Chapter 21 : First Mission – 2

“Wow…”

Admiring the car parked outside the bar.
This is cyberpunk!
The futuristic design truly stood out.

Cars are rare in Rat Town.
Roads aren’t paved well, and parking anywhere risks thieves messing with it.

Thus, people hide cars in private garages, only using them for trips outside.

“Don’t stand there—get in!”

Karen, sitting in the backseat, patted the seat beside her, signaling me to join.
Lycan was in the driver’s seat, Spade in the passenger’s.

Sitting next to her, Lycan grinned, gripping the wheel.

“Alright.
Let’s roll!”

Vroom!!

The car surged forward with a roaring engine.
Overwhelmed by the insane speed, I clutched the handle, voice trembling.

“You always drive like this…?”

“Thrilling, huh?
Drives gotta be wild!”

Wild?
This is terrifying!
Is this how he relieves stress from bartending?

Seeing me freak, Karen chuckled.

“Get used to it.
Lycan’s rides are always like this.
Weird that a Stoner’s scared by this speed, though.”

“I’m still a rookie!”

“Oh, proud of being a newbie?
Not even ashamed?”

Annoyed but unable to retort, I grumbled inwardly.
Then, Spade suddenly dropped a cryptic line.

“You should focus from now on.”

“Huh?”

“It’s a pretty sight the first time.”

“Oh, right—you said you’ve never left Rat Town, didn’t you?
Makes sense.”

True.
I’d never left this slum.
Only a month since transmigrating, no reason to venture out.

Soon, a massive structure loomed like a fortress.

That building?
A company.
Neotopia’s largest single structure.
The barrier dividing Rat Town from the outside, blocking light from reaching us.

Ombre, ranked third in the corporate hierarchy.
One word to describe it?
Despicable.

Ombre grew through finance, infamous for ruthless loan-sharking, making people shudder at its name.

Worse, it’s the culprit behind Rat Town, the city’s pus.
Its public favor?
Rock bottom.
Many see it as a sworn enemy—need I say more?

In the original novel, it often clashed with the protagonist, Ellen, as a vile corporation.

As you’d guess, Rat Town natives despise it.

The biggest issue?
Every trip out of Rat Town forces you to face this monstrosity.
If it was just seeing it, fine—but you must pass through the tunnel in its center.

No other route.
Unless you exit the city entirely, moving within Neotopia requires this tunnel.

Some bitterly joke:
To leave, you crawl under your enemy’s crotch.

“The tunnel’s long.”

I felt how massive the building was.
Practically a mountain.

“You ain’t seen nothing yet.”

What’s with them?
Even recalling the novel, no clue came up.

Lost in thought, the exit’s light ahead neared.

Finally leaving Rat Town for the first time.
Gazing out the window, moments later—

I understood why they’d hyped it up.
The scenery waiting outside was breathtakingly beautiful.

Like swapping filters, the gray world I’d known transformed into vibrant pastels.

Skyscrapers soaring high.
Dazzling colors hurting the eyes.
Countless cars racing on roads.
Airships and air cars flying in the sky.

Mesmerized by holographic billboards, I stared slack-jawed.

“Our disciple’s screaming country bumpkin.”

“Haha, when else would she get to gawk?”

Their chatter didn’t register.
I just strained my eyes, etching this moment vividly into memory.

Different from the night view at the sky station with Ruby days ago.
Not watching from afar, but immersed within—vibrant, thrilling.

“Should we give her a city tour or what?”

“Later.
After the mission, we can take our time.”

Snapping back, I boldly demanded of Lycan.

“Bring Ruby too.
I don’t wanna enjoy this alone.”

“Man, you’re something.
Even now, thinking of your sister?
She’s playing with Mary, probably forgot you exist.”

“Huh…?”

Unexpected words sparked a wild fantasy.

Mary and Ruby, alone in the closed bar, giggling happily.
Growing closer while I’m gone, becoming like sisters, until Ruby says she prefers Mary over me…

“No! Ruby!
I’m sorry!!
Please don’t abandon me… Waaah!”

“…Karen, calm her down.”

“Uh, didn’t expect such an overreaction.”

Only after a while did I calm down.
Karen looked exhausted for some reason, but probably no big deal.

Leaving the city center, we entered a quieter outskirts area.
Compared to Rat Town, still bustling and safer.

“We’re almost there.
Get ready.”

Baeksan’s research lab, our target, appeared in the distance.

Right now, Baeksan’s headquarters must be chaotic from Wave’s hackers’ attack.
We’d sneak in, steal the data, and slip out.
Lycan said it’s not a tough job, so we should succeed smoothly.

Parking at the planned spot, we moved to the entry route.

“Spade, can you hack the data without entering the lab?”

“Tough.
The database’s firewall is tight, blocking all external signals.”

“So we gotta go in.”

“Didn’t expect it to be easy anyway, right?
Let’s bust in and wreck shit.”

At Karen’s aggressive attitude, Lycan eyed the lab.

“Remember yesterday’s plan?
First, neutralize the alert androids.”

Alert Androids.

As the name implies, androids built to detect intruders.
Unlike combat androids, they specialize in identifying enemies and calling for backup.

Left unchecked, they’d trigger an emergency protocol, transmitting our faces and details to headquarters.
Their advanced firewalls are unhackable, so physical destruction is the best option.

“Spade’ll infiltrate and extract the data.
Karen and I handle the combat androids.
Brat, you take out the alert android.
It’s stationary, no combat ability—should be easy.”

Same as yesterday’s briefing.
I’d memorized the alert android’s location perfectly—no problem.

Each holding a gun, we stood before the back door to the warehouse.
Spade’s eyes glowed blue, hacking the security.
Soon, the warehouse opened, allowing our intrusion.

Karen, the Ace, grinned and led the way.

“You remember the time limit, right?”

“Yup.”

Alert androids need time to activate their emergency protocol.
Roughly three minutes.
Not generous, but with the location mapped, plenty enough.

“Combat androids.”

As Lycan briefed, three androids appeared ahead.
Karen and Lycan blocked our front, engaging in combat.

Bang! Bang!!

Amid the hail of bullets, Karen shouted.

“Idiot!
Don’t freeze—move!!”

Snapping out of it, I ran to the alert android’s location.

‘Here?’

Wave’s hacker data was spot-on.
In a small room, an unprotected android faced away.
I aimed my gun.

Then, sensing me, the android slowly turned.

My heart sank.
Its black hair, twin braids—it reminded me of someone.

“…Ruby?”