[TN:sorry for late chapter stay up last night getting shit faced]
The term "dragon" refers to highly dangerous rogue AIs, while "dragon hunters" are netrunners from the old network era specializing in combating such AIs.
The avatar of a dragon hunter is that of a warrior with a headband, their muscles well-defined and seemingly offering no visible protection.
If one were to consider it, perhaps their only "protection" is the sheer hardness of their muscles.
As for weapons, it seems they'll retrieve them from their holsters when needed.
Most of Leo's cyber persona was left fragmented after the disappearance of the small octopus. The black wall's attack affects not only the cyberspace but also cripples the hardware hosting the target.
This left Leo struggling to catch his breath.
A nearly disabled cyber persona stood face-to-face with a battle-hardened cyber warrior.
"You are...?"
"Netwatch Inspector, specializing in AI management. Currently on vacation, only handling AIs within the wall. The thing that attacked you—how are you feeling?"
"That was an AI? From Arasaka?"
"Correct. What, don't the rookie netrunners know about the Arasaka horror stories anymore? Haven't you heard of the Soulkiller?"
"Soulkiller, Phantom Gun, Ghost Slayer, Mind Hacker... there are so many legends about the net. If I believed every single one, I'd just go find a factory job instead."
"Haha, fair enough. But you still haven't told me—what was it like being attacked by that thing?"
The dragon hunter seemed oddly chatty, quite different from the silent, nerve-damaged warriors Leo had imagined who'd spent years battling AIs.
Leo thought for a moment and said, "I can tell you, but you have to tell me what you did to me and what's going on."
"These two pieces of information aren't equivalent. I'll only tell you this: when Arasaka launched its attack on you, I cut off their data flow and saved your life to some extent."
Not a word about the black wall.
So, Leo replied, "Terrifying. I felt like I was losing myself. If help had come a second later, I think I would've been done for."
"Ah, a disoriented type, huh? That's indeed dangerous. If it had been even a second later, that AI's similarity index with you would've skyrocketed, and the black—"
The black wall would have executed Leo along with the AI.
The dragon hunter closed his mouth. "Never mind, I'll stop talking. Bryce will handle your compensation. I'm out of here.
"Though I'm glad you're not an AI—saves me from working overtime.
"Lastly, Arasaka, out of frustration, has sent some people—not their best, but not bad either. You'd better get moving.
"They probably didn't expect you to still be alive."
With that, his cyber persona disintegrated, the blue data streams falling into the surrounding space as uncontrolled raw data.
In Britain, an old, frail man disconnected his link. A robot brought him pure water.
With trembling hands and feet, he struggled to consume the water.
A mechanical voice rang out: "Detected worsening neural damage. Initiate tube feeding?"
"Get lost!" the man mumbled, repeating the word over and over, "Get lost."
After drinking, he reclined in his chair, gazing at the room's lights, his mind replaying the battle with Arasaka.
Overtime would've been better.
"Ha!!"
Leo felt as though he were lying in boiling water!
Jackie and V were pouring water into the cooling tank, the scorching liquid overflowing onto the floor.
Seeing Leo gasp for air like someone drowning, V quickly pulled him out.
"Shit—you're finally awake! We thought you were gonna cook in there!"
Leo wanted to wipe his face but found his hands immobile.
His spinal implant was damaged, and worse, the Sandevistan chip was fried. Without a driver, it couldn't function at all.
Previously, this would've meant paralysis, but not anymore.
The tech reserves were already sufficient.
"I won't get cooked. I checked the coolant specs. It just looks scary. Job's done, time to leave."
V pulled Leo out of the cooling tank and onto a chair. "What's wrong with you?"
"My spinal implant's bricked. Needs fixing. Arasaka might send people after us."
[Bryce: Burger King, you still alive?]
[Leo: Disappointed I'm not dead?]
[Bryce: Great! Listen, Arasaka sent a ninja squad. I can track their position.]
[Bryce: A riot response team is also en route!]
[Bryce: Follow my escape route.]
[Leo: Nope. I'm walking out the front door today.]
[Bryce: What?]
[Leo: Why so formal? Call me boss. I'm annoyed.]
[Leo: Cover my retreat and send me the ninja's signal frequencies. I'll need them.]
[Bryce: You can't crack their ICE right now. I'm not taking on Arasaka directly.]
[Leo: Don't worry about that. Just do as I say.]
"How are we getting out? We still have to deal with Arasaka?" Jackie and V asked in unison.
Yeah, they still had to deal with Arasaka's ninjas.
Direct electronic confrontation was impossible now. Bryce wasn't willing to take on Arasaka directly either—the network at the H8 Megabuilding had already collapsed.
The only option left was the traditional way: physically take them out.
Leo's cybernetics began to flicker as they synced with data from the Marvel world.
In cyberspace, Leo had anticipated something might go wrong and had backed up his entire software suite in another dimension ahead of time.
This move had a side effect: Little Octopus now fully possessed all data related to the Sandevistan chip.
[Little Octopus: Boss! I almost peed myself just now!!!]
[TN: You alive thanks the gods]
[TN: Also should I keep Big Brother or boss]
[Leo: I told you, it's fine. Can you reinstall the driver?]
[Little Octopus: Boss, your spinal structure is amazing. I'm really comfortable here, but without the chip, I can only barely help you move.]
[Little Octopus: Boss, I actually found a chip in the database earlier that would be perfect for a similar driver. I can rewrite it myself!]
[Leo: You want to rewrite the driver yourself? Are you sure?]
[Little Octopus: I feel like I'm perfect for controlling neural components. Let me give it a shot! (*)]
[Little Octopus: Plus, I feel… I feel like Mom's spinal implants would also suit me well.]
[Leo: Mom? Who are you talking about? V?]
[Little Octopus: Yep, yep.]
[Leo: You're calling me Boss and her Mom?]
[Little Octopus: I just learned it from the Cloudtop database.]
[Leo: What nonsense. From now on, just call her V. Get ready.]
Leo leaned back in his chair, glancing at the Cloudtop facility's administrators nearby.
Woodman and Maiko lay slumped beside their chairs. Both had been connected during the deep dive and were similarly affected by the cyber battle.
A scan showed Woodman's brain was already mostly brain-dead. Maiko had also suffered severe neural trauma—though her condition was slightly better, it was still critical.
[TN: Looks like Woodman died lmao]
"Grab the pneumatic injector from my case and wake her up."
Jackie rummaged through Leo's case and found the specified injector. One shot later, Maiko's eyes shot open in terror!
Just before losing consciousness, she had caught a glimpse of the battle in cyberspace.
As someone untrained in hacking, she couldn't comprehend anything that had happened in the cyber domain. Experiencing such an incomprehensible event right upon connecting nearly shattered her cognitive system.
Maiko collapsed to the ground, trembling like a child who had stumbled into the mountains and seen an indescribable monster.
She opened her mouth.
"Uh... sdssm... I need help... 助けてください… I…"
Only fragmented noise and disjointed syllables escaped her lips.
Paralyzed by fear, Maiko looked up at Leo, who was leaning in his chair. Her gaze held a mixture of dread and reverence, as though she were staring at a deity.
Leo sighed inwardly.
This is the essence of the cyberpunk world. Even someone like Maiko, a high-ranking manager of an elite club, was helpless without knowledge or skills. Her role was merely to sell her body and manage those who did the same.
Even in seeking help, she directed her pleas in the wrong direction. The neural damage she suffered wasn't caused by Leo—not intentionally, at least. She had simply been collateral damage.
Still, her cognitive abilities seemed intact.
Leo slowly raised his head. "Fetch all your dolls and their stored chips."
Maiko scrambled away on all fours.
[Bryce: What the hell are you up to?]
[Leo: Just provide cover when I ask for it.]
Leo looked over at V. "Come here. I'll unlock the Kerenzikov for you and let you test a new plugin."