Chapter 101: The Final Trip to the Moon
Chapter 101: The Final Trip to the Moon
After David activated the "Cyber-Goliath" mode, wiping out all the enemies with ease, he prepared to retreat with Rebecca, Lucy, and the others. At the very least... he should have been the one covering their escape.
But at that moment, David turned to Falco and said, "Falco, I have a request..."
Meanwhile, Rebecca shielded Lucy as they got into the car and said, "I'm glad you're okay."
Although she said that, it was clear she wasn't very happy. After all, she and Lucy were... rivals in love.
But Rebecca finally added, "David will be happy."
If David is happy, she will be happy. So even though she and Lucy are rivals, she still felt glad that Lucy returned safely.
Zhou Wenwei, observing this, couldn't help but feel a glimmer of hope. "In that case... why not have David take Rebecca too? Rebecca-chan is just too good!"
In this parallel world, the comics of the Republic had a flavor similar to the web novels of Lin Qingshan's past life. Years ago, harem-building stallion manga were in vogue. However, that trend has long since faded. Many people now even despise such unfaithful behavior.
Nevertheless, at this moment, the fans of "Edge Runners" genuinely wished David could accept Rebecca as well!
But...
In the next scene of the manga, something unexpected happened. A loud noise came from the sky.
Lucy and Rebecca both looked up, and as usual, Rebecca was the first to lose her temper.
"Don't interrupt me when I'm talking!!"
She furiously fired her gun into the sky.
But in the next instant, Adam Smasher descended from above!
He landed heavily on Rebecca's petite body! Then, from Lucy's perspective in the car, the scene repeated.
This wasn't human!
The ground exploded, the vehicle and pavement were lifted, and everything turned to rubble. Amid the explosion's smoke, Adam Smasher's oppressive figure emerged.
At the same time, Rebecca's body, crushed beyond recognition, was revealed—only the upper half of her body and part of her head remained, with blood and brain matter scattered all over.
"Rebecca!"
David screamed her name. But Rebecca was already dead, completely unresponsive.
Zhou Wenwei and the other manga fans who witnessed this scene were stunned.
Rebecca... was crushed to death by Adam Smasher just like that?
No way! This sudden and casual death, happening at the climax, took out a popular supporting character!
[Translator: sauron]
But Rebecca was indeed dead—so suddenly, without any resistance, crushed to death by the main antagonist from above! This also demonstrated just how terrifying Adam Smasher's power was!
He stepped out of the smoke and began to attack David and Falco. Both activated "Sianvestan" and the battle commenced.
However, it was clear that Adam Smasher held the upper hand, overpowering them.
At that moment, Lucy also made a move, intending to launch a network attack on Adam Smasher's nervous system.
"That's it! With Lucy's help, Adam Smasher is nothing! David will definitely win!" Zhou Wenwei exclaimed excitedly.
But Adam Smasher only paused for a moment, then glanced at Lucy, and with a single hand, he crushed the data stream attacking his nervous system!
"What? How is that possible?" Lucy said in disbelief.
But due to Adam Smasher's counterattack, her system sparked, and she fell backward...
Just then...
A car drove up and caught Lucy. The driver was Falco!
"Falco! David... David isn't in the car yet!" Lucy cried out anxiously.
"Falco!"
But Falco ignored Lucy and kept driving.
"I told you, you all have to die!" Adam Smasher shouted in anger, preparing to attack Falco and Lucy.
But then...
"Now's not the time to lose focus!" David, behind him, activated his anti-gravity tech, immobilizing Adam Smasher!
"Damn it!" Adam Smasher turned to face David, his voice filled with malice.
Despite being weaker, David, equipped with the "Cyber-Goliath," couldn't be entirely dismissed.
Just when everyone thought Adam Smasher and David would clash again...
Adam Smasher grabbed David's "Cyber-Goliath" and tore off the anti-gravity tech attached to it.
"Without your anti-gravity tech, you're just a kid who can't even carry your own weight!"
Indeed, once the anti-gravity tech was removed, David couldn't hold on any longer—his cyberware and his body both collapsed and crumbled!
"You think you're special... But you're just a joke!"
With a devastating blow, Adam Smasher completely destroyed David, causing the "Cyber-Goliath" and David's body to explode in a deafening blast.
From the distance, Lucy, seeing this from the car, was in agony. She cried out to Falco, "Falco, turn back!"
But...
"No," Falco said firmly. "David asked me to do this. If I turn back now, he would have died for nothing."
"I've been paid for this mission, and he wants us to split it."
The scene lingered on David's yellow jacket. Everyone understood—David's last request to Falco was exactly that. He wanted to trade his life for Lucy and Falco's chance to survive.
"And he asked me to tell you..."
The scene shifted back to David, who was no match for Adam Smasher, taking a brutal beating.
"I'm sorry we can't go to the moon together."
At the same time, scenes of "Edge Runners" from the beginning, including each character and classic scene, began to flash by like a montage.
In the end, David could no longer stand, lying on the ground, laughing.
"This is kind of fun."
At that moment, Adam Smasher looked down at David and laughed, saying, "You're an interesting consciousness."
"Who cares... bastard," David said, still smiling.
Adam Smasher understood and raised the gun-cannon attached to his arm, aiming it at David.
"If that's the case, then this is goodbye."
A flash of white light, followed by a scene of blood spraying out.
Although David's head wasn't shown exploding, Zhou Wenwei knew that David... was dead.
As he saw this, he was completely stunned.
David... the protagonist was really dead. Along with Kiwi and Rebecca, the members of the main group were all dead...
But Lucy and Falco were still alive, so there was at least some... solace in this tragedy?
Suddenly, Zhou Wenwei noticed something, "Wait, it's not over yet? There's more?"
He continued to read, holding back his sadness, and the scene zoomed out from David's location at the Arasaka Tower, then to Night City, and eventually to all of North America. Finally, it zoomed out to the entire Earth.
The scene shifted to the moon.
Zhou Wenwei had a hunch about what was coming, and his eyes reddened.
A manned moon rocket passed by in the scene, with several passengers aboard, one of them... was Lucy!
"Welcome to the moon trip, experience the never-before-seen lunar gravity in the Sim Dream..."
In the broadcast, Lucy, wearing a spacesuit, stared blankly at the moon outside the rocket.
After landing on the moon, the scene shifted to the lunar base playground, where countless tourists were enjoying the moon's gravity.
But Lucy distanced herself from the noise, arriving at the empty lunar surface.
Noticing the scorching sunlight, she instinctively reached out to block the warm rays.
As her gaze slowly shifted from the sun downward...
"Impressive!"
David suddenly appeared before her!
But he wasn't wearing a spacesuit, and everyone understood that this was just a hallucination of Lucy's.
David couldn't possibly be alive, let alone appear on the moon without a spacesuit.
"The sun is so warm!" David said happily, turning to look at Lucy.
Lucy, in disbelief, looked at David, who was smiling so brightly under the sun, and she too smiled.
But the beaming David suddenly vanished before her eyes.
Leaving Lucy all alone on the empty lunar surface, she slowly opened her arms, as if embracing David in her hallucination.
"Dual Blade: Returning Will Slash!"
"Oh, damn!" Zhou Wenwei couldn't hold back any longer. Tears blurred his vision as he cursed, "Damn Adam Smasher, damn Arasaka Corporation, damn cyberpunk world, damn you, Aoyama old thief!"
He couldn't hold it in anymore and grabbed tissues to wipe away the snot and tears.
Especially with the author pulling a dual-blade return slash—he might have managed to hold it together before, but now he couldn't stop crying.
However... the manga's story wasn't over yet.
There were two more panels.
A short-haired man Zhou Wenwei had never seen before appeared in a bar.
"Give me a David Martinez," the man said to the bartender.
He then took the drink the bartender made and raised his glass, saying, "This one's for the legend of Night City forever—David Martinez."
"Great in life, glorious in death."
"The End."
On the following page, an advertisement read:
"Cyberpunk 2077: Edge Runners" anime adaptation announced! Expected to meet everyone early next year!
"Cyberpunk 2077: Edge Runners" spin-off game "Cyberpunk 2077" is under excellent development! The Republic's first AAA title, with a 1:1 recreation of Night City scenes and combat!
A demo video of "Cyberpunk 2077: Edge Runners" spin-off game "Cyberpunk 2077" has been released. Official video link below...
However, at that moment, Zhou Wenwei wasn't paying attention to any of this. He simply closed the comic magazine and sat weakly in his computer chair.
There was no outcry or fuss; he just felt a deep, overwhelming sadness whenever he thought about the story in the comic.
(End of Chapter)