"News Channel 54 brings you a breaking story."
"This evening, the Huangshan Seaside was attacked by a cyberpsychosis patient. The now 36-year-old Woolly Crowley opened fire on the Arasaka Company."
"The shooting lasted a full minute, taking down 7 floating cars. The attacker brought down 7 floating cars in total, causing casualties among Arasaka employees, 3 of whom died on the spot."
"Reliable sources indicate that Warehouse No. 15 at Huangshan Seaside was also breached in the attack, raising concerns about cargo safety."
"After the battle, California Street was destroyed. While the Arasaka Company defended its property, it faced questions about whether it used excessive force."
"Inside information suggests that the implants used by the cyberpsychosis patient were custom-made by Arasaka. So speculate that this might be the cause of the outbreak."
"The employees were ordered back to work within 30 minutes, but the Arasaka Company has yet to propose compensation for them or the Night City Municipal Governnt."
"Notably, Deputy Mayor Hot was at the scene during the attack and was unfortunately hit by a grenade. He is now undergoing treatnt at a hospital."
An entire street had been blown to pieces.
This was likely the most brazen act of cyberpsychosis in recent years in Night City. The battle not only demolished an entire street but also took down several Arasaka floating cars, with even more losses in chas and combat personnel.
A total of 6 Arasaka employees died—
Which was quite significant, considering company employees rarely die, and large-scale bombings make death even less likely. In this case, 3 of the deceased were crushed by Arasaka’s blast-proof doors.
The floating cars primarily suffered damage without being directly shot down, so overall, it seed like much ado about nothing.
Yet, the destruction of the warehouse was a major blow to the company.
Thanks to the power of the automatic grenade launcher, Woolly’s rear guard action was successful enough that Arasaka lost interest in pursuing.
The Mackinaw drove into the church located in Haywood.
This was the Father’s regular haunt.
Many street kids sought refuge here. Thanks to the Father’s presence, no locals would dare follow them in to commit murder.
There was a basketball court and open space at the back, where Valentino kids sotis hung out.
But today, it was deserted.
V and Jack stood at the entrance. Once the Mackinaw and Columbus Freight entered, they closed the doors—
Today’s incident was too significant; the church was no longer safe to keep open.
Once the cars were parked, V leaned against the rear window and, seeing a disheveled Lille, mocked him rcilessly, "Enjoy sneaking around? Almost got yourself killed, huh?"
Lille gave her a helpless glance.
This ti, he hadn’t intended to sneak around. Who could have predicted Kaneke would turn into a special cyberpsychosis patient?
Woolly Crowley’s combat capability was beyond imagination. That kind of weapon was a top-tier battlefield support. In the right hands, its destructive power was imasurable.
What was supposed to be a simple intel-gathering mission nearly turned into a frontal clash with Arasaka.
Unending surprises.
"Didn’t expect things to go this sideways," Lille said as he got out of the car, signaling for Mann and the others to carry the unconscious Kaneke inside.
V put a hand on Lille’s shoulder, pointing at Kaneke and said, "And who is this?"
"Was hoping to get so answers from him, but by the ti we arrived, he had already turned cyberpsychosis—
first ambushing Trauma Team colleagues, then hijacking a floating car, and finally charging into Huangshan Seaside to hunt his nesis..."
"You’ve got such rotten luck,"
"Yeah..."
Lille suddenly paused—
Though startling, the whole thing seed oddly coherent.
If anything, one part didn’t add up: Why did Kaneke head straight for Huangshan Seaside after hijacking a car and just happen to encounter his nesis?
It seed too coincidental, and if you leaned into conspiracy theories, Deputy Mayor Hot being there and ending up in the hospital made it even fishier.
Lille had only removed the remote control module from Woolly’s prosthetics, letting him fully succumb to cyberpsychosis, putting Hot in the hospital purely by accident.
But on further thought, Lille had been inside Woolly’s system at the ti and didn’t detect any signs of external control directing Woolly to attack Hot.
The specifics were shrouded in mystery as Lille had left in a hurry and had no idea how Hot ended up in the hospital.
"What’s up?" V asked, noticing Lille’s sudden contemplative halt.
"Just feels odd... let’s head inside."
The group locked all the surrounding doors and hung "No Entry" signs, then followed the Father into the church.
...
[To: Regina]
[Burger King: I saved Kaneke, but there’s nothing I can do about the other one. All the Arasaka people showed up.]
[Regina: Alright, I know you did your best.]
[Regina: I looked into Kaneke’s file. He’s a rcenary turned legit, and so rumors suggest he’s quite sothing; also, his girlfriend’s na is Nadia Nevis, a high achiever who introduced Kaneke to Trauma Team.]
[Regina: Nadia’s university research focused on cyberpsychosis, which might be linked to their experiences.]
[Regina: I’m sure you have questions for him, but our client is pushing hard. They’ll probably show up in 30 minutes. Be ready.]
[Regina: And don’t say I told you.]
Lille actually didn’t have many questions left, but he noticed an interesting detail: Kaneke had the sa Si Anweisitan as V.
So, with ti to kill, he started collecting cyber implant operating data on the spot—
However, Little Octopus suggested Lille carry out the data retrieval while Kaneke was conscious.
This would require applying specific stimuli to him.
The stimuli involved inducing mories.
"...My dear Nadia and I first t on the battlefield. I killed their mber, and they showed up afterward."
"At that ti, I thought I’d never make it back for the reward, as my intestines were blown out. But she stopped to bandage ."
"I got a second chance at life."
Only Lille and Kaneke were in the room.
His eyes were vacant, as if sleep-talking.
Data cables ran directly from his spine and the Si Anweisitan, capturing all the information.
"On another mission, I again killed the target before them. Coincidentally, she showed up again."
"I wasn’t as battered this ti, and I didn’t recognize her. She rembered and, unlike before, accused of always killing."
"I told her I did it for money."
"Strangely, I thought about her every day after that."
"The third ti... I nearly killed their client again, but this ti I didn’t finish the target before they arrived."
Kaneke’s empty eyes suddenly lit up, and he laughed.
"I had no grudge against the target, but I must thank him. It was the first ti Nadia asked for a favor, to spare the target."
"Honestly, I worked as a rcenary just for money. I didn’t care who hired ."
"So I told her: Of course, but you better hire next ti, or I won’t be so accommodating."
"Eventually, I beca a Trauma Team employee, her colleague."
"Ever since eting her, I wondered about her life, thoughts, and what kind of person she was..."
"That was the beginning of the second Chapter of my life."
"After that, I saved 259 people without failing once."
"Except for that one ti, I couldn’t save her. I saved a damn scumbag instead."
Kaneke’s tone grew intense, his voice deepening.
"Before starting that second Chapter, I took on 23 jobs, killed 34 people, and never failed."
He slowly turned his head. His unfocused gaze finally sharpened.
He looked at Lille with a yearning expression, his words slow and halting, as if he had a speech impedint.
"Is—he—dead?"
Lille nodded.
Kaneke seed to snap out of a slow-motion trance, half relieved and half in pain, closing his eyes.
"I know you have questions. Ask quickly."
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