"Damn! Damn!"

Masked Rider burst out of the inferno, scared out of his wits. Even the sheet wrapped around him had caught fire, making him look like a fiery human torch as he quickly tore it off and threw it to the ground.

He looked like a steamed shrimp, with steam rising from his entire body, his skin flushed red, and hot air puffing from his mouth.

"Get down, get down!"

Masked Rider hastily peeled off the little girl clinging to him like an octopus.

Then he saw the large group of players who had already reached the fire scene. Dressed in a bizarre array of clothes, they were a dense crowd, running against the stream towards the fire while everyone else fled. Among them were many multifunctional robots slated to go online in the next version.

One of them had just held up the collapsed first-floor entrance door.

Nishikawa Meishu, clutching her daughter, was crying tears of gratitude.

"Thank you... thank you..."

But Masked Rider could no longer hear this; his vision went dark, and he collapsed to the ground.

"Move aside, move aside."

A player from the Medical Department crowded through, quickly lifting Masked Rider onto a stretcher.

The resident touched his forehead and immediately recoiled from the heat.

"This guy's like medium-rare; there's no saving him."

This living person was truly holding on; even without instrumentation, the resident could see that Masked Rider was certainly beyond saving.

Total organ heat failure, all-over skin burns, and necrosis—at this body temperature, the brain couldn't survive. It was a miracle he managed to carry someone out of the fire.

After moving Masked Rider down, Lin Miao, standing on the car roof, was issuing commands to the players.

"Group one, clear flammable materials from nearby streets; we can't let the fire spread to the Kabuki District. Group two, organize supporters to evacuate the crowds, guide people to open spaces. Group three, maintain order, keep an eye on those gangs. If anyone dares to cause trouble or loot, shoot them on the spot..."

His orders were relayed methodically to each player's ears, with no intermediate steps. The players' responsiveness was astonishing; they didn't need Lin Miao to elaborate and swiftly sprang into action.

To control the fire, Lin Miao and the players turned out in force. They had initially planned to bring out robots slated for the next version only, but now they had emptied the warehouse.

Lucy, in the passenger seat, looked at the raging fire with concern, "Can we get the fire under control?"

"Control it?"

Lin Miao pinched his brow, his eyebrows nearly converging into one.

"What are you thinking? This is a district-wide fire, and there's no water. Even if we throw every life into it, we can't put it out. Multiply by ten and maybe..."

"So what do we do?"

Lucy's face fell upon hearing this, but she quickly regained her composure. She remotely guided two doorframe robots to brace the collapsing doors, allowing the robot inside to break free.

"You're not bringing them here to die, right?"

Lin Miao always had a plan. Whether through negotiation or threat, Lucy believed Lin Miao wouldn't undertake anything without confidence.

Lin Miao observed the drone footage; the human wall forming in front of Huang Ban's waterfront showed no intention of advancing.

Pereira was lobbying the city council, hoping to dispatch NCPD or military-tech squads to battle the fire, but Lin Miao knew it was futile.

"You can't count on those corporations. If the city council dared to ask them to provide water or manpower, they'd seize the chance to fleece them."

"The city council is a bunch of puppets, having neither power nor voice in front of them. If we want to put out the fire, we have to find another way."

"Using Night City's usual methods."

---------

Little Chinatown, Constitution Square

Rebirth Bar

Though the fire was unlikely to reach here anytime soon, the mercenaries drowning their sorrows couldn't help but watch the firestorm broadcasted on TV.

Even through the screen, they could almost smell the ash that could scorch a person.

"My God, how many people must have died in this..."

"Where's the NCPD? Aren't they usually great at chasing us? How come they're nowhere to be found when it matters?"

"You expect them?"

A mercenary pointed at the scene of Huang Ban's waterfront on TV, where NCPD patrol cars were lined up, their flashing red and blue lights creating a long stripe, preventing fleeing mobs from storming Huang Ban Corporation's assets.

"See that? It's all NCPD. You gonna ask them for an autograph?"

"Damn, a bunch of lapdogs! When it's time to get things done, they can't be relied upon."

"First day in Night City?"

Some mercenaries, infuriated, were tempted to draw their guns at the TV, but all weapons had been confiscated at the entrance. No one dared to act up on Rogers' turf, so they just quietly drank sullenly.

A mercenary suddenly pointed at the TV, "Hey, you see that? Looks like there's a company helping to fight the fire, too. I've never seen those robots before."

The footage, from Channel 54's helicopter, showed a clear view of door-frame, box-shaped robots working with people to dismantle homeless shanties and garbage heaps, as others evacuated those fleeing for their lives.

Though their numbers were dwarfed by the fire, their upstream struggle was strikingly conspicuous.

Some players were wearing tactical gear, instantly recognizable to the mercenaries who frequented the city.

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