In just a few minutes, those strange ones had flooded into the city, their faces looking innocent with no (guilty) expression, but Ezren didn't buy it.
The way they spoke was like they came from another planet, curious as if they'd never seen a streetlamp before, and they appear out of nowhere with a weird light — he had a feeling his suspicion was justified.
Then, suddenly, a few of them started chatting with a local.
Poor guy, clearly confused when a bunch of them gathered around him, looking like a gang about to settle scores.
But instead of demanding money or acting like the crazy ones around here — they just asked a few questions.
"Hey, old man, need any help?"
"Huh?"
After a heavy lag, he stuttered, "Uh… No, thanks…"
"Okay, bye then." And they scattered as if they had never existed.
The guy stood there, his soul out of his body, his mind like it had been formatted with no backup file.
Ezren kept watching, and the scene repeated itself.
Everyone was approached by these people asking random questions, then they'd leave.
He stood there, watching them stir things up but not knowing what to say, silently admiring their free time.
They are... Kinda safe?
No, don't be fooled by the cover of the book; what if they have some plan? It's best to stay on guard.
So, Ezren kept following, tracking their every step.
The players had no idea someone was following them, running around everywhere.
"This place is so weird, there are no quest-giving NPCs, just regular ones."
"But they talk pretty realistically, I keep thinking I'm talking to real people."
He silently appreciated the NPCs' AI as they wandered around aimlessly.
Some players started to get bored because they couldn't find any quest NPCs, so they looked for a way out of the starting area.
Others stayed behind, continuing to explore the area.
Ezren watched as people left the starting area to officially enter the city, thinking they made a pretty smart decision.
The place he was standing at was where underground organizations and gangs often gathered, and the locals always lived in constant fear of dying at any moment.
It was called Slum District No. 3.
"Hey... look at that kid," said a female player with short white hair, pointing at a skinny, frail boy lying on the ground.
"…This game has such a well-built world, it's hard to believe," said two other players who followed her, also staring.
"Well, Cyberpunk has to be dark and gritty to truly capture the Punk vibe, right?"
"But it's still sad. Should we help? Maybe it'll trigger some quest?" said the guy.
"You hypocrite! You just want to gain something from it, huh? Why don't you learn from the Helldiver 2 players?"
"Huh?? What right do you have to judge me??"
Seeing the two male players argue, the girl sighed.
Suddenly, the sound of a gunshot rang out, causing all the players to jump.
The locals rushed to their homes and quickly shut their doors, leaving the players confused.
"What's going on??"
"Is there an event happening??"
'So naive...' I thought to myself, watching them still standing there.
A gang dispute had broken out, and that was pretty normal.
Well, I hope they survive and realize this place is far from good.
Alright, here's the English translation:
---
And then, what was bound to happen, happened — the two gangs officially showed up, approaching from opposite ends of the alley.
The sound of hurried footsteps, then click-click — the crisp sound of guns being cocked rang out like the opening act of a bloody play.
Without a single word, both sides opened fire. Bullets flew like rain.
Some gang members let out a roar, and then crack crack — their arms transformed, revealing razor-sharp Mantis Blades reflecting the dazzling neon lights.
They charged at each other at insane speed — slashing, stabbing, shooting — a chaotic bloodbath right in the heart of the slums.
The players, who were just standing there staring at the weapons and gear of the gangs, could only gape in shock.
Everyone was overwhelmed, as if watching a top-tier cinematic scene.
BANG!
A stray bullet flew straight into a player's head, blood splattering the screen before her body collapsed without a sound.
"SHIT! She's dead!"
"What the fuck?! This is just the start???"
"No way?! Is this part of a quest?!"
Panic started spreading among the players. Another guy took a bullet to the chest, rolled on the ground in pain before dying for real.
"RUN!!! We're screwed!!!"
"No weapons, no gear, stop standing there!!!"
The group of players scattered like ducks hit by fireworks, running in every direction. No one could make sense of what was happening.
They had just entered this world — level 1, no items, no skills, nothing — and now they were smack in the middle of a real-life deathmatch.
Ezren stood on the roof of an old building, watching the chaos unfold below.
"...They seriously stood there watching a gang fight?"
I watched for a bit, then decided to leave.
I originally stayed to see what terrifying force had appeared here — turns out it was just some random idiots.
"Whatever, I still have bounties to hunt."
Just as I was about to leave, I noticed the guy who was called a hypocrite looking between the battling gangs and the child.
After hesitating, he ran to the child, picked him up, and started running.
"..."
Alright, he caught my attention.
I don't hate people who protect children, especially in situations this dangerous.
I don't care what their motives are for saving kids, but making that decision here... yeah, that impressed me.
"...Should I help? They seem like good people."
I don't want to get involved with gangs — it's a huge pain and puts your life at serious risk.
But the two gangs are fighting each other, and it has nothing to do with them, so... it's safe.
"Sigh... Guess I'll do a good deed for once. Who knows, maybe I'll get paid back someday."
I stretched, eyes serious as my mechanical gas mask covered half my face, leaving only my eyes exposed.
I checked the ammo in my clip in case some lunatic attacked, then scanned my surroundings.
My glowing red eyes lit up in the dark — the eyes of a wolf ready to step in and protect others.