Just two Destiny Coins?
As a "protagonist," even if he was the lead of a spinoff derivative work, David's destiny power shouldn't be this weak. Obviously, Ryu had only changed his mindset, but hadn't yet completely reversed his fate.
However, Ryu wasn't anxious about this; he was hiding a final trump card:
David's "ending" is death, so he just needs to help him avoid death. For example, by taking Gloria and her son directly to the Main World.
When that time comes, no matter how he arranges the mother and son's lives, he can let them completely say goodbye to Night City~
Moreover, Gloria is excellent medical personnel, and David's talent isn't bad either. Even from the perspective of the Kuse Group, recruiting these two is a pretty good deal.
The cat, Maine, Dorio, and the technical personnel to be successively "extradited" in the future—adding these two really isn't too many!
In fact, the more people, the better. If not for worrying about management issues, it would be best to have a team of over fifty people.
Because although the technological level of Cyberpunk is powerful, it is a parallel world after all. The network ecosystem, operating systems, and even hardware facilities are vastly different from the Main World.
A Netrunner like Lucy could rely on a cyberbrain, auxiliary AI, and similar things to quickly master relevant knowledge of the Main World, adapting rapidly to dominate the modern network space.
But in the final analysis, this is only the power of an "individual"!
It can only guarantee the Kuse Group's advantage in technical prowess, but it cannot "change the world"!
Ryu hoped even more that his own family could guide the update and iteration of the network ecosystem, developing it together with virtual reality and prosthetic technology to build a powerful "Empire."
This requires a powerful team!
Just like that "Macrohard" company that pushed "Windows" to the world back then!
(But looking at them now...)
Ryu had this ambition, but to achieve this, the power of both himself as an individual and the Kuse Group was slightly insufficient. He could only treat it as a long-term plan.
There were two or three extreme examples in Cyberpunk of super Netrunners capable of taking on a country alone... but those are obviously not easy to encounter, and controlling them would be troublesome.
The current goal was just to form a powerful hacker organization~
'Alright, in the future, I'll arrange for Gloria and David to specialize in cybernetics research.'
—Ryu watched David, who was seriously learning how to operate the surgical table, and nodded slightly, seemingly gratified.
At this moment, David still didn't know that while he wanted to escape the control of Night City's corporations, he had unknowingly fallen into the invisible giant hand of another capital, and even his future job had been arranged.
Of course, there was no rush right now. As a protagonist, under the influence of destiny power, there should still be some stories waiting for him... One must always squeeze out all the potential before taking the person away.
That day, after sending David away, Ryu closed the clinic and returned to the apartment alone.
Lucy still hadn't returned. For the first time in these past few days, he was "keeping the empty room" alone, feeling a bit restless and distracted.
"The Maine squad, David and his mother... the key points of Edgerunners are just these two groups.
The plans are already made. If everything goes smoothly... is there anything else I need to pay attention to?"
People with heavy thoughts inevitably have poor sleep quality. Ryu let his imagination run wild in bed, and before he knew it, it was past his usual resting time... Finally, he let out a long breath.
"I hope that after this month passes, I can farm some more gold coins~"
—
The maid was watching the door.
Rurikawa Tsubaki, the Kuse Group's youngest executive, a confidant personally promoted by the Young Master, Kuse Ryu.
Although she was a woman and young in age, no one dared to ignore her existence because her words and actions represented the Young Master's will. And her consistent excellence had proven she was qualified to bear Ryu's trust.
Now, this maid, who could make numerous employees bow in submission, was quietly and obediently waiting outside the door. Standing straight, with eyes closed in a fake nap, she awaited her master's emergence from seclusion.
Usually, she liked to act as a guard for Ryu. During the master's seclusion, she would frequently come to check the security forces here. But this time, she was even more dutiful; aside from necessary physiological activities, she barely left her post.
She even ate and slept here; box lunches and a sleeping bag had became her greatest reliance over these past two days~
All of this came from her pure loyalty, absolutely unadulterated by any other factors!
Although Ryu had taken a beautiful girl into seclusion with him, Ruri didn't care at all.
Yes, she believed in Ryu!
Ruri knew better than anyone what kind of person Master was.
Aloof, calm, and proud, but beneath that awe-inspiring exterior lay a gentleness and kindness that only a very few could enjoy—such as Ruri.
She felt Ryu was like a sun, bringing light and warmth to her gloomy life, yet also as unreachable as the sun, making one dare not approach for fear of being burned to ash by that radiance.
Precisely because of this, even after staying by Ryu's side for so many years, the maid always kept the distinction between master and servant in mind. She also believed that most people would feel ashamed of their inferiority when interacting with Ryu, unable to conceive any special thoughts at all.
—So, even if a lone man and a lone woman spent a day and a night together, there was absolutely nothing to worry about!
(This isn't self-comfort, this isn't self-comfort, this isn't...)
In fact, Ruri indeed hadn't detected any commotion!
Of course, this wasn't because she didn't trust Ryu, but purely just in case. After all, Lord Ryu was so charming that a single look could make one swoon.
Some women with no reserve might lose their reason and forcibly attack Lord Ryu, right?
At that time, as his personal maid, she would have the responsibility to step forward and repel those with ill intentions for Lord Ryu!
Ding~
A soft notification sound rang out. Ruri immediately opened her eyes, her entire body tensing up.
Sure enough, not long after, a familiar voice came from within the room. Then the door opened, and two figures sticking close together walked out hand in hand.
Hmm?
Ruri blinked, focused her eyes, and after repeated confirmation, she had to admit... Ryu was actually holding Lucy's hand!
Impossible, that Lord Ryu who always disliked physical contact with others...
"Ruri? Oh, right, you've been here all along... tough work."
"No, this is my hon... honor."
As they came close, Ruri's nose twitched slightly. A faint scent wafted over, causing her mood to plummet straight to rock bottom:
It's the same smell... Lucy used Lord Ryu's shampoo!
When did it happen?
What went on inside the room?
Ruri, oh Ruri, why did you have no guard up at all! What if Lord Ryu has been defiled!
Where were you when Lord Ryu needed you most? What were you doing?
The maid bit her lip lightly, her eyes turning slightly red—
I was watching the door outside!
For a moment, Rurikawa Tsubaki was filled with a mix of emotions.
________________________________________
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