Chapter 264
"The itinerary has been extended, and the security fleet has been expanded with additional transport ships."
Vera turned to her assistant and added, "After the meeting, I need to go back to my home in Westbrook and the weapons testing center on Arasaka Waterfront."
Ninja Servant: "Yes."
After bowing, he withdrew.
Enter the private elevator that leads directly to buildings over 100 meters high, "Greater Bay Area..."
Vera murmured, "This place is so familiar." She knew it all too well.
As Arasaka's military commander in North America, she needed to be stationed in the San Francisco Bay Area, which is closer to the center of the West Coast.
Night City's location is still too far south. Furthermore, Sacramento, the military and political capital of the Free State Alliance, is only over 100 kilometers from San Francisco; she needs to keep an eye on it.
Moreover, if she doesn't leave Night City at the right time, how will she make room for certain people?
The next day.
Across the ocean, in Tokyo Metropolis.
Sano Arasaka finally received the news that Vera was leaving Night City and might be settling permanently in the San Francisco Bay Area.
While Johnny Silverhand's battle Remembrance has been embellished, his Remembrance of participating in the development of nuclear weapons couldn't have been fabricated out of thin air.
Chapter 258 Vajra, grinding through an iron inkstone!
Norinobu's residence in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo Metropolis.
The shadow of the Fifth Corporate War did not affect the blooming cherry blossoms in April. The dawn light slanted into the hall through the latticed shoji screen of the old-fashioned inner courtyard, leaving long and scattered spots of light.
Inside the secret room, Norinobu, dressed only in a blue striped shirt and a black jacket, sat cross-legged on a cloth table.
Is the information accurate?
He spoke in a deep voice.
On the table next to him, a PDA was placed facing upwards.
[In progress of encrypted call]
"That's absolutely true."
The person on the other end of the phone said, "Our people who were transferred to the Night City Research Center saw Vera A. Russell come and go in a hurry at night, and retrieved and transferred a considerable amount of the project materials and weapons research results that she was working on."
"According to supporters and sympathizers distributed across the Security Department, Administration Department, Westbrook Security Section, and Special Operations Department, Night City is carrying out a large-scale mobilization of personnel and equipment to San Francisco."
"Multiple sources confirm that the news that Vera A. Russell left Night City and would be stationed in the San Francisco Bay Area to oversee the war effort should be accurate."
"Supervising the battle, huh..."
Norinobu pondered.
He lowered his head and carefully wiped the gun in his hand.
A [Freedom] kinetic energy pistol customized by Constitution Military Industry - exquisite craftsmanship, exquisite materials, embellished with Edo purple, chrome-plated throughout, and gradient-dyed silver-gray metal gun body engraved with the four Chinese characters for 'wear through iron inkstone', and the leather grip is engraved with the word 'Shenglong', which seems to vaguely reveal some kind of pride and philosophy of the maker or owner.
Vajra.
Its name.
Quite a while.
"I see."
Norinobu spoke again, "Thank you for your hard work!"
"I would like to trouble you all to investigate further and report back. I need to have a firm grasp of my 'good niece's' whereabouts in order to prepare for the final Contend for succession."
After a barely perceptible pause, Norinobu suppressed his disgust and said in a passionate tone, "For the prosperity of Arasaka, for the eternal foundation of the Hakō Empire, victory must be in our hands!"
"Hai!"
Beep beep...
The call has ended.
Norinobu placed the gun cleaning cloth and the "King Kong" on the table, his eyes fixed on the video recorder on the table.
The miniature projection of Night City slowly rotated.
The Konpeki Plaza, the Corporate Plaza, the Vera Manor in Westbrook, the Arasaka Waterfront in Watson District, the Arasaka Estate in North Oak, and the Border Garrison were all marked.
"Alright, let's begin."
Brushing the hair from his forehead, a resolute glint appeared in Norinobu's eyes. He muttered to himself, "Wear through the iron inkstone..."
He made another phone call.
After a while, the call went through.
"It's me."
Norinobu said.
"Lord Lai, Norinobu? I'm sorry, I was just testing Relic's program..."
"Alright. Save your breath, Herman."
Norinobu stood up and paced back and forth. "I want Relic. You know what I mean. Get them ready for me, keep them where they are, and you don't need to worry about the rest."
"Can--"
"No buts."
Norinobu interrupted, "I'm not afraid, so what are you afraid of? Are you afraid of my father's attention to this project?"
"Haha, that old codger doesn't need to hide in his little refrigerator dreaming of immortality anymore. With his arrogance, why would he keep an eye on you? You have plenty of time to polish your Relic Project."
"Vera's 'Solaris Staircase' project and the Rejuvenation Surgery have kept Sanlang on the brink of death. He's working tirelessly, immersed in his struggle against the European Bank, the European Space Agency, and the new Order of orbital aviation! He's dreaming of winning World War III!"
"... So you want both the Soul Killer and the new Relic 2.0 biochip? You don't really want to go to North America to fight for military command, do you?"
Hermann's voice on the other end of the phone was full of hesitation, "Excuse me for being frank, but the possibility of using the Relic chip to tamper with Your Excellency Vera's Remembrance is very low..."
"Ha?"
Norinobu chuckled, "Your imagination is quite rich."
"I, uh, you absolutely mustn't say things like that outside."
"Hmph, scared? Alright, no need to say more. Herman, my requirement is that, no matter what method you use, keep things on the outside tight but loose on the inside. For half a month, I need you to maintain the internal stability of the Relic Project laboratory."
"During this time, I will push for troop reinforcements and deploy the troops that have defected to me to North America for Vera to command. I will also push for several major battles to tie Vera's attention. You, wait for my signal."
After saying that, Norinobu hung up the phone.
After a long silence, he picked up the King Kong again and pointed the muzzle at the Night City miniature projection on the table.
Norinobu gripped the gun handle tightly until his knuckles turned slightly white.
"The world is sick and needs strong medicine."
He murmured, "This is my last chance."
The next day.
Just as Vera officially moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, the Hound of the Underworld, after bombing—well, no, it was thanks to the help of civilian cowboy heroes—bombed the Lazarus Field Base east of Santa Fe, charged forward and engaged in fierce fighting with the NUSA Military reinforcements and Militech troops on the Red Rock Cliffs. The battle was so intense that it was like a collision of planets, vividly demonstrating in a physical sense why Metal War is called Metal War.
Night City.
The Arasaka Tower where Vera is not.
"Departure? Where to?"
"San Francisco, where else could it be? Commander Vera thinks highly of you."
V glanced at the red-haired Korean hacker sitting calmly in his swivel chair at his workstation, holding a corrugated cup, and shrugged.
After her meritorious service in the San Francisco Nuclear Explosion Incident, Song Zhaomei's status changed from a defector Federal Intelligence Agency seeking political asylum to a corporate dog of Arasaka Corporation.
"Once the war starts, troops are moving around everywhere. Night City is located in a relatively southern and safe area. It's suitable as the company's backup headquarters in the United States, but it's not quite right as the headquarters of the Allied forces. The Bay Area, which is closer to Sacramento, is more suitable. Of course, the main reason is that Chief Vera moved to San Francisco to better coordinate the allies."
"Overall planning? Coordination?"
Song Zhaomei took a sip of the iced Americano provided free of charge in the Arasaka office area and said, "I think it's more like we're looking for cannon fodder to prevent defeatists, or rather, overseers, from emerging in the Free State Alliance government?"
"See through things, but don't say it out loud."
After tidying up the documents, V looked up and pointed at Song Zhaomei with her finger, "What's that saying? It seems to be something circulating in the Security Department: don't say things that are not good for unity."
"Keep up."
Tap, tap.
Ding! As V led Song Zhaomei, SP, and elite Counter-Intelligence Department agents out of the elevator door of the mid-level airship garage, Harry, carrying large and small bags, had been waiting for a long time beside the Prospector-class airship that had been specially replaced during the war.
"Set off."
V waved his hand and boarded the car.
Whoosh! The hovercar took off.
V, now seated, looked at Song Zhaomei beside him and suddenly asked, "Interested in taking on apprentices?"
"Ha?"
Song Zhaomei was taken aback at first, then thought about it and realized that it made sense. She knew so much about the Federal Intelligence Agency, yet the White House and Miles' people only uploaded relevant intelligence documents and wrote related learning chips, which was a waste.
It's quite normal for Arasaka to train a group of hackers who understand the operational style of the New American hackers during the 2070-2077 timeframe.
That's why people say traitors are more hateful than enemies.
V smiled without saying a word.
"It just so happens that it's on the way, and after we meet up with the SAT escort fleet, they will also travel to San Francisco."
"Mr. Tanaka from the R&D department asked me to tell you that there will be a special surgical case to demonstrate our sincerity in fulfilling our Arasaka."
Chapter 259 Lucy: It's worth it!
"Lucy, good afternoon. I'm so glad you could come. How's the training going?"
"Director V."
Upon boarding the vehicle, Lucy, despite the goodwill shown by the counterintelligence director, did not act arrogantly. She did what was appropriate for her rank, bowing respectfully and saying, "I just finished my systematic Catch up on studies and was about to receive advanced training when the war broke out."
With a click, V closed his personal computer and laughed heartily upon hearing this.
"That's why they say fortune and misfortune are intertwined. If it weren't for Miles's gift, you might not have had the chance to learn the most cutting-edge cyber hacking techniques from the FIA and even the entire New America."
As he spoke, V tapped the table lightly, leaned back and buried himself in the leather backrest, revealing the Asian redhead sitting next to him against the bulkhead.
"And you are?"
"A question you already know the answer to."
Swirling the wine glass in her hand, Song Zhaomei glanced at the pretty hacker girl with light rainbow hair. "Your eyes tell me you recognized her."
Taking a sip of champagne, she said, "Let me introduce myself, Song Zhaomei. You can also call me Nightingale, but that was my code name when I was working at the White House."
"Kushinada Lucina".
Lucy took a deep breath.
It's not so much that I feel deep respect, but I admire the 'trigger' that sparked the Fifth Corporate War.
This woman, who has transformed her body to the point of being almost entirely fleshy, is incredibly powerful. She outmaneuvered the Voodoo Boys, the Federal Intelligence Agency, Miles ... she practically fooled everyone in the Militech sector.
He's supposedly a ruthless character who dares to drill holes in the "Black Wall" and make contact with Rogue AI.
Although this contact left her exhausted and injured, to the point that she had to seek refuge in Arasaka to save her life.