Cyberpunk: I'm Not a Scavenger - Chapter 45: Outwitting the Enemy (Patreon)

Pantheon frowned at the shout and threw a punch.

The pink-haired man with the oversized head blacked out and collapsed to the floor.

Pantheon swept his flashlight around the shipping container.

A dozen or so young women with beautiful faces and graceful figures were crammed into the narrow space.

Most wore ragged clothes and heavy electronic shackles on their wrists and ankles. To Pantheon’s surprise, several had already freed themselves and were pointing weapons of unknown origin at the door.

Their leader was a girl with short blue hair and The Mox’s emblem tattooed on her neck. She looked to be in better shape than the others.

“Milani?”

Pantheon asked tentatively.

She paused, then quickly recovered and eyed him with suspicion.

“Are you a mercenary?”

Pantheon holstered his gun and spread his hands.

“Isn’t it obvious?”

“Name’s King. I killed every Scavenger bastard upstairs. Only that little shit Jae-Hyun Lee got away.”

The thought still irritated Pantheon. If things had gone according to the usual script, Jae-Hyun Lee would have panicked, taken a hostage, and confronted him, only to get dropped with a single shot.

Unfortunately, the bastard had shown unexpected sense and refused to play along.

When the girls heard that the Scavengers upstairs were dead, they broke into muffled cheers before beginning to sob.

The Mox girl also sighed in relief and lowered her gun.

“So you’re King?”

Curiosity sparked in her eyes. She circled Pantheon twice before pressing herself against him.

“Who knew the famous King would be so handsome?”

She rested a hand on his chest and gazed up at him. He felt the warmth of her palm through his clothes. He made no move toward her, but he did not pull away either.

Even while enjoying her admiring gaze, he remembered to ask what had happened.

“What’s the story with Big Head here?”

“Oh, him.”

Finding Pantheon annoyingly difficult to fluster, Milani went over to the pink-haired man with the enormous head.

She crouched to check on him. He was still breathing.

Relieved, she stood and gave Big Head a kick.

“His name’s Kibi. He only joined recently. Says he became a Scavenger to earn enough money to get that huge head treated.”

A mischievous glint appeared in Milani’s eyes.

“He might be a Scavenger with a gun, but his hands shake every time he brings us food. He can barely bring himself to look at us.”

As she spoke, she pushed out her chest, revealing glimpses of her pale cleavage through the gaps in her clothes. It was hard not to look.

Pantheon stole a couple of glances, strictly for research, and began to understand how they had pulled it off.

“We girls figured there was still hope for him, so we got together and gave him a little ‘counseling.’”

“We told him Scavengers all end up in hell, and he’d never make any money in that line of work. Jae-Hyun Lee was only keeping him around as cannon fodder.”

Pantheon raised an eyebrow.

“So you talked him into switching sides.”

“He decided to turn over a new leaf all by himself.”

Milani corrected him and gave him a wink.

“Little virgins without any experience are so easy to convince.”

Pantheon was still a bit skeptical.

“And you just trusted him?”

“Don’t worry. Sophia had him so smitten he even admitted he wet the bed when he was nine.”

Pantheon nearly lost it. How had this turned into a story about a nun and a little boy?

“We were going to cause a disturbance during tomorrow’s transfer and escape. He told us the route and stole the weapons from the shelves.”

“And then...”

What happened next hardly needed explaining. Pantheon had shown up and slaughtered the Scavengers, leaving only Kibi in the basement. The girls had seen their chance to act ahead of schedule, only for Pantheon to walk through the door.

Pantheon burst out laughing at the story. Who would have thought such a ridiculous story could unfold in a shithole like Night City?

Even in the worst place, a little humanity could still shine through, though sometimes in the strangest of ways.

Pantheon glanced at Kibi, still unconscious on the floor. After killing a few dozen scumbags, Pantheon felt much better. He supposed he could let this one go.

“Take the girls and this guy out the back door. My netrunner has a car ready for you.”

Milani hesitated before explaining the problem.

“Jae-Hyun Lee implanted GPS tracking chips in us. That’s why we were going to escape near one of The Mox’s hideouts.”

Pantheon rubbed his chin, stepped outside the container, and searched the nearby shelves.

“Found it.”

He held up a head-sized device bristling with antennas.

“The Scavengers use this jammer when they kidnap rich people. It blocks biometric monitor signals so Trauma Team can’t find them.”

“With a few adjustments, I can use it to block your trackers too.”

“Once you reach The Mox, you can get the chips removed.”

Milani’s eyes lit up. Without hesitation, she wrapped both arms around his, gazing up at him brightly.

“All right, all right. Get everyone ready to leave. This won’t take long.”

Pantheon complained, though his body was rather less opposed to the attention.

He pulled his arm free and hurried away, looking slightly flustered. If he stayed any longer, he was going to embarrass himself. This girl was a lot more practiced at teasing men than Lucy.

“Kiwi, help me adjust the algorithm here... and over there...”

With fourteen points in Technical Ability, Pantheon needed only a few minutes to finish the modifications.

The girls helped one another up the stairs and out of the basement.

When they saw the carnage in the bar, they nearly screamed. After that, they looked at Pantheon differently and seemed reluctant to get too close.

Milani suddenly felt thirsty and wished she had something to drink.

She tilted her head and stole a sidelong glance at Pantheon.

“What?”

“Ah!” She jumped.

“Nothing, nothing at all.”

Milani forced a casual smile.

“Next time you come to Lizzie’s Bar, I’ll get my girlfriends to give you a discount.”

Pantheon’s eyes lit up.

Right. How had he forgotten about Lizzie’s Bar?

He had been so busy lately that he had not even found time to sample Night City’s signature braindance experiences.

Pantheon felt a pang of regret. At least it was not too late.

He was still lost in thought when another call came through.

“King, is the mission going smoothly over there? Why haven’t you come back yet?”

It was Jacob calling.

Pantheon’s face darkened as if a layer of soot had settled over it.

That asshole actually had the nerve to call him? Then again, Jacob did not know his own scheme had been exposed.

Pantheon considered his options. The bastard needed to be taught a lesson, but he also needed someone to expose the NCPD’s crimes.

“Relax, I’ve got the data. Ran into a bit of trouble on the way, but I’ll be back soon.”

A cold light flashed in Pantheon’s eyes.

He was going to beat that bastard until he begged for mercy. That was a promise.