Chapter 57

David’s sincere words gave me a lot to think about.

Back in the Arasaka Corp days, I could handle things just fine—but now, I couldn’t.

When did I start just going with the flow?

As the deputy chief of Counterintel’s Third Division, was I always this slow on the uptake when running ops?

Where did the old me go—the one who kicked the asses of those promotion-chasing idiots and got shit done?

…Not that I regretted my time at Arasaka, but it felt like circumstances had shaped me this way.

Even if you’re the one being pitched to now, that doesn’t mean you stop pitching altogether.

A cold clarity washed over my mind—a nostalgic feeling.

I usually preferred sex to relieve stress, but of course, I had a backup plan.

A form of stress mind control, you could call it self-hypnosis.

By entering a kind of "zone," I could adjust my awareness. Like my trainer said, my heart would grow cold, freezing over until nothing trivial could shake me.

"Haaah… Fuuuh… Feels like it’s been forever. I’d forgotten this sensation, soaking in lukewarm water until now. Waiting for orders is so damn easy—I get it now, painfully well. My bad, David. Guess I got too comfortable under the Little Boss and let myself go soft."

"...Guess so. You look a hell of a lot sharper now. Current V’s got no problems. Up till a second ago, you looked like some washed-up junkie in a back alley."

"Whoa, was I that bad? …Well, can’t blame you for saying it. The old me would’ve laughed his ass off at this sorry state. Mind if we pick this convo back up?"

"Yeah, I get your concerns now too."

David flashed a grin and straightened up, resetting the discussion.

What we’d gone over so far was just a prelude—but it’d helped me re-examine my own stance.

Right now, what I needed to do was prep the presentation materials.

"There’s some info I wanna cross-check. From Johnny, my headmate. Apparently, Arasaka’s got a personality construct storage vault called the Mikoshi, and Alt’s in there. Story goes, she got Soulkilled by Arasaka half a century ago and trapped."

"...Huh? That’s not what I heard from Jugra. Said Alt’s already been reduced to memory traces, her humanity worn down. The plan was to use data pulled from her ex to send out a love call and fish her out from beyond the Blackwall."

【...The hell?】

"After half a century as a pseudo-AI, seems she can move in and out of the Blackwall. The Voodoo Boys wanted Johnny’s construct ‘cause they were tryna cut a deal with her. Apparently, they wanted to build their own stronghold beyond the Blackwall."

【...What?】

"And according to Jugra, NetWatch are do-gooder hypocrites, but they’re tolerable. The Voodoo Boys, though? Like termites under the floorboards—pure pests. So he wiped ‘em out. Partly as a warning to Dogtown, too."

【How the hell does he even know all that…!?】

"Beats me. But what I can say is—Jugra doesn’t misuse intel. Right? You ever been screwed over by one of his orders for no reason?"

A flash of cerulean blue crossed my mind, but that was pure bad luck.

Who could’ve predicted that domino effect?

"...Yeah, fair. So… what’s the Little Boss want from me, then? Wait, no—got it. He’s got the intel. What he needs is hands to execute. Hence, the Jackals."

"Tamed himself some Edgerunners. …Smart move, honestly. Could’ve just sent the Delamains like in Pacifica and called it a day, but that’d put Del in a tight spot. That op was a calculated move with the mayor and NCPD’s blessing—only worked ‘cause everyone was desperate. Jugra’s rep helped, sure, but Del’s only deployable with righteous cause."

"Us, though? We’re hired guns. More freedom to move, but higher risks without that justification. …Ah, so that’s why we got so many kill-zen jobs. Hardening us for the slaughterhouse."

"...Heh. Ain’t gonna heaven like this. Then again, Jugra’s irreligious. Doubt he factored in divine judgment."

【...Well, in her case, she’s guerrilla-born. Siege warfare, frontline bombing, mines on the retreat path. Survivors? The mud’ll drag ‘em down, soaked through. Chased by poison gas and flamethrowers. Flee to the woods? Burn. To the sea? Target practice. To land? Roadkill. A realist who treats war as RNG, moving numbers on a map, not a desk. …Wouldn’t wanna share a battlefield with her.】

Oh, right—this guy’s a deserter.

David’s religion talk must’ve flipped some trauma switch.

Might’ve resurfaced during the Pacifica mess too. Less guerrilla, more spec-ops vibe… but best leave it alone.

"You said the Little Boss wants to hit Arasaka for revenge. What’s the story?"

"...Don’t got the full picture, but seems her parents were Arasaka researchers. Some reason, Adam Smasher nearly killed her as a kid. Her old man, Masahiro, might be a lead. …Dunno if anyone knows the whole truth, though."

Who the hell would? I tilted my head—just as Johnny, beside me, chomped into a fancy pancake like he’d seen it somewhere before.

…Dude, if you remember, just say it.

Sure, it’s enough to remind me of Takemura eating pancakes at Tom’s Diner, but still.

"...Ah. There is someone. A junior from another division, apparently. Close to her."

"For real? Then Jugra’s dad’s intel’s on you, V. …My guess? She wants you to plan the Arasaka Tower hit. Or more like—it’s the only way to access Mikoshi, the Relic’s dedicated hardware. Could just steal the nanotech thesis, but the Relic might need Mikoshi-specific tuning. That’s why she’s prepping the assault. Otherwise, why start with Arasaka?"

"Wait, can’t the Little Boss handle the Relic herself? She’s top-tier in Night City."

"Pfft. You’re mistaken too. Told you before—Jugra’s a genius grinder. Everything’s built step by step. New field? She studies it inside out before touching it. No way she’d mess with an unknown biochip unless you’re fine being a lab rat."

"...Seriously? Thought she was the intuitive, creative genius type."

"...Her hobby’s modding. Needs a base to work from. And forget? She’s a techie, not a netrunner."

"...Oh, right. Then what about those crazy-detailed job briefings? No way a non-netrunner could pull that off."

"Huh? Oh, wait—the Jackals don’t know? Jugra’s got a personal-sized MegaCon. That’s all analog, man."

【Bullshit!?】

"Jugra calls it ‘analog mastery.’ Before netrunners started frying their brains, hacking was done on keyboards. She just brute-forces it with processing power and speed beyond human brains. Surprising, huh? She’s pretty analog, all things considered."

"Don’t be ridiculous," David said with a scoff.

『Mega-Con』, 『Mega-Con』!?

That’s the super-dreadnought-class data-bomb launcher they unleashed in the Third Corporate War, isn’t it?! What happened to the ban on that thing?!

And what the hell do you mean "personal-sized"?! 『Mega-Con』 is supposed to be a monster made of quantum computers fused together, taking up a whole damn building!

Glancing over, I saw Johnny was so shocked he’d even dropped the cigarette from his hand.

What kind of joke is this? If NetWatch or NCPD found out, we’d be arrested on the spot.

"...How the hell does she own something like that and not get caught?"

"According to Jugra, it’s because it’s smaller than the arrest-worthy 『Mega-Con』 and just barely passes as a 'personal supercomputer.' Well, that’s only because it’s not fully connected yet—apparently, she’s got multiple units stashed away, and it’s not even in its final form. Even if the cops came sniffing, she’d walk free."

"So she’s got the law on her side? Damn, Little Boss really is in a league of her own..."

"More like Jugra’s just ruthless when it comes to this stuff. She says the trick is to slip through legal loopholes without tripping the thresholds. If it’s a 'loophole,' they’ll patch it, but if it’s just under the radar, you can argue it’s technically legal."

"...That’s some top-tier scammer logic right there. Well, if Little Boss says it’s fine, I guess it’s fine..."

Slumping back into the couch, I let out a heavy sigh.

Honestly, is there anything that genius girl can’t do?

Seeing my reaction, David gave a nostalgic, wry smile.

Well, he’s been with Little Boss the longest—guess he’s seen it all by now.

"Anyway, forget Jugra for a sec. Vitt, Arasaka’s got a lot of enemies, yeah? If we only use 『Arasaka’s』, all the heat’ll focus there. But if we spread it out, the damage gets diluted, and the plan’s got a better shot at working."

"Ah, got it. So we rope in anyone with a grudge against Arasaka... Wait, isn’t that basically the whole damn city?"

"Hahaha, pretty much. But we can’t just take any random gonk. We need organized groups, people we can trust. My bet? 『EdgeRunners』 and 『Jackals』 are in, no choice. I’ll handle negotiations with 『Machine Dragon』. You should reach out to 『Arasaka’s』 and anyone else you can think of."

"...Yeah, actually. The 『DragonTail』 members would jump at the chance to help if it’s for Little Boss."

"Ah, that’s Delamain’s turf—I’ll pass the word. Anyone else?"

"Anyone else, huh..."

【...Vincent. Rogue. Get Rogue on board. Time to settle unfinished business from half a century ago.】

"...Might be able to get 『AfterLife』’s Rogue to play along. She was part of Johnny’s crew back when they hit Arasaka Tower."

"Hey, not bad. Alright, Vitt. You handle digging up info on Masahiro and talking to this Rogue, yeah?"

"Got it."

I nodded, agreeing to David’s plan.

No way I’d spill Takemura’s contact here, and Rogue’s up to Johnny anyway.

Best to have Panam handle 『Arasaka’s』 and assign Jack’s crew to her.

...Felt like I was stuck in a pitch-black tunnel, but now there’s a sliver of light.

Calling David for advice was the right move.

Still... Little Boss’s parents were Arasaka, huh?

Masahiro, Masahiro... Nah, nothing rings a bell.

There were rumors about the engineering division developing some top-secret tech, but that’s about it...

"By the way, David, you got any leads on Masahiro?"

"Uh, just that he supposedly killed himself in an Arasaka lab about ten years back, but the whole thing’s shady as hell. Jugra’s mom, Miyabi, found the body, and then Adam Smasher came hunting—probably a hit. Oh, Miyabi’s dead, so no asking her."

"...I see. Ten years ago... I was still at the Academy back then, so no way I’d know."

"Huh, right, you’re ex-Arasaka corpo. ...Speaking of, what if I told you I went to the Academy too? Believe me?"

"You? ...Well, maybe 70%. There’s something kinda Academy-ish in the way you talk."

"Like what?"

"Raw smarts. The way you verbally knocked me out earlier? Not something you pick up on the streets. Street-made gonks start with trash talk and work their way up to hierarchy games. Speech, phrasing, delivery—they’re like a ruler for measuring people. Sure, you can fake it, but only pros keep it up all the time."

"Huh, interesting."

"Yeah, want me to teach you? Counterintel tricks and all."

"Save it for drinks. Not the time now."

Fair point. No way I’m having this conversation sober.

...Just thinking about my Arasaka days is enough to make me sigh.

"Anyway, can we eat lunch now?"

"Ah... right, sorry. This place’s tamale is killer."

Oh yeah, the whole reason we met was for a lunch-paid consultation. Got carried away.

As David started ordering a lot from the waitress, I subtly checked my wallet’s status.

...Going digital today. Mama Welles prefers cash, but she’ll have to let it slide just this once.