Chapter 663: The 634th - : Pretending to be Lame

V’s prosthetics were very minimalistic: essentially, they involved adding some high-sensitivity, medium-strength enhancement materials into the original muscle and tendon cells, while also increasing the proportion of metallic elements in the bones. One aspect was to strengthen the force-generating tissues such as muscles, and on the other hand, to enhance the strength of the bones that bear pressure.

But overall, compared to the earth-shattering changes in strength of Jack’s prosthetics, V’s modifications maximized coordination, so the augmentation of strength wasn’t too exaggerated, leaving more space and compatibility for weapons and equipment.

The palm of the hand had been completely replaced with synthetic skin produced by Burger King, and beneath the skin were bioelectrodes produced from genetically modified spiders, providing adhesive capabilities.

The muscles in the lower legs had been replaced with human-lizard muscle, offering more strength in a smaller volume, while the vacated spaces were filled with small jet fan interfaces, facilitating power supply to the jet boots.

The most important were the two Mantis Blades: after Munemasa’s modifications, the Mantis Blades retained the features of the Data Knife, and were equipped with a temperature control system, which could either channel the heat generated by the mechanism into the blade, or directly use a disposable heating fuel cell to raise the temperature to 800 degrees Celsius —

This temperature was enough to instantly cut through most of the human body. However, Munemasa seemed to have a particular fondness for high-temperature blades, so the thermal mode of the blades included a third stage:

It used the plasma heating trough from Lille’s wheelchair to raise the blade temperature to 1700 degrees Celsius, a heat at which most metals would soften, allowing for advanced armor-piercing capabilities based merely on temperature.

Without Chroni Titanium, this temperature could even melt most blades on the market, which was a very extreme design.

In addition, since many parts of this set of prosthetics required electricity, in addition to the synthetic skin embedded beneath the palms and feet with dense bio-static electric generation fibers, V’s Subdermal Armor also included biocables made of Spider Silk composites. These cables, driven by Little Octopus when necessary, formed an electromagnetic shield to offer maximum defense against Electromagnetic Pulses.

But from the outside, V’s highly cybernetic appearance blended seamlessly with the body’s form, nearly undetectable —

A very advanced prosthetic surgery scheme, much like Jack’s two arms, which also appeared virtually unchanged on the outside, fitted extremely well with the original nerves, reducing the possibility of rejection by the brain-computer interface, putting it simply, less likely to cause cyber-psychosis.

After the prosthetic surgery, it was time for fine-tuning the body.

V’s original hairstyle was very simple and neat, but Elizabeth’s was not; it needed to be changed to simple black hair that fell over the shoulders.

Beyond that...

It was indeed quite perfect, in a sense more so than Elizabeth’s own carefully crafted figure.

As usual, Lille seemed unmoved by the completion of the prosthetic surgery, and V was lying on the operating table, gradually recovering her ability to move —

And as usual, she didn’t feel any significant change in her body.

"Where are my clothes?"

Lille detached his hand unit, swapped it for fingers, and packed the prosthetics into the wheelchair’s trunk, then headed for the door.

"In the next room, get dressed and ready, I’ll wait for you outside," he said.

V sat up, shook her head, and muttered, "What’s the meaning? You even prepared a changing room for me? Such formality..."

Looking down at herself, she was only wearing a pair of underwear.

It wasn’t her first prosthetic surgery, but it was the first time to have a changing room available afterwards.

...

Lille hadn’t thought too much into it, as it was purely because the clothes were packed and sent over in a box placed in the next room.

His attire was simple, just a set in the style that Jefferson often wore. Since Ye Group preferred to mold him into a traditional elite image, the aesthetic of the clothes naturally leaned towards tradition, just a black, high-end suit.

The suit’s shoulders were made of leather, had a matte surface, and higher brightness materials were used for the collar and zipper, while the left sleeve cuff had a blue indicator, showing his health was in good condition. The lower half was also black trousers, looking formal and dignified.

What he was thinking about was something else:

[Little Octopus: Big bro, Frank and his team are about to come ashore, the Vibranium will be entering the warehouse soon.]

[Little Octopus: President Barnes’ inauguration ceremony is in Washington tomorrow, should we prepare something?]

[Lille: Let Captain Carter work an extra shift, arrange for her to meet with her old comrades and get some gear.]

[Little Octopus: Alrighty.]

[Little Octopus: There’s something else, Big Brother, I’ve been capturing some abnormal data flows on the network recently, and I’m trying to filter the data source, which might be quite resource-consuming.]

Little Octopus is indeed a powerful AI, but lately, the tasks have been piling up: routine supervision of cross-dimensional production synchronization, assisting Peter in the development of Si Anweisitan’s "spider," securing the safety and secrecy of Night City’s OCT network domain, and always keeping an eye on V.

It was only because Lille didn’t need it to control his prosthetics that it wasn’t forced to split its mind and create other subentities to get the work done.

But Little Octopus wasn’t too keen on creating such subentities.

[Lille: What about Skye?]

[Little Octopus: She’s also busy with this, but I’ve noticed the abnormal data source she’s tracking isn’t the same thing I’m dealing with right now.]

[Lille: Alright... continue reporting.]

Lille rubbed his temples, and Jack, sitting on the stone stool opposite him, patted his shoulder:

"Lille, you haven’t rested much lately, don’t wear yourself out... uh, saying that feels a bit insincere, but after we wrap up this job, you definitely need to take a break."

"I guess you’re the one who wants to rest..." Lille chuckled, "Although I’d like to as well, who knows what will happen? The company isn’t going to take a break; it’s hard to say for us too."

"Couldn’t the whole world just agree to take a break at the same time? Everyone living peacefully for a while, not thinking about work, no one makes a profit, but nobody loses either..."

"That’s a pretty dream."

Jack scratched his head: "I also think so, but it’s joyful just to imagine it."

"Imagining it is indeed joyful. I bet you dream every night about going back to marry Misty, huh? I suggest you focus more, and not keep thinking about finishing up and going on vacation."

"I get it, I get it, no wonder you always look so uptight. By the way, what were you messing with in the workshop all day yesterday? You were all secretive about it."

"Of course, I was working on stuff we might need..."

Bang.

The conversation was cut off midway as the changing room door opened.

The dress, crafted with a special technique, was a midnight blue with a sense of depth, and a few sparkling white embellishments like stars.

The satin, under the dim lights of Dog Town and the moonlight, had a unique luster, reflecting a soft glow as if trembling gently with her steps; the lace brushed past her ankles, a breeze stirred the lights, and the hair fell, earrings swaying...

V walked somewhat awkwardly: the dress was of the snug variety, but the high heels were still a bit unsteady.

An infamous female assassin out in the world, a mercenary known for swift action and coordination—such a sight was uncommon.

Take away those exaggerated facial decorations, swap for attire and a look that’s more in line with Lille’s taste...

"These dang shoes really cramp..."

Lille immediately said, "The dress suits you well, better than that time... in the virtual test."

For some reason, this run-down scenery combined with this unusual appearance of V was much more eye-catching than the exercise in Marvel World.

V paused, then smiled significantly and leaned on Lille’s shoulder, "Honey, you really have a way with words, and you don’t look too bad yourself."

With that, she glanced at Jack on the side, tossing a satisfied look:

Feigning a limp, a nice little trick.

"...And the new car you mentioned?"

Boom——

A loud roar thundered.