Morning, 7:00 AM.
As the alarm blared, Karl opened his eyes and spoke the first words that came from the depths of his heart after waking up.
"I really don't want to go to school."
But whether he wanted to or not, he had to go.
Rubbing his eyes as he got out of bed, Karl washed up while checking the messages that had come in while he was asleep.
Johnson: "The assistance bonus I applied for on your behalf has been approved. Sorry, the higher-ups classified this as a cyberpsycho that was taken down too quickly, so they weren't too keen on giving out much. I managed to get 30,000."
As expected. Judging by the weapons NCPD officers used, Karl already knew exactly what to expect from the brass.
Karl: "Don't worry about it. That's more than enough."
He sent 10,000 each to Oliver and Jack from the 30,000 Johnson had transferred, then checked the next message.
Blanca: "As expected from a professional. Good work. This job is done."
The 150,000 from the James Norris contract had arrived.
Sending another 50,000 each to Oliver and Jack, Karl suddenly realized—why didn't he check his own balance before distributing money again?
But there weren't any more incoming payments left to check.
Karl glanced at his balance.
After receiving the advance payment for the titanium-alloy mission, he had 915,000 eddies in total. The 5,000 set aside for team expenses had already dwindled to about 2,000 after covering meals over the past few days.
Subtracting that reserve fund, Karl's personal funds sat at around 910,000 eddies.
Yesterday, he had given David 10,000. That left 900,000. Adding Johnson's payout and Blanca's money...
960,000.
Not bad.
Once he adapted a bit more to his current implants, he could probably use this money for another round of upgrades.
What had Old Vic said about the ideal adaptation period again?
Half a month?
Karl had indeed been a bit aggressive with his modifications. He had been in 2075 for just over a month, and in that time, his implants included:
Arasaka Type-3 cyberdeckMonowireTitanium skeletal structure for his armsDense bone marrowBionic joints
He didn't personally feel much different—everything functioned as smoothly as his old limbs. But Old Vic had warned that extensive modifications in a short time were a prime trigger for cyberpsychosis. Best to follow medical advice.
Maybe he should look into acquiring a better cyberdeck. That upgrade had significantly improved his abilities, but the Arasaka Type-3, while top-tier on the market, was still a step behind military-grade tech.
And after that... what else should he install?
Karl understood his own limits well. Against ordinary cyberpsychos, he could handle things without much difficulty. But if he had to fight someone like James Norris alone, he could probably win—but at a heavy cost. He'd probably lose another hand or something.
He needed to get even stronger.
Once you start modifying yourself, it's hard to stop—until you become a cyberpsycho.
To avoid that, he had to choose carefully.
Before experiencing the full benefits of the Arasaka Type-3, Karl had considered installing a Sandevistan. The implant was just too useful—the gap between having it and not having it in high-level combat was enormous.
But after realizing that his reflexes could already keep up with Sandevistan users and that his cyberdeck allowed him to counter their speed, he knew what he actually needed.
Not a Sandevistan—but a better, faster cyberdeck.
Karl felt like an AI— the more processing power he had, the faster he could act.
After washing up, he grabbed a pack of synthetic milk from the rented fridge and paired it with a microwaved wheat bun for breakfast.
The wheat bun tasted pretty good, thanks to the genetically modified wheat. The synthetic milk? Well, it was drinkable.
Holding his plastic-wrapped milk and bun, Karl left his apartment, eating as he walked. The time was now 7:05 AM.
"The pork is supposed to arrive tonight. I'll need to have Jack and Oliver pick up some cookware. This apartment only has a rented microwave, and I'm not one of those people who just heat up half-prepared meals and call it dinner."
"Beep beep."
Just as Karl was thinking about how he should cook his long-awaited real pork, his communicator buzzed with a message from Oliver and Jack.
Oliver: "You up? We're waiting downstairs. Let's go, we'll drop you off at City Center so you can get to school."
Karl: "Screw that, I already don't wanna go."
Second day of school, and he was already burned out.
Despite his complaints over comms, Karl still walked toward them obediently, finishing his breakfast along the way.
"Did you get the money?"
"Of course."
Oliver leaned against the driver's side door with the window down.
"After we drop you off, I'm heading to Vic's. Yesterday's rain interference was a nightmare. If my cyberoptics were better, I could've taken that guy down way sooner. Now that I have the cash, I'm definitely getting a Kiroshi Optics Mk.1 upgrade."
"Kiroshi, huh? That's high-end tech. Didn't think Vic could get his hands on that."
Karl gave Jack, who was sitting in the passenger seat, a nod in greeting before sliding into the back seat. As he shut the door, he made sure not to close it all the way.
"That's why the moment Vic mentioned it, I knew I had to go for it."
Oliver sat up straight, rolled up the window, and turned to glance at Karl.
"How'd you sleep?"
"Not as well as you guys, who don't have to wake up early for school."
Karl wasted no time throwing shade, which made Jack chuckle.
"Damn, you're really salty. Look, once you get that intel on Tanaka, you can dip early. When this mission's done, how about we get together at my place? Now that we've got all the supplies, I'll cook up some corn chips and steamed pork for you."
"Honestly, I trust Mama Welles' cooking more than yours, Jack. You sure you can handle it?"
"Come on, brother, you know you can always trust Jack Welles' kitchen skills."
Karl thought about it for a moment.
Fine. He'd give his brother a chance. He nodded but added a condition.
"Then you gotta invite Misty, too."
"Huh?"
Jack was caught off guard.
Misty? If they were hanging out at his place, then that meant Misty and his mom would be...
"Yeah, definitely invite Misty," Oliver chimed in with a grin while keeping his eyes on the road. "Otherwise, I won't acknowledge this gathering."
"You don't even have to go to school...," Jack grumbled.
His usually tough face showed a rare hint of embarrassment, but at the same time, it looked like he had been convinced.
Finally, he nodded firmly.
"Alright then. After this mission's done, I'll bring Misty along... Oh, and we can't forget Vic either."