The address Jackie and V agreed upon was at El Coyote Cojo in Heywood, which was also the place run by Jackie's mother, Mrs. Welles.
This bar was located in the heart of the Valentinos' territory in Santo Domingo; its security and privacy were considered quite good.
Arriving at the bar, Asa was led by Jackie to meet Jackie's mother, Mrs. Welles. She looked almost exactly as she did in the game, only a bit younger.
Since Jackie brought him personally, Mrs. Welles's attitude was very kind.
"You two chat."
After a brief greeting with Mrs. Welles, Jackie and Asa went to a private booth on the second floor.
"How is it, brother? How does it compare to the business at Afterlife?"
"It's a bit less famous, but it makes up for it in security."
The patrons on the first floor were almost all members of the Valentinos, so of course it was safe.
As the two sat in the booth, Jackie had a mountain of questions for Asa.
Once Jackie knew that the world of Witchers, sorcerers, and monsters truly existed, life in the 2077 World suddenly felt dull.
The thought of fighting and killing every day just for a few Eurodollars made him want to escape reality even more and head to the Wizarding World for a Witcher's adventure.
The two whispered to each other from time to time, waiting for the main guest to arrive.
Ten minutes later, a white-haired woman who seemed quite impulsive knocked on the booth door.
Before she even entered, Asa system vibrated first; there was definitely a romanceable character nearby.
[Congratulations on discovering the important plot character V. Establishing a bond will grant rewards.]
The main guest had arrived.
Asa spirits lifted. He looked toward the door and saw the newcomer had long, ash-white hair draped over her shoulders, exquisite makeup, and a sharp, well-fitted black suit that outlined a nearly perfect figure.
More importantly, her face had a unique charm and beauty in a world filled with Cyberware and augmentations.
However, as soon as she spoke, she completely shattered that charm:
"You're the Wizard? Is mystical fraud the new trend for pretty boys these days?"
V's tone was aggressive. The moment she entered the booth, she unhesitatingly pointed her hostility at Asa, who was sitting on the sofa.
Whether Nomad, Streetkid, or Corpo, no matter the start, V's personality was always like this: impulsive, fiery, and a bit reckless.
What an airhead beauty.
Today should have been a workday, but a call from Jackie brought V from Arasaka Tower to Santo Domingo. The reason was even more ridiculous:
"A Wizard obtained important intelligence through divination that might be very beneficial to Arasaka Corporation."
Considering Jackie was a friend of many years and usually never sought her out unless something big happened, V had rushed to El Coyote Cojo.
But in reality, she felt her friend had been scammed. The moment she entered the booth and saw Asa sitting calmly in the booth, looking completely unruffled, her temper flared, and she almost insulted his mother.
Not everyone could remain calm when facing an Arasaka Corporation agent whose face was as dark as ink.
Asa, however, stood up unhurriedly and extended his right hand:
"Hello, Valerie."
V looked at Jackie, as if asking, "Did you tell him my name?"
Jackie shook his head slightly; he definitely hadn't mentioned it.
"How do you know my name? I haven't used that name in years."
"I know you better than you think," Asa said, fully embracing his mystic persona.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
The white-haired Corpo V crossed her arms and said,
"I don't recall violating any minors."
"Minor?" Asa laughed. "I'm 213 years old this year."
213? V almost burst out laughing.
"Can't you find a normal excuse for your lies?"
She walked straight into the booth, sat down, and crossed her legs:
"Speak up. You looked for me through Jackie; what's the matter?"
Asa didn't mind V's nonchalant attitude. He took a chip from his pocket and handed it over.
V picked it up, and her expression instantly became serious. She said with suspicion:
"A Militech operation chip. Where did you get this?"
"See for yourself."
V didn't hesitate and slotted the chip directly into the back of her head. With Arasaka Cyberware ICE, she wasn't afraid of viruses on the chip.
Red lights flickered; V was clearly browsing the contents of the chip carefully.
A moment later, she finally looked at Asa and said seriously:
"Where did you get this?"
The content on the chip was exactly what Asa had the Militech mole leave behind: information regarding the leaked traces of an Arasaka Netrunner and the identity of the mole who leaked it.
If nothing else, simply submitting this data would be a major achievement for an employee of the Arasaka Counter-Intelligence Department.
However, her intuition told V that this mysterious East Asian man's goal was clearly more than just this.
"V, don't you want a promotion and a raise, to marry Michiko Arasaka, and step into the core power circle of Arasaka Tower?"
V frowned. Her sexual orientation was normal, but that wasn't the point. She didn't refute Asa words and instead asked:
"What does that have to do with our meeting today?"
As a Corpo, who wouldn't want to climb the ladder and advance? It's just that, as a hired employee, the room for advancement was limited.
Compared to employees who could be fired at any time, the company trusted Japanese locals and the well-born children they had groomed for generations more.
One could climb, but it was difficult.
No denial meant she wanted it.
At this time, V hadn't yet experienced the brutal power struggles within the Counter-Intelligence Department, so she naturally held expectations for climbing up.
This isn't bad, Asa thought. Without his help, V might have followed the path from the original story, but with him, maybe she really could step into the core of Arasaka Corporation's power?
A new ending: Queen of Arasaka?
"Before that, I might need you to turn off the monitoring Cyberware on your body."
This request was outrageous. Generally speaking, an Arasaka Corporation employee's Cyberware could not be actively taken offline; being offline usually meant the employee was no longer trustworthy.
But, she wanted that promotion!
V looked at Jackie, and Jackie nodded slightly to her.
Out of trust for her childhood friend, V decided to believe him for once. A red stream of light flashed in her Cyberoptics; the Cyberware disconnected.
"Please, go ahead."
Taking the Cyberware offline temporarily felt very uncomfortable for V. It was as if some normal bodily functions were restricted; her breathing even became rapid.
"Hello, V."
Asa extended his right hand.
"To introduce myself formally, I am a Wizard."
What the hell?
She took her Cyberware offline just to shake hands? The irritable Corpo was about to open her mouth to curse him out, but the Wizard grabbed her hand first.
Teleportation magic, activate.
Purple light instantly illuminated the booth. V tried to shake off Asa hand, but she discovered with horror that she couldn't budge it at all.
The purple light suddenly enveloped V and Asa. In an instant, the two vanished from the spot as the light dissipated.
"What the hell? Having a meeting without me?"
Jackie was also a bit overwhelmed, feeling like he was being bullied American-style.
...
Feeling a sense of the world spinning, V instinctively wanted to vomit.
"Don't."
A gentle voice fell, and the uncomfortable feeling vanished instantly.
When V opened her eyes again, she had arrived in a dim little room.
Before her was a wooden table and shelves with crosses, skulls, and rapiers. Behind her was a small door leading who-knows-where.
The faint purple ambient lighting and the strange witchcraft items gave her goosebumps.
Behind the table, the culprit flicked his arm, and the lights in the entire room came on.
"You..."
V managed to utter a word before quickly pulling a pistol from the inside of her suit and pointing it nervously at Asa.
"How did you do that? Why did you bring me here, and what do you want to do?"
"Do."
"What?"
V thought she had misheard.
"Put down the gun. It's useless."
Are you kidding? How could she possibly put it down in such a dangerous situation...
"That makes sense. I'll put it away for now."
V put the gun away in her inner pocket.
After doing all this, V was suddenly stunned, because she realized that she clearly hadn't been thinking that way just now!
He could even control her thoughts?
Cold sweat suddenly poured down; the gun in her hand could no longer provide her with any sense of security.
"Please sit. You should know I have no ill intent, otherwise you'd be dead already."
Trying her best to remain calm, V thought about it and realized it made sense.
Eventually, V sat down in front of Asa, her thoughts wandering again.
But were those calm thoughts just now also influenced by his suggestion? Once suspicion is born, it continues to spread, constantly negating oneself.
Even though they were just sitting quietly face to face, V was breaking out in a cold sweat.
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Asa, a Wizard from another world."
Using the same reason he gave Jackie, Asa calmly explained why he wanted to cooperate with V and his subsequent plans.
Searching for the Witcher Ciri was true, but incidentally, Asa wanted to use this reason to establish a persona for himself, using it to get close to the characters from the original story.
Otherwise, was he supposed to say:
"Hey, V, you're a game character I controlled, so I'm here to help you. If there's a chance, let's have a casual Bed War to collect the link rewards?"
That would be too stupid.
After listening, V breathed a long sigh of relief. Regardless of the other party's goal, at least for now, he had no ill intent.
Since she couldn't resist, she might as well enjoy it.
"Mr. Wizard, then why did you look for me? I'm just an ordinary employee of Arasaka Corporation."
"It's nothing. It's because you're very beautiful and fit my aesthetic."
And I customized you myself,
Asa kept the second half of the sentence to himself.
Ah, is that so?
V's mind was a mess, not knowing whether to be happy or frustrated.
"This is an opportunity, isn't it?" Asa said,
"Lure the snake out of its hole, then wipe out the Militech agents. Wouldn't that be a major achievement for you?"
That made sense.
A thought flashed through V's mind. Submitting the information about the company's intelligence leak and the mole was a major achievement.
But if she played along, reported separately to her supervisor, then lured the snake out and led a team to wipe out the Militech agents while seizing some spoils of war, the credit for loyalty would be even greater.
What the Wizard said wasn't entirely without merit. Cooperation was not out of the question; for her, it had everything to gain and nothing to lose, so why not?
But, this Wizard—was his true goal really just to find a wandering companion from the same world?
V's intuition told her that the Wizard likely had other motives, but they weren't enemies for now. At least for V, this Wizard showed her a lot of respect. If not for the abilities he displayed, V would have thought he was just a street charlatan.
The white-haired beauty began to consider the possibility of the operation.
If she really wanted to grasp this credit as quickly as possible and do it beautifully, then it had to be fast, and casualties had to be low. She couldn't rely too much on the company's power; she had to prove her value personally.
"If we're relying on our own strength to defeat the Militech agents, then we still need a well-armed squad, otherwise..."
V's tone became a bit heavier. She deliberately ignored the Wizard in front of her; although he was strong and had many tricks, he might not necessarily help them.
However, Asa snapped his fingers:
"As it happens, I know a mercenary crew."
A one-sided, forced acquaintance.
Normally at this time, it was Jackie who helped V contact mercenaries.
"Can you do it?"
V was hesitant. An ancient person might not necessarily understand the power of modern weapons, especially for someone who seemed older.
He was a Wizard; he might trust his magic more.
"What are you doubting?"
Asa took out the pistol hidden in his space, Comrades Hammer, and gave it a flourish.
Not bad.
V suddenly thought,
Asa would arrange the security team, Asa provided the Militech intelligence, and the Militech mole was also Asa person. What did V contribute?
She just had to pass the information down, participate in the operation, and finally divide the credit.
Was there really such a good deal in the world?
V suddenly remembered what Asa had just said—"you're very beautiful and fit my aesthetic"—and her heart stirred.
She was always someone who repaid both grudges and kindness. Thinking of this, she said directly:
"Why do you want to help me? Are you trying to hit on me?"
Asa, who was thinking about how to contact Maine's crew, was startled:
How did this lady figure it out?
Did he seem that desperate?
After careful thought, V became even more certain of her idea. She said bluntly:
"If that's the case, you don't need to help me. We can just get along as ordinary friends."
V was serious. Putting aside his mysterious identity, Asa first impression on V was not bad; at least his looks and abilities were a perfect score in her book.
Moreover, what would happen when the Wizard lost interest if she were helped for such a reason?
This was a risk. Whether the Wizard's starting point was getting into bed or not, she had to rule it out in advance.
Asa looked helpless and said:
"What are you thinking? I already have five wives."
"Five?"
V's gaze seemed to pierce through the table toward Asa big gun, as if asking, can you handle it?