Chapter 99

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Westbrook, Sakura Street.

In front of the TURGO square, several food stalls were lit up for business, their warm orange glow isolating the surrounding desolation and creating a lively atmosphere.

Many cyberpunks who hung around the streets had finished their day's work and made a special trip to rest here for a while.

Accompanied by lively music, people raised their bottles and toasted each other, laughing and talking, more lively than usual.

"Hey, Pilar, haven't seen you in a few days. You changed your cyberarm?"

"Yeah, what's up with that? The longer you change it, the longer it gets. Are you some kind of long-arm tech bomb maniac?"

"Well, to be honest, my arm got longer and more flexible, right? Haha."

Everyone gathered around the joker Pilar, watching him perform various difficult stunts, occasionally teasing him.

Bearded Pilar seemed to particularly enjoy the adoring gaze of the crowd. He performed more and more vigorously, with trays and bottles flying non-stop in his golden cyberhand, saying proudly:

"Hehe, you guys have good taste. Just got it from an old friend, cost me a lot of money. I even served him for a whole day for it!"

Someone immediately picked up on it and said, "Haha, served what? Tell us in detail."

Pilar vigorously flicked his tongue, so fast it became a blur, and laughed with slurred speech, "Just like this, gotta be fast!"

"Hahaha!"

The crowd burst into laughter again.

Whoosh!

A glass bottle was thrown from afar.

Rebecca looked like she was fed up with Pilar's antics, feeling embarrassed for him, and shouted angrily, "Bro! Have some restraint!"

Faced with the suddenly thrown bottle, Pilar's reaction was still quite nimble. He barely caught the bottle and continued to play with it, staggering, looking quite ridiculous.

"Thanks for the bottle from my little sis!"

Even Maine and Dorio beside him couldn't help but laugh, becoming more and more amused.

Maine was also unusually relaxed today. After completing Gloria's commission, everyone had made a big profit.

100,000 eurodollars was no small amount, enough for them to cover expenses for a while.

What surprised him even more was that Gloria promised to compensate for the loss of Falco's pickup truck.

Maine's right hand rested on Dorio's shoulder as he leaned against the bench backrest, lost in thought, comparing Faraday and Gloria.

Faraday had always been his old client. Although he had taken jobs from other fixers, the vast majority of commission fees couldn't compare to Faraday's.

Faraday had the backing of Militechnology, so naturally his budget was not small, but the tasks were equally difficult, mostly related to corporations.

As a fixer, Faraday was vicious and ruthless, always putting profit above all else, never caring about anything outside the commission.

But Gloria seemed a bit different. Even though she was a newly supported fixer by Arasaka, her way of doing things was completely different.

In terms of both reward and trust, she far surpassed Faraday. At least Gloria had some sense of loyalty.

This kind of thing had its pros and cons.

In Maine's view, the only thing you could trust in Night City was yourself.

He understood the reasoning, but he couldn't do it.

Maine surveyed his surroundings - his lover Dorio, the joker Pilar, the firepower specialist Rebecca, the cold hacker Kiwi, and Lucy who always kept her distance from others.

They had all joined Maine's team and were indispensable to the group.

As the team's big brother, Maine naturally had the obligation and responsibility to take good care of them.

So in the end, Maine couldn't escape the word "emotion".

Whether it was love or friendship, it made him feel that life in the lonely and cold Night City had warmth again.

Maybe he was just that kind of person, which is why he refused Faraday's call, chose to trust Gloria, and completed the commission.

In any case, looking at it now, the result wasn't bad. Instead, everyone cooperated quite smoothly.

But Maine knew that the person behind Gloria was the one who decided everything.

Without his intervention, many things would be rewritten. Whether they could have come this far was still an unknown.

Maine took a fierce swig of beer, trying to forget these worries, then threw the bottle in his hand at Pilar as well, laughing loudly.

Kiwi, with a cigarette clenched under her mask, walked up to the food stall and sat down next to Lucy, who was sitting alone, her fingertips playing with a can of green drink, Bao Bao Monkey.

Kiwi looked up at the screen under the eaves, which was playing a program, the content of which was tonight's "Business Talk".

"Marcello, didn't expect to see him on the news so soon. Arasaka Corporation is pretty fast, they probably didn't want to give Militech and NCPD any face."

Although Lucy didn't look up at the TV, she had been listening to the host's content and knew what Kiwi was referring to.

"Maybe, but corporate matters are unclear."

Kiwi glanced at Lucy out of the corner of her eye and found that her expression was still cold and indifferent, as if she had a lot on her mind.

"I don't know how many chain reactions this news will cause after it airs."

"Militech, NCPD, Night City's upper echelons, etc., they'll probably all get involved. When the time comes, it will be difficult to settle."

"You know, the reason many things are not put on the table is because all the big corporations follow the proper tacit understanding. Arasaka is not necessarily cleaner than them."

"This move of his is actually a risky gambit. If not played well, it will backfire."

Ding-a-ling...

The Bao Bao Monkey on Lucy's fingertips suddenly slipped from her hand, slid across the tabletop, and fell to the ground.

On the green shell, the ridiculous big-faced monkey head was facing up, as if staring straight at something.

Her fingertips paused in midair, and after a moment of silence, she said, "Corporations have always been like this, Arasaka is no exception."

Kiwi nodded, staring at the program content and said, "No wonder so many people wanted to snatch Marcello today. Suddenly I feel it's quite black humor. For a person walking on the edge of death, so many people are sacrificed. I'm afraid the Death Lottery will have to celebrate a big prize again."

Lucy also thought of the big battle that took place today, with hundreds of people dying miserably on the abandoned overpass for it.

At that time, she was pulled into the Delamain car by Tang Yu, and the car was chased by the Animals gang all the way, her life hanging by a thread, almost destroying the car and killing the people.

It was Tang Yu who took action to deal with the drone swarm and the Animals' off-road vehicles, escaping disaster with the whole car.

To be honest, she knew there would be no problem, after all, Tang Yu possessed some kind of mysterious superpower. Activating this ability to solve problems was more than enough.

But this was his deepest hidden trump card. If he chose to expose it at this time, everyone present would see it. There were too many uncontrollable factors, not to mention an uncontrollable intelligent AI.

Even if Tang Yu wanted to hide it, there would be traces left behind, becoming a major hidden danger.

But what Lucy didn't expect was that the way Tang Yu solved the problem was not by relying on that mysterious superpower, but by relying on his precise marksmanship, hitting every target and eliminating all threats.

For some reason, she suddenly recalled the rescue that night, riding down the ramp in a shopping cart with Tang Yu, seeing his dumbfounded look and thinking it was quite interesting.

Now that she thought about it carefully, perhaps she had really overthought it, actually treating Tang Yu as an ordinary person.

What about being robbed by scavengers? How could those street dregs hurt him in the slightest?

Not to mention, Tang Yu's running speed was getting faster and faster. Just his marksmanship and mysterious superpower were enough for self-protection.

For an ordinary person to climb to the upper levels of Arasaka Corporation, both background and ability were indispensable.

Perhaps everything Kiwi said was very correct, but Tang Yu was definitely not so easily manipulated.

Lucy laughed self-deprecatingly.

Kiwi looked at Lucy a bit strangely, not knowing what she was thinking, and asked, "What's wrong?"

Lucy didn't care about Kiwi's opinion either, and replied calmly, "Hmm... just thought of some interesting things."

She stood up and left her seat, bent down to pick up the Bao Bao Monkey on the ground, glanced at the big monkey face, then said goodbye to Kiwi, "You guys have fun, I'm leaving first."

With that, Lucy turned and left, still holding the bottle of Bao Bao Monkey in her hand.

Kiwi looked at her departing figure, her eyes slightly narrowed, as if pondering the smile just now.

Lucy didn't choose to return to the nearby apartment, but wandered towards the seawall, away from the noise, and the surroundings instantly quieted down, leaving only the gentle sea breeze.

She skillfully lit a cigarette, then leaned against the railing, tilting her head slightly, gazing at the night scenery across the sea.

Waves, cruise ships, the outer sea, and the offshore rocket launch platform in the distance, the scenery under the night sky hadn't changed much.

She exhaled a puff of white smoke and noticed that the Bao Bao Monkey she had brought with her was standing quietly on the railing, its big monkey head staring straight at her.After a moment of hesitation, Lucy took a sip from the Chunky Monkey bottle, its cap held between her fingers along with a cigarette. A sweet, smoky aroma of roasted corn wafted out, mingling with the cigarette smoke and causing her to frown slightly.

Is this thing even drinkable?

Lucy stared at the Chunky Monkey, but ultimately decided to try it.

"Cough, cough..."

Her short, neon pink hair bounced in disarray as she coughed. The flavor was indeed quite strong.

After calming her coughs, Lucy felt the intense corn taste lingering for a long time, almost cloyingly sweet.

She looked at the Chunky Monkey in her hand again and smiled helplessly. 

At this moment.

Tang Yu, who was sitting on the sofa, suddenly sneezed.

The weather seemed to have turned a bit cold. He quickly wrapped his bathrobe tighter and took a few more sips of the hot tea on the table.

"Heh, quite a few people are thinking of me tonight."

Tang Yu joked to himself.

The program had just ended, and he was guessing who would be the first to call. He deliberately picked up the glasses on the desk, wiped the lenses clean, and waited for news.

Just as he finished counting to ten, a call request came in.

Michiko?

The person involved in this matter had arrived.

Tang Yu had also guessed that it would most likely be Michiko. After all, besides her, no one would care more about this matter than himself.

In recent days of handling affairs, he hadn't communicated with Michiko and felt that she didn't seem to care much. He didn't expect that as soon as the matter was done, she would call immediately, indicating that she still had it in mind.

Tang Yu waited a few seconds before answering the call.

"Tang, there will be a board meeting tomorrow. You will attend remotely online." Michiko's tone was flat, revealing no joy or anger.

Michiko did not express any opinion on what had just happened, only mentioning for him to attend the board meeting remotely.

Tang Yu calmly replied, "Understood, Director Michiko."

Michiko didn't say anything else and decisively ended the call.

Tang Yu looked at the duration of the previous call record. It was less than ten seconds from start to finish, a total of two sentences.

This was a bit unexpected for him.

Does Michiko trust him this much?

For such a big matter, she doesn't even need to inquire about the specific details?

Tang Yu also knew that the exposure of this matter had both advantages and disadvantages. Although it helped Michiko obtain leverage against Militech.

But this kind of dirty work done in private was something all major corporations engaged in. Bringing it to light would make everyone look bad, a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

But Tang Yu didn't care about these things. In any case, he was working for Michiko, and if the sky fell, Arasaka would bear the brunt of it.

Actually, Tang Yu envisioned two possible outcomes.

One was that Michiko would greatly appreciate the successful handling of this matter. It avoided direct conflict with Militech while indirectly weakening their influence in Night City and obstructing their deal with the NCPD.

The other was that Michiko would consider the matter to have gone too far, exposing the unethical experiments and touching on a taboo among the major corporations, which would inevitably cause dissatisfaction from other companies.

This would put Michiko in a difficult position. After all, in addition to competition, the major corporations also maintained business cooperation and had a foundation of common interests.

Michiko's decision to hold a board meeting tomorrow was clearly the result of careful consideration.

This made Tang Yu a bit uncertain.

Michiko would definitely use this matter to make a statement, proving to the board members that she was not simply compromising with Militech, and showing the family that she was not a defeatist, but rather taking a roundabout way to save Arasaka.

As for arousing the dislike of other corporations, Michiko would either push Tang Yu out to take the blame or continue to heavily use him to win him over to her faction.

For Tang Yu, neither of these outcomes was too bad.

In the end, it was just a matter of the corporations being unable to save face. No serious public conflicts had occurred that severely threatened each other.

At worst, he would be removed from his vice-director position as a form of punishment to appease the other corporations. 

But Tang Yu was more willing to believe in the latter possibility of being further entrusted with important tasks. He knew he still had ample value to be utilized, and Michiko wouldn't discard him so readily.

Just as Tang Yu was pondering, a new communication request alert appeared.

Meredith?

Tang Yu estimated that Meredith was probably a little angry. Although the Militech deal didn't directly involve the Special Operations department, it did intersect with some of Meredith's missions.

The call connected.

Meredith Stout directly asked, "The news just now, it was your handiwork, wasn't it?"

Tang Yu noticed her tone seemed quite calm, not like she was here to question him.

But as a Militech executive, she had no standing to question an Arasaka executive.

So he calmly replied, "Your intel is indeed accurate."

A light chuckle came from Meredith's end of the call.

"When you appeared at the Moira residence, I sensed something was off. I didn't expect to still be a step behind you."

"So, mind sharing how Arasaka's attitude towards you is?"

Tang Yu thought, Meredith, have you considered that victory was only a step away?

If Maine had gone back on his word at that time and accepted Faraday's commission, Marcello would naturally have fallen into Militech's hands, and today's drama wouldn't have happened.

Seeing that Meredith was quite at ease and didn't seem to care about the success or failure of the mission, Tang Yu asked teasingly in return.

"You asking this, are you trying to recruit me to Militech?"

Meredith picked up on his teasing but instead said seriously, "Name your price."

Tang Yu: "..."

Meredith emphasized again, "What I said just now wasn't a joke. I know your situation at Arasaka, a lone wolf. Selling your skills is the same no matter where you go. Why hang your fate on a single tree? Am I right, Tang?"

Meredith's words were filled with sincerity. She was probably serious about poaching him.

Tang Yu didn't expect her to dare call an Arasaka rival in the middle of the night to openly headhunt him, and a corporate executive at that.

But he was also a veteran in the business world and naturally wouldn't easily fold, so he laughed, "I'm afraid your company can't afford the price."

Meredith also laughed and stated bluntly, "Isn't it just a vice-director of two departments? All said and done, it's still a 'vice' position. If you're willing to come to Militech, my position will be reserved for you. It's up to you if you want it."

Tang Yu: "..."

Repeatedly emphasizing recruitment, Meredith was indeed generous with the offer.

More importantly, Tang Yu knew that if nothing unexpected happened, she was set to be promoted to director next year, and the position of head of Militech Special Operations would naturally open up.

"As you said, I'm just a lone wolf. I don't have a big appetite. I'm just eating from Arasaka's bowl, so I'll keep this invitation on hand for now."

Meredith was fishing, and Tang Yu was also fishing. Until the very last moment, no one could make a decision.

But Tang Yu definitely wasn't considering Militech at the moment. Crows everywhere were equally black, and infiltrating Arasaka had more important matters beyond just a corporate executive position.

Seeing that she couldn't persuade Tang Yu, Meredith didn't press the matter further. Instead, she changed the subject and took the initiative to say.

"Actually, your idea isn't bad. I personally agree with using the exposure of the experimental cyberware to disrupt Militech's cooperation with the NCPD."

"But the core of the problem isn't really here. Our deal with the NCPD will indeed be halted this time, but there's more than one way to cooperate."

"The reason I made this call, besides probing your stance, was to remind you of one thing. Some matters that shouldn't see the light of day should forever remain covered. The first person who dares to lift that cover needs to be mentally prepared."

Tang Yu 100% agreed with what Meredith said, but this cover had to be lifted. If Militech also wanted to dig up some dirt on Arasaka, he wouldn't mind providing some solid info.

"Mm, I'm also waiting for the board meeting results tomorrow. If things don't go too smoothly, I wouldn't mind discussing further."

Meredith replied, "Everything is negotiable."

With that said.

The communication ended.

Tang Yu sat on the sofa, deep in thought. This time, working for Michiko, he had only just lifted a corner of the cover hiding the ugly truths.

The darkness and filth of Night City were like an iceberg lurking beneath the surface of the ocean.

To pierce through this iceberg, someone had to dive to the bottom of the sea and strike hard, causing the iceberg to completely collapse, rise to the surface, and melt under the sun's exposure.

Obviously, the current Tang Yu was completely unable to do so, and no one could.

He just wanted to do his utmost to protect his small boat, carrying more people to safely avoid this iceberg, lest the boat be destroyed and lives lost, sinking to the bottom of the sea.

After the call, Tang Yu received quite a few messages, mostly from people in the company.

Tang Yu directly tossed them one by one into the trash. There could be no other possibility besides trying to gather intel.

Lost in thought, Tang Yu felt like going for a night run to relax his mood again. After a moment of hesitation, he sent Lucy a message.

Tang Yu: "Night run?"

...

Lucy: "The seawall."