Cyberpunk - Badland Madman [Cyberpunk 2077] Chapter 58 - Filthy Rich, AZRAEL, The Feast & A Firm Decisio

Cypher sat straight and looked at the waiter. "Yeah, I'll take a ribeye, dium rare, throw a veggie salad with it. Get porterhouses and veggies for the pretty ladies. Anything else?"

As he looked at T-Bug and Rhino, the won were staring at him with shock on their faces. But before they could refuse, he handed the nu back.

"Lunch's on . Job benefits." He winked at T-Bug. "Go on, tell the guy how you want your steak done. The other party's late as hell anyway."

"Sa as Mr. Blackwell."

"Sa."

Both won repeated. Either nervous or they had no clue how to eat real at. But they seed in a pretty good mood, looking excited.

"Thank you for this, Mr. Blackwell."

"Just relax." He shrugged. If he didn't have Atlas watching his back, he'd have been more strict with her. But really, her netrunning skills weren't needed at the mont, or ever. Her being there as a known netrunner was enough.

He made so small talk. Rhino, it turned out, was an avid boxer and loved to fight. She was thinking about joining the Animals gang to get so more training. He didn't give a damn, but she seed rather 'intelligent' to waste life with the Animals.

He offhandedly suggested that he'd sponsor her if she wanted to go pro. But then the food arrived, and he didn't talk again. Heck, he didn't even wait for them and grabbed the knife and fork and instantly cut himself a piece and…

Ooooooooh! I'm gonna moan! Shit! Feel like tearing my clothes apart and running naked… goddamnit! I wanna eat this every day… mmmmm!

Cypher wasn't ashad of his thoughts. After eating trash all that ti, and finally tasting so real food, he could say with full confidence that the best things in life in this world were sex and real food.

Oh, the veggies are crisp. The chef knows his stuff. Man, I hope I can find a way to make real food soon… I'll poach the cook from here. Yeah, damn straight…

Ah, the juicy at! So soft… mmm… slide in… mmm.

As always, good things don't last long. He never realized when he finished his steak. Finally, he got the chance to look at T-Bug, and she had a real blush on her face, her feet were dancing on the floor under the table, and her eyes were closed as she chewed. She looked cute at that mont.

And Rhino… Well, she was alright.

Before long, he finished his plate. Clearing it to the last speck of grease and vegetable residue. He felt envious, however. Of people who had this every day. He was certain that people like Arasaka royalty never ate the shit people of Night City ate.

Fuck them all!

"Would you like so champagne, sir?"

"Absolutely! For all of us." Cypher didn't give a damn anymore. If there was one big motivation to get rich, then it was to afford all this every day until he could make it all himself.

The plates were removed from the table, and the champagne glasses sat. They returned to chatting, talking about what they just ate. He revealed that it was his first ti, as he wasn't always this rich. That seed to make them even more grateful.

"Ehm… Mr. Blackwell?"

Finally, a man arrived, led by one of the staff mbers.

One look and Cypher knew this one was a crook. Loose cream-colored coat, black shirt, dirty formal shoes. Hints of tattoos visible from the collar, multiple rings on his fingers, and a dirty smile.

"Atlas, strip him."

[He's not a direct mber of the Wraiths. But he works for them, and the Scavs as well. He's a broker of many things. He sells Scav-harvested implants in bulk to infamous hospitals. He also owns properties, many acquired through violence and coercion.]

Cypher nodded and gestured to the man to take a seat. Then he eyed the waiter reserved for his table. "Give him a glass as well."

The man took the champagne and grinned like a baby. "Thank you, Mr. Blackwell. I'm Hector ndez. I used to work at the Night City Landlord's Authority a long ti ago."

Cypher looked at the hand being offered and chose not to take it. He was no longer the friendly Cypher. No, this was the slimy corpo Cypher.

"Are you selling or not?" he asked coldly. "I've been here for over an hour waiting for you. You think I've got nothing better to do with my ti?"

"No, no, Mr. Blackwell. Traffic was a nightmare, and honestly, I had to settle things with the Wraiths. They claim the whole stretch as their turf. A-are you sure you want to buy it? I've got plenty of better warehouses you could take instead, far away from those desert demons—"

"Are you selling or not?" Cypher interrupted. "I'll count to five. If you don't give a straight answer and a price by then, I'm out. I've got a damn company to run."

Elbow on the table, fist closed. Cypher started stretching his fingers one by one, doing a non-verbal count.

"I'm selling! I'm selling. Four hundred thousand, that's the price!"

[Cypher, he has already discussed the price at eighty-thousand with the local Wraith branch. He's trying to make a profit from you.]

Cypher frowned, said nothing, and resud the counting.

"Three… Two hundred… that's the final… No, one hundred is fine as well!"

"I'll pay eighty," Cypher replied. "Take it or leave it. You think I don't know what you're doing. I'm a goddamn CFO, dealing with money is my job. That place is worthless, and I'll have to deal with Wraiths… Four… F—"

"Deal!"

Just before he counted to five, Hector ndez folded.

Only this ti, Cypher smiled and extended a hand. "Pleasure doing business. Did you bring everything?"

"I did, Mr. Blackwell."

Right away, Cypher received all the docunts on his Agent. Atlas then verified them with Night City's Governnt database. Only after getting the approval did he sign the papers and transfer the eddies.

The reason he took the risk of negotiating like that was that the warehouse was absolutely trash. Anyone holding it would want to get rid of it. It was in a part of the Badlands nobody gave a damn about. And Wraiths had marked it.

Finally, Hector ndez drank the rest of his champagne and left hurriedly.

"Sorry, I don't usually handle stuff like that," Cypher looked at T-Bug, clarifying why he behaved that way. "That man's a scum. He's pushing Scav-harvested chro by the truckload. Took those properties by force, now he's flipping them."

Not just T-Bug, even Rhino showed the look of disgust.

Why are you disgusted? You wanna join the Animals.

"Well, that's that. Now we'll deal with a different type of scum, bureaucrats."

[Cypher. Hector ndez sent a text to his Wraith contact. In it, he advised them to harass you and disrupt whatever you start at the milk farm. I intercepted the communication and altered its content. What reached them instead was a stream of insults. He told the Wraith to pound sand and forget about ever seeing money from him.]

"Good job, Atlas. If he tries anything else, just… Well, accidents happen when driving a car."

[They do happen, Cyph.]

Atlas had ethics, but he wasn't built to be blind. He saw the evil behind the mask that Hector ndez carried. There was no regret in erasing soone like that.

"Mr. Blackwell?"

Cypher looked up, and this ti he gave proper respect by getting up. The woman in front of him was old, and so old that no amount of implants could hide it. White skin, shining fake white hair. She was the City Manager for the Glen in the past, in 2045. Recently, she had been appointed again to the sa position by Night Corp.

"That's . Pleasure eting you as well, Ms. Zohara Freeman." Cypher shook hands and looked at the thin, tall man who ca with her. "This is?"

"Doesn't matter. Just a paper pusher from the land authority. City council has already cleared to handle this deal, so rest assured," Zohara declared.

Cypher saw the dynamics between the two. She was trying to suppress the poor guy from speaking.

"This gorgeous friend of mine goes by T-Bug. She's my netrunner, keeps my digital security tight. And this is Rhino. She's my punch security," he said with a smile, dropping into a chair. "C'mon, sit down. Let's talk it out. About ti the legend of Atlantis returned to Night City."

Ugh, that damn smile. A fucking politician.

Cypher saw the green in every little facial reaction she gave. Her clothes were expensive, her chro was the sa. Clearly, being a city manager was profitable. And the best way to deal with her type was overwhelming them.

[Cypher, she's corrupt.]

"No shit. Apples grow on trees."

[No. I an, lethally corrupt. She eliminated her predecessor. That is how she reclaid the position of city manager. The case file vanished from the NCPD database under very convenient circumstances. Everyone knows she did it, but there is no evidence.]

"..."

"Great. Just fucking great. I'm dealing with not just a bitch, but one with rabies."

[She intends to collect a quiet commission from this transaction, as her record suggests. Her ICE is stronger than most. She holds connections with four of the ten city council mbers. Cypher, I'm sending you the evidence of the murder. I suggest blackmailing her and turning her into our pawn. Say nothing. I will connect you to her neural link. From there, you may speak within her mind and display the images."

"Buddy. You sure you ain't going Skynet?"

[She's evil, Cypher.]

"Alright, patch in."

####

Outside Embers,

redith didn't have to go too far since Embers was right around the corner from the Militech Offices building. Still, she couldn't take any risks and sat in the armored surveillance truck as close to the luxury restaurant as possible.

Countless agents walked around, giving live feeds to the dozens of screens in front of her. Her sharp eyes alternated between them all, her fingers toying with the cigarette. She felt desperate for success.

The man she'd been seeking had co so close on his own accord. He was right there, within reach. Yet, she knew using force wasn't the right choice. Not yet, at least.

"Ma'am, it was all fake." A voice ca from the holocall she was connected to. "We were chasing a ghost. Cypher Blackwell seems to have no chro on him, or… whatever he has, it leaves no digital footprint."

redith nearly growled, her cigarette finishing sooner than usual. Her other hand's fingers kept tapping on the console table. She was nervous. She wanted him. But… he was very, very dangerous and insane, if the rumors of him ssing with the Blackwall were real.

Omnissiah was a legend already, and just now he sent so of the best Militech netrunners on a wild goose chase.

To take the risk or not? She had to show results or else she'd be discarded, and that ant death because she knew too much.

"Argh! Dammit, this eye!" She cursed again as she felt her right eye burning.

"Ma'am, he's finishing his eting with the city manager."

redith bit her teeth. She was nervous, and she couldn't rember the last ti she felt like this before. On one side was her boss, the Director, a mad old lunatic obsessed with Cypher Blackwell. And then there was Cypher Blackwell himself, inventor, genius netrunner, but… dangerous.

Damn it all!

"I'm going in!" She sternly announced on the holocall. "Just . Hold the teams on standby."

I'll live to see another day or... die today.

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