Cyberpunk: From Dogville to Legend

Chapter 252 Prologue [5.6K]

[System startup...]

[Self-check...//Success]

[Neural adaptation...//Successful]

Data corruption detected

Firmware Information

Blackwall Framework (Prosthetic Architecture)...//Unknown Firmware...//Please try again

[Arm]: [BlackwallSTRONGGER, neural connection error, neuron response error // Please check software version, administrator]

[Frontal Cortex]: Arasaka Type I External Plate (·Purple; an implant that enhances the brain's ability to store and process information, increasing the network access unit's RAM by 3) //Read error…

Carmillo RAM Manager (Purple; immediately releases 20% of RAM when your network access bay RAM reaches 2)

[Face]: The Oracle of the Crossroads (Orange)
Militech (Military Technology) FACE (Behavioral Feature Faceboard)...//View normal, update completed//Certificate error...Please contact administrator

Operating System: Wild Moon (Orange; Unknown Firmware - Upgradeable)
[Prosthetic Hand] Smart Connection - Purple (Error)
[Skeleton] Reconstructing Skeleton - Orange
[Epidermal System] Pain Replacement - Purple (Incorrect)
[Circulatory System] Blood Circulation Pump - Blue (Error)
……

[Battle System Inspection...//Error]

【warning】

The trauma team program has been locked. If it was operated by the client, please cancel it as soon as possible to avoid harm to your right to life and health. According to clauses 18 and 121 of the agreement, our company will refuse to provide package services.

"Ah...やっぱりだめだ(Sure enough, it still doesn't work)..."

Lin Yue's eyes were like those of a dead fish, staring silently at the ceiling.

Someone next to me is muttering to themselves.

"Strange, your nerves seem to be in better shape than before... Is it just my imagination?"

Lin Yue's pupils twitched downwards. "What do you mean?"

The scientists from this state slid their feet along the ground and said matter-of-factly, "Neurons are the most precious things. How should I put it? When we encounter a difficult topic or project, we say, 'Oh, this is really a headache.' But in reality, dead cells will never come back."

"What exactly is repairing your nerves?"

Lin Yue sensed something was amiss. "Hey, doctor, please focus on your job—I'm not a guinea pig."

The scientists in the state let out brief sighs of disappointment.

"Tch, I know the most urgent thing is to restore your prosthetic body. We've roughly figured out the direction for some of the easier-to-replace prosthetic bodies. If we include headquarters, we can restore part of your fully erect prosthetic body within a week—"

"But I have to say... why did you use such an exquisite work of art to shield yourself from a knife?"

Lin Yue was somewhat taken aback.

Of course, he wasn't bothered by the strange scientist calling him a kid; rather, he had used his gorilla arm to block many knives during the bloody battle with the Tiger Claw Gang. Although the prosthetic arm's hollow structure was strong enough, it still had many scratches on it.

"Of course, it's to avoid harm."

Lin Yue had always felt that this guy had a strange obsession with cybernetic bodies.

"To desecrate such a fine work of art just because you're afraid of pain... is such a waste."

Lin Yue got goosebumps from this guy's antics and was about to urge him on when the scientist reached out and unplugged the diagnostic cable—

"Although I don't know why your nerves are still recovering, the data errors in the built-in system are gradually decreasing. It's not just your body, but even the software can be modified. Could it be that there's some kind of moving AI inside you helping you fix things?"

Lin Yue's pupils widened suddenly, but fortunately, the strange old Japanese man had no intention of continuing the topic.

Although it's still unknown what Ultraman and the Black Wall want to do, it's certain that Ultraman left a backdoor for communication within him, and the Black Wall's AI has indeed merged into him...

"Lord Rin."

Suzuki walked in at this moment, reached out to help Lin Yue up, and reported in a serious manner: "I used someone from Watson District to go to the NCPD director's office and give him a hard time. That damned guy is still full of empty talk and trying to confuse the issue!"

Isn't Jerry just that kind of person?

Lin Yue shook his head.

As long as Jerry doesn't do anything reckless at this critical juncture, and the legal battle for company control ends the day after tomorrow...

"Thanks for your hard work."

Lin Yue patted Suzuki's outstretched arm, jumped off the operating chair, and stretched his limbs.

Suzuki hesitated, then said, "There's one more thing, Ms. V..."

Lin Yue's forehead instantly broke out in a cold sweat.

Now that V has arrived, he probably knows about what happened to him in Westbrook. However, V can always understand Lin Yue's motives, but he's never shy about seeking revenge.

Thinking about what happened last time, Lin Yue felt a toothache.

After hesitating for a long time, and with the old man holding the latest data urging Lin Yue and his companion several times, he finally walked out of the automatic door reluctantly.

Wow!
Lin Yue's quick reflexes instantly detected a breeze blowing against his side. He instinctively turned his head and grabbed the wrist of the person who was swinging at him.

"V?!"

A delicate wrist accompanied by a fresh scent. Lin Yue stared at the woman so close to him, his expression one of astonishment.

V's wrist, which was being held by Lin Yue, was suddenly twisted into a fist, and Lin Yue immediately shrank his neck and dodged backward!
Seeing that something was wrong, Suzuki Takeyoshi behind him quickly retreated.

"That's terrifying..."

Lin Yue raised his elbow because he had just caught a glimpse of V's leg, which was wearing the company's patent leather high heels, as if it was about to lift up. His long-standing combat experience made him feel that the other party might be about to give him a high roundhouse kick!
however.

The woman opposite him was simply rubbing her wrist, with one leg slightly placed to the side, a posture that Arakawa was taking at ease during training.

"Looks like it's cured? Otherwise, it wouldn't be in such a hurry to die."

V stared quietly at the guy in front of him, his words utterly blunt.

"Suzuki Takeyoshi, I remember you said before that there was something I could send someone here to do, right?"

Suzuki straightened up slightly, as if meeting a superior, and said, "Yes, but this is an operation personally authorized by Lady Rin!"

Lin Yue's face darkened as he turned away from Suzuki...

Damn it!
Suzuki, that bastard!

V shook his head. "Nitta Heya has authorized many actions within the company. Your focus now is on gaining control of this company—"

Lin Yue said helplessly, "Suzuki is exaggerating. It was just a spur-of-the-moment decision. He couldn't stand that the Tiger Claw Gang had killed a child."

V stared at Lin Yue's face for a long time with an inscrutable expression. This made Lin Yue feel that V was different from the workaholic in his mind who was vomiting in the toilet due to stress, or the guy who was taking dangerous risks. Now V was very much like the old Jenkins.

No wonder you can tell a lot from a person's behavior; this tone of voice and way of expressing attitude is no longer what Agent V used to be.

"I thought you understood the company rules."

Hearing what the other party said, Lin Yue laughed and said, "It's a good thing that the Tiger Claw Gang no longer has anyone working for Xintian. They had to do it sooner or later anyway."

V nodded.

"Thank you."

Lin Yue shrugged, and Suzuki behind him wondered why his boss's smile seemed slightly obsequious.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that V was not going to pursue the matter further.

After Suzuki left, V said, "The head of the public relations department has made preparations as requested by Lai Xuan, and we can meet at the Konbi Building."

Cyan?
Lin Yue's expression was strange.

Has the Kam Pak Building reopened so quickly?
"now?"

V shook his head.

"Just letting you know in advance, I was passing by to check on your... prosthetic body, after all, this thing of yours is quite valuable."

Drop by?

If Lin Yue hadn't worked at Arasaka Tower, where there was always endless work, he wouldn't know how much work V had to handle every day, given the pressure from two departments.

"The prosthetics are alright. After the company's trial, the state will replace some of the prosthetics... Of course, it won't worsen the prosthetics."

V continued, "Your team did a good job. The situation with Haywood and Santo Domingo is quite serious. You don't need to worry about the prosecutor anymore; I'll send someone to handle her. We have the vote advantage—by the way, just so you know, the public relations department is responsible to headquarters, so you'll be dealing with Lai Xuan's people."

The conversation started.

With the cold sweat finally stopping on his forehead, Lin Yue took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and nodded, "Thank you."

V beside him shifted his feet slightly, and Lin Yue looked up. "Are you leaving?"

It turned out that V had only moved a little closer and was looking intently at his face…

What are you doing?
Lin Yue was stunned for a moment.

Because of company requirements, employees must present themselves in a dignified and proper manner. V often wears light makeup, so the closer you get to her, the more noticeable the subtle fragrance of those high-end cosmetics becomes. It seems that V only uses things with a faint fragrance; Lin Yue has never smelled overly strong perfumes or other scents on her.

A perfect face so close to my eyes.

As if examining an inanimate object, Lin Yue, with a cigarette between his fingers, leaned back slightly.

In that instant, Lin Yue thought of many things.

Not just the enchanting scene in the early hours of the previous days, but also various things from the past—

What is this woman up to now?
Almost in unison—

"The prosthetic suture needle is crooked."

"You smoked?"

The two of them stood there, stunned.

Lin Yue felt a slight stinging sensation from the prosthetic skin on his face. V adjusted the needle with his hand, but Lin Yue's question still made V look a little uneasy.

Although he was a smoker, Lin Yue could still smell a faint scent, after all, it was a cigarette brand different from his own.

Lin Yue reached out his hand. "Give it to me."

V was a little annoyed. How could this have been discovered? Didn't Jack say that smokers can't smell smoke?
"Give it to me..."

Someone urged.

She took something out of her pocket, and Lin Yue snatched it away without any hesitation. V felt that this guy's expression was a bit fierce, and her face stiffened for a moment.

"Isn't smoking supposed to be pretentious and smell bad? What do you smoke?" V waved his hand, as if to say, "Whatever."

Lin Yue noticed that V was quiet today and seemed a bit tired. For a moment, he felt that he had gone too far by depriving adults of their leisure activities—wait, why should he care whether others smoke or not? Wasn't he a heavy smoker himself?

Lin Yue was caught in a dilemma: whether to keep the cigarette in his hand or not. In the end, he could only helplessly hold it in his hand.

"I remember that ministers and above can apply for a day off, even if it's just half a day, so they can get a good night's sleep."

Lin Yue gave a word of advice.

V, who had been silent for almost a minute, nodded. "They're all orders that have been dumped on us; there's no escaping them—"

Lin Yue was also somewhat helpless. Whether the company took a break or not was not up to him. Every day, all sorts of emergencies would happen, leaving him with endless messes to clean up and tasks to complete.

"I'm hungry."

V glanced at Lin Yue, who was dressed neatly, and rubbed his temples as if trying to relieve fatigue.

Lin Yue wasn't bothered by V's abrupt topic changes. Night City didn't have many high-end items, but he could still satisfy V's cravings.

Lin Yue glanced at the time and nodded, "Let's go, the airship will get us to the company square in about five minutes."

V stood still.

Lin Yue raised his eyebrows when he noticed that the strange guy was still standing there and looked at him questioningly.

"Ok?"

V pointed with her fair chin towards the depths of the corridor and asked, "Isn't this a good place?"

Lin Yue, somewhat stunned, thought for a while before realizing what V meant; she probably wanted him to cook for her…

Lin Yue's expression gradually became somewhat awkward.

Since the team is going to have a celebration in the next life tonight, I have to go too. No matter what, I can't let everyone risk their lives and not see my own people, right?

But at this critical juncture...

"There might not be enough time to prepare everything thoroughly."

V immediately started walking outside, saying, "Let's do it next time, I have something to do."

Something?

Before Lin Yue could stop her, V's figure had already disappeared behind the automatic doors of the corridor and staircase.

Feeling that the woman was becoming increasingly strange, Lin Yue could only walk towards the elevator and press the up button. The hovercar could then dock at a building near Night City.

"Next time, you can let me know in advance so I can prepare."

After thinking for a long time, Lin Yue finally sent V a text message.

His intuition told him that V seemed to be sulking, probably troubled by company matters. After all, there was some information he couldn't access, especially since it was the counterintelligence department, full of the company's petty squabbles and dirty tricks, which was exhausting just to look at.

Composing himself, Lin Yue sat in the red leather seat of the hovercar, and the AI ​​intelligent voice asked, "Please state your destination."

Lin Yue: "In the next life."

It is said that Delaman Taxi's floating car customization service is the most user-friendly travel service in the entire Night City, but Lin Yue has never been exposed to it and naturally does not know this. However, the usually rigid Arasaka car AI actually took the initiative to ask for the first time.

"Your heart rate is slightly faster but steady, and your facial expression is close to pleasant. If it is an anniversary of something important for you, I can make a note of it. The Holy Sword of Rayfield will pave the way for your future."

Ah... so it's a personalized customization of the Holy Sword.

Lin Yue didn't want to answer the rigid AI, but since he was in a good mood, he replied, "It's just that a good show is about to begin, no need to record it."

The hovercar slowly lifted off the ground.

"Your destination, Lai Sheng, has been confirmed. Please rest for a while."

Lin Yue watched the city recede into the distance, his heart pounding powerfully.

I glanced at the time, then looked at the city, which was as bustling as ever, yet its corners were shrouded in darkness—it seemed as if nothing had changed, but everything had changed. Would things still develop as expected?
Lin Yue only knew that he had to do his job well.

……

……

Twelve hours later.

Location: Company Plaza.

Inside a moving car, Lin Yue felt the burning sensation on his face subside considerably. He had just finished a victory celebration with his team and then met with the public relations department at the Ganbi Building to discuss the details of the matter. Before he knew it, it was already midnight…

He reached out and unbuttoned his casual shirt to cool down, and with the biochemical controller neutralizing the alcohol, he was almost fully sober.

"I'm so sorry, Rin-sama, there's been a problem. Please make do with a seat."

Suzuki turned his head away, looking a little embarrassed.

Lin Yue looked at the guy and suddenly asked with a smile, "Feeling guilty? I saw you were pretty quick to slip away at the logistics company."

Suzuki could only chuckle awkwardly and scratch his head.

However, this relaxed expression did not last long, and Suzuki gradually put away his expression.

Lin Yue looked out the window and asked, "Have you made arrangements for your family, Yuko and the others? What about the others?"

Suzuki nodded. "Don't worry, just like we said by the river, the interior has been thoroughly cleaned up, and now everyone except those who are going to participate in the operation has been forcibly quarantined, and the same applies to people from the same state."

"The counterintelligence agents on the prosecutor's side have already passed on the information..."

Suddenly he said in a deep voice, "Lord Rin, they're making quite a bit of noise over there. It seems they're still quite concerned!"

Lin Yue raised an eyebrow. "There's a type of lie in this world that I absolutely don't believe. Do you know what it is?"

Suzuki gently shook his head.

"That is, a father abandoning his son."

Lin Yue slowly said, "Sanlang—"

Suzuki reminded him, "Lord Arasaka's name... is yours."

Lin Yue did not change his mind, "Saburo is someone who would never let any of Arasaka's things be taken by outsiders. Just watch, unless Nitta takes the surname Arasaka, this place will never belong to him."

After saying something that would be a huge blow if Arasaka found out, Lin Yue looked at Suzuki.

“I’m younger than you, and I think the title of rank is better than that of Lady Rin… After tonight, we’ll be at the chessboard. The people above are smart but arrogant. They forced us to have the right to sit at the table. Now I’ll make them regret letting me into the game.”

Suzuki's face was dripping with cold sweat, his eyes were wide open, and his expression was somewhat solemn.

[Incoming caller: Unknown]

Lin Yue's eyes lit up with a dark red hue, a color that remained constant whether he was cracking code, making calls, or engaging in other online activities.

The other party's statement was very brief.

Lin Yue's lips curled up slightly.

He then thanked him, saying, "I'm glad you were willing to share this important information. Thank you very much."

After that call ended, another one came in.

The first words Suzuki heard from Rin.

"It's been so long since I've seen you."

After exchanging only a few words with the person on the other end of the phone, Lin Yue nodded, "I understand, I will be careful."

After the call ended, Lin Yue's fingers tapped lightly on the dark brown leather seat.

Aside from the steady sound of the engine, there was nothing else inside the car.

"Suzuki, have you ever experienced the feeling of being isolated and helpless? Or have you ever faced an enemy so powerful that you felt you were doomed to lose?"

Suzuki listened to Rin's question with a stern expression.

After thinking for a moment, he replied, "No."

Lin Yue continued, "I have. I almost died countless times because of things I didn't understand, but I'm about to face the enemy I know best, a very strong enemy—do you dare to go with me?"

"There's still a chance to back out; maybe they'll panic..."

"We'll end up like we did in Dogtown."

Suzuki stared silently into the young man's dark pupils.

Time seemed to stand still.

The two resolute words were accompanied by his forceful bow of his head—

"I have no regrets, and...I completely trust you!"

Lin Yue: "Maybe I'll die in the next second?"

Suzuki just smiled.

A deafening roar tore through the sky above Night City Company Plaza!
The office worker, who was working overtime in the building, noticed what was happening outside...

A white office worker with prominent dark circles under his eyes dropped his documents to the floor in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, his pupils reflecting a sliver of bright light!
That is...?
"Holy crap... heavy weapon!"

Behind the company plaza, precise surface-to-air missiles, like deadly vipers, hurtled towards the center of the plaza from the buildings!
The target, however, is a black dot that no one below can see.

call out! ——

In the pitch-black night sky, a silver-white, elegantly sculpted Rayfield Sword drove silently.

suddenly!

The fireball, devouring the darkness, instantly tore apart the rear of this work of art—the hovercraft seemed to be struggling to control its flight, preparing for an emergency landing, but—

Almost instantly, another bullet from the side completely devoured the main body, squeezing out bursting sparks!

shhhhhh!
As if fearing that there was still a sliver of possibility of survival amidst the flames, the remaining missiles from all directions added fuel to the already deadly inferno!

The falling debris was emitting black smoke…

The piercing fire siren of the NCFD blared from the company plaza below; it all happened so suddenly…

……

……

(End of this chapter)