Chapter 61: Search and Conflict

“System, can someone who’s already dead still become a Compatible Host?”

Roland stared at the body on the floor, long cold, unable to hold back the soul-deep question.

“If it were any other Template, no. And… she isn’t actually dead. She’s become a free-floating AI.”

“Like Bartmoss?”

Roland narrowed his eyes. To be honest, if she were like Bartmoss, he’d still feel a bit wary.

“Similar, but not the same. Her situation is far less fortunate than Bartmoss’. Finding her will require your own effort.”

Roland rubbed his chin. After Bartmoss died, the NetWatch side erected the Blackwall, cutting off rogue AIs—those outside couldn’t get in, and those inside couldn’t get out.

Or rather, getting out wasn’t impossible, but it came with extremely high risk.

And since this female netrunner had turned into an AI inside the local network, she would avoid attracting NetWatch attention at all costs… meaning she definitely wouldn’t dare touch the Blackwall…

“Maybe she’s still somewhere in Night City’s network?”

The thought flashed through Roland’s mind. Either way, someone needed to be sent to track her down.

Hmm… the company’s cybersecurity team, plus Tina. And he could have Lissandra’s AI control Jhin’s body to boost computing power, then dive into the Net to search.

Once he brought her into the company, he’d have another secretary.

...

My name is Kelly Jones. I’m about twenty-one. I’m a netrunner—and an outsider.

Worth mentioning: during a previous job, some netrunner fried my brain. Just when I thought I was done for…

I somehow slipped into the Net. At first I thought it was just a dying hallucination, but by chance I saw the outside world through the eyes of a home-assistant robot.

And that’s when I realized—I had become an AI.

I don’t know how it happened… but honestly? It doesn’t feel bad.

At least no one can control me. I feel like I’m a god in this world, able to see anything I want. Those skilled netrunners who once terrified me are no match for me now.

That lasted until I met people from a corporation. Only then did I learn that strong netrunners could control AIs—an unsettling revelation. Later, I even saw traces of the legendary NetWatch.

So I decided to keep a low profile in Night City. I secretly took over a discarded robot and pretended to live like a normal person.

I just don’t know how long I can keep this up. I can feel NetWatch drawing closer. I’m scared.

I finally got a second chance at life—I don’t want to die. I want to live. I want to keep seeing this world and learning more.

That’s my message to the world. If you’re reading this, it means NetWatch or the corporation has already found me. Wish me luck.

Kelly took a deep breath and embedded her message into a program. If she didn’t activate it for a set amount of time, the program would automatically distribute it.

But the distribution range was intentionally small; she didn’t want it mistaken for malware and deleted. If that happened… then after her death, there would truly be no trace of her left in this world.

...

After storing Kelly’s body, Roland ordered an investigation into her identity. Preserving the body wasn’t due to any strange fetish—he simply needed a physical vessel for applying Templates later.

Without it, he’d be scrambling. Besides, keeping her body intact should score him some goodwill… probably.

While Roland was handling things at the Junkyard workshop, over at Luvena Tech, Brown was staring grimly at the latest intel reports.

He drew a long breath, eyes blazing as he glared at the people before him.

“Good. Since we’ve confirmed PROJECT Corporation is behind this, do I even need to say more?”

His subordinates exchanged helpless looks, then shook their heads. Seeing this, Brown let out a small breath of relief—he had worried his people were reaching their limit, which would have spelled disaster.

“In that case, start the operation! If PROJECT wants a fight, we’ll fight to the end. If they won’t let me live in peace, they’re not getting a damn thing from us!”

After the meeting ended, several Luvena Tech executives quietly gathered together.

They eyed one another, each trying to guess the others’ thoughts.

“Things aren’t looking good for the company.”

“Yeah. Brown’s been irrational lately. He’s going to drag all of us down.”

“Alright, no need for riddles. Someone’s already contacted you too, right?”

The third man spoke expressionlessly. The other two froze for a beat, then exchanged calm, unreadable looks.

“Arasaka?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s right.”

“Then the conclusion’s obvious. There’s no point staying on a sinking ship. But we need to demonstrate our value to PROJECT Corporation.”

“Bring our armed squads over and join PROJECT. It’s the most straightforward move—keeps our business intact and raises our standing within the project.”

“Good idea. Done. As for Brown… let him drown in his hatred.”

Hum—

The orange glow faded from Roland’s eyes. He rubbed his chin—another useful piece of intel. Arasaka had beaten PROJECT to the punch, poaching their people first and planting them as spies.

If Roland hadn’t been cautious, Lissandra would’ve discovered them.

He quietly added to his notebook, marking the names of the three Luvena executives. That way he’d know exactly which workhorses could be pushed to the extreme.

“Hmm… looks like Brown doesn’t want to play by the rules anymore. He wants to flip the table…”

With that thought, Roland immediately called Vilet.

“Vilet, I need you to take a squad of Night Owl robots and security bots on AV patrol. If any of our people come under attack, you must reach them as fast as possible.”

“Understood. On my way.”

Roland nodded. He wasn’t too worried about Vilet—though she hadn’t loaded the Judgment Template yet, he had fully upgraded her gear. Otherwise, relying only on Kiwi for field operations would be a problem.