Gearbound: Cyberpunk 2077-Chapter 119

{Name: Leo

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Personal Points: 110

Skills:

• Gun Maintenance LV5

• Blades Mastery LV5

• Firearms Mastery LV5

• Fitness LV5

• Dodge LV8

• Block LV5

• Throwing LV5

• Vehicle Driving LV5

• Eureka LV???

Leo had saved up these 110 points of Personal Points from previous jobs. He spent them all on [Dodge].

[Dodge LV8 → Dodge LV9, -10 Points ]

[Dodge LV9 → Dodge LV10, -100 Points ]

[You have attained Dodge LV10.]

[Modern Italian author Italo Calvino once proposed an intriguing theory in his writing process:

A lion pounces on a hunter, the hunter draws his bow, and for an instant, time seems frozen—like a movie still. It becomes an absolute sliver of time, a "Time Zero."]

[That concept was originally just a literary device. Yet in this era of advanced cybernetics, technology has made similar feats possible.]

[But could there be another way to achieve the same effect—tapping into human potential without relying on cyberware?]

[You have discovered the Talent: Time Zero.]

Time Zero?

Seeing the newly unlocked talent on his system interface, Leo felt his heart pound. He kept his composure outwardly, but inside, excitement surged.

He had planned to max out Dodge so that even if his neural reaction speed couldn't keep up with the Sandevistan, his body would instinctively move to evade. Because the Sandevistan's active window was very short—and since Jotaro Shobo's was the Zetatech MK.2 model, not the more advanced MK.4—its drawbacks were substantial. Jotaro Shobo had already used his implant twice that night; at best, he could probably only activate it one or two more times. Each activation required a cooldown of several dozen seconds. As long as Leo made use of that opening, finishing off Jotaro Shobo wouldn't be difficult.

That had been his strategy. What he never expected, though, was that pushing Dodge to LV10 would earn him an additional perk.

Did this mean he would get a perk every 10 levels?

Meanwhile, Jotaro Shobo checked on his own Sandevistan, realizing the cooldown was complete. Worried about any further surprises, he frowned impatiently.

"Hey, can we start now?"

...

V, Jackie, Lucy, and the Mox—including Susie—all withdrew from the office, giving Leo and Jotaro Shobo plenty of room for their duel. They stood with blades drawn, facing each other in silence.

Jotaro Shobo closed his eyes, then snapped them open a moment later.

Sandevistan—activate.

Time abruptly slowed to a crawl, as if the world were playing at one-tenth speed. Everyone else was frozen in place while Jotaro Shobo was free to move. Blades in both hands, he lunged like a predatory cat. Dust scattered underfoot, hanging in mid-air before his figure streaked forward like an arrow. He swung for Leo's neck with a gleaming silver arc. In Jotaro Shobo's mind, taking Leo's head was a trivial matter—almost too easy.

But in that instant, the unexpected happened. Leo, who should have been stuck in place, suddenly vanished. Alarmed, Jotaro Shobo crossed both swords in front of him on instinct.

Clang.

Sparks erupted on the steel. The impact from the strike was so great that Jotaro Shobo's knees slammed to the floor. He looked up in shock, meeting Leo's chilling gaze.

"You...did you install a Sandevistan too?"

"Nope. I'm fully human, no neural slots at all."

"That's impossible! A mere flesh-and-blood body can't keep up with a Sandevistan! You are messing with me!

"Interesting, isn't it? The human body."

Jotaro Shobo's expression twisted as he knelt. Suddenly, he jerked sideways, wrenching himself free of the deadlock. Spinning like a top, he lashed out with both swords, trailing silver arcs across the air. Leo, thrown off balance, should have been an easy target—anyone else would have been gutted right there. But Leo quickly drew the scabbard at his hip and used it as a makeshift shield.

Clang, clang, clang, clang!

Metal crashed against metal, sending a storm of sparks raining down. Each blow against the scabbard provided enough counterforce for Leo to recover from his forward momentum, letting him plant his feet and retreat a short distance. Then, at that exact moment, both Jotaro Shobo's Sandevistan and Leo's Time Zero ended simultaneously.

Reality resumed its normal pace.

Everyone else stood there, stunned. From their perspective, Leo and Jotaro Shobo had simply vanished the moment they squared off. They heard the clash of blades compressed into a few impossibly swift seconds, though they could scarcely follow it with the naked eye.

"What in the...?"

Their gazes darted between Jotaro Shobo and Leo. The Sandevistan explained how Jotaro Shobo could bend time. But what about Leo? Had he implanted a Sandevistan as well? A quick glance showed no signs of surgical modification to his back.

Those who knew Leo best—Jackie, V, and Lucy—exchanged bewildered looks. They were certain Leo never used cyberware. So how had he matched Jotaro Shobo's speed?

Regardless of what anyone thought, the entire crowd held its breath, fearful of disrupting the tense standoff. Jotaro Shobo assumed a two-sword stance, sweat beading on his face. He didn't dare lift a hand to wipe it away. Everything he had planned was unraveling before his eyes.

Some mercs did implant a Sandevistan, true. But Jotaro Shobo had never imagined this seemingly inexperienced young man could afford one. And if what Leo claimed was true—that he had no implant at all...did that mean raw human potential could keep up with Sandevistan speed?

Jotaro Shobo shook the thought from his mind. It was impossible—absolutely impossible. It had to be some trick of the eye, or, more likely, he was trying to mess with his mind.

He took a long breath, holding one katana horizontally before him in a standard grip while reversing the other and keeping it low behind him. Lowering his center of gravity, he lunged before the Sandevistan could finish cooling down.

Jotaro Shobo, known as the "Devil of Kabuki," wasn't feared just because of his position. He wasn't some desk-bound suit barking orders from behind a screen—he was muscle, reflexes, and killing instinct, all wrapped in chrome and ego. If he weren't running with the Tiger Claws, he could've made a name for himself on the streets as a mercenary. A good one. The kind that crews built themselves around.

He swept both blades near the floor, aiming at Leo's legs with ruthless precision instead of targeting his torso or head. Two silver arcs lashed out, swift and deadly, and Leo was forced to retreat step by step.