Wild Wolf Bar
The deafening rock music almost drowned out all sounds, beneath the dazzling lights were everyone lost in their intoxication.
Jack was, as always, wearing his Death Angel exoskeleton, hot-dancing on stage with a sultry Valentino girl; wearing that suit always made him the coolest kid in the room.
He seed to never know what unhappiness was.
Valerie had already shed her perpetually unchanging corporate dog suit, replacing it with a leather jacket and jeans, her deanor had transford, fully imrsing her in the street scene.
"Water?"
Valerie held a whiskey glass, the amber liquid inside with ice swirling around, much like her fluctuating mood, because standing in front of her was Gloria.
"Why would you think of asking such things, it's your company's secret. Just half a month ago, we were still enemies. Aren't you afraid I'll take this information to Mizuki and trade it for a chance to return to Huang Ban?"
She found it hard to imagine that this bold woman was an ergency worker a few months ago, even in Huang Ban, there weren't many with such decisiveness.
"Miss Valerie."
Gloria looked at the woman in front of her, recalling that Valerie's costic surgery was handled by her own hands.
"You betrayed Albertson, resulting in a Great Mount Pill from Huang Ban getting lost in our hands. These things can't be erased with just a secret or two. Even if Mizuki lets you return to Huang Ban, your life won't be easy."
"Hehe."
Having her thoughts exposed, Valerie could only use drinking to mask her embarrassnt, but she quite liked her current life. On the streets, there weren't as many ssy rules, as long as she didn't break the law, she could do whatever she wanted, though she was a bit strapped for cash. Her company plaza apartnt had also been repossessed by Huang Ban, now she lived in a ga skyscraper.
"I just wanted to understand a bit about the consur habits of company employees, what choices they have when it cos to drinking water."
"Drinking water?"
Valerie smiled helplessly.
"During work hours, who has the mood to drink water? The basic workday is 16 hours, factoring in overti, 20 hours a day is common. We drink the company's issued high-sugar energy drinks, ant to energize and provide nutrient energy to our cyber-enhanced stomachs. In Huang Ban, bathroom breaks are tid by the second, everyone's water absorption is asured down to the ml."
"Is that so....."
Gloria took a sharp breath, she had always heard that the intensity of competition in big companies was severe, but she didn't expect it to be like this. No wonder those corporate dogs always looked exhausted, as if they could drop dead at any mont.
"That seems a bit too exaggerated."
Moreover, if that's the case, wouldn't it be impossible to market water to the corporate class?
"But...."
Valerie's voice suddenly elongated.
"There are always exceptions, though...."
Her three fingers unconsciously rubbed together in Gloria's line of sight, which Gloria found a bit amusing.
"Looks like Miss Valerie has adapted quite quickly."
"Hehe, people still need to eat, no matter how carefree you are, you'll get hungry."
Valerie's cybernetics had all been disabled by Huang Ban, so she had to sell them at low prices on the black market and replace them with second-hand goods, with not much spare cash on hand. Night City's environnt and landscape, thanks to certain individuals, had stabilized a bit, but rcenaries and gangsters found it harder to make money as a result.
The bad news was that the opportunities for illegal profiteering were fewer, with many underground clinics full of gangsters injured by players.
The good news was that Night City now had a large number of new job openings, Horizon Logistics Company was hiring truck drivers and workers en masse, sowhat easing the economic tension.
"Then why don't you co work at our company? With your abilities, I'm sure Lin would give you a suitable position and salary."
"No, thanks."
Valerie shook her head, gulping down her drink.
"I don't want to get involved with corporate stuff for now, maybe when I lose my mind soday I'll reconsider."
Gloria had no choice but to take out a stack of cash and place it in front of Valerie, hoping for a useful suggestion in return.
Valerie casually pocketed the money, then said,
"The grunts at the bottom of the corporate ladder don't have ti to rest or drink water, but they have wives and kids. Many work hard just for that, right? As long as you can ensure a fair price and good quality in the water, they won't hesitate to spend their cash."
"As for the mid-level guys, they have more money, but regular water doesn't catch their eye. They seek taste, style, you know?"
V was once one of them, so was certainly aware of their preferences.
"You know what those folks love to brag about? It's drinking Italian Lavazza coffee or Ethiopian hand-ground... anything to link themselves to Europe to satisfy their empty vanity and aesthetic."
"This...."
People like drinking coffee, but she's selling water.
What should be done?
However, that's as far as Valerie's help could go, because the upper echelons aren't the main consurs of basic necessities like water.
How much can they drink? How much can you sell?
Even if you sold them a bottle of water for 10,000 Orokin, they might only drink two or three bottles a day. How can that compare to selling to millions of people in Night City?
Lin Miao's profit plan targeted those self-proclaid middle class, extracting money from their pockets.
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