Cyberpunk: I didn't cheat.

David knocked on Vito's door.

"Please come in."

David brought the S.A. Steinstein in the door, and before he could say anything, he was stunned.

Vito was seen quickly disassembling a series of submachine guns; the box he had been carrying earlier was full of weapons.

"What's wrong? Did you need to talk to me?"

As Vito spoke, he disassembled the Shigure submachine gun and the Guillotine submachine gun into weapon components. The role of the Project 20 and Intelligence 20 was greater than he had imagined; he could assemble some weapons himself.

David recovered from his surprise and held up the prosthetic body.

"This is my family's way of thanking you; please be sure to accept it."

Vito looked up and saw it was a spinal prosthetic. He took it and scanned it, finding it to be a special military-grade S.A.W.S ...

"This Sianwaystein works really well; it saves a lot of time. You can get it installed; I don't really need it right now."

After finishing his sentence, Vito started collecting his things again.

David said hastily.

"Sir, you must accept this. You saved my mother; this is just a temporary token of my gratitude. I will definitely repay you in the future!"

Vito didn't seem to mind. He said, "Just call me Vito. I'm already happy to have a safe place to stay. No need for thanks. Tell me about yourself. Did you get beaten up today?"

David had no choice but to put aside Sianwistan and tell Vito about how he had blown up the academy system yesterday by using a pirated upgrade, and how he had been brutally beaten up by Kazuo's kung fu chip at Arasaka Academy today.

Vito sighed after hearing this: "That kid really deserves a beating, but he was right about one thing: you shouldn't have spent so much money to go to Arasaka Academy."

David thought so too.

Vito continued, "I'm not saying your mother's idea is wrong. She wants you to use Arasaka Academy as a springboard to get out of the bottom. It's a good idea. If it happens, your family's situation could change a lot."

Ding!

Vito disarmed a grenade, and the sound of the firing pin popping out sent a chill down David's spine.

"But your family can't have any accidents. You and your mother can't even have a toothache, otherwise you'll be eliminated by the Night City system. Uh, the concept of elimination is that once you can't afford a certain expense and your finances run into trouble, you'll experience a chain reaction, and your family's situation will deteriorate rapidly. You might be fine in the morning, but become homeless by night."

David began to think.

Vito continued, "I know a guy who rose to become the second-in-command of the Arasaka Counterintelligence Department in Night City. But his superiors made him take the blame, and he lost everything while he was at a bar. Luckily, he doesn't like using prosthetics, otherwise his parts would have been taken away by Agent Arasaka."

Vito began assembling a pistol using weapon components, saying as he did so, "So my suggestion is, oh wait, this can be improved with some things, uh, my suggestion is, you attach that Sianwistan, then beat that little brat up, and then take your mother away from Night City. After all, this Arasaka Academy that got blown up by a pirated upgrade probably isn't a good place. I never really respected Arasaka Corporation in my past life; their stuff is awful!"

Vito had assembled a new unified pistol that could fire larger bullets. He fiddled with the bolt and nodded in satisfaction.

Vito said, looking at David who was deep in thought.

"I can lend you the money for your surgery. Remember to find a reputable clinic, or just contact Lao Wei directly."

After much internal struggle, David decided to get the S.A.S ...

David took the prosthetic body and left home. He didn't dare go to Vito's place. If Gloria found out that he had installed a prosthetic body and was preparing to drop out of school, he would definitely be scolded by Gloria. He didn't want to see Gloria's tearful face again, but he had to do it. Just like Vito said, he would get the prosthetic body installed and leave Night City.

Vito must have never seen Cyberpunk: The Edge Walker in his past life, otherwise he certainly wouldn't have advised David to do this.

Vito is currently modifying bullets. This crafting interface is much richer than the games Vito plays. He can now modify things without using a tool machine, which is practically a bug.

Vito also noticed that he could manufacture prosthetic capacity chips, but the materials required were much more varied. He wanted to buy a computer to see if there were any raw materials available online.

David sought out his old acquaintance, a doctor, to install the Sianwistan. The doctor told him that this kind of prosthetic body wasn't something that could be installed just anywhere; it depended on the fit. However, he could install it for David for free, on the condition that if David died because of a mismatch, the Sianwistan would belong to him.

David agreed. He couldn't keep using Vito's money forever. His family already owed Vito a huge favor. Now that he had installed S.A.S.S., he had to make money as soon as possible to repay Vito's favor and take his mother away from Night City.

"I'm back!"

When David got home, Vito had just finished cleaning the bullets and was about to get something to eat when he saw David wearing his mother's trauma company coat, which was soaked with a large pool of blood.

"Didn't you go see Old Wei?"

David asked, "Vito, how did you know?"

Vito smiled.

"Old Wei won't let you get into this bloody mess. Let's go find a doctor to stop the bleeding, and while we're at it, let's grab something to eat. I'm so hungry I could eat the worst fried noodles."

At Vito's insistence, David found a doctor to properly treat his wound, and the two sat down at a wonton stall to eat and chat.

"Vito, are you a mercenary, one of those borderline figures?"

Vito frowned as he swallowed a vegetarian wonton.

"Not yet. Are you free tomorrow? Are you going to your mom's?"

David ate with relish, he replied.

"I'm going to the academy to drop out tomorrow, and then I'm going to beat that damn Sheng Nan up!"

Vito ordered two small bottles of Coca-Cola.

"and then?"

David paused.

"Then, uh, then I go home and find a job."

Vito handed the Coke to David and said.

"Life isn't a movie; it won't end when you're having the most fun. If anything happens after you beat that kid up, just call me. I'm going to Old Wei's place tomorrow to get a few prosthetic bodies installed."

David took the Coke, feeling that Vito was taking care of him like a father.

Vito began to speak.

"Don't look at me like that. Your eyes seem to say, 'Oh my god, this handsome man looks just like my father!'"

"Hahahaha, get lost, Vito."

David and Vito finished their wontons and walked home chatting and laughing. Then, he seemed to catch a glimpse of silver hair. He thought he had seen it a few days ago, but like the previous days, it was fleeting.

While he was still in a daze, Vito had already walked quite a distance ahead, and David could only hurry to catch up with Vito.