"Honestly, I still don't believe you don't have some ulterior motive, Leo. Those people were in such a bad state—don't take advantage of them," V said as they were driving back.
Leo rolled his eyes, "What kind of image do I have in your mind?"
"Let me think..." V recalled all the times she had encountered Leo, organizing her thoughts before speaking. "You're the kind of person where if you gave me money, I'd still feel like you could somehow con me out of my last pair of underwear."
Jackie, a bit confused, interjected, "Really? I think Leo's a good guy. Even though we made less money on this Red Ocher deal, I feel great about it—better than any job I've done before."
"You're so naive, Jackie. If this guy really wanted to help people, he'd have just given them the stuff for free," V said.
Leo sighed even more, "Alright, alright, you caught me. I just want to use the nomads' smuggling routes and make them work for me. Satisfied?"
"Now that sounds more like it... but I bet you have more plans than just that," V pressed.
"Enough, V. I think you're misunderstanding Leo," Jackie chimed in.
Leo was silent for a moment, but in truth, V wasn't entirely wrong about him.
"Actually... I do hope to influence their future decisions with this approach—I want them to cut ties with Biotechnica."
Jackie immediately quieted down, while V wore an expression that said, "I knew it," as she listened to Leo's explanation.
Money was essential—if Leo was right, the money was coming from Biotechnica's subsidies. Nomads are poor, and their chosen way of life ensures they don't earn much. Don't be fooled by Red Ocher's hundred or so members—two hundred thousand in cash is a huge sum for them, especially after dealing with illness for so long.
If they received free supplies, the money from Biotechnica could sustain them for a long time, and they wouldn't have any reason to fall out with the company. The experiment would continue, and Hector, who is somewhat of a compromiser, might even think about saving up to buy land someday.
But now, with no money left, Hector would have to demand more from Biotechnica. And Biotechnica isn't a charity.
Giving them guns might seem like a kind gesture, but Leo was certain Red Ocher would inevitably clash with Biotechnica. If they couldn't survive the first wave of conflict, his investment would be wasted.
"In reality, if things continue, the hundred or so people in Red Ocher will be wiped out. They need to survive—barely survive.
Without money, Hector will have to ask Biotechnica for more, and Biotechnica will likely think: Who do you think you are? Then, by arming the family, I ensure that once they recover, they can protect themselves and remember they once survived by raiding corporations.
Once both sides are hardened and demands increase, conflict will erupt.
When they tear up the contract with Biotechnica, they'll naturally become more closely aligned with me.
I trust Hector and Navi, but I don't know everyone in Red Ocher. An external threat will help unite them initially.
But helping them and wanting them on my side aren't mutually exclusive. I'm just making them see the truth—Biotechnica is already killing them.
Getting others to align with your interests is the basics of politics—you two should learn that too."
To achieve this goal, any means—deception, persuasion, threats, or brute force—could be justified.
Of course, there were other reasons and benefits, but explaining every detail would be too lengthy and complicated. V and Jackie didn't need to know all the intricacies.
This conversation suddenly reminded V of the first time she met Leo.
"Politics? That's a dirty game..." V said, suddenly recalling their encounter in Atlanta. "Wait a minute, are you saying that back in Atlanta, you used these same tactics on me?"
"Of course not," Leo replied with a deadpan expression. "I could tell at a glance you were the type to pull a knife over a few hundred euros, so I just threw out a few casual lines."
The comms channel fell silent.
"Nice work—28 Saratogas, 19 Ajax rifles, 40 crates of ammo, and 20 sets of body armor. Quite the haul, Leo," said Padre, reviewing the spoils.
This job had indeed been very lucrative.
People always say arms dealing is profitable, but what's the most profitable type of arms deal?
Obviously, it's the arms you steal... or pick up off your competitors after taking them out.
At a friend's discount, Saratogas went for 1,200 each, Ajax rifles for 2,300, a crate of ammo for 1,200 euros, and level-three body armor for 1,200 a piece.
Total, rounded down, came to 150,000 euros.
After the Padre finished counting, he paid the sum. This price was about 30% below market value, but it was still quite the bargain for arming the Valentinos.
The Padre did give Leo a curious look, though—this kid had a big lump on his forehead.
Quite the odd injury to come from a gunfight.
"And did you offload your gun yet?" the Padre asked.
"Not yet. Rosanna has to wait too. There's a plague in Santo Domingo, and her network is sick. Other nomads aren't keen on going into the city either. I plan to swing by The Manufactory for another look."
"That takes guts—the Sixth Street Gang is furious. Santo Domingo is crawling with their people now."
"I'll manage. By the way, Padre, here's a free tip, though you might already know: The Sixth Street Gang has been bringing in a lot of goods lately—there might be some other military-grade tech in there, so be careful."
"I'll take care. If there's nothing else, I'll be going. Good luck, kid."
Adding the previous 200,000 euros, the total was 350,000. Each person got a little over 110,000 euros.
Leo: "Money's split—110,000 euros each."
Jackie: "Damn, brother! We hit the jackpot! I need to share this with Misty..."
V: "Cyberware maintenance in progress."
With everything sorted, Leo turned and walked into Misty's Tarot shop—V was planning to install a Mantis Blade, and Jackie was inside showing off his new gun to Misty.
Honestly, he couldn't understand what was so exciting about guns.
Leo found a place to sit down—
He needed to send the lizard data to Professor Connors and check on Skye's progress.
Leo inserted the shard into his personal slot.
[New implant detected: Shard: Lesser Antilles Lizard Biomodeling]
[Weight: 10g]
[Tech Points -10]
[Item successfully bound across dimensions.]
In another world, the shard appeared in the slot at the back of Leo's neck.
Fortunately, simply copying the contents of the shard wasn't too complex and didn't require any more Tech Points.
[You spent time uploading the biomodeling data to the database and sent it to Professor Connors.]
[You entered the workshop, where Skye had already fallen asleep, dark circles under her eyes, clearly from working late.]
[You sat down at the office computer to check the progress.]
[NYPD Public Safety Project progress: 33%]
[First milestone payment reached, NYPD's first project payment: $300,000 has been credited.]
[ctOS system development progress: Skye is working on the big data algorithm you left behind and is trying to use data from the internet and the transportation grid to build an AI.]
[Anthony has submitted the design to the chip foundry as requested, and they are still evaluating it.]
Leo thought for a moment and then copied another piece of information from his brain—
This was traffic data from Bradbury Street and Brandon Street—in 2077, if you wanted to enjoy city traffic management, you had to connect to the traffic network.
This was also why Leo could call a car to crash into the Sixth Street Gang members—by hacking into the traffic network, he could hack cars.
But with ctOS, he could do more than just control a nearby car; he could summon a heavy-duty truck.
Controlling the road network would have numerous benefits during a high-speed chase and gunfight on Night City's streets.
Not just Bradbury Street, but also Woodhaven Street—Leo had hacked that traffic subnet while dealing with Lamar's Armory.
By using complex algorithms to control traffic flow over a larger area, it might come in handy soon.
[Tech Points -10]
[Current Tech Points: 300]
It seemed everything was going smoothly in the other world—Leo thought for a moment, then decided to check on his mom.
[Your mother is cooking at home. She has quit her job as a caregiver to take care of you.]
[Pending tasks: Your family's outstanding debt is still $320,000.]
So this is American healthcare—stay in the hospital for two years, sell your house, and still owe $320,000.
To think that Maya sold the house at just the right time, during the last housing market peak.
Classic America.
But come to think of it, the ICU he stayed in during his previous life was even more extravagant, though it was wartime care, so at least it was covered.
Let's pay off $100,000 first—otherwise, the pressure on Mom might be too much.
It was a huge sum—$320,000—but he was lucky enough to have so many people willing to help his family.
As Leo was thinking about this, Jackie suddenly called out:
"Hey, Leo, do you want to try Misty's mysterious Tarot reading?"