Kikyo lay back in the chair, her feet crossed and resting on the low table, casually rocking the swivel chair back and forth. She waited leisurely for Brother Finger, who was rummaging through patient records behind the desk, as relaxed as if she were at home.
Kidding aside, since the money had been paid, she might as well be as relaxed as if she were at home.
Therefore, Kikyo, with nothing to do while leaning back in the chair, let her eyes wander, examining the room's decor.
Automatically skipping over the menacing batons, Kikyo's gaze swept past piles of cyberware mouths, faces, and even partial cyberware, finally settling on the Cyberware Doctor certification hanging on the wall.
"Fien Gustat? Is that your name?"
Looking at the man in the photo—who was a few years younger than Brother Finger but equally sleazy—and the name beside it, Kikyo spoke unconsciously.
"Ah, yes, that's me, the real deal." Brother Finger, who was searching for files on the computer, glanced briefly at where Kikyo was looking and said casually.
His finger intermittently scrolled the mouse, slowly browsing through the long list of patients.
"That fake certificate cost me a lot of money, but it's not useless. It serves as psychological comfort for the patients."
"Heh."
He's an unlicensed doctor.
"Then your business seems to be bringing in money quickly. I saw quite a line outside the door."
"Bringing in money? Wrong. I barely make any money here."
Brother Finger, sitting at the computer desk, shook his head in strong disagreement.
"My customers aren't those suit-wearing office workers, nor are they Mercenaries like you who make quick cash. They are just young women who are helpless and desperate in this city."
"Many times, they can't afford the medical fees and have to repay me through... well, other means."
"Ha, repay? Are you talking about repayment through sex, or are you talking about tearing out people's good cyberware and replacing it with cheap knockoffs?"
Hearing Brother Finger's shameless words, Judy, who was waiting nearby with her arms crossed, scoffed aloud.
"Hey, don't blame me. It's not like I have a choice. This is better than letting them die on the streets."
"You have to understand, sometimes their condition is so bad that it requires several surgeries to cure completely, but do they have that money? They can only come to me, where I 'rob Peter to pay Paul' just to keep them alive."
"I make up for the lack of equipment with determination. No matter who comes in, no matter how incurable the disease, I do my absolute best to treat you. If you can live for three days, I can stretch that to five. It's like repairing a used car—it's beat up, but it still runs."
"Hmph."
Judy snorted dismissively, treating Brother Finger's words as mere sophistry.
Brother Finger didn't mind Judy's attitude; he just shrugged and went back to his work.
"Alright, I found the patient records you need."
Glancing at the clock in front of him, Brother Finger called out, grabbing their attention.
"Let me see... Erika, Kalima, and Arora, is that right?"
"Yes, that's them!"
Seeing that he had found what they needed, Judy regained her energy and rushed impatiently to Brother Finger's computer.
"Tell me their information! Where do they live? What was their last known whereabouts?"
Seeing that they had finally found a trace, Judy became slightly incoherent.
"Don't rush. I remember everything clearly."
Watching Judy rush over, Brother Finger was worried she might knock over his chair.
"Let me see... Hmm, these are all good girls. They've been here a few times. As for recently, the latest record is from last week, when they came here to get their personal systems cleaned of viruses."
Brother Finger read out all the information on the file, but as he read, he frowned.
"Hmm, logically, one of them should have come in for a follow-up check these past two days. Why hasn't she shown up?"
Of course, those sex dolls couldn't come; they had been taken away by the Tyger Claws, who knows where. How could they possibly show up?
However, this only further confirmed to Kikyo that these girls had definitely been captured by the Tyger Claws.
"Anything else? Do you have their address information or anything like that?"
Judy continued to ask.
To investigate where they were kidnapped to, they could start with where they lived. Kabuki is crowded and full of chatter; it was impossible for the Tyger Claws to abduct several people without any news leaking out.
"You know what? I actually do."
Brother Finger's sleazy little eyebrows twitched as he read aloud.
"Let me see... Hmm, they live right here in Kabuki. I think it's a rental unit on the west corner. Many girls in Kabuki live there."
"Wait, your clinic keeps track of patients' addresses?"
Judy was still excited about getting the information and didn't notice the strangeness of Brother Finger's data.
As far as Kikyo knew, Cyberware Doctors in this city didn't have a tradition of recording patient addresses.
"Hey, my situation is different. A lot of these girls run up tabs. While I'm a kind person, I'm not running a charity, am I? I register the addresses of those who owe me money."
"You know, a sort of credit system."
Brother Finger waved his finger, speaking as if it were a trivial matter.
Kikyo was deep in thought.
Brother Finger likely had no reason to deceive them; the information should be real.
Moreover, was this guy not as awful as he seemed?
Kikyo thought this while looking at Brother Finger's skinny figure clad in a fishnet shirt.
Although this guy was overly enthusiastic about girls' bodies, he did his best to treat the young women who came looking for help.
What could she say?
Without her, Kikyo believed that those girls who looked down on legitimate doctors would be even worse off.
Thinking this, Brother Finger, though not a good person, was a necessary existence.
Indeed.
Kikyo felt guilty for half a second for punching Brother Finger three times in the game.
"I say, have you heard that there's a batch of cheap cyberware for sale in Watson recently, much better than what you get from the Scavengers?"
Tapping her fingers on the armrest, Kikyo said to Brother Finger nonchalantly.
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