I Became a Sub Heroine in a Cyberpunk Game

“I’m recommending MacLoonie’s ‘Highland Gang’s Life’ if you want to learn skills as a Gunner. This fellow is the type to completely ignore others’ privacy, so chip sales often get interrupted, but when it comes to handling a gun, it’s all about classic logic, meaning there’s a lot to apply.”

“………”

I firmly shut my mouth, making it clear that I had no intention of responding friendly.

Even though I kept my distance, wary of Zero’s tolerance threshold and the gazes around me.

The little spider, who was not really concerned about my cold response, was too busy chattering excitedly.

I shot a glare filled with my utmost desire not to get tangled up and not wanting to deal with the nuisance.

Her skin was not as dark as that of an African, but a bright bronze shade that resembled tanning, with healthy skin characteristics of a Hispanic.

Despite being constricted by a vest-like outer garment, the undeniable chest volume was confirmed, in contrast to her short, neatly managed, unbalanced hairstyle.

While it wasn’t as short as Helena’s, who trimmed her nails neatly every morning, it was clear to anyone that she had cut off unnecessary parts to avoid hindrance while working on the front lines rather than to appeal for beauty.

…Ah, right. While it may sound somewhat abrupt, in my old gaming community, the dominant MegaCorp was often metaphorically referred to as animals.

This made a lot of sense according to each personality, and constructing a clear image was convenient when deciding the direction of play.

For instance, Enema was represented as a snake, endlessly shedding its skin and constantly adapting to its environment. In critical moments, a white viper with little room for compromise.

Paradise was akin to an elephant; despite being born late, it used its innate size and excellent tools of ivory and strength to push its competitors. Though, it was not a herbivore but rather a complete omnivore, anyway.

What I wanted to say right now was about one of the others. The network spider, Elysium.

A detestable predator that uses the vast virtual sea of the world as its home, weaving webs here and there, waiting for someone to touch them.

Given that its headquarters is in another metropolis, its appearance was somewhat limited, but it was still alert to the movements of Neo Haven, the capital, as it had large branches.

And… didn’t I just say that the Circuit Refinery was somewhat upscale?

With a wide and diverse clientele, it was good for grasping civilian trends, and thanks to its connections, the protagonist often flowed in naturally.

Anyway, based on those reasons, one of the Elysium field agents stationed here is this woman.

Martina Cryptoboa.

Not only did she receive treatment as one of the regulars, but she also managed to engrain her disguise as a plausible freelance engineer in Hemet’s mind, accessing the place slyly.

While she initially created a trustworthy impression on a new player with her horn-rimmed glasses, meticulously worn as if for fashion, she was the type to casually feed the protagonist with, “Sorry! I also have to make a living~” if they happened to choose poorly a couple of times.

Well, I didn’t have any particular reason to hate her even if my first quest unfolded in such a twisted manner. But, at the point where the shadow of the corporation loomed behind her, my irritation was already in full bloom.

…No, wait? Since she sells me things, she’s not a fake customer but a real one, and being affiliated with Elysium means she is actually intelligent. If she’s giving off corporate vibes, then perhaps I also might share some similarities in having a backing?

“That’s why nowadays, rummaging through the shelves or digging through the special discount corners piled with chips to find something interesting isn’t fun anymore. Just standing around observing brings in too many rumors, so I end up knowing the content roughly~”

Even if I didn’t wish for it, I confidently called out the registered mercenary nickname on this side, so it was clear she approached me by specifying ‘me’.

Those lines that sounded like self-talk would surely be thrown at me.

In short, it could be summarized as, “I’ve heard a lot about your rumors, so don’t try to escape~”

To those who might have casually spotted her, it might seem she was just playing around by making unnecessary remarks towards a newbie customer in the store.

But this lady was neither a common civilian collaborator nor a subcontractor. Knowing she was a direct employee of Elysium made it a bit awkward to purely socialize, but ignoring her and leaving was also a tough call… it was really annoying.

“Um… If you wrap your words around like that, I’m not going to find it enjoyable, you know? If you have something you want to say or a special business, I’d rather you just throw it out quickly.”

“………Hmm?”

She approached as though she recognized me at a glance but was hesitating.

Continuously circling around while poking gently kept me on edge, and since I was annoyed with her asserting her superiority, I abruptly booted up the exploration phase instead.

To be honest, while I was seriously contemplating my situation, I didn’t want to become a side show, and on the other hand, I was curious about her blunt evaluation.

No matter how much Martina was a trusted undercover agent, it didn’t mean she knew everything. I wondered what Elysium, residing at the top tier of the network pyramid, thought of me.

Moreover, I questioned whether she could see through all the layers of information distortions and Zero’s existence piled on top; if she could, to what extent had she discovered the truth?

Although I explained it dramatically, I thought the likelihood that Elysium would be taking action was slim.

Of course, they were the type to spout off nonsense like, “Even if companies fight fiercely at times, ultimately, if everyone unites to guide humanity towards an ideal in the electronic world, that would be sufficient~.”

If they had seen bizarre people turning imaginative concepts into code or self-evolving AIs, they would have kidnapped and dissected them before exchanging any pleasantries.

In that sense, her light poking could be interpreted more positively towards us than expected.

She must have believed she knew enough and approached, but in deeper examination, it was merely an unknowing choice. Isn’t this ironic?

“You don’t seem like the type to enjoy cheerful small talk much?”

“Um… Ahem! I have a few holes where all my earnings go out.”

Originally, a small-time citizen who earns just enough to survive would say getting caught up in a sucker’s probe is a waste of time…! I tried to say that confidently, but had to quickly switch my words to avoid being seen as a desperate bourgeoisie.

Thinking about it, if a human with two or more security droids and who resides in a residence hotel were strapped for credits, that’s not just a small citizen; that’s someone with huge spending. Phew, I almost got ‘revolutionized’.

“Heh…”

Was that an exclamation? Or a prompt??

I’m not sure which it was, but with a strange tone mixed with a snort, Martina glanced around, then for a moment, made direct eye contact with me.

“It doesn’t seem like you have anything major to discuss, so… here.”

[ Detecting abnormal access to cyberware, initiating signal analysis and traceback. ]

As soon as I noticed the dizzying holographic characters flow across her pupils and glasses, my implant began to glow.

If my memory serves me right, those fashionable glasses were something akin to a spy gadget with scanning capabilities. Supposedly, wearing expensive ocular prosthetics draws suspicion, so they deliberately make a traditional imitation.

However, the impolite radio attack was of no concern.

As Zero could surmise from being more irritated than anyone else, this was truly not a threat at all.

It’s not so much that there were no impure intentions in the act, but it wasn’t indirectly targeting the PDA that Rosalyn once infiltrated; she was directly aiming at my cyberware or implants?

While updating my interfaces to my satisfaction, there was no way a coward like me would expose a highly exploitable weakness without any contingencies.

[Creak, crunch—!!]

Although it didn’t make a sound in reality, it probably left only the feeling of melting away like sugar dissolved in water for the victim.

What did it look like from their standpoint, I wonder?

The pain of being shredded didn’t link directly to the victim, so it probably resulted in merely fading away like refined sugar screened through a sieve.

Noticing Martina’s trembling near her cheeks, as I had hoped, I allowed a private voice chat but shot her a glare, conveying the message to cease any unnecessary antics.

By the way, does sending such interactions in lieu of greetings tend to work for collaborators? To hit one specific target, I must make physical contact, not just eye contact, right?

No wonder secret operations appear to be taking place fearlessly in broad daylight, and it’s expected for people to suspect hackers when annoying phenomena occur.

“Tsk…!”

Not wanting to draw excess attention, I quickly turned my head away.

Now, our Elysium agent who contributes to painting prejudices… So why are you snooping around?

Go ahead, have a laugh. I’ll just listen. I waited for that kind of relaxed mindset to open up.

“Indeed, a competent outsider like you seems to fit well with us. What do you say? Instead of continuing with the exhausting self-employed routine every day, consider seriously entrusting yourself to our great order?”

“……What?”

Setting aside the bothersome proposal of headhunting, what on earth is this mindset that would put forth such an aggressive comment right in my face!? Was that chosen as an appropriate opening line?

Huh? I never said anything that harsh! At least that’s how it sounded to me! Why are you attacking me out of nowhere!?

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