At Jack's suggestion, everyone raised their glasses in a toast.
Yogan set down his glass and said, "Today, I've got gifts for everyone."
He pulled out two Omaha handguns and handed them to V and Veena respectively.
Veena looked surprised. "For me too?"
"Of course. Just look at how reckless V can be—you're going to have to keep an eye on him."
Yogan deliberately ignored the clenched fists at V's sides and turned to Jack. "And this one's for you, Jack—'Big Guy.'"
"'Big Guy'? Then I've got to take a good look... Wait, man—seriously?"
The Saratoga submachine gun looked almost toy-like in Jack's large hands. It was compact by nature, and next to Jack's massive frame, it seemed tiny.
"Not big enough for you? Come on, Jack—if you're ever in a gang war where a submachine gun isn't enough, you should probably run instead of fight."
"You've got a point," Jack admitted, accepting Yogan's gift.
V eyed the handguns and said to Yogan, "Two Omaha handguns? Those aren't cheap. Isn't that a little too generous?"
Yogan reassured them, "Come on, sis—guess what? I'm getting a commission."
V laughed. "Looks like you're finally making a name for yourself in this line of work. Alright then—I won't turn you down."
Yogan raised his glass again. At that moment, the bartender called out, "Yogan, I need help down here!"
"I'm coming!"
Jack grumbled, "Bro, this party's supposed to be for you!"
"Sorry, sorry! I forgot to ask Mrs. Wells for time off."
"Alright, fine. But this means you owe us."
"Got it, Jack. I'll treat you guys to champagne next time."
As the night wore on, the Wild Wolf Bar finally approached closing time. After cleaning the last table, Yogan wrapped up for the night.
He stepped out the front door and spotted V and Veena leaning against V's battle-scarred "Hera" motorcycle, waiting for him.
"You guys haven't left yet?"
"Well, we came all this way. Might as well take you back too. Come on—get in."
Yogan climbed into the back seat. "Say, sis—your insurance premiums probably just went up again."
"Yogan, for the love of everything, can we not talk about soul-crushing topics when I just waited around for you?"
---
Corporate Plaza, Autumn Snow and Moon's Apartment
Autumn Snow and Moon didn't turn on the lights. She kicked off her high heels and collapsed onto the sofa.
A vintage family photo sat on the coffee table. In the picture, a man wearing an NCPD uniform had his arms around his daughter and wife. All three were smiling genuinely, a moment of pure happiness.
Ding~~~ Ding~~~
A holographic call came through.
Autumn sat up and answered. "Rai Nobuyuki."
"Miss Autumn, you did well this time. Militech already has the intel. Now News 54 and WNS are going at each other's throats. But I still don't get it—why give Militech such vague data? If we handed over the full package, I'm sure it would've dealt a serious blow to Arasaka."
Autumn rubbed the bridge of her nose and replied, "Nobuyuki-san, I understand your urgency. But this intelligence on the Blackwall isn't enough to fundamentally damage Arasaka."
"For any capable corporation, the data behind the Blackwall and in the Old Net is priceless—worth the risk of rogue AIs, worth maneuvering right under NetWatch's nose."
"That applies to Arasaka, to Militech, and to any company powerful enough to maintain an in-house netrunner division."
"Even if this event were to cripple Arasaka, Militech would just take its place. Replacing a wolf with a tiger doesn't make our job any more meaningful."
There was silence on the other end. Then, "Apologies, Miss Autumn. I was too impatient."
Autumn continued, "This leak has created dissatisfaction toward Miss Michiko in Tokyo. This may be your chance."
Rai Nobuyuki replied, "I'll try to push her out."
"I thought you might try to pull her to our side instead."
"No. I know my niece. Michiko might question Saburo, but more than that, she questions the way the old man runs the company. She wants to reshape Arasaka into something more like Militech—a Western-style corporation. Fundamentally, she's no different from Saburo."
Autumn recalled her experience in Counterintelligence and gave a reminder. "Then you might want to keep an eye on Arthur Jenkins. He's overly ambitious, but definitely not stupid. Keep feeding intel to the enemy company and he's bound to catch on. And be wary of Abernathy. She's just looking for a chance to topple Jenkins and climb higher. If she learns what you've been up to, she'll find a way to leak it straight to Tokyo."
Rai Nobuyuki sighed. "It can't be helped. People who are truly on our side... are few and far between. Speaking of which—how's that mercenary doing? The one also called V, right?"
"She still doesn't trust our corporate background. At the moment, it's more like we've cornered her into joining us. Given her history, that's not surprising."
"I read your report. You suspect ties to the NCPD?"
"Correct. And although she may not know it herself, that connection still seems to be active."
"You find anything else?"
Autumn projected a dossier into her vision. "Valerie Victorino Bichinia. Twenty years old. Born in Night City's Heywood district, Glen zone. Her father was a senior NCPD inspector, her mother ran a clothing boutique. In 2068, her father—Inspector Victorino—was eliminated by the Counterintelligence Department while investigating illegal human experimentation and trafficking by Arasaka's Night City division."
"During the elimination process, Counterintel fabricated evidence framing Victorino for accepting bribes. The scandal caused a huge stir at the time, destroying Valerie's family's reputation and way of life. Her mother's shop was repeatedly vandalized and set on fire. Valerie herself was subjected to prolonged bullying and abuse at school."
"Under social pressure, Valerie's mother closed the boutique and took on various part-time jobs to support the family."
"In 2070, during one such bullying incident, Valerie fought back—resulting in two deaths and five injuries. She was arrested and charged by Night City's courts with intentional homicide, assault, and illegal possession of firearms. However, the NCPD intervened in the trial. Ultimately, she was convicted of excessive self-defense and sentenced to ten years for manslaughter and negligent injury. In reality, she served only three months before being released, again due to NCPD interference."
"However, the incident forced Valerie to drop out, and no other school in Night City would accept her. Her family fell into deep debt trying to pay damages to the victims' families. During that time, Valerie took part in illegal activities like selling black-market braindances, tobacco, and alcohol—some of it to minors. Most of these records were erased by the NCPD. What I was able to recover showed no links between her and addictive narcotics. On the contrary, she's known to have destroyed the goods of drug traffickers several times."
"In 2071, the last of the restitution was paid. That same year in March, Valerie's mother collapsed and died at work."
"Afterward, a former NCPD officer named Hernando Amoedo took her in. He was once her father's subordinate. After being dismissed from the force, Amoedo became a street merc. Influenced by him, Valerie—still underage at the time—accepted a few jobs using a fake name and falsified age. This led to frequent arguments between the two, as recorded in city welfare agency files."
"Once Valerie reached adulthood, Amoedo officially introduced her to the mercenary world. However, records indicate that after forming a team with her, the danger level of their accepted jobs dropped significantly. While there are a few high-risk missions listed under their names, intel suggests Amoedo handled those alone."
Rai Nobuyuki shook his head after hearing the report. "She must hate us to the core. So why did she agree to work with you?"
Autumn's voice was calm. "I forced her in—by using her friends."
A long silence stretched across the line. Finally, Rai Nobuyuki said, "Alright, Miss Autumn. I hope you truly know what you're doing."