Cyberpunk: Ultimate Cyborg System-Chapter 594: Black Skull. (Part Twenty Six)

Regulations had grown far too lax, and the food on the shelves of most stores reflected that. If the nutritional tables had not been removed from the packaging, anyone who could read would know that what is being sold to them wasn’t real food. It was nothing but worthless junk, yet people are still forced to pay for it.

Rose stared at the packed sandwich for a couple of seconds, feeling the growing void in her stomach. Turning away, going around the store, and looking at the other items. She packed the few she needed to take, then returned to the register, keeping her gaze down as she waited for her things to be scanned. A few seconds passed without the familiar beep, and when she looked up to check, the harsh eyes of the pudgy store clerk met hers. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

"Girl, you think I’m blind?"

Rose stared back at her with a neutral expression, which only seemed to anger this clerk more until she reached for the monitor in front of her, turning it around. The screen displayed a static image of the purple-haired girl grabbing two packed sandwiches.

"You see, we got one of them fancy AIs that track which items are picked from shelves, and who did the picking." The pudgy clerk pointed at the basket in front of her. "And check this out. I can’t seem to see the two sandwiches you picked in this photo."

Still maintaining a neutral expression, Rose said nothing for a while, then heaved a sigh. The line behind her should have made it difficult for the bitch to call her out, but apparently, the delay she might cause didn’t bother her in the slightest.

"So, what? Are you saying I stole them?" Rose asked.

"Who else!!?" The clerk shouted.

"Don’t know." Making a clear show of looking that fat bitch up and down, Rose replied. "Maybe you ate it when no one was looking. Well, you probably could’ve done it in front of our eyes, and no one would notice."

"Why you..."

"Now now, no need to make a fuss about this."

Just as it looked like the matter would blow up, someone stepped in to mediate between the two. Rose glared at him from the corner of her eye, causing him to flinch. The suit he wore seemed fancy for the area they were in, but one could always get something similar at a thrift store that doesn’t ask where its merchandise comes from. His clean face painted him as a sheltered normie who went through college and found a corporate job, and going by that nervous smile, he likely has yet to learn not to shove his nose where it doesn’t belong.

"Listen," he took out his phone and approached the register. "My lunch break is almost over, so how about I just pay for her stuff and call it a day? I will even throw in a nice tip."

Apparently, with the AI tracking the shoppers, there was little need to ring up the items they brought in. The total had already been calculated, including the two sandwiches that were in her bag.

The man placed a can of coffee and a pack of cigarettes into the basket, adding their price to the total. Before she could say anything, he tapped his phone into the terminal and paid for everything. Picking up his things, he turned to her with a smile, but Rose met him with a scowl.

’What an idiot...’

She had expected him to ask for something in return, but he ran out of the store without saying anything. Rose tried not to let it bother her, but his face kept popping into her mind as she ate in a desolate corner. She headed back to the doll house afterward, claiming that she needed to pick something up before going to work. While there, she dropped the plastic back she had kept inside her backpack onto the bunk above hers.

"Thanks..." A weak voice said. "I... I owe you...one..."

"Yeah, you owe me one," Rose replied, sounding a little annoyed. "So you must get better and pay me back."

The sun had already dipped, and the bars were getting full. Those with full pockets came out to play, and some were already looking for the right toy. Rose went to her usual place. The entire street was lined with hotels, some cheaper than the rest, but all used for the same reasons. Outside, a long line of women stood by the road, leaning on the rusty railing while keeping a small distance from each other. Some sat near the corners, others used the front steps of the shops that didn’t mind.

Though all of them were dressed rather casually, anyone who passed by the area regularly knew what they were there for. Some took the initiative, approaching the men passing by. Others waited to be approached. Rose was always a part of the latter group, but that had to change today. She had to double her earnings today, so the passive approach didn’t work for her anymore.

Seconds turned to minutes, but she didn’t move an inch from her spot. She couldn’t bring herself to move, and her mind went blank whenever she tried to imagine what needed to be done for there to be progress. In the end, she spent most of their time watching the more proactive girls, hoping to learn something from them. That was when a shadow fell at her feet, and when it didn’t move, she knew the time she dreaded had finally arrived.

"You... you’re the girl from this morning..."

The voice struck her like a lightning bolt, and she had to stop herself from looking up.

Her mind ran several thoughts at the same time, but she forced herself to filter them out quickly. If she took too long and something seemed, the skull-faced bastards would appear, and she would be in even more trouble than before.

Wiping the anxious look on her face, she took a deep breath and looked up at the man. He was wearing the same blue suit from earlier, carrying a brown briefcase in his right hand. He was undoubtedly returning from work, and his reasons for passing through this street were obvious.

"Don’t think I owe you anything for this morning," she said. "Nobody asked you to pay for that stuff, so you better not try."