Inside the car, seeing that Gloria’s anger at Rebecca had mostly simmered down, Lin Ke spoke up.
“Let’s go.
We need to find a ripperdoc to install this cyberware first.”
“Sure, I know a ripperdoc…”
“No need.
I’ll give directions, you drive.
I already have a ripperdoc in mind.”
Using the old-fashioned key ignition to start the car, Gloria was cut off by Lin Ke halfway through her sentence.
“What?
You know a ripperdoc here too?
Isn’t this your first time in Night City?” Gloria was still incredibly curious about how Lin Ke knew so much, considering he had never been to Night City before.
“It is indeed my first time.
But I know a lot of people in this city, and I know a lot of things.
It’s just that they don’t know me yet—like you, Ms.
Gloria.”
Lin Ke glanced sideways at the redhead.
*She asks too many questions.
How am I supposed to answer?
Am I supposed to tell her I met this doc when I was playing as V?*
“Gloria Martinez, thirty-three years old.
A technician—or rather, an independent contractor—for the Night City Medical Center.”
“Your daily job is sweeping up bodies after whatever accidents occur in Night City.
Of course, you also use your job as a cover to scavenge cyberware, weapons, and ammo from the deceased to sell on the black market.”
“Please, stop talking!” Exposed to her very core, Gloria hurriedly reached over to cover Lin Ke’s mouth.
“Fine, fine, I’ll stop.
And don’t ask so many questions.
Just drive where I tell you,” Lin Ke said, catching her wrist with a helpless sigh.
Truth be told, Lin Ke had a soft spot for Gloria.
In the cyberpunk era, where blood ties and parental affection were paper-thin, a good mother like Gloria was almost extinct.
Everything she did was for her son, David.
Gloria didn’t want David to end up at the bottom of Night City like her; she wanted him to have a brighter future.
So, Gloria sold scavenged items on the black market and used the money to enroll David in Arasaka Academy, hoping that one day he would make a name for himself, climb into the corporate ranks, stand atop Arasaka Tower, and become a big shot in Night City.
But what did becoming a corporate exec even get you?
You’d still just be a dog to capital.
There wasn’t a year in Night City where a few corporate “big shots” didn’t get encased in concrete and dumped into the bay.
Right, Stout?
Still, since he had transmigrated so early in the timeline, he could change the tragic fates of these people and rewrite the endings he didn’t like.
Sasha’s incident should be coming up soon.
*Sigh, I’m overthinking.
Better focus on directing her.*
Having frequently crashed his car through this district in the game, the roads of Little China were very familiar to Lin Ke.
Turn left from Ellison Plaza, and a corner alley would lead to the Afterlife bar.
Drive straight ahead, and you’d hit Megabuilding H10, where V would live two years from now.
Of course, those weren’t the places he was headed to right now.
Lin Ke directed Gloria to steer the car into a narrow alley.
They pulled up in front of a storefront bathed in pink neon light.
He peered out of the passenger window.
Behind the glass window, several gorgeous, scantily clad women swayed their seductive bodies like serpents under the pink glow.
Their provocative poses and glimpses of exposed skin drew the eyes of passing pedestrians, making them stop in their tracks.
“Hmm.” Lin Ke watched the pink-lit ladies’ sultry dancing with an appreciative eye, rubbing his chin and nodding in satisfaction.
Big breasts, long legs, tiny waists, perky butts, and faces that easily cleared the bar of human beauty.
This was more like it.
It was the cyber-era; there was no way the faces of dolls would look as poorly modeled as they did in the game.
“The ripperdoc you’re looking for isn’t in a strip club, is he?” Gloria said crossly, glaring at Lin Ke’s leering expression.
“Of course not.
Wait for me here, I’ll go find the doc.” With that, Lin Ke grabbed the neural port implant, got out of the car, and walked straight into the shop directly across the street from the strip club.
From the car, Gloria saw the name of the shop:
Misty’s Esoterica
Lin Ke pushed open the glass door and stepped into the familiar shop.
Dozens of electronic candles were scattered across the floor, tables, and beside trinkets, their flickering, eternal glows lighting up the small room.
Old porcelain on the shelves, a four-armed deity statue on an altar, and skulls of various colors lent the room a mysterious, esoteric atmosphere.
Spotting Misty standing behind the counter with her heavy makeup, Lin Ke’s eyes lit up.
[Misty Olszewski]
Age: 23
Identity: Occultist
Cyberware Coverage: 14%
Description: Owner of Misty’s Esoterica.
Jackie Welles’s good girl.
PS: Care for a Tarot reading?
“Welcome.
Are you here for a tarot reading or an astrological consultation?” Misty asked, seeing a fresh face walk in.
Misty’s voice was soft and gentle, very pleasant to the ear.
“I’m looking for Dr.
Viktor.
I’m Lin Ke.
Jackie Welles recommended him to me—said Dr.
Viktor is the best ripperdoc in Night City.”
Lin Ke had a warm smile on his face.
Though he hadn’t actually met Jackie Welles in Night City yet, he brought him up in front of Misty anyway.
After all, there was no way a stranger visiting for the first time would know that Viktor’s clinic was in the basement behind her shop.
To get Misty’s cooperation, he needed a plausible excuse.
“Oh!
Jackie.” Misty’s tone unconsciously turned a bit wistful.
Having grown up alongside Jackie as childhood sweethearts, Misty knew him inside out.
Although he was tall, muscular, and looked quite mature, deep down he was just a big kid who refused to grow up, always dreaming of becoming a Night City big shot, a legend, and constantly taking on dangerous gigs just to boost his street cred.
Lately, she had no idea what Jackie had been busy with.
She hadn’t seen him in a month and three days.
This thought pulled her down memory lane.
By the time Misty snapped out of it, she realized she had left her customer hanging.
“Sorry about that.
Dr.
Viktor’s clinic is right through the back door and down in the basement,” Misty said, pointing toward the open back exit.
“Thanks.”
Stepping into the area behind Misty’s Esoterica, Lin Ke immediately equipped his neural port.
He had no intention of actually letting Viktor perform surgery on him.
After all, if he equipped it via the system, he could always unequip it later.
If he actually went under the knife, the neural port would permanently become a part of his body.
Walking down the stairs, he took out his ID chip and slotted it into the neural port on his neck.
[Identity overlay complete]
[Biosignature recognized]
[Contact added: Sasha]
[Nekohead: Hey there, mysterious handsome guy.
Let’s chat sometime ~ (￣▽￣~ )~]
[Lin Ke: Thanks, Sasha]
Receiving no immediate reply, Lin Ke finished descending the stairs, pushed through the metal gate, and entered the dimly lit basement clinic.
A familiar scene greeted his eyes.
Viktor Vector was holding his tablet, watching a boxing match that seemed to never end.
[Viktor Vector]
Age: 47
Identity: Ripperdoc
Cyberware Coverage: 26%
Description: The best ripperdoc in Watson.
Night City veteran.
Old friend of Jackie Welles.
PS: Godfather, please accept my bow!
Seeing someone enter, Viktor paused the video and spoke in a deep, steady voice.
“Alright, Misty already filled me in.”
“So tell me, kid, are you here for an install or…?”
“Dr.
Viktor, I wanted to see what kind of implants you offer and how much they cost.
Just so I know what to aim for once I save up enough eddies.”
“Sure.
I’ll send you a list.
You can sit on the chair over there and look it over.”
After sending the data, Viktor sat back down at his workbench and resumed watching his boxing match.
To a stranger like him, Vik was indeed just a quiet, taciturn middle-aged guy.
Sitting on the blue operating chair that bore the signs of heavy use, Lin Ke opened the folder Vik had sent.
Self-ICE: 5,115 Newtonian Module: 15,329 Militech Paraline Mk.3: 25,539 Kiroshi Optics “Harbinger”: 51,150 Smart Link: 1,378 Optical Camo: 15,329 Subdermal Armor (Heavy): 5,215
Well, as expected, there was no Qiant Sandevistan “Warp Dancer” or any other high-end, powerful implants on the list.
Reality wasn’t like a video game.
Military-grade cyberware was strictly regulated; it wasn’t something a street-level ripperdoc could easily source.
Or perhaps Vik did have high-end implants, but because he was a total stranger, the doc wasn’t showing them to him yet.
In gaming terms, these were rare items locked behind a reputation barrier.
Still, things like Optical Camo and Subdermal Armor, which could boost his survival odds, were definitely worth considering.
But he needed to buy all the supplies requested by the Hunter first, then see how much money he had left.
After spending nearly an hour in the clinic, Lin Ke figured enough time had passed and stood up to leave.
Seeing Vik still engrossed in his boxing match, he didn’t bother saying goodbye.
Leaving the basement clinic, he bid farewell to Misty, headed outside to find the yellow G240, and opened the passenger door to slide back inside.
“Done with the surgery already?
That doc’s got some serious skills.
I can’t even see any surgical marks from the implant.
Did you use synthetic skin?”
“Don’t worry about it, Gloria.
Next, I need to buy some clothes and daily necessities.
The list is pretty diverse, so find a larger mall.”