Chapter 170

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V sat on the edge of the bed, tearing off the last bit of the bandage from her shoulder, discovering that her previous injury had vanished, leaving only a fine seam of a scar. She estimated that it wouldn't be long before the remaining scars would also heal. 

For V, her medical skills were something to be proud of. After all this time, she had fully adapted to her cybernetic arm, effortlessly controlling its weight and functions, making it as convenient as her original arm. V rotated her shoulder several times vigorously, feeling no discomfort. She hadn't exercised in the past few days and was full of energy.

Having recovered, she decided to head to the Lizzie's Bar to pick up some work from Gloria. She changed her clothes in the apartment, opting for her usual avant-garde fashion.

However, this visit to Gloria was different from previous ones—she had specially prepared a case of Bumbum Shiz. Last time, she had messed up a data-stealing job and went to Lizzie's Bar after her treatment to explain the situation to Gloria. But as she approached Lizzie's Bar, she was startled.

She hid from a distance and observed Gloria accompany someone out of the bar, smiling warmly and looking rather intimate. To V's surprise, the person receiving such a warm welcome from Gloria was well-dressed in a suit. 

V was perplexed about why Tang Yu, who was both her fixer and her debtor, would be at Lizzie's Bar. Seeing the two together was like a thunderbolt out of a clear sky for her. As the saying goes, "A fat wallet means a strong backbone."

Had she had the money from successfully completing the job, she wouldn't have hesitated to throw cash in Tang Yu's face if he were in front of her. But the reality was that she was broke, with no money to pay off her debt, and had messed up Gloria's job. Naturally, she felt guilty and quickly left, planning to bring some gifts next time to explain things to Gloria.

She lifted the case of Bumbum Shiz, noting its substantial weight. After all, it had cost her half of the cash she had left. She believed that Bumbum Shiz would sell well at Lizzie's Bar, making it a perfect gift. Even if Gloria didn't drink it, she could sell it at the bar.

Carrying the case, V left the apartment and walked through the familiar streets. She noticed that many people were dressed stylishly, just like her. She always felt that this city suited her well—everyone had the right to a unique aesthetic, and no one found her out of place.

In this city, a variety of things happened every day—new and interesting events constantly emerged. V enjoyed this feeling, as if each day brought a new story. It could be a drunken night, a fight, or even a romantic encounter.

Of course, young and spirited V didn't believe in love. After all, no guy had dared to pursue her since she was young. The street kids avoided her as if they had seen a ghost. V enjoyed her independence, solving some old issues in Atlanta the year before and now returning to Night City ready to make a name for herself.

However, she felt conflicted. She had just returned to Night City with nothing but debts to her name. She couldn't imagine how long it would take to reclaim her freedom, considering just paying off a Rayfield car loan was enough to give her headaches. 

Thinking of this, she recalled Gloria's kindness, always offering generous rewards for the jobs she assigned. Without Gloria's generosity, V couldn't imagine how long she'd be working for free. To ensure she could quickly get work from Gloria, V had already turned down several jobs from other fixers, including rescuing people from Scav territory and running special deliveries.

For these small jobs, V wasn't interested, especially after her arm enhancements made her much stronger. Now, she was hoping for a couple of big gigs to earn enough money to clear her debts and make a name for herself in the mercenary world.

After walking a few blocks, V arrived at Lizzie's Bar. Turning a corner, she reached the front door. 

Mox girl Rita Wheeler, standing guard with two other girls, recognized her. 

Rita, with a baseball bat slung over her shoulder, joked, "Haven't seen you around lately, spent all your money?"

V bluntly replied, "I wish I had money to spend. I'm drowning in debt and haven't paid it off yet. Don't ask; it's just a bunch of crap."

"Oh, and is Gloria inside?" 

Rita pointed her thumb behind her, coolly replying, "She's inside. I'll let her know you're here, but no outside booze allowed, including the Bumbum Shiz."

Rita poked the case of Bumbum Shiz with her bat. It was a rule: drinks had to be bought at the bar. Given that liquor sales were Lizzie's main source of profit, customers weren't allowed to bring their own alcohol. Besides, the bar already sold Bumbum Shiz, though it didn't sell very well.

V lifted the case, its green monkey logo staring dumbly at Rita. 

Awkwardly, she explained, "It's not for me. It's a small token of appreciation for screwing up my last job, a gesture of apology to Gloria."

Rita understood and laughed, "You're considerate. No one can guarantee a hundred percent success rate. Go on in, and good luck next time."

She stepped aside to let V through. 

V entered the bar, carrying the case. In the inner hall, she spotted Gloria at the bar, talking to bartender Mateo. 

After finishing her conversation, Gloria turned and saw V, smiling as she waved for her to come over. 

Seeing Gloria, V couldn't help but admire her timeless elegance. Gloria's mature beauty was enhanced by a sophisticated dark red dress showcasing her curves, with a silk belt accentuating her waist. V noticed that Gloria seemed even more vibrant and radiant than before, her natural beauty further enriched with a healthy glow.

V walked to the bar and greeted Gloria. 

Gloria snapped her fingers, signaling Mateo to bring two cocktails to the bar. She pushed one towards V, smiling, "My treat."

Feeling a bit embarrassed, V accepted the drink. Though she wasn't much of a drinker, she appreciated the gesture. V raised her glass with her left hand, toasting Gloria.

Ting!

Gloria took a sip of her drink, noticing V's cybernetic left arm. She guessed it was due to the botched Voodoo Boys data heist. Concerned, she asked, "How's the cybernetic arm?"

V smiled, nonchalantly lifting her arm, holding the cocktail steadily. "It's great. Makes the job safer."

Not wanting to dwell on the subject, V placed the case of Bumbum Shiz on the bar, feeling slightly awkward. "I brought you a case of Bumbum Shiz. I messed up the last job."

She knew that bringing such a modest gift seemed insignificant, but she was financially strained. If she had better options, she wouldn't have chosen Bumbum Shiz.

Awkwardly, she suggested, "If you don't like it, you can sell it at the bar. It has a long shelf life..."

To her surprise, Gloria seemed delighted by the gift.

Gloria, sounding surprised, asked, "Do you like Bumbum Shiz too?"

V was taken aback. Did someone else actually enjoy the overly sweet taste of Bumbum Shiz?

Honestly, she drank it out of necessity back in the day and rarely paid for it, often getting it for free from vending machines or treasure chests. Given its long shelf life, some Bumbum Shiz would be discarded by vendors when it stayed on the shelf too long, replaced by fresh stock. However, free drinks were rare, and she hadn't had much since leaving Night City in the past two years.

Quickly recovering, V replied, "Yeah, the overly sweet corn flavor is unique. Haven't had much in recent years..."

Gloria opened the case and took out two cans, handing one to V with a smile, "Looks like we have a lot in common."

V laughed, accepting the green can, "I didn't expect that either."

They opened the cans, toasting with the green cans and taking a sip, both smiling sweetly.

Gloria savored the sweet corn flavor, reminiscing about when Tang Yu first introduced her to Bumbum Shiz. If it weren't for Tang Yu, she would never have tasted it, wouldn't be where she was today, or met someone like V who shared her taste for Bumbum Shiz.

Looking at V, she couldn't help but feel that this girl was incredibly attractive. With a bit of grooming, she could be irresistible. Remembering Tang Yu's instructions to look out for this stylish girl, she wondered what Tang Yu's relationship with V was.

So far, she couldn't fathom Tang Yu's intentions. Take Sasha, for instance. Despite all indications, Tang Yu never seemed interested in her, while Sasha remained as innocent as a blank slate.

Feeling fortunate, Gloria considered herself to know Tang Yu deeply, at least on a physical level.

V noticed Gloria's intense gaze, feeling slightly uneasy. She took another sip of Bumbum Shiz, putting it down, and nervously explained, "About the Voodoo Boys' job, there was an unexpected turn, and I couldn't retrieve the data. I'm really sorry. Chalk it up to my fault..."

Gloria interrupted, comforting her, "No, it's not your fault. I've already understood the whole situation. You completed the task, and even though we didn't get the data, it served its purpose."

V, puzzled, asked, "Please tell me the whole story. It's important to me."

Gloria recalled Tang Yu's instructions. This matter should be communicated to V. She didn't know every detail herself, as she mainly followed Tang Yu's directives. So, she patiently explained the entire context, sharing everything she knew with V while omitting her personal relationship with Tang Yu.

Network Monitoring and the Animals gang have teamed up to clear out Pacifica. To ensure the success of their mission, they invited Arasaka Corporation to join them, offering subnet Poseidon backup data as compensation.

During V's coma, the network monitors copied the data from her mind and handed it over to Adam Smasher, which means Arasaka got what they wanted. The one who rescued V and took her to her body modification clinic was none other than Tang Yu, a high-ranking official from Arasaka.

After listening to the explanation, V had a hard time fully understanding the dealings between corporations and gangs. However, she remembered two key things: Adam Smasher from Arasaka hurt her, and Tang Yu from Arasaka saved her. Both are high-ranking officials in the corporation.

This made V feel that life was unpredictable; she unknowingly got entangled with Arasaka. Being someone who always repays her debts, the fact that Adam Smasher didn't even apologize after injuring her meant she had to settle the score with him eventually. Likewise, she felt the need to repay the favor to Tang Yu, even though she knew that high-ranking executives wouldn't care for personal gratitude; they'd appreciate money much more.

Her greatest enemy and her biggest creditor were both from Arasaka, which truly bewildered her.

After Gloria finished explaining, she adjusted her cybernetic eye aperture and transferred 20,000 eurodollars to V. V was quite surprised by this transaction since she didn't feel like she had actually completed the job properly, making her feel somewhat guilty about taking the money.

"This..."

Gloria smiled and explained, "Don't refuse. In that situation, if you hadn't initiated the data copying, it would've been nearly impossible to reproduce it if the server got damaged. Regardless, you completed the job, so this payment is well-deserved."

V smiled helplessly and said, "Thanks. Next time, there shouldn't be any issues with the job."

"Speaking of jobs, I actually have an opportunity right now. Are you interested?"

"No problem. I've been free lately, and I planned to get back to action once I recover."

Gloria handed V a job chip and explained, "Sandra Dorsett, an employee of Night Corp, from a wealthy family and a platinum Trauma Team member, was recently kidnapped secretly. There's intel that she was targeted by the Scavengers. The address is in the chip. Just rescue the target."

V quickly browsed the contents of the chip. She remembered taking on several similar rescue missions recently, but Gloria's reward for this one was quite high. She readily agreed.

After a brief exchange on the job details, V left Lizzie's Bar and set off for the mission address.

...

Arasaka Tower. Counterintelligence Division.

In the director's office, two high-ranking officials sat in the reception area, each holding a glass of whiskey and chatting amicably.

Arthur Jenkins, who hadn't been to the director's office in a long time, found that returning to familiar surroundings alleviated a lot of the stress he had been under for months.

"Tang, it's been tough for you recently. I've heard about everything happening in the division. I have to say, your potential has surpassed everyone's expectations."

Tang Yu, sitting across from him, looked at his old boss Arthur Jenkins, who was brimming with pride, and said calmly, "It's nothing much. We've both been holding ground here, with you as the director and me as deputy. I'm not even sure what we've been so busy with these past six months."

Seeing his old boss return safely made Tang Yu feel relieved, as he could finally relax for a while. According to protocol, Jenkins should be due for a promotion after his mission, but there hadn't been any official word yet.

Jenkins didn't bring it up, and neither would Tang Yu. Jenkins didn't entirely agree with Tang Yu's downplaying of their roles and repeatedly waved his hand.

"Things aren't as simple as that," Jenkins began. "Even though we're still director and deputy, our roles have grown in significance. Especially you. No one in Arasaka Tower Night City can outshine you now. It's only a matter of time before you climb higher."

"Getting connected with Michiko Arasaka initially seemed uncertain, but looking back, many things shouldn't be viewed in the short term; we need to look further ahead."

Arthur Jenkins was clearly enthusiastic. His first priority upon returning to Arasaka Tower was a closed-door conversation with Tang Yu, not just to show his acknowledgment but also to strengthen their alliance.

In Jenkins's view, Tang Yu would soon rise quickly and might even surpass him to become his superior. After all, in Night City's Arasaka Tower, the only one who had personal dealings with Saburo Arasaka was Tang Yu.

Tang Yu remained silent, allowing Jenkins to speak freely. Matters concerning the Arasaka Family were not to be discussed indiscriminately. If Jenkins knew the truth, he might avoid the topic altogether in the next moment.

Jenkins took a hearty sip of his whiskey and sighed, "Thank goodness you are in the counterintelligence division, or else things would've gotten chaotic."

"We held our own against Susan Abernathy's pressure. Now that she's back in her post, she doesn't dare say a word. Just now, I ran into her in the elevator. Guess what? She greeted me."

"The woman knows her place, realizing the counterintelligence division's momentum might rise, so she's adjusting her attitude."

"Hah, she seriously thought someone would fall for her antics."

Susan Abernathy had indeed behaved more docilely since her return. The friction between the special operations and counterintelligence divisions had noticeably lessened. Though Tang Yu didn't focus on her much, this didn't mean he forgot what a snake Susan Abernathy could be. The more obedient she seemed, the more likely it was that she was plotting something underhanded in secret.

Jenkins continued energetically, proud of having mentored Tang Yu, thinking it was his own merit. Tang Yu's achievements, more or less, reflected on him as well.

"Now that we've cleared the counterintelligence division of traitors, there won't be any objections in the upper-level meetings. The division can finally settle down for a while."

"By the way, since you're often busy with work for Saburo Arasaka, let me know if you need anything. If the division's resources aren't enough, my connections might be of help."

Tang Yu thanked him. Jenkins wasn't exaggerating; he had worked at Arasaka for many years and served as the counterintelligence division director for quite a while. As a diamond bachelor, his network in Night City was extensive, appearing in many high-end circles.

In the intelligence industry, connections were crucial. Compared to his old superior Jenkins, Tang Yu fell short in this area, having little to no contact with Arasaka's upper management or executives from other corporations. Tang Yu believed in the principle of strength ruling and never thought much of connections.

Furthermore, during his downfall, no one from the upper echelons had helped him; instead, it was a poor girl, V, who accompanied him on the streets. In that world, everything revolved around interests; friendship was never on the table.

Tang Yu didn't say much, unwilling to dampen Jenkins's enthusiasm. After their chat, he intended to return to his apartment. With Jenkins back in charge of the counterintelligence division, Tang Yu could pursue his own interests more freely.

Jenkins seemed to recall something important and turned serious. "Speaking of which, I remembered something. In a few days, the Night Corp charity gala is happening. They've sent an invitation and specifically requested I bring you."

Tang Yu vaguely remembered receiving an invitation but deleted it without much thought. So, it was for the charity gala—a gathering of the wealthy and influential, where they would eat, drink, and chat, then each donate a bit, symbolically supporting some philanthropic effort or establishing a charity fund.

Arthur Jenkins added, "This event will be a good chance to meet some of the notable figures in Night City. Night Corp is placing a lot of importance on this; even their CEO will attend, along with Miriam Knight herself, and they've also invited Mayor Lucius Rhyne..."

"It does sound significant, with a lot of prominent figures attending," Tang Yu recalled that the Rayfield supercar was a gift from the Night Corp CEO to Jenkins.

Miriam Knight is the widow of Night City's founder, Richard Knight. After her husband's death, she established the Knight Foundation, which eventually became Night Corp. Miriam had long since stepped away from the company's management, rarely appearing in public. Yet, under her leadership, Night Corp continued to thrive.

Tang Yu knew quite a bit about Night Corp. During his days as a top hacker, he had crossed paths with them before. He had deeply involved himself in incidents like Prophet Gary and the Peralez couple's brainwashing.

Night Corp had close ties with AI possessing self-awareness. For various reasons, Tang Yu had always focused on Arasaka, never delving into Night Corp's shady dealings. Now, free and with Saburo Arasaka's interest in cyberspace and rogue AIs, Tang Yu didn't mind heating things up.

He agreed to attend the Night Corp charity gala, which pleased Jenkins. "Remember, it's a ball. You should bring a female companion. You know how these events are; a good companion can make you the center of attention, helping you gain more social resources."

A ball? Bringing a female companion was a bit challenging for Tang Yu. While he had many remarkable female friends, few seemed suitable for such an event.

Gloria, as the owner of Lizzie's Bar, was too conspicuous. Sasha, as a company assistant, could work, but it might give off the wrong impression. Such events usually called for more private acquaintances, not colleagues. As for the others, they didn't fit into this high-class circle.

Finally, Tang Yu thought that V seemed the most suitable choice. Just as he considered V, he received a notification:

[Your contact is in a state of dangerous unconsciousness...]