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"You all stay at the positions I assigned. The moment I move, I'll notify you to throw the grenades."
Three minutes later, Arthur Vale had already gathered additional computing power.
Across Night City, dozens of compromised devices—abandoned terminals, unsecured kiosks, weak personal cyberdecks—quietly joined his hidden network. Digital "zombies," unknowingly lending their processing strength.
A faint smile appeared on Arthur's lips.
Using rogue AIs to kill.
That was the real art of netrunning.
---
Inside the factory hall, Will Hanson was counting stacks of cash.
Several cloaked Voodoo Boys stood nearby, watching carefully.
They didn't trust credit chips. Too easy to inject viruses. Too easy to trace.
Cash only.
Upfront.
"Throw the grenades."
Arthur's voice echoed inside everyone's neural link.
At the same moment—
Arthur unleashed a massive data spike directly into Will Hanson's neural interface.
The attack wasn't a simple quickhack.
It was a full-force neural overload.
David didn't fully understand cyberpunk combat yet. He only knew the throwing trajectory Arthur had preloaded into his mind. All he had to do was follow the invisible markers.
Pull the pin.
Count half a second.
Throw.
That was it.
The next instant—
Dozens of blue pulses flashed inside the hall.
Will Hanson's cyberware sparked violently.
Then—
BOOM.
It was like his head had been hit by an invisible anti-material rifle.
Bone fragments and blood sprayed across the concrete floor.
His body dropped lifelessly.
The Voodoo Boys netrunner reacted instantly, attempting to disconnect.
Too late.
Three EMP grenades detonated simultaneously.
High-risk military contraband.
Illegal even by Night City standards.
A violent electromagnetic pulse flooded the hall.
Cyberware systems collapsed.
Optics flickered out.
Neural links fried.
The Voodoo Boys netrunner stiffened mid-step, blue arcs dancing across his cybernetic eyes before he collapsed unconscious.
Bain and the others threw more grenades.
The factory echoed with successive EMP bursts.
For a few seconds, time felt stretched.
Then—
Arthur's voice returned calmly.
"Bain. Go in. Finish it."
---
By the time David stepped inside, the factory looked like a battlefield.
Machinery overturned.
Sparks crackling.
Bodies scattered across the floor.
A few surviving 6th Street members staggered out from deeper inside the building, weapons shaking in their hands.
They saw Will Hanson's body.
Their faces turned pale.
"Will's dead…"
"Was it the Valentinos?!"
Only three of them had avoided the EMP's full impact.
Bain grinned.
He nudged David.
"Watch carefully. Safety off."
David's fingers trembled as he flipped the safety switch.
"BOOM!"
Bain fired first.
One ganger's head exploded instantly.
David froze for half a second.
The other two tried to raise their weapons—
They didn't get the chance.
Gunfire erupted.
One was torn apart by bullets.
The last one staggered, disoriented.
Bain grabbed David's wrist, adjusted his aim.
"Now."
David pulled the trigger.
The recoil jolted through his arms.
The bullet pierced the man's skull.
Blood splashed across David's jacket and face.
Silence followed.
David stood there, breathing hard.
So this… is what being a merc is like.
---
Arthur monitored the internal signals.
Every neural interface inside the 6th Street network had gone dark.
All hostile signals eliminated.
Then—
A system notification chimed in his mind.
"Special Mission Completed: Redemption from Destiny Church."
"Eliminated 6th Street unit led by Will Hanson. 36/36."
"Talent Acquired: Mechanical Insight – Optimization."
Arthur lit a cigarette calmly.
Mechanical Insight – Optimization.
When involved in mechanical creation, chance to gain additional inspiration and upgrade improvements.
He exhaled smoke slowly.
Infinite inspiration? Interesting.
---
Bain's voice came through the comm channel.
"Arthur, we found the target's cage. What about the others?"
Arthur paused briefly.
"Don't open the other cages yet. Tell them they're dead."
Silence.
"Clear the battlefield first. Load everything. After we leave, we'll call NCPD anonymously."
Practical.
Cold.
Efficient.
---
Once cleanup was complete, Dorothy drove the rescued target to Old Captain to close the contract.
They seized four vehicles as spoils: one cargo truck and three off-road SUVs.
There was too much ammo and weaponry for a single trip.
They would return later.
Bain dragged three corpses to Arthur's van.
David followed behind, pale and hollow-eyed.
He had already thrown up once behind a rusted machine.
But Bain was grinning like a kid on Christmas.
"Arthur! Guess what I found?"
He opened a metal case.
Inside were three cybernetic spinal units.
"Sandevistans!"
Arthur rolled his eyes.
"If you want one, I'll install it tonight."
Bain's eyes lit up.
"Really?!"
"Ask the others too. With me here, cyberpsychosis won't be your problem."
That sentence wasn't arrogance.
It was confidence.
---
On the ride back, Bain drove.
Arthur sat in the back with David.
David stared blankly ahead.
The world felt unreal.
Arthur smirked.
"Want me to drop you home? Or you coming to Puff Bar with us? We fought together now."
David didn't know what to say.
Arthur waved a hand.
"Drop him at H4 Skyscraper first. He needs a shower before his mom sees him."
Then Arthur leaned closer.
"When you can beat Little Bain in a fistfight, I'll give you a gift."
David blinked.
"A… gift?"
Arthur smiled mysteriously.
"If I tell you, it won't be a surprise."
He paused.
"And start coming to Puff Bar after school. Everything you want is there."
David didn't respond.
But something in his eyes had changed.
---
Later that night.
Back at the workshop.
Bain could barely sit still.
Arthur dismantled Will Hanson's Sandevistan carefully.
Then activated his new Mechanical Insight ability.
Product data appeared clearly in his mind.
Neural Terminal Accelerator – Sandevistan
Model: Militech Peregrine Mk.II
Durability: 48%
Effect: Neural response acceleration with 62% time-dilation perception.
An early generation model.
Old.
But still deadly.
Even after decades, Militech engineering held strong.
Bain lay on the operating chair.
"Don't screw it up," he joked nervously.
Arthur injected anesthetic.
The surgery was precise.
Clean.
Professional.
Within thirty minutes—
The Sandevistan was fully installed.
Bain lay still for a moment.
Then his eyes snapped open.
"Whoa…"
He activated it instinctively.
The world slowed.
Air particles seemed visible.
Dust floating like suspended stars.
Arthur's cigarette ember moved like drifting lava.
Everything was crystal clear.
Everything was slow.
Bain laughed in disbelief.
"This is insane…"
He deactivated it, breathing hard.
"Arthur… this is insane!"
Arthur leaned against the table.
"Get used to it. Don't overuse it. Let your nervous system adapt."
Bain clenched his fists.
With this cyberware—
He was no longer just another street merc.
He was fast.
Deadly.
Special.
And Arthur Vale stood there quietly, smoke curling around him.
In Night City, power wasn't about dreams.
It was about upgrades.
And tonight—
They had just taken another step ahead.