In places like this, what's most abundant are the worn-out clothes carelessly piled up everywhere. It's unclear where these clothes came fro
In places like this, what's most abundant are the worn-out clothes carelessly piled up everywhere. It's unclear where these clothes came from or who they were scavenged from, and one can only hope they don't carry any unpleasant germs.
But at least they're clothes—enough to cover the body.
If it weren't for the fear of being labeled as "abusing a hostage" after rescuing someone, Lin Mo would've just picked up Fujiwara Kawako, activated his Sandevistan, and done a 100-meter dash to get her back to the car. At that point, who cared about privacy—nobody would even see them.
Despite the clothes being torn and reeking of an odd smell, Miss Fujiwara Kawako still quietly voiced her protest.
But Lin Mo ignored her resistance and forced her to wear them, finally covering her exposed body.
Once Kawako was dressed, another problem arose.
Who would carry her?
The healing injection had indeed saved her, but it couldn't restore her depleted stamina. Her body remained fragile.
Just walking a few steps left her drenched in sweat, her waist and abdomen aching.
Sasha instantly refused the job, smiling and telling Lin Mo her role was infiltration—not carrying the mission target home.
Given her build, carrying Kawako would've definitely slowed them down.
So Lin Mo took on the burden, lifting Kawako and running alongside Sasha.
The journey back went without a hitch, much to Lin Mo's surprise. Even Sasha hadn't expected the infiltration to go this smoothly.
They'd only encountered a few scavengers along the way and managed to avoid detection entirely.
Sometimes, picking the right moment for an op is better than the classic "I wiped everyone out and no one noticed" kind of stealth.
When they reached the designated evac point, Lin Mo spotted Rebecca lying bored on a container, resting her chin in her palm, her expression full of impatience. Below, Pilar was juggling a few grenades with his agile cyberarm, making exaggerated clownish noises.
Seeing Lin Mo return carrying a girl, Rebecca perked right up.
She jumped off the container and landed lightly on the ground with her pale legs.
"Lin Mo, you're back! How'd it go?" she asked, energized.
Pilar stopped clowning around, pocketing the grenades and looking toward Lin Mo.
"We got her. Mission complete," Lin Mo replied.
"Aw, come on! That's so boring," Rebecca whined. She had hoped for a bloody brawl and instead got half an hour of her dumb brother's comedy routine.
"Want me to toss you in with them so you can join their party?" Pilar snarked.
Rebecca shot him a glare.
"No blood, no fight—that's the best outcome," Sasha said as she approached. But they were still in enemy territory, so she didn't want to linger. She headed for the gap in the wire fence.
"See you on the outside!" Sasha waved before leaping over the fence with grace.
Pilar followed with a whoop, using his cyberarm to vault over.
Rebecca scowled, watching her brother show off.
Lin Mo was ready to jump too, carrying Kawako.
But someone tugged on his sleeve.
He turned to see Rebecca looking at him, biting her lip, slightly turned away.
"Hey, you're gonna carry me over too, right?"
Lin Mo blinked, paused a few seconds, then nodded.
"Wait here."
He carried Kawako over the fence, set her down gently, and handed her off to Sasha.
"Watch her for me. I'll go get Rebecca."
Sasha supported Kawako and smiled. "No problem."
Lin Mo nodded, turned, and leapt back over.
Watching him go, Pilar clicked his tongue. "Guy clearly looks down on me."
Sasha just smiled peacefully.
"No, I don't look down on you. I just know you too well," Lin Mo's voice came from the top of the fence. He landed cleanly, Rebecca riding on his back like it was nothing.
"Let's not stand around. Someone tell Maine and the others we got the girl. Then contact Wakako and have her send a car," Lin Mo instructed.
The others agreed. Even a grumpy Rebecca didn't protest.
Maine and Dorio got the message and left their posts near the factory gate.
Everyone regrouped at Falco's car.
"Didn't expect things to go so smooth. Lin Mo, don't you feel like you got ripped off?" Maine laughed, slapping Lin Mo's shoulder.
He'd spent good money hiring this team and was ready for a bloodbath—but they didn't lift a finger.
Honestly, Maine wouldn't mind more jobs like this.
"So now we wait for Wakako's ride, yeah?" Falco asked, lowering the car window.
Maine nodded, then noticed Lin Mo was lost in thought.
Thinking the kid might be brooding about the fee, Maine sighed and walked over.
"If you think the pay wasn't worth it, you can tell Wakako. You and Sasha did the heavy lifting. We were just standing around."
"Anyone object?" he asked his team.
Falco shrugged. Sasha smiled. Rebecca, bored out of her mind, nodded lazily. Dorio and Pilar had no opinion.
"Thanks, but I'll pay her in full," Lin Mo said, snapping out of his thoughts. "I was just thinking."
"What, did you also find the mission boring?" Maine joked. "Boring's good—no one got hurt."
Lin Mo gave a dry laugh. That wasn't it.
The simulator's log had predicted a battle, but he hadn't seen one.
What he did see were the scavengers' countless crimes. Yet he had stood by like a passive observer.
So much for trusting that simulation log...
Half an hour later, Wakako's people arrived.
Lin Mo escorted Kawako to the car. Even though she was safe, she looked anxious.
She finally spoke.
"Sir... I have a friend still trapped inside. She should still be alive."
Lin Mo, about to close the door, paused. "That room had only you. You saw the bodies—your friend wasn't among them."
Kawako looked down. "I remember... when I was unconscious, she cared for me. If not for her, I wouldn't be here. She was taken not long ago by a scavenger, deeper in the basement... there's a rec room back there."
Really? Lin Mo was surprised.
But he sighed. "If not for her, you wouldn't be here."
"She didn't mean for this to happen..." Kawako said quickly.
Lin Mo stared at her until she lowered her head, too afraid to speak.
She was safe. All that was left was to get her home. That should've been it.
But the images of the basement haunted him—the ghosts of the damned clawing at his feet, pulling him into the mire of justice.
He couldn't ignore it... Looking at Kawako's tearful face, Lin Mo sighed again.
If he really feared trouble, he wouldn't be here. He'd be living the easy life of a corporate heir.
But he'd seen too much. He couldn't let it go.
Still, the process had to be respected.
After a few seconds of silence, Lin Mo spoke.
"There's no guarantee I can do this. Your friend may already be dead. Don't get your hopes up."
"But you could change the goal... like teaching those scavengers a lesson. I need a reason."
"A reason?" Kawako asked.
"Here's a number. Your comms still work, right? Call this old woman and place a contract."
Kawako looked down. "I don't have money... but I can ask my dad."
"No. Tell her the fee is 1 euro," Lin Mo said flatly.
"1 euro?!"
"Yes. I'll set the terms of the job."
Kawako's eyes teared up. She bit her lip and finally dialed Wakako.
She followed Lin Mo's instructions, explained everything, then hung up.
Wakako called Lin Mo.
"Kid, have you lost it? You're making this clueless girl place a contract? For one euro?"
"Please, Grandma. Just help me go through the motions," Lin Mo said calmly.
"You sure? You set the job yourself?"
"Yes."
"What's the reason?"
"...Murder."
Wakako went silent.
Then said, "Fine. I'll take the job from this girl and forward it to Mr. Mo Ying. How's that?"
"Perfect. He'll take it," Lin Mo smiled.
"Then I'll wait for your good news," Wakako said, ending the call.
Lin Mo turned to Kawako.
He placed a hand on his sword, bowed slightly, and said:
"Please wait for my good news, Miss Client.
I will accept your commission—and eliminate every last one of those scavengers."
...
"Everyone, we've got work," Lin Mo said to the others.
"Work? There's more?" Maine flexed his arm. His forearm's synthetic skin split open like a blooming flower, revealing the mechanical internals and a brass-colored grenade launcher.
Lin Mo immediately recognized the cyberware.
"I want your help clearing out the scavengers in that factory."
His tone was calm—like he was just talking about taking out some pests.
"But our contract's over... Lin Mo, this is tricky," Maine said.
He liked the kid, but this wasn't in the agreement.
"I'll pay extra. How's 80,000 eurodollars?" Lin Mo smiled.
"Damn! I've hated those bastards for ages. Kid, you got it!" Maine slammed his fists together with a loud metal clang.
"A fight? Hell yeah!" Rebecca shouted, running to the trunk.
"Old man, open up!"
"Yeah, yeah, Miss," Falco said, unlocking the trunk full of gear.
Lin Mo nodded to the others. "Thanks for helping."
Pilar came over and slung his long cyberarm around Lin Mo's shoulder. "Hey, what are you saying? This is business, not charity. When we're done, I'm taking you to Lizzie's Bar, kid!"
Everyone geared up, getting ready to go.
Lin Mo watched silently.
Then reached into his pouch and pulled out a palm-sized paper box. He recalled last night's simulator rewards:
[Simulation Rewards: 1 Attribute Point, 1 Perk Point, Sandevistan Cyberware Data, 100 Sword XP, Mystery Reward (locked, unlocks at a specific time)]
This was the mystery reward.
After extraction, Lin Mo found the box couldn't be opened. Even slashing it with Black Unicorn didn't work.
But now, something had changed. He pulled lightly, and it opened.
Inside was a thumb-sized black metal chip.
Lin Mo instinctively understood what to do.
He pressed the chip to his forehead. It activated with nanotech, expanding like flowing metal, covering the upper half of his face.
The others stared in awe.
Lin Mo approached a car mirror.
The mask was shaped like a demon, ink-black, eerie and fearsome. On the forehead, a white character was written in calligraphy: "墨" (Mo).
Half jade face, half asura.
Lin Mo... Mo Ying.
What a beautiful coincidence.
First comes shadow, then comes light. That's how it should be.
"Hello, Mr. Mo Ying," Lin Mo said, smiling softly.
Now he understood everything.
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