Konpeki Plaza.

A building Karl had never truly stood beneath, yet one he was intimately familiar with.

Back during the escort mission, this was supposed to be his final destination—the place where he was meant to deliver Hanako safely.

Now, standing outside its perimeter, gazing up at the towering skyscraper that seemed to pierce the sky, Karl felt a faint, lingering pain in his body.

The last time he had seen this building like this, it had only taken seconds before that bastard in an ACPA appeared in front of him, blocking his way and forcing him into a brutal fight that had nearly shattered every bone in his body.

Karl glanced down at his raised hands, flexing them once before shaking off the phantom pain.

Things were different now.

If that same situation played out again, he was confident he could tear that thing apart, piece by piece, from head to toe, without taking a single hit.

It had been nearly two weeks since that mission. Karl was no longer the same man he was back then.

It was 8:50 AM. The person assigned to meet him had already arrived.

A middle-aged man in a suit and sunglasses, the very picture of a corporate lapdog, stood waiting. He scrutinized Karl for a moment before stepping aside and gesturing with his hand, signaling that he could follow him into Konpeki Plaza’s restricted perimeter.

Since Hanako Arasaka was staying here, the area around Konpeki Plaza had been sealed off from the rest of the city. Anyone who wandered too close or acted even slightly suspicious would find themselves staring down the barrels of the building’s autonomous security drones. That was why Karl needed an escort to guide him in.

Ken’ichiro had explained this process to him the day before, so Karl simply nodded and followed in silence.

As he walked, he carefully studied Konpeki Plaza’s defenses. His sharp eyes immediately picked out multiple concealed gun emplacements hidden behind shrubs and decorative walls—both machine guns and auto-cannons, judging by their size.

And they were brand new.

Konpeki Plaza was meant to host VIPs. This level of security wasn’t standard—it was temporary. Once Hanako’s residence in North Oak was fully prepared and fortified, she would move there. At that point, Konpeki Plaza would return to being the luxurious hotel it was designed to be, welcoming wealthy elites from all over the world.

As far as Karl knew, members of the Arasaka family had always followed this process when moving into Night City—starting with a stay at Konpeki Plaza, as it boasted the strongest security of any Arasaka-controlled property in the city… second only to Arasaka Tower itself.

But even knowing that, he had never seen this level of security before.

“Is this because of the recent assassination attempt?”

Karl continued his silent observations, mentally mapping every hidden turret and sniper nest he spotted. By the time they reached the main entrance, he had counted at least twenty new security placements.

This kind of defensive setup…

If he wanted to storm the building from the outside, even with his entire crew, Brown’s team, and Maine team working together, it would take serious effort.

He estimated they could break through in about a minute.

For a perimeter defense, that was insanely strong.

If he wanted to completely obliterate the outer defenses and breach the building in under thirty seconds, he’d need:

An entire squad of heavy ACPA units, fully armed. A skilled netrunner to disable the turrets and drones before they could react.

Or…

He could just call that person.

Karl’s mind flashed back to the figure that had appeared before him in slow time—just before he lost consciousness. His hand clenched instinctively.

If it were that person… how long would it take?

Twenty seconds? Ten?

Or would it only take an instant to break through all of this?

That speed, that power, the perfect fusion of cybernetics and willpower—it was an overwhelming strength, beyond human limits, and it had left an impression Karl couldn’t forget.

If only he had data on that guy.

Facing someone like him, only that level of difficulty could be called true despair—only then would it be worth attempting again.

That day, Karl had taken the escort contract, acting as Hanako’s bodyguard.

Would he see him again today?

And not just him, but Ken’ichiro as well.

If he could get data on both of them, even a simulated version—one that wasn’t even close to their real strength—Karl desperately wanted to test himself against them.

To measure where he stood.

To see just how far the gap still was.

“Mr. Karl, this is as far as I can take you. Please proceed forward.”

The corporate escort stopped at Konpeki Plaza’s entrance, stepping aside and gesturing for Karl to continue on his own.

Without hesitation, Karl stepped inside.

Before reaching the reception lobby, he passed through an automated security scanner.

The moment the scanner detected him, an alarm blared—but just as quickly, it was shut off.

A black-suited woman, dressed identically to the escort outside, approached him with a small bow.

“Apologies, Mr. Karl. We overlooked the fact that you would be carrying weapons. The alarm has been deactivated. Please, follow me.”

In the lobby, more than ten security personnel—all dressed in identical suits, likely Arasaka’s Special Operations Division—stood at their posts.

None of them reacted aggressively to Karl’s weapons.

At most, they instinctively tensed and raised their hands slightly—before relaxing again.

“Did Mr. Ken’ichiro say I could bring weapons inside?” Karl asked.

“Of course, sir.”

The woman maintained a deep, formal bow, her voice humble and respectful.

Karl’s brow twitched slightly.

He was polite himself—but this level of deference was unsettling.

After dealing with gangsters for so long—being feared, hated, or begrudgingly respected—this type of absolute submission felt… unnatural.

The way they avoided eye contact… the way they lowered their gaze…

Karl wasn’t used to it.

The woman led him into an elevator but did not enter with him.

Instead, she stopped at the entrance, standing formally with both hands folded in front of her.

Just before the elevator doors closed, she offered one final, deep bow and said:

“I wish you a pleasant day.”

Karl raised an eyebrow.

“A pleasant day… is that their standard farewell line?”

Through the narrowing gap in the elevator doors, he saw her still holding the bow, never straightening up—not even as the doors fully shut.

That level of discipline was drilled into them deeply.

Karl didn’t feel much about it.

He had worked in customer service industries before—he had seen similar levels of politeness in the past.

The difference?

Konpeki Plaza’s staff were simply trained better.

Still…

“Yeah, I don’t like it when people bow to me.”

Karl muttered to himself, his expression unreadable as the elevator ascended toward its destination.

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