Starting in Night City

Money is a good thing.

Especially in a place like Night City.

A single Eurodollar can stump a hero, and without money, you can't move an inch.

But stealing cars was immoral and not something to be encouraged, so Su Xiao immediately put on a JOJO face.

"Daga, kotowaru."

That's right, he was desperately short on cash.

But he was a man with principles.

Even in a place as rotten as Night City, some things just couldn't be done.

"Don't rush to refuse, Su," Jack seemed to understand Su Xiao's reason for refusal. "I'll show you something good."

Jack fiddled with his laptop for a while.

He opened a video.

The scene in the video looked like a press conference.

A Japanese man in a suit and tie, wearing glasses, spoke to the camera with a terrible Japanese accent.

"In my opinion, Night City's poverty problem is actually very easy to solve. All the city hall needs to do is enact a policy: for every scalp of a poor person turned in, a reward of one hundred Eurodollars will be given."

"Believe me, before next Thanksgiving, the poor people of Night City will be as rare as endangered animals."

The sexy female host holding the microphone asked cautiously, "Don't you think this would be too cruel to the poor?"

The Japanese man burst into laughter.

"Cruel? What is cruel? The reason the lower class in Night City is poor is because they aren't working hard enough and don't know how to be grateful."

"In my hometown of Japan, the rich live in bright, well-lit, beautiful villa districts, while the poor can only huddle in moldy, dilapidated slums. But the poor don't complain or resent, because they know that they, like the rich, have a bright future."

Su Xiao's blood pressure soared as he watched.

His fists clenched.

"So, we're going after this guy? Alright, count me in, Jack."

"I knew I could count on you, Su. Let's go."

On the subway ride to Ember Nightclub, Su Xiao suddenly thought of a problem.

Back in the early 21st century, high-end mobile phones had safety features that would automatically explode if they were ten meters apart from their user.

And now it was already 2077. The safety measures on luxury cars like these would only be more advanced.

So how were they supposed to do it?

They'd probably trigger the alarm before they even got close.

Su Xiao voiced his concerns, but Jack didn't seem bothered.

"I thought of that too, of course."

"I haven't been to Ember Nightclub before, but I know how it works there."

"Guests going to Ember throw their keys to the valet, and the valet parks the car in the underground garage."

"Then they deposit the keys at the parking lot's security office."

"When the guests are done, the valet will get the keys from the security office, drive the car out of the garage, and return it to the guest."

"What we need to do is go straight to the security office, grab the keys, start the luxury car, and make a run for it."

Chapter Fifteen: You Must Be The Famous V, Huh?

The northern part of the Watson District

was different from other areas.

The further north you went, the more prosperous it became.

Especially near the city center.

It made one mistakenly believe they were in America's most glorious golden age during the New Deal.

Here, you wouldn't see unemployed people, nor shabby shantytowns or gang activity.

Instead, on many streets, you could see patrol cars and officers on duty.

Undoubtedly, the security in the northern part of the Watson District, where City Hall was located, was far better than in the south.

After getting off the subway, Su Xiao and Jack walked on the road towards Ember Nightclub.

"Who's the Fixer you called?"

"Okada Wakako. Some people call her the Queen of Westbrook, but in my opinion, while she's not a real queen, she's pretty close."

Despite his large build, Jack wasn't stupid at all.

He wasn't just a muscle-bound brute who was "strong in the limbs but weak in the head."

He had actually guessed that Su Xiao's earlier claim of "having taken jobs from a Fixer" was likely a lie.

However, he himself had also thought about ditching Su Xiao and running.

So, it was considered even.

Since they would be working together from now on, Jack patiently explained to Su Xiao.

"In Night City, Fixers are not uncommon. They are organizers, agents, and intermediaries."

"They know the latest news from the streets, know who offers a fair price, and whose jobs smell fishy from a mile away."

"Every Fixer has their own style, but they all follow a certain code of conduct:"

"--As long as you work for them, they will absolutely not abandon you."

"Of course, the reverse is also true. Try it if you don't believe me, and see what happens when you mess with a Fixer."

Su Xiao asked curiously.

"Has no one ever thought of bypassing the Fixer and having mercenaries deal directly with clients?"

Jack laughed heartily.

Su Xiao's idea was not surprising.

You could say that newcomers to Night City basically had such thoughts.

"Of course, you can. But after you get screwed over once or twice, or don't get paid and end up getting shot, you'll know that you should find a reliable Fixer."

"As long as you prove your strength, you'll never have to worry about not getting jobs. Fixers will help you pick your crew and negotiate a good price—after all, they take a commission."

"No matter what trouble you encounter during a mission, they will get you out of it—unless you screw up yourself, in which case no one can help you."

"However, once we become famous, we can indeed stop paying attention to them."

"At that time, what commission, what Fixer, let them all get lost."

Su Xiao nodded.

His gaze suddenly swept over a weapon shop by the roadside.

"Wait for me, I'll be right back."

Jack was stunned.

"Hey, hey, hey, where are you going?"

Unlike gun shops in the real world, buying weapons in Night City weapon shops requires no identification.

As long as you are willing to spend money, you can buy weapons.

Of course, most of the weapons sold in weapon shops are produced by low-end manufacturers.

If you want high-end goods from Military Technology, Constitution Military Industry, or Kang Tao, Arasaka, it is difficult to buy them in regular weapon shops.

If you really want them, you can only try your luck in the black market.

And the price is usually inflated very high.

Su Xiao didn't plan to buy high-end goods.

He just bought some flashbangs and smoke grenades in the store, just in case.

As soon as he paid, Jack caught up.

"What are you buying these for?" Jack lowered his voice, "We're going to pick up a car, not go to war."

Su Xiao also lowered his voice: "I have a bad feeling."

Jack was stunned: "Do you have this kind of premonition often?"

"No, but something bad always happens."

Jack cursed in Spanish.

He didn't disbelieve Su Xiao, but he was unwilling to give up just like that.

Because Wakako was paying too much.

He sighed.

He could only take it one step at a time and improvise when the time came.

The enormous skyscraper obscured the endless winding streets.

The neon glow set the stage for a ballet of steel and concrete.

Beneath the sky-spanning spotlights and giant screens, bulky hover cars weaved like swimming fish.

Ember Nightclub.

"This way."

Arriving in front of the Ember Nightclub building, Jack, familiar with the area, led Su Xiao towards the alley next to it.

A homeless man was rummaging through a pile of garbage for cans.

He quickly hid the can he had just picked up inside his clothes.

Afraid someone would snatch it away.

Neither of them paid him any mind, simply walking straight to the elevator by the side entrance.

The elevator doors opened, revealing a long, narrow corridor to the two of them.

There were many doors on both sides of the corridor, leading to unknown places.

Passing through the corridor and opening the large door, they finally arrived at the underground parking lot.

The brightly lit parking lot was filled with all sorts of high-end cars.

Sports cars, muscle cars, SUVs... everything.

"Get down and follow me."

The underground parking lot was, of course, covered in surveillance.

But Jack knew that these cameras had blind spots.

After all, this was just a nightclub, not Arasaka Tower.

As long as they stuck to the walls and reached the security room, they could get the keys to that supercar and shut down the surveillance in the entire underground parking lot.

But as the two of them cautiously crept towards the security room, an unexpected situation occurred.

The security room was actually empty.

Where did they go?

How could such a person just disappear?

Could they have gone off to slack off?

"Damn it!"

At this moment, Jack cursed from beside him.