Long, toned thighs bent downwards, causing the low-rise hot pants to pull tight and outline a rounded curve. slightly further up, the sides of her waist were revealed by the bodysuit, with slender yet powerful lines that gave an impression of youth and vitality. Her skin possessed that slightly sickly pallor common in Night City.
The full curve of her shorts landed on the soft cushion, imprinting deeply and fitting perfectly into the gray sofa. The comfort made the girl lean back contentedly.
An off-shoulder jacket hung loosely on her body, her arms draped carelessly over the back of the chair. There wasn't a shred of ladylike demeanor to be seen; she was as free-spirited as a female racer.
It felt like she might say "bye" at any moment and vanish from sight, only to meet you at a street corner someday with a sudden "hello."
There were no overly obvious signs of modification on her body, but upon closer inspection, there were quite a few:
Neural interface, cyberbrain modification, cyberoptics, arms, patches of synthetic skin, spinal deep-dive port... There were no unconventional or dehumanizing modifications. Judging solely by appearance, she looked almost like a normal person, which was considered quite the "conservative" type in Night City.
This city was crazy, whether it was the people inside it or the city itself. Almost everyone pursued high-end cyberware; performance and a cool appearance took priority over everything else. Even if they no longer looked like their original selves, many accepted it gladly.
Over-modification—that is the destined death of countless street wanderers.
Crossing her legs, she skillfully pulled out a lady's cigarette. She had intended to light it, but after Lucy stole a glance at Ryu, she resentfully put it away again.
Witnessing this scene, Ryu revealed a gratified smile. He took two cans of beer from the refrigerator and placed them on the table.
"Oh-ho?" Lucy was surprised and said playfully, "You actually have this in your house? I thought you didn't touch smoke or alcohol?"
"I don't touch them; this is prepared for you."
Ryu sat on the armrest of the sofa: "Consider it a reward."
"Tsk! You manage too much!" Lucy rolled her eyes at him, but the cool, refreshing beer still lifted her mood.
This world is strange. Bottom-feeders can't eat fresh, healthy food, yet things like cigarettes and beer are still supplied as usual. It's just that compared to the normal versions, the taste has a scorching restlessness to it, as if soaked in gasoline.
It can only be said that material supplies aren't exactly scarce; rather, corporations have deliberately monopolized and regulated necessities for profit or other reasons.
Like most street wanderers, Lucy had her little vices, so staying with the extremely disciplined Ryu made her inevitably feel a bit awkward.
Ryu wouldn't preach directly like a doctor, nor would he hypocritically say it was for her own good. However, Lucy, who was very sensitive to the emotions of others, could feel that every time this man saw her smoking, he felt a strange regret or pity, genuinely considering her well-being... Lucy naturally wouldn't change her habits easily, but she would restrain herself a bit when they were alone.
What was with that look, like a teacher seeing a student turn into a Shibuya-style gyaru?!
Are you my dad or my big brother?
"Glug glug glug... Ah~"
Dispelling the heat and fatigue from her body with the ice-cold beer, Lucy sized up the room more comfortably. She swayed her body twice; the sofa clung tightly to her hips like a balloon, giving her a comfortable enjoyment of being perfectly enveloped.
"I've wanted to say this for a long time, Doctor. Your home has almost no signs of life, except for this sofa... it's truly too comfortable~"
"This is a personal hobby of mine." Ryu poured himself a glass of ice water, but merely held it in his hand.
A good schedule can keep a person energetic. Without enough sleep, no matter how smart a person is, their brain will be hard to operate, like it's rusted, and work efficiency will become extremely low.
That is why Ryu has always opposed Japan's overtime culture. His subsidiary companies also strictly inspect for excessive overtime and after-work drinking parties, making him an anomaly in the island nation—it can't be helped, having the [Golden Rule] allows one to be willful~
He leads by example. While he never pursues luxurious indulgences, he is extremely particular about items related to the word "rest," whether it's a bed or a sofa.
(Actually, he has [Scene Transition Effects], so even poor sleep quality doesn't affect his energy recovery, but this is just like the appetite of the Ahoge King—mainly to reward himself.)
"Anything happening today?"
"...Right."
Lucy's hand flickered, and a chip was already clamped between her fingertips. Its silver-black packaging made it look just like a guitar pick.
"After all, you haven't shown your face for a month, and Boss Maine is anxious to hand in the mission. It's the same as always; the data you wanted is all in there, with no encryption steps, as per your request."
Handing the chip to Ryu, whose face showed delight, Lucy was puzzled: "I still don't get it. What is the use of going to such lengths to get this long-obsolete data... Even if you wanted to resell it, you wouldn't find a buyer, right?"
"Collecting vintage items is a personal interest of mine." Ryu bent down and pressed the corner of the table. A long, narrow card slot popped out automatically. He placed the chip inside and returned it to its position, heaving a long sigh of relief.
"With this, it's just about a complete set..."
"That's old stuff from nearly half a century ago. Even if the performance is okay, it doesn't match the current 'system ecosystem' anymore, right?"
The disdain in Lucy's words was strong: "This is like trying to restore a matchlock musket in the age of automatic rifles. Aside from fanatical collectors, no one would do such a thing."
"Perhaps I am a fanatical scientist."
Ryu chuckled: "In the Fourth Corporate War, because of the disintegration of the global network, massive amounts of data were lost. Corporations set up technical barriers against each other, cyberspace was divided by the Blackwall, and terrifying AIs devoured every hacker who tried to enter the Old Net...
Human civilization has made almost no significant progress since then; they are merely cultivating seemingly bright flowers on rotting flesh upon a pile of corpses."
"Are you trying to piece together the database from before the Corporate War? By yourself? You're joking, right!" Lucy's expression turned strange, as if looking at a madman.
"Doctor, do you really not need to check your cranial nerves? There isn't some strange protein mixed into the synthetic spinal fluid you use, is there?"
—Of course, it was a joke.
Ryu smiled without speaking, making Lucy feel he was even more unfathomable. However, he indeed didn't have such crazy ideas; he was just finding a reason that sounded impressively confusing for his actions.
The reason Ryu collected "ancient" technology was simple: to regress Cyberpunk technology by a few decades, trying to align it as much as possible with the modern era (early 21st century), thus making it easier for the Kuse Group's researchers to perform reverse engineering.
It's all "bootlegging," but a Zaku is definitely easier to analyze and copy than a Gundam.
And what Ryu wanted to find were models even more primitive than a Zaku, down to a level that modern researchers could quickly understand.
Paving the road forward bit by bit. It would be best to thoroughly master the entire system so as not to be choked off at some critical joint!
With these data chips, Ryu believed that the folks back home could produce results very quickly. In ten years, or even just a few years, they could make decent flagship products.
If Ryu could be a bit more effective and directly move a production line or something back, it would speed up the process even more.
After all, they have a quantum physics genius like Akihiko Kayaba over there. If the TPC is established in the future, maybe a black-tech wiz like Horii will "refresh" into existence—they definitely have the ability to master these technologies!
If a "tech explosion" happens, they might just come from behind to take the lead~
"I don't get it... weirdo."
Lucy shook her head: "Leaving aside your quirks, the mere fact that you don't touch any vices makes you rarer than a virgin in this city—were your parents very strict?"
"My parents practiced laissez-faire; from childhood to adulthood, I never made them worry too much."
Ryu changed the subject: "I, on the other hand, think that letting nicotine and alcohol damage one's nervous system is incomprehensible behavior."
"...Tsk!"
Lucy clicked her tongue. If anyone else had said that, she would have walked away dismissively, but not now.
Ryu was not only a big buyer, but Lucy also owed him favors; he had helped her more than once... If he had an ulterior motive, that would be one thing, but this guy just happened to have the appearance of a saint with no desires!
Precisely because of this, although she could guess he was a young master from a rich family, Lucy couldn't give him an attitude—she looked like a whimsical wanderer, but in reality, she was very loyal.
"Sure enough, you don't care~"
Ryu rubbed his chin, remembered something, and suddenly said, "Let's try reward therapy!"
"Reward what?" Lucy leaned back fully against the sofa, looking up at the ceiling, smiling disdainfully.
"Want me to quit smoking? Leaving aside whether I'm willing to cooperate, what does this have to do with you in the first place?
Lung cancer and the like have long since ceased to be a problem for cyborgs."
Indeed, even if the original parts broke, one could just swap in some cyberware. If the expensive ones were unaffordable, there were cheap versions—this was the self-consolation universally held by Night City residents when indulging themselves.
Not just smoking and drinking, but even more stimulating things... In this city, "entertainment" was the only resource easier to obtain than others.
Even homeless people could daydream at "roadside stalls"!
"Don't speak in such absolutes; why not take a look at the prize I'm offering first."
Ryu walked leisurely to the bedside table. He seemingly opened a drawer, but in reality, he was imagining the shape of a "zipper" in his mind.
Lucy still didn't care: "If it's money, forget it, I'm not... What is that helmet? It looks like something from the last century.
By the way, where did you pull that out from?!"
"Name... NERvGear. A brainwave receiver of unknown vintage. It can connect without a neural interface." Ryu spoke as he placed the helmet and a small server on the table.
"Oh~" Lucy wasn't too surprised.
Although wireless devices sounded more advanced, they were actually irrelevant to the cyborgs of this world, feeling a bit like taking off one's pants to fart—completely superfluous.
Their schooling, work, travel, entertainment... almost everything went through the neural interface, so most people underwent modification in childhood or even infancy!
The efficiency of physical transmission was certainly higher than wireless. Performance-seeking cyborgs wouldn't like this kind of roundabout machine.
Of course, the point of this thing Ryu brought out wasn't its performance~
"But before trying this, you have to wait a moment."
Ryu took out a toolbox and, with the assistance of automated machinery, put on a pair of semi-covering exoskeleton gloves.
"I need to process the raw data in the server."
"Are you... going to make a 'Braindance'?"
Lucy blinked: "You know how to do that too?"
"I've studied a mixed bag of things... It would be great if I could learn a bit more."
Ryu's smile was somewhat bitter for some reason, but it quickly returned to normal.
Lucy frowned: "You aren't thinking of using a 'Braindance' as a reward, are you?
Hey, do you take me for some roadside delinquent? Even if it's an X-rated film, I wouldn't go that far just for..."
"Don't rush, don't rush~"
Ryu looked at the special memory unit taken from the server, his gaze profound.
"Watch it first, then speak—the 'dream' I created."
________________________________________
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