I Became a Cyberpunk Tycoon

Playing with Fire (7)

Suhwa stared nonchalantly at the unconscious mercenary.

He was clearly experienced. Cautious.

Even for that mercenary, the number of times he could use the body acceleration device would be at most three times, or more realistically, just twice.

But he didn't let his guard down and activated his ability as soon as he entered. Even knowing that Suhwa wasn't the final target, he gave it his all boldly and unhesitatingly.

'...I have to acknowledge it.'

The world Han Sanwoo showed her was much broader than what she had felt, and there were meaningful things in it.

Even the mercenary who just collapsed had reactions much faster than she thought.

Although she couldn't verify other elements like personality or talent, this person was too talented to be wasting away as a mercenary in a trash place like this, at least in terms of combat judgment.

But that's all.

"Muh.uh.uh.wuh.uh.uh.yah.ah.ah.ah."

The infinitely slow screams of the mercenaries pierced Suhwa's ears.

She walked forward with a smile. There was no time to waste.

Two steps. At a speed that was too fast even by her time standards, Suhwa leaped into where they were hiding.

The mercenaries screamed. Even that wasn't a scream from recognizing her surprise attack.

Having just realized the defeat of the mercenary captain who had fallen, they could only reflexively express that 'they couldn't understand this situation.'

While appreciating their expressions full of bewilderment, Suhwa pulled the trigger.

It's natural for them to be so surprised. The body acceleration device, while effective for attacks, was even more effective for defense.

In modern combat, defensive capability cannot keep up with offensive power. Only in medieval battlefields could an armored knight block a sword.

Even blocking bullets isn't easy. It took considerable money to implant alloy-reinforced skin, and without money, one had to endure that much inconvenience in daily life.

The unpleasant and alien sensation of having alloy plates layered under the skin often drew complaints from many people.

Even that becomes impossible when it comes to laser weapons, coil rifles, or plasma weapons.

In the end, it remained unchanged that the most efficient combat was to shoot first without getting hit.

But when the body acceleration device is activated, you can see bullets with your eyes. Not just bullets, but even the movement of the trigger and fingers firing the bullets can be perceived visually.

Unless creating a massive explosion or an enormous field of fire, you couldn't kill someone with an activated body acceleration device instantly using conventional methods.

Unless you killed them before they activated the body acceleration device, or waited for their body to break down on its own over a long time, the mercenary captain shouldn't have fallen.

But he died.

'...How ridiculous.'

Suhwa fired her accurately aimed pistol at each mercenary one by one while sneering.

The trick was simple. Simply, it was a difference in specs.

She had inherited Hansan's blood and possessed the body most suitable for combat.

Born with a great bloodline that many people could only look up to rather than envy, she received treatments that would be considered astronomical amounts to ordinary people.

She was equipped with the best implants that would seem like fantasy beings even to the most famous mercenaries, and was trained through the most skilled and experienced mentors and curricula.

This is Hansan. Of course, Stella City was too large to be just one city, and if it wasn't in America, it was large enough to declare independence as a free state rather than just a free city.

The quality of armed organizations like mercenaries and gangs was also good. It was a fierce battlefield where numerous applicants came in, rewards for successful crimes were substantial, and even prominent people could become obsolete in an instant.

But even so, it's not enough to fight against the world. Not enough to fight against Hansan.

Suhwa was created to escort, assist, and utilize Han Sanwoo, who was both Hansan's tool and painful finger.

Every single finger had implants and genetic manipulation. She was different from mercenaries who were lucky enough to pick up and use body enhancement devices that leaked from corporations.

"Heh."

Her bullets spewed fire.

Suhwa had foreseen her victory. Perhaps even to the point where it could be called careless.

But such mindset couldn't interfere with her victory.

From the moment she heard the mercenary captain's first footsteps, she had kept her body acceleration device activated.

It's a terrible level of waste. Not a few people complain of motion sickness, muscle spasms, auditory hallucinations, and visual hallucinations within seconds of turning on the body acceleration device.

Even such people could make meaningful contributions on the battlefield once they used the body acceleration device.

If they could move for just a few seconds while utilizing the body acceleration device, it wasn't difficult to kill several defenseless enemies.

However, she had no reason to be swayed by such limitations.

It was a top-grade implant made by Hansan. The finest device made solely for performance by the world's best engineer was in her body.

Activating the body acceleration device for several minutes, or activating it several more times than others, couldn't cause her any harm.

The bullets too were much faster than ordinary ammunition. So fast that even someone wearing a body acceleration device would find it difficult to dodge.

Although they were non-lethal rounds that stopped implants and induced physical paralysis when they hit a person's body, considering the impact force, they were items that couldn't guarantee his survival.

It's different. No matter how strong a mercenary might be, they're just a frog in a well compared to the 'real world.'

A mercenary who barely dodged the bullet through autonomic nerve manipulation surgery groaned. Suhwa subdued the last survivor by firing another bullet at his foot.

Only then did Suhwa share her time with others. With a smile of victory filling her mouth.

"What... happened?"

Doris barely opened her eyes and had a puzzled expression as if she couldn't believe what was happening in front of her.

"Shouldn't you fall asleep right away when sedated? Did you bring the right medicine?"

"Doris has always been... like that."

"Is that so?"

It wasn't a good sign. It meant that the thrashing muscles and nerves weren't sufficiently suppressed, and perhaps she had developed a tolerance to sedatives.

Still, we had passed the most dangerous moment. The details would have to be known after taking her to a doctor, but it seemed that the future of her going berserk had been pushed outside of visible range for now.

"Let's move right away. We need to use this gap."

"Ughhhh..."

With that level of mercenary unit, we could push away mediocre mercenary units in the vicinity by saying they would be a hindrance.

In other words, now was our chance while they were gone. They probably hadn't clearly grasped our position yet, and the fact that those mercenaries were defeated wouldn't spread easily in this chaotic situation.

"Get on my back."

"You, how can I trust... I can walk on my own feet!"

Doris, perhaps still not letting go of her wariness, struggled to push away my hand.

"Ra- No, if your friend carries you and both of you get spread out, that would be really dangerous. I'm still fresh, you know."

Carrying someone and running around on the battlefield was an extremely dangerous thing.

While I wasn't just weak myself, I was also in a position where I couldn't easily reveal my power.

Having Ravina and the secretary cover us while I carried her and ran was the wisest choice.

"Let's do as that person says. We have no choice."

"Kuh..."

She seemed to think it was humiliating to be saved by and carried on the back of someone from Hansan.

As someone who knew her past history, I could understand her feelings. But I couldn't accommodate that right now.

"Escape route. Do you have anywhere in mind?"

"...No. For now, I was only thinking about getting out of here."

I asked thinking Luna might have an idea, but she also shook her head.

"You didn't have any thoughts either? You showed up acting all high and mighty, so I thought you had everything planned..."

"What are you talking about? I just came in as insurance while watching how you guys fight."

"Are you serious?"

"I knew you would win."

The Doris mercenary unit is strong. They wouldn't lose against ordinary pursuers. But these pursuers were excessive no matter how you looked at it.

While the Doris mercenary unit had their own skills, they would have to accept casualties if they fought against the mercenary unit that the secretary just swept through.

If unlucky, it wouldn't be strange if one or two members died.

"I've roughly grasped the situation."

The secretary, who had finished up somehow, slowly approached us.

"It was indeed Hansan's involvement. The person who was making money by taking on consultation or cleanup of this widespread incident cover-up... was an executive of Hansan."

"How did you know that?"

"They requested support to ask for cleanup after the violent conflict. There was noise in the process, and we succeeded in rooting out some rats."

I thought she was just walking around with me without thinking, but it seems she was doing everything she needed to even during that time.

She's someone who uses a brain implant. Most things that can be done with an ordinary desktop computer, she can do while just sitting or walking around. She can even do them while fighting.

"You really didn't know either?"

"Well, Hansan is so vast. There are all sorts of people."

While it would be unrealistic for it to be a crime cunning enough to hide from Han Sanwoo, considering how much Han Sanwoo knew about the Hansan Group, this much was natural.

If someone who inherited a franchise company with dozens of stores had no knowledge about work and was lazy on top of that.

They could very well be unaware of trivial facts like whether a part-time worker and store manager at a local branch signed an employment contract or not.

"I'm not trying to make excuses, but this is how it turned out. So, Suhua. Escape route?"

"Please give me orders on how much exposure is acceptable."

"Hmm..."

If choosing the easiest and fastest method, it would be to sweep this space using Hansan's combat personnel who could be used anytime, and walk out leisurely.

But there was too much to give up.

I would have to reveal to the Doris mercenary unit that I am Han Sanwoo, and I would have to announce to the Hansan Group internally that I was wandering around outside.

"Let's walk. The destination... well, let's do it legally, legally. Let's receive police protection."

"Are you crazy?"

Doris and Ravina looked at me with wary eyes.

While they were 'good mercenaries' in their own way, they weren't people who could stand proudly in front of the police.

To begin with, even the term good mercenary was a bit contradictory, like 'good school bully.'

"I'll get you out somehow. Well, even if things go wrong and you end up in jail, it's not worse than getting shot and dying, right?"

I confidently showed off while carrying Doris on my back and went down the stairs.

"Stop!"

"Found them! It's the targets!"

Numerous mercenaries were waiting for us to come down.

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