Eden Weitz made preparations before leaving the company.
His shirt was shock-absorbing bio-cotton, carbon fiber bulletproof vest, paired with special tactical modules and electromagnetic isolation layers.
Eden definitely had military experience, and in combat units.
When John was at Tiebang Logistics, the soldiers around really liked this kind of gear.
Flexible, professional, protective, and easy to upgrade.
Eden's pants were armored composite trousers, and his main combat weapon was a precision technology rifle.
[Weapon: Plato-MKU1]
[Module: Ultra-long-range sniping, Strong penetration]
This thing had a complex structure, was expensive, and rarely available in the market.
John had only seen it in catalogs and arms chips.
Before Eden walked out of the ground floor door, he suddenly grabbed John's shoulder: "Watch your head."
All the thugs around started to hide, their tactical coordination was professional, movements were crisp and efficient, then suddenly a stream of bullets penetrated the wall and shot into the corridor.
"Markados gang scumbags, two vehicle-mounted machine guns."
"Pursuers? Let's fight first."
...
Gunfire erupted around John in an instant.
He was classified as non-combatant, trailing behind, and then heard a rumbling above his head.
He looked up.
The police station's patrol drones were already scanning and recording, with remote megaphones urging innocent civilians to distance themselves from the gunfight.
Nearby, bullets were flying, and the enemy's firepower was also fierce.
Eden mounted the rifle on his arm.
The modified prosthetic limb was very powerful, and the recoil didn't cause the gun line to go off course, the shell casings clattering crisply on the ground.
He was using single-shot mode, with a strong rhythm.
Eden's system was also impressive.
He only needed to scan one enemy, and as the data spread, the remaining enemies would be exposed in the infrared lens.
The technical rifle fabricated by Plato was astonishingly powerful.
Its ultra-long-range sniping and penetration chips could target and output through walls at emerging red dots.
Outside, the enemies were steadily headshot and eliminated.
Military hovercars patrolled in the distance, their searchlights twisting at intersections, clearly exposing the enemies outside.
This was obviously siding with them.
John was convinced now, Harbor Company had connections to the police station!
Automatic machine guns on the second floor also began to fire.
They were equipped with smart chips, professional buffered turrets, dual-barrel magazines with a thousand rounds, and could even automatically lock onto enemies.
Metal shell casings fell on the ceiling like raindrops.
Whether in terms of firepower suppression or coordinated strikes, it was all explosive.
John only felt his head buzzing, meanwhile, their external talk channel transmitted a female voice.
It seemed to be the hacker in the team.
She had hacked into the opponents' prosthetic bodies, disrupted the infantry's infrared prosthetic eyes, causing overheating in the gangs' chips...
No wonder the big boss could uphold a company in the city.
Eden took out a group of thugs almost unscathed, just that the store needed renovation, and the pressure of the road fill could be handed to municipal services.
When John came out, the ground was covered in smoke.
Eden Weitz took him to Silver Rider, Mato had already been locked inside the company.
John held the handlebar and suddenly asked, "Can I pick a gun?"
Eden gave his permission.
John selected a kinetic energy rifle, a street heavy firepower, and among the most expensive in terms of purchase price.
[Weapon: Rongju Short-Nosed Crocodile K-1]
[Module: Basic armor-piercing, Physical damage boost]
John did want to go down and loot, but obviously, doing so might turn him into Eden's trophy.
He sat in the driver's seat and asked, "Where to?"
"My sister's cemetery."
"Alright."
John drove the sports car out of the city center, the cemetery was built at the northwestern edge of the suburbs.
[Eden City - Shanglang Road]
Away from the slums, yet not touching prosperity.
A towering monument could be seen from afar.
This place was originally a museum, destroyed in the war of the 2020s, the new city's cemetery arose from its ruins.
Compared to history, the deceased deserved their place.
The arched walls layered from inside to outside, each face crammed with urns.
Cold numbers, cramped spaces.
With high mortality rates in the Cyber Era, society doesn't encourage memorials, only certain families and sensitive individuals would hold commemorations.
The Silver Rider sports car parked by the roadside.
John couldn't help but ask, "Why bring me here?"
"I want to make sure you didn't lie to me."
Eden closed his eyes to rest.
Two cars followed and parked at a distance.
A black extended business vehicle.
A military iron-clad Borne.
All were employees of Harbor Company, here to protect their boss.
The steps were long and wide, leading to the circular monument.
Everywhere you looked was made of beautifully neat dark stones, without random graffiti, since settling the deceased also required money, those willing to spend it usually had high standards.
Eden Weitz didn't rush forward.
This tough guy bent down.
He washed his boots and the blood off his hands in the roadside puddle, then threw the bullet-riddled vest on the ground.
He tidied up his clothes and collar, adjusted his demeanor.
Eden's expression remained serious, with a hint of sorrow, then he gathered the courage to approach the corner grave number 331.
"There should be a bouquet too."
Eden clasped his hands, cold and emotionless.
"I will bring her back to the family and hold another funeral, family and friends will dress elegantly, reciting eulogies holding her relics, then place her soul in the garden's depths."
"Where is this custom from?"
"We come from the north, the Mafia Dynasty, the year after the war broke out, she followed a rock singer to Eden City..."
Eden Weitz didn't continue, after a brief pause, he spoke.
"I don't know why you helped her, nobody would kidnap Mato just for a missing person notice."
John felt like crying but didn't want to explain.
Eden didn't press, instead saying, "We will settle scores and declare war on the gangs, it's impossible for Mato alone to hide for two years, there must be a corpse collector helping him with aftermath."
"John, you can claim to be working for me, but don't approach the Nocturne Bar lightly, you can't afford the forces behind them."
[Hand over the relic to Eden. [Optional]]
John came to his senses, took out a blood-stained old hotel key card from his inner pocket, and handed it to Eden.
"Whether you believe it or not, this is my only clue, I don't qualify to attend your family's funeral, if it's not too much trouble, take it... and... my condolences."
Eden solemnly accepted it, didn't answer.
He suddenly stepped forward, pulled out the iron box number 331, and left the cemetery holding it with both hands, likely to organize the funeral he mentioned earlier.
The sky was already fully lit.
Sunlight pierced the gray sky, shining on every corner of Eden City.
The Silver Rider sports car was John's extra reward.
Eden said before leaving, "If you're short on money... at least you look quite impoverished... then you can work at Harbor Company, as long as you can prove your value, we'll have good things to offer you."
"What exactly do you mean?"
"Fighting chips, military equipment, and prosthetics."
"Damn, what kind of company are you?"
"Debt collectors, let's talk more when I'm back."
[New contact added - Eden Weitz]