This time, it really looked like the bidding war had begun.
A bid, after all—even in this day and age—was still the capital market, emphasizing free competition. You couldn't just invite everyone to tea, kick out the people from Kaimabida, and declare the winner predetermined.
That was the greatest difficulty of the Holy Grail bidding war task.
The Company wasn't just up against the last Holy Grail winner!
They were facing the entirety of the heavens, every single player interested in the Grail!
And some of those bidding factions might not even care about the Grail itself—they were just there to drive up the price, test new weapons systems, show off a bit, and then force other bidders to cut deals to "buy them out of the competition."
That's why some subsidiaries could burn through 1.4 quadrillion over ten years and still not finish, while others, even after unifying the world, would still spend 20 trillion.
So this time, when unknown forces immediately launched an assassination attempt against the acting manager of 0791, TheM saw it as nothing surprising at all—completely within the normal rhythm of things.
Did you think the Company casually handed you ten trillion just for fun?
Some money can only be earned if you survive—otherwise, you'll never live to spend it!
Naturally, since Li Pan himself had been captured…
"Boss, the Grail is missing. We can confirm that at the same time as the nuclear detonation, a massive explosion occurred near the agreed delivery point with Emiliya. All nearby cameras were destroyed. The NCPA reported it as a gas explosion. The Grail may be buried under rubble—or it might already be gone."
Spider-Type.18 gave the report in the office, projecting footage of that masked figure leaping out of the car, pummeling Li Pan, cracking open his skull, then convulsing, digging out half his own brain, and finally kicking Li Pan away before self-destructing.
"As for this assassin, I've repeatedly checked the data. The Company's spy satellites, security systems, and transport monitoring didn't detect any stealth shuttle. No customs records exist for importing such a cybernetic frame or vehicle. Most likely it was smuggled in and assembled secretly.
As for his self-destruction—most likely his system was hacked by a third party. Which means there were at least two hostile forces at the scene. But since they didn't attempt to breach our ICE, I couldn't trace their origin."
Li Pan didn't mind humiliating himself in front of the whole Company. Better to release the battle footage so everyone was prepared.
That masked man's combat strength was easily in the hundreds of millions. Just the power of his "casual blast" alone suggested he could single-handedly tear apart a cruiser. Even without firing a shot, if he simply piloted that AVNDS frame straight into a crowd, he could have massacred the Company staff.
Then Shiranui Kiriko spoke:
"Boss, Kōga reports that Emiliya's managerial team has all been arrested, most taken directly by the Night Riders. Emiliya's illegal implants are also missing. Hackers from other factions assisted, letting her slip away right under Kōga's nose."
"Oh, so before my grand plan even starts, I've already been beaten bloody, lost the Grail, lost my trading partner, and lost the money too? Fine. What other bad news? Say it all."
The fax machine buzzed.
A-Qi glanced at the papers:
"Boss, the Company's payment to Panlong Construction has been frozen. Section Seven of the Security Bureau has filed a review of the PMC Employment Contract, suspecting the Company of illegal money laundering. They've requested the Tax Bureau audit Panlong Construction."
"Goddamn mud—!"
Li Pan lifted his desk and hurled it out the window.
The room went silent.
Taking two deep breaths, he steadied himself and pointed at the projection of the masked man:
"One thing at a time. First the Grail, then the money. But priority number one—we need to deal with our competitors.
Eighteen, can you take down that AVNDS?"
Spider-Type.18 shook his head:
"Hard, boss. That defense system is top-tier, directly linked to QVN. The cyberframe almost certainly has an internal subnet. To hack it, we'd need to breach the parent Company's ICE—and even then, we'd need to know exactly whose product it is."
Li Pan groaned. "So basically unsolvable? How the hell do we fight that? If he's holding the Grail, who's gonna snatch it out of his chest?"
At that moment, Yamazaki raised his hand:
"I heard from a friend—only a few companies can build AVNDS units. The nanomachines are extremely expensive and highly technical, usually only bundled with the most elite healthcare packages as a rental service.
And to prevent nanomachine clashes, corporations have an internal agreement: AVNDS systems don't work against each other. Their defenses only trigger against non-premium users. It's a sales strategy."
Li Pan's eyes lit up.
"Exclusive customer privileges, huh? Good. Use their own trick against them! Buy it! Outfit everyone with a set! The most expensive—don't spare the money! Once we cancel out the interference, when it's man versus cyberframe, who's confident?"
Everyone shook their heads.
Kotaro said, "Not possible head-on. Too fast. Even if I unseal myself, no guarantee of victory. Plus, our transformations have time limits. These things are nuclear-powered—they can fight for centuries without tiring."
Ashiya Shiki stroked his chin, replaying footage of that high-energy blast against the building.
"My familiars only work within sight range. That's fine for speed, but his attack range is too far. I can't block that."
Li Pan nodded. "True. And with nukes inside him, if he can't win, he'll self-detonate. Looks like only long-range sniping will work… fine, I'll find an expert.
Here's the plan: Kiriko, coordinate with the Kōga to keep searching for the Grail and Emiliya.
Kotaro, Shiki—you're support. If you find Emiliya, grab her immediately. If someone else stole the Grail, just tail them. No rash moves.
Yamazaki, handle the finances. Get us all healthcare and AVNDS coverage.
A-Qi, call in reinforcements—stop dragging their feet!
Eighteen, give me the coordinates of 0213's illegal clone lab. Spider-Type, you're with me—we'll clear that side quest.
And leave backup in the Company! Stay in touch—any missing personnel, roll back the timeline immediately!"
Even with the grand plan on the verge of collapse, Li Pan had no time for corporate wars. His current strength was about equal to a pack of werewolves—good enough to dominate in Night City, but throwing him into a Company war was suicide. He needed two more Silver Keys first.
Fortunately, employees had already collected the remains of 081007 and recovered two intact power suits. They'd survived even a nuclear strike, though both required urgent repairs. Without a Silver Key, Li Pan couldn't even patch them up, let alone deploy major artifacts like the handkerchief or the Sword Orb. He needed side missions to strengthen himself.
So, with Spider-Type.18 and a swarm of Company drones, Li Pan donned SBS armor and flew in an armored hovercar straight toward the coast.
…
Their target: OHSUMI Bio Science Laboratory, a private research institute. The legal owner—and main mission target—was Dr. Ohsumi Ryōhei, professor at New Tokyo University's School of Life Sciences.
The lab specialized in restoring marine ecosystems in the irradiated Pacific. According to 0213's intercepted emails, they had commissioned Ohsumi to create illegal clones—like the one used by Temporary Worker 111.
("New Tokyo University again? Figures…")
Li Pan chuckled darkly. Night Institute of Technology was infamous for corruption, but New Tokyo University had real academic strength. Takamagahara itself had nearly clawed into the Committee's threshold thanks to its professors.
…
The assault was textbook. Drones cloaked in optical camouflage seized the network hub, cut the lab from the LAN, hacked subsystems, unlocked doors, and flooded in. Ohsumi and his assistants surrendered immediately.
Spider-Type.18 reported:
"Boss, recovered 0213's leaked data. Three clones created—two retrieved. But we can't rule out backups."
On the feed, Li Pan saw Ohsumi unconscious in a bio-pod, consciousness uploaded elsewhere.
"Where is he now?"
"Europa. Attending an SEC symposium. Their ICE blocks extraction."
"Fine. Strip the lab. Move pod and staff back to HQ."
Checking the clone's specs, Li Pan found it was more plesiosaur than fish-man. Extremely durable, adapted for deep-sea survival, but lacking the psychic powers and aquatic control seen in 0213's world.
Still, Ohsumi was talented. Not every fool could reverse-engineer cross-world biotech. His lineage traced back through Takamagahara's old biogenics academy.
Li Pan waved decisively.
"Use him. Bind them all. Build us a bionic army."
…
Soon after, Spider-Type.18 sent a warning: "Boss, someone's watching us. Shall we kill them?"
"Scouts from another faction? No. Shadow them. Find out who."
Indeed, other companies of the Committee were bound to act. Power struggles weren't just about profit—they were about dominance, respect. Show weakness too often, and nobody would ever back you when the real war came.
That couldn't continue. Li Pan had to raise his power immediately—enough to stop being an easy punching bag.
Then came the shout:
"Boss! The Grail's appeared!"
Already?!
Yes. Someone had hacked NCHK and streamed three minutes of Grail footage. It was sitting in the opera house.
At the same time, the bounty hunter system posted a contract: 100 million. Whoever got the Grail earned a hundred million.
The punks went wild, stampeding like apes in heat.
Li Pan hurriedly called Wangshan.
Wangshan: "You paid us only a single million! Just one million!"
Li Pan: "…My mistake. Help me secure the Grail. We'll split the hundred million."
Wangshan: "Even if I don't help, we still split it!"
Li Pan gritted his teeth. "Fine! Each of you gets one hundred million! Fifty upfront! Dirty money! Rest after delivery! If four of you remain, that's four hundred million!"
Wangshan: "Deal."
…
The opera district was chaos—bounty hunters, punks, mafia clans, even NCPA auxiliary police, all turning the streets into a bloodbath symphony of carbines and machineguns.
Li Pan's hovercar bulldozed through under heavy fire, then he parachuted in with Spider-Type.18.
Bullets shredded his armor, his synthetic skin tearing away to reveal glistening, blood-red scales beneath. But he forced his way into the theater.
Inside, the defenders had been annihilated. Following the blood trail, Li Pan kicked open the grand hall doors—
And there was the Grail, at center stage. A pale middle-aged man in a black robe stood beside it.
In the VIP box sat Prince Cornelius of the Ye Clan, flanked by K and the Night Riders. Other cloaked bidders lurked in the shadows.
The robed man raised his hands:
"Since you are all gathered, then—behold, the Grail of Blood—"
Li Pan immediately opened fire, bullets sparking off his shield.
Unmoved, the man declared:
"The Grail Bidding War begins now. I, the Arbiter of Dirac, under the authority of Prince Cornelius, will officiate these proceedings—"
"RPG!" BOOM.
Li Pan blasted the stage, hurling flashbangs and incendiaries. Flames consumed the theater.
"Silence!"
An invisible hammer smashed half the hall.
The Arbiter spoke coldly:
"I am the Arbiter of Dirac, appointed by the Ye Clan's Prince Cornelius. I declare—"
"EMP!"
Li Pan lobbed pulse grenades, electromagnetic waves rippling outward.
The Arbiter snapped, "Manager of TheM! Interfere again, and you will be disqualified—"
"Shut the hell up, you worthless bastard!"
Li Pan charged with his shotgun, cursing wildly, blasting away, calling down doom upon everyone who dared touch "his" Grail.
Prince Cornelius coughed politely.
Li Pan barked back, "Not you! RPG time!"
The Arbiter swatted the rocket aside, roaring, "Enough! TheM, you are OUT! I hereby announce: three days from now, whoever holds the Grail—except TheM—shall be the—"
But then, in the chaos, the Grail itself tumbled off the stage, sprouted legs, and hopped into the smoke, following Li Pan as he bolted from the theater.
The audience laughed softly.
K covered her face.
Prince Cornelius cleared his throat again. "Very well. Let us begin, Arbiter."
The Arbiter, grim-faced, nodded and proclaimed:
"The bidding war—begins."
.
.
.
⚠️ 30 CHAPTERS AHEAD — I'm Not a Cyberpsycho ⚠️
The system says: Kill.Mercs obey. Corporates obey. Monsters obey.One man didn't.
🧠💀 "I'm not a cyberpsycho. I just think... differently."
💥 High-voltage cyberpunk. Urban warfare. AI paranoia.Read 30 chapters ahead, only on Patreon.
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