I Fought the Law

Key takeaways

The mission rewards careful observation more than raw firepower.

• Meet the Peralezes The opening conversation at the Peralez residence explains why the official account of Lucius Rhyne's death is being questioned and gives V access to the investigation.
• Work with River Ward River is the mission's investigative partner. This is the first major step in his character arc and opens the way to later River Ward content.
• Inspect the evidence Braindance analysis and surveillance clues provide the link between the mayor's death and the events at Red Queen's Race. Do not treat the mission as a simple shootout.
• Choose how much to reveal The final conversation with the Peralezes lets V decide how directly to describe the disturbing conclusion. This affects the tone of the immediate aftermath and later contact.

I Fought the Law

I Fought the Law is a detective-style side mission in Cyberpunk 2077, built around the suspicious death of Night City's mayor and the Peralez family's concern that the official explanation is incomplete.

Elizabeth Peralez contacts V to ask for help investigating the death of Mayor Lucius Rhyne. She and her husband, Jefferson Peralez, do not trust the conclusion that the mayor died from natural causes, so they invite V to their apartment in Charter Hill and present the case as a private investigation rather than a conventional combat contract. The opening establishes the Peralez family, their political position, and the mission's central question without requiring V to accept a simple answer.

The investigation leads V to River Ward, an NCPD detective who has his own reasons for doubting the official account. The mission shifts between conversation, braindance analysis, vehicle travel, surveillance, and an infiltration of a hostile location associated with the Animals. Players can approach parts of the investigation with stealth, direct combat, or dialogue, but the evidence-gathering sequence remains important because it connects the mayor's death to a larger and more troubling conspiracy.

I Fought the Law is also the starting point for River Ward's personal mission chain. Its immediate case reaches a conclusion, but the information uncovered here is deliberately unsettling rather than fully explained. The closing conversations and follow-up contact are significant for later content, especially if V chooses to remain engaged with the Peralezes' situation. This page discusses the investigation and its consequences while avoiding a full account of the later mission chain.

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Where this sits

Requirements

Complete the required story progression and answer Elizabeth Peralez's call when the mission becomes available.

• RequiredComplete Life During WartimeThe mission is offered after this main-story mission. Availability can also depend on allowing the relevant in-game call to reach V.
• RequiredTravel to the Peralez residenceThe investigation begins at the Peralez apartment in Charter Hill. V must be able to reach the meeting location and enter the conversation sequence.
• RecommendedPrepare for a hostile infiltrationThe Red Queen's Race section can involve combat with Animals. Weapons, healing items, quickhacks, and a stealth plan are all useful, although no single build is mandatory.

Objectives

1. Meet Elizabeth and Jefferson PeralezGo to the Peralez residence and listen to their account of Lucius Rhyne's death.
2. Examine the braindance evidenceReview the recording and use its visual, audio, and thermal information to identify useful clues.
3. Meet River WardJoin the detective and compare his concerns with the evidence supplied by the Peralezes.
4. Investigate Red Queen's RaceFollow the trail to the club and search the site for information connected to the mayor's death.
5. Report back to the PeralezesReturn to the clients and decide how openly V will discuss the conclusion of the investigation.

Walkthrough

1. 01

   Begin the Peralez investigation

   Answer Elizabeth Peralez's call

   After the prerequisite story progress, Elizabeth contacts V about a private matter. Accepting the invitation starts the mission and adds the Peralez residence as the meeting location; ignoring the call does not provide any investigative information.

   Location: Night City

   TipMake a manual save before entering the meeting if you want to compare the later dialogue options.

2. 02

   Meet Elizabeth and Jefferson Peralez

   Go to the Peralez residence

   Travel to the Peralez apartment in Charter Hill and enter the building through the available entrance. The meeting is conversation-led, so take time to exhaust the dialogue before leaving rather than treating the objective marker as a quick handoff.

   Location: Charter Hill

   Watch outLeaving the meeting before the briefing is complete can delay the next objective until the mission updates.

3. 03

   Learn why the death is being investigated

   Discuss Lucius Rhyne's death

   Speak with Elizabeth and Jefferson about the mayor's death and the reasons they reject the official explanation. Their account establishes the case's political stakes and points V toward the evidence they want examined.

   Location: Peralez residence

4. 04

   Analyze the mayor's death

   Review the braindance

   Use the braindance sequence to inspect the recording rather than watching it passively. Switch between the available analysis modes and scan the scene for visual, audio, and thermal details that can clarify what happened.

   Location: Peralez residence

   TipIf a clue is not immediately obvious, move the playback position and rescan the relevant section in each available layer.

5. 05

   Continue the investigation

   Leave the residence and follow the new lead

   Once the braindance discussion is complete, leave the apartment and follow the updated objective. River Ward becomes the field contact for the case, so keep the mission active while travelling to the meeting point.

   Location: Charter Hill

6. 06

   Join River Ward

   Meet River Ward

   Find River at the designated meeting point and speak with him about the case. His NCPD experience gives the investigation a second perspective and turns the Peralez request into an on-site operation.

   Location: Night City

   TipUse the conversation to learn River's position before rushing to the next marker; this is the mission's main introduction to him.

7. 07

   Reach the investigation site

   Travel with River

   Ride with River toward the location connected to the investigation and listen to the conversation during the journey. The trip provides context for his suspicions and leads into the search of Red Queen's Race.

   Location: Night City

8. 08

   Investigate the club

   Approach Red Queen's Race

   Arrive at the club and assess the exterior before entering. The site is controlled by hostile Animals, and V can use cover, hacking, stealth, or direct gunfire depending on the chosen approach.

   Location: Red Queen's Race

   Watch outEntering openly can start a large fight. Check the approaches and nearby cover before crossing into the guarded area.

9. 09

   Find evidence inside the facility

   Enter the facility

   Make your way inside Red Queen's Race through the available route and advance toward the investigative objective. Search rooms as you go, because the useful evidence is tied to the facility rather than the approach road.

   Location: Red Queen's Race

   TipQuickhacks and stealth takedowns can reduce the number of Animals you face at once, while a direct assault is safer when your build is prepared for close combat.

10. 10

    Reach the evidence

    Deal with the Animals

    Clear or evade the hostile gang members guarding the interior and continue through the club. The encounter is not a named boss fight, but the confined spaces can make several enemies dangerous when they converge.

    Location: Red Queen's Race

    Watch outDo not sprint past every enemy without checking the objective area; combat or detection can continue until the relevant interior section is secured.

11. 11

    Recover the relevant evidence

    Search for the surveillance lead

    Inspect the marked interior area and interact with the available terminal, recording, or other investigative point when prompted. The evidence reveals that the mayor's death is connected to activity at the club and gives River a stronger basis for his theory.

    Location: Red Queen's Race

    Missable
12. 12

    Understand what happened

    Confront the investigation's conclusion

    After the evidence is secured, follow River through the final investigation sequence and listen to the explanation of what the recording implies. The mission deliberately leaves the wider conspiracy unresolved, so the scene functions as a revelation rather than a complete case closure.

    Location: Red Queen's Race

    Checkpoint
13. 13

    Report the findings

    Return to the Peralezes

    Travel back to the Peralez residence and report what V and River discovered. The clients want a clear explanation, but the information is disturbing enough that V must decide how much certainty and detail to give them.

    Location: Charter Hill

14. 14

    Complete I Fought the Law

    Choose the final report

    Select the dialogue response that best represents V's judgment about the evidence and the threat facing the Peralezes. The choice changes the immediate conversation and can influence how the family contacts V later, although it does not turn the mission into a conventional branching ending.

    Location: Peralez residence

    Watch outThis is the mission's important consequence-bearing conversation. Save beforehand if you want to examine both tones of the report.

Mission mechanics

The mission's investigation is divided between conversation and evidence work. The braindance sequence asks the player to revisit a recorded event through different information layers, making the case feel closer to forensic analysis than a standard objective-marker chase. Look for changes in the environment, unusual sounds, and details that explain how the official account can be challenged.

Red Queen's Race is the mission's main action section. The Animals make the site dangerous, but the game does not force one universal solution: V can use weapons and cover, disable enemies with quickhacks, or exploit a quieter route where available. The most reliable approach is to scout before committing, isolate enemies, and keep an escape path in mind when fighting inside narrow rooms.

River's presence also changes the pacing. He is not simply a combat companion; his dialogue frames the evidence and explains why the case matters to him personally. Let the investigation conversations finish before moving on, because the mission's character information is concentrated in those exchanges rather than in optional loot or a separate collectible trail.

What works and what does not

Phases

1. 1

   Peralez briefing

   Starts: Entering the Peralez residence and beginning the case discussion.

   Elizabeth and Jefferson explain why they believe Lucius Rhyne's death deserves another investigation. The emphasis is on dialogue and establishing the evidence trail.

   • Complete the briefing before leaving the apartment.
   • Listen for the details that motivate the braindance review.
2. 2

   Braindance review

   Starts: Starting the recording supplied by the Peralezes.

   V examines the event through the available braindance information layers. This phase is about locating corroborating details rather than fighting.

   • Recheck the same moment in more than one layer.
   • Move through the recording deliberately if the objective does not update.
3. 3

   Red Queen's Race infiltration

   Starts: Entering the club's guarded area with the investigation active.

   Animals occupy the facility and can detect V as the search progresses. Stealth, hacking, and direct combat are all viable ways to reach the evidence.

   • AnimalsTell Their presence is signaled by hostile awareness and close-range pressure inside the facility.Answer Use cover, separate targets, disable dangerous enemies with quickhacks, or retreat to a safer angle before re-engaging.
   • Scout the room before opening fire.
   • Avoid allowing several enemies to surround V in a narrow passage.
4. 4

   Final report

   Starts: Returning to the Peralez residence after recovering the evidence.

   V and River explain what the investigation has uncovered. The final dialogue determines how directly V presents the disturbing conclusion to the Peralezes.

   • Make a save before the final conversation if you want to role-play a different response.

Choices and consequencesSpoilers

• Tell the Peralezes that the situation is connected to a wider conspiracy.

  V presents the disturbing implication directly, reinforcing the family's fear and leaving the relationship with the Peralezes on a more urgent footing. The mission's wider mystery remains unresolved.

  Spoiler
• Downplay or withhold the most alarming conclusion.

  V gives the Peralezes a less direct account of the evidence. The immediate conversation is less explicit, but the later storyline can still return to the family's situation.

  Spoiler
• Continue engaging with River Ward after the case.

  The mission serves as the gateway to River's later personal missions. Remaining receptive to his follow-up preserves access to that character arc.

Checklist

• Complete Life During Wartime before looking for the mission.This is the known story prerequisite.
• Attend the meeting at the Peralez residence.The case cannot progress until the initial briefing is complete.
• Inspect the braindance in its available analysis layers.Evidence gathering is a core part of the mission.
• Meet River Ward and travel to the investigation site.River is required for the field portion of the case.
• Scout Red Queen's Race before committing to combat.The Animals can overwhelm an unprepared approach.
• Recover the evidence inside Red Queen's Race.Search the marked investigative area rather than stopping after the first encounter.
• Return to the Peralez residence.The mission concludes with the client report.
• Make a save before the final report.Useful if you want to compare the role-playing consequences.
• Decide how much of the conspiracy to reveal.This is the mission's principal consequence-bearing choice.
• Watch for River Ward's follow-up contact.This mission begins his continuing storyline.

Failure conditions

• V is killed during the Red Queen's Race sectionThe mission reloads from the latest checkpoint or manual save. Use cover and avoid being surrounded by the Animals.
• V leaves the active objective area during the investigationThe objective may stop advancing until V returns to the marked location or completes the current conversation.
• V abandons the Peralez meeting before the briefing is completeThe investigation cannot move forward until the required conversation sequence has been completed.
• V fails to locate or interact with the marked evidenceThe facility section does not advance until the relevant investigative object, terminal, or recording has been examined.

Characters in this mission

• VThe player character and investigator.
• Elizabeth PeralezContacts V and requests the investigation.
• Jefferson PeralezElizabeth's husband and a central figure in the case.
• River WardNCPD detective who works with V.

AftermathSpoilers

Trivia

• I Fought the Law takes its title from the well-known song by The Clash, one of the many music references used in Cyberpunk 2077's mission naming.
• The mission combines a political investigation with River Ward's detective storyline, making it both a Peralez family mission and a character introduction.
• The braindance review and the Red Queen's Race infiltration use different investigation and action rhythms within the same side mission.
• The mission's mystery continues into later content rather than receiving a complete explanation at the moment of completion.

Relationships