But if he needs to live with someone else, who should he cohabit with?
Mann suggested, "And I think it's best to keep two suites on the top floor empty for occasional VIP guests. It's always nice to have a place for them, isn't it? Having them only stay in a deluxe suite kind of... well, you know."
Jack heard that and immediately raised his hand without a word, "I don't like living in a huge house. I've checked it out before; the floor below the top has deluxe suites and even a three-bedroom, one-living room setup! It's big enough, and I want to live there.
I plan to live alone...
Uh, mainly because, you know, I haven't seen Misty in quite some time, and I can't always go out to see my mom. Having a larger house means I can occasionally have family over to stay for a couple of days..."
Sasha, eating only a little, was lazily leaning against the chair to digest and, when this topic came up, also raised her hand immediately:
"I want my own room too. It's not that I don't like living with everyone, but I'm used to living a night-and-day lifestyle and prefer to be alone when I'm online..."
Pira directly stated, "Anything works for me; just don't let me live with Rebecca, preferably not even on the same floor..."
"Ha? Then just stay at the base; anyway, it can't be left empty, and someone has to keep an eye on it and the servers." Rebecca snarled, "And there's a workspace here, so you can mess with your junk all you like."
Pira, instead of being upset, was delighted: "Right! I'll stay at the base, and you can live at Gem Cyan! I have no objections!"
Rebecca squinted, grinding her teeth, "If you do something embarrassing at the base and get caught..."
"No way, I lock the doors." Pira said with a grin.
Mann directly stated, "I'm planning to live in the lower-level area of Gem Cyan with Dolio, near the Netherworld Dog dorms.
This way, I can stay close to the Netherworld Dogs for easier management and quick assembly during emergencies."
Mercer had remained silent until now.
Qiwei calmly said, "I'm not planning to live on the top floor, I'll live next to Sasha, as I'm also used to being alone."
Lucy paused in silence, glanced at V, and then at Rebecca. Just as she was about to speak, Mercer interrupted her.
"So that's that... It's a bit unusual; we always used to live together as a group..."
Mercer sighed and then smiled, "But since everyone has their own ideas, let's go with them.
When we have group meals, everyone will still gather on the top floor."
Mercer first turned to Lucy and said, "I've also seen the size of the penthouse at Gem Cyan. Frankly, it's spacious enough for not just three or four people; we could all move in together with room to spare.
It's not just a master bedroom and three guest rooms; there's also a security room, hacker room, workspace, meeting room...
Living alone is really wasteful, and not very secure, so why don't you all come along?"
He said it without skipping a beat, "If V and Rebecca move in, they can double as security to prevent an airborne assault from catching me off guard.
And leaving the hacker room empty is a waste since I usually go to the stadium. Lucy, you should move in too, saving the cost of building another.
This way, I won't need to run up and down for meals..."
Rebecca gave him a meaningful look but didn't object, "Fine, I don't like living alone in a big house anyway."
"Living in a luxury penthouse, yet I'm still your bodyguard and housekeeper?"
V muttered, then looked at Mercer with a somewhat disdainful look, "Whatever, let's just keep it this way to avoid you getting taken down in a deep dive in your room one day."
Lucy hesitated for a moment, then quietly nodded.
After neutralizing a potential crisis without a trace, Mercer quickly shoveled a few bites of fried rice to shift the topic amidst some teasing looks from the others:
"That's settled, but you shouldn't think this will be the last time we move.
When we have the money, I plan to personally buy two plots of land—one for building our company headquarters, and the other just for employee apartments.
Then on the top floor, we can design individual dream homes for each of us according to our own desires..."
Seeing Mercer promise the future like he was boasting, V suddenly felt sentimental, "Honestly, a few years ago, I would've never dreamt I'd live in a place like a Gem Cyan penthouse..."
"Tell me about it! Back when I was living at home mooching off my parents, I wouldn't have dreamed of having a room of my own, let alone a three-bedroom, one-living room!"
Jack said, also with some emotion.
Everyone quickly caught on and flowed with the topic to divert the focus.
And after Mercer finished his meal, he didn't forget to say sincerely, "By the way, there's something I should say in advance... thanks for everyone's hard work during this time.
After Hansen's funeral, I'll officially become the boss of Dog Town, and I won't be stingy about what you brothers deserve.
Reaching this point today wasn't solely due to my efforts; the truth is, many times, you've all shared in far greater risks than I have.
Even within the team, in daily life, V and Mann have taken on a lot of responsibilities on my behalf... You're not just my teammates and part of the team, but my family, my motivation, and part of my drive.
Now, we have finally emerged from being just street mercenaries, establishing a foothold for ourselves in Night City."
Mercer solemnly stated, "This glory I will not enjoy alone."
"That's quite sentimental..." V laughed, "Okay then, let me say this first—now that we're not taking contracts, you'd better increase my salary, including those of a bodyguard and a cook."
"Don't worry, I'll definitely pay you more than just a salary..."
Mercer briefly explained his idea, "Dog Town's current financial income, to put it bluntly, is still the old warlord and gang system, where the boss gets full, and the people below get the leftovers.
But now that I'm in charge, we can't continue like this.
Rather than continuing the warlord and gang system, I'd prefer to open a company directly.
By then, all revenues will go through the company's accounts, and you will all hold shares and receive dividends. I'll design the specific proportions but ensure nobody loses out or makes less than before as a mercenary."
Nobody felt Mercer would shortchange his people, so nobody asked about earnings.
The topic quickly returned to the usual small talk, and after lunchtime ended with laughter and jokes, everyone went back to their respective jobs.
...
Just one day later, everyone in Dog Town received a bombshell message.
Hansen is dead—through Dog Town's broadcast, Mercer announced the fact with a voice full of apparent sorrow to all of Dog Town's personnel.
"I'm here to announce a grave message.
Early yesterday morning, Hansen, the founder of Dog Town and the commander of the Netherworld Dogs, succumbed to chronic complications following an unresolved wound from an Arasaka attack months ago, despite efforts to save him..."
When the news of Hansen's death began to spread unsparingly from Dog Town,
the original complex undercurrents of Dog Town turned into a visible torrent.
Even ordinary citizens of Night City caught snippets about Taiping Prefecture's Dog Town from the television that evening, sensing something unusual.
Night City seemed to be on the verge of change.