After finishing breakfast, Carl, Jack, and Oliver didn't stay in the apartment for long. With Blanka not sending any updates, it was a rare free day, and everyone had things to do.
Oliver planned to get himself a new sniper rifle, while Jack was finally going to buy the motorcycle he had been eyeing for so long. As for Carl, he was heading to Vic's clinic to upgrade his cyberware.
Going together would've been too much of a hassle, so shortly after breakfast, they split up.
Well, sort of.
Oliver was still the designated driver, making the rounds to drop off Carl and Jack first before heading to his own destination.
"I'm starting to think the real reason you bought a car, Carl, was so you could sit comfortably while I drive."
"That's slander. I just wanted to be lazy."
After saying goodbye to Oliver and Jack, Carl headed off to see Viktor.
Once the cyberware surgery was done, they were all planning to meet up again for drinks in the evening.
Passing through Misty's Esoterica, Carl took a moment to greet Misty before heading through the back door and turning left. From there, he walked straight to Vik's underground clinic in the alleyway basement.
Today, Viktor's only scheduled client was Carl, so he had already gotten everything prepped ahead of time.
"Same deal as we talked about yesterday, Carl."
Vik retrieved the newly arrived cyberware from a secure storage unit, giving Carl a quick glance. "Everything looks good on your end. Hop on the operating table."
"I still need to run a check on these implants, make sure there aren't any hidden backdoors. You might as well lie down and mentally prepare yourself."
"What's there to prepare for, Vik? This isn't my first rodeo."
"Doesn't matter. Every surgery has risks. Don't get careless."
Like a nagging old man, Vik grumbled on as he ran diagnostics, while Carl lay back and half-listened, half-watched him inspect the cyberware.
The implants Vik was checking were ones that Carl had personally paid him to order—using his fixer connections to source them.
The total cost? 192,000 eddies.
92,000 eddies went toward a monowire upgrade—a version that was longer, charged faster, and more efficient than Carl's previous one. If he ever had to fight another ACPA, this new monowire would cut down the time needed to fully charge, letting him rip the armor straight off its frame in just a few swings.
The remaining 100,000 eddies went toward replacing his neural link port. Up until now, Carl had been using the cheapest available option—the Militech Parallel Line.
To be honest, its processing power was barely above worthless.
Now that he had money, he figured he might as well splurge a little.
For his new neural port, Carl chose the Arasaka Type-3.
[Arasaka Type-3]: A top-tier neural interface designed for infiltration specialists and cyberespionage operatives.
Yet another Arasaka product.
Not because Carl favored Arasaka gear—far from it.
This was simply the best and most expensive option that Vik had access to.
Anything better?
That was exclusively reserved for corporate elites.
After carefully inspecting the cyberware for pre-installed backdoor programs and deleting any suspicious code, Vik finally sat down in his chair beside the operating table.
"This should take around two hours. You want anesthesia?"
"Partial anesthesia is fine. That way, I can chat with you to pass the time."
"Surgery doesn't need entertainment."
Despite saying that, Vik still went along with Carl's request and only administered partial anesthesia before picking up the implants and starting the procedure.
And just as Vik estimated, two hours later, the surgery was complete.
"How's it feel?"
At Vik's words, Carl flexed his right hand, activating the monowire.
"Smooth. No resistance at all."
"And the neural link?"
Carl focused, immediately noticing that his brain was processing information much faster than before.
He glanced at Viktor—and suddenly, his mind was flooded with data.
Viktor Vektor. 'Old Vik.' Former boxer, now a ripperdoc. Physical condition: stable, but slightly labored breathing—likely due to overexertion during surgery. Breathing will stabilize in approximately 14 seconds. Vulnerabilities: Right side, fourth rib. Left knee joint. Can breach his guard in 0.3 seconds. Target is unguarded.
This rush of information made Carl blink in surprise, before finally answering Vik's question.
"Nothing wrong with it. If anything... it feels like my cognitive load has decreased, like part of my brain's processing power is offloaded onto it."
"That's impossible. It's a neural interface, not a brain booster."
Vik didn't pay much attention to Carl's comment. Instead, after taking a few seconds to regulate his breathing, he leaned back and said, "No intense activity today. Get used to the new implants first. You guys barely made it out alive—take a damn break. If I show up for drinks tonight and find out you idiots took another job, next time I'm not giving you anesthesia."
Technically, they had already accepted a job.
But obviously, Carl wasn't about to admit that.
"I'll pass the message to Oliver and Jack."
That was all Carl said before bidding Vik temporary farewell.
Before meeting up for drinks in the evening, he planned to make a trip to Kabuki Market.
There was a hacker shop there—he could pick up some daemons while he was at it.
[Daemon]: Viruses, hacking software, offensive programs.
Carl had already learned the basics of netrunning thanks to braindance simulations.
Now, it was time to actually get his hands on some real daemons and see if he could pull off some actual hacks.
He shot Oliver a message, asking where his personal chauffeur was.
Oliver's response?
Still picking out guns.
How the hell does it take that long to buy a gun?
Wait—almost forgot.
Carl instinctively touched the Lexington holstered at his waist.
He needed to buy a gun too.
Carrying only a Lexington wasn't exactly ideal.
His weapon stash back home had plenty of rifles, SMGs, and shotguns—but when it came to concealable pistols, he only had this one Lexington.
Did a Lexington even count as a real merc's sidearm?
Should he just grab another Kenshin since he was used to it?
Or maybe it was time to try something different...
Hmm... something to think about.