It turned out that installing cyberware on a robot was far easier than doing it on a human—at least you didn't risk nicking the wrong nerve and ruining someone's hand for life.
Wiping his sweat, Viktor gave a thumbs-up. Done.
"Great! Now for the final step!"
Berry practically vibrated with excitement.
The frame-like workstation activated, robotic arms lowering the bot and laying it flat. Berry placed the artificial skin onto the scaffolding—custom-ordered from an adult toy company, complete with fireproofing, insulation, and bullet resistance.
The company staff had been confused—why on earth did someone need combat-grade skin for a sex doll? They eventually decided the sweet-faced girl just had… unusual tastes.
The welder arms sparked for ages—bright enough to hurt the eyes and loud enough to numb the ears—but at last, the skin was fully attached. Berry needed it for stealth mode—she couldn't have her bot running around showing bare metal bones.
Finally, the completed product stood before them.
The combat body looked like a tall, muscular white male—like a classic bodybuilding champion, minus the distended gut.
"Start-up sequence."
Berry gave the voice command. She couldn't wait to see her first combat unit come to life.
A soft charging hum filled the room—the nuclear battery in its chest powering up.
The bot's eyes flashed white.
Its head lifted.
It stood straight—like it had awakened.
It turned its head toward Berry and Viktor, who were watching nervously and excitedly. Its mouth twitched, as if trying to speak.
Then—
"Touch me, customer. I'll make you wetter than a river."
Berry froze, a black line forming across her forehead.
The bot stared with a stiff, seductive smile.
Viktor nearly doubled over, coughing from laughter.
She almost forgot—this guy's personality chip had been modified from a second-hand sex doll chip she'd bought on the cheap. Watching a tall, rugged hunk say something that sappy made Berry's skin crawl. She immediately waved her hand to reset it.
"Personality module reset."
The machine froze instantly upon receiving the command.
"Personality: set to male mercenary. Codename: 'Terminator'—Arnold."
Its eyes flashed. Reset complete. When it looked up again, its face was cold and merciless.
"Awaiting orders."
That's better. Berry let out a long breath, then shot an irritated stare at Viktor, who was still laughing.
"Old Vic, that was too much."
Hearing her complain, Viktor finally stopped laughing, rubbing his reddened face as he stood. "Sorry, Berry. It's just… I haven't seen something that funny in ages. I couldn't help myself."
"Heh. Yeah, sure." Berry rolled her eyes.
"But seriously, you're something else, Berry. Kang Tao has security robots too, but compared to yours, they're trash."
Done joking, Viktor looked up in genuine admiration at the two-meter-tall Arnold.
He simply couldn't imagine how Berry managed to build something so powerful in this basement. The shock hit him like watching a guy with a cybernetic arm take the prosthetic off and grow a flesh arm back—just that unbelievable.
"I told you, I'm going to be a legend in Night City. Gotta have some real skills to back that up." Arms crossed, Berry's face was full of pride.
"Right, Old Vic—let's work together. This one's just a prototype. I can build even stronger ones." She held out her small hand. "Your tech and my tech—just the two of us could rule Night City."
"Of course." Viktor didn't even think twice, smiling as he shook her hand. "It's been a long time since I've seen anything this interesting. I've got a feeling—you're going to change this city."
Viktor treated her like a proud father—happy to listen to her big dreams, eager to support her in doing what she wanted.
"Great!" Berry jumped with excitement. With a ripperdoc backing her, it'd be far easier to get rare materials and cyberware. She didn't trust others, but Old Vic—who'd saved V multiple times in the game—she trusted completely.
"I'm gonna start testing this chassis. Old Vic, wanna join?" she asked excitedly.
"Oh, spare me, Berry." Viktor laughed wearily and shook his head. "I'm getting old. Can't keep up like this."
She'd been busy all afternoon—it was already nightfall. He couldn't keep grinding like this. His butt was longing for his own chair.
"Fine." Berry let him go. "I'll contact you if I make progress."
Viktor nodded and left.
After seeing him out, Berry exhaled deeply and turned to Arnold. She pulled up the system—she would now pilot the chassis directly.
The automatic module could only handle limited tasks. If she wanted maximum performance, she needed to remote-control it herself.
This chassis was crafted by the system and ranked Rare. Aside from being strong, that rating meant she could directly control it through the system.
The system displayed that five points of Reflex were required to operate one chassis. Reflex determined how many she could simultaneously control without delay. She currently had fourteen points—enough for two chassis at once: her own body plus one chassis, or two chassis if she went into deep sleep.
Time to act. Berry closed her eyes, letting her mind link with the machine through the system's mysterious connection.
Night had fallen. Darkness shrouded the land, the industrial pollution staining the sky a grimy grey. In this age, forget seeing stars—you couldn't imagine how much joy that robbed from dreamers.
On the streets, pedestrians hurried along. Night was the best cover for things not meant to be seen. Ancient tales spoke of demons wandering at night; in Night City, the demons were gang goons and organ harvesters.
Night was prime time—for gang shootouts, for people looking for trouble, for those who didn't want to get robbed blind or knocked out and stripped for cyberware before being dumped into the sewers.
Cars and pedestrians alike moved with nervous urgency.
But there was one exception.
A man walked down the sidewalk—oddly calm.
Chest out, strolling the street like it was his backyard.
He stood around 2.2 meters tall, a tall white guy in strange protective gear. His body bulked out the outfit—clearly very muscular. Strange as he looked, no one dared mess with him.
This was Berry's combat mech under her control—"Terminator" Arnold.
After a round of tests, Arnold's reactions were great. Optical sensors, body control—all working perfectly.
Next: combat testing.
Shooting range? Outskirts?
No need.
At night, Night City was a paradise for criminals. Extortion and mugging everywhere. Just turn your head and you'd find gangsters with rap sheets a mile long—perfect targets.
After only two streets, Berry spotted a group of leather-jacket punks gathered together.
"...The hell? Where's the rest of the money? Your old man lost that much with us and you bring this crap?!"
In an alley, several thugs in biker leather cornered a short teenager.
Their sunglasses-wearing leader hurled insults while the kid kept his head down, taking it.
"Hey! I'm talking to you! Can't hear?!"
Angered by the kid's silence, the leader slapped him hard, knocking him to the ground.
"Get up!" He yanked the kid up and slapped him again and again. Soon the boy's face was swollen and bloody.
"Haha, Mike, you're beating him into a pig's head!"
"Look at that face, damn hilarious!"
The other punks howled with laughter.
Their laughter only fueled Mike's violence. Soon the kid's mouth and nose were streaming blood.
Mike, grinning viciously, wound up for another heavy slap—but suddenly, his arm wouldn't move, like an iron clamp held it in place.