Cyberpunk: Starting in 2071

Chapter 13 Intelligence Beyond the Ordinary
“They suddenly became very close after the accident, even during deep dives they stayed together. I know how many of them there are, there must be something wrong with them.”

When faced with the gazes of Mercer and the others, the young hacker first glanced at the ground, then mustered his courage and looked at Agent Arasaka:
"I think they're definitely plotting something, because Lucy, Anzu, Dadi, and Leon had a pretty good relationship before, but Mercer only joined after the accident."

And Mercer has changed a lot lately! There's definitely something wrong with that!
I'm willing to take responsibility for what I say!

The young hacker's heart was pounding. He knew that after this incident, he would definitely be regarded as a traitor by his other companions, but if he could successfully report it, perhaps he could survive!
Being able to escape this project—no, you could even become a senior employee based on this achievement!
Thinking of this, Sakata Yu's expression became resolute.

He was almost certain that this group was hiding something from someone—they used to all look like they were about to die, but lately they seemed to be chatting and laughing.
He had secretly asked Xingzi before, but even Xingzi said it was only because it was very safe recently and she hadn't encountered any AI.

This is not right, because Kyoko is already timid, and now she is even more afraid when she goes deep diving than before. How come Kyoko has become brave?

“I have plenty of evidence to prove that they are definitely plotting something in secret, or hiding some secret!”

As Yuya Sakata spoke, her thoughts became clearer, and she even became excited: "That's right, that must be it!"

But Agent Arasaka remained unmoved by his words.

Even a kid can see that. Do you really think Arasaka's employees are just sitting around doing nothing?
Every conversation Lucy and Mercer had during their meetings was recorded, and packages including 24-hour monitoring of their communication signal fluctuations and analysis of their biometric data had long been arranged.

Although the data fluctuates occasionally, it has not reached the level of abnormality. Besides, isn't this review for this very purpose? Do I need you to tell me?

"What about other evidence?"

Agent Arasaka stared coldly at Sakata Yu.

Sakata Yu was stunned: "Evidence? I mean...they're acting strangely. If we interrogate them rigorously, we're sure we can find something."

"Baka yarou! Hurry up and get in line for the inspection! You're wasting my time."

Agent Arasaka cursed angrily. If he had the authority to punish the kid, he would have already given the little guy a set of prosthetic lock-on and brain overload.

He doesn't need any hacking skills; he can do it simply by using the permissions granted to senior agents by the Arasaka Corporation.

Sakata Yuu opened her mouth hesitantly, but in the end, she could only walk dejectedly to the back of the group.

Mercer didn't even bother to look at him, her expression calm. She even took the opportunity while he was dawdling to pick up the jacket next to the hacker chair and put it on.

He walked easily toward the elevator, while the expressions on the faces of the others varied.

Anzu looked furious—because she had been advocating for bringing the two remaining hackers still in the facility into their escape group, and Mercer was about to agree, but then this happened.
Kyoko doesn't know how to talk to Mercer anymore.

Moreover, even she was a little scared for a moment. Fortunately, Mercer hadn't agreed beforehand, otherwise, if the plan had been leaked by Sakata Yu...
Lucy, on the other hand, had a very indifferent expression.

Although she wasn't a bad person, to be honest, all she wanted was to get out of here alive.
No, she just wants to escape with everyone else; she doesn't care about the others.

Tetsuya Daichi and Leon exchanged a glance, their expressions showing a hint of worry, if things really came to this.
Should they flee now? But their preparations are not yet complete.
But when he saw Mercer walking at the front of the group, calm and collected with his hands in his pockets, his unease suddenly subsided.

It's okay, with Mercer around, he'll definitely be able to handle it!
As for the last little girl hacker who remained silent throughout, she simply watched everything quietly, her eyes devoid of joy or sorrow, like a soulless puppet mechanically following the group forward.

After taking the elevator to the basement level, Mercer naturally became the first to enter the medical room for prosthetic testing.

The advantage of him taking the lead is that if he finds something is wrong, he can immediately use the fast cracking function already embedded in the coprocessor of the network access module to take action.

Dr. Oda stood beside the operating chair, his expression slightly irritated: "Come on, lie down. I need to test your prosthetic software program."

Seeing her expression, Mercer smiled and joked, "It seems Dr. Oda will be working quite a bit of overtime this time."

"I predict I won't be able to sleep for at least two days. Anyway, if you can save me some trouble, that would be great."

She waited expressionlessly for Mercer to lie down, then immediately plugged the data cable of the testing machine into the slot behind his ear. After connecting the data, she quickly checked Mercer's prosthetic body data with her fingers.

"Hmm, the brain-computer interface readings are very high. What have you been doing in cyberspace lately?" she asked.

“Since I was just killing time anyway, I dug up some data and even wrote some programs using the server’s computing power. You can use the coprocessor yourself,” Dr. Tian interrupted Mercer before he could finish speaking.

"I see it. Equipment takeover, prosthetic overheating, prosthetic malfunction, electromagnetic short circuit, target positioning."
Hmm, the structure needs optimization; how come just a few programs have used up all the memory?

The technical team will be reviewing your software data shortly. Remember to report directly to the technical department after your medical examination.

Mercer nodded. "Then the structure must be bloated."

He also possessed devices such as 'synaptic melting' which could burn off an enemy's head, 'rapid decryption' which could quickly crack codes, 'memory erasure' and 'system reset' for silent assassinations.

With so much software hidden in the code, is there enough memory?

Generally speaking, the Arasaka Mk.3 network receiver with a coprocessor only has six default quick-hack slots.

The fact that he could cram so much in means he has already optimized the program's memory usage very well.

"Hmm, almost done. Have you finished looking at it? Are there any signs of recent use on the monomolecular wire?" Dr. Oda continued to ask.

"I practiced in my room. It's been a long time since I've used it. If I don't get used to it, I'm afraid I'll cut my fingers when I use it."

"Indeed, being prepared is a virtue."

Dr. Oda squinted at the data for a while, then said:
"Has your brain nerve function recovered almost completely?"
No, not only have you almost fully recovered, your 'Intelligence' attribute should have even increased!
Incredible
"Please wait a moment, I need to update the data and upload it to your medical examination log again."

Mercer suddenly became interested.

The 'intelligence' that Dr. Oda mentioned is actually like the numerical value in a game, used to assess the potential and strength of various human attributes.

Generally speaking, one needs at least 12 points in physical talent to accept prosthetics such as heavy gorilla arms or berserk systems.

Programs like Sianwistan require not only physical talent but also a reaction talent of at least 12 points to function. Intelligence, on the other hand, determines the hacker's computational capacity and reaction speed in cyberspace.

Prosthetic devices such as the 'Krenzikov' and 'synaptic accelerator' that can accelerate nerves often exhibit effects related to intelligence and responsiveness.

Calming properties determine people's tolerance to prosthetics.

The higher the calmness attribute, the less likely one is to be troubled by cyberpsychosis, which also means that one can undertake more prosthetic implants.

"After the check is complete, can you tell me all my current attributes? I haven't paid attention to this in a long time."

"Sure, have you taken the prosthetic medicine course? If so, I can send you the examination report so you can have a better understanding of yourself."

Dr. Oda's mood noticeably improved after seeing something interesting.

“I’ve been taking intermediate courses recently,” Mercer said.

“Not bad,” Dr. Oda raised an eyebrow. “My assistant just graduated from advanced courses, and you still have time to learn this?”

"I've been catching up on this lately, after all, something so big happened to me." Mercer's answer was impeccable.

"Hmm. Okay, the test results are in, physical condition. 11?"

You're only fourteen years old this year, that's a great number.

A reaction score of 16? Young people are really impressive.

Calmness is 19?

intelligence"

Dr. Oda fell silent; instead, her prosthetic eye began to glow.

Mercer guessed she was on the phone.

He sat up without changing his expression and secretly glanced at the screen, where a line of text was written in Japanese.

[Intelligence attribute detected as exceeding standard assessment values; information for subject 'Mercer Han' has been automatically saved and sent to the Arasaka talent reserve list.]

Yeah, buddy, you're a genius among geniuses.

Mercer waited patiently, and after a short while, Dr. Oda immediately turned to Mercer and said, "Alright, you don't need to go through the procedures anymore. Go find the director first; his office is on the top floor."

“I understand.” Mercer asked curiously, “What does that mean?”

"This number means that as long as you don't make any fundamental mistakes, you will soon become a formal senior agent and receive advanced agent training."

Based on the results after the training, the highest possible assignment can be as an assistant supervisor, deputy director of a project, or a position in a special department.

Mercer, in the future I might even need your help.

Dr. Oda's expression became increasingly kind.

"Then I'll have to trouble Dr. Oda to look after my friend. That Chief of Staff doesn't seem very friendly."

After Mercer finished speaking, Oda nodded crisply and decisively:
"It's a minor issue. You've only just reviewed it. At most, they'll ask about your deep-sea diving experience and you can insert a lie detector chip. I'll let them know so it doesn't look too bad."

This gesture made Mercer chuckle – no wonder everyone in the company was so eager to climb the corporate ladder.
If he hadn't known what kind of person Arakasaka was, he might not have wanted to leave at all.

Unfortunately, his mind was made up.

What to do next
As Mercer walked out, he pondered—the possibility of making a hefty profit from Arasaka before fleeing seemed to have increased considerably.
As soon as he stepped out, Lucy, who was second in line, looked at him with concern. Mercer simply smiled and said, "Just a quick check-up, everyone don't need to worry."

Agent Arasaka stared intently at him, blocking his path: "This isn't the way to the programming team. Where are you going?"

"Top floor, director's office, you can check there."

Mercer returned the gaze. Although he looked to be only about 1.6 meters tall, he showed no sign of backing down when he met the eyes of the agent who was over 1.8 meters tall.

Although they verbally used polite Japanese terms to address the person respectfully, their attitude actually made the agent feel a little itchy to take action.

How are these kids being raised? They have no sense of seniority whatsoever, and they've even forgotten to respect their superiors.

The agent was very unhappy, but he still obediently sent a message to the director. After receiving a reply, he stepped aside.

"Watch your attitude, hacker."

"Ah, I'm really sorry." Mercer gave a perfunctory, neon-style bow and strode away.

The agent narrowed his eyes, turned to stare at Lucy, and said, "What are you looking at? Go inside and check!"

You better not fall into my hands, kid.

Agent Arasaka gritted his teeth in annoyance.

Mercer stepped into the elevator, pressed the top floor button, and the elevator's display screen quickly showed that permission had been granted. The elevator then began to ascend at a faster speed.

When the elevator doors opened, a luxurious office came into view. Mercer walked in and saw Ena Tano resting with her eyes closed in a chair.

(End of this chapter)