{Alley outside Misty's Esoterica, Watson, Night City}

...

I felt my movements shift slightly as I walked into Misty's shop; maybe the change was more noticeable because my movements were no longer restricted. Still, the weakness in my legs remained, likely due to an infection. With the new knowledge, I was aware of the change in my gait. It was small, but my footsteps sounded less as I opened the door to Misty's shop.

The familiar sound of windchimes entered my ears as my eyes focused on a concerned-looking Misty rushing toward me. She helped me stand up. I put my arm around her shoulders and asked, "Nooa, what happened? You look so pale and weak?"

'Right, I didn't check the mirror before leaving,' I thought as I sighed. The breath that escaped me made me shudder as Misty noticed it.

"Come on, let's get you fixed up," Misty said as her eyes glowed blue. The reason behind that became apparent as she supported me to the back door. Vik emerged from his office and froze briefly, contemplating something before his eyes went toward the right side.

I expected the area to be swarming with cops, but there were none. Still, it seems like Vik was quite aware of what had happened and was already coming to some conclusions of his own. As I was getting the story straight in my head, I felt his strong arm wrap around my right hand as both of them helped me down the stairs.

My body started failing slightly as notifications of more distress started swarming the top side of my vision.

'Body temperature increasing... O2 stats are going down... Adrenaline levels spiking...' I read through the notifications as I felt Vik lay me on his clinic chair.

"Alright, kid. I got you. Just rest, okay?" Vik spoke. There was a hint of hurry in his voice as he went through the computer panels attached to the chair.

I nodded in reply; the sudden wave of distress passed now that I was lying down; it seemed like walking and standing up straight was the reason behind my worsening condition. As my breathing eased, I felt something cold attach to my arm; I looked down to see Vik inject me with something, likely an anesthetic.

"Misty, can you turn... everyone that-" Vik's voice droned out before I closed my eyes and lost consciousness.

...

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{Vik's Clinic, Watson, Night City}

{4 Hours later}

...

Sounds of punches and ringing bells were the first thing I heard. The mechanical whirling of robotic limbs or something else followed as I opened my eyes. The warnings were still there, but the notification that sprang up in front of me did help me calm down.

...

[Abnormal Status condition Lost {Infection}]

...

"Hey kid, how ya feeling?" Vik asked as he slid his chair toward me. I looked down at the mechanical syringes and other components working on my abdomen. They seemed to be closing the wound.

"A-a-" I coughed; my throat was parched. He nodded as he swirled his chair back and grabbed a bottle of water from his table. I reached out to take the offered solution and gulped down a significant portion.

"It's alright. Everything went fine, and you don't need to worry straight away. Just rest for a bit, and here, inhale this," Vik spoke as he presented a familiar inhaler with the words Max-Doc printed on its side.

"Thank you," My words were a little hoarse, but I pressed the inhaler to my mouth and pumped it from the top. The cold medicine rushed through my body, and pretty soon, I could feel a tingling sensation at the tip of my fingers and my abdomen as a dull pain returned. The mechanical limbs working on my pain retracted as the exposed area started to scab over.

'Accelerated healing, likely with the help of nanobots that are present in the Max-Doc,' I mused.

Vik opened the tablet and checked over it a few times before reaching over and jacking the connection out from behind my ear.

"Did the NCPD knock on your door?" he asked, avoiding eye contact. His gaze was still fixed on the tablet. I looked at him for a moment before shaking my head.

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"Good, I checked the database; the signs of violence were there, but due to insufficient evidence, the case was closed. If you weren't followed, then everything would work out." Vik spoke, his tone a little stiff.

"There were three of them..." I spoke after a while, "...likely from a gang. They followed me when I walked out of the shop and followed me to the alley when I did a loop around."

My words caused him to look up. His eyes searched my face briefly before he nodded, "I know how many there were. What I don't understand is why they were after you. Yesterday, you didn't seem like the type to get mixed in with the gangs..."

"I'm not," I denied quickly, " I recognized the leader or whoever was in charge of the group, or maybe he was one of the members, I don't know. But I saw him killing someone in the building, and I think he noticed me, too. The ambush yesterday likely was to tie up a loose end."

Vik sighed. He said nothing for a few moments before changing the topic, "Well, here's the sitch. I looked over the bullet that you had been carrying. It was tier-1, explaining why you felt that just the Max-Doc would do. But a word of caution in the future: if the bullet is still inside your body, then using a Max-Doc is a bad idea. When you used one yesterday, the nanobots started healing the damage caused by the shot. Which caused the bullet to remain inside your body as it healed the damaged tract. You were physically fit except for the fact that the bullet was lodged inside your left kidney."

"My kidney?" I asked, paling slightly at his words.

"Don't worry, everything's fine. You likely went to sleep, which allowed the Max-Doc to heal your damaged kidney. The problem was that it sealed the bullet into newly healed cells, which resulted in an infection. Plus, when you woke up and came here due to your fever, the newly added weight caused your kidney to distend, which forced your body into severe shock and flaring of respiratory distress." Vik's words felt now more like a doctor. His words made sense, but a sense of discontinuation surrounded the whole situation.

He sighed and continued, "Look, kid, I'm sorry about the frosty tone earlier. I just don't treat gangbangers in here."

"It's okay, Vik. I appreciate the rescue," I sighed and leaned into the chair, clearing my head a little bit. I hadn't realized that the pain and fever had been keeping me from processing the situation.

'I almost died if that bullet had gone anywhere else... hell, I don't even know how I survived. I thought everything would be okay after using the Rest function of the system, and given that the CDPR system can change my body and increase my strength so easily, I thought it would work. I would go to sleep, and by the time I woke up, it would be over...'

Yesterday, I treated my injuries like a game. I took a healing potion and then went to rest in the safe zone. Somehow, the system had given me the misconception that this wasn't reality, along with the dystopian world I was familiar with.

But the pain was a powerful tool, the kind that I felt yesterday, no matter how dim it got after I got the cold-blooded skill, is the easiest way to quantify my new reality.

'I'm in a fictional world where NPCs like Vik are more than just a set line of codes. Bullets are real, and I can't Ninja dodge my way through it. Resting won't heal if I'm injured, and I can't wait for my health to restore while fighting a boss and then jumping back into the fight...'

"You said the bullet was Tier-1," I turned to Vik, who was looking at me with a distant expression.

"Yes, I don't know if it was a blessing or a curse. If the bullet were made out of a stronger material, then it would have gone through your body, then with one dose of Max-Doc, you would be fine..." He shook his head.

"What kind of armor, the subdural kind, would you think would have stopped the bullet?" I asked. Since Vik was an expert in cybernetics, asking and probing for his opinion was the best choice.

"Well, subdural armor is a cyberware, not a type of cyberware. If you are looking for things like that, your best bet is something from the Integumentary system. These types of cyberware can be both cosmetic, like the chrome skin implant, or more combat-focused, like the subdural armor." Vik replied he continued, "As for stopping a common Tier-1 bullet, the most basic of subdural armor would have stopped it, and you would be left with flesh wound of broken skin."

I nodded. Till now, defenses hadn't been on my mind. I had been seduced by more technologically advanced methodologies to attack, stealth, blades, guns, and even something like Quickhacks. But protection against similar rouge agents in the environment hadn't occurred to me even though I had been paranoid about stepping a single foot outside my apartment.

I guess the harsh reality that this isn't a game was needed.

"What about a Tier-3 bullet? What kind of subdural armor would stop that?" It likely won't work against the corps, but at least it would save my life in most of the common occasions that happen in Night City. These were the highest-grade bullets that I could buy. Plus, it's not like I can upgrade my implants through the Cyberware interface. Buying and trusting a Ripperdoc was my only choice.

"A Tier-3 bullet, that's military-grade stuff..." Vik spoke pensively, "Look, kid, the higher Tier stuff is not classified as military grade simply for fancy purposes or to increase their sales. Most people are not able to handle Military grade implants and descend into cyberpsychosis. From what I have seen, you have a higher tolerance to Cyberware, so a couple of high-grade implants wouldn't do you too much harm. However, high-grade subdural armor is still a risk. It could overwhelm your nerves and your operating system."

Vik's words made sense, but I knew that even if most of the game-like functions didn't work—hell, I didn't even have a level-up bar like in the game—my Cyberware capacity stat indicated that I would be okay as long as I didn't go past that number.

"I know, Vik. Just tell me. I'm not asking for a mantis blade or anything fancy," I reasoned, and Vik nodded.

"Well, most of the tier system is quite bogus, but it is quite accurate for the ammo and iron. To have a full guarantee of stopping a Tier-3 bullet made from grade 3 materials, one needs at least a Tier-4 grade armor, which is once again military-grade territory and unavailable in the open market. Hell, I don't have it, and through my time running this clinic, I had worked with it a total of 2 times; both times, the client brought it from the black market. That would be your best bet as well..." Vik replied.

His words painted a picture that made me realize that just because I wanted to work on my defense, it wouldn't be so easy.

"How much will it probably cost me, even in the black market?" I asked, preparing for a big number.

"Around 40-60k eurodollars..." Vik shrugged.

...