Brown watched Delatis's chest rise and fall as he breathed heavily. His face shifted between pale and livid—clearly enraged. Then, fury surged through him, and he suddenly stood up.
"Do you have any idea what kind of terms you're offering?!"
"Of course. This is our boss's final offer. If you refuse… then your only remaining path is bankruptcy and liquidation. I hope you think carefully."
Delatis smiled calmly, looking absolutely confident. Brown felt his blood pressure spike. But the truth was unavoidable—he had no leverage.
"I want to speak with Roland!"
"Our boss is very busy. He doesn't have time to meet you. You only need to negotiate with me."
"You—!"
Brown nearly choked on sheer anger. After a moment of controlled breathing, he stared at Delatis with resentment.
"I used to stand on equal ground with him. And now he won't even look me in the eye?"
Delatis simply offered a polite smile. Seeing that, Brown sagged into his chair in defeat. After a moment of internal struggle, as if making a final decision, he extended his hand.
Delatis, pleased at last, broke into a genuine smile and handed him the contract.
In the end, Roland acquired Brown's remaining shares for just one million.
Immediately afterward, personnel and robots from PROJECT Corporation moved into the former Luvena Tech facilities with impressive speed.
Negotiations followed, leading to newly signed agreements with Luvena Tech's previous clients.
Roland also requested additional security robots and Night Owl units from Lissandra to strengthen PROJECT's security division.
Once Luvena Tech's operations were settled, he ordered his researchers to analyze their R&D data, looking for useful technologies.
At the same time, he handed them the Campbell Type II Defense Robot blueprints and prototype. In the PROJECT world, this model was one of the older generations—long discontinued. In the Cyberpunk world, only parts of its design stood out, and some materials were still decent.
Roland's instruction was simple: upgrade and modernize it until it was suitable for mass production. He even provided a Night Owl robot as a reference.
The implication was obvious—study its technology.
And he didn't bother hiding any of this from the spies hidden among the staff. After all, no truly elite researcher would be assigned to such low-level espionage.
Besides, the Night Owl's internal security had multiple layers, and even Roland himself didn't know its core technology. He only had the finished blueprints. He could replicate it, yes—but understanding the underlying principles?
Not a chance.
Thus, he never intended for them to crack the Night Owl or merge it directly with the Campbell Type II. That would be impossible anyway—the Night Owl was countless generations of evolution beyond the Campbell series.
If these spies actually managed to uncover how to build a Night Owl robot…
No. Then they wouldn't ever be allowed to leave.
They'd be working for him permanently.
...
After settling the company's affairs, Roland suddenly remembered something he had done quite a while ago. Enough time had passed—he wondered how things were on that end.
"Tina, clear my schedule today. I'm heading to the Lizzie Bar."
"The Lizzie Bar?"
Tina paused in surprise and looked at him curiously.
"What? Judging by your reaction, you've heard of it."
"Well… sort of. The owner once invited us to join The Mox. But back then we were already working with White, so we turned her down."
Tina explained, nodding.
"I see. Ah—almost forgot to tell you. The leader of The Mox, Elizabeth, works under me. So if you ever need help, you can reach out to her directly."
"I understand."
Tina nodded again, eyes widening slightly in surprise. She clearly hadn't expected someone like Elizabeth to be a PROJECT person.
"Mr. Roland, someone from Kang Tao has arrived. They wish to discuss something with you."
Suddenly, Lissandra's voice echoed in Roland's mind, and the message instantly raised his suspicions.
Since coming to Night City, he'd had barely any dealings with Kang Tao. Their sudden visit was… unusual.
"Kang Tao will be here soon. Prepare to receive them. Have them sent directly to the conference room."
Roland ended his mental exchange with Lissandra and addressed Tina.
Tina blinked in confusion—she was the secretary, yet Roland somehow knew about the incoming visitors before she did…
But then she remembered his reaction earlier, and the things Kiwi had said.
"So Kiwi wasn't lying… there really is a ridiculously strong netrunner in this company…"
She muttered to herself and headed out to make preparations.
Truthfully, she'd suspected that for a while. PROJECT Corporation's Firewall was ridiculously strong. Not on Arasaka's level, of course, but solid enough to take a beating.
And that inferiority was intentional—Roland knew that showing too much capability before achieving true power was dangerous.
So he only instructed Lissandra to strengthen and conceal the company's most critical files. From Roland's understanding of the Cyberpunk world, there was no one who could breach Lissandra's defenses.
Maybe Alt could? Roland doubted it. She was the supreme authority on source code in the PROJECT universe.
Not to mention… Alt couldn't even enter this world. She could only wander beyond the Blackwall—perhaps even ruling everything on the other side?
Hmm… whether it was her or Bartmoss, Roland wasn't entirely sure.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser