The Giant Corporations that Started in Night City

Chapter 74: A New Member Joins the Mann Team! Android 2B!

While waiting for their drinks, Jackie casually pulled out a small black "soft jelly" snack and began eating it with great relish.

Seeing this, V couldn't help but ask, "Hey, Jackie, what are you chewing on? It looks like a lump of smelly black mud."

"Mmm... This is a new snack from LA Corp. Pretty cheap and tasty. It's called Cockroach Protein Bar. Way better than those overpriced and awful biotech snacks."

As he spoke, Jackie Wells took out another protein bar and offered it to V. "Hey, Bro, want one? It's not bad."

"Uh... I'll pass. Feels kinda weird," V replied, shaking his head, unable to muster the courage to try it.

"Come on, cockroaches are organic, right? Those goddamn corporations even make plastic food loaded with flavor enhancers. Whatever you eat comes out looking the same."

"And they charge us euros for that junk? Even dog crap is more nutritious!"

Jackie ranted about biotech snacks as he chewed his protein bar. "I'm telling you, Biotech can't even hold a candle to LA Corp!"

V shrugged, signaling agreement.

Although he was from a nomad clan, he didn't have much love for corporations either, given that most of the nomads' land, water wells, and resources were seized by these companies.

LA Corp, though, was said to be better—but V wasn't concerned with such truths. Right now, he just wanted to finish this lucrative deal.

"Keep an eye on Little Flathead. If we lose it, we can't afford to replace it," V reminded Jackie, glancing at the briefcase by his feet. It contained the electronic bot they had bought from the Maelstrom gang.

"Don't worry, it won't get lost," Jackie grumbled.

Little Flathead was an MTOD12 model bot equipped with dynamic thermo-optic camouflage armor, an immersive Raven controller cognition system, and a titanium fiber prototype drive.

Originally, LA Corp had sold it to Militech, but during transport, it was hijacked by Maelstrom gang members.

A disabled Maelstrom member named Dum Dum, surprisingly reasonable, gave V a 20% discount when selling it to them.

"Here are your drinks!" Claire said as she placed two tequila shots in front of V and Jackie.

When V took his first sip of the burning liquor that scorched his throat and stomach, he barely managed to suppress a coughing fit and asked Claire, "That's strong! What's the story behind this drink?"

"V, have you never heard of Johnny Silverhand? He's a legendary figure in Night City," Jackie said in surprise.

"I've heard bits and pieces, but I'm not too clear on it."

Although V occasionally listened to rock music, he wasn't interested in celebrity figures. To him, Johnny Silverhand was just some rebellious old punk.

"Looks like I'll need to teach you some Night City trivia. But enough for today—oh wait, almost forgot something important!"

Jackie handed Claire a recipe for his custom drink: vodka, ice, lime juice, ginger beer, and—most importantly—a touch of love!

"Only legends get their drinks immortalized in Afterlife," Claire quipped with a raised brow, smiling at the two young rookies.

Clearly, she didn't think Jackie qualified for such an honor.

"Me, Jackie Wells, and my buddy V here—we're gonna be legends in Night City soon!" Jackie said confidently, then motioned for V to leave the bar with him. It was time to get to work.

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Little Chinatown, LA Corp Headquarters.

Lucy wasn't too happy lately. A new and unusual member had joined the Mann Team—YoRHa 2B, who was now Li Ang's personal bodyguard.

As Li Ang's first personal bodyguard, Lucy had been promoted to LA Corp's network director while doubling as Li Ang's personal secretary, often handling corporate affairs.

Lucy, trained from childhood by Arasaka as a professional hacker, had an extraordinary mind and unparalleled data processing skills, greatly easing Li Ang's workload.

But when Lucy saw the graceful and stunning 2B, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of insecurity.

"Is this really an android? Looks so realistic. I wonder if it's genuinely realistic or just... 'realistic,'" Pilar teased with a double entendre, making Mann and Morgan Blackhand chuckle—until Lucy's sharp glare silenced them.

"Hey, cut it out. Don't pick on 2B. She may have some human-like emotions, but she's essentially a humanoid weapon," Li Ang sighed. If he hadn't been reluctant to see the Mann Team constantly risking their lives, he wouldn't have brought 2B into the mix.

With LA Corp's expanding influence and operations, Mann Team members rarely had to get their hands dirty anymore. Most grunt work was delegated to mercenaries, and the core team only stepped in for truly difficult cases.

Li Ang primarily intended for 2B to pilot the Ronin Titan, completing high-risk assassination missions. With the perfected Axon Neural Link System, 2B could fully unleash the Titan's potential.

"Man, is LA Corp really this advanced? This thing blows anything from Biotech out of the water!" Pilar marveled, amazed by LA Corp's ability to create such a sophisticated humanoid weapon.

The team's shock at LA Corp's tech was comparable to when they first learned about the existence of the AI Red Queen and White Queen.

In their eyes, LA Corp's current technological prowess made Biotech look like a joke.

"Li Ang, Saburo Arasaka's playboy son, Yorinobu, just messaged you. He said they'll deliver the Relic chip tomorrow," Lucy informed the group.

Li Ang nodded. He had already heard about Yorinobu's arrival in Night City but didn't know when he'd hand over the goods. Now, with a confirmed timeline, he finally felt at ease.

"Where's Alt? We should share this good news with her," Li Ang said with a smile. It was time for Johnny Silverhand to return to the world after so many years.

While LA Corp wasn't yet capable of creating a fully functional body for Johnny, they could craft a server terminal to house his engram data.

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