[Hans: Great, I'll hand over a few big deals in my hands to you. You can finish them whenever you want.]
[A: Looks like I came at just the right time.]
[Hans: Absolutely, once you're done with these tasks, I'll invite you to my place for tea.]
[A: I'll check out the new home first, then I'll contact you.]
[Hans: Looking forward to your good news.]
Mercer hung up the communication interface, while V, who had been watching him for a while, asked, "So, how did the talk go?"
"Pretty smoothly. Let's go, take a spin around Dog Town, and see how our future new home looks."
Mercer said as he started the car, heading straight in the direction of Dog Town.
V looked out the window, "I haven't been to Dog Town yet. I've always heard you say how great Dog Town is, and now I'm a bit excited."
"I advise you not to get your hopes up too high. Other than the stadium and the Gem Cyan Hotel, there's really nothing worth seeing there."
Mercer paused and added, "Think about how Taiping Prefecture is a dump? Dog Town can only be worse."
"Damn, you might as well not have said anything." V pouted, shaking her leg, "But it can't be worse than where the sisters are living now, right?"
Mercer fell into a brief silence.
V, on the other hand, slowly widened her eyes: "No way, huh?"
...
When V looked at the somewhat dilapidated warehouse in front of her, at the streets filled with either addicts or punks, and the abandoned buildings in the distance almost overgrown with grass and vines.
"A, can't we live separately? I mean, I think my motel is actually okay."
V uttered somewhat desperate and dejected words.
Mercer looked around, merely smiling as he walked up to the warehouse. The warehouse appeared to be square with no decorative colors, and the solid concrete walls gave off a heavy feeling.
The entire warehouse had only one window each on the east and west sides, clearly indicating that it was probably dark and suffocating inside.
However, the electronic door lock on the warehouse was still lit, suggesting that the power supply was still normal.
Mercer walked up to the electronic door lock, hands in his pockets, and hacked it open in just a second, pushing open the heavy warehouse door, revealing nothing but garbage inside.
It's unclear which bastards teamed up and stayed here for a while, graffiti covered the concrete walls, and there were broken mattresses, used syringes, and discarded cigarette butts on the ground.
No wonder merely an electronic door lock couldn't keep a bunch of curious vagrants from imagining treasures inside.
Mercer waved away the dust, glancing around, saying, "At least the space is large, and the walls are solid."
"This reminds me of a prison—why are you looking at me like that? Street folks like us probably have been grabbed by NCPD at some point.
The sisters and I spent some time in a holding cell, and that had a similar vibe.
Throw in a bunch of mattresses, put guards outside, replace all the doors and windows with iron bars... Hmm, Mercer, if you like this style, you can just turn yourself in to the NCPD."
V mocked herself, casually kicking aside a can, "Is this the kind of dump that Hans found for you? I don't think he's sincere! Is he messing with you?"
Mercer wasn't in a rush; he kept pacing around the empty warehouse—besides the four load-bearing pillars, there were just walls, a roof, and two windows.
He didn't want to figure it out himself, so he simply sent a message to Hans.
[Hans: Are you there already? Don't rush; I'll send you an authentication program. Stand at the innermost left load-bearing pillar, and you'll see how to open the basement.]
Mercer cautiously used the virtual disk of the Network Access Vault to receive the program, ran a check to ensure it was fine, and then incorporated it into his personal authentication.
In the Cyberpunk World, everyone would have a microchip used for personal authentication, capable of loading various authentication programs, including vehicle authentication, property authentication, personal biometrics, and more. It was bound to physical traits, almost impossible to counterfeit.
When he stood before the innocuous-looking load-bearing pillar, suddenly, a piece of wall panel slid down without warning, revealing a control panel inside.
Text appeared on the surface.
[Identity authentication successful. As no data is currently recorded, please connect your personal data line for user permission verification and program settings.]
"This is nice; it even uses a special cover to block network signals, only reacting and activating when a special authentication signal is recognized by a disconnected device. The Cubans indeed put a lot of thought into this."
Mercer remarked in admiration.
V's eyes lit up: "Whoa, what's this? A secret base switch?"
"Pretty much." Mercer glanced at the text on the screen, following the prompt, pulling out his hand's data line to connect.
Soon, the built-in program authenticated Mercer's personal information, transferring the control of the warehouse to Mercer.
There wasn't much to control, just the ventilation system, power control system, and a hidden floor door leading underground.
Mercer turned his head, noticing a section of the floor suddenly opened up, revealing a spacious staircase wide enough for two people to walk side by side, leading underground.
"I thought it would have an elevator." Mercer was a bit disappointed, feeling that it would be cooler, like a New America agent's hidden elevator going up and down.
"Wow! That's so cool! A! It's just like a spy movie!" V, without complaint now, skipped over to the staircase entrance to take a look.