Cyberpunk: 2075.

Chapter 960, Section 171: Power, Backlash

“It’s been a while since we last met, Blanca.”

Without any attempt to conceal his appearance, Carl naturally sat down in front of Blanca, who was waiting for him, and then looked around at his surroundings.

"It's amazing you found such a place. An abandoned town in the badlands, what a great location."

Karl meant what he said sincerely.

Blanca certainly put in a lot of effort.

As Night City continues to expand, the surrounding land suitable for living and farming has long been divided up by major corporations. Coupled with the ongoing relocation policy, more and more towns like this one have been completely abandoned on Badlands.

There are countless ruins, but safe places to meet are hard to find, let alone places that are both secluded and safe.

Most abandoned towns have long been occupied by wandering tribes or the Rascals, becoming their temporary strongholds. Outsiders trying to infiltrate Night City also use these ruins as stepping stones—whether passing through checkpoints or smuggling themselves in, these ruins are the ideal resting place.

And this small town happens to be in a blind spot for all forces.

It is at just the right distance from Night City, neither too close to become a stronghold for wanderers and the Chaotic Blade Society, nor too far to serve as accommodation for outsiders who cannot enter Night City for the time being.

Moreover, almost everything that could be plundered in this town has been taken, leaving not even a few pieces of sheet metal. Resources are so scarce that even the most destitute homeless people are unwilling to stay here, making it a safe haven.

Meeting here, unless something unexpected happens, can indeed be considered completely unnoticed.

Despite Karl's praise of the secluded location, Blanca, who had come alone, reacted calmly. She merely glanced at Karl's clothes before speaking:

“I originally thought you would need some more time. I had already prepared several other locations and was thinking of sending you a decoding location every day.”

"You said the sooner the better, so of course I came right away."

After all, it sounds like something very important from the information I've received.

Karl said this as if it were the most natural thing in the world, and Blanca, who heard him say he would come over immediately, smiled slightly, as if she was very satisfied that Karl valued her.

A slight smile played on her lips, a strange sense of vanity being satisfied.

Then she stood up and walked over to Karl.

"Huh?" Karl turned his head to look at her, puzzled.

Blanca didn't explain, but simply reached out and gently pressed down on one of his shoulders.

"do not move."

Her voice was very soft, and although Karl didn't quite understand why, he didn't move his body.

After Carl stopped moving, Blanca gently rubbed his shoulder line with her fingers, brushing away the accumulated dust.

Then, taking out a damp wipe from somewhere, which had a hint of mint, he wiped his forehead. There, a dust mark had been left by the sand and dust. Blanca carefully cleaned the mark.

"Okay." After completing a series of actions, she examined the wipes for a moment, folded them up, and put them away. "It looks much better now."

"Did I look particularly dirty just now?"

Carl looked at Blanca, who had sat back down in her chair, and held out his hand: "Is there anything else? Let me wipe it myself too."

“It’s already clean.”

Blanca studied Carl's face and suddenly smiled: "Just like you normally are."

"I don't think it's a bad thing to wipe your face again."

Carl wasn't really satisfied with just cleaning that small patch of skin; after realizing his face was dirty, he wanted to use the whole wet wipe to thoroughly clean it. But it didn't really matter anyway.

It's okay if it gets a little dirty. I'll just have to go back and get some fresh air, and then I can just take a shower.

After the initial awkwardness of seeing each other again faded, Carl quickly steered the conversation back on track: "So, is there something important that you're in such a hurry to meet us?"

“You’re still the same as before, getting straight to the point when you talk about things.” Blanca sighed softly, but realized that she wasn’t really in a position to judge Karl, since they were exactly the same in this respect.

If it weren't for this unwavering dedication to her career, she probably would have already...
But then she thought, if it weren't for its call, how could she have gone to such lengths to get to where she is today? Isn't it this persistence that is driving her to meet Yokar today?

This was the reason why Karl was so persistent in staying by his side.

Blanca focused her mind, making sure not to show anything unusual.

After a barely audible sigh, she spoke: "I recently intercepted a message about the former Ghosthound. Do you remember Bennett?"

"Bennett?"

A knowing glint flashed in Karl's eyes.

“Chester Bennett, of course I remember. The Ghost Hounds in Dogtown, except for those who have retired, are basically all working for me now. Among the important people, he is the only one who did not bow down to me and leave Dogtown. It seems that he took a few of his men with him.”

Carl paused briefly, recalling, "Gago said he wouldn't go back to Dogtown. I trusted Gago's judgment, so I stopped paying attention to his whereabouts. What happened to him?"

Blanca listened quietly, incorporating the information Carl provided into her own intelligence.

After a brief silence, she lowered her voice: "He hasn't come back, but his reach is far-reaching. He's secretly contacting various forces to plot the assassination of the new US president—Rosalind Miles."

"Assassinate Miles?"

Carl was slightly surprised: "So he really is planning something big. But you had to tell me all this, so it seems the president already knows?"

When faced with Carl's question, Blanca met his gaze and said frankly, "No, I intercepted this crucial intelligence and chose not to report it, so the president is unaware of it now."

As a publicly loyal subordinate of the president, she should have reported it immediately.

But with the president facing impeachment over the Dogtown incident, a well-timed 'accident' could make Rosalind's situation even more precarious.

Chaos is the breeding ground for power, which is exactly what Blanca seeks.

Blanca’s voice was very calm: “The reason I kept it a secret is because I wanted Rosalind Miles to be temporarily unable to concentrate on her political affairs, or at least to get injured while she was busy dealing with things in Washington, so that she wouldn’t be able to handle her political affairs in time.”

"To injure Rosalind Miles?"

Carl wasn't surprised. Before he arrived, Blanca's hints had already given him a clue as to what Blanca was planning. He just hadn't expected that Blanca's goal was to injure the president so he couldn't handle everything.

This is actually more difficult.

If the real goal were to eliminate Rosalind Miles, the consequences wouldn't matter; a dead president would soon be forgotten. Injuring her simply meant keeping her alive.

Based on Carl's understanding of that president, she couldn't possibly let it go unpunished.

but
"Tell me more details, I'm very interested. What do you want me to help you with?"

Carl didn't mind causing the president some trouble, and he also sensed from Blanca's words that something might happen to the president that was worse than death.

For example, being devoured by the power she cherished.

(End of this chapter)