Infinite, Progressing from Arasaka

Click-clack--

Stepping inside, the vast green belt filled with ornamental natural plants undoubtedly showcased the power of Arasaka. Many people in Night City had likely never seen so much natural greenery in their entire lives.

If one were to ask how Vera felt at this moment.

Nostalgia? Fond memories?

Vera didn't have the mood for that.

Back when she was at Arasaka Tower Academy, having just lost her parents, she had worked herself to the bone, desperate to get ahead and enter Arasaka quickly to digest and inherit the "legacy" left by her cheap parents. She had no time for sentimental reflections or soaking in the campus atmosphere.

Besides, the school culture and teaching environment in 2074.

Heh heh heh...

Classes relied on AI, teaching relied on braindance, and many courses were simply chip-loaded or transmitted via data cables.

There wasn't a damn bit of camaraderie between teachers and students or among classmates... well, perhaps that was too absolute; it might have existed, but Vera had never seen it.

That ancient, human-to-human teaching model was far too rare in the 2074 Cyberpunk world. Only a handful of world-class universities like Tokyo University, Humboldt University of Berlin, Sorbonne University, Moscow University, and the University of California, Berkeley in New America had the capability to promote it.

And the tuition... it was impossible for the poor to get in.

Even for a secondary school like Arasaka Tower Academy, it wasn't something an ordinary citizen could afford without parents who held stable, high-paying positions within a corporation.

Thinking you could enter Arasaka Tower to work just by graduating? Naive!

Social classes were distinct, and within the academy, they were even more so!

In today's world, preschool and age-appropriate education—kindergarten, elementary, and even middle school—had nothing to do with the lower classes. A mixed-bag community college was perhaps the only place where the vast majority could come into contact with a sliver of knowledge, and there wasn't much valuable knowledge left there either.

Trying to self-taught online was a dead end.

The internet had been blown to bits by that idiot called the "God of Hackers." Now, everything was a corporate intranet; if you weren't qualified, you couldn't get in. Want to try your luck on the old net? Whether you could even pass the NetWatch "Black Wall" was one thing, but even if you got in, you'd likely have your brain fried by a Rogue AI before you went insane.

Even if one were lucky enough to enter a formal academy thanks to enlightened and self-sacrificing parents, many would feel the disparity of the world within the first year. Those with a foundation would have already tested out and skipped grades, while those without would continue to play catch-up. After the assessment, they would be streamed; those without enough money would be transferred to the general academy.

What did "general" mean?

High emotional intelligence: it teaches and cultivates students in all-around development, with strong teaching faculty that covers everything.

Low emotional intelligence: it's not specialized in anything. It's called "general," but it's actually just mediocre.

As the top-ranked institution in Night City, Arasaka Tower Academy certainly had places that taught cutting-edge knowledge and even had humans teaching advanced courses, but those were in specific departments like the School of Military Administration and Law, the School of Information, Communication and Intelligence, and the School of Bioengineering.

Compared to the general academy, the tuition and assessment requirements for those were several tiers higher.

Graduating from the general academy and entering Arasaka Tower? That probably wasn't their destination. Arasaka's manufacturing workshops, smart-control factories, seaside ports, Badlands farms... wasn't that employment too?

"Tsk... this world."

Vera sighed inwardly.

Soon, the group was guided by reception staff into the enclosed venue where the freshman orientation ceremony was being held, entering the waiting area for the VIP seats.

Watching more and more enthusiastic freshmen entering with their parents and gathering in the venue, Vera felt as if she could already see their futures.

She unconsciously pulled an exquisite metal cigarette case from her pocket.

Ding--

Brian, the Black bodyguard, was sharp enough to pull out his lighter. With the crisp sound of the lighter opening, a flame rose. Vera held the cigarette between two slender fingers, placed it against her lightly glossed red lips, and took a puff after lighting it.

Let's just get this over with.

Go through the motions, say some "toxic chicken soup" as an outstanding alumna from a previous year, pump them up, and incidentally maintain her persona: "Second-generation Arasaka loyalist," "grateful," and "an excellent high-level leader who maximizes corporate interests."

Inside the ceremony venue.

"..."

The freshman David didn't like it here.

He didn't like the atmosphere.

Because it was completely out of sync with his world.

His small home was in the H4 Apartment of a mega-skyscraper in Santo Domingo. There, the elevators were rusted, the hallways had walls with half the paint peeled off, the decor was old and pervasive, and the stairwells were littered with needles and piles of stains one didn't want to look at too closely. At home, it was always dim.

But here, right up against the Corporate Plaza, one only had to look up to see that suffocating, pitch-black tower.

The skyscrapers here were like weapons used for war: they were aggressive, heavily guarded, arrogant, clean yet cold. Standing here, he felt like he had arrived at the heart of the city, or even the center of the universe, and they could swallow him whole at any moment.

Including his mother...

"David."

A soft call. Seeming to notice the repression and panic in David's heart, Gloria gently patted her son's shoulder. "We've already arrived here. Face it. In the future, I hope you can live a decent life, not like Mom, and not like your dead father." As she spoke, Gloria's eyes seemed to moisten.

"Mom..."

David was speechless.

Just as he was about to open his mouth to respond to his mother's expectations and put her at ease, his vision was caught by a bright color in his peripheral.

David followed his mother's bright red hair to look toward the side and behind the high platform at the front of the venue. There, behind the railing, a large number of Arasaka bodyguards who looked like nothing to mess with were surrounding a beautiful, elegant figure.

Dazzling and brilliant.

Her pale gold hair, neither quite gold nor silver, flowed like ribbons in the wind, leaving an unforgettable impression.

Chapter 18: White Moonlight

For the first time, David Martinez understood the true meaning of the word "stunning."

In the past, he had never seen such a beautiful sight in the filthy, crime-ridden neighborhoods of Santo Domingo.

It was a gorgeous silhouette that stood out sharply from everyone else there, and even from those here.

She leaned against the railing in the waiting area behind the ceremony stage with a lazy, elegant posture, her slim, high-end Arasaka uniform perfectly accentuating her graceful, tall figure.

A deep red ribbon tied her soft, pale gold hair into a fluffy high ponytail, which cascaded behind her in a brilliant, unrestrained display.

In profile, under the natural light filtered through the indoor venue's design, her fair skin seemed to shimmer with the delicate luster of a pearl. Two slender fingers held a cigarette, with wisps of blue smoke curling around her.

Light and mist, dreamlike and ethereal.

At this moment, she seemed to glow, radiating a brilliant, iridescent charm and a captivating allure from head to toe.

"So beautiful..."

David's eyes froze, his mouth hanging slightly open without him realizing it.

Simply emphasizing her appearance felt too shallow, and lacking any literary flair, David searched his mind, only able to manage that soft murmur.

"David... David?"

"It's nothing." He quickly withdrew his gaze, acting a bit evasive as he lowered his head.

Even if a poor kid didn't have to grow up too fast, they still learned a few things early on. David could feel, vaguely but accurately, that he was out of place here; the position on the ceremony stage was simply too far out of reach.

"..."

Gloria naturally noticed her son's gaze and turned to look in the direction he was staring.

She was undoubtedly a beautiful person, but also lethal and dangerous.

In Night City, staying polished and glamorous without being targeted by the wretched, vile scum of this place usually proved one truth: the more beautiful something is, the more deadly it becomes. Stare--!

"Ah...!!" Gloria instinctively took a step back.

Because right in front of her, an Arasaka Agent had walked over, his eye sockets and nasal bridge entirely encased in Combat Cybernetics, his glowing dark red electronic eyes staring at her coldly.

"..."

Soon, seemingly having confirmed that the threat was neutralized—that Gloria and her son David were merely Arasaka Academy freshmen and a guardian, and that their threat level was negligible—the Arasaka Agent walked away.

"Hoo... hoo..."

Gloria placed a hand over her heart as if she had just survived a disaster, making the sign of the cross—a gesture few in this society still believed in—and let out a long sigh of relief.

Unlike David, who understood some things but still had the clear, naive eyes of a greenhorn, Gloria, who worked as an emergency medical technician at the Night City Medical Center, knew quite a bit about the hierarchy of the Major Corporations in Night City.

That woman was definitely a high-ranking official at Arasaka.

David, has he reached that age already...

The stirrings of youth.

David was at the age where his heart was just beginning to open, and it was perfectly normal for him to feel a longing and affection for a beautiful, elegant woman.

Gloria thought silently to herself.

But--

Gloria looked again at the VIP lounge area behind the ceremony stage.

A bodyguard as sturdy as a black bear, his entire body heavily modified with Combat Cybernetics, held a crystal ashtray taken from the lounge. The Arasaka female executive stubbed out her cigarette, then slowly returned to her seat in the lounge, while the Arasaka Academy staff stood by, bowing respectfully as they served drinks...

It really doesn't fit.

David, you'd better give up on this infatuation as soon as possible.

"Understood, I've got it." After receiving a report from the agents maintaining order and security at the venue, Vera's white bodyguard, Laurie, said, "Ma'am, it's just new students; the security risk has been cleared."

Vera, unaware of the impression she had left on certain people, nodded and glanced into the venue.

She wasn't worried about being assassinated here or a terrorist attack occurring at the Arasaka Academy in City Center.

After the Fourth Corporate War, and the withering away of those larger-than-life 'legends,' no 'legend' in Night City had been foolish enough to run wild in Corporate Plaza or City Center and survive to tell the tale in over fifty years.

That woman with the red hair, wearing the yellow jacket of the Night City Medical Center, though...

And the boy with the side-shaved mohawk, his eyes revealing a clear, naive stupidity.

Is this the year that future youngest legend of Night City enrolls?

[Scanner Activated]

Scan Results:

Gloria Martinez

Civilian, employed at Night City Medical Center, not a member of Trauma Team, level of cybernetic modification: low, hackable.

Cyberware: Basic Central Processor, Chip Slot

Unarmed

David Martinez...

The file scan results appearing in her vision reminded Vera that her haul today was quite good.

"Give me a copy of the Personnel List for external academy admissions this year, along with their entrance exam scores." With an orange glow flickering in her eyes, Vera—habitually planning ahead to add reasonable justification for her future actions—requested another document from the school administration.

As for whether Vera should go see this future little legend right now?

That would be harming him.

Besides, a sixteen-year-old brat who knows nothing, hasn't learned any skills, lacks foundation and experience, and hasn't even fully grown yet—what use is he?

They aren't related, and Vera isn't here to be a nanny; what she wants is a loyal subordinate who can take bullets for her and carry out the orders she issues.

She would let him settle for a year, to grasp the cold reality of human relationships in Night City and the hardship of being raised by a struggling mother, before Vera would appear by chance to offer help in his time of need under the guise of a "kind" senior's appreciation.

Only then could she secure a "legendary" enforcer who would eventually earn the recognition of Adam Smasher, a loyal and devoted junior subordinate.

Forget about being an Edgerunner; come be a Corporate Dog instead.

Sigh, I really am a bad person.