Leaving Larry's Workshop, Dante decided to take his time and stroll around for a while. It was 23:30, so everything was shrouded in darkness. Not the absolute darkness of an unlit pocket dimension, thought.
The sky was relatively bright, as it usually is at night, thanks to different types of pollution. The outskirts of the Hollowgrid lacked street lights, however, so one can still find it difficult to see while navigating its messy streets.
Dante could have easily opened a portal to his apartment, going through its pocket dimension first, but he had other plans. He was looking to test his new implants in a real battle for the first time against some street rats.
One would think small crimes would get worse with no big gangs around to keep things under control. There was the occasional gathering of street rats in the corners here and there, but most kept to themselves, as if aware of what awaited them if they decided to pick a fight.
'I know I'm supposed to cherish the peace, but…'
Dante's luck was especially good that night, so he ended up reaching his building without running into any trouble. The disappointment remained with him until he entered his apartment and plopped down onto his bed.
Dante woke up around ten the next morning. Sleeping in his own bed after so long drained away his exhaustion and so he felt quite refreshed. Ready to go back to work, he sent a few messages while taking a shower. He had a light breakfast, drank some coffee, then equipped an outfit and headed out.
His first stop was the Triple Jackpot. He had already informed his acquaintances that the surgery was a success, but he wanted to show Viktor the results. Check latest chapters at 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝✦𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖✦𝕟𝕖𝕥
"Well, at least you can pass for a Diver now." The fixer said near the end. "No need to pretend otherwise."
Dante hadn't thought of it from that angle. Having an MLP wasn't a sure sign that someone was a Diver. Pilots and heavy machine drivers usually get them installed for work as well, but Dante didn't look like someone with responsibilities of that magnitude, so the only explanation would be that he's a Diver.
Being recognized as such had its pros and cons. For one, he no longer has to pretend someone else is doing the Diving for him. On the other hand, it would mean people were going to be wary of him going forward, even if he didn't carry around an exocore.
Dante contemplated asking Suzuka to make him a cover like the one she gave Finn, even though a part of him wanted to flaunt his new implants. His need to lie low was slowly losing to the urge to show off, as stupid as that sounded. What was the point of having all this cool tech installed if he couldn't show it off? He might be unsettled by it a little, but he enjoyed people's reactions even more.
After leaving Voktor's office, Dante visited Suzuka's place next. Not the secret hideout in White Hill, but a penthouse she was renting in Westwing.
In the four years he had lived in Neo-Vatra, Dante had barely visited the district. Even after becoming a merc, the jobs that took him to the area could be counted on one hand, so he didn't have many chances to get used to it.
Westwing was dubbed the Academy District due to all the schools and universities it contained. Most of the advanced learning institutions were located there, and being a high school dropout and an avid hater of stuckup geniuses and elites, Dante subconsciously avoided visiting the place, most likely.
His presence drew more than a few pairs of eyes as he walked through the pristine streets. Surprisingly, the streets had a lot more greenery than he expected, with trees planted at every corner, and plants decorating the windows and sidewalks. Dante spotted quite a number of bots running around tending to things, be it watering the plants or cleaning up the streets. He spotted a number of clankers as well, and seeing how they were dressed in police uniforms, his mood took a turn for the worse.
Dante drew quite the number of eyes as he walked around. Though he wanted to brush it off as just his new implants attracting attention, the more obvious answer was that the people hanging around such places could tell he didn't belong there. His appearance alone was evidence of that.
Wherever he went, people would move out of the way or cross the street. He tried to not let it bother him, but suspicious slowly grew in his heart so he had Volcan check the security cams. Turns out nothing was wrong with him, and all those people were just being assholes.
He soon arrived at the his destination. Entering the lobby, he sent Suzuka a message so she would grant him access to the elevator. A short ride took him to one of the upper floors.
"Hey there," He said when the door opened. "Been a while."
"Yeah, it has been a while." Suzuka said.
The blue haired girl was the picture of exhaustion, with messy hair and circles under her eyes. Going by the way she dressed, it seemed like she had just gotten out of bed, or maybe was heading for it when he suddenly sent her the message.
"Congrats… on your surgery…" She yawned in his face before moving aside and letting him in.
"Thanks, but… are you okay?"
For some reason, Dante didn't think he could have imagined her in this state before. In his mind, she was the kind of woman who always looked prim and proper no matter the situation. Either his impression of her was wrong, or things had been way worse for her than he thought.
"I know babysitting can be difficult, but… was it that bad?"
"I don't even know where to begin."
Yawning once more, Suzuka motioned for him to follow.