"Braindance? What's that?"
After finishing their meal, on the way to check out an apartment, Kai became curious about this term that Oliver and Jackie kept mentioning.
"Is it something like PokéXmon?"
"What are you even talking about? Braindance is just Braindance!"
Oliver knew Kai was unfamiliar with many things, so he took the time to explain. Thanks to Oliver's explanation, Kai roughly understood what Braindance was.
In simple terms, it was a kind of VR experience that recorded a person's sensory input and converted it into digital format. When played back, it directly stimulated the viewer's nervous system, allowing them to experience everything the recorder felt—pain, pleasure, and all. The playback ensured that the viewer's experience was identical to the original recorder's.
It was the most popular form of entertainment in this era, and Braindance headsets were as common in households as smartphones were in Kai's previous world.
"Sounds interesting. I'd like to try it."
That was Kai's reaction to Braindance.
"Alright, let's find a store selling Braindance headsets on the way and get you one to try out."
Jackie and Oliver were already used to Kai's ignorance of common things, almost like a sheltered noble lady seeing the world for the first time. Since he was interested, they immediately changed course toward a Braindance store.
A personal-use, head-mounted Braindance headset wasn't expensive—just 1,000 eddies for a brand-new one, and it even came with a few of the latest popular Braindance recordings.
"'Make My Heart Race,' 'Soul of Light,' 'Gate of Sword Bay'… Why are they all games?"
Oliver wanted to pick something good for Kai, but after checking the selection, he found that all the included titles were game-related.
"Probably because game-based Braindances don't sell well, so they throw them in as freebies. They're popular, sure, but in Night City, they're probably less exciting than just taking a walk outside."
Jackie glanced at the other Braindances on the store's shelves. "I think 'The Old Man and the Sea' looks pretty good."
"Hemingway's 'The Old Man and the Sea'?"
Kai's question made Jackie a little excited. "You read Hemingway too?"
"Isn't it a classic?"
"A classic?"
Oliver scratched his head. He seemed to be the only one among them who had no idea what The Old Man and the Sea was about. "What's it about?"
"To put it simply, it's the story of an old man fishing."
Kai's summary was concise.
"Fishing? The sea around Night City is practically toxic by now. I don't think I'd feel immersed in that."
Oliver had initially been curious about this classic Braindance, but after hearing it was about fishing, he lost interest.
"The theme isn't really about fishing, though."
Kai picked up The Old Man and the Sea Braindance, which cost 50 eddies. He was genuinely curious about how a literary classic would be adapted into a Braindance experience.
Then—
"What are those?"
Kai pointed to a section in the corner of the store, where the shelves looked like they were stained with blackened blood.
"Those Braindances?"
Oliver glanced at them and explained, "Those are the ones with explicit violence and adult content."
"How violent?"
"Well, if they're sold openly in a store like this, they're not full-on black-market Braindances. The level of violence is probably around 'bullets tearing through chests and guts.'"
"Tearing through chests?"
Kai walked over and examined the titles. One caught his eye—My Years in Trauma Team. The description revealed it was a serialized Braindance chronicling the recorder's experiences as a Trauma Team operative. Keywords included "emergency," "gunfights," and "gang warfare."
Interesting.
Kai checked the price. These were more expensive than regular ones, but still affordable at 70 eddies per episode. That was about the cost of 20 meals for an average Watson District resident.
With over 40,000 eddies on hand, Kai could afford to splurge. He decided to buy My Years in Trauma Team—all three episodes. Buying the full series at once got him a 10-eddie discount, making the total 200 eddies.
In addition, Kai picked up A Mercenary's Battle Records, The Champion's Journey, and The Samurai's Final Path. These weren't bundled but were cheaper than the series, totaling 180 eddies.
"You're buying that many at once, Kai?"
Seeing Kai spend 1,430 eddies in one go, Oliver was amazed. Back in the day, even buying a single naughty Braindance had made him hesitate, yet Kai just casually grabbed six extreme ones.
"You guys said Braindances let you fully experience what the recorder felt, right? I want to test something."
Kai wasn't just curious about 2075's cutting-edge entertainment. He wanted to see if he could retain the sensory memories from Braindances. If he could, these recordings would be like one-on-one training sessions. That's why he picked up ones covering medicine, firearms, boxing, and swordsmanship.
"Test something?"
Jackie blinked, not quite understanding Kai's intent. But he didn't overthink it—since he had some extra cash, he grabbed a few Braindances he had been eyeing as well.
With Kai, Jackie, and Oliver all making purchases, today was a big sales day for the store owner. However, his joy was short-lived.
Suddenly, the store's front door was kicked open.
Three masked men, faces hidden under black hoods, stormed in, each wielding a Lexington pistol. The moment they entered, they raised their guns at everyone inside.
"Nobody move! This is a robbery!"
'Wow, now this is Night City.'
With a gun pointed at him, Kai knew he could take them out instantly. But there was still some risk, and if they were only here to steal money, he didn't really lose anything. So, he raised his hands to show he wouldn't resist.
Oliver and Jackie exchanged glances and cooperatively raised their hands as well. They had no intention of escalating the situation.
The robbery was quick. The three gunmen weren't interested in hurting anyone—they only wanted money. The store owner, nearly in tears, obediently handed over all the cash in the register, roughly 700 eddies.
He was only thankful that he hadn't completed Kai's transaction yet, and that there wasn't much cash in the store. Otherwise, the loss would have been much worse.
Along with the money, the robbers grabbed a few game-based Braindances. They didn't take the more expensive headsets, since those had ID-locked serial codes that required expert tampering—something common thugs like them couldn't manage.
Fearing the NCPD's arrival, they made their getaway quickly. The whole ordeal lasted barely two minutes. After securing their loot, they rushed out the door, leaving the store owner in distress.
"Those bastards! I'm calling the NCPD and getting them all thrown in jail!"
Cursing, the store owner sighed and was about to return to his customers when—
Gunshots.
The distinct crack of a Lexington—one Kai knew all too well.
The store's door, which had just closed, was violently kicked open again.
A mangled corpse tumbled inside. Judging by the ruined mask, it was one of the robbers.
"Looks like something's going down."
Ah, Night City.
With a sigh, Kai exchanged a knowing look with Oliver and Jackie.
In perfect unison, they all drew their guns.