We had an issue with the chapter release — by mistake I uploaded Chapter 341 when the next one should have been Chapter 351. Sorry for the confusion! It's now fixed, and once again, apologies for the mistake.
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"Whoa! You guys were insane up there—watching from the second floor had my creative juices flowing! You were so intense, like absolute madme
"Whoa! You guys were insane up there—watching from the second floor had my creative juices flowing! You were so intense, like absolute madmen—it reminded me of my wild days. Damn, that was awesome!"
To everyone's surprise, including Brown's crew, Kerry Eurodyne—who'd been watching the whole thing from upstairs—was thrilled. Not only did he show no anger over them blowing off part of his villa, he actually signed their contract on the spot once he confirmed the intruders had been completely eliminated. He officially hired Brown's team as his new private security detail.
Seeing Kerry so hyped—practically dancing with excitement—Karl couldn't help but mutter to himself:
No wonder this guy was in a band with Johnny Silverhand… must've caught a bit of the "explosives gene." Or maybe all these artsy types are wired like that…
With the deal sealed, Karl's job as the referral was done. Still high from the memory of that glorious RPG shot, he left North Oak feeling lightheaded with satisfaction. But as soon as he came back to his senses, he made a decision:
He wanted one of those big-ass booms for himself.
A proper "bubble"—something that hits hard and sounds loud. Sure, maybe he couldn't use it freely in the city, but next time he took a job from Dakota Smith out in the Badlands, he'd let one fly at the Maelstrom psychos. That would feel so damn good.
He was starting to get why Brown bought an RPG after their last mission.
Hell, being on the receiving end was one thing. But launching one yourself? That's a whole different kind of thrill. No wonder Maine had a launcher system implanted in his arm to fire micro-missiles. Blowing shit up just felt good.
While Karl was lost in thoughts of fiery destruction, a message popped up in the squad comms from V:
V: "Got something I could use a hand with. You guys free? I'm in Kabuki."
Today was technically a rest day for the team, since Karl was off handling Brown's referral. But V? V never rested. If the crew was off, he was picking up side gigs. And clearly, something had come up.
Karl was about to reply when the others beat him to it:
Jackie: "At Misty's. I can head out now." Oliver: "In Santo Domingo. I can be there in 30." T-Bug: "Patch me in. What's the job?"
Fast as ever.
Karl chimed in:
Karl: "Just wrapped up in North Oak. I'll grab a ride. What's going on, V?"
V: "Nothing major. Jackie, if you're with Misty, and Oliver's in SD, you two can chill. Keep doing your thing. Karl, if you're free, swing by. T-Bug—do you know anything about braindance tech?"
T-Bug: "Braindance? I know the basics. I can jack in and scan memories if needed. What's up?"
On V's end, he stared at the unconscious Scav lying in a pool of blood.
V: "Took a gig—five Scavs kidnapped someone. I killed four, left one alive to ask where they stashed the victim. But he freaked out, had a neural meltdown from pure fear. I asked Regina—she said we might be able to extract memories using braindance tech. So I figured I'd ask if you know how."
T-Bug: "Braindance interrogation? NCPD's good at that, not my specialty. Want me to try tracing the Scavs' movement patterns instead?"
V: "Nah, it's your day off. If you were already familiar with the tech, fine—but no point dragging you into it otherwise. I'll go find a braindance editor myself."
It wasn't that V felt bad asking for help on his solo gigs—if that were the case, he wouldn't have reached out at all. But if something wasn't simple or convenient for the team, he'd rather handle it solo.
T-Bug: "You sure? I could narrow the search area in ten minutes." V: "No worries. It's a good excuse to scout out the tech myself."
He added with a jab:
V: "Besides, we can't keep relying on Oliver to buy clean braindance. Dude keeps picking ones loaded with malware."
Oliver: "HEY. Not every one I buy's infected! It's just that lately, everyone embeds crap in them for no reason!"
Karl laughed, still in the cab:
Karl: "I'm interested too. I'll swing by. NCPD's tied up anyway—Johnson just got promoted, Andy's still settling in as precinct chief. Let's not bug them. Let's go find a proper editor and learn the ropes."
Jackie: "You guys trying to learn everything now?" Karl: "You jealous? Stay with Misty. Once V and I are done, we'll meet you at Vik's. Grab a bite too."
Karl flexed his arm—felt fine, but a regular check-up wouldn't hurt.
Jackie: "Alright, I'll wait for you guys. Oh, right—if you want to meet someone big in the BD scene, remember Lizzie's Bar? Head there. They've got one of the best braindance editors in the biz. Whether you're looking for skills or leads, that's the spot."
As Oliver muttered about Jackie also calling out his infected braindance habit, Karl and V confirmed they were en route.
Comms off.
V gave a flick of his wrist. His thermal katana flared—blood dripping from its edge, carving a scarlet arc onto the pavement.
He raised it, blade vertical, pressing the hilt into his elbow. With practiced ease, he wiped it clean using the fabric of his jacket sleeve.
Click.
The katana slid home.
He reached down, grabbing the limp Scav by the collar.
"Lizzie's Bar, huh?"
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🔥 Cyberpunk: The Relentless
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