Infinity, progress from Arasaka

but--

Vera stretched lazily, and all the bones in her body immediately made crackling sounds. "Thank you for the reminder, but you forgot that I am from the special assault force. See you tomorrow." Vera said, gently waving her hand.

The automatic door opens.

Get out.

get off work!

"Huh... security, combat command, biological research, cyber hacking... an all-rounder."

After Vera left, the hacker leader shook his head, patted the hot security relay in his hand that had to be maintained, and said with emotion: "What an enviable talent..."

"Director Vera Adelheid Russell."

------

Chapter 010 Miss Vera Doesn’t Want to Become a Legend

The night falls and the neon lights shine brightly.

At 0:7 in the morning, Miss Vera finished her work for the day.

hum...bum...

A Renfield 'Holy Sword' type hovercraft slowly drove out from the helipad inside the dark tower.

Its surface is coated with a special coating that is only found on the latest supercars. It is dark in color throughout, and has the ability to absorb radar waves to achieve a certain 'stealth' effect. At the same time, it is translucent and dim, restrained and luxurious.

Black background with white stripes, and the logos of aRaSaKa and Arasaka Clover.

This is the guarantee that allows them to move freely in Night City without any hindrance or inspection.

Inside the car, Vera took off her coat and leaned against the cushion, looking at the identity card, car purchase certificate and thank-you letter wrapped in a vintage gold-plated cardboard box. The card looked very similar to the platinum membership card of the trauma team.

"With the internal discount, it's not expensive."

It is only slightly more expensive than the 9 euros of Guinevere's S225000 Sword of the Lake.

The difficulty in buying a hovercraft lies in the purchasing channels and the class.

Arasaka... No, it should be said that all companies are the same, advocating the concept of hierarchy. You wear what clothes and ride what car according to your level. Both men and women are required to wear clothes that are commensurate with their positions.

"..."

After a few seconds, Vera, whose interest waned, threw the cardboard box aside, leaned her elbows on the armrest, and watched the lights rapidly receding outside the car window with her chin in her hand with an expressionless face.

I got my first hovercraft in my life.

But it didn't seem to bring her much pleasure.

I wanted one so much before...

Vera looked down at the world beneath her feet through the dark, pry-proof glass with indigo eyes.

"..."

South of the Civic Center is Heywood, the territory of the Valentino Gang. It is an area with different styles. In the north, near the Civic Center, there are modern skyscrapers and parks. In the south, there is a slum composed of low buildings. The streets are narrow and winding, and the dilapidated buildings are like stacked cardboard boxes that may collapse at any time.

This was the first time she looked down at Night City so seriously.

In the past, I either lived in an ivory tower, worked hard in Arasaka Tower Academy, or traveled around the world with the Arasaka army on missions. The Arasaka special car I took did not have such a commuting route, and when I rode in a floating armored vehicle, I did not have such a good view and leisure.

As the hovercraft was heading eastward toward Westbrook, at this moment, Vera had a dynamic view of the night sceneries of Haywood, part of the river valley, and Santo Domingo.

The artificial eye plug-in comparable to a high-power microscope helped Vera see everything more clearly:

In the open space at the edge of the park, under the dim street lights, homeless people sat around a fire made of paint buckets, their faces illuminated by the fire.

In the corner between the buildings, a group of ragged children were chasing and playing around an abandoned vehicle.

The flickering garbage dump is where drug addicts and drunkards gather, and it is filled with smoke and foul smell.

……

The time they were reflected in Vera's eyes was so brief.

Where's my curiosity?

When did my compassion become so thin?

Vera asked herself this.

Suddenly, her eyes widened.

It turned out that since some time, her curiosity about the true face of cyberpunk society had disappeared.

As she deceived herself again and again while completing the tasks assigned by her superiors, 'It's just Arasaka's mission', 'The company's order', 'It's not her intention to kill them', 'The people who were killed were seeking death', 'It's not difficult to climb up the ladder', 'We are all the same', 'They are guilty and have a bounty on their shoulders'... Has her compassion become so thin?

In the past, she had been curious about the scenes on the cyberpunk streets, but because she was timid and afraid of death and her biological parents stopped her, she suppressed her curiosity.

When she first went on a security mission as an intern observer in San Francisco, she felt sorry for the ragged people on the streets. She even secretly reflected on herself when faced with the hostile eyes of the public, and felt a little anxious.

Vera spread out her hands involuntarily.

Her hands, the hands of a corporate dog.

The hands that have been healed with Euros are smooth and white like young leaves in early summer, slender and full, with concave lines hidden under the leather. Each knuckle looks like a finely crafted jade sculpture, and the fingertips sway gently, exuding the luster of a work of art.

At this moment, Vera felt that her hands were so dirty and ugly, soaked in blood.

"The blood on your hands can't be washed off."

Vera whispered silently.

Vera closed her eyes and clasped her hands together, listening to the soothing music played softly by the car's intelligent system, feeling the quiet atmosphere that was completely different from the streets of Night City.

After a long time, Vera opened her eyes.

She does not regret her actions, nor does she regret the changes she has made.

She doesn't want to live on the edge of a knife, living in fear of death at any time, and being found dead on the street at any time.

She was just reminding herself not to be too depraved. Choosing to go with the flow did not mean that she had to be the most extreme one. The relatively gentle type among corporate dogs, the relatively responsible and compassionate type among corporate people?

Vera chuckled.

"Three years."

2074 to 2077.

The most important thing for her now is to climb to the top of the Arasaka Night City department in three years, and then become the one who holds the real power of military force, and then wait for the drastic changes in the Arasaka family.

Going against the odds and becoming a legend was never her path.

After all, in Night City, legends always gather in graves.

...

hum...

The hovercraft glided silently across the sky, its thrusters emitting a faint blue light.

Vera's hovercraft flew quickly over Haywood, over the dark, noisy, and silent communities, and arrived at Westbrook's corporate community, where the ground was casting glances of disdain, fear, hatred, and envy.

House number 414, the helipad behind the Russell family apartment.

The Russell family had previously been qualified to use the hovercraft, and now they have simply resumed its use.

Nourishing.

A red shadow was projected downward, marking the landing position of the hovercraft. It stopped steadily, and the door opened automatically. Vera stepped out and took the handle of the rear door.

【Biological information has been confirmed.】

The door opened and the automatic sensor light came on.

As soon as she entered the house, she threw her coat and business briefcase on the sofa, then picked up the tablet on the coffee table, connected to the local area network, lay on the sofa and browsed the mall.

Home security service mall.

Miss Vera, who suffers from paranoia, decides to renovate the helipad in her backyard and update the security equipment to increase the sense of security.

The standard version of the 'Holy Sword' hovercraft was useless when it was first driven, but Miss Vera had already contacted the hovercraft manufacturer, Rayfield, and was prepared to add some protection and firepower to the hovercraft at her own expense, including arranging for onboard portable armed robots, armed drones, and the like!

Well, the subscription to the community housekeeping service should also be upgraded.

I, Vera Adelheid Russell, lacked only rank before, not money.

Miss Vera, who inherited the assets of her deceased father and mother, a senior executive, and who feeds the whole family with her own food.

------

PS: There is one more chapter.

Chapter 011 A profiteer...a profiteer's wife?

"Commitment, honesty, and integrity are the three core tenets on which the Umbrella Corporation was founded."

"Just like our three main departments, the red umbrella, blue umbrella and white umbrella, they have clear division of labor, but are also interconnected and indispensable. Together, they will support our company to better serve the general public."

"Now, our company will formally inform the public of the resolution to establish the Black Umbrella Department: Based on the company's development strategy and the needs of the company's production and operation management this year, after discussion and research by the company's board of directors, it has been decided to establish the Black Umbrella Department."

"The director of the Black Umbrella Department will be the genius scientist Dr. Vera Adelheid Russell, who will be responsible for our company's research and development in the fields of materials, intelligent control technology, and human bionics..."

drop.

Umbrella Building, San Francisco, West Coast.

A beautiful figure leaned against a large desk, picked up the remote control and turned off the TV.

She patted the remote control in her hand, gently lifted her long light blonde hair, and swayed her slender fingers in a happy gesture, sighing, "...The remote control, it suddenly feels like such an old thing."

This is probably a small impact brought about by the common cross-border thinking and consciousness.

I wanted to glare at him, turn the machine on and off, and change the channel, but nothing happened.

dong dong.

"Please come in."

"Director, your tea." Pushing the door open, Umbrella's professional receptionist bowed slightly and gently placed the exquisite snacks, teapot, and bone china cups on the tray on Vera's desk.

"Thank you." After the waiter left, Vera picked up the teacup and took a sip. The rich aroma of tea immediately filled her mouth.

Pretend to taste it.

You have to ask who you are pretending for.

Jingle Bell-

coming.

Vera pressed the button next to the integrated service phone on her desk.

Swish.

The curtains are automatically drawn, the LCD projector moves, and the projection screen falls.

After a while, sizzle...

"Dr. Russell."

An old, steady and powerful voice came from the speaker which seemed extremely old in Vera's eyes.

On the projection screen, accompanied by the flashing mosaics, the image of an elderly man in his seventies gradually became clear.

Caucasian, male, thin, with all-white hair, that authentic old London Union Jack-style hairline, and shiny Mediterranean hair.