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(Extra Chapter)
"Ah… looks like we're working overtime again."
Tina glanced at the message she had just received, a helpless expression crossing her face. She turned toward the colleague behind her.
"Just tell us the mission already, Tina."
A girl blowing a bubble—legs crossed, body draped lazily over her chair—tilted her head backward to look at Tina.
"Yeah. The boss wants us to trace the data source and destination of a Cyberware unit. They're sending it over in a bit. Pretty sure we'll have to deep dive to get it done."
"Got it. I'll go prep."
She stood up and headed toward the hacking rig on the other side of the room.
Meanwhile, Kiwi had also received Roland's orders: she and Jhin were to enter Cyberspace together and track down Kelly.
Lissandra had already gathered partial intel on her. Now they just needed confirmation.
Before long, both teams were fully prepared. Their consciousnesses slipped into Cyberspace as they began their deep dive.
...
"Mr. Jhin, long time no see."
Kiwi scanned the digital landscape around them, then looked at herself and at Jhin.
This was her first deep dive since undergoing PROJECT modifications, and things definitely felt different. Her avatar still looked exactly the same—no changes at all.
"It's been a while, yes. But no need for small talk. We should locate our target quickly. According to intel, the last data fluctuation was detected in the Watson District."
As Jhin spoke, waves of data surged around them. Passing through towering buildings formed entirely of code, Jhin and Kiwi arrived at the Watson District's data block.
Network defenses and modules were scattered all around, but the two ignored them—none of it could harm them anyway.
"Looks like we're in the right place."
Jhin's gaze locked on an area wrapped in a tightly concealed data shield. With a light flick of his finger, all surrounding interference vanished, leaving only the shielded zone exposed.
But before he could act further, the shield suddenly opened a slit—and a torrent of data storms came crashing down toward Jhin and Kiwi.
Both reacted immediately, activating their own protective barriers. Violet and crimson data shields flared to life, blocking the incoming attack, though not without taking visible damage.
Not hesitating for even a second, Jhin spread his hands. Instantly, countless mechanical constructs made of pure data materialized and charged the shield.
Kiwi didn't stand back either. The puppet techniques she had mastered transformed into cybernetic warriors in Cyberspace, launching attacks alongside PROJECT Purification's anti-hacking countermeasures.
A massive purple mech formed behind her, raising a data-formed energy cannon.
Jhin, too, hefted a colossal weapon wrought entirely from data streams.
Seeing this display, the presence beneath the shield panicked.
"W-who are you?!"
Hearing the electronic female voice, Jhin and Kiwi exchanged a glance, then nodded—they'd found their target.
"Miss Kelly, right? I believe I have your name correct."
Kiwi stepped forward, speaking cautiously.
"How do you know my name?"
Kelly responded after a brief pause.
"We found your body."
"My… body? So… I really am dead…"
Disappointment colored Kelly's voice. Clearly, she had still been clinging to a bit of hope—maybe her body had only lost consciousness, maybe she could still return to it someday.
"In a sense, Miss Kelly, you've… evolved."
Jhin couldn't help commenting. Well, what else could you expect from one of Lissandra's sub-intelligences?
"And you two? Who exactly are you? I've never seen netrunners this strong before. Don't tell me—you're those AIs?!"
"If we were AIs, we wouldn't be talking. We'd have already erased you, Miss Kelly, and absorbed your data to upgrade ourselves."
Kiwi gave a helpless look. This netrunner-turned-AI was… not the most rational of beings.
"I… I see. So you're here to help me?"
Kelly's eyes lit with hope.
"To be precise—we're here to recruit you."
Kiwi finally laid out their purpose.
"Recruit me?"
Kelly blinked in confusion. Kiwi proceeded to explain, and soon, Kelly understood everything.
"I get it now… Alright. I agree. I can join your corporation. But… can I really return to human society? And what about those AIs…"
"Please trust in our corporation's capabilities, Miss Kelly."
Kiwi answered confidently, her mood clearly lifted.
After a hesitant pause, Kelly disabled her shield.
The moment it vanished, a black-red beam of data fired straight at her, carrying a terrifying destructive charge.
Kiwi reacted at once—but she had no way to counter that attack. Her netrunning skills were still limited; most of her strength came from Purification's reactive countermeasures, and they only triggered when she herself was under threat.
Jhin's eyes sharpened. With a sweeping motion, a crimson data barrier materialized in front of Kelly, while several counterattacks shot toward the source of the beam.
Four arcs of red light—like falling meteors—cut across Cyberspace's dark sky toward a figure high above.
Boom!
A twisted black-and-red silhouette flickered into view—a rogue AI.
But it didn't linger. It vanished immediately, clearly unwilling to reveal anything more.
Meanwhile, the three netrunners and one AI who had just fought it off were completely unaware of what they had triggered.
Across multiple factories and corporations in the actual Watson District, a severe cyber-virus attack had erupted. Several machines went berserk, causing substantial casualties.
And since Watson was a major economic zone… the financial damage was far from small.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser