The outlaw's heavy, hulking ride cut through the night like a panther in the dark.
Inside, fierce winds whipped through the cabin, rattling against V's sunglasses.
Heywood—Arthur's home—lay right on V's route back to Westbrook.
But the nights in these two places couldn't be more different.
It wasn't even that late, yet in Heywood's Little China the streets were already nearly empty.
And this night was anything but calm. Scavengers prowled for targets, and cyberpsychos from the north could appear at any moment.
The Maelstrom gang in the Northside Industrial District was infamous for spawning cyberpsychos.
They treated their bodies like ragged sacks, cramming in any Cyberware they could find—good or bad—without restraint.
Beside the H10 megabuilding was a parking garage. V pulled in, and the two of them took the elevator upstairs.
Naturally, the food for Jessica was already prepared.
Compared to V's luxury apartment, the battered door of Arthur's place looked miserably shabby.
Before their eyes could even adjust to the harsh lights inside, a small figure barreled into them.
Arthur sighed, lifting Jessica off him, then shot V an exasperated look.
"See? This brat spent every last eddie I had.
So now, clothes, food—everything's on you."
The suit Arthur wore alone had cost over seven thousand eddies, no small amount.
Meanwhile, V studied the little girl in his arms with curiosity.
Jessica had recovered her senses and noticed the unfamiliar woman at Arthur's side.
Strikingly beautiful, yes—but the sharpness in her eyes made her seem anything but gentle.
The girl blinked, then shrank back belatedly.
"Our new netrunner—aside from being a little timid, she doesn't seem to have any flaws."
V strode into the room without hesitation and dropped onto the sofa behind the coffee table.
"You're the first who's ever made me play chauffeur."
Arthur set the girl down, went to a frosted cabinet, and pulled out a clear bottle of liquor. The liquid inside sloshed lightly.
He'd never liked beer—the color, the foam clinging to the top, always reminded him of bad things.
Even after Arthur settled on the couch, Jessica lingered stiffly at the door.
"Looks like our little netrunner's shy."
V, fully relaxed now, grinned as she teased the girl.
So this woman who looked cold and commanding at first glance actually had a blunt, easygoing side?
She didn't seem hard to get along with at all.
"Are you... part of our crew?
I haven't seen you before."
Over the past few days at Vik's clinic, Jessica had been reinstalling all her Cyberware. In the process, Jackie, Rebecca, and David—the clinic's regulars—had already gotten to know her.
Even Lucy, who rarely left her place, had visited a few times to share Netrunning advice.
Clearly, Jessica was well liked in their little circle.
"She's not one of us," Arthur said with mockery.
"She's a corpo dog—or wait, I mean a corporate elite..."
"Fuck you, Arthur."
Before he could finish, V cut him off sharply.
"If it weren't for me, you'd still be eating dirt."
Arthur just shrugged and took a slow sip.
The easy mood helped Jessica loosen up. She took a few timid steps forward and sat down close to Arthur.
"Here's your food."
Seeing her settle, Arthur handed her the takeout he'd brought.
It had become routine—Jessica rarely went out, so Arthur usually fetched her meals.
This time, when she tasted the new dishes, her eyes lit up and she instinctively ate faster.
You got what you paid for, and V wasn't short on cash. She had, of course, picked a good place.
"This corpo elite's the real deal—dig in!"
Arthur grew unusually talkative after his first bite.
Meanwhile, V noticed the high-speed data port at the back of Jessica's neck and asked about it.
"Heard you went through a lot for this little netrunner. Let's hear it—maybe I can find something better."
"I don't know a damn thing about that.
Ask her yourself."
Arthur brushed it off, going back to his drink.
"Uncle Vik's got serious connections. Like... that NetWatch-grade netrunning pod? That's hard to get."
Jessica explained softly, but Arthur cut in.
"Just a scrap of metal, and it cost over a hundred thousand eddies.
Vik swore it was worth every cent."
He looked at V.
"So? Worth it or not?"
She didn't answer directly, only said coolly,
"All I can say is... you've got a good friend."
Arthur noticed Jessica's faint smile before she quickly hid it.
"Great..." he muttered.
"Guess you told a good joke.
Speaking of Cyberware—V, you've barely had any. Doesn't fit your image."
Arthur hadn't been here long, but he already knew how vital Cyberware was in this world.
V, on the other hand, didn't seem interested in using it to boost herself.
Otherwise, with her position, she could easily get Arasaka's most advanced tech.
"This is something every Corpo faces," V said, tightening her fist.
"When you work for the company, they run regular Cyberware inspections under the guise of security.
Whether it's personal or company-issued, they implant a stubborn monitoring program.
It burrows deep into the system, nearly impossible to remove, and can shut your implants down anytime."
Arthur gave her a long look, then said firmly,
"V, I've got a feeling you'll never make it to the top."
"Oh? And why's that?
I climbed to where I am in just six years."
At her age, she was considered a rising star.
Plenty of others had grown old and died in their positions, while her career rocketed ahead.
"Here's the thing... Without loading up on Cyberware, you'll never really be one of them.
To be blunt, they only want dogs.
They've got to chain you—body and mind."
V went silent. The truth was too obvious.
Jenkins, Abernathy—even those above them—had all hinted at the same thing.
In their eyes, cutting-edge tech always went to insiders first.
And V? She still wasn't truly one of them.
But she refused to give in and install that junk.
The reality was, she was trapped.
Moving forward looked bright, but the obstacles ahead were nearly impossible to overcome.
Turning back would mean everything she'd done was for nothing.
With a sigh, she sank into the sofa in silence.
In the end, she was just burying her head in the sand.
Arthur patted her shoulder, pulling her back.
"Any new insights, our great philosopher?"
V gave him a puzzled look.
"Maybe you should take this chance to visit Jackie—though who knows where that guy's wandering."
Arthur's raspy voice made V scowl.
"Visiting Jackie at this hour? You must've lost your damn mind."
"You know it's late, so go home and rest.
Don't tell me you'll be as free as us tomorrow."
In the end, the Corpo left with a bitter face.
And thinking of the damn work waiting tomorrow, V's expression darkened even more.