Chapter 11: Ki, Do, Hyo (4)

Stammering, it was the moment when the words of q134.2e were about to come out.

“W-What is this….”

Lee Do wiped his bloodstained hand and went behind the counter. He picked up the dropped money bag. His shoulder ached slightly; the residual Qi, still unfamiliar, felt like it was burning through his body.

Half of his Qi had been depleted by that single form.

‘It used to take more than this.’

When he first started combining the forms, it was his first time properly utilizing Qi outside of cultivation. He didn’t know how to focus or control it.

It had been crude.

But it had also resulted in an explosive release of Qi.

He looked down at the man. Even his chrome-plated head was stained crimson with blood.

He would have died even without the gunshot.

‘For now, refining it is the top priority.’

If he truly mastered the forms, he could also develop variations.

He could accelerate the release of Qi, or condense multiple movements into one. The form he had just used was close to its limit. He couldn’t maintain that level of movement and Qi expenditure indefinitely.

He took a drag of his cigarette and thought.

All of this was the result of just a few days’ work.

Thousand Refinements, Worldly Experience, Reasoned Skill.

It felt similar to when he first learned about chivalry. First, the doubt of whether such a thing truly existed, and second, the fact that he had adopted it anyway.

Everything ultimately boiled down to existential questioning.

And if the meaning of his life was to eliminate bad people, then it didn’t matter how he did it.

He had chosen his path.

“How long are you going to stay down there?” he said, looking down at q134.2e. “What about Redstream? Let’s hear it.”

q134.2e, her face a mixture of shock and bewilderment, rubbed her neck and stood up abruptly.

A fixer was a fixer.

“Come in… inside…” she said, her professionalism unwavering.

After hastily hiding the body, q134.2e led Lee Do inside. She rubbed her sore neck again before speaking.

“First, I want to thank you.”

“Say that while handing over some cash.”

“You have a way of ruining the mood, don’t you? You want to get straight to the point?”

q134.2e paused.

“It’s Redstream. The organization that was crushed three years ago. The NIM we delivered for the request seems to be connected to them.”

“Weren’t they all dead?”

“Yes. Even I didn’t know this. The gang involved with the union might be connected to Redstream.”

q134.2e looked at the law firm’s ID chips the Redstream hound had given her.

“They seem to be planning a grand comeback. In the very district they used to rule.”

A decimated organization regaining power in the shadows, unnoticed by the government, was like manipulating stock prices just before bankruptcy. It was a common occurrence. But whether it would succeed was another matter.

Redstream was still active. At least, they had regained enough power to kill a lone fixer.

“So, they might come back to kill you,” Lee Do said, exhaling smoke. q134.2e nodded grimly.

“Probably. That’s why… I’m sorry to say this, but I might have to leave this sector.”

“Why are you apologizing to me?”

“It’s just… you know…”

“Forget it, just register me on that server or whatever. And make me an ID.”

“Didn’t you hear me? I can’t afford to broker here anymore. I might get caught in the crossfire if things go south.”

Lee Do narrowed his eyes and looked at her.

Operating as a solo was illegal, but being a fixer wasn’t. They were in a gray area, between legal and illegal. Because of their nature, fixers prioritized their own safety above all else, even though they were involved in the underworld.

The recent incident must have been quite a shock to her.

It was strange how calm she was being. It was proof that she wasn’t just some random person from Sector 11-A.

“Then just don’t leave,” Lee Do said.

“…If you were as strong as you are, I could, but fixers are different.”

“Who made that rule?”

“It’s not about rules.”

“Why?”

“…I just… can’t get involved with those kinds of people. I’m sorry.”

An apology at the end.

Lee Do’s cigarette burned silently.

The dim light of the old lamps barely illuminated the space. q134.2e’s secondhand shop. He had met her about three months ago, selling IDs. A strange first encounter.

After a moment of silence, Lee Do tapped the ash off his cigarette and said,

“Apologize while giving me cash. Let’s do this. Just kill those Redstream, or Redstreetshow, or whatever they are. I’ll take care of them.”

“…What..?”

“At least you never called someone a ‘son of a b*tch.’ And I hear competent fixers are essential for Solos, right?”

q134.2e remembered the numerous messages they’d exchanged.

Absurdly, when she first offered him a job, he’d countered by asking if the job was “clean.”

Unable to provide proper proof, q134.2e had added the phrase “son of a b*tch.”

It was a pledge on her mother’s life.

And that had been a surprisingly reassuring sign of trust. Because her requests had always targeted bad guys.

“And I don’t know anything about the dark web. You can just register me on the server and filter the requests for me.”

Cyberpunk was a cyber-dominated world. Even the server she mentioned operated on the dark web. He had spent a year on the streets, and the reason he could afford a motel room was thanks to information.

And fixers were the ones who handled information.

If a fixer provided opportunities for insignificant solos to earn money, then a fixer could also provide opportunities for a swordsman to catch bad guys.

Lee Do had finally chosen his path.

‘There’s no need to let go of a cash cow.’

This was all just part of his 21st playthrough.

q134.2e, who had been watching him quietly, wore an ambiguous expression, neither smiling nor crying. Her lips trembled slightly as she asked,

“…Are you serious?”

“Would I joke about someone’s life?”

“That hound you killed wasn’t alone. You don’t know what kind of people they have.”

“Then I’ll die.”

“…Are you kidding? This isn’t something to joke about.”

“Isn’t this beneficial for you too? Why are you so talkative when you’d sell your soul for money? If I take down Redstream, your reputation will go up too, right?”

She fell silent.

He was right, after all.

Lee Do took a final drag of his cigarette, exhaled, and flicked the butt onto the table.

“Contact me by tomorrow. If I don’t hear from you, I’ll assume you’ve skipped town.”

With a parting “good luck,” he left the secondhand shop.

Unlike the small, blood-splattered battleground he had just left, a dazzling sun welcomed him to a quiet afternoon.

And the skyscrapers. The endless corporate buildings, the alleyways and main streets teeming with who-knows-what. All glowing brightly despite the blazing sun.

Lee Do walked past countless unlit streetlights.

Passersby glanced at his bloodstained clothes, but he didn’t care.

He stored the money bag at the motel and headed to the library. He had long since read all the books he could find at the motel.

‘A fixer is a fixer, and a form is a form. I need other manuals.’

If he had a proper ID or internet access, things would be much easier. National libraries or corporate libraries required payment and proper identification.

But he was a Cyber Revenant.

He could only visit shabby bookstores like the stall he’d visited a few days ago.

That didn’t mean he found nothing.

Similar to Earth’s history, yet lacking certain major events, ancient Eastern martial arts were more prevalent than he had thought.

They were martial arts he had never heard of, which was why he could find them in these run-down shops.

Lee Do entered the motel, lit a cigarette, and opened a book.

-Learning martial arts is not about becoming strong. Do not try to divide the river, but ride its flow. Mastering the body is mastering the mind; swinging your fist is like wielding a mirror reflecting yourself.

-Do not seek to fight. Fighting is but a fleeting shadow. The mind is gentle, and the will is unwavering. Gather strength but do not reveal it; defeat your enemy but do not hate them. That is the first stance of combat.

Mostly similar introductions.

Mindset, mental discipline. Very Eastern philosophies. Unfortunately, he wasn’t in a position, or a place, to concern himself with such things.

He cultivated his Qi and then practiced the stances.

Half a day passed in a flash, and the darkened city reflected in the window beyond the curtains. A blue glow gradually illuminated the window.

The nights in cyberpunk were brighter than the mornings. No matter how much natural light there was, the artificial lights filled every gap.

Of course, the cigarette in his mouth was one of them.

So was the burner phone that rang at that moment.

He wiped his sweat with a damp towel and opened the phone.

-[q134.2e]
A fixer’s exclusive solo, not a solo’s exclusive fixer… how absurd.                      I’ve cut ties with all the other solos.It would be an exaggeration to say I agreed because you saved my life.
Anyway, I’ve prepared the semi-permanent ID, so come to my shop when you have time. Let’s at least introduce ourselves properly.

It wasn’t spam. More than that…

‘Why did she cut ties with the other solos?’

He didn’t know.

In any case, Lee Do prepared to go out.