Chapter 100: If There Were No Gold in the World

Strictly speaking, the corporate operative who caused trouble for Leo and the others wasn't necessarily stronger in direct combat than V and Jackie. But he executed his plan to perfection—ambushing the target to frame the trio, planting mines, and rigging motorcycles to explode to prevent pursuit. These tactics were nearly impossible for ordinary mercenaries to overcome. The problem was that Leo not only stayed vigilant but also showed street-level ruthlessness in making decisions. And his two enforcers didn't disappoint, capturing the operative in the middle of the street. Even in death, the operative had a backup plan. The chip wasn't destroyed on the spot—because the data inside had been altered. [Project: Nightingale] [Person in Charge: Emilia Morton.] [Possible Cause of Incident: Emilia Morton violated protocols by deploying gamma rabies in the outskirts of Night City during the experiment to clear out nearly expired vaccines and alpha neuro-suppressants from the Night City pharmaceutical warehouse.] [Image] [Image] [Image] [Communication Logs] [Data Corruption] Emilia Morton? Leo rubbed his chin. Why did he remember the main culprit being Joanne Koch? Emilia Morton's name was very familiar—probably another Biotechnica employee who ended up assassinated in the game. The chip had definitely been tampered with—otherwise, there'd be no reason not to mention Joanne Koch at all. This clue and evidence completely excluded Koch, which wasn't good, because Leo couldn't use it to blackmail her. He needed to find a way to contact Emilia Morton and figure out the real situation. With that in mind, he made a call to Murphy. Caller: Murphy. Ring ring— Murphy: "Hey man, what's up with that Kuno bitch? I saw on the news that there was a terrorist attack at City Center today. You guys weren't caught up in that, were you?" Leo: "We're fine, kept our distance. Kuno's dead, didn't the news mention it?" Murphy: "Holy shit, good news! Next time we meet, drinks are on me." Murphy: "The news didn't say anything about it, probably because the NCPD is still investigating. But wait—if you guys took care of Kuno, what's there to investigate?" Murphy: "Is she really dead?" Leo: "She's dead for sure, here's a pic. [Image]." Murphy: "Damn, that's brutal." Leo: "Had no choice. She was denying everything and even threatened to call the cops. We had to act." Leo: "How are things on your end?" Murphy: "Well, I've been waiting for Mendoza—the journalist—since this morning, right at City Center subway station." Murphy: "But today he suddenly said he's meeting someone from Biotechnica too. He pushed the meeting back a bit, so we've just been waiting. He says he's on his way now." Leo: "Who? Emilia Morton?" Murphy: "What the hell, man? How'd you know Mendoza was meeting her? Word is she just got fired yesterday!" Damn. Manuel Mendoza planned to bring everyone together to compare evidence. And now, Emilia Morton, who had just been fired, was getting involved with Mendoza. This brought all the key players and the media together—media people have a peculiar disconnect from reality. On one hand, they believe the upper echelons have some dirty secrets. On the other hand, they believe that while the upper echelons are dark, they still have to follow the rules. Like this meeting, for instance—they chose a busy subway station in City Center, thinking nothing could go wrong in such a public place. After the meeting, they'd just slip away—what could possibly go wrong? So they look down on the rough-and-tumble lower class of Night City, suspect the upper class of being shady, and think the upper class is sneaky while the lower class is ruthless. But the truth is, both the upper and lower classes are filled with people who are both sneaky and ruthless. Every day on the streets of Night City, murders occur. And the corporations that can make these murderers cower in fear aren't going to be stopped by a little inconvenience. Whether Morton intentionally gathered these people or not, the situation was now very dangerous. Leo rubbed his forehead: "You're already at the subway station?" Murphy: "Yeah, we're at the subway now, did something happen?" Leo cursed under his breath—too late. Leo: "Yeah, something's happened. Is Maine there with you? Put him on." Maine: "Hey, Burgerking, what's up?" Leo: "Biotechnica deployed operatives yesterday for a cleanup. Emilia Morton might get taken out as well." Maine: "No worries, we've got her covered. Nothing's going to happen at the meeting, and the location is City Center subway station. How could they make a move?" Leo: "Is this your first day dealing with corporations? There was a time when gangs took over City Center, and the NCPD couldn't manage, so they brought in the corporations." Leo: "The corporations imposed a curfew—anyone who didn't comply was shot on sight. After that, the corporations established absolute control over Night City." Leo: "Do you think you've got more pull than the Maelstrom, Valentino, or other gangs?" Leo: "Get your weapons ready, protect all the witnesses. If you want to finish this job and avenge your teammate, listen to me." Maine: "How do you even know all this? Wait a minute, Faraday's calling me..." Leo: "If you want to keep your current teammates alive, listen to me, don't answer—only communicate with me from now on." Maine: "What are you even talking about..." Leo hung up, letting out a long sigh. He'd been busy all day yesterday, catching some sleep only while the car was being repaired. Now, there was another job, and it was a race against time. V crossed her arms, walking up to Leo: "What's going on? You look exhausted." "I am exhausted. We've got to get back to City Center. There's a good chance we'll be up against corporate troops again." Jackie and V exchanged glances. V hesitated for a moment before asking, "This job... Leo, don't take this the wrong way, but I just want to know why we're doing this. There's no money in it." Leo was silent for a moment before answering: "I've been planning to steal some of Biotechnica's tech—it might help me avoid dying so soon. This job might not pay much, but it's about finding a way to stay alive." V and Jackie looked at each other and smiled. Not for money? And what's the problem if it's not for money? "Should've said so earlier." V plopped down next to Leo, pulling him into a hug. "You don't think we'd just leave you hanging, do you? Besides, you still owe me 760,000—you're not dying until you pay me back, got it?" Jackie chuckled, "V's right—about the first part, anyway. We're not exactly cultured folks, but if you think this tech can help, we'll make sure you get it." Leo smiled. He had roped each of them into this crew with promises of big money. But deep down, they weren't just money-hungry bastards. Otherwise, they would've become corporate lapdogs long ago. Leo patted himself down, standing up with a serious expression: "Listen, I have a feeling that what we're about to do will set off some serious chain reactions. This is going to be much more dangerous than our previous jobs. One wrong move and we could all die." V clicked her tongue: "More dangerous than that time in Atlanta?" Leo nodded: "Probably even more troublesome—but on the bright side, you're not the same V from Atlanta, and Jackie isn't the nervous rookie he was during those smuggling runs." Jackie scratched his head: "Was I really that scared back then?" V and Leo exchanged a look, saying nothing but understanding everything. Leo continued: "But anyway, if we get through this, a wider world will open up to us—we'll have more enemies, more danger, but—brighter prospects as well. So, as usual..." Leo extended his hand. "Are we all in?" V and Jackie placed their hands on his. "Of course." Leo suddenly felt a wave of emotion. With just a few words, they were willing to follow him back into the perilous City Center, to face a corporate army far outnumbering them, to go up against the mega-corporations that make Night City tremble, forging unbreakable enmities. At the core of it, money wasn't what they were after. The essence of punk isn't failure—it's the courage to rebel— When the world comes crashing down on you, like a colossal wave crushing everything you know, when even a single ripple can bury all your hopes and dreams— Can you still stand tall, roaring defiantly in the face of destruction? "Jackie, V, you know... if there were no gold in the world... We'd have been heroes by now."