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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
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Amon’s defense of his life began, a defense on which his very existence hinged.
He started by explaining in detail why he had gone to the red-light district in the first place, and the process of infiltrating the building.
“So, I had to cross-dress because… I had to approach the chairman’s son, you see?”
“W… Wait… You didn’t… your body…!”
There was a minor issue where Sonia worried about Amon’s purity, but the misunderstanding was cleared up without any significant fuss.
‘Even in cyberpunk, some things are just not done.’
Amon had very conventional sexual preferences.
He had absolutely no intention of doing that kind of thing with a man.
No matter the greater good, never, he swore to Mother Goddess, would he ever think of doing such a thing.
After Amon’s desperate defense, Sonia was able to clear up several misunderstandings.
Misunderstandings about Amon having an affair, about his virginity – once these were cleared up, Sonia’s face brightened a little.
‘Now’s my chance!’
Amon instinctively felt that this was the perfect time to negotiate.
Right after the misunderstandings were resolved, while Sonia was in a slightly better mood, this was the golden opportunity to delight her with even better news.
He rode the momentum and told her about the spoils he had obtained from this incident.
He explained how the money from shaking down the Higzen Group meant they didn’t have to worry about money anymore.
The orphanage wouldn’t have to worry about meat ever again.
They could also expect upgrades thanks to the high-end equipment he’d lifted from the Higzen Group.
Amon diligently preached to Sonia about the rosy future that lay ahead of them.
Despite his explanations, however, Sonia’s face didn’t brighten any further.
On the contrary, she seemed to be angry for some reason.
While Amon was bewildered, Sonia murmured softly.
“Idiot..”
“Huh?”
“Is that what’s important, you idiot!? Look at what happened to you!”
Sonia pulled back the blanket and pointed to Amon’s side.
Looking at the burn scar, new skin growing but not yet fully healed, Sonia raged.
“That money, those gadgets, what do they matter!? You got hurt! You almost died! How can those things be important! We don’t need that money!”
Amon was subdued by her words.
He couldn’t bring himself to say, “But it was a lot of money.”
If Sonia had done something as reckless as he had, he would have felt the same way.
Of course, in this dangerous world, dangerous actions were sometimes unavoidable.
But. Even so.
No matter how harsh the world became, no matter how values shifted, the feeling of concern for loved ones remained unchanged everywhere.
“…Sorry.”
That was all Amon could say.
He couldn’t help but reflect.
Perhaps he had been thinking of this reality as a game.
The fact that he had viewed the world with a gamer’s mindset, forgetting that he had precious people beside him, constricted his heart.
“Next time…”
Next time, I won’t do it.
The words Amon was about to utter caught in his throat.
He couldn’t say it.
The path he was on could never be safe.
Besides, considering the gorilla incident and this incident, he couldn’t guarantee that his life would be smooth sailing from now on.
As someone who valued the weight of his words, Amon couldn’t bring himself to promise that he wouldn’t do it again.
He couldn’t promise Sonia safety.
His lips were tightly sealed.
With his mouth shut, he searched his mind for a promise he could whisper to her.
Just then, Sonia spoke first.
“I’m not saying don’t do it again.”
Amon met Sonia’s eyes at her words.
Then what does she want me to say?
As Amon thought this, Sonia looked at him with moist eyes and said,
“Next time you do something like this, take me with you. You said I could rely on you. So let’s go together. I won’t be a burden, please.”
At her words, Amon couldn’t help but chuckle.
‘Was it me who lacked trust?’
He had confessed his love to her because she was the most trustworthy person in the world.
Yet, he had tried to handle this entire incident alone.
Despite having such a reliable companion.
With a bitter expression, he nodded slowly.
“Okay. I understand.”
Amon embraced Sonia.
Sonia carefully embraced Amon back.
And naturally, their lips met.
The sweetness of love was incomparable to painkillers.
In the room, still tinged with a pinkish hue, Sonia couldn’t help but ask the question that had been on her mind.
“So, how much did you get?”
“About this much?”
Amon manipulated his phone and showed her the contract file.
She started counting the numbers Amon showed her.
“One, two, three, four… six!? A hundred thousand dollars?”
Amon nodded.
One hundred thousand dollars per year.
An amount that would steadily accumulate in his account just by breathing.
An annual salary that put him near the upper echelon of the American middle class. Among Sonia and Amon’s peers, it would probably easily put them in the top 10 percent. Of course, it was a paltry sum for a MegaCorp payout…
‘But there are other uses for it.’
There was a reason for negotiating the payout down this far.
Something he couldn’t compromise on for his dream…
Amon stopped his thoughts there and focused on Sonia.
Hearing the amount, Sonia covered her mouth and said,
“I take back what I said about not needing it.”
Amon burst into laughter at her words.
“Bwahaha- Cough! Hack!”
The price of laughing, forgetting his side wound, was intense. The pain, which he thought had subsided, surged from the depths of his gut. As Amon gasped for breath from the dizzying pain, Sonia fussed, thinking he was dying. A nurse, urgently called in by the nurse call button, looked at the foolish couple with a cold stare. This incident, however, wasn’t particularly important.
After that, Sonia packed her belongings from the church and began to nurse Amon around the clock.
“Aaah~”
“Ahh~ Om nom nom”
Amon ate the ‘real’ pork that Sonia fed him.
How long had it been since he’d tasted real meat!
Beautiful marbling, firm texture, that distinct odor that couldn’t be eliminated no matter what!
His entire body rejoiced at the cholesterol flowing through his veins after so long.
This was one of the terms of his deal with the $3 Group.
Nothing more, nothing less, 100g of real pork, different cuts every month.
Even in a world where real pork was rare, it was questionable why he would reduce the payout to add this to the deal. Considering the reduced payout, he could have just bought it himself.
Moreover, it wasn’t just any pork.
[Various cuts. Must include pork belly.]
The Archbishop of the Vatican, who acted as Amon’s intermediary, was also perplexed.
“Pork belly? What’s that?”
When told it was the belly meat, he was even more bewildered.
“The part used for bacon? But why, when there’s tenderloin???”
He couldn’t understand Amon’s thinking in reducing the quantity of sirloin or tenderloin and choosing pork belly instead.
Furthermore, Amon had specifically requested that it not be thinly sliced like bacon, but sent whole.
Upon hearing this, the chairman of the $3 Group also wondered.
“By any chance… is that legendary paladin… Korean?”
The Archbishop didn’t answer the chairman, as if he wouldn’t even give out that fragmented piece of information, but he, too, suspected it for logical reasons.
In any case, the deal was struck with pork as a condition, and the company agreed to send Amon 300g of various cuts of meat every month.
Why 300?
“Because it’s the $3 Group, after all.”
The chairman wanted to stick to the “3” and sent that much. He said the unit price worked out since it included the pork belly, which they didn’t use anyway. The fact that they would send it in weekly installments to prevent spoilage was a bonus.
Thus, Amon was able to occasionally eat real meat that enriched his blood vessels instead of healthy hospital food.
This week it was pork neck, next week tenderloin, the week after that sirloin…
Sonia watched Amon with a satisfied look.
“Didn’t you say you couldn’t eat it because of the smell?”
“Not anymore. Here, aaah.”
“Aaah.”
Amon even shared his precious once-a-week meat with Sonia.
She also learned from this incident that Amon couldn’t eat synthetic meat simply because he hated bugs. She found his pickiness endearing. So the two of them enjoyed their weekend feast.
However, there was something Amon regretted.
‘Damn, I want some samgyeopsal.’
Originally, samgyeopsal (pork belly) had been his main objective, but he couldn’t eat it at the hospital.
The smell wasn’t the issue. Sonia cooked the meat outside and brought it in sealed, and Amon had a private room anyway.
There was only one reason why Amon couldn’t eat samgyeopsal.
‘Damn the West. Damn cyberpunk.’
The meat was ready.
But other things were missing.
Ssamjang (Korean dipping sauce), garlic, lettuce wraps, and so on.
These were elements Amon had overlooked.
No matter how much he craved samgyeopsal, it was a bit difficult to eat it raw.
‘I’ll have to go to Koreatown after I’m discharged.’
According to his internet search, he could somehow get ssamjang and garlic at the upscale grocery store there.
‘They say it’s incredibly expensive.’
Still, he planned to go since it was available.
Thinking such thoughts, Amon accepted the hamburger Sonia fed him.
Gazing wistfully at the pork belly slowly rotting in the corner of the freezer, Amon survived another day in cyberpunk.
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