You’re cruising through Night City, probably just finished dealing with the fallout of the Heist, and your phone buzzed. It's Elizabeth Peralez. This is how I Fought The Law in Cyberpunk 2077 usually starts—a simple phone call from a woman who sounds way too calm for someone whose husband is running for mayor. Most players treat this as just another side quest to clear the map. Big mistake.
This mission is the gateway to some of the most unsettling world-building CD Projekt Red ever cooked up. It isn't just a detective story; it’s a brutal look at how power functions when the police are basically a private security firm with better PR. You meet River Ward here. Honestly, River is one of the few people in the game who actually gives a damn about the "serve and protect" motto, even if the NCPD wants nothing to do with it.
The Setup: Meeting the Peralezes
Jefferson Peralez is a rare breed in Night City. He’s a politician who isn’t openly trying to sell your organs to a Megacorp, or at least that’s the vibe he gives off when you meet him in his ultra-sleek AV. He and Elizabeth are worried about the "accidental" death of the former mayor, Lucius Rhyne. The official story? Heart failure. The reality? Something involving a braindance club called Confidential and a whole lot of hush money.
When you take the job, you aren't just looking for a killer. You're pulling on a thread that connects the city’s elite to the grimiest corners of the Red Light District. It’s a classic noir setup, but with chrome and neon.
Tracking Down River Ward
You head to a meeting spot to link up with River. He’s an NCPD detective, but he's working this on the side because his bosses told him to drop it. This is where the quest gets interesting. You end up at a place called Chubby Buffalo’s. It’s a greasy spoon that feels remarkably grounded compared to the high-tech insanity of Afterlife.
River is skeptical of you. V is a merc. In his world, mercs are part of the problem. But he needs you because you can go places a badge can't. Specifically, you’re headed to a warehouse to find a guy named Red.
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The investigation at the warehouse is a bit of a slow burn. You’re looking for clues, scanning environments, and trying to piece together how a "suicide" or "accident" could involve a spiked braindance. It's subtle. The game doesn't hit you over the head with the answer immediately. You have to pay attention to the dialogue. If you rush through the scans, you’ll miss the tiny details—like the fact that the security footage was wiped with professional precision.
The Braindance Club Incident
Eventually, the trail leads to a club. This is where I Fought The Law in Cyberpunk 2077 shifts gears from a detective procedural into an action sequence, depending on how you play it. You’re looking for a specific BD that killed Rhyne.
Walking into a club like Confidential feels dangerous. It’s a "dollhouse" type setup where the customers are looking for things they can't get on the legal market. When you find the booth where Rhyne died, the realization hits: he wasn't just murdered. He was set up. The club owner, a guy named Horace, is terrified. He knows that if the truth comes out, he’s a dead man walking.
The Cover-Up and the NCPD
The most frustrating—and realistic—part of this quest is the realization that the NCPD isn't just incompetent. They’re actively complicit.
River’s partner, Han, is the personification of "don't rock the boat." He knows the truth. He knows the mayor was murdered. But he also knows that the people who ordered the hit have enough eddies to make him disappear. This creates a genuine tension between River and the department. By the time you finish the mission, River is basically an outcast.
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It’s a grim reminder that in Night City, the law is just another commodity. If you can afford it, you can rewrite it.
Why This Quest Matters for the Endgame
If you ignore this mission, you miss out on one of the best questlines in the entire game: The Hunt. That’s the follow-up where you help River find his nephew. Without completing I Fought The Law in Cyberpunk 2077, River stays just another NPC.
Furthermore, this mission sets the stage for the Dream On quest. That’s the one that people are still arguing about on Reddit years after release. It involves mind control, secret satellites, and a mysterious group that might be the real "hidden" power in Night City. If you want the full Cyberpunk experience, you cannot skip the Peralez storyline. It’s essential.
Tactical Advice for the Warehouse Section
Look, the warehouse part can be annoying if you’re playing a stealth build. There are cameras everywhere. If you have high Technical Ability or Intelligence, you can just shut the whole system down from the outside.
If you’re a "guns blazing" type, just be ready for the security turrets. They’ll chew through your health faster than a scav through a dead corpo. Use EMP grenades. They are your best friend here. Also, don't forget to loot the back room. There’s some decent tiered gear and shards that flesh out why the warehouse was being used as a front in the first place.
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The Ending Choice: What to Tell Jefferson?
At the end of the mission, you meet Jefferson and Elizabeth at their apartment. You have to decide how much to tell them.
Honestly? It doesn’t change the immediate reward, but it changes the tone of your relationship with them later. If you’re honest about the NCPD’s involvement, Jefferson gets fired up. He wants to fight. If you’re vague, he stays in the dark a bit longer. There’s no "right" answer here, just different shades of gray. That’s the beauty of this quest. It forces you to decide if the truth is actually worth the chaos it causes.
Actionable Insights for Your Playthrough
- Don't Rush the Dialogue: Listen to River’s conversations with Han. It explains exactly why the NCPD is broken.
- Scan Everything: In the club, make sure you scan the equipment. It provides context for how the "spiked" BD worked.
- Check Your Phone: After the mission, wait 24 in-game hours. Elizabeth will call you again to start the next phase of their story.
- Level Up Your Technical Ability: Having at least 10 points here makes the warehouse section trivial because you can bypass most of the security.
- Check River’s Truck: Before you leave the meeting at the diner, look at the details in River’s vehicle. It tells you a lot about his character—messy, overworked, but dedicated.
The real takeaway from this mission is that V is just a small fish in a very large, very polluted pond. You can solve a murder, but you can't fix a broken city. You get your credits, you get a new contact, and you move on. But the implications of what you found? Those stick with you.
Once you've wrapped this up, keep your eyes peeled for River's follow-up message. The story gets much, much darker from here. Make sure your quickhacks are updated or your reflex booster is slotted, because the next time you see River, the stakes are way higher than a mayoral election.
To get the most out of the Peralez arc after finishing this quest, head back to your apartment and sleep for a few hours. This usually triggers the script for the next mission, Dream On, to appear in your journal. If it doesn't pop up, try fast-traveling to a different district and back. Sometimes the game's quest triggers need a little nudge.