After Jorel left, Roland boarded the AV and returned home. Once inside, his expression turned noticeably heavier.
If he truly managed to secure a partnership with Night Corp, then he could consider leaving Night City for a while—perhaps heading to Southern California, or even farther north in Northern California, to seek new opportunities.
With Night Corp backing him and with Lissandra on his side, he could keep "Jhin" inside the company as a remote-operable identity…
The thought made a sharp light flash through Roland's eyes.
Yes—this was an opportunity. A once-in-a-lifetime one. A glint of ambition followed in his gaze.
Under his influence, a key councilman who had been blocking Myers from advancing the Unification War had died in Night City. This meant the timeline for the war would inevitably be moved forward. According to Kuroda, at least by a full year.
Which also meant Roland only had one year to carve out his share.
Within that year, he needed to seize everything he could, securing leverage for the storm that was fast approaching.
Among Night City's current city council members, Lucius Lane had already begun to stir. Clearly, he had sensed the unusual shifts as well and wanted to profit from them.
For Roland, the situation was clear: Southern California would ultimately side with the New United States, while Northern California would resist. And the influence of major corporations like Militech in the northern cities was nowhere near that of Night City.
That made the Northern California government the perfect partner. They didn't want the New United States stepping onto their turf, nor did they want Militech to keep holding the reins over Night City's authority.
Because if Militech continued controlling Night City, the wars to come would only grow more unpredictable.
"Lissandra, book me a flight to Agas City in Northern California."
(Not a real-world location—fictional.)
"I understand."
"Oh, and don't book it under my name."
Roland added that after a pause. He had no desire to invite trouble the moment he left Night City.
As for why he chose Agas City… it was relatively close to Night City, but far enough to make things a bit awkward. Positioned northwest of Night City, it was surrounded by several well-developed cities. Its own growth, however, was hindered by geography.
The western coast near the bay was blocked by mountains, preventing expansion. To the east was a major, highly developed city with better transportation and closer proximity to Night City.
As a result, logistics never flowed through Agas City, leaving it lagging behind and mostly ignored.
After settling everything on his end, Roland messaged Kiwi and the others, telling them he'd be away for a while. He instructed them not to expose themselves and arranged for Jhin to stay in the company, relaying messages on his behalf.
While he was gone, Jhin would act as the company's boss.
Once all preparations were complete, Roland stepped onto the balcony. Staring at the brilliantly lit metropolis before him, he drifted into a daze.
Since arriving in this world, he had barely stopped moving—accomplishing things he would've never dared dream of in his previous life.
Lost in thought, he touched the tip of his nose, then glanced toward the City Center.
He didn't know what the future would look like, but he knew one thing: he wanted to leave his mark here, and make sure this world remembered his name.
"When I return to Night City, I'll give everyone here a huge surprise…"
With that, Roland clenched his fist and went back inside. Tomorrow, after signing the contract with the Night Corp representative arranged by Jorel and settling the factory situation, he would leave Night City for a while.
...
Roland adeptly signed his name on the reviewed contract and stamped his identity authentication. Once the files were sealed, he felt significantly more at ease.
"Mr. Vimers, we'd like you to first provide a batch of lower-cost intelligent security robots. Not your company's high-end models—the more basic ones."
"You mean the Campbell II model?"
Roland glanced at the Night Corp representative. Kay raised an eyebrow.
"Exactly, that one."
Kay pointed to a Campbell II unit standing near the entrance, serving as security.
"Of course, no problem. I'm just curious—how many do you need?"
"Roughly two hundred units to start."
Roland blinked. The number wasn't large, but it did make him wonder what they planned to do with them.
"As for pricing, we'll follow the contract." Kay smiled.
"Then if I may ask—what exactly are these robots for?"
"We're planning to reassign a portion of our officers into the Campbell II program for testing."
Kay smiled as he gathered the documents on the table.
Hearing that, Roland's expression turned strange. If he remembered correctly, the NCPD currently used Kang Tao's security and police robots…
Which meant… he had stolen Kang Tao's business again?
For heaven's sake. Roland insisted it really wasn't intentional. All he could offer was an apology.
The Campbell II intelligent security robot did outperform Kang Tao's current products—though that was mostly because Kang Tao leaned heavily toward the low-end market.
Still, there was no denying that the Campbell II offered a lower price and superior cost efficiency.
Standing nearly two meters tall, with a frame proportional to its height, the unit featured alloy armor in black, white, and orange-yellow. Its head resembled a fully enclosed Western knight's helmet. Its hands were four-fingered, and the main components of its body were covered entirely by alloy plating.
Mounted on its thighs were holsters typically holding PROJECT Corporation's new Rod III Power Weapon—a powerful and comparatively expensive kinetic firearm (expensive relative to other Power Weapons).
Both arms were equipped with arm blades, and each unit carried a medical kit for emergencies—sold separately, of course.
Additional equipment included shoulder-mounted searchlights and micro-cameras. Its alloy armor was strong enough to withstand everything short of heavy firepower.
Unless your luck was terrible.
Anything else trying to breach its defenses would pay a steep price.
Regardless, Night Corp's decision was nothing but beneficial for Roland.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
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