Chapter 33
Chapter 33
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 32
Chapter Title: The Betrayer's Payout
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Jin's way of dealing with machines was utterly ordinary.
Just tools.
Even back in the days when he was glued to that tiny universe called a smartphone, staring at the screen all day long.
He had zero interest in how the damn thing actually worked or moved.
That was the realm of technicians.
Not consumers.
So to Jin, machines were simple: you spent money, you got performance. But once it crossed some arbitrary benchmark, suddenly it was all about "emotional appeal" or "high-end" bullshit, and the value plummeted?
Dirty expensive, but it enriched life anyway, so it was more than worth it—nothing more, nothing less.
Emotional appeal? No clue.
High-end? Pricey.
End of story. A tool was a tool.
Don't get cocky...
Maybe it was this mindset of his.
Jin never hesitated to go straight for shock therapy when a machine crapped out—no questions asked.
He was the kind of guy who didn't shy away from primitive fixes.
So why would a cyberbrain socket—made with tech way more advanced than anything from his hometown—be any different?
Not working?
Pain blockers or whatever?
Screw it. Electric shock.
Zzap!
Naturally, a cyberbrain socket was an interface linking the brain to a computer, hypersensitive to electric neural signals and brainwaves.
You zap that with lightning?
Kevin didn't shit his pants for nothing.
Zahard's secret magic.
Self-Lightning Extreme.
That violent purple power hadn't just targeted the pain sensors—it had thoroughly fried the entire device.
If Kevin had been a mage prepared for it, or some mega-rich bastard with a mana-resistant socket, things might've played out differently.
But that was pointless what-if territory.
What mattered was that this timeline's Kevin had spilled everything.
The location where he stashed the goods.
The position. Password.
Color of his underwear.
Preferred three sizes. Secret kinks?
Enough!
Let's stop digging.
Anyway, with Kevin spilling his guts and collapsing unconscious, Jin and Natasha slowly met each other's eyes.
"Guess we're real accomplices now?"
"...Looks like it."
Natasha didn't take Jin's help lightly.
She'd promised him 20% of her cut,
and Jin—who was flat broke anyway—didn't refuse.
Heading back to Downtown like this, he'd just be sucking his thumb. This was a windfall.
Perfect. Hop into the shotgun seat.
Someone else driving? What a steal!
...Or so he'd thought at one point.
Maybe skipping sleep the night before was catching up. His eyelids suddenly felt heavy, like he might conk out any second.
Impossible. As a proud son of the East, dozing off in the passenger seat? That was only for lovebirds!
So Jin pinched his thigh to fight the drowsiness when suddenly Natasha's voice cut in.
"How about it? Should I start calling you young master now?"
"Huh?"
What the hell?
She'd been quiet this whole time, and her first words were that?
"Kinda hard to play dumb after seeing it."
"...?"
Jin gave Natasha a baffled look as she monologued to herself.
But only for a moment.
What had he even shown her, anyway?
Leaping out of a moving car.
Flipping a muscle car barehanded.
That was it.
Because of that?
Jin extended his index finger and focused.
A stinging pain shot through his heart, and zigzagging sparks coiled around his finger—
Natasha confirmed it with her pale blue eyes, pushing up her sunglasses perched on her nose bridge.
"...Purple lightning. Zahard's Self-Lightning."
She muttered softly, rummaging in the cigarette pack wedged in the cupholder.
"Too famous a power, Jin."
Why else call it secret magic?
Because its very existence screamed symbolism.
Including that visual tell.
Solad's white flames.
Marjie's dark ice.
And Zahard's Self-Lightning.
Impossible to hide.
Besides, the family's purists never even tried. Standing out was proof of their noble bloodline.
A superiority complex dating back to the Age of Light and Roses.
The kind of talk that'd make Jin snort.
Just colored lightning show.
Sure, powerful. Secret magic and all.
Legacy of a titan holding up this city.
So what?
Jin had zero attachment.
Just another tool.
Learned it, so he'd use it.
His creed—tools should act like tools—held firm even in this new world. That was why he could never be a purist, pureblood or not.
What could you do?
To others, a shining legacy. To him, just a skill.
Maybe a few more to learn.
He didn't even feel like responding. Since his finger was out anyway, he picked his nose—
But Natasha read it differently.
"...Your behavior doesn't scream direct heir. Branch family? I can drop it if things are messy."
Jin didn't bother correcting her.
He just leaned his head against the window and changed the subject.
"What's the deal with Kevin."
"What about him."
"Why cover for him after knowing he was skimming."
A short silence.
Then the click of a lighter.
Natasha lit her cigarette, rolled down the window, and exhaled a long plume of smoke.
"Obvious. He was a friend."
Two gutter-lifers haunting alleys.
That's where the story began.
Really nothing special.
There was a guy and a girl, old friends.
"Friends" meaning they nodded hello in passing—but in back-alley knife fights, that counted as friendship.
One day, the woman awakened as a psychic.
The guy noticed and pitched a business deal.
Thus, the first meeting of a third-rate linker and a rookie solo.
Big dreams at first.
The guy: a name-brand bigshot.
The woman: psychic power rivaling city agents.
Reality's walls were high, though.
Shallow connections, middling skills, zero experience—the guy quietly shelved his dreams.
Without a proper solo recruit, his office crawled with fellow third-raters. Hard to tell if it was a linker shop or gang hideout.
At least he got called "boss" now.
Deep into playing king of the trash heap.
Then she started grating on him.
That level 3 solo bitch pulling her weight solo.
Hauling truckloads across districts, handling jobs diligently. Made him sick.
Fucking hell. Why won't she quit?
"Slicing my cut was whatever, but later he cherry-picked jobs that could've killed me anytime. All while acting like it was no big deal."
Natasha flicked ash out the window.
"Told him to cut it out, but he sent goons for a midnight hit. Crossed the line. So I kidnapped him."
Jin nodded silently.
His eyes a bit bloodshot—not from heartache.
...He'd dozed off midway.
But not incomprehensible.
"...Good call. Just weird you didn't bail sooner."
"Tell me about it. What was that tissue-thin 'friendship'? Total mark. Even I see it."
Natasha cracked a wry smile. Jin yawned hugely, forehead to the window.
"Downtown cool?"
"Huh?"
"Anecdote in Downtown. Bar and linker office. Not recommending per se—interview there. Won't regret. Manager makes killer cookies."
"...Cookies? Wait, you're a solo?"
Jin pulled out his comms instead of answering.
[Snap a Manticore pic. Miss it.]
The truck kept cruising the highway after that.
Luckily, the "secret spot" wasn't far.
Loop road entrance to sectors 45 and 46.
A shabby mart blended into the background—
The bored fat guy at the register eyed Jin and Natasha entering.
No "welcome" or anything. Rude as hell.
Natasha didn't care, opening with:
"Here for the goods."
"...Don't know you."
"Kevin Garnet. !Xce11oIIE#3833."
"......"
The fat guy stared into space, then nodded.
"Matches. That trash dead?"
"Matter?"
"Nah."
He chuckled, cracking his knuckles.
Man, sausages sound good.
Jin swallowed involuntarily.
"Need anything else?"
"Nope. No secondary verify. Lowest-tier storage contract. His fault for leaking the password. How much to withdraw?"
"All."
"One sec."
The fat guy heaved himself up.
Returned with a heavy cash bag.
"42.8 million credits. Full amount minus fees."
"...That's it?"
"Why, smells fishy? What'd you expect from a daily gambler? Want the contract?"
"Hah... whatever."
Natasha grabbed the bag, looking drained.
Jin paused at the door, turning back.
"Safe here?"
Random question, but the fat guy answered straight.
"Worry about our security? Hit level 5 solo first, kid. Jin."
"...? How'd you know my name."
"Solo intranet a decoration?"
He tapped his temple's cyber socket with thick fingers.
Jin shut up.
Oh yeah, registered on the intranet.
Lv2. Long way to go.
Crazy world.
This the easy mode?
"See ya, prospect."
Jin ignored the oily voice behind him and headed out.
Spotting Natasha leaning on the truck bed.
Face screaming annoyance.
"Debating. Door open, beat that bastard senseless?"
"How much skimmed?"
"Dunno. At least 100 mil."
"......Beat him for me?"
Would've killed him for sure.
Kevin was already half-dead.
"Pass."
Natasha sighed deeply, handing Jin the bag.
"9 million credits. Said 20% generous. Sorry it's peanuts."
"Not your apology to make."
Jin shrugged, taking it.
Quest complete at the same time.
A short, intense rush of pleasure.
Dopamine numbers flooding his brain. Enough XP unlocked a new perk. Jin slowly opened his eyes.
Sun dipping low on the horizon.
Highway vista.
Expanse of sunset like the sky's mischievous prank.
"......"
Jin stared, rooted.
Then.
Cobalt darkness crept from behind, stealing the world's colors.
Glancing at his shadow, Jin looked up. Sun gone.
Full night sky.
Familiar sight, maybe.
What a tiring day.
Jin said to Natasha.
"Let's go."
Time to head back to Downtown.