“Time to go to Vik’s to get some cyberware installed.”
Saying that, Jake turned around, walked toward the road by the edge of the overlook, and waved at El Capitan: “I’m off.”
“Yeah.”
El Capitan was still leaning against his Rattler, watching David from a distance: “I’ll hit you up when there’s work.”
Then he watched as David walked straight into the middle of the road and used his body to intercept a white Makigai sedan that had just driven up the slope.
David opened the car door with practiced ease.
He yanked the driver out, sending him staggering two steps before falling to the ground.
The driver glared with furious eyes, watching the young kid sit brazenly in his car, shut the door, and step on the gas—all in one smooth, continuous motion.
The white Makigai pulled a wobbly U-turn and sped off toward Watson.
The entire process took less than ten seconds—clean, sharp, and effortless.
Clear as day, a seasoned pro.
El Capitan: “…”
Watching the white Makigai vanish over the crest of the slope, he couldn’t help but cover his face with a hand.
Unbelievable.
Right after getting his business card, the kid hijacked a car right in front of him.
Not a shred of shame.
…
The white Makigai twisted and turned through the streets of Santo Domingo, quickly merging onto the main highway toward Watson.
Dusk had completely turned into night.
Night City’s neon lights wove together outside the car windows as AVs glided through the flight corridors overhead.
The backdraft kicked up trash and dust from the pavement, while pedestrians along the sidewalk hurried past with their heads ducked into heavy coats.
Just as the car entered Watson…
Jake suddenly noticed a new addition beside his health bar in the top-left corner of the screen.
It was a small icon that looked like a roasted chicken.
“Huh?”
Jake hovered his mouse over it.
A line of semi-transparent white text popped up:
[Hunger: Food required.
Strength decays over time with hunger; movement speed reduced.]
“Hm?
Have to eat food too?”
David: “???”
Am I not human?!
You bastard, you’ve never treated me as a human being, have you?!
I’m your apostle, for crying out loud!
Jake glanced at the map.
They were already very close to Vik’s clinic, right near Little China.
“Let’s eat first.”
Controlling David, he yanked the steering wheel, turning the car down a narrow alleyway.
Little China was one of the few places in Watson that still felt lively and lived-in.
Street vendors pushed carts along the curb, selling fried noodles, dumplings, and skewers.
Jake picked a street stall that looked reasonably clean and controlled David to sit down.
He ordered a portion of fried noodles.
A steaming plate of noodles was soon served.
David picked up a bite with his chopsticks.
The moment the noodles hit his mouth, he almost burst into tears.
All day today, ever since being controlled this morning, he hadn’t eaten a single bite or swallowed a drop of water.
Finally, real food!
As the large plate of fried noodles went down his throat…
The roasted chicken icon in the top-left corner flashed twice and vanished.
Jake nodded with satisfaction at the screen prompt.
Alright, time to find Vik.
Just as he was about to control David to stand up and head toward Vik’s clinic…
Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a new icon popping up next to the health bar—a faucet symbol.
[Urination Needed: Excessive water consumption or holding urine for too long will lead to bladder discomfort, reducing movement speed.]
Jake: “…”
Holy crap.
Eating is one thing, but needing to pee too?
It’s just a game, no need to be this realistic!
…
Exiting the restroom…
Only after confirming the top-left corner of the screen was completely clear of any negative debuff icons did Jake comfortably maneuver David toward Vik’s clinic.
Vik’s clinic was tucked away under an unassuming apartment building in Little China.
Carrying the black duffel bag, David walked down a flight of rusty iron stairs, pushed open the creaking iron gate, and stepped into the clinic.
The clinic wasn’t large.
But it was a hundred times cleaner than Doc’s place.
A man wearing blue overalls and dark sunglasses sat in front of a workbench, watching an underground boxing match.
The ripperdoc, Viktor Vector—though most people called him “Vik”.
Vik turned around.
His gaze behind his sunglasses landed on David, sizing him up for a couple of seconds.
“Unfamiliar face.
Need something?”
He stood up, his tone casual: “Implants?
Or lookin’ to change your face?”
Jake controlled David to walk up to the workbench, set the black duffel bag on the counter, and unzipped it.
The blood on the metallic vertebrae had dried into a dark brown, but the dense web of neural connection points remained precise enough to make one’s scalp tingle.
“Militech stuff.”
Vik’s sunglasses slid down slightly.
He turned and pulled a scanner from an equipment cabinet, gesturing for David to sit in the chair.
The scanner swept a full circle against the back of David’s neck.
“Military cyberware places a massive burden on the body, especially a spinal implant like a Sandevistan.”
Vik spoke as he looked at the data on his screen: “You’ve got a skinny frame, lack muscle mass, and your nervous system hasn’t had any enhancement training.”
“Once it’s in, every single activation is gonna put serious stress on your blood vessels and nerves.”
He paused, asking once more: “You sure about this?”
Who wouldn’t want high-tier cyberware?
Although David didn’t know why the evil spirit possessing him was doing this, he wasn’t against chrome upgrades.
He felt he was ready!
“Positive.”
In their very first sync, both spoke in perfect unison.
Vik nodded, unpacked the plastic wrapping, and carefully placed the spinal segment onto the sterilization tray on the operating table.
“Anything else?”
“Uh…”
Jake hesitated, saying: “I don’t know if you can pull this off here.”
Vik gave a soft chuckle: “Relax, kid.
I’ve been doing this for years.
Ain’t nothin’ I haven’t seen.”
“Then remove my bladder.”
Jake typed out.
Having to go to the bathroom all the time was way too much trouble.
David: “!!!”
I wasn’t ready for THIS!
Is it too late to back out now?!
“Bladder?”
Vik looked at him with no small amount of surprise.
In all his years as a ripperdoc, he’d seen every kind of customer imaginable, but someone actively requesting a bladder removal…
This was something he truly had never seen before.
“Well…”
Vik picked up his tablet and flipped through his inventory catalog: “Urinary system implants are pretty rare.
I don’t have stock on hand.
If you’re really set on doing it, leave your number, and I’ll notify you when the shipment arrives.”
Hearing that it was out of stock…
David let out a sigh of relief.
His bladder was saved…
for now.
However, Jake didn’t seem ready to give up just yet, stepping forward to exchange contact info with Vik.
[New Contact Added: Viktor Vector]
Jake continued browsing the cyberware catalog.
Vik didn’t have a massive selection, but every piece was polished until it gleamed, neatly arranged in glass display cases with neat price tags attached.
Before long, he found what he was looking for.
[Reinforced Tendons (Mass-Produced)]
[Price: €$3,500]
[Effect: Significantly boosts leg explosive power and jump height, enabling a second mid-air leap.]
Unlocking double jump upon installation—definitely good stuff!
“Just this one.”
Jake controlled David to point at the cyberware in the catalog: “Nothing else.”
It was only a few hours until midnight.
If the real-world manifestation rule was once per day, then every single eurodollar he spent now was a direct loss.
Vik glanced at the item, turning around to pull a palm-sized, silver sealed box from a cabinet.
“Hop on up.”
After Jake controlled David to climb onto the operating table, the computer screen went black.
A line of white text popped up directly in the center of the screen, with a thin progress bar underneath that remained completely motionless.
[Estimated Surgery Time: 5:00:00]
“Damn it.”
“Five hours?!
You expect me to just sit here and wait?!”