Chapter 183: Chapter 114: Starting Over

“I’m a street mercenary, quite sensitive to emotions and hostility. I can tell… it’s not quite at the point of hostility, but something seems different about you.”

John dressed neatly, walked to the table, picked up the gun, and smoothly placed it on himself.

[Mission Objective Updated]

[Be honest with Oulos. (Optional)]

[Hide the secret of the serum. (Optional)]

After a moment of silence, he said,

“I met someone in the depths of the server room…”

He recounted to Oulos the meeting with the serum and the content of the accident video.

Information sharing was necessary.

John demonstrated to Oulos through his actions that he was still honest in their cooperative relationship, and he would keep his promise to show up on time when work was required.

Oulos frowned slightly and sat on the chair.

She took out a chip from her pocket and tossed it onto the table.

“I’ve actually already copied the video, did it before the Internet Surveillance barged deep into the facility… But regarding the serum, I appreciate you telling me. As for the rogue AI called Black Light, maybe it has turned me into some sort of… variable?”

Oulos looked up at John and frowned. “I mentioned two things, didn’t I?”

“Uh-huh?”

“Actually, I saw the serum at the Messiah European Headquarters. Back then, her badge said Pacifica Connor.”

Oulos spoke truthfully.

She was quite impressed by that researcher.

After all, after implanting a prosthetic body with emotional analysis, at the Messiah Headquarters, she mostly saw excitement, greed, and anger.

“That person was out of place, because when she first interacted with me… ha, her face showed compassion, even a completely new kind of emotion, do you understand?”

Oulos seemed to be lost in memories.

“This coincidence of interpersonal relationships makes me fearful. I’m as afraid of dying as you are, John. Detecting a threat means it must be prevented. That’s a very normal way of thinking, right?”

She seemed to explain her distancing from John.

“…I understand, see you later, I’m going to rest.”

The sky was clearing up slightly.

[Shop – Black Engine Restaurant]

“Wow~ Look who it is, you’re still alive?”

The owner, Genius, exclaimed in admiration, his thick prosthetic limbs still smeared with cleaning foam as he pushed over a glass of chilled beer.

The transition between day and night ended.

The rush hour in the industrial district was over.

Only a waitress collecting dishes and the owner remained in the restaurant.

John wore a blood-stained Exile jacket, with a hospital-marked T-shirt underneath, looking very much like an escaped patient, even his haggard appearance fitting the description.

“Thanks.”

He buried his head in the noodles and devoured them ravenously.

Even if the noodles were synthetic, the sauce was quite flavorful, and even the shaped accompaniments were industrial food blocks.

For a long time, he had been surviving on nutrient solutions, also having undergone two surgeries…

The taste stimulation was intoxicating.

“Choking to death might be a good ending too, wouldn’t you say, legendary mercenary of Eden City?”

Genius tossed the rag into the bar counter, frowning in disgust at his messy eating.

Gulp, gulp.

John took two swigs of beer, the coolness rising from his throat to the back of his head, only to be promptly blocked by the graphene chip.

Some things indeed changed.

He sighed regretfully, then casually chatted with Genius about recent daily life, listening to the restaurant owner talk about changes on the streets, especially the topics everyone recently discussed.

“The friction between gangs is getting worse.”

“The Black Gold Gang and Owl Town Gang?”

“Those are just the biggest gangs in Eden City. Almost every street has different forces, and with the recent population explosion in Eden City, more and more newcomers are picking up guns and goofing around… Who knows, it just feels like the city isn’t peaceful anymore.”

“When was it ever peaceful?”

“It’s different, John, those petty crimes aren’t scary, just worried about friction without gunfire, high-level gang members definitely want to stir up some big moves, and I’ve been through such things, definitely gonna be a bloody mess in the city.”

Genius crossed his arms and sighed.

He simultaneously gave a disdainful look. “I heard you’re doing pretty well over there in the West District, how come you have no insider news to share, look at that cheap vibe of yours… Damn, have you paid yet?”

John emptied his glass almost without hesitation.

“I’m actually broke now.”

“F*cking hell, John, you came here to freeload?”

“Not exactly, it’s complicated.”

John deftly dodged Genius’s punch.

The days of being pinned to the bar and beaten were long gone.

“I nearly died, you know? Then I recklessly splurged for a while before dying, ended up with nothing on me.”

“How did you end up back here?”

However, Genius didn’t press.

He knew John still had a sports car, shouldn’t have an issue paying for a meal at the little restaurant.

“Who knows? Life is a cycle, even seems to get worse, buddy, I know why I’m here, just want to hear your advice.”

John wasn’t sure how to begin.

Genius frowned, crossed his arms, nodded toward the waitress to head into the kitchen.

After a long silence, John said,

“Life suddenly got messy, and then someone said, the memory you’ve had for years in the city might be wrong, who you are, even seems uncertain…”

“Then what?”

“F*ck, don’t you think that’s f*cked up enough?”

John questioned Genius’s lack of empathy.

Yet he waved it off, as if wiping away the water on the bar counter.

“Look down at yourself, you’ve got all limbs intact. Compared to the first time you came to me, you’re more like a person now. Chaos is normal, any random girl smoking here in Eden City has more worries than you.”

Genius looked calm.

“Now that you’re broke, go get to work, life doesn’t just change by sitting around, you’re simply bored to death.”

He gestured to the door.

“If you have nothing else, best leave, refill your pockets then come back to chat. Since you’re still alive, you need food, clothing, shelter, everything costs money, right?”

Genius issued an eviction order.

John frowned wanting to retort but found it reasonable. Disregarding those conspiracies, street life seemed simpler than imagined.

He nodded and left the shop.

“Thanks, I’ll pay back next time, call me if there’s anything.”

Before leaving, John gave Genius an empty promise.

[Eden City – Oil Barrel Street]

John wasn’t too sure if this timeframe would work.

He skillfully navigated through the addicts and homeless, entering the underground passage among barrels emitting black smoke.

[Scan detected, no intrusion signs.]

John lifted the shutter door with one hand, then frowned, letting it drop back down while rubbing his nose.

The mohawk behind the counter had changed to an even more flamboyant color.

The leather jacket he wore was nearly honeycombed, pants and belt all slipping to the ground, and he had just finished some mechanical movement.

The counter reluctantly took off the headband.

“Damn, I forgot to adjust your permissions.”

“What do you mean, the business I brought isn’t enough to keep me on the VIP list?”

John casually browsed the shelves.

The counter inserted an e-cigarette into a metal mask, ignoring John’s browsing in his shop.

“Eden City’s rules are like this, no news for a few days and one can be assumed dead. Actually, until this morning, I thought you became an unidentified corpse.”

John sighed.

He knew street vendors and middlemen had a unique way of exchanging information, sometimes even more timely than the news channel’s inside scoops, street reputation always inexplicably rising.

Today he came to the counter mainly to resolve the subdermal armor supplement issue.

John had undergone two major surgeries.

The color abnormality on him needed adjustment, synthetic leather relating to subdermal armor, and his own Plato prototype model required replenishing liquid less available in the market.

[Street reputation improved, more items are now available on the black market]

The counter had promised to connect him with the ECPD officers.

“You’ve finally remembered this, my superstar.”

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