Chapter 768

NO．137: It's just that there's one more person going to watch the Crown Prince's affair.

The Edge Runner Mercenary Agency has two cyberpunk hackers with transmigrator identities: Qi Wei and Lucy.

The latter being David's girlfriend aside, the former's position is quite special.

Even if Aomo had not been given the resources of Cyberpunk Edge Runner by Bi Ze, he could still tell; at that small gathering after their earlier cooperation, he could somewhat observe—that woman with gold short hair, who usually wore a mouth interface like a gas mask, had some subtle rift with half the team.

That rift is like a scar from a healed serious injury that couldn't be removed; even though the wound has healed, the mark remains noticeable.

Of course, considering the Edge Runner Mercenary Agency has only a few members, this 'half a team' actually amounts to just three people—Lucy, David, and Rebecca.

Furthermore, considering what was heard from Mann about their lives back home and the reasons for transmigration, the logical chain will produce a clear answer.

A betrayal.

On that marathon where one would still run even while vomiting blood, someone chose self-preservation, withdrawing and even harming that increasingly weak runner team.

Honestly, from an observer's perspective, this is not hard to understand, just as Mann and Dolio didn't blame her, and getting along with her felt no awkwardness.

A car constantly smoking as it rushes toward a cliff, jumping off is a reasonable choice, and if removing a few screws could give you a new car, it's even harder not to do—this is a microcosm of that world, that era.

In the cyberpunk world, such background settings are not uncommon, and it's generally prevalent that the protagonist's ending is hard to be good.

Unlike the protagonists, needless to say, everyone is desperately struggling to survive, and even the mercenaries risking their lives at the bottom are more in line with what that hooded person calls a 'true mercenary'.

Lawlessness, disorder, killing and arson—seemingly a life of unlimited wickedness—yet for most it's a life aimed at cleansing oneself and rising ashore.

In a mercenary group under chaotic rules, being able to produce a team like the Edge Runners is already rare, but unfortunately such rarity couldn't truly be maintained.

Living pressure, work pressure, and the limits of cybernetic bearing simultaneously oppress the mind; the mental disorder called 'cyber psychosis' stands at the end of that way of living—when Aomo heard from David that this seemed a mental disorder particular to cybernetically enhanced people, he was not surprised.

Human spirit is exquisite, and maintaining balance is even more of a miracle.

Moreover, the close connection between spirit and flesh is a well‑discussed topic in Origin Energy Studies.

This is both why Origin Energy Studies usually advises against cybernetic modification, and why many cybernetic modifiers must consider mental maintenance extensively—even the structural body technology transmitted from the Gray Raven Agency likewise has a problem called 'consciousness sea shift' involving the mental level.

Human spirit, innately meant for flesh and blood and equipped for the human body, after being poured into a steel body and given strange bodily sensations and form, ought to have such discomfort.

Cultivation, strengthening spirit and soul can largely eliminate this problem in a broad sense, but these worlds lack support from otherworldly technology.

If such technology were developed, it would show that non‑technological techniques are not up to par.

Their choice is the optimization of medicine and lifestyle.

And without sufficient guidance from those two, madness is the destined outcome.

If you don't lack those two, you're clearly at the level of a person above people—why risk your life? Kick out that guy called V.

In that world, everyone strives for that path, but the road upward is very narrow.

Qi Wei, on the team's road to madness, unscrewed the bolts, pressed the accelerator, betrayed the team, but was also betrayed by the other side.

If we were to just put a period here, something would probably still be missing.

Because Aomo never asked about each person's detailed background, when the outcome allowing those three to have grudges yet not outright drive them away appeared, he obviously lacked a key puzzle piece.

For example, letting those three, despite having a slight rift, still welcome her final operation in the team, or in that world, the notion that 'betrayal is natural' as a worldview‑ ingrained cognition...

Such a puzzle is important for inferring their relationship, but it has nothing to do with the commission.

After all, he isn't a member of that team; even if his friendship with David is deep, this involves official business, which is another matter.

The premise for discussing grudges at work is that someone between the two parties can't distinguish public from private.

Qi Wei is not such a person.

According to Aomo's observation and intelligence investigation, including reviewing mercenaries' personal records, it's not hard to conclude that this person values work efficiency and pay.

Quite a coincidence, just like him.

Talking about work this way is easy.

It's worth noting that Aomo considers Qi Wei Miss rather than Lucy because the latter also keeps a Hackmon, an application beast with hacking ability.

An artificial intelligence application life capable of autonomous thought and action, narrowly speaking, does not belong to the Digimon category—because it appears only in smartphone apps, not as Digimon born from various data—but broadly speaking, Digimon certainly include application beasts.

Among them, Hackmon, although only Standard/basic level, the foundational tier of application beasts, is not inferior to Witchmon in information gathering within the digital realm.

Even more efficient than her.

This is the difference made by professional specialization.

Therefore, Aomo will commission Qi Wei Miss—following the half‑segment data intercepted by the Belias Beast, to extract and point out the position indicated by the latter half.

That will be the main data location of computer lifeforms like Data, and there will certainly also be data related to the opposing organization.

The other party accepted it readily.

Whether it was just a lucky opening or they deliberately sold a favor, Aomo received a reply expected to be completed within 24 hours, thus fulfilling the commission contract.

The fee follows the standard specification—issued by the Light Kingdom Office.

As initially agreed, that side provides funding and technical support; this counts as part of the expense reimbursement, but what Aomo really values is the technology.

The office initially provided only monster‑related data—limited by storage capacity, it was merely a fragment; the many ingenious gadgets of the Technical Development Bureau are what he truly cares about.

For example, something like monster capsules—due to the existence of a certain Lao Qi, it is a rare project in the Land of Light that actively involves monsters.

Unlike information-gathering monster cards, the monsters stored in monster capsules are all living; this is roughly the same as the combat simulator—both are like Poké Balls for monsters, and they don't have to worry about food and drink expenses.

However, unlike the combat simulator's large dormitory, monster capsules have always been single rooms.

Being a single room is no big deal.

Although even Jie De now uses badges instead of capsules, Aomo is a nostalgic person, so he wants to use nostalgic cards and capsules (x).

As for how to apply for technical assistance—this reason, he had always thought it wasn't easy to think of, nor could he easily find it.

But now, after meeting that hooded guest and the computer Dada who tried to steal his information up close, he actually found some ideas for writing expense reports.

Currently, there is the organization with news of artificial Belial, the Belial Empire officials in the building where the Baltan aliens reside, and this proactive internet duo who came to probe.

Intuitively, it's the same organization, but intuition can only convince oneself, not others; to convince others, one cannot rely on some fragmented guesses and scattered evidence.

One needs a piece of decisive evidence.

And this evidence, he is currently currently waiting for Miss Qiwei to give it.

The wait within 24 hours is truly something to look forward to.

It's a pity that, just as he put away his terminal and was preparing to go to the chairman's office to have a look— the horse girl blocking the road forced him to face another matter at hand.

Training, and a physical—where are you going?

Aimu Zhiji stood at the activity room's doorway, wearing her usual indifferent expression.

It seemed to give that flat-toned inquiry a questioning nuance.

It made Aomo involuntarily raise both hands, performing a foreign military salute.

Let's go find you, Miss Vega.