From Gotham to Night City, my infamy is known to all.

A gentle female voice sounded from in front of her, quickly bringing Sasha back to her senses.

Looking around blankly,

Before me was a pure white space, without walls or boundaries, with only a typical intensive care bed found in hospitals and a simple wheeled table made of an iron frame and two wooden planks.

There was a glass of water on the table, and next to it was a medicine bottle with the cap unscrewed.

The blue and white bottle features a leaf-shaped logo, which is the trademark of the biotechnology company.

This is... a newly launched painkiller that is said to be very effective for various types of pain.

"Sasha."

The gentle call rang out once more.

Sasha turned her head, her gaze falling on the hospital bed, and her heart suddenly stopped for a few seconds.

The hospital bed, which had been empty just moments before, now lay a haggard woman, her body covered in tubes, looking utterly exhausted.

It was her mother.

Her once glossy short hair has now become dull and lifeless, and because it has not been styled for a long time, it is haphazardly draped over her shoulders.

The mother slightly opened her eyes, and on her face, which was covered by the respirator, a smile full of affection could be faintly seen.

Sasha followed her mother's gaze and saw the medicine bottle on the table.

She blinked and suddenly remembered—it was time for her mother to take her medicine again.

My mother's condition is very serious. As long as she is conscious, she is constantly tormented by pain. Regular painkillers have lost their effectiveness, and only this newest medication can provide her with temporary relief from her endless suffering.

Without thinking twice, she quickly walked to the table and picked up the medicine bottle.

【Safety Spirit】

Upon seeing the name, Sasha felt a sudden tightness in her chest and a strange sense of panic.

"Sasha."

My mother's call came from behind me.

Sasha knew that her mother must be in pain again to call out to her so urgently.

We need to get my mother to take her medicine quickly so she can get better...

Sasha poured out a capsule, then picked up a glass of water that was still half full, and brought them to her mother's bedside.

For some reason, her legs felt as heavy as lead, and her hands trembled so much that she could barely hold onto anything.

After she finally managed to deliver the medicine and water to her mother, she was relieved to see a smile on her mother's face once again, a smile that had eased her pain.

However, that smile gradually froze, remaining frozen in that moment forever.

Buzz————

Beep beep—tap tap—

The electrocardiogram monitor suspended in mid-air emitted a beeping alarm, interspersed with increasingly rapid beeping sounds.

Sasha stared blankly at the water glass in her hand, then at her mother lying on the hospital bed, her face as pale as paper. Forgotten memories flooded back like a tide.

【Safety Spirit】

[Known serious side effect: neurodegeneration.]

[After discussion by the council—side effects must not be disclosed, and product recalls are prohibited…]

This is… a problematic drug.

Taking it can cause neurodegenerative changes in some patients, and ultimately lead to death.

"What...have I done?"

Click.

The water glass fell to the ground, just like her shattered heart.

Several doctors and nurses, whose faces were obscured, rushed into the ward to resuscitate the mother.

They called out their mother's name and used various medical devices, but after a few minutes they fell silent again.

The attending physician walked to the pulley table, picked up the medicine bottle, glanced at it a few times, and then slammed it down. His rough action shook the capsules out of the bottle, scattering them across the table.

"Is it this drug again? The probability of side effects is much higher than they said..."

Sasha's blank mind kept replaying this sentence. It was this doctor's rambling that planted the seed of doubt in her heart, making her always feel that there might be something wrong with this drug that had received all positive reviews.

Now, she has found the answer, but it's too late...

"I...I...killed my mother..." Her mental state began to collapse. "I...found the poison..."

"It's...it's all my fault..."

Despair swept in like a raging tornado, and she was like a small boat adrift in the deep sea, about to be swallowed by the bottomless abyss.

"But isn't that the truth?"

The whispers in the darkness suddenly became clear, as if they were right next to my ear.

Sasha looked up blankly and saw her mother again—the energetic mother who used to take her on trips when she was young.

She has a cute bob haircut with straight ends, straight bangs, and jet-black, glossy hair.

On her delicate and lovely face, all the metal implant marks were painted purple, just like the stripes on a tabby cat's face.

“Sasha…”

Her mother's voice seemed to overlap with another voice, yet it brought her an unexpected sense of peace.

Even if your mother is gone, you must live a good life.

"I'm so sorry that you'll be all alone from now on... But even so, you can't go astray, okay? We made a promise..."

This is what I said to my mother when she first started taking Anquanling and her condition improved.

Sasha remembers being very angry at the time, forbidding her mother from continuing, and even making a promise with her that they would go to the park together after she recovered...

Unfortunately, the promise can never be fulfilled...

“Sasha…”

Just as the pain in my heart was about to surge up, my mother's voice was replaced by another man's voice.

"Think about it carefully. The real culprit behind your mother's death is biotechnology. They knowingly allowed the drug to be marketed and heavily promoted it despite knowing it was problematic. That's why there are millions of victims like your mother who have died from these problematic drugs."

“…Biotechnology?” Even amidst immense pain, the name briefly roused Sasha to her senses.

She remembered... It was in the spring of 2070 when her mother was critically injured during a mission. The hospital's regular painkillers couldn't relieve her mother's severe post-operative pain, so they accepted the doctor's suggestion to try the newly launched, safe painkiller.

That hospital belongs to the biotechnology industry, and Anquanling is also a drug produced by biotechnology...

"Biotechnology..."

The sorrow that gathered in his heart turned into anger, and the biting cold was ignited, turning into a raging fire.

This anger seeped into his blood, surging wildly in every vein, like a scorching wave waiting to burst forth.

The pure white cage formed from memories began to collapse, and Sasha, who was as young as a child, transformed into her current mature form after a moment of confusion.

As she watched her smiling mother slowly fade away, she finally realized a harsh reality—it wasn't she who killed her mother, but the biotechnology company!

Anger and determination, like twin spirals, spiral upwards together, reaching the summit together.

Sasha was suddenly jolted awake from her painful memories, and the gentle voice rang clearly in her ears.

"Sasha?"

"Um……"

She buried her head deeply in the arms of the person in front of her, feeling a warmth from his embrace that was different from her mother's, yet equally real and genuine.

She had realized something—she must avenge her mother! And she would never let go of the warmth she felt at this moment!

I'm sorry, V...

Following sadness, anger, longing, and happiness, Sasha felt a pang of guilt...

Early Signs of Talent: Chapter 198 Leo: Back in the day, I bit Vivian and made her beg for mercy!

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Sasha regain her senses.

At her most frantic moment, she even triggered the automatic alarm of the bio-monitoring system. If Chunbai hadn't pressed down on her, the trauma team would have arrived to rescue her by now.

Fortunately, the emotional calming worked, and Sasha was successfully awakened.

Leo held her trembling body tightly and gently stroked her head: "It's alright, it's alright now. Don't take other people's mistakes upon yourself, that will make life very difficult."

"Hmm... It's all the fault of biotechnology! I'll make them pay!"

Sasha really wanted to stay in his arms and not leave, but Vera and V were right behind her, and she couldn't keep clinging to V's boyfriend like that...

Trying to compose herself, Sasha took a deep breath, remembering the reassuring scent emanating from him, and reluctantly got up.

Then, she reached out and closed the clinical trial report for SafeLing, hesitatingly turning to look at her companions:

"Everyone, I have a request that may not be appropriate... Could you let me handle this intelligence? I want to expose the true situation of Security Spirit and make biotechnology pay the price!"

V and Vera exchanged a glance, their eyes both falling on Leo.

He is the leader of the team, and only he can make such decisions.

Leo pondered for a moment, looked down at Sasha whose eyes were full of pleading, slowly shook his head, and then nodded.

Sasha's heart tightened at first, and she felt a pang of sadness at being abandoned. Then she saw him nod, and she was completely confused by his ambiguous attitude.

"Promoting problematic drugs should certainly be exposed so that biotechnology pays the price. But the method and timing for doing so must be carefully considered."

With that, he turned around, took out the data chip, and led his three companions back to the living room.

After carefully placing the chip back into the box, he turned to Sasha and said, "I can probably guess what you're thinking. You want to expose this scandal to the news media, right?"

Sasha nodded vigorously: "That's right! I want to send the information about Safe Spirit to Channel 54. They have military technology backing them, so they're definitely not afraid of biotech companies!"

Leo nodded: "Military technology is indeed not afraid of biotechnology, but expecting them to uphold justice is wishful thinking. Their main enemy in Night City is Arasaka, and they are practically allies with biotechnology. If you give them intelligence, at most they'll try to extort some money from biotechnology to keep quiet."

Sasha's breath hitched: "Then, should I give it to WNS News? That news outlet is biased towards Arasaka Corporation. Arasaka probably doesn't get along with biotechnology, right?"

She held her breath, but saw Leo still shaking his head.

"It's no use. Arasaka may not like biotechnology, but their main enemy is military technology. You can't just push the so-called 'neutral' faction directly into the enemy camp, can you? If you give them the information, the result will be the same—biotechnology will lose a hush money, and the safety spirit will still be sold."

"why is it like this……"

The underhanded dealings between large companies made Sasha feel suffocated once again.

“There’s no need to be so pessimistic. Why not listen to my thoughts?” Leo pushed a cup of tea towards Sasha, then took a sip himself. “In my vision, biotechnology will inevitably become our enemy, and a mortal enemy at that. Sooner or later, the two sides will clash…”

Upon hearing this, Sasha, who had just brought the tea to her lips, suddenly stopped.

Vera also looked at her with surprise.

Only V vaguely guessed what he was thinking.

“I had previously mentioned the idea of ​​starting a company to V. I planned to enter the public eye by starting with environmental protection, and then gradually move into the biological field, especially the plant field, focusing on developing the organic food industry and targeting the high-end market. But there is already a large company with a monopoly in this field, namely Whole Foods, which was acquired by a biotechnology company.”

Once we show any intention to enter this industry, they will definitely stop at nothing to suppress us. Conflict will be inevitable then.

“This data,” Leo pointed to the data chip of the Security Spirit, “is, in my opinion, a useful bullet, but not lethal enough when used alone. Only when we launch a full-scale offensive can this bullet blend in with the hail of bullets and perhaps become the straw that breaks the camel’s back.”

Sasha only vaguely understood what Leo was saying, but one thing she did understand was that Leo would continue to oppose biotechnology and might even start a full-scale war.

Winning or losing doesn't matter. As long as he has this intention, Sasha is already satisfied and secretly decides to follow him to the end!

The anger in her heart slowly subsided, not extinguished, but waiting for the right moment to erupt completely.

"If that's the case, then I have no objection. As long as you're against biotechnology, I'll unconditionally support any decision you make!"

After making up her mind, Sasha quickly adjusted her attitude and returned to her usual lazy demeanor.

Leo breathed a sigh of relief and turned to look out the window.

The pitch-black night had already enveloped the sky; it was getting late.

"That's enough for today. Go back and get some rest."

Upon hearing this, Vera instinctively stood up, but when she turned her head, she saw that Sasha had not moved.