Cyberpunk: The Relentless

"I remember Father's job was to take out someone in Japantown, right?"

Oliver watched the Villefort heading toward Japantown.

"Looks like we're on the way there anyway."

Jack flipped through the mission details Father had sent.

"Target's name is Kazuo Sato. He's with the Tyger Claws. No idea where he's hiding in Japantown, but if we see him, we might as well take him out."

"Let's focus on the job in front of us first."

Karl spoke up.

"We still can't confirm if Katsu Tanaka is really our target's son. If we move on him now, it could draw unnecessary attention from Arasaka Academy.

I'll create some chaos to distract them, then hack into the driver's head and pull the info we need. After that, I'll wipe his memory so he won't remember being hacked."

"Do we really need to be that careful?"

Oliver kept his eyes on the road, glancing at Karl.

"A bodyguard or chauffeur dying or disappearing in a corporate scuffle isn't something those corpo bastards will care about. You're being too careful, Karl. Don't tell me… you actually feel bad for a corpo dog?"

"There are two reasons.

One, outright killing him could make our target paranoid. It's safer if he just blacks out in the chaos. No one's going to waste time investigating the blurry memories of a knocked-out driver.

Two, he hasn't done anything to me. I have some principles. If he's not the main target and hasn't pissed me off, I don't see the point in shooting him just because he works for a corpo. If I start killing people based solely on that, how am I any different from Arasaka?"

Jack nodded, piecing things together.

"So that's why you always check a Scav's history before dealing with them?"

"No, that's where you're wrong, Jack."

Karl shifted slightly, adjusting his position in the cramped car.

"Scavs are different."

"You just said you don't judge people by their status."

"Yeah, as long as they don't piss me off.

But Scavs? Their very existence pisses me off."

"You sure have your own moral code."

"You could call it Karl's Code. I remember favors, I remember grudges—both are important.

What, Jack Wells, got a problem with that?"

"Drop the sarcasm, Karl. I got no complaints."

Jack flashed a wide grin.

"If anything, everything you're saying makes perfect sense to me. Feels damn satisfying."

"We should make it official squad rules."

Oliver pulled the Quartz EC to a stop by the curb.

"But for now, gentlemen—get the hell out. We're here."

"As if you're not getting out too, you piece of crap chauffeur."

Karl rubbed his sore back as he climbed out of the car.

"Thanks to your driving, my damn body feels wrecked. Can't you slow down when turning?"

"Quit whining. If you don't like it, drive yourself next time. And don't say things people might misunderstand. What, just because you almost smacked your head against the windshield three times? Not my fault if you don't wear a seatbelt."

"Just to be safe—run fast if things go south."

Karl stepped onto the sidewalk, wearing a casual black jacket.

He stretched out, working out the soreness from being crammed in the car.

After checking that his pistol, Overnight, was securely holstered, he turned his gaze to the Villefort parked behind the bar.

"So… an Arasaka Academy corpo brat gets into a car after school and heads straight to a bar in Japantown?

Looks like we're about to learn some interesting secrets."

Westbrook District: Night City's most luxurious and pleasure-driven district. As long as you have money, you can spend it freely, indulging in any and every luxury imaginable.

NCPD Threat Level: Very Low.

Japantown: Night City's entertainment hub, primarily inhabited by Japanese residents. One of the most popular tourist spots in the city.

Among its most famous attractions—the Cloud Club, where unexpected surprises await.

Watching Katsu Tanaka and his driver, Maxim, step into the bar, Oliver gave Karl a slight nod before heading in himself.

Karl's face was already well-known among Arasaka's Night City circles.

If anyone needed to stir up chaos, it was better that Oliver handled it.

"Keep an eye on the car, Karl."

Jack, gripping his pistol, followed after Oliver.

However, he intentionally kept some distance, making sure not to walk into the bar right behind him.

If no one inside was causing trouble, Jack might have to stage a scene with Oliver to create a distraction.

Leaning against the Quartz EC, Karl kept his communication line open, listening in.

The area around the bar had no surveillance cameras—probably to maintain customer privacy.

But right now?

It saved Karl the hassle of masking his face.

"I should get a jammer from Vik later… something to scramble cameras from picking up my face. Having to constantly check for cameras is a pain."

Certain cyberware—like Oliver's Kiroshi Optics—had an auto-jamming feature for surveillance cameras.

Made things a lot easier for him than Karl.

Karl pulled out Overnight, giving his pistol a quick check.

No issues.

Right then, Oliver's voice came through on comms.

Oliver: "We're inside. Katsu Tanaka followed a bartender into a private booth. His driver stayed at the bar, drinking."

Karl: "Driver's name is Maxim. I already pulled up his info. Interesting guy—apparently, he's a fan of underground fist fights. How's the bar looking?"

Jack: "Plenty of Tyger Claws around. Also some regular customers. If we need to start shit, no problem."

Karl: *"Good. As long as we've got someone to pick a fight with, we're set. But hold off for now—order some drinks, sit tight. And don't actually get drunk.

I need to see what exactly Katsu Tanaka, an Arasaka Academy student, is doing in this bar."*

Karl hacked into Night City's local network.

From there, he tapped into the bar's hidden surveillance cameras inside the private booths.

Just as expected—

A place that had no cameras outside, claiming to respect customer privacy, was bound to have hidden surveillance in all the key spots.

The second Karl got a feed—

He stared at the screen.

And froze.

Inside the booth, Katsu Tanaka was… plugging into a learning chip.

Under the guidance of a bartender.

"What the hell?"

Coming to a bar… to study?

Was he seeing things?

Was his cyberware acting up?

Baffled, Karl dug deeper into the bar's records.

A few moments later—

Everything made sense.

This place…

Was actually a secret tutoring center run by Arasaka Academy's administrative office.

"What are you here for?"

"Oh, just here to study."

Absolutely insane.

Even if other students saw Katsu Tanaka walking into a bar—

They'd just assume he was partying.

But in reality?

He was grinding study sessions in a private booth.

A bar visit… to hide the fact that he was overworking himself?

Did he really have to go this far just to keep other corporate kids from knowing he was cramming?

"This academy's culture is completely fucked."

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