Cyberpunk: Ultimate Cyborg System

Chapter 696: Seek An Audience.

Dante felt the wind blow over his face as he looked at the overhead lights. A clawed hand had just passed above him, and it would’ve ripped his head off had he not leaned back to dodge. Letting his body follow the motion, he bent back until his hands were on the floor, then tucked his legs in before launching himself like a spring.

His feet sank into his opponent’s stomach, launching him several meters in the air, but the bastard was quick to recover, flipping midair and landing on his feet, taking off running right away.

’Tough bastard...’

Though he ran at first, the werewolf lowered his stance and kicked the ground, lunging from one corner of the arena to the other. He vanished from Dante’s sight again and again, moving at a speed that was difficult to follow even with perception enhanced to the max. Still, his moves were far too predictable, and so his next attack was easily evaded.

"You keep using your claws," Dante evaded another swipe. "It’s almost like you’re trying to rip me apart."

"That’s something only those with flesh have to worry about!" Wolf replied.

Another swipe came down, but Dante’s left hand shot out in time, parrying it away. Pulling it back, he slid his right foot forward and clenched his fist, swinging at the exposed werewolf. Raising his leg, the werewolf caught the fist with his foot, bending his knee to absorb the blow. It still sent him flying, though. This time, he ended up hitting the cage, unable to recover before then.

Dante was already upon him before his feet could reach the floor. He lunged with his right fist, pulled back, ready to deliver a heavy blow. Reaching up, Wolf grabbed onto the cage and pulled himself up. He launched himself in the air, landing on the other side of the arena. However, instead of attacking right away, he came to a stop, panting as he glared in Dante’s direction.

"I guess it’s about time we take a break," Dante said.

Thirty-eight minutes had passed since the start of their sparring session, and through those thirty-eight minutes, the two of them had been moving nonstop, their reflexes and perception enhanced to the max. There was no winner this time, but if one were to count the number of hits that landed, Dante was in the lead by a mile.

Dropping to the floor, the werewolf let his shoulders drop as his maw spread wide, sucking in all the air he could.

"You gotta work on your stamina," Dante said.

Wolf gave him a look that seemed to say, "go fuck yourself," then went back to his attempt at catching his breath. Soon after, his transformation came undone, which revealed all the bruises Dante had left on his body. They didn’t last for long, though. In less than a minute, the purplish blue spot vanished, and the white-haired bastard was back in top shape.

The door to the cage opened, and in came Oliver, carrying a bottle of water in each hand. One was much larger than the other, which he handed to the werewolf. He gave the other one to Dante. Taking it, Dante twisted the cap off and took a few gulps, then turned to the hero and watched him own the whole four-liter bottle in one go.

"You want another round?" Dante asked. "Or should we get something to eat first?"

"At least let me rest a little," Wolf grumbled. "I’m not a machine, you know?"

Noticing Oliver glance his way, Dante gave him a silent order to shut his mouth.

"So, I couldn’t help but notice you were in a little rush earlier," Dante said. "Did you want to spar with me that much?"

"Not really," Wolf replied. "You were the one who took a stance first."

"Well, I have been looking for people to spar with."

Tossing his bottle to Oliver, Dante dropped to the floor and crossed his legs. Taking a deep breath, he pressed the tips of his fingers together.

"I’ll be out for a minute." He said. "If things start to get weird, wake me up."

It was rare to have a sparring session that good, so Dante wanted to use that opportunity to try and see if he could get closer to manifesting his soul. Isolating his senses with a hero nearby sounded like a really bad idea, but Dante didn’t care all that much.

Before long, he was floating in the darkness, all of his thoughts having halted. He waited, and waited, but nothing changed. He was sure something should have happened by then, but there was nothing.

"What’s up with the frown?

The question met Dante soon after he opened his eyes. Heaving a sigh, Dante shook his head.

"It’s nothing."

For some reason, he felt that his progress had rolled back a few steps, and to make things worse, he seemed to have forgotten where to go from here.

’This is what I get for wasting a whole week...’

Though he tried to strain his mind, Dante couldn’t figure out what he had forgotten. His frustration only grew the longer he tried, soon turning into anger. Heaving a sigh, he decided to put it in the back of his mind for now.

"By the way, where is Sunshine? She didn’t come with you today?"

The last two times the hero visited, his orange-haired teammate had accompanied him. She didn’t seem to be around this time, however.

"Merry... she had a few things to take care of," Wolf replied. "To be honest, we thought you wouldn’t show up today as well, since you seemed to be avoiding us."

"If I didn’t want you around, I wouldn’t have invited you here in the first place," Dante said.

He wanted someone other than Riot to spar with, and Oliver needed different opponents to advance his training.

"I was told he’s your disciple." Wolf glanced up at the blond youth. "Are you running a dojo?"

Dante snorted.

"I taught him because I felt like it, that’s all."

And Dante didn’t plan on teaching anyone else.

"That’s a shame," Wolf said. "I’m sure a lot of people would’ve loved to learn from you."

"Not really."

The reply came from Oliver, and he quickly turned away, realizing he had messed up.

"I guess you can talk now," Dante said, getting up. "How about we resume your training?"

As his blond underling visibly shivered, the door to the first floor opened, drawing their attention. Seeing that it was Carlos, Dante couldn’t help but get a bad feeling.

"Boss, got a moment?" He asked, looking troubled.

’Something happened?’

[It seems strangers have appeared at your door.] Volcan brought up a screen. It showed a number of Red Demons surrounding three individuals in trench coats. Considering they were at the heart of summer, those coats clearly weren’t meant to keep them warm.

"I’ll be there in a moment."

Heaving a sigh, Dante turned to his blond underling, who seemed about done sighing in relief, then to the white-haired hero.

"Mind giving him a beating in my stead?"

"Wha- Boss!!?"

"And don’t hold back. He can take Level 3s at this point."

Leaving the pale Oliver and the confused Wolf in the hexagonal cage, Dante went up to deal with what he assumed was going to be a pain in the ass. He sent a message instructing the Inferno members blocking the stranger’s path, telling them to disperse. By the time he got to the dance floor, he saw the uninvited visitors standing near the entrance.

As he arrived before them, Dante realized they were a little bit bigger than the average human. Each seemed to have a distinct face, but he could tell they were nothing but masks, even without Volcan telling him.

"You want something to drink first?" He asked. "Or are you gonna say what you came here for?"

Staring him down, the first of the three spoke.

"We will take the drink."

That was an unexpected turn of events, but not an unwelcome one. Guiding them to the VIP section on the second floor, he sent their orders as they sat down. Soon after, Lissa came over with the drinks, and each of the three strangers took theirs and drank as if nothing odd about the situation.

[Level 4 Ascended Cyborgs.] Volcan said. [They are carrying quite the heavy firepower.]

’Well, so much for them not making trouble since the start.’

"Since you came all the way here, I’m guessing you already know who I am," Dante said. "So, care to introduce yourselves?"

"I’m GSS U12." The first one said. "To my left is GSS U13, and to my right is GSS U14."

"Those names don’t sound very human," Dante said.

"They are titles our employer issues to represent our position."

"And that employer is..."

"Gaia Industries."

"Gaia, huh?" Dante said. "What does a big corp like that want from a small gang like ours?"

"We are aware that the Inferno organization has a connection to the entity named Ghost." GSS U12 said. "We seek an audience with them, and thus we seek your help to that end."