Zhu Ranran was just an ordinary employee in Kang Tao's materials control department.
To say she loved her job at Kang Tao would be a lie. No one enjoys something that chases them around 360 days a year, 16 hours a day—especially work.
But she knew it wasn't just the job chasing her; it was life itself. If she lost this job, life would swallow her whole.
After 22 years of grueling studies, she finally got into Kang Tao. Her parents were aging, and now was the time for their family to live well together.
She had no grand ambitions, just wanted her family to live a decent life.
As for the overtime—well, as long as she didn't die from it, she could manage, thanks to her Trauma Team Gold Membership.
She took out her phone and sent her mother a message: "Mom, I'm off work."
"Okay, think about what you want for dinner."
"[Image]"
After a long day of overtime, going home to a bowl of her mom's hot noodles… That was how it was supposed to be.
"Don't make a sound. I'll ask, you answer."
A massive force locked around her neck, and from behind came a voice altered by electronic processing—like the voice of a demon.
Terror swept through her mind—she couldn't understand why this was happening in Atlanta!
"What were you doing in there?"
A knife slid across her skin, its cold touch bringing her back to her senses instantly!
Work or life—what was more important?
"I—Vice Director Cai asked me to install two infrared alarms! One by the window, one by the door!"
"Did you hear that?"
"Heard it—" Leo, still in the car, replied while deep in thought. "Ask her how to get in without triggering the alarms."
"I can take you inside!" Zhu Ranran quickly offered before V could ask, "I set up a backdoor. The sensors can recognize my biometrics. I thought the director might forget something and ask me to go back in!"
"Then let her take you in. Tell her no funny business."
"Understood."
Back in the car, Leo appeared calm, but he felt relieved that he hadn't made a wrong choice.
Zhu Shen, still on the line, expressed his surprise: "You're meticulous—I'm really starting to admire you. You should join Kang Tao."
"Thanks for the invite, but we haven't finished the job yet."
On the other end, Zhu Ranran didn't pull any tricks. Under the threat of V's gun, she deactivated the extra security system she'd just installed and found the backdoor interface Zhu Shen had mentioned.
"I've found the place—but what about this girl?" V asked as she inserted the chip and waited for the program to run.
"Don't kill me!" Zhu Ranran pleaded in a trembling voice, though she kept her voice low as V instructed. "I've done everything you asked. Please, let me go! My family is waiting for me!"
Zhu Shen chimed in with a suggestion: "My advice is to kill her. There's a spot behind the wine cabinet specifically for storing bodies. You don't have to worry about Trauma Team."
"What the hell," V muttered, "Is that place meant to invite employees in?"
Zhu Shen didn't answer.
Leo thought for a moment before saying, "No, if Cai Pin assigned her the job, there's a good chance her biometrics are being monitored. But isn't Kang Tao notorious for overtime-related accidents? I can write a program to hack her basic implants, creating the illusion that she fell asleep from exhaustion. That way, her biometrics won't suddenly drop, and neither Trauma Team nor Kang Tao will notice anything wrong."
And deep down, Leo wasn't keen on killing the girl if there was a choice.
"That could work… as long as you can pull it off," Zhu Shen paused, "And I have to say, Kang Tao's employee benefits are top-notch. Joining comes with a Trauma Team Gold Membership and three days of annual leave."
V sneered, "Sure, benefits so good that even senior executives have places to stash bodies, and they don't hesitate to kill unarmed employees."
"If you want to argue, kid from Night City, at least we protect our employees from getting killed by stray bullets on the street, unlike you."
"It takes everyone having a gun to make bastards like you scared! Freedom! You get that, freedom!"
Leo felt a headache coming on.
Night City, the city with the highest crime rate in the U.S., where shootings and gang wars happen daily, with countless deaths and injuries.
Kang Tao, with the world's most diligent employees, leads in cases of death by overwork, so severe that even Trauma Team can't save them.
Now these two are trying to prove that their shortcomings aren't really shortcomings by pointing out each other's flaws.
Leo interrupted the argument between the street kid and the corporate drone: "V, plug her personal link into the system. I need to remotely control her basic implants."
But could Leo really do that?
The answer was no.
Basic implant technology doesn't include modifying implant drivers or directly interfering with biological states.
Unless he suddenly leveled up his skills.
[Practical Technology: Implant Technology (Proficient Level)]
[Current Mastery Progress: 10%]
[Instant Mastery Cost: 90 Technology Points]
[Redemption Completed.]
[Current Technology Points: 26]
Spending almost all of his technology points to save this girl's life, Leo didn't hesitate.
If he could do better, he would.
On the other end, V said, "You're lucky. Usually, in situations like this, they'd kill you—my boss asked me to tell you that, unfortunately, you won't be getting any midnight snacks tonight, but you shouldn't miss tomorrow's."
The girl's terrified expression shifted to confusion. The invasive program took effect, her hormone levels plummeting, and the fatigue from overtime hit her all at once.
Darkness overtook her vision, but at least she heard there was a tomorrow.
"You're that good with tech?" V asked, surprised, as she laid the girl down and moved towards the computer.
Leo responded casually, "Just learned it."
"Not bad—found it, the 'Reality Distortion' project, classified as top secret? Alright, inputting the password… access granted, searching for readable files… found them, transmitting now."
"Zhu Shen, we got the data."
Zhu Shen, on the other end, quickly opened the files: "Hmm, the route… didn't expect her to change it. This route has never been used before.
Leaving from the western checkpoint—damn it, she's heading to Mexico City! We have to intercept the shipment in the Atlanta Wasteland… damn it, we're in trouble."
Zhu Shen's voice grew increasingly agitated, but as he reached the crucial information, he calmed down.
Leo rubbed his forehead.
"What's wrong?" V asked as she looked around, marveling at how much money these corporate types had.
"Looks like we can't rest for a minute. V, look outside."
She turned to look out the window, just in time to see two cars arriving at the park's entrance.
"You can't be serious…"
"Yep, that's our target. Get down here, we're starting the interception plan."
"Shit!" V cursed, "This is insane!"
With no time to celebrate their mission's success, V had to rush to the next battlefield.
"Knott, we found the route. We'll ambush them outside the checkpoint. I'll send you the location. Can you set up the ambush now?"
"Hmm, this place isn't close. You need it now? My people can't make it in time, but I can hold off APD and NetWatch for you at that location. You can handle it however you like."
"Deal." Hanging up the call, Leo told V, who had just gotten back into the car, "No backup. You'll have to take down the entire escort team and Cai Pin by yourself."
V froze—he was giving her another big job so soon?!
"You've got to be kidding me."
"Listen to me, the escort team is low-spec. Aside from the driver, there's just one shooter, one medic, one machine gunner, and two smart robots.
According to Zhu Shen, their level of cyberization won't be high. Kang Tao's employees have transparent salaries, and these soldiers assigned to important tasks have clear backgrounds—no side jobs, which means no powerful combat implants.
They're just equipped with standard body armor and smart weapons…"
"Stop, stop, stop. You trust him? He also said Kang Tao's transport trucks are made of paper! I need to be alive to spend the money, you know!"
"I know—I know, but V, don't you want to run with the big boys, make a lot of money, maybe even become a legend in The Afterlife?"
Leo paused, organizing his thoughts, and then looked seriously at V—the character he once played, the legend he once experienced.
"But do you know what a legend is? Getting crushed like a dog by Adam Smasher and then stamped out—that's not a legend.
A true legend only needs basic implants, a handy weapon, and a fire burning in their heart to blast through Arasaka Tower, slice that pile of shit Smasher into pieces, and burn Arasaka Tower to the ground—
Just imagine it, the corporate dogs scattering like rabbits, their eyes avoiding yours, Arasaka Tower's pinnacle engulfed in flames—
Shining like the sun! That's a legend!"
V was stunned.
The top of Arasaka Tower? Shining like the sun?
"You're joking, right? If someone were that badass… there's no way I wouldn't know, no way the world wouldn't know!"
"Exactly! Dying at the hands of some cyber-monster doesn't make you a legend. Look further, look beyond!
If you're too scared to take this on, you might as well find a factory job like those Atlantans."
Leo's words grew more intense, tinged with frustration, as if he were genuinely disappointed in V's lack of ambition.
V felt like Leo was describing her—the certainty in his voice was so strong, as if he'd seen it with his own eyes!
"You sound like a crazy cult leader, damn it! Fine, let's go!"
"That's the spirit! Zhu Shen, get ready to move!"
Leo floored the accelerator, and the car sped down the road, following the route of Kang Tao's convoy.