39 Loyalists

After deciding to head to Arasaka Tower and force the incompetent rebel son, Arakawa Sesen, to submit to Arasaka Saburo's will at the first Board of Directors meeting he convened, the Pheasant Faction began a full-scale contraction.

On the surface, they were creating a smokescreen to cover Hanako Arasaka's withdrawal from Night City after her escape; in reality, they were secretly gathering personnel, planning to strike suddenly after suppressing Arakawa Sesen at the Board meeting and bring Arasaka's other internal factions to heel in one stroke.

Amid this series of tense arrangements, Akechi, one of the core planners, secretly met with his direct subordinates outside the Badlands.

Most members of the Pheasant Faction had still not been granted sufficient clearance. They had neither the opportunity nor the qualifications to set foot in that highly classified underground laboratory beneath the Badlands.

It could be said that the combined value of all these people did not amount to one ten-thousandth of the laboratory's safety. For that reason, the responsibility of commanding those Pheasant Faction members who still retained some final value fell entirely on Akechi's shoulders.

As a key figure in the Pheasant Faction, Akechi not only had to work with Hanako Arasaka in a short span of time to plan how to break through the blockade and enter Arasaka Tower on schedule, but also lead these people in maneuvering across the city. He had to draw attention and tie down Arakawa Sesen's forces while ensuring they were not captured themselves.

Following Arasaka's tradition of working useful people to death, Akechi carried an enormous workload.

However, Hanako Arasaka had not forgotten this loyal subordinate's contributions. She promised him two things: when necessary, Akechi could abandon these Pheasant Faction members at any time, so long as he ensured his own safety—these people were