Cyberpunk: I didn't cheat.

Stings was from Haywood, and his flexible approach to things after joining the NCPD pleased many people, so his path to promotion was a bit smoother than that of those rigid officers.

As a seasoned veteran of the NCPD, Stings is ruthless towards petty thugs, but he often turns a blind eye to powerful and influential figures in the company.

Perhaps because he still had a conscience, he was very concerned about the innocent people being tortured and killed by the serial killer. Whenever he had free time, he would wander around the vicinity of Yoo Young-cheol's apartment. If anyone wanted to provide Yoo Young-cheol with in-home services, he would put on airs as an NCPD member and drive them away.

Until he saw his old acquaintance Jack and his partner Vito come to Yoo Young-chul's door.

Stings had also heard a little about Jack becoming a mercenary. In his opinion, Jack, a reckless and hot-blooded Haywood kid who kept talking about the afterlife, would only end up dying randomly in a mission.

To Stings' surprise, this kid quickly rose to prominence. His partner was daring, ruthless, and incredibly efficient. At first, when Stings saw the two of them enter the apartment, he thought it was just a coincidence.

After a brief commotion, the two lads whistled as they left the apartment, leaving Yoo Young-cheol a mangled mess.

Stins checked Yoo Young-cheol's room and frowned, not because of the violence, but because of the trouble that was about to come.

Stings called headquarters dispatch, but a group of company personnel arrived immediately, faster than the police officers. Three black armored company vehicles roared down from the sky, driving him, the NCPD sergeant, away from the scene like flies.

Half an hour later, an order came through the communicator from headquarters: "The case of Yoo Young-cheol has been classified as a suicide after a cyberpsychotic episode. The case is closed." Stins sneered. He knew that the real hunters were never the madmen on the street.

As a Night City resident, Stings witnessed the murder of a corporate dog with a powerful background, yet the company not only refrained from causing trouble but also hastily closed the case. It seemed there was something fishy going on.

When Stins got back, he checked Vito's identity and found that the man seemed to have appeared out of thin air. He had no ID, no immigration records, and an account, but it was opened out of nowhere.

This situation suggests that either Vito emerged from a crack in the rock, or he has a significant background, possibly being a New America agent or corporate spy with a high level of secrecy.

I heard that President Miles is going to strengthen the government recently, and Vito might be one of the people sent down by the government.

Now, seeing Vito's efficient methods, Stings is increasingly convinced that he guessed correctly.

"I didn't mean to cause you any trouble. The psychopathic killer got his comeuppance, which is good. I heard you're one of Heywood's hottest mercenaries now. I have a commission for you. How about it? Interested?"

Stings spoke, his arrogance vanished, and he spoke in a gentle tone.

Vito also put away his gun. He knew that some people in the NCPD would hire mercenaries to help with their work, such as Regina Jones, whose missions were all related to cyberpsychosis.

"Sheriff Stings, you can assign jobs through intermediaries; after all, that's the rule in Night City."

Stins smiled.

"Rules? You don't seem like the kind of person who follows rules. To be honest, the job I'm assigning is a bit tricky, and the fewer people who know about it, the better."

Vito gestured for Stins to continue.

"There are some scumbags in the NCPD. They have gangs supporting them behind the scenes, and in return, they protect the gangs. If it were just some cover-up of gang fights, I wouldn't bother offending my colleagues. But one thing has crossed the line, and I have to intervene."

Vito asked, "What is it?"

"There's a sheriff in the department named Dutt. He and a few cronies are keen on catching petty thieves on the street. You know, this year the NCPD went private, and half the police were fired, but Dutt and his scum got away scot-free because he sold the people he arrested to gangs and had money to pay his superiors."

This is similar to what Vito knew; Margot also mentioned the NCPD.

"So, you want to expose Duterte? You might as well go directly to the TV station."

Stins shook his head, looked around to make sure no one was around, and then lowered his voice to speak.

"Dut usually entrusts his human trafficking business to his trusted confidants, but he occasionally meets with gang members. I want you to keep an eye on him and launch a surprise attack when he meets with those people."

Vito lit a cigarette.

"It doesn't have to be this complicated to take him down."

Stins shook his head again.

"Don't kill him. Notify me before you make a move. I'll be patrolling the area with my men. You take out his men and gang members first, but leave Dut alive. I'll bring my men to catch him red-handed later."

Vito was puzzled.

"Why didn't you just go and arrest him?"

Stings crossed his arms and said helplessly.

"Please, look at the NCPD's equipment now, who can they beat? All the money went to those guys in the Terrorist Mobile Unit, and now all we can do is issue tickets on the street. You expect me to go and deal with fully armed gangsters with just a piece of paper?"

Stins caught Dutt involved in human trafficking. If the news didn't get out, the department would just handle it internally, and Dutt would still be alive. The gang behind Dutt wouldn't bother Stins either. If he handled it well, Stins could even make Dutt owe him a life-saving favor.

Vito looked at Stins in front of him. One sheriff was trying to take down another sheriff. He guessed that Dutt was Stins's rival for promotion. Stins made a grand statement, but in reality, he was just taking the opportunity to attack his rival.

"This can be done, but it won't be cheap. We'll require a 30% deposit upfront, and there's no room for negotiation."

Stins considered for a few seconds and then nodded.

After evaluation, Vito offered a price of 40,000 euros.

Stings first transferred a deposit of 12,000 to Vito.

Vito raised an eyebrow; it seemed Stins had also set up his own slush fund within the bureau.

"I'll keep an eye on this. Is there anything else? If not, you can go home and iron your police uniform."

Stins said no more and turned to leave the alley.

Vito then went to old Vito's clinic.

"How's it going, Lao Wei? Is the girl alright?"

Old Wei has already performed repairs on the girl, and she looks much better.

"There's nothing wrong with her physically, but it's hard to say about her mental state. This girl is terrified. Now she can't stop crying at the slightest noise, and we can only suppress her emotions by inhaling sedative inhalers."

Old Vito sighed. He had also heard about the poor girl's plight; she was lucky to have met Vito and Jack and escaped with her life.

Misty tried to provide some emotional support to the girl, but the situation remained bad.

Jack and Misty took the girl home. She lived alone in an old apartment in the North District, but her home was very clean.

The girl's neighbor was a good friend and a kind-hearted person. The neighbor thought the girl had left Night City, but he never expected that she would encounter such a terrible thing.

Misty and Jack left only after the neighbors agreed to look after the girl for the next few days.

A month later, the neighbor called the NCPD to collect the girl's body.

After the girl felt a little better, she tried to find a job, but because she was mentally disoriented, she spilled coffee on a company employee's suit on her first day. She was fired on the spot and threatened with being sued.

Without a job, the girl had no money to support herself, and the news that she hadn't paid her rent on time completely shattered her will to live. She ended her life with a knife.

Her soul had long since died from the blows of despair, and that knife was merely the final stroke of the pen for this empty shell.

Night City is devouring her flesh and blood; perhaps she died long ago when she was captured to film the movie "Black Dream."