"...It's just transporting some goods, from point A to point B. It needs to be fast and discreet. Are you interested?"
Before Berry could speak, the smiling man in the suit in front of her began to introduce the commission on his own.
"Not going through a Fixer and directly looking for someone to do the job? That's not according to the rules."
Berry crossed her arms, looking contemptuously at the guy in front of her.
The underground rules of Night City were all bought with countless lives. Although she herself didn't really follow the rules, she also didn't trust those who didn't.
She didn't follow the rules because she had the system. Others who didn't follow the rules were mostly just idiots.
For example, the last guy who tried to bypass the Fixer and assign a job directly is still lying in Viktor's Clinic.
"Hey, why let those vampires earn all the money? You do the job for me, and the full payment goes into your account. How great is that?"
The man in the suit patted his chest, full of confidence.
"Besides, I've heard about your reputation, Berry. You're a Mercenary on the street who's ruthless and doesn't talk much. I trust a Mercenary like you to get things done, so I don't need to bother finding a Fixer."
Hearing this, Berry nodded. It seemed he had done his research beforehand, so he wasn't a fool. She could listen to the commission.
Although Berry's main income now came from knock-off cyberware, she couldn't abandon her old profession as a Mercenary. She still couldn't become a completely non-producing class, where her assets would skyrocket just by sitting on a bench.
"The job is simple. Go to the seaside in Kabuki, find a refrigerator with 'No Future' written on it. The goods are inside. Call me after you get them, and I'll tell you how to deliver them. It's that simple."
Berry's brow furrowed as she listened to the suit man's description.
This job sounded vaguely familiar to her.
That's right!
She suddenly remembered.
This commission, wasn't it from the game?
"Time to Save," she had almost forgotten about it.
It was only when she heard about finding a refrigerator that she had a faint impression.
This commission was called "Japan's Finest," and it was about rescuing a famous brain surgeon. That doctor was also a tough guy; as a doctor, he used the opportunity of performing surgery on the Tyger Claws Boss in Japan to "accidentally" kill him. He was quite the hero.
As the saying goes, a hero cherishes a hero. Berry immediately decided to take the job when she thought of this.
This damn world needed more people with backbone like him to be interesting.
"Okay, I'll take this job. Don't worry."
Berry patted her flat chest, making a thumping sound, looking like a paragon of righteousness. It was like Song Gongming, the Righteous Black Sanlang of Shandong in ancient times, and now there was Bai Rui, the Benevolent and Timely Rain of Night City. The horizontal inscription: Acting on behalf of heaven.
After seeing off the man in the suit, the righteous Berry turned to Judy.
"Hey Judy, you were eavesdropping when we were talking, weren't you?"
"What, eavesdropping? I was listening openly, alright?"
Judy rolled her eyes slightly.
Now that her filter for Berry, the savior of her best friend's life, was gone, she realized she was just an eccentric and unreliable person.
Although Judy liked to be with such people in bed, in life, she'd rather not.
No matter how pretty she was, it wouldn't work.
Looking at Berry's pretty little face, Judy encouraged herself to stand firm.
"I say, your apartment is in Kabuki, right? Kikyo will go on this mission, and you can give her a hand as a driver. You know the way there."
However, looking at Judy's small face, Berry felt it was just right to exploit her a bit.
"Hey, I'm not a Mercenary. Why should I go on your mission?"
Judy crossed her arms, expressing her objection. Why should she go?
No.
An hour later.
On the way to Kabuki, Judy drove her small van with a dark expression, and Kikyo sat in the passenger seat.
She finally agreed.
Just as her head was steaming from the spicy hotpot.
She used to only know that drinking caused problems, but she never expected that eating hotpot could trip her up if she wasn't careful. Judy stated that Night City had too many tricks, and she was still too young.
However... Judy looked at the silent Kikyo beside her, momentarily unsure what to say.
Judy said she could never figure out this strange, beautiful woman. Even after using her gaydar, all she got was the conclusion that the other person was definitely a top, and nothing else of value.
"Once Evelyn wakes up, what are you planning to do next?"
Judy didn't speak, but Kikyo spoke first.
Berry, who was driving back to Viktor's Clinic, was also very curious.
In the game, Judy chose to help the sex dolls of Clouds gain independence after Evelyn died, but no matter what, she found that reality's development was too tragic, and disheartened, she began to think about leaving Night City.
That is, if she got together with female V, otherwise she would leave Night City.
But even if she temporarily stayed in Night City because of her relationship with female V, Judy's goal simply became to leave Night City with female V when the time was right.
If female V ultimately chose the "Sun" ending to become the King of the City, Judy would still choose to leave V and Night City.
In other words, Judy would choose to leave Night City no matter what.
She truly hated this city that devoured people's hearts.
"Later? I think I'll have finished the work I promised you, and then I'll leave Night City with Evelyn."
Kikyo asked, and Judy thought for a while before answering.
Berry understood.
It seemed this Judy was indeed eager to leave.
If Evelyn were still alive, she wouldn't even plan to help the sex dolls of Clouds, intending to leave directly.
But, that's not bad either.
Berry thought to herself.
If she chose not to team up with the Hive but to leave with Evelyn, Berry said she didn't care.
After all, she was one of the characters she valued in the game.
She still wanted them to choose their own future.
Kabuki was a good place, bustling with lights and prosperity.
But precisely because of the hustle and bustle, too many people gathered there. Poor residents with no place to live built shacks and corrugated iron houses on the coast. As more and more gathered, it became a slum.
Just like any slum, it was full of arcade machines, discarded syringes everywhere, and goddamn gang members.
This place was protected by the Tyger Claws.
After all, it was understandable that gangs wouldn't miss any opportunity to squeeze money from residents; even in a slum, they would thoroughly exploit it.
Judy's car stopped at the intersection.
Passing through a few small shops along the street, down the iron frame was the slum, and the goods were there.
"I'll go get the stuff. You keep an eye out in the car. Don't cut the video feed. If more gang members show up, call me."
After a simple instruction, Kikyo got out of the car.
Wearing sunglasses and hands in her pockets, she walked towards the trash-filled slum.
The corrugated iron houses rose and fell, illuminated by the evening sun, making them sparkle like a glowing garbage dump—dirty, smelly, but somehow possessing a strange beauty.
Ragged addicts, beggars, gamblers playing pinball machines, groups of children with painted faces running past occasionally, and groups of Tyger Claws chatting together.
Passing through various crowds, Kikyo dared not be careless. The cargo she was transporting this time was a living person.
And this person had also taken the head of the Tyger Claws Boss.
Although Kikyo had maintained a very low profile and didn't want to cause trouble, trouble still found her.
Berry had overlooked one point: Kikyo's appearance was not suitable for a civilian slum surrounded by gang members.
Despite wearing sunglasses, just seeing her exposed clean chin and sexy lips made some Tyger Claws who glanced her way stare wide-eyed.
And finally, as Kikyo tried to bypass the corrugated iron house at the corner and walk straight down the iron staircase, an accident occurred.
"Hey, pretty lady, don't walk so fast, come play with us."
In front of a corrugated iron house covered in exaggerated graffiti and small advertisements, three Tyger Claws who were originally drinking got riled up seeing Kikyo pass by. One of them reached out to grab Kikyo.
Although Kikyo dodged the lecherous hand, the three men didn't give up. Instead, they surrounded Kikyo with lewd smiles, uttering constant obscenities.
"Hey, we have good drugs here, guaranteed to make you ecstatic!"
"Yeah, and we'll pay~"
Don't be surprised to see this scene; this is just Night City, according to the Tyger Claws.
The upper echelons of the Tyger Claws dressed in suits and acted like businessmen, but the vast majority of lower-class thugs were ruthless, committing arson, murder, and robbery, their heinous acts rivaling those of Maelstrom and the Scavengers.
Now, it was just coercing a woman, which was a minor matter among minor matters.
"Get lost."
But Berry's response to this was to give these blind fools a head-on blow.
She clearly wanted to resolve it discreetly, but they were practically taunting her, and she felt an itch to do something.
"Heh heh, quite stubborn, aren't you!"
But when Kikyo spoke coldly, the three Tyger Claws laughed wildly. After their laughter, their extremely fake smiles also disappeared.
"If you don't want to get hurt, just be honest. Cooperate a little, and it'll be over soon. If you're not honest, I'll carve up your pretty little face!"
Finally, the ugly true faces of the gang members were exposed.
The Tyger Claws sneered, pulling out knives and threatening Kikyo to come inside with them.
Their practiced movements suggested this wasn't their first time.
And when Berry saw this scene, she sentenced them to death.
This time, they ran into a brick wall with us, but who knows how many people suffered at the hands of the Tyger Claws before?
At this moment, Kikyo, who was confronting the Tyger Claws, suddenly smiled.
The cool beauty's face bloomed into a smile, looking incredibly captivating.
The three Tyger Claws looked at each other and smirked, thinking their threat had worked. One of them reached out to grab Kikyo's arm.
But the next second, Kikyo grabbed his hand instead.
"Uh... ah!!!"
Before the Tyger Claw could even wonder, a sharp scream suddenly erupted. The woman had yanked his hand, sending a searing pain through him, and his arm dangled, clearly dislocated.
"You motherfucker!!!"
The two Tyger Claws nearby, holding knives, saw their brother get hurt. Forgetting about the beauty, they angrily swung their knives to stab Kikyo's abdomen.
If it were an ordinary person, they would likely have perished, but Kikyo was no ordinary person.
With her fingers clenched, Kikyo's lightning-fast punch struck a Tyger Claw's face, and he collapsed in pain.
As for the second person who swung a knife, Kikyo flipped over to dodge the blade, her hair flying, then followed up with an elbow strike to the opponent's eye socket. With a 'thud,' the person crumpled to the ground without even a scream.
However, with the three dealt with, the entire slum was alerted.
"Someone's attacking!"
"Kill that woman!"
Kikyo shrugged helplessly, looking at the Tyger Claws rushing out from between the corrugated iron shacks.
I originally wanted to resolve this discreetly, but since you're doing this, then I apologize.
I'm going to kill every last one of you!
Kikyo's eyes narrowed, and with a flick of her wrist, she grasped the pulled-out red monowire in both hands.
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