In the evening, Jax and everyone else left Lizzies Bar.
Gloria and David were left at Lizzies. While Lizzies wasn't exactly a safe place, for two unarmed people like Gloria and David, it certainly had ample security, didn't it?
"What's next?"
In the car loaned by Susie Q, Maine drove, asking Jax, who was sitting in the back.
"I say, how about we go to my place for a couple of drinks? Since you're back, we definitely have to drink until we drop. Let's call Dorio, Rebecca, and Kiwi – the booze is on me!" Jackie, sitting in the passenger seat, said cheerfully.
How to put it? With Jax back, Jackie felt like he had a backbone again. After everyone left, he was alone in Night City, truly no different from a punching bag. Now that everyone was back, Jackie naturally had ideas.
No one wants to give me jobs? No one treats me like a person?
Damn it, you bunch of dog-fucking Fixers, try it now!
"Hmm... let's go drink at Afterlife. We can also see Rogue," Jax said after a moment's thought. He continued with a smile, "Rogue called me, asking when I'd visit her. It seems she also has something to tell us."
"Alright, then let's go to Afterlife. Notify Kiwi and the others; we'll head over now." Maine nodded.
Sasha called Dorio, and Jax sent Rogue a text message, telling her he would be there soon.
The distance between Lizzies and Afterlife was too short. Driving there would only take a few streets, less than twenty minutes.
Afterlife was packed at night. Claire stood behind the bar, somewhat bored, listening to radio music.
Not far away, another group of mercenaries started arguing again. A month ago, Bone, that guy, led most of Afterlife's regulars out, proclaiming they would resist corporate tyranny. In reality, he just led people to block the NCPD on the road.
To be honest... Claire didn't really think they helped Jax. Although, subjectively, Bone definitely wanted to help Jax, his method was too foolish, and he didn't have the ability.
Oppose the corporation? Heh... He was chased by the cops for several days because of that incident and was quiet for a few weeks.
And now, with the heat gone, that bastard started making trouble again.
Smashing a fist forcefully on a small iron table, the guy known as Bone on the street, whose real name was Kerry Libston, yelled, red-faced, "It's because of you bastards that people like Johnny and Jax sacrificed themselves for nothing!"
"Shut up, Kerry, you're in your damn thirties! Resistance? Ideals? Is that what you're supposed to be talking about? Did you earn enough for tonight's hotel? I mean, you haven't been able to make a sale in a long time, have you?"
"Fuck you, Mabrick!" Bone raised his middle finger at the guy in the distance, grumbling, "You can be indifferent, but you can't kick someone when they're down! Why can't you even understand such a simple truth?"
"Resisting corporations, who does that help? It helps us, the people exploited by corporations, who have no way out!
But what about you? You bastards! Not only do you not answer the call, but you also mock his choices behind his back. Is he someone you can mock?"
"Bang!" Not far from Bone, a table was overturned. A man with an iron jaw and spider-web-like tattoos covering his neck stood up, saying unhappily, "You worship him as an idol yourself, don't fucking assume everyone else is as stupid as you."
"Just an arrogant kid. Resisting corporations? In the end, he only killed an insignificant corporate dog. You're in your thirties, and you worship a kid who hasn't even grown all his hair. Kerry, you're really becoming more and more promising as you get older!"
"Lec is right. What Jax did was all talk and no action. Look, he didn't change anything. Night City is still Night City, Arasaka is still Arasaka, but he's already gone." Someone said with a laugh.
Someone else agreed, nodding, "That's right. In a month, besides us in this circle, how many ordinary people remember what he did? This world is just like this. Compared to watching a cyberpsycho kill a corporate executive, they're more interested in entertainment gossip shows."
"You, you fucking!" Bone stood up angrily, confronting the group.
His few companions also stood up, supporting Bone.
Standing his ground, staring at those people, Bone's heart was filled with rage.
Did he admire Jax?
Of course, he did.
Just like the stories about Johnny Silverhand he heard from his father when he was a child, he seemed to have no resistance to people who rebelled against corporations.
Coupled with his own experiences, Bone had absolutely no good feelings towards corporations. Damn it, who the hell would have good feelings towards corporations besides corporate dogs?
His home was destroyed by corporations, his relatives were harmed by corporations, and he himself was now a "bottom-dweller" because of corporations.
Living day by day on alcohol, working hard for money, just getting by in Night City.
Such days continued until the news one day. Watching and listening to the young man's words spoken in front of the whole world, Bone's ash-grey, withered heart was ignited, and an indescribable tingling sensation emerged from his spine, reaching his brain.
He couldn't resist corporations because he was just an ordinary mercenary, but... that young man could.
Bone liked punk music. He had several Samurai band albums in his car. When he used to have a home, he even put up band posters, but like most people, Bone didn't really know what punk was.
Exaggerated clothes, crude language, ear piercings, tattoos, shouting and yelling at the top of his lungs – was that... punk?
It seemed so.
However, Bone's understanding changed that day.
The black-haired young man conversed with a corporate dog on 54 News, expressing his punk spirit in his words.
Punk: It is a spirit that expresses self-resistance against social constraints, not to change society but to transcend society, a spirit that resonates.
Ultimately, everyone's punk can be different. The most important thing is that it is truly what one desires, what one most wants to express.
But his will was not inherited by everyone. In the first few days, many people still supported Jax, believing him to be a symbol of anti-corporation and capable of becoming their leader.
And on Night City's city-wide net, there were also various posts writing about Jax's story.
Some were true, some were fabricated, and some were calls for everyone to unite.
If Edgerunners truly united, then... this power would be ignored by no one.
Like Rogue, she held absolute sway in Night City's underworld. Was it because of a massive gang system?
No, Rogue had no connection with the major gangs.
Rogue relied on mercenaries, but even Rogue wouldn't claim to control more than half of Night City's mercenaries.
"What? Upset? Do you want to fight me?"
Mabrick rolled up his sleeves, revealing half of a thick, silver bionic arm. That metal prosthesis was graffitied with various bizarre and terrifying small patterns.
"Fight then, I'm not afraid of you, you fucking!" Bone immediately shouted.
Claire, at the bar, sighed at the sight, tapping the bar with her finger. She said:
"Hey, if you want to fight, take it outside. This is Afterlife. If you break anything, you'll pay with your lives."
"Come on, Bone, get out!"
"Mabrick, teach him a good lesson!"
"I bet Mabrick wins. Bone hasn't had his cyberware repaired in a while; who knows, he might really fall apart if he fights Mabrick."
"Haha, I bet two hundred euros."
"Five hundred here!"
"I bet three hundred, betting Mabrick can take care of Bone in three minutes!"
Seeing that a fight was really about to break out, Afterlife suddenly became lively.
Everyone was a mercenary. Far from resisting such sudden events, they couldn't welcome them fast enough!
Those still drinking at Afterlife at this hour were mercenaries waiting for Fixers to assign jobs, here to pass the time.
Now that there was an impromptu show to watch, how could they not watch?
Bone reached for the small knife tucked into his waistband, pulled it out, and walked towards Mabrick.
Mabrick sneered.
The reason he was picking a fight with Bone at this time was that he still remembered what happened a month ago.
At that time, Bone called on everyone in Afterlife to help, and he refused, which led to Bone mocking him, making him an outcast, a lone wolf. But what was the outcome later?
The result was that the few guys who led the charge were all hunted by the cops for disturbing Night City's order and obstructing the NCPD.
Several were caught and sent to jail, while others hid for a period.
Night City… forget a month, even if you don't show up for just a week, people on the street will start to forget you, marginalize you, and isolate you.
So, now the tables have turned. Back then, Bone had more people on his side, but now… clearly, more people are on my side.
"Come on, let's see if I don't rip your arm off!" Mabrick walked up to Bone, looked down at the scrawny guy, and sneered.
Bone rolled his eyes at this, looking at Mabrick with his crimson cybernetic eye, and sneered:
"Don't you dare just talk, actually show your dad. I'm telling you, Mabrick, if I could suppress you before, it's the same now."
"Fuck you, you're just relying on having started earlier. Old guys like you should die already and make way for the young." Mabrick said with disdain, "The average age of a mercenary is around thirty. I'll make sure you die tonight, don't you dare drag down that statistic."
Exchanging taunts, the two walked towards the densest part of the crowd, preparing for a deathmatch in the open area outside the Afterlife.
But as they walked to the front, the crowd didn't disperse. The outermost group of people weren't paying attention to Mabrick and Bone's dispute; instead… they seemed to be shocked by something?
"Damn it! Move aside! Are you all fucking dead?!" Mabrick yelled impatiently.
Bone, on the other hand, had a cold expression, thinking about how he would deal with Mabrick, that bastard, quickly.
Pushing hard through the crowd, Mabrick squeezed in, reaching the door of the Afterlife, where the crowds on both sides parted.
The Afterlife's bodyguard, Emmerick, was guarding its door as usual. At the Afterlife, guests came and went, but Emmerick was a constant.
You could always see that guy standing guard at the Afterlife's entrance in the evening.
He always wore a grim expression, never smiling at anyone, as if everyone who came to the Afterlife owed him money.
But now, Emmerick's expression surprised and shocked both Mabrick and Bone.
What… is going on?
Damn, Emmerick actually smiled like a blooming chrysanthemum? That guy can smile?!
At this moment, another group of people followed into the Afterlife.
Emmerick opened the door, stood to the side with his hands clasped in front of his abdomen, like a hostess in a high-end hotel, with a friendly smile on his face.
He spoke to the group entering the Afterlife, addressing the leader: "Rogue has been waiting for you for a long time. Come, she's right there, I'll have someone lead…"
Jax, who had just entered the Afterlife, looked at Emmerick and said suspiciously, "That's not right, why has your attitude become so good?"
"You must be joking…" Emmerick's smile stiffened, then he looked at Jax somewhat awkwardly.
"Alright, don't you really know why his attitude is so good?"
Maine, standing nearby, put an arm around Jax's shoulder and laughed heartily:
"We did such a big thing, and now we can return to Night City safe and sound. Jax, don't look at Emmerick's big size and think he's brainless; in fact, he's very sharp!"
"That's right, Emmerick greets all kinds of people who come to the Afterlife every day. Among them are corporate agents, famous Fixers, and high-ranking mercenaries. In short, when it comes to assessing a situation, he's definitely one of the best in Night City."
Dorio said with a smile, following behind.
Jax nodded, extending his hand to shake Emmerick's. Jax had a good impression of this big, goofy guy he saw every day in the game.
But as Jax's hand extended, Emmerick proactively bent down, tilting his body slightly so his shoulder touched his hand.
Jax: "…"
"Please." Emmerick looked up, smiling.
He wasn't stupid, truly. To guard the Afterlife's door, he had to stop and refuse many people every day. Some were big figures, some were riff-raff, and Emmerick distinguished them himself.
And doing such a job that easily offended people, he had still managed to live well until now, not only because of Rogue's protection but also because Emmerick himself had a way of dealing with people.
Therefore, Jax… Emmerick knew too well this guy's future status.
Mercenary?
No… this guy would most likely become Rogue's partner in the future! How could someone like him be content to just be Rogue's subordinate?
Jax and the others entered the Afterlife. Jackie puffed out his chest. He was already big, but with his chest puffed out now, the sight was truly magnificent.
It actually made several girls feel a bit self-conscious.
What is a bursting chest?
This is what you call Jackie's bursting chest!
His chest was so prominent it could practically be placed on a table!
The crowd dispersed, making a path. Jax walked through, receiving the attention of the Afterlife's mercenaries.
Jax also heard many discussions, but they were all rather insipid conversations.
Anyway… they were mostly about the shock and disbelief that Jax and Maine's crew had managed to return.
"Hey, Claire." Behind Jax, Sasha waved at Claire, greeting her.
Seeing Jax and the others, Claire was also very surprised, but then she smiled and said loudly: "Welcome… back. What would you like to drink today?"
Jax said, "Let's drink later. We're going to see Rogue first."
"Alright, we'll have a good chat later." Claire wasn't surprised, nodding with a smile.
"This way!" A fat black man appeared, shouting loudly.
It was Little Snake. He chuckled, patting his big belly, and said to Jax: "You're truly amazing. Before, I thought we were about even, but now I see you're much more impressive than me. Come on, Rogue has been waiting for you for quite some time."
Following Little Snake, Jax and his group entered Rogue's private booth, a place Rogue used specifically for business. Without Rogue's permission, no one could enter.
After all… Little Snake was the guard of this room. The amount of chrome on his body was even higher than Rebecca's currently, so his combat power was naturally self-evident.
After all… in the game, when fighting Adam Smasher, this guy was also one of the main forces.
What? Why use Rebecca as an example?
That's because Rebecca is currently the person with the highest amount of chrome in Maine's crew…
Do you understand the concept of a l*li tank with meaty legs?
Claire took two bottles of liquor to the bar counter, preparing to personally bring them to Rogue's private booth. For business… alcohol was definitely essential.
And when she looked up, seeing the stunned group of people, especially Mabrick and Bone in the crowd.
The expressions on their faces were poles apart. Mabrick's face flushed then paled, and a hint of fear flashed in his eyes. His large physique was now cowering, and if there wasn't a solid floor, he would have truly burrowed into it.
And Bone?
His face was also flushed, his eyes filled with excitement. Bone's spine straightened, and his tall, thin figure seemed to grow a few inches, excitedly following Jax's retreating figure with his gaze.
"Alright, are you two still fighting? If not, sit down quietly, don't block the doorway." Claire sighed, speaking proactively.
As soon as she said this, Mabrick and those who had previously mocked Bone all left the Afterlife.
They were scared.
Truly scared!
Maine's crew was already quite famous. The incidents of killing Fixers and Nightwalkers in the Badlands had made this crew popular in the circuit; everyone knew how powerful this crew was.
And the Japantown incident directly confirmed it…
These people are truly powerful!
Fewer than ten people, yet they killed hundreds of Tyger Claws, destroyed half a street belonging to the Tyger Claws, and even killed Arasaka executives and Arasaka agents.
How could one not be afraid of such people?
Claire watched Mabrick and the others squeeze through the crowd and exit the Afterlife, a sarcastic sneer appearing on her lips.
"Heh…"
Rolling her eyes, Claire said nothing, because it was meaningless.
Because there were simply too many people like Mabrick. If she disliked every one of them, Claire would be wearing a sour face all day long.
She was in the service industry; what kind of bastards hadn't she seen?
However… her gaze fell on the closed door next to the Afterlife's restroom, and Claire's lips curved slightly. "Truly… a massive change."
"In such a short time, fame and prestige, heh… I truly wonder what he will grow into in the future."
Claire looked at the door, thinking quietly.