16 Detective Investigation

In the mercenary trade, investigation jobs were like mild cases of Cyberpsychosis—real enough, but painfully rare. Most mercs were better at letting bullets do the talking than using their brains to chase down clues.

Yet Carl often received investigation work. She had always been curious about why, and after thinking it over carefully, she figured she probably had her part-time job at the Dangerous Girls Detective Agency to "thank" for it.

The impression left by those detectives in cat-ear schoolgirl uniforms had clearly branded her with the wrong label—clients seemed to genuinely believe that this part-time bodyguard, a mercenary at heart, also possessed the agency's investigative talents.

At first, Carl really was not very good at it. This was the sort of thing that had to be learned. But after taking on enough jobs, she adapted. Like a straight guy who visited The Cockatoo often enough, sooner or later becoming familiar with the traits of certain special sexual preferences, she found the knack for it simply by doing it more.

Though Carl's infiltration skills had not yet reached their peak, and she still could not move freely through heavily guarded facilities like a professional legendary spy, infiltration only made up thirty percent of investigative work. The remaining seventy—tailing targets, coaxing information out of people, and data analysis—were all things Carl could handle with ease, thanks to the street smarts she had accumulated over the years.

Even so, investigating a giant like Biotechnica was no easy task.

Under normal circumstances, Carl could have tapped into the network of contacts she had woven across Night City over the years—tips from several fixers, plus database access through an insider at the Night City Police Department—and delivered an answer to Mr. Blue Eyes within forty-eight hours.

But the client's special requirements had completely blocked