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

Stealing private data chips is a technical job that requires a certain level of hacking skill.

The process requires hacking into passengers' personal connections to force their chips to eject from their neural slots. Simultaneously, a backdoor is injected to cause the self-testing system to misinterpret the issue, delaying the time it takes for victims to discover their chips have been stolen.

Novice hackers are prone to making mistakes in this kind of work, while professional hackers don't care about the income. It's an awkward job that's neither here nor there.

Only someone with her strong hacking skills who works alone could make enough profit from this.

Going to work...going to work...

After muttering a few disheartened words to herself, Lucy glanced at the ear slots of her "prey" out of the corner of her eye and slowly walked forward.

Spotting a drowsy office worker, she turned her back to him, her prosthetic eye flashing red.

[Cover-the-ground hacking...successful.]

[Backdoor injection successful.]

[Enter neural slot control options, switch to silent mode... Success.]

[Ready, personal data chip—ejecting automatically!]

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the nerve slot behind the man's ear flashing green light rapidly.

Three seconds later, the chip behind his ear popped out with a barely perceptible "click".

The chip doesn't bounce off with much force; if there's no external interference, it will probably fly about 30 to 40 centimeters before falling to the ground.

But today was different. After the chip was ejected, it fell into the slender hand that was already waiting on the trajectory before it even fell.

With a simple stretch, Lucy secretly retrieved the chip and quickly slipped it into a special storage pouch in her pocket.

First order done!

Judging from the victim's attire, he probably earned a hundred or two hundred euros.

Keep up the good work! After stealing from this carriage, I'll go have breakfast and lay low for a while. I'll find another place to steal in the afternoon!

Lucy quickly glanced at the train's arrival time at the next station and sped up her work.

She quickly obtained four chips and began searching for her fifth prey.

Umm, the guy on the left is a gangster. Just look at that "automatic slaughtering machine" in the vending machine that costs 100 euros, and you'll know he's the poorest of the poor!

Weapons are the lifeblood of gang members, yet he can only use these disposable plastic toys. His chip is worth at most 10 euros, not worth the effort.

On the right... Oh wow, this red-haired mercenary's neural slot is actually a high-end product. Judging from its appearance, it should be a public version from the Internet Security Bureau equipped with the latest security firmware.

This slot has built-in security authentication and will automatically lock when the chip is ejected.

In other words, hacking methods can only expose half of the chip, and to obtain it, one must physically remove it, making it significantly more difficult than before.

However, someone who can afford such secure firmware that even ordinary office workers can't afford must have a chip worth at least five hundred to one thousand euros.

Hmm... I kind of want it.

Chapter 338 Subway Thief VS Master Thief

Continue to observe.

The half-shaved hairstyle is quite unique, making it easy to dissipate heat and clean, but there are no metal implant marks on the female mercenary's neck and back of the head, so she is clearly not a hacker.

Looking down, I didn't see her carrying a rifle.

Without using a prosthetic eye to scan and alert her, this is all the naked eye can see.

He seems like... a mercenary with some skill.

But he probably isn't at the "big brother" level yet, otherwise he wouldn't need to get up so early to take the subway.

If the risks are within an acceptable range, it's worth a try if the timing is right.

Lucy marked a "high-value prey" and, while she still had some time, planned to steal two easy targets first.

As for this one, she planned to save her for last, and steal the chip and run away when the subway arrived at the station and the doors opened.

What she didn't know was that the prey she had her eye on was also thinking about how to capture it.

V: Pure White, is that the sneaky guy behind me? She's been staring at me for a while.

"Pure White: It's her. The subway surveillance cameras couldn't capture her face clearly, but I can identify her using pixel-level recognition technology."

V: Should I go and catch her now?

"Pure White: Pg cage eight cold nine 3 slender wait a little longer, the subway is almost here. Once the doors open, grab her and get off. I'll call you a Delaman car, so you can make it back in time to cook for Leo."

V: That's so thoughtful, let's do it that way!

V has marked a "high-value prey" and, while there's still some time, quickly thinks about what to make for breakfast today.

Leo's performance yesterday was poor. Was he being over-exploited?

He needs to be properly nourished!

The two women, each with their own ulterior motives, separated briefly, only to reunite as the subway began to slow down.

More accurately, Lucy hesitantly moved closer to V.

Today's haul was pretty good. I stole over twenty chips this morning. If I'm lucky, I should be able to sell them for over a thousand euros.

Should we do this last order or not?

It wasn't that she was kind, but rather that a vague sense of unease in her heart prevented her from making up her mind to take action.

This premonition was something she developed through countless near-death experiences during her years on the run. While she wouldn't say it was always accurate, it came true seven or eight times out of ten.

Before each mishap, she often had this ominous premonition.

Maybe we should just forget about it...

If you win the bet, you might earn a few hundred or a thousand at most; if you lose, going to jail is the least of your worries. The mercenaries in Night City can be ruthless.

After weighing the pros and cons, Lucy glanced longingly at her neural slot and made up her mind to give up.

[The train is moving forward...]

As the announcement came on, Lucy lowered her head, concealing her stunning beauty, and planned to sneak away.

however,

The moment my heels left the ground, a pair of long, slender legs encased in sweatpants appeared out of nowhere in my line of sight.

That's right... it appeared out of thin air!

It didn't step into view from the side, nor did it come into view from a distance; it simply appeared there, as if a person had suddenly appeared in front of you!

"What... what the hell!?"

Lucy looked up and saw a familiar red-haired mercenary.

She had observed the other person's profile for a while and recognized that this was the high-value prey she had given up.

This is…Sianweistein? (The rest of the text appears to be gibberish and unrelated to the initial question.)

She considered one possibility, but then thought it unlikely. S.A.S.S.—the ultimate combat cheat code; someone who could use that and hadn't been driven mad by its side effects probably wouldn't need to take the subway, right?

Did I just drift off into thought?

Drawing on her years of criminal experience, Lucy tried to remain calm and said softly, "Excuse me, could you please let me pass? I need to get off at this stop..."

"What a coincidence, me too! Let's go together!"

Before she finished speaking, the red-haired mercenary vanished like a dream.

At the same time, Lucy felt the light dim and it seemed as if someone had stood to her left, with a long, strong right arm wrapped around her back and resting on her right shoulder.

No doubt about it, S.A.S.A.S.A.!

And...it's aimed at her!

Not good...

It was someone from Arasaka who found her!?

This was her first guess. Before she could even think of a second one, the pressure on her right shoulder suddenly increased.

Suddenly, she lost her footing and was lifted up by one hand, walking at a normal pace toward the slowly opening car door.

No, we have to think of a way—

Lucy didn't care that her identity as the chip thief had been exposed. She planned to shout for help to see if any righteous people or protectors could help her distract the red-haired mercenary.

But when they looked up, they found that those who had noticed the commotion were like ostriches, burying their heads in their knees.

Sci-An-Wei (mental illness)!

Damn, I can't control this. I mustn't get myself into trouble.

Don't look at me... Don't look at me...

Go, go, go! Get the hell out of here!

From the way they looked at her like she was a plague, Lucy learned the truth—no one would come to save her even if she screamed at the top of her lungs…

Fuck Night City, the locals are rotten!

After being forcibly taken off the subway, Lucy's eyes darted around, searching for the figure of an NCPD patrol officer.

She used to hate these cops who openly solicited bribes and issued particularly harsh tickets, but today, she could only hope that they would be willing to help her out.

The red-haired mercenary beside him had just used Sianwistan twice. While she was on cooldown, he might still have one chance to escape.

While searching diligently, she suddenly spotted two train police officers slacking off.

The opportunity is coming!

[Warning! Unauthorized access!]

The sudden hacker attack threw her into disarray.

Personalized ICE software bought from street vendors and self-made security programs are a joke in the face of intruders.

The progress bar reached its endpoint in less than two seconds, signaling a successful hack.

[Pure White: Hey, Lucy-chan, I suggest you don't put up any futile resistance, or I'll be happy to give your brain-computer interface a shock. I guarantee I'll shock you until you lose control of your bladder and bowels without hurting you. For a beautiful girl, that's a punishment more painful than death~]

A mocking look appeared in Yi's eyes.

Lucy was shocked: the attacker was a vicious psychopath!

Such a terrifying threat made her impending cry for help die in her throat. She blinked with difficulty and looked at the red-haired mercenary beside her: "Who are you?"

The mercenary glanced at her: "The people here to arrest you, the chip thief."

"Arrest?" Lucy's eyes lit up. "Are you from the NCPD?"

The mercenary's expression froze: "Who are you calling an NCPD?! Your whole family are NCPDs!"

Lucy's heart skipped a beat. Praying, she asked, "Cyber ​​surveillance? Voodoo gang? Hacker organization?"

Seeing the other person shake their head repeatedly, she uttered the word she least wanted to say, her heart filled with despair: "Arasaka?"

V continued to shake his head.

Lucy was stunned. Neither?

Why arrest her?

She hasn't done anything bad lately except stealing chips, has she?

After being forcibly taken out of the subway station by the mysterious red-haired female mercenary, they got into a driverless taxi.

Good morning, Ms. V.

"Welcome to Delaman Chauffeur Service. Choose Delaman, and leave your troubles at the door."

From the bald AI, Lucy learned the red-haired mercenary's name—no, her code name—but nothing else.

"Where are you taking me?"

"Go home first, and see what Li...L does to you."

“L?” Lucy thought for a moment, then her eyes widened suddenly. “Which L? The middleman L!?”

The infamous King of Night City!

The hottest topic in mercenary circles, spreading everywhere, is that he is so petty that it's as if he doesn't exist, and he especially enjoys the fantastical tale of capturing his enemies alive in front of him and then shooting them dead.

Why is he grabbing himself?