I checked my limbs’ joints while sitting in the chair.
Drake, who was on the hologram screen, opened his mouth upon seeing me.
[How’s it going? You seem fine?]
“Yeah.”
No noise, and the strange feeling is minimal.
In other words, the cyberware implant was firmly in place.
As expected of Drake’s skills, I was worried about issues arising, but every implant procedure can have aftereffects, so it’s important to check the progress.
That’s also why Drake called.
[Just make sure to take the prescribed meds.]
“Am I a kid?”
I replied to Drake by shaking the cola glass I was holding.
He was talking about medications with ingredients like immunosuppressants or nerve blockers.
It seems the effects were minimal since they weren’t addictive.
Drake had handed me a bunch of pills and ampoules.
Having the ‘Weakness to Drugs’ attribute, I had to be cautious about anything that goes into my mouth.
It was unavoidable.
I leaned in close to the hologram screen and said to Drake, who was watching my face (awkwardly),
“If it wasn’t for you, I would have grabbed you by the collar.”
[Either way, the cyberware you were using was outdated, so it was about time to replace it. Plus, since there was already installed cyberware, it wouldn’t take long for the surgery. Just think of it as buying a few outfits.]
“…Outfits, my foot.”
Seriously.
Describing altering part of your body as buying clothes is the thinking of a cyberpunk barbarian…
I let out a light sigh.
When I went to Drake for an ‘implant scaling,’ a check-up for the cyberware, I failed the courageous decision (to run away).
Thanks to that, I had no choice but to undergo an unexpected ‘latest cyberware procedure.’
I had a larger physical burden compared to others due to several negative physical attributes.
So I minimally got implants in useful areas like joints or the spine that help daily life.
If it hadn’t been for the existing cyberware joint implant that Drake mentioned, and if the surgery had taken longer, I would have genuinely grabbed his collar.
Honestly, installing cyberware against one’s will seems like something the ‘extreme transhumanist’ group would do.
Just look at Maya’s case.
It doesn’t need long explanations to understand how much pain and emotional wounds Maya endured because of it.
At least Drake was considering me, so I let it pass.
In reality, it’s an illegal act worthy of reporting to the NCPD.
I lay back in my chair and asked,
“So what exactly improved?”
[Nothing major.]
Oh really.
[It’s lighter, stronger, self-repairing if broken, and the sensitivity to bioware is much better. Oh, but you have no intention of getting bioware treatments anyway. So let’s skip that, and also—.]
My ears are ringing.
I summarized Drake’s words.
“So everything is just better?”
[In a nutshell, yes.]
Drake snapped his fingers in response to me.
It’s been ages since I quit being a mercenary.
I shook my head, letting out a sigh again.
“…sigh.”
Having a worrywart friend brings these problems.
30. Transhumanism (1)
Companies waging war physically.
Hawaii turned into a radioactive ocean due to war fallout.
A disregard for human life due to the advent of artificial wombs.
And so on and so forth.
If I had to point out the strange aspects of falling into the cyberpunk game world, I could endlessly list them.
But if I had to pinpoint the weirdest thing, it would be the rise of transhumanism due to implants, or the idea of transhumanism itself.
Orcs firing machine guns, elves riding bikes, and dwarves wearing tactical exosuits—a world where ‘human’ refers to all races.
By the way, considering the frequent appearances of terrorists identified as ‘extreme transhumanists,’ i.e., a transhumanism group on NCB24, the main media here in Neon City, it becomes easier to understand.
People in this world had a strong tendency to view their bodies as ‘disposables.’
Honestly, inside my heart, there was always a Confucian intellectual yelling ‘Leave!’ while wearing a scholar’s hat.
‘…Leave!! How can one replace a part of the body gifted by parents with a machine!’
They said that the body is a gift from parents, right?
I somewhat agree with that sentiment.
However, it’s questionable whether there are parents for this body in the first place.
Moreover, to survive in the harsh cyberpunk world with such frail bodily characteristics,
cyberware was not an option for me but a necessity.
Personally, I had looked into getting bioware treatments for a long time.
But unless I transformed my entire body into a mechanical one like the Chairman, it was impossible for me with numerous negative attributes like ‘weakness,’ ‘frailty,’ and ‘slow recovery.’
I didn’t want to spend months being bedridden after a single surgery.
In any case, I had adapted to the world’s trends irrespective of my own will.
There was simply no choice.
“…Hmm.”
Sure enough, my body felt lighter.
It seems like new products are indeed better everywhere.
I felt that sensation as soon as I got up.
Honestly, it was something I should have noticed immediately after the surgery.
But since a wizard physically grabbed my ankle and a troublesome incident occurred at the arcade with Julia, I didn’t have the leisure to worry about such trivial matters.
My body felt light.
I checked the current time through my visual interface. It was too early for dinner and too late for lunch.
Which means…
It was a perfect time to roll around in bed.
(Former) Mercenary, (Current) Home Security’s perk.
You can do what you want at the time you want.
I flopped onto the bed in that state.
By the way, why so many notifications?
I lightly operated the visual interface.
There were numerous notifications for missed calls and unread messages.
“……”
What on earth?
I checked the contents of the messages first.
The very first message went like this.
From: ‘Merlin, the Great Wizard’
– It’s Merlin you saw earlier, nice to meet you.
– By the way, when do you plan to start learning magic?
– Not that I’m rushing you or anything.
– You, being the unique wizard, must be very busy.
– But please get back to me once you check your messages.
The second message.
From: ‘Merlin, the Great Wizard’
– It shouldn’t be a different number…
– Why aren’t you checking your messages?
– Please do reply.
The next messages all had a similar tone.
From: ‘Merlin, the Great Wizard’
– If it’s hard to talk via messages, a call is fine too.
– Or you can just give me your game ID.
– You can truly become a real wizard.
– Just be sure to reply.
From: ‘Merlin, the Great Wizard’
– What a fool you are.
– Typed it by mistake.
– If you’re mad, please reply.
From: ‘Merlin, the Great Wizard’
– Is there some reason you can’t message back?
– If so, please send me a carrot emoji.
– Or just call me, alright?
Whoa, this guy’s got some serious attachment issues.
I kinda imagined this would happen, but it was way worse than I expected.
Reading all that was tiring.
So I checked only the very last message.
Oh?
There was a message from the Chairman too.
I observed both messages.
From: ‘Merlin, the Great Wizard’
– I’m coming to meet you.
From: ‘Monolith, Taylor Blackstar’
– The security team caught a suspicious raising hand.
– They detained him, claiming to know you. The name’s Merlin.
– He looks like a shabby old man.
– (⩌⩊⩌) ≡ (⩌⩊⩌) You know him?
…….
Hmm.
I briefly pondered and replied to the Chairman’s message.
To: ‘Monolith, Taylor Blackstar’
– I don’t know him.
– But since he seems pitiful, please don’t hurt him.
As soon as I sent that message, I quickly received a reply from the Chairman.
From: ‘Monolith, Taylor Blackstar’
– (๑’ᵕ’๑)⸝* Understood.
You could feel the wisdom in that emoticon.
Anyway, I shut down the visual interface.
Suddenly feeling tired.
Seeing Merlin’s messages made me super tired.
Maybe I’ll take a quick nap.
A big yawn escaped my lips.
“……Hmm.”
Let’s just take a short nap and think it over.
I felt my eyes slowly closing as I gradually sank into the swamp of slumber.
*
I opened my eyes.
To be exact, I regained my senses.
Because I felt a sudden presence around me. I concentrated on the sounds around me while keeping my eyes closed.
I had developed a habit of sleeping cautiously in the landfill.
Even so, I hadn’t woken up like this recently; I carefully speculated it was some ‘ominous’ reason.
Fortunately, it wasn’t that a new presence emerged.
That meant it wasn’t an attack but rather the approach of housemates.
What the heck is going on?
I observed the surroundings without showing my face.
“…Is he sleeping?”
“Should be; it’s been an hour already.”
“…Sigh, is it really okay?”
“Then you go ahead.”
“That’s not it.”
It was Catherine and Andrea’s voices.
And their conversation content wasn’t normal.
Catherine, speaking in a worried tone, said,
“…Is it really fine?”
“I previously rubbed my face against his chest once, and he didn’t wake up then.”
“…Crazy girl.”
“Look who’s talking.”
Did she really rub her face against my chest?
It was Andrea’s voice.
……
So it seems that the fragrance I felt while living as a daily manager was not just in my head.
Should I keep pretending to sleep?
Or should I wake up naturally as if I didn’t notice?
My internal dilemma was very short-lived.
“Did you see the photo Julia took? And Eve said there’s been ‘membrane contact.’”
“…Right.”
“So what should we do to get ahead?”
A brief silence followed, then Catherine’s voice continued.
“…Membrane friction?”
What’s with that, Catherine?
I immediately lifted my head and got up from my sleep.
*
Maya, with a baffled expression, said,
“…So you ran away?”
“Yup.”
I replied to Maya.
Maya clicked her tongue and continued,
“…Tch, I thought you came to get me because I was holding you up.”
“Of course, that’s part of it.”
“……”
That’s true.
I thought while watching Maya prepare to clean up the fusion-Japanese restaurant.
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