Cyberpunk: From Dogville to Legend

Chapter 253 The Traitor [9.5K]

Eight hours ago.

"Boom~"

"Celebrating a great success! Wuhu!"

Brown bubbles of champagne, carrying a rich aroma, eagerly squeezed out of the dark bottle. Rebecca, in the center of the dance floor, was still doing her signature pose with one foot on the bar, swirling champagne in her hand and spraying the liquor haphazardly, while Claire behind her smiled and propped her face up with one hand.

"That's awesome!"

"Get the hell out of here! Damn it! Go to work!"

Fuck life!!!

The crowd was like zombies; the alcohol made everyone forget about tomorrow and yesterday, with only lively dance music, rapidly released dopamine, and the thought of money raining down from the sky in the next life.

"puff--"

Pila, sitting on the sofa with his arms crossed, wiped the drink Rebecca had splashed on his face. After holding back for a long time, he suddenly opened his mouth and yelled at Rebecca, "Hey! You bastard! Don't fucking waste your drinks and money! Hey! Crazy woman!"

Qiwei, standing beside him, seemed to never get her clothes wet; the spilled wine only glistened on other spots around the leather sofa where she sat.

"It seems someone isn't in high spirits, but... I think it's quite lively."

No matter what she was talking about, Qiwei always seemed to speak in a tone that was almost sarcastic and unpleasant.

Pila braced herself on her knee with one hand, and clenched her other hand tightly in front of her face. "Damn it, he has absolutely no cyberpunk caution!"

"If you mean you just tried to put your hand on the shoulder of a cyber lunatic, then I don't think you're behaving in accordance with your code of conduct at all."

A man's steady voice came from the densely rhythmic dance music.

"Yo, Falco."

Qiwei, with a cigarette between her fingers, leaned her head back comfortably on the sofa, her eyes glazed over as she stared blankly at the shimmering light bulb on the ceiling. Her pale pink hair slipped unruly off the sofa, and her slender hand held the cigarette, as if this would allow her to clear her mind and stop thinking too much.

Falco put his hands in his pockets, glanced at Rebecca, who was still sulking and cursing at Dipira in the middle of the dance floor, and then looked at Qiwei's state.

"Oh, what a pity... I almost thought we had lost."

Falco had a bit of cold sweat on his forehead.

He didn't like spoilsport people; there were enough gloomy guys in the team, but Rebecca was different—

The mercenary, dressed like an old gentleman, had a smiling expression on his face as he looked at the girl.

“Pilar, it’s best to avoid having strangers put their arms around your shoulder on the street… If it weren’t for Qiwei noticing immediately, you might be in big trouble.” Falco said with lingering fear, “That guy drew his gun so fast.”

When Pira heard someone call his full name, he looked at the driver who was an excellent driver.

He, who had been shouting just moments before, clicked his tongue and said, "So noisy..."

Falco paused for a moment, then smiled, shook his head, raised his chin, and took a swig of wine.

Pila seemed to be struck by those words. "It's weird. I don't know what's wrong with me. I feel like that guy peeing... well, it's like he has some kind of magic. I have to go up and yell at him, but my body is telling me that this is dangerous... I'm going to die here."

These nonsensical words made Qi Wei, who was staring blankly at the ceiling, turn her head slightly and stare at the guy with a flickering look in her eyes.

"I don't know, I don't know, who knows what happened?"

"Ever since I met that kid, what good things have happened? Damn it..."

Falco didn't know the details of what the team had gone through. Many people wanted to shut up about what happened in Dogtown, but the most popular thing in Night City was the street legend. The black and red liquor on the menu was proof of that incident.

So, Falco wanted to ask what it was all about.

The automatic door to the next life opened, and the bustling crowd didn't care who came in. But Pila, Qiwei, and Falco were all absent-minded and seemed to have a tacit understanding as they turned towards the door.

"Welcome back, sir."

In the next life, the tall security guard likes to call the street thugs "kids"...

Some say he was once an incredibly awesome cyberpunk, only to be recruited by Roger. However, the "Mr" he refers to is just a young man with a casual jacket, an Asian build, and a smiling face.

"cold?"

Qiwei sat up.

As Lin Yue entered, he saw a chaotic scene of people dancing wildly in the middle of the dance floor. Rebecca was swaying back and forth, gripping the railing with one hand, while the gorilla was scattering handfuls of bills into the air.

Not only that, after this guy swaggered past the sex doll, he groped her with a wicked grin, making Lin Yuedi's lips twitch.

It seems I had a preconceived notion; Rebecca's entertainment methods might be more varied than I imagined.

but--

so good.

Lin Yue glanced down at the time; his memory told him that today was actually an important day.

In the original history of this world, a large-scale battle would take place in the corporate square of Night City tonight, where a cyberpunk team that would be famous in the afterlife would seize the prototype test machine, the Cybertronian, from the Badlands—a product modeled after Adam Hammer Dragoon's cybernetic body.

The young man in the yellow jacket will climb the Arasaka Tower in a nearly broken state, and then…

He died there.

Lin Yue's mind raced through these events like a movie replay. It was as if, ever since his encounter with Ultraman, Lin Yue's memory had become a library, readily accessible. Even the most insignificant details could be recalled, including the smells, emotions, temperature, humidity, and so on.

It seems that the benefits of intelligence enhancement and AI integration are considerable, but he doesn't understand whether the Black Wall AI was absorbed by Ultraman or is still in his own brain.

To outsiders, Lin Yue simply stared at Rebecca with a smile for half a minute, but in reality, his mind was already racing with thoughts.

"call…"

The squad was undoubtedly incomplete.

But being alive is the best thing, isn't it?
"Mr. Rin."

When Lin Yue heard Falco call out to him, he walked over.

"Is everything okay?"

Falco nodded. "The operation was swift, and everyone was fine except for some fatigue in their trigger hands."

Lin Yue was just about to ask Qi Wei how she was doing—

A gloomy "horse face" blocked Lin Yue's view.

"Uh…"

Qiwei reached out her hand, unconsciously taking on the role of worrying about the team members. Who knows what Pila was sulking about?

"Hey kid...did you assign Rebecca a task behind our back? I've thought about it and Rebecca doesn't have the brains for that."

Lin Yue broke out in a cold sweat, and his lips twitched slightly.

What did you say?!
Rebecca knew she had to shoot Pira a few times.

"She's not stupid."

Pila leaned closer to Lin Yue, her face contorted, "If you... teach Rebecca... some bad things..."

I don't know if it's because everything has changed.

Lin Yue had absolutely no recollection that Pila was a fiercely protective sister...

But only Pila himself knew what he was thinking. He could see many familiar shadows in Rebecca. If you haven't experienced death, you won't cherish what you have. Pila understood this when he was trampled underfoot by Old Man Sunrise.

He wanted Rebecca to be safe and sound.

He felt that Rebecca's behavior was too different from his usual sister's, and that it had affected the company... He didn't know if it was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Humph."

Pila plopped back down, like a haughty, horse-faced woman.

Lin Yue shook his head helplessly.

"Qiwei, did you run into the Cyber ​​Madman tonight?"

Qiwei nodded, "Yes, that guy wasn't in a good state. Maybe he gained experience in the Dogtown fight—basically, that's the feeling. I took him down."

"The NCPD has already explained that it won't cause any trouble."

Lin Yue nodded, feeling that there were some things in the dark that had to be brought to an end, things he couldn't see through or touch.

However, he also had something he wanted to say to the team today—

"Hey! Lin Yue..."

Rebecca, still reveling in the center of the dance floor, spotted a familiar figure in the crowd speaking to her team. She paused for a moment, then suddenly grinned and shouted, "Hey! I'm here!"

Rebecca, the gorilla, grabbed a wire that had fallen from the ceiling and, amidst gasps from the crowd, swung it around violently.

"Danger…"

Perhaps because Rebecca was rather petite, Claire instinctively reached out to stop this dangerous behavior, but seeing that Rebecca's athletic ability was quite poor, she put her hand down with peace of mind.

"Oh wow wow..."

Rebecca swung her toes and suddenly pulled out a colorful weapon from under her oversized jacket. Finding it wasn't enough to reach Lin Yue, she twisted her body in mid-air, then held the Iron Gallbladder between her hands and pointed its muzzle at the crowd!

An uproar erupted from the crowd!
"Depend on!"

Rebecca's face was slightly pink from drinking a little alcohol, and she stared at the crowd with slightly dazed eyes, raising the muzzle of her gun slightly to the sky.

Lin Yue's expression changed.

Was drunk?
He looked at Pila, who was completely humiliated and covered his face, remaining silent.

Qiwei stood up instinctively.

"I didn't keep an eye on it."

Lin Yue's knees bent slightly. This was, after all, Rogge's territory, the holy land of the Watson District mercenaries. Rebecca's actions were bound to cause problems.

However, Rebecca didn't give Lin Yue that chance and immediately put her hand on the trigger!
Many people in the crowd immediately squatted down!
Lin Yue and his team members also felt a chill run down their spines...

Bang!
The crisp sound of the iron gun's sign echoed across the dance floor, drowning out the music. However, what came out of that gun wasn't deadly iron needles and steel balls, but a handful of... banknotes.
Have fun!

The crowd saw this as just a surprise, and the brief silence was quickly drowned out by a burst of laughter. Rebecca was also pushed towards Lin Yue by the recoil.

Lin Yue reached out and caught her steadily. Rebecca slid off Lin Yue, her eyes sparkling with happiness.

"How did you come?!"

Lin Yue pointed to his head, "Didn't you send the text message? And you guys helped me so much, of course I had to come."

Rebecca, the gorilla, had incredible strength in her arms. Grabbing Lin Yue's hand, she laughed and asked, "Lin Yue, remember back in Dogtown? We said we'd dance together sometime under that big green pyramid. Everyone else was so bored, but now that you're here, we can go dance!"

Lin Yue instinctively wanted to back down, but he wasn't good at this.

But seeing the half-hidden, fiery smile beneath the girl's flowing hair, he hesitated for a moment and let Rebecca lead her onto the dance floor.

When Lin Yue stood in the middle of the dance floor, Rebecca beckoned to him with her finger, signaling him to bow his head slightly.

"Can you dance?!"

Rebecca shouted.

Lin Yue shook his head; he felt all the muscles in his body were tense.

The crowd around him was swaying, and he didn't think he could do such a movement.

Rebecca laughed heartily, almost bursting into laughter, and tiptoed close to Lin Yue's ear, blowing warm breath that smelled slightly of alcohol and sweet bubblegum. "Sasha said, if you feel happy, just move your arms and hands, come on! It's a lot of fun!"

Seeing that Lin Yue remained unmoved.

Rebecca frowned, feigning anger, "Ugh...what a disappointment, you promised me!"

Remembering all the help Rebecca had given him so far, Lin Yue could only relax his stiff arms a little.

Rebecca laughed and swung Lin Yue around forcefully. Lin Yue's excellent reflexes allowed him to maintain his balance immediately. The girl somehow produced two bottles of beer and handed them to Lin Yue without saying a word. Then she clinked glasses with him. Lin Yue dodged the beer foam that appeared to rise, his posture looking slightly comical.

Hahaha! Has anyone ever told you that your dancing skills are terrible?

Rebecca then demonstrated how to jump.

"Hey, don't act like some old lady or grandpa sitting on the sofa... I'm underestimating you!"

Lin Yue was a little unconvinced. He was naturally unwilling to be teased by Rebecca. His excellent physical coordination allowed him to imitate Rebecca's dance moves. Rebecca glared at him and clapped her hands excitedly.

"That's right, that's right, don't be so tense. The company doesn't give holidays, this is the holiday."

Lin Yue had no idea how much time had passed.

In short, a lot of the beer in my hand was shaken and spilled.

As the crowd subsided after the dance music ended, the album track "Fierce" came on from the radio. Rebecca, swaying her head and panting heavily, said, "I definitely want a signed photo of 'Blue Moon' sometime!"

"How about that? Pretty good, right? Much better than those gloomy psychotherapists, isn't it?"

Rebecca's face was covered in glistening beads of sweat, and her eyes held a clarity unlike anything seen in this city.

Lin Yue was also slightly out of breath, his hands resting lightly on his knees. On one hand, he felt very relaxed, and on the other hand, he was afraid that he hadn't heard what Rebecca was saying—dancing felt more strenuous than killing the Tiger Claw Gang in the elevator, but... it was really quite good.

Rebecca looked at the guy in front of her, who was smiling and looking at the lively atmosphere around him, just like the boy sitting by the campfire in Dogtown who was deep in thought.

Her smiling eyes lowered slightly.

He slowly withdrew the step he had taken forward. "Let's go! Let's all go outside and get some fresh air."

Turning around, Lin Yue found Rebecca very close to him. Before he could figure out what was going on, she pulled him out of the crowd, ignoring Pila, whose face was as black as the bottom of a pot. Rebecca happily raised her glass and, good at livening up the atmosphere, performed a demonstration of loading the bullets with her bare hands. Her agile gorilla arms could throw the shotgun shells from any angle and then accurately insert them one by one into the metal cartridge.

Pila also got into a great mood, and he and his sister made everyone laugh non-stop by being able to put a wine glass on any part of their bodies without it falling over.

One cup after another, Lin Yue felt he hadn't felt this free in a long time.

but…

He couldn't pinpoint exactly where he felt restricted.

……

After a hearty drinking session.

A few people leaned against the railing, enjoying the night breeze, while groups of mercenaries chatted and laughed around them.

Time flies.

As Rebecca spoke, she secretly glanced at Lin Yue, who was looking at the Arasaka Relic advertisement above the building across the street.

Lin Yue nodded, and a bottle of sparkling water was handed to him.

"I drink this to help me recover; I do it all the time!"

Upon receiving the soda, Lin Yue tasted a special product only available in Night City for the first time: Mini Coke.

"It seems to be no different from Coca-Cola."

Lin Yue muttered something in Chinese.

Rebecca didn't hear her clearly. "What weird stuff are you talking about?"

Lin Yue shook his head to indicate that he hadn't said anything.

Rebecca: "Hmm?" Oo?
Lin Yue found the girl's expression too cute, and subconsciously reached out and pinched Rebecca's cheek.

"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! What are you doing?!"

Rebecca slapped Lin Yue's hand away, only to find him grinning wickedly...

"So everything's settled?"

"Keefe, who was next to Rebecca, asked quietly."

Lin Yue composed himself and nodded, "Yes, the company acted quickly. Georgina can't cause any more trouble. They have the upper hand in the votes."

Qiwei sighed. The cigarette tucked into her mask was burning, but she didn't smoke it. "I don't know why, but I have a feeling that something is going to happen."

Pila retorted, "You old woman in lace, what unlucky things are you saying again?"

Lin Yue paused for a moment.

"Yeah, I feel that way too."

Falco crossed his arms and silently puffed on his cigar.

and so…

Is it really okay?
It seems like no one can predict what will happen in the company.

Just then, a woman wearing a shirt and carrying a suit jacket walked in from outside.

"V?"

Everyone who was leaning against the railing straightened up.

Judging from V's expression, something seems to have happened; she must have been brought here by the hovercar.

Fortunately, no one paid attention to this place in the next life.

After V saw the team and Lin Yue in the middle, he frowned slightly and walked over quickly.

"Let's go, we've moved up the time, the PR people are waiting."

Lin Yue remembered that V had told him about tonight's time earlier and even came in person. Sometimes, eyes can be more expressive than words.

V's heavy eyes met Lin Yue's...

"Let's go."

Lin Yue suppressed his emotions, smiled at Rebecca who was standing beside him in a daze, and said to Qi Wei, "It's too late, you guys go back to NID first, I'll be there soon."

Rebecca, sensing something was off, wanted to go with them, but Lin Yue had already taken several steps to follow V.

Qiwei grabbed Rebecca, "Alright, it's normal for happy moments to be short. Let's go back and wait."

……

Lin Yue touched the brown seat of the hovercar, a vehicle equipped for ministerial-level officials, and asked in a tone that was neither sad nor happy, "What happened?"

V was setting the route for the hovercar, but her tone was very unpleasant: "Ganbi Building." However, the rigid AI on the hovercar's system asked, "The Ganbi Building hangar is full. Would you like to find a suitable location nearby?"

Lin Yue saw V clench his fist.

"Then squeeze in! This is so damn rigid!"

Lin Yue interrupted, "V, go back to Aragaka. I'll use my hovercar to go to the Azure Building."

V suddenly turned his head and stared intently at Lin Yue.

This was the first time Lin Yue had looked at V with such a calm and unwavering gaze.

"If you're going to waste all your effort, then go ahead and do it."

"Do you want to be kicked out of the company? Or do you want the entire Arasaka district to be cleansed all over again?"

Lin Yue continued, "I'll ride in your hovercar. It's close to the company. I'll have Suzuki bring it back to you later—or mine will do."

V let out a frustrated sigh and decisively jumped out of the car.

The hovercar's engine made the thin woman on the rooftop's hair dance wildly. What she couldn't understand was: everything was going according to plan, but... why did the enemy suddenly have the courage to make a decision?
Has Nitta gone mad?
Or…

V looked at the Arasaka logo and advertisements on the building next to him.

Is it that the person in charge of this behemoth no longer wants this matter to continue?

The hovercar disappeared into the night, and the woman's figure soon vanished above the buildings as well.

……

The hangar of the Gumpi Building.

Suzuki changed into the black suit that security chiefs only wear when on missions. Behind him were soldiers brought from the security department to the logistics company. These guys were all skilled personnel who used to be in charge of internal security at Arasaka Tower, and all of them received company salaries based on their military ranks.

"Lord Rin."

Suzuki bowed his head, gesturing for Lin Yue to walk inside.

The Konpi Building is still in the process of reopening. All the floors where Lin Yue and Michiko fought were being renovated. Therefore, tonight's meeting with the public relations department will be held in a conference room on the floor below the top floor.

Everyone was sitting quietly at the rectangular table, except for the empty seats on the side.

There is no first or last leader; this is a ministerial-level meeting.

The automatic door opened, and a young man dressed differently from the suits and ties of the company personnel inside walked steadily toward the conference table at the invitation of the burly samurai with a bun hairstyle.

"Public Relations Department, Fujino Hara."

"He has three supervisors."

"The current head of the third team under the security department..."

"Xu Zhi...the board members are here too...?"

Lin Yue's gaze swept over the group of people, muttering their names as he walked towards the empty seat.

The counterintelligence department must have some information to explain V's panicked expression, but Lin Yue knew that the die was cast and there was no turning back.

Those sitting here are theoretically all from Lai Xuan's faction, or at least the middle and upper management within Arasaka who are unwavering in their commitment to the logistics company and Dogtown splicing business. This matter is already a done deal at headquarters, and Saburo hasn't commented on it. So... it seems that some people are unwilling to do it.
Who is it?
Lin Yue sat down in the empty seat without any hesitation.

"Rin, the proposed head of the subsidiary of Kejing Logistics, is here."

Suzuki placed his hands on the back of the chair and waited for Lin Yue to settle in before slowly retreating to the back.

The public relations manager is a shrewd guy. He has natural eyeballs under his glasses, but his ability to judge people is by no means weak.

He was observing the prosthetic body on the person who had turned the interior of Arasaka upside down.

"Minister Rin, I apologize for bringing this meeting forward."

Xu Zhi seemed rather lazy. He leaned back in his chair and smoothed his hair. "Although security personnel are strictly prohibited from attending mid-level meetings within Arasaka, and the security and counterintelligence departments are responsible to their superiors, you should at least know each other... Maybe you haven't met before? Skip the introductions?"

Fujino adjusted his glasses. "There's no need to waste time. We need to explain what Lord Raigen instructed us to do here."

"Minister Rin, your people did a great job, clearing up a lot of trouble for us."

Lin Yue nodded slightly, "It's my duty."

Fujino nodded and continued, "The public relations department has prepared a contingency plan for public opinion. When the trial begins, the actions of the major companies will be less aggressive. This includes addressing issues such as non-compliance of content, procedural problems, and interference from the actual legal controller of Kejing Logistics. You only need to stand in court, and our lawyers will win the first half."

"In the second half, the counterintelligence minister has taught them how to vote, so there's no need to worry about that."

At this point, everything seemed to be fine.

Lin Yue tapped his fingers lightly on his thigh, taking in everyone's expressions...

nervous?

Too hard to talk about?

fear?

Or maybe both...

Lin Yue sat up slightly, and just as Fujino was about to explain the details, he said, "Regarding the issue of actual shareholding, I hope that Minister Rin and Minister Fujino can continue to consider it."

Everyone was distracted, and after hearing the sudden sound, they all looked towards the source of the noise.

Security Department…

What kind of show is this?
Fujino adjusted his glasses, pursed his lips, and remained silent.

Lin Yue paused for a moment, then a mocking smile appeared on his lips…

"There may be problems with some of Lord Lai Xuan's decisions, and the headquarters' support for their implementation is minimal. Everyone knows this, right?"

Is he... Asian?

Lin Yue watched quietly…

The person who slammed their fist on the table seemed extremely angry.

Xu Zhi said in a deep voice, "Manager Li, today we only have coordination work to do. What are we supposed to do?"

"Damn it..." The security supervisor slammed his fist on the table and said, "Lord Raiyuki has put Arasaka in dangerous situations several times, including Director Rin! Hasn't he realized that headquarters is losing patience? And he still wants to continue doing this, carrying out this wasteful sunset transportation business—"

Will it undermine morale?
Everyone turned to look at the young man sitting there, whose expression wasn't exactly unpleasant, after the man mentioned the Minister of Security's name.

Xu Zhi: "It seems you have some suggestions, so I suggest you report them to your supervising superior."

Several Arasaka agents immediately stepped forward.

Just when everyone thought the young security minister was going to rely on Assistant Xu, Lin Yue suddenly spoke up, "Not much to show for it?"

Koreans…

Lin Yue heard the guy speak Korean.

"Uh?"

Clearly, Manager Li hadn't expected Lin Yue to respond.

He subconsciously glanced at someone to his side—

"answer me."

Lin Yue forced the other party to answer in a calm tone.

Immediately afterwards, Lin Yue looked around at the so-called hawks gathered under Lai Xuan's command and secretly muttered to himself about the young man far away at headquarters, "Lai Xuan, look at your men."

Manager Li immediately replied, "The gains are undoubtedly enormous..."

Lin Yue didn't give him a chance to continue, "Then why?"

"..."

The guy who was being used as a pawn was speechless for a moment.

Lin Yue took out a cigarette and lit it. Everyone saw the young man leaning back with the cigarette between his fingers on the table. "When Dogtown, Night City, and Military Technology were at each other's throats and engaged in a gunfight in Watson District, it seems like you didn't contribute anything, did you?"

At this moment, a manager from the public relations department actually stood up.

"Everyone, the biggest problem with this company control dispute is that Arasaka's assets could be stolen at any time!"

Lin Yue's hand holding the cigarette tightened suddenly.

Xu Zhi also pursed his lips and remained silent...

"Will an internal audit pass? In a case like this, what if Minister Rin gets into trouble? Who will take responsibility?! Isn't the headquarters' message clear enough...? Lord Lai Xuan is reflecting on his incorrect decisions, so we should stop now!"

That was in Korean...

Now it's Japanese again...

Lin Yue raised his head slightly and exhaled a puff of smoke, his good mood from the previous life completely gone.

Oh God, please have mercy on me.

He said this to himself…

The meaning is quite clear: if Lin Yue harbors ulterior motives in this process, Arasaka's enormous assets will be lost, Lai Xuan will be dealt with by Saburo, and the wavering faction below will naturally prepare to sit on the sidelines and wait and see.

Lai Hsuan, how capable do you have to be to lead these people to bring down the company?

Lin Yue was glad he didn't have such grand dreams. He just wanted to avoid getting deeper and deeper into this vortex and temporarily escape from Aragaka. Or rather, it was a sense of retreat from the depths of his heart.

"What do you mean?"

Lin Yue listened attentively.

The head of public relations gritted his teeth, his eyes flashing as he glanced at the guy known as the madman within Arasaka's organization. They all knew this guy had slaughtered the army of the Ghost Hounds—

But some things he had to say were things that certain people made him feel compelled to say!
“What I mean is, this case requires the Night City branch's involvement. We can no longer be responsible to headquarters—no, not headquarters!”

The man said in a deep voice, "It's about taking responsibility for Lord Lai Xuan."

"The credit goes to Lord Lai Xuan, Minister Lin, and that popular Minister V!"

This was Lin Yue's first time experiencing negotiations at a conference table, but fortunately, there was only one condition for sitting here: a sufficiently intelligent mind, which he clearly possessed.

He was wondering who was behind this move.

Would Nitta really be that brainless? Hanako, on the other hand, might…

However, it doesn't matter anymore.

Lin Yue slowly stubbed out his cigarette on the table, and a middle manager from Arasaka sitting next to him began to lean slightly to the side…

He knew perfectly well what this guy had done on the board.

Just as Lin Yue was about to stand up, his eyelids twitched. Xu Zhi, who was three or four steps away from the public relations manager, stood up first.

gun?
The guy who spoke up changed his expression drastically the moment he saw the gun pointed at him!

The silenced [Kappa] opened fire without warning, instantly tearing the supervisor's head apart!

puff--

The bright red liquid was spilled on the table, and many people's legs immediately went weak.

Conversely, Fujino, sitting opposite Lin Yue, simply looked down at the small blood-red dot on the table, which slowly began to spread across the slightly yellowed paper…

His glasses reflected the light as he looked up at Lin Yue.

"Wow!"

Someone drew their knife.

A conference table that symbolizes civilization is being used by some to solve problems like beasts.

He is a man from Xu.

These people dared to court death under the nose of Xu Zhi, a member of the board of directors, because they thought they had figured out the operating logic of the hawks, but they didn't know that Xu Zhi was Lai Xuanyang's most vicious hawk!

"Sit down, all of you!"

As the Arasaka ninja drew his sword, Suzuki's men also drew their guns and swords.

"Eh!"

Lin Yue suddenly reached out his hand, staring directly at Xu Zhi, who had just shot and killed someone, his expression inscrutable.

Suzuki, who was behind him, had his hand on his katana. Lin Yue only stopped him briefly before he immediately returned the katana to his side.

Xu's expression didn't resemble someone who had taken down a mid-level officer with a single shot... it was an indifference beyond human comprehension.

This Assistant Xu…

Why does he look so much like Lai Xuan? But why is it only in Night City?

Lin Yue shook his head, but he knew he needed to use his brain.

"What...is this for, Assistant Xu?"

Seeing Lin ask the question, Xu Zhi said calmly, "Of course, it's about dealing with traitors..."

He then looked around the conference table and said, “Everyone sitting here shares the same vision: to make Arasaka strong, to move in the direction set by Lord Yoriyuki, to act according to the will of the leaders of this powerful group, and so that we can enjoy the resources.”

"But I may have made a mistake. I wonder if anyone else wants to continue speaking on this issue?"

"Does headquarters' support depend on whether Lord Lai Xuan can be there to oversee things?! Speak up!"

Everyone except Fujino instinctively shrank back.

"Sex dolls, fine wine, Crystal Palace has ripped your spines out?!"

Lin Yue's lips twitched.

Wow... that's incredibly energetic.

He shook his head, lowered his head slightly, took a deep breath, and then looked up, his eyes seeming to hold an uncontrollable ambition.

Because he sensed the answer; someone was helping him cheat.

I hope I made the right bet... Lin Yue thought to himself.

Seeing Xu Zhi slowly sit down, everyone was already reluctant to stay in this place any longer. At this moment, Fujino said, "My vision is the same as Xu Zhi's, which is to carry out Lord Raigen's decision without any compromise. This is also what headquarters assured us."

Lin Yue smacked his lips; he had lost interest in this place.

Now he'd rather know who really went all out, and whether Nitta was behind both the NCPD incident and today's events.

"Next, I will tell you how to answer questions during the court questioning stage—"

Before Fujino could speak, Lin Yue reached out and beckoned, "Then please let me see the thing, Minister Fujino. There's no need to waste your time."

The public relations staff looked at each other in bewilderment, but they never expected that Fujino would press his hand on the blood-stained folder, rub it hard, and push it over.

Lin Yue's prosthetic eye carefully engraved these things into the separation chip, but to outsiders, he only flipped through it a few times.

Xu Zhi felt that this samurai from Arasaka seemed to have a rather improper attitude...

After reviewing the documents, Lin Yue suddenly said, "These rhetoric tactics don't seem to affect the outcome much, or rather, it's already a foregone conclusion, isn't it? Even a third-rate legal team from a small company can handle it. I think I could even hire these guys privately."

Fujino's expression turned grim, and he glanced at Xu Zhi almost imperceptibly.

Xu Zhi's expression was equally unpleasant, but there was a hint of doubt...

Lin Yue, with his hands in his pockets, slowly walked to the front of the conference table, seemingly deep in thought.

Lai Xuan.

Why do you like to give me so many difficult questions?

Lin Yue didn't know where Lai Xuan got the confidence to let someone who had joined the company less than a year ago understand so much.

What Lai Xuan gave himself was not just money, but also assets, confidence, and the courage to take a gamble.

Dogtown caused Lai Xuan's power to shrink, but he was not afraid at all and continued to fight against the enemies who wanted to attack him, while he wanted to retreat and leave his gentleness to this world that he had already seen it all.

Is it really good to just mind your own business?

嗏

No time to think about it.

Lin Yue slowly stood at the front of the table, placing his hands on the surface.

A strong sense of unease welled up in Xu Zhi's heart!
The words of the deceased public relations manager echoed in his mind…

Don't do anything foolish, Rin.

Everyone then saw a young man with calm eyes and a faint smile looking down at them from above, and then—

A wisp of red and black light, like smoke, rose from his right eye.

The man trusted by Lord Yoriyuki of headquarters and called a samurai by Lord Arasaka grinned, revealing his neat teeth, and slowly said:
"Headquarters, Lai Xuan and all that... have nothing to do with me anymore."

The words weren't spoken loudly, but everyone was stunned.

Fujino, who was in the lead, let out a deep breath.

"Does Minister Rin know what she's saying?"

call!
The wolf-like eyes fixed intently on Fujino, causing the eyes behind the glasses to widen instantly, and cold sweat began to bead on the forehead…

Lin Yue's smile was even more sinister than those in the board of directors who were reaping profits.

He said, enunciating each word clearly:

"I do control Kejing Logistics Company, but—"

"It's not Arakawa!"

moment!

Suzuki's sword was already drawn, and he charged towards the young, dark-haired man!
……

……

(End of this chapter)