from Night City. As long as you're good enough, Arasaka Academy's doors will open to you; it's not about money alone...

However, in today's world, education requires a huge investment of resources, which is unavoidable.

He simply couldn't understand where Katsuo's strange and wicked mentality came from. It was understandable if a naive child didn't understand the difference between good and evil, but Katsuo Tanaka, who had received higher education and corporate and family education, and even had interests, repeatedly needed to gain some status from a poor boy.

"You are?!"

You are that person!

Sheng Nan had a very clear memory of her humiliating past: the young man in the black leather jacket under the Arasaka Tower who grabbed her hand and threatened her with a smile.

He finally found out who was funding David.

The security guard from Arasaka Academy had only told him that someone had sponsored David and that he should be lenient. Tanaka Katsuo would never have guessed it was him.

He's just an agent of the Arasaka Tower security department!

My father is a board member of Arakawa Academy!

Katsuo Tanaka suddenly looked up, only to see the man in the exquisite suit take a slight step back and gently twist the Windsor knot of his suit...

“David, you’ve been treated unfairly. Your tolerance is the right thing to do, but you must make the other party pay the price when the opportunity arises.”

"Remember?"

As he spoke, he slightly raised one of his leather shoes, the arc of which was not large, but his suit trousers were full of explosive power.

call!
Everyone heard the sound of leather shoes rubbing against the air. Lin Yue's prosthetic body was ruined, but his legs were still real flesh preserved by the Relic core, capable of performing movements that required extremely high reaction points, which was also a concrete manifestation of his physical strength.

A brief, teeth-grinding thud, followed by Sheng Nan's pitiful, suppressed wail that abruptly ended, and the sound of clothes scraping against the floor…

Katsuo Tanaka bumped into a soldier's calf about four or five meters away, which stopped him from sliding.

That was at the behest of his superior, because he didn't want the son of the Arasaka Academy board of directors to lose face completely, so this was the only way to salvage some dignity.

Lin Yue, having just delivered a powerful kick, placed his foot slightly on the ground and turned to look at David.

David's pent-up resentment had finally burst forth...

He was poor. In order to keep up with the schedule, he needed to use the equipment of some unscrupulous prosthetic doctors in Night City. He also needed to sell his sunglasses to make a living. He knew his mother's hard work and was willing to drop out of school to help her.

If it weren't for Rin, he believed he would leave Arasaka Academy one day, and even fantasized about teaching Tanaka Katsuo a lesson with his advanced cybernetic body before leaving Arasaka Tower.

But his mother was still alive, and David didn't want to disappoint her, because he was afraid of his mother's tears.

“The trauma team can go and see him. He’s prone to catching a cold lying on the ground. Tell Tanaka to keep a close eye on his son, or he’ll look bad when others discipline him.”

In short, there are two people listening.

V thought Lin Yue would take other measures, but he didn't expect him to choose the most direct approach: violence to combat violence.

So that child…

V wanted to figure out what was it about the South American mixed-race man named David Martinez that attracted Rin.
The trauma team stubbornly continued with their tactics, the man at the front holding a gun, while two soldiers behind him quickly verified his identity. From the moment they were lifted up to the moment the airship took off, it took less than a minute.

They looked as if they were afraid that Katsuo Tanaka would die here today.

Lin Yue didn't say anything more, but stood there, seemingly waiting.

At this moment, V nodded, and everyone at Arakawa Academy realized what was happening and began to rearrange their ranks.

Pila silently walked back to her original spot, while Rebecca occasionally turned her head to look at the guy, pursed her lips, and continued to wait patiently with her twin ponytails bouncing.

Strange, both my brother and that guy look really cool today.

Is it an illusion?

David seemed to be sleepwalking as the soldiers gently pushed him back into the ranks. The young men were all curiously speculating about his relationship with the person from that company who acted so recklessly.

Katsuo Tanaka is the son of a high-ranking official in the academy. The fact that his father and the academy principal had not yet appeared at this time already sent a signal.

That is complete concession.

Only David knew that his academic career would be completely free from those shadows, as if someone was silently supporting him from behind. If Gloria's sacrifices for him were something that made him feel guilty and heartbroken, then he gave himself a very strong sense of confidence.

"Lord Rin."

Suzuki suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

It turns out that when Lin Yue arrived, the car was in full autonomous driving mode. Suzuki had come ahead of time to help V screen for threat targets in the crowd.

Suzuki has extensive anti-King Kong experience, after all, he is a security supervisor-level Arasaka-trained soldier and an outstanding trainee from Hokkaido.

At this moment, V dismissed the people behind him, and the two stood side by side watching the situation at the entrance of Arasaka Academy.

Continuing education is available in every city, and Arasaka Academy is no exception. In fact, Arasaka's continuing education is not a blank slate; its value can even be used as proof of one's ability to get by in the lower rungs of Night City.

Technical experts, weapons experts, and network experts are all highly sought-after in the Night City mercenary group.

Pila's technology can only be fully tested here. Of course, geniuses exist in this world, and Lin Yue is naturally willing to let Pila participate in the design and development of the prosthetic body.

He just needs a benchmark, and of course, an opportunity. This means that Pila will have access to more systematic technical expertise, which will help him truly realize his life's value.

As for Rebecca.

Lin Yue had always been concerned about Rebecca's title of "Weapon Expert" mentioned earlier on the panel. Although Iron Gallbladder had flaws such as bold modifications and poor controllability, it was characterized by its poisonous nature, powerful force, and high reliability.

Perhaps these two siblings are suited for this.

"You seem to like helping people all the way through?"

V asked softly.

She discovered that everyone around this guy, just like him, was improving, which was a rare moment of clarity in Night City, a place accustomed to decadence and hedonism.

"If we stop moving forward, our dreams will lose their meaning."

He said so.

In a daze, she seemed to see the Ghost Hound soldiers, scarred and battered, yet still daring to threaten the Dogtown middlemen in the Dogtown wasteland.

"You're the same V, I've said before that you're born for this."

Lin Yue lit a cigarette, watching Pila and Rebecca walk into Arasaka Academy.

"Suzuki is pretty good, isn't it?"

Lin Yue glanced at the samurai who stood ramrod straight behind him the whole time. He rarely felt at ease with anyone, but Suzuki was undoubtedly that one. He was reliable and loyal.

V rolled her eyes at Lin Yue. "Taking everyone who can do the work away from you is always your style. If he were here, things related to the security of Arasaka Tower would be handled much better."

"Fine, I know you don't want to release them."

Suzuki, who was standing behind him, was so nervous that his hands were clenched. No matter what, he wanted to follow Rin. V had seen through him long ago, but he was just teasing him and giving Suzuki a reason to reward him for this.

“There are serious problems at the border recently, and Arasaka needs to take action there.”

border?

Upon hearing those two words, Lin Yue had an instinctive reaction, as if he had been electrocuted.

Fortunately, Lin Yue, who knew what might happen in the future, did not mention the so-called "awakened memories" in front of V this time, which was a claim that would not be believed in the first place. Instead, he used a different approach.

"V, under what circumstances would a European order fall into the Night City branch's lap?"

Lin Yue was, of course, asking about the Frankfurt incident.

The specific incident involved Arasaka secretly building a mass accelerator on the moon, which was exposed. The European Space Agency immediately decided to hold a joint meeting to strip Arasaka of his development rights in the Unkai Project.

Even space will no longer be allowed for Arasaka's involvement.

But he still couldn't understand why such a big task wasn't handled by headquarters or the more powerful European branch.

However, V only needed one sentence to enlighten Lin Yue.

"Night City, a no-man's-land, a free place, is where the Arasaka branch, though smaller than the headquarters and the European branch, is at least the regional headquarters."

"If a deal involves the European branch or the headquarters, it will naturally fall to us."

V knew Lin Yue wouldn't ask questions without a reason.

"What do you want to say?"

Lin Yue's mind simply raced for a moment. "It's nothing, I just wanted to give you a heads-up. I also believe you've read the detailed guidelines for the Cloud Sea Project—there's only one way to cleanse you and Jenkins, so you can take the blame if you can't."

V's brows furrowed slightly.

"Arata?"

Lin Yue nodded slightly. "Xintian must know about the European Skylight hacking incident—but I still don't understand why he hasn't taken action. But the more patient the enemy is, the more careful we should be. You never know when they might do something big."

V shrugs.

"I don't need to go to the border incident in person. I will send a reliable subordinate. Jack can also go."

"As for the moon... it seems I can't take the NCX space shuttle to the moon to investigate risks and related contingency plans yet; I can only keep an eye on ports that might leak secrets."

"For example... Night City? The European Community? Kilimanjaro? Tokyo? These places offer visa-free entry for Arasaka employees..."

Lin Yue shook his head slightly.

"Then let me refine it for you, Frankfurt."

V didn't understand the place name Lin Yue mentioned.

"You might not know this, but even after [International Electric] dissolved, it still exists, only now it's become an official German government company. This is one of the few cities in the world where a company's influence has plummeted to its lowest point, and the censorship of Arasaka is extremely strict—"

But as they talked, V's expression changed.

Looking at Rin again, his expression had become serious.

"You mean, there's no Arasaka there?"

Lin Yue let out a long sigh of relief and didn't continue speaking.

He has endless tasks, and since V wants to stay at the company, she will naturally take it seriously.

Under Lin Yue's shocked gaze, V pulled a cigarette from the side pocket of his suit. "You know what? I like you the way you are now. I like guys who respect me and think I'm strong."

……

……

　[The Frankfurt Incident]: In the original 2077 storyline, this was a crucial turning point in the elimination of Company V, and Jenkins, the boss, paid a heavy price in this deal that was almost a scapegoat.

　　[Mass Accelerator]: In the 2077 setting, its technology is somewhat skewed. Strictly speaking, the Mass Accelerator itself is not a weapon; it was originally a space transport device developed using the principle of electromagnetic projection. Simply put, it's a giant multi-stage railgun that uses Ampere force to accelerate spacecraft step by step to the first cosmic velocity, before being retrieved by personnel in satellite orbit (in principle, it's the infamous "Electromagnetic Railgun" or "Gauss Cannon"). Deploying such a device on the moon can be seen as a form of nuclear deterrence.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)