At that point, it'll mainly be you guys teaming up and heading out. Once the base is built, I won't personally go out unless it's a major job, too risky."
Mercer paused and said, "It doesn't matter if people know I'm A, but if they recognize the prosthetic body behind me, that could cause trouble. So, I'll avoid appearing in public as much as possible. For direct confrontations, it'll be up to you to hold the line.
Most of the assignments tend to be direct assaults anyway. The simpler hacking tasks that only require cracking security, Lucy and Qiwei can handle without any issues.
I also need some time to settle down and absorb some knowledge."
Rebecca nodded, saying, "Then I'll just wait for you guys to finish up, go to Rebirth?"
"Yeah, once we're done, we'll head to Rebirth. After I've sold off all the data and information I have, we'll split the earnings," Mercer replied.
Rebecca looked at him, "You don't have to keep harping on about the money... alright, got it."
Mercer smiled, but V suddenly thought of something. "Hey? Didn't we agree you'd take off that mask after this job?"
"Doesn't it deserve a little ceremony? Ha, just hang in there a bit longer, I'll show you eventually."
Mercer was being mischievous, trying to drive her crazy. After all, she's been speaking more and more recklessly lately.
V pouted and muttered, "Who cares anyway... alright, go to sleep, I'm out."
Mercer waved and then, with his hands in his pockets, walked deeper into the camp.
Back in the tent, as expected, Lucy hadn't slept yet; she was still at her computer, writing programs for quick hacking chips. Seeing him, she first checked that he wasn't missing any limbs, then asked, "Everything go smoothly?"
Mercer nodded, took a sip of water, and casually tossed his jacket onto a nearby coat rack. "Yeah, everything went smoothly."
She didn't ask any more questions, but Mercer still chatted with her briefly about the night's events as he tidied up and washed. Lucy listened quietly.
She simply waited until he finished washing up and lay down on the hacker chair, then softly said to him, "Goodnight."
"Goodnight, you should get some rest too," Mercer advised, wrapping himself in a thin blanket and closing his eyes in relaxation on the hacker chair.
Having someone wait at home for him to finish his work... this feeling was really nice.
And seeing that he was genuinely sleeping soundly, Lucy stopped her work too, lay on the mattress, covered with a thin blanket, listening to his breathing, and quickly fell asleep.
...
By early morning, Lucy was still asleep, but Mercer had already woken up.
He first pulled the Venus AI back to his laptop from his Network Access Vault as usual, and ran an AI cognitive test.
Venus had visibly advanced in intelligence; it seemed to be enjoying itself on the biotech servers. Just a bit more patient nurturing, and it might awaken real intelligence.
Then, Mercer used convenient instant products to handle breakfast, placed a thermal box with drug samples in the trunk, grabbed a drone and his Zhuo Shotgun, and drove straight to the motel where V lived.
Unsurprisingly, the woman was still fast asleep.
But she tidied up quickly enough; Mercer only waited in the lobby for ten minutes before V came down yawning.
"What's first?" V asked, sitting in Mercer's Jun Mizutani, crossing her long legs and leaning back with her eyes closed.
Mercer casually tossed a Bobo Monkey can to her. V chuckled, picked it up, and shook it at him, "Wow, you noticed I love this stuff?"
"Only you would enjoy something that's basically corn syrup mixed with water... isn't it too sweet?"
Mercer quipped and started the car.
V took a sip, and in the know-it-all tone said, "Do you know how much energy is in this can? Sometimes when I'm sick of those instant jellies, I rely on this to fill the calorie gap!
Plus, isn't it deliciously sweet? You're just living too comfortably and haven't experienced going too long without sweet flavors.
This drink costs more than a meal; of course, you choose based on cost-effectiveness! The sugar content is double that of your little Coke!"
V opened the tab and drank several gulps, letting out a satisfying sigh.
Mercer shook his head, still not accustomed to the idea of drinking something for its calorie content.
He glanced at the time flashing in his prosthetic eye, "First, let's go get our million."
V was excited at first but then cautiously said, "Shouldn't we switch cars, maybe put on some masks or something? Those company executives aren't easy to deal with - what if there's an ambush?"
"Please, if someone with an intelligence of six can think of that, I obviously thought of it long ago... see the drone in the back? I have no intention of meeting Dr. Kuno for now."
After Mercer said this, V glared at him in annoyance, muttering, "Big deal, high intelligence. So what if I'm at six? You send Rebecca and Pira, and even they might not be smarter than me."
Mercer thought for a moment and said, "Rebecca might be about the same as you, but Pira is definitely smarter. He's almost a street tech expert; you can't manipulate those machines without some intelligence."
"No way! Pira's big head might not even be quicker than his little head, no way, absolutely not!"
V confidently waved it off, convinced she had to be smarter than Pira.
But seeing Mercer staying silent, as if stifling a laugh, she quickly changed her tone, "But honestly, everyone has strengths and weaknesses. I've got plenty of strengths, so having a shortcoming or two is perfectly normal.