As V strolled through the neon-lit Japantown, her eyes sought refuge in the intricate kanji characters, attempting to distract herself from Johnny's ceaseless chatter about his past life. Joytoys delicately touched her shoulder, offering their services for the night, but she found herself entirely uninterested for the moment. The rains in Night City seemed to be attempting to cleanse the dirt of this sewer city.

Valerie felt a strange sadness, a sentiment long forgotten amid the raids, missions, and other nonsense that had become a part of her life. This emotion was felt the day the Arasaka Corporation threw her away like a puppy. Being part of a corruption machine was already a death sentence, albeit in the past. Her hands will never be clean.

She felt this acutely when she lost her best friend, Jackie. V was still mourning him. Perhaps that's why she began to regard her unwelcome acquisition of schizophrenia in the form of Johnny as her only close 'friend.'

So, delving into her thoughts, Valerie walked without a goal, merely heading towards some eatery to devour a large portion of soba before bed. She turned the corner, but—

There was a quiet, painful squeak and splash as a person crashed into her and fell into a puddle. Not that she cared about the condition of the fallen, but the optical implants began to scan them with precision.

“Watch your step, idiot! Are you blind, or what?” a rough female voice came from above them. She seemed to be really in a bad mood today.

However, she reached out her hands and grabbed them by the shoulders, sharply lifting them up. V’s gaze lingered on the person's face, studying the pink-purple colors of neon playing on their features. Sighing, she finally relented.

“Sorry, I am just lost in thought.”