But as she casually swung a punch, the sonic boom it produced was enough to tell that her strength now was no joke.
"I feel like I can punch ten Piras to death!"
She said.
"Damn, why are you using me as a unit of measurement?" Pira rolled his eyes, but then excitedly flexed his fingers, watching all sorts of repair and modification tools emerge from his fingertips, happily gesturing for a while.
"This thing is way more agile than what I had before! I'll have to study it properly tonight!"
After he finished, Rebecca gave him a disdainful glance: "You better study it in the bathroom, don't let me catch you fiddling on the couch—unless you want to swap for the big cannon."
After some playful banter, the group had a casual meal nearby, then split up and headed home.
When Mercer was finally alone with Lucy, he suddenly felt a bit out of place.
Inside the car, there was only the quiet hum of the engine and the wind outside. Besides that, when he turned his head, all he saw was Lucy staring out the window in a daze.
"What are you thinking about, Lucy? It feels like you've been unusually quiet these past few days."
Mercer couldn't help it and chose to ask her directly: "Not in a good mood?"
"Not really." Lucy turned to look at him, her face still showing little expression. She just looked at him for a moment and then turned away: "It's just that they're all pretty noisy... I've always been pretty quiet."
"Be honest." Mercer rolled his eyes: "Because of Rebecca? Or V? Do you think I'm too close to them? Or is it because you couldn't contribute much to this mission?"
"None of that." After Lucy finished speaking, she was silent for a moment before saying: "Or maybe a little bit of everything, but it's inevitable, we've talked about it many times, and I don't need you to keep comforting me."
"Then what is it?"
Mercer pressed on.
Lucy pursed her lips, and after a long while, she spoke softly: "I just feel... how should I say it, like those who belong to me alone are no longer just mine, and it makes my heart ache a bit.
It feels like you're being taken away.
You're close to V, close to Rebecca, Pira may not seem reliable at first glance, but he can enliven the atmosphere and has a pleasant temperament.
Kyoko is carefree, she's close to everyone.
I... I just can't, whether with V or the brother-sister pair, Rebecca, I feel like I can't get close.
Family? I can't do that. I feel my only family is you, oh, and Kyoko...
Anyway, don't mind me, I just have to adapt... I'm not like you guys, getting familiar so quickly."
Only then did Mercer relax.
It's not a big problem—it's simply that they've known each other for a short time, he thought, once they move into the new home, live and eat together for a while, this feeling will gradually disappear.
At a new and unfamiliar place, Lucy could only rely on and trust him, and now that he had more friends and partners, Lucy feeling a bit lost was only natural.
She's always been that kind of girl, lacking a sense of security, from Arasaka to Night City, it's always been like that.
He took off his mask and set it aside, speaking in a gentle tone: "Rebecca and V are warm people, Lucy, there's no rush, take your time.
Haven't you noticed? Rebecca and V joke around and say all sorts of things, but they never said anything like that to you, it's not that they're intentionally distancing themselves, it's because they know you're not a street kid, you're not used to that.
Even Pira tones it down a bit around you—everyone is intentionally looking out for you.
You don't need to feel that this is strange, think about it, how did we look after Kyoko in the past?
In today's Spark Team, you're the youngest, similar to Kyoko's position."
"According to my ID, I'm a year older than Rebecca." Lucy still retorted.
"Haha... Anyway, Lucy, take your time, no one will push you."
Mercer tenderly reached out and patted her head: "There are few instant connections; familiarity over time is normal. It's just that you like to keep everything inside and handle things yourself, which is not a good habit."
"Aren't you the same? Carrying everything by yourself, silently modifying yourself, and yet never feeling enough." Lucy finally softened her expression and said with some complaint towards him.
"I guess you're just the same in temperament—if the same choice was placed before you, you would make the same choice I did."
Mercer smiled.
Lucy fell silent. She couldn't argue back. If she could have the enhancements, she would have insisted Mercer get them.
"But actually, everyone thinks this way, didn't you notice? Whether it's V or Rebecca, everyone's intentions are the same, modifying their enhancements is more about being able to do more for each other, to bear more team responsibilities."
Mercer said in a relaxed tone: "Of course, as long as I'm here, none of you need to bear the brunt of it, on this point, whether you're happy or not, you have to obey me."
"... So bossy." Lucy said this with words, but her face unwittingly broke into a smile: "I get it, take it slow... you don't need to always worry about me."
"Heh, women~ they complain when far, submit when near, difficult to maintain~"
Mercer elongated his tone, which made Lucy reach out and lightly tap him: "No way."