Chapter 60
The remaining balance, if any, could be used the next time they returned.
Bartenders at the Afterlife still had that much integrity.
Leo emerged from the Afterlife's underground level and stepped outside. Feeling the chill of the autumn wind, he pulled the collar of his white coat tighter.
He happened to spot a homeless person rummaging through trash and casually tossed over a five-euro bill. As the man showered him with gratitude, Leo got into the Delamain taxi waiting by the curb and dialed a number.
"Rebecca? Are you free right now? I'm ready for that thing I promised you. Where should we meet?"
…
…
…
In the northern part of Heywood Vale, there was Concord Park. Sunlight bathed the park, and the grass and trees swayed gracefully in the breeze.
On a bench meant for relaxation sat a petite girl in an oversized jacket. Her pale legs peeked out from beneath it, an appealing sight. The girl wore a sullen expression, fidgeting impatiently and looking around in every direction.
When she finally caught sight of the young man strolling toward her, the annoyance on her face vanished instantly.
Rebecca hopped off the bench.
"Leo! Over here!"
She sprinted over and rattled off questions in a single breath: "Are you tired? Thirsty? Hungry? Want me to get you something to eat or drink? What do you like?"
Seeing how eager she was, Leo easily guessed her motive. He smiled, then placed a hand on her head.
Rebecca's body stiffened, caught off guard. She hated people touching her head; even her brother risked getting half-killed for trying it. She was a fierce "little devil," not some delicate princess. But this time, she let it slide, though it took all her self-control.
Thankfully, Leo only gave her hair a brief, gentle ruffle before withdrawing his hand.
"No need for all that. Let's get straight to the point."
Leo set down the travel bag he was carrying and unzipped it on the bench. He pulled out a sleek handgun. He hadn't even handed it over before Rebecca, eyes glowing, snatched it away.
"This…this is the A-22B 'Sureshiki'?"
Arasaka had once dominated the smart-weapon market. Then Kang Tao showed up, changing the game. The "Sureshiki" smart pistol was Kang Tao's direct counter to Arasaka's "Yukimura" line. It offered extremely simple handling and reloading—once you fired the last round, the empty magazine automatically ejected.
Convenient, though you might get hit in the foot if you weren't paying attention.
Leo hadn't crafted this "Sureshiki" himself; he could currently only build kinetic and tech weapons, not smart ones. He had paid Wakako for this one. The key difference between smart weapons lay in their real-time tracking system—similar to micro-missile technology. To use a smart weapon's targeting module, you needed an implant called Smart Link to connect your optics and the gun, feeding you continuous targeting data.
Since Leo was giving Rebecca a smart pistol, he had naturally thought about that requirement. Hence, the second thing he pulled from his black travel bag was a third-generation Smart Link implant. He had also bought this from Wakako. Known as the "Queen of Westbrook," she could only get her hands on a Gen-3 Smart Link—absolutely no luck on the latest Gen-4 (Legendary). Even so, the Gen-3 had cost Leo a pretty penny.
If the "Sureshiki" pistol had already made Rebecca swoon, then seeing the Smart Link left her mind completely blank for a few seconds.
"This…th-this…is for me?"
She stared at Leo with overflowing hope. He smiled and patted her cute head again.
"What are you thinking? It's not free."
The sparkle in Rebecca's eyes instantly dulled. "But I don't have any money."
"Then have a look at this."
With that, Leo pulled out the third item from his travel bag—yet another handgun, this time the "Kenshin" tech pistol. Compared to the implant he'd just shown, the impact was smaller, but it was still too expensive for Rebecca's budget.
Life was tough, and she let out a weary sigh. Noticing her predicament, Leo stopped teasing her and spoke seriously. "If you don't have the money right now, we'll do installments—24 payments. Just pay me back little by little."
The stars reappeared in Rebecca's eyes. "Really? You mean it?"
She asked the same question repeatedly, afraid Leo would suddenly change his mind. He patted her head again. "Of course I mean it."
This time, the little hellion didn't explode in anger. Instead, she closed her eyes contentedly, like a purring cat, even leaning her head a bit into Leo's hand.
"Take them," Leo said, putting the two guns and the implant back into the travel bag and pushing it toward Rebecca.
He had tailored these items to suit her strengths and weaknesses. The Kenshin offered strong armor penetration and high firepower, while the Sureshiki excelled in automatic aiming and suppressive fire. Granted, a pistol's damage still couldn't compare to rifles like the Nekomata or Achilles, but they had far heavier recoil than Rebecca could handle. Firing even one shot from those might send her flying. The Kenshin was plenty lethal for its intended purpose.
Rebecca tested the Sureshiki in her left hand and the Kenshin in her right, clearly enthralled. She would have happily tried firing a few rounds if not for the crowds in Concord Park.
…
"Maine sure is slow," she muttered, rubbing her growling stomach. She hadn't eaten anything decent since the night before. They had finished a job a few days earlier, then partied hard at a bar in Santo Domingo right up until last night.
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