My Cyber Psychosis is Task Prompt

The engine roared through the gray streets.

Gravel mixed with rainwater relentlessly washed over the mudguards.

In the roar, the black helmet reflected the neon, the kaleidoscopic and bizarre scene distorted and continually swept across the visor.

Until the cityscape became distant, the skyscrapers and intricate overpasses hovered overhead.

Woosh, woosh woosh.

The sound of water washing over the beach became clear.

The streetlights grew hazy and distant in the rainy night, the interspersed brown-red and yellow-white containers scattered upon the higher ground of the beach.

The water surface to the right was rugged and jagged with rocks.

Weeds and trash bowed low under the pattering rain.

The motorcycle's high beams illuminated a section.

The roadside fence had been violently smashed open, the metal edge was new, crates were toppled, and a massive obstacle was moved aside, revealing fresh soil and exposed rocks.

Someone had broken through.

John removed the helmet impeding his vision, hanging it on the motorcycle handlebar to let the raindrops wash over it.

The rain grew heavier.

There was a sense of desolate loneliness.

John raised his gun and walked in, activating his prosthetic eye, weaving through a maze of debris following the fresh traces.

He raised the gun and sidled to probe.

Everything in night mode was veiled under an oily green filter.

Amidst the clamor of raindrops on metal came breathing, along with faint conversation, calm in tone yet unable to disguise the speakers' weakness and fatigue...

John suddenly halted, lifting his boot, and saw rain mixed with blood flowing through the crevices.

He observed against the obstacle:

Sato Kei leaned in a sunken spot by a large rock, his high-end suit now tattered as if having gone through a battle.

A pair of golden prosthetic eyes flickered continuously.

He was in a phone conversation.

"...Lastly, Miss Liangzi, if you had money and were able to leave Sakura Cross Street, what would you do?"

The translation plugin translated it into text.

[Finally, Miss Liangzi, if you had the money to leave Sakura Cross Street, what would you do?]

[Just kidding, asking.]

[Well, hold on, a friend of mine has arrived, see you, I might not be able to take care of your business in the future.]

[Insisting on fishing at night, it really gives me a headache, for now, farewell.]

Sato Kei hung up the phone.

John walked through the bloody water to stand before the man.

He looked exactly like the photos from Horitomo Takashi, his shirt surface covered with countless knife wounds.

"Who are... you?"

Sato Kei asked.

The man before him dressed in gear from the Owl Town gang, yet had the demeanor of a white mercenary.

"You came on a Glaive, right? When the engine roared, I thought it was a hitman sent by the group... well, no matter, at least I've finished all the calls I needed to make."

[Converse with Sato Kei. (Not Achieved)]

John crouched to inspect.

Sato Kei had all his limbs broken, now unable to move even a toe.

John asked.

"Horitomo Takashi, ring any bells? I want to know what really happened back then."

He stated his purpose outright.

Sato's once lifeless eyes twitched at the name, emotions stirred in one ready to embrace death.

"Takashi, huh, a good kid."

"Neither of us have time to waste, speak, secrets are worthless taken to the grave."

John lit up a traditional cigarette.

Sato showed a look of longing, ultimately shook his head and lowered his eyes, beginning to recite an ad script.

"Raqi Industry V6 Arm Launcher, supports dual-arm customized shooting interconnectivity, with six miniature chips, purchase the premium upgrade version to even coexist with the Mantis Blade, modifying to elbow firing..."

John frowned, suspecting Sato had lost his mind, just as he prepared to draw his gun, he saw the man chuckle coldly, then nostalgically continued.

"Takashi was personally trained by me..."

The capital behind the Owl Town gang was Raqi Industry.

Back then, when the V6 Arm Launcher just hit the market, the marketing department needed a sales spike, and decided to orchestrate and direct, arranging voluntary promotions within the Owl Town gang.

The reward was quite generous.

John exhaled smoke and asked.

"Money, new prosthetic bodies, such a good deal?"

"Those bastards were lying."

Sato gritted his teeth.

Horitomo Takashi was deployed on a dangerous mission the day after being equipped with the V6 Arm Launcher.

Under the guise of "performance testing."

He stormed the "Black Gold Gang trading site" alone, only to find it was just a regular operating motor lodge.

"I sent out the mission, and Takashi reported on the comms channel that there were only ordinary citizens in the building, as well as a couple having an affair, without a trace of drugs or firearms."

Sato Kei licked his bloodless, pale lips.

"Soon after he finished speaking, there was no response. The line was filled with noise and screams—you don't understand, it was worse than torture. Just as I got out of the car, I saw..."

An explosion occurred at the inn.

Horitomo Takashi, covered in blood, staggered out, frantically pounding his cybernetic arm, yet uncontrollably firing into the crowd.

The gut-wrenching screams echoed through the inferno.

Sato Kei said he simply thought Takashi had lost his mind at the time.

"Until the next day, he made the headlines, and rather than the man who died in agony, the media was more concerned about how the V6 model arm launcher held back the police for nearly twenty minutes, and they detailed its performance and price... "

Raqi Industry's new product sold like crazy.

Sato Kei suddenly realized—his protégé had been turned into a living advertisement by the group, using resources from Eden City to amplify its impact.

John was not moved by his narrative.

"Akiko contacted you, ah, Horitomo Takashi's wife."

"I can't face her."

Sato Kei's eyes revealed sorrow.

John inappropriately laughed, spat a tar-laden saliva, and continued to ask.

"So what's going on with you now?"

"The Xiaoming Group wants to cut me off. They want to merge with the Cheye Group to grow, and I disagree..."

"Wait, I'm not interested in Owl Town gang conspiracies."

John raised a hand to interrupt him.

Sato Kei smiled bitterly.

"Can't you see? I've been abandoned. The gang has planted a virus in our bodies, along with brand new cybernetic implants, just like when Takashi burst in the news, intending to use gang fights to promote new products."

He noticed when the first protégé went insane.

Sato ordered everyone to sever all online connections, refusing to accept any gang requests on the comms channel, and disconnected the intelligent components, leaving only the minimum power to escape the scene.

It was all in vain.

On the way, more and more people were defeated by the virus, beginning indiscriminate attacks on comrades around them.

Sato realized death was imminent, so he dismissed his followers.

He ordered his protégés to smash all their joints—even if the virus took over completely, they couldn't control bodies that were already crippled.

"Fujimura Takeshi wants me to gouge out your eyes."

John stated calmly.

He nodded, watching as the other's pupils gradually widened.

Sato fell into a brief breakdown.

"What!? Boss, why... damn it!"

He wailed, cursed, and bitterly laughed madly, and after the blood drained his last frenzy, he pleaded with John.

"I left money at 348 Sakura Cross Street, can you deliver it to Miss Liangzi at Ban Island Izakaya, conceal my death, just say I've left Eden City forever?"

"I'll think about it."

John did not agree.

"Thank you."

Sato Kei's face showed a relieved smile, his skin turning increasingly red, with veins protruding even on his forehead, as if the virus was starting to burn his soul.

"...Kill me, please."

He begged.

The traditional cigarette fell to the ground, becoming soaked and extinguished.

John stood up coldly, looking down on the tortured little boss of Owl Town gang before him.

Water dripped along the leather jacket.

The blood was diffused, becoming more transparent.

In the dim corner, arcs of electricity occasionally sparked, high heat seared the skin, emitting a nauseating burnt odor.

Sato's eyes were bloodshot.

His throat convulsed as if he wanted to plead for release, but no sound came out.

John quietly watched.

The life of a street mercenary taught him some truths.

Morality has no place in Eden City. Some people, ravaged by the city, are still intoxicated by it.

Memories can be beautified.

No matter how tragic Sato Kei's words sounded, he had held a high position in the Owl Town gang all these years, while Horitomo Takashi's family never received the compensation they deserved.

"Akiko's shop is okay."

John finally pulled out his gun.

Sato Kei was already completely unconscious, probably unable to hear or feel anything from the outside world.

John turned sideways in the rain and pulled the trigger.

Bang!

A flash of fire flickered in the night.

A short shotgun named Widow shattered Sato's throat.

"Her shop is just too small, too shabby. If someone had helped her in the past few years, wouldn't that have been great."

The pool of blood grew thicker.