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"Michiko , what do you think of him?" Saburo asked, holding a steaming cup of aromatic tea in her hands.
"A slippery and audacious man," the girl replied, watching the departing scientist. "But I admit, he is incredibly useful and committed to doing his job as well as he can."
"The gaijins have practically lost the concepts of honor and dignity," Arasaka shook his head in disapproval, taking a small sip of tea. "They should learn humility and curb their appetites."
"But that doesn't stop you from using their knowledge to your advantage."
"True... I'm willing to give them everything they desire, just to shatter the fairy tale they've constructed in their minds," the emperor's lips curled into a thin line, a detail not missed by his granddaughter. "I will take everything from them, just as they once took everything from me and my country."
Michiko said nothing, briefly lost in her memories. The emperor's granddaughter was born in a different culture, far from the shores of her ancestral homeland. Her mother was an American of Japanese descent, and as a result, Michiko's views on life differed greatly from her grandfather's imperialistic tendencies. Saburo seemed too radical to her, and at times, it even frightened her. This was partly why Hirako had argued with her grandfather and went to live with her sister in America.
"Tell me, grandfather, why do you need me?" Michiko didn't believe for a moment that the emperor wanted to see his granddaughter personally. It just wasn't in his nature.
"I've received news that someone, under my name, has conducted high-level manipulations. My agents couldn't find any traces, and I want you to investigate this and uncover everything you can. My personal yojimbo will provide you with detailed information."
"Is this also why you asked Aunt Hanako to pass on all the research on the 'Soulkiller' project, including Johnny Silverhand's engram?"
"Indeed. Time is too valuable a resource for us to use it so recklessly," Saburo slowly closed his eyes, reinforcing his words with his characteristic expression.
"In that case, I'll return to America tomorrow morning. But first, I want to visit my sister's grave," Michiko gave her tacit agreement.
"Go ahead, I want to be alone for a while," the elderly man waved his hand, allowing his granddaughter to finally leave his presence. "Who are you, my unknown enemy?"
The emperor's words remained unanswered...
***
June 16, 2065
Alex Mitchell (Volkov)
From early this morning, people in the camp were acting quite strange. Everyone kept smiling at me mysteriously, and some even invited me for a drink, which was, frankly, suspicious. I asked everyone I knew, but got no answers. Clearly, something was being kept from me, and I didn't like it. This sort of thing always ends up shocking me, and I had a feeling this time would be no different.
Because of this, I had to put all my tasks on hold and go somewhere to clear my head. Kiwi and my two apprentices tagged along. First and foremost, I wanted to explore the area and show the girls all the beautiful places I knew. They had been in the camp for quite a while, so it was time to show them the world. Or at least, the parts of it I wasn't afraid to show them...
"It's so beautiful here," Roxy said, holding her breath as she gazed at the panoramic view of the Mojave wasteland.
"This is one of the most frequently used transport hubs for nomads. I've been here often while doing clan assignments," I said, placing my hand on her head and gently smoothing her hair. "It's a dangerous, but very beautiful place."
"Dangerous?" Lucy asked, puzzled.
"Exactly. Corporations can only maintain relative safety near cities. Beyond the metropolises, the clans rule, and some of them engage in less than honest work, like robbery and human trafficking." At the last word, the white-haired girl noticeably flinched and involuntarily squeezed my hand. "Nomads spend most of their time looking for jobs, and it often happens that we move from state to state in search of profitable work. A year ago, the Backers settled in Utah for a couple of months, helping a construction company lay a new railroad connecting two regions."
"I see," Lucy nodded.
"By the way, there's a good diner a few kilometers north of here that serves decent milkshakes. What do you say?" I looked at the kids' suddenly interested faces, trying to appear nonchalant.
"We're in," the blonde "subtly" pinched Roxy, who was about to say something, which didn't escape my notice.
"So, what are we waiting for?" I raised an eyebrow questioningly, hearing the girls' gleeful laughter in response. "Yeah, I've grown attached to them way too quickly..."
***
"They've fallen asleep," Kiwi remarked, glancing at the back seat where the girls were soundly sleeping.
"Good food and a comfortable temperature in the car work wonders," I said with a smile, winking at her. Throughout the trip, she behaved as if they were her own children. "I see you've grown quite attached to them."
"Yes," the blonde didn't deny the obvious, as she covered the two girls, who were leaning against each other, with a blanket. "Looking at them, I remember that old basement in Japantown."
"Yeah, those were the days," I reminisced about events from years past. "You're still mad about that funny childhood nickname."
After my words, I felt a light, barely noticeable jab in my ribs.
"Stupid nickname," Kiwi grumbled, pouting.
"I think it's quite cute," I winked at the embarrassed girl.
"Alex, you're an idiot!" Kiwi boldly laid her head on my lap and, after getting comfortable, closed her eyes.
"Such a sleepy kingdom," I said with a smile as I looked at the sleeping beauties. "Vega, take the wheel and drive us back to the camp."
"Will do," my assistant's voice quietly responded from the speakers.
"Thanks," I said, settling comfortably against the back of the seat.
The return journey took less than an hour. By the time we approached the camp, Kiwi was already awake. The blonde wasn't in a hurry to get up from my lap, preferring to use it as her pillow. While everyone slept, I managed to scan all available housing in Night City and even found a few good options. As I had planned earlier, I chose the Arroyo district as our place of residence. Local corporations have weak control over Santo Domingo, and gangs don't hang around these parts much, preferring the more densely populated areas of the city.
Arroyo is a vast area filled with factories. Here live people of low and middle income, in other words, ordinary workers. You can't get much out of these folks.
The cheapest and most accessible housing was on the lower floors of the mega-buildings, but for obvious safety reasons, I didn't consider it as our future abode. Multi-room apartments weren't in high demand due to their relative expense. For example, renting a four-room apartment in the city center cost $80,000 a month, while the same apartment in Arroyo cost fifteen. Each tower had its zones, divided by floors. The number of floors in the towers varied, as did their size. They were much larger in the city center.
After consulting with Vega, I decided to rent a place in the fourth megatower. I'll also set up one of the retail spaces there, converting it into a workshop where I can take orders. Kiwi won't be idle either. I plan to establish a clinic next to my workshop, where she can attend to people. There shouldn't be any issues with permits since we've already obtained the necessary documents. Susan and Roosevelt used their old connections, which is how Kiwi and I became official specialists. We also had to change our ages, so now we're officially twenty years old. Sometimes, corruption can be useful—though it's a shame it's only occasionally so.
Regarding my savings, the city taxi company "Delamain" recently became highly sought after following a series of promotional campaigns. The AI managing the company completely eliminated human labor, replacing the entire staff with robots. The cars are directly controlled by the AI, thus eliminating many human factors. As a result, Delamain's stocks skyrocketed, and my dividends increased significantly. My account now boasts a pleasing sum of 83,000 eddies, and it will continue to grow every month. Currently, I have around half a million eurodollars in savings, which is a considerable amount by local standards. For example, a high-ranking corporate worker would take about two years to accumulate that much money.
A quarter of this amount will immediately go toward renting the workshop and paying for the apartment, and another half will be spent on purchasing expensive equipment. It would have been much more expensive, but Vega and her nanofactory will help by upgrading the machines I need, saving me about two hundred thousand eddies. Essentially, my savings will be reduced to crumbs once again, but I'm not too worried about having money.
In any case, I have plenty of ways to earn, including various tasks for fixers. Although the pay is low initially, once I get established, more lucrative orders will start coming in. However, I want to become a mercenary not just for the money. Primarily, I need connections in the criminal world. They will help me find leverage points against the Biotechnica Corporation for its eventual destruction. I don't really care what happens to it afterward; what matters to me is punishing the company...