Rebecca's suit could be considered a more flexible type of heavy exoskeleton armor, featuring ultra-thick bulletproof steel plates and supercharged mechanical strength enhancement from the exoskeleton.
It could be configured with various heavy weapons and a micromissile launcher. As a gas-electric hybrid, it could be regarded as a "Centaur exoskeleton enhanced version."
Its AI fire control automatically calculated weapon trajectories. One only needed to plug in a neural link to achieve the same easy aiming and firing as with a Smart weapon. It used the same compression thruster as the Arasaka cyberskeleton to provide a "Burst Mode" for short-duration, high-speed mobility.
It could fly solo for 10 minutes and was impervious to bullets from standard-issue weapons.
This heavy mech, with its seemingly bloated appearance, was named "Tank·1" by Mercer, aka Tank One.
The reason Mercer called it individual combat armor, rather than an exoskeleton, was that he had abandoned the old design philosophy of "the machine is responsible for strength and movement, while the human merely uses the machine."
Instead, he reversed it, designing with the goal of "the machine cooperates with the human, enhancing the human's athletic performance."
For example, if an Arasaka cyberskeleton required you to exert only three-tenths of the force while the machine provided the other seven-tenths, then Mercer's design philosophy was to enhance the human's own strength as much as possible. You have 500 kg of single-arm strength? Then my goal is to increase it to a ton without making you clumsy.
Achieving this was, in fact, extremely difficult. The first problem to solve was the transmission of thought.
A direct neural link, like the one used in the Arasaka cyberskeleton, might have low latency, but the crucial issue was the immense burden it placed on the human brain during operation.
Without a link, relying purely on mechanical drive, the latency would be even greater. It would be like you taking a step, and then the machine suddenly adding a burst of force. In short, it would feel very strange.
Fortunately, Mercer's design and development were proceeding in parallel. While he was solving the potential mental hazards of using the Octopus Arm, the mind conversion algorithm he had meticulously designed, which used an AI to drive the mech, solved this problem.
Mercer installed a Smart Core in each mech. This core was equivalent to a small, portable, high-spec computer mainframe, dedicated to serving the AI.
After the user connected via a neural link, the AI would pre-read the user's thoughts for synchronous transcoding, simultaneously driving the mech to cooperate and exert force.
Simply put, as you are thinking "punch with the left fist," not only does your left hand receive the command, but the AI also synchronously receives your command. By reading the neuroelectric signals you use to control your arm, it directly controls the armor to assist in exerting force.
From the perspective of human perception, the latency could be reduced to almost zero. Nor would you feel like you were "controlling" the equipment, because you were actually just issuing a command while the AI completed the operation. There was no burden on your nerves at all.
For the user, the actual experience of wearing the heavy mech was more like wearing a stiff, full-body-encompassing skinsuit, with absolutely no sense of operational delay. Considering that every suit of armor, and even every cyberarm, would need this kind of AI to function, Mercer, just like Polaris, decided to give this AI a name.
"BT."
This was the name of the intelligent AI for the mech in Titanfall 2. Of course, the AI's full name in the game was actually "BT-7274," it was just shortened to BT by the players.
When he used to play the game, Mercer had been moved by this mech AI that shared life and death with its pilot, so he simply copied the name to use as the codename for his own mech AIs.
When explaining it to others, Mercer would say that BT was actually an abbreviation for "bot."
Each suit of armor's AI would have its own designation, starting from BT1-1.
This was because they were different from an independent AI like Polaris, who resided in Mercer's main server and actually ran in tandem with the ctOS, using the server for computing power.
Each BT AI was, in fact, individually adapted to its armor.
It had to automatically record its host's usage habits, cultivate synergy, optimize its algorithms for the host, reduce latency, and match power output. In the later stages, it could even exist completely independently as the host's intelligent combat partner.
In other words, each BT AI was actually independent. However, in terms of permissions, Mercer would not grant them too much freedom. They were born in the armor and would die in the armor. Except for periodic maintenance, they were not allowed to connect to the network independently to learn and enhance their intelligence.
The other type was a light mech suit adapted for the Sandevistan combat style.
Er, or rather, V's exclusive mech suit, because she was the only one equipped with something like a Sandevistan, and she was worth Mercer's hefty investment.
Mercer called this suit the "Falcon Spear Mk. I." It featured drastically reduced armor thickness and had its mechanical superchargers replaced with multiple miniature compression thrusters, electric drives, and nano-muscle enhancement technology.
It was only equipped with a shoulder cannon for supplementary firepower. The entire design philosophy was developed around the martial arts principle that in the world of combat, only speed is unbreakable.
It was all to maximize V's freakish reaction speed and physical agility.
The entire suit was extremely expensive to build. The outer armor components alone cost nearly 1.2 million eurodollars. This was because to provide as much protection as possible while reducing weight, Mercer had opted for a full nano armor design.
Nanorhenium could be understood as a special metal with extreme toughness, self-repair capabilities, and exceptionally outstanding shock-absorbing properties.
The nanorhenium itself had an extremely high density, yet it was very light. Just as laying a layer of Skinweave under a person's skin could stop a bullet, a full suit of nanorhenium could withstand a direct hit from a small-caliber howitzer.
Furthermore, its excellent shock-absorbing properties could withstand the shockwave from a non-direct hit by a micromissile. During user activity, it could greatly reduce the burden of recoil on the body's joints.
Inside the armor, Mercer also chose a nanoweave combat suit design to further enhance the user's physical attributes. The nanoweave suit could be understood as something similar to the black combat suits from the manga Gantz.
This nanoweave combat suit could directly enhance muscle strength through nanotechnology. The high-ranking soldiers in Barghest usually wore similar combat suits. Besides the armor's exorbitant cost, Mercer also used electric-drive power assist instead of mechanical power assist. Compared to mechanical boosting, the electric drive's boost speed was faster, and its response time was also quicker.
This allowed it to provide timely power assistance while adapted to the extreme speed of a Sandevistan, avoiding the issue where the mechanical response of mechanical boosting couldn't keep up with the user's speed.
The compression thrusters also abandoned a hybrid gas-electric system in favor of a purely electric drive. Thanks to the nano armor's ultra-low weight, Mercer placed a separate super battery on the back, protected by a combination of nano armor and blast-proof plating.
This super battery allowed the mech, which weighed no more than 120 kg, to still reach a maximum flight speed of 520 km/h and a super-high ground running speed of 300 km/h, even while carrying an additional 80 kg human.
Furthermore, it could sustain combat at maximum power for at least half an hour and could be recharged by swapping the battery or plugging it in directly.
If the battery ran out, the mech would switch to a bioelectric drive. Even if it couldn't fly or activate full-power acceleration, it would still ensure the user could move with agility and enjoy low-intensity electric-drive enhancement.
And this running speed referred to an agile, mobile running speed; can you imagine? A person, covering a maximum distance of 83.3 meters in a single second.
What does that even mean?
One second she's over a hundred meters away, the next she's in your face!
And this was just for long-distance acceleration. In close-quarters combat, due to the unique full-body electric-drive power assist, she would only appear even faster than her running speed.
Mercer measured the speed of a full-power arm swing in the electric-drive state alone. A single slash with the Mantis Blades took approximately 0.13 seconds to complete.
And if V herself were to wear this mech, activate her Sandevistan, and use the nanoweave combat suit with its nanorhenium inner layer for muscle enhancement to strike, calculations showed that the entire process of a single slash could reach a terrifying 0.07 seconds.
The limit of a normal person's reaction time is about 0.12 seconds. The average reaction time with an active Kerenzikov boosts your real-time reaction to the 0.06-0.08 second range.
In other words, assuming you have a Kerenzikov installed, congratulations, you're qualified to react to V swinging her blade at you.
Regrettably, however, "reacting" in this case means you realize you've been cut after she has already struck, not that you have a chance to dodge.
Unless your potential is exceptional, allowing you to think and act in 0.1-second increments in normal time like V and Mercer, and your true reaction speed under acceleration approaches the super-cognitive acceleration of 0.01-0.03 seconds.
Only then might you be able to react after V starts her attack but before she hits you.
But... even if you react, can you dodge it?
An opponent, also equipped with a Sandevistan, would have to face a super-speed killer who already has Muscle Enhancement cyberware, a Body of 20, electric-drive speed and power assist, and an internal nanoweave combat suit enhancing her muscles.
You might barely dodge once, block once, but what about the second slash? The third?
Mercer felt that at V's current level, as long as the armor he designed didn't underperform in actual combat, she would absolutely have the strength to face Adam Smasher head-on. This was despite the fact that her weapons and equipment might not be as strong as Smasher's terrifying Ba Xing Chong or his fully mechanized body.
In fact, Mercer believed that with the armor combined with her personal strength, V would have an over eighty percent chance of killing Adam Smasher in a one-on-one fight.
Although Adam Smasher was well-equipped and the strength of his mechanized body might have reached superhuman levels, V's personal physical prowess was simply too formidable.
Paired with Mercer's armor, her combat performance and mobility would very likely surpass Adam Smasher's.
Not to mention, combat wasn't always a simple comparison of equipment stats. It also involved intangible factors like a person's will to fight, combat intuition, mentality, and skill.
This was precisely why Mercer had given V special treatment, providing her with the strongest individual combat armor; her stats were just too good. Not maxing out the equipment for a stat monster like her would be a crime!
This was the culmination of all of Mercer's research over the past six months.
To be honest, his development speed and level were practically inhuman.
As for Mercer himself, he had yet to develop a matching set of individual combat armor for his own use.
The reason was simple. Compared to people like V and Rebecca who needed to face danger head-on, what he needed wasn't frontal assault capabilities, but rather greater survivability and Smart weapons that could maximize the advantages of his brain.
Developing the Octopus Arm cyberware was, in fact, a way for Mercer to supplement and enhance his own combat effectiveness.
For Mercer, at top speed, his neural reaction time and instantaneous thought processing were actually no weaker than V's. From a purely cerebral perspective, his brain was definitely better than hers.
The reason he was always getting pushed around by V and Rebecca was, to put it bluntly, a lack of physical strength. His eyes saw it, and his brain came up with a solution, but his body couldn't react in time to resist.
But with the Octopus Arm, this problem was, to a certain extent, solved.
This was because besides its great strength and multiple functions, the Octopus Arm also had a very high theoretical top speed. Its tentacle-like design allowed it to build up pressure and accelerate through layers of mechanical structures, striking out like the crack of a whip.
Its swing speed was much faster than Mercer's own arms.
Perhaps one Octopus Arm couldn't completely stop a speedster with an active Sandevistan, but what about two, or three?
Mercer had seen the Marvel movies. He figured if Doctor Octopus in the film could bully Spider-Man with a few octopus arms, then the Octopus Arm he had developed now, boosted by his brain's processing power, should have no problem dealing with an ordinary Sandevistan opponent.
The only problem was... Mercer felt that if he walked around with several octopus arms attached to him all the time, the aesthetic would be a bit bizarre. After mechanical ascension, I become a mechanical Squidward?
That was a little too abstract.
Therefore, after developing the Octopus Arm, he didn't rush to install it on himself. Instead, he sought a new method of installation and adaptation, striving to be able to still pass as a normal person in his daily life. The best way was to leave a few installation ports on his body, just like how netrunners carve out an interface plug at the back of their head to easily connect to a netrunner station for a server deep dive.
When necessary, it would be plug-and-play. If an arm broke, he could just unplug it and replace it. He could even design a universal port model to facilitate swapping and installing various types of cyberware later on.
Hmm. This approach to cyberware modification was probably something only Mercer could handle.
If it were anyone else installing such alien cyberware on themselves, it would likely only be a matter of time before they went insane.
Just as Mercer was planning to further develop and perfect his new design, intending to move these new research breakthroughs into the practical testing phase, an unexpected piece of news disrupted his research plans.
[?: Yorinobu Arasaka will arrive in Night City in October. Reason unknown, specific date unknown, but when he's been to Night City in the past, he usually stays in the top-floor private suite of the Arasaka-owned Konpeki Plaza.
By my estimate, he won't be staying in Night City for more than a few days this time.
As for how to meet him and negotiate with him, that's for you to figure out. I can't make a move, so be careful with everything.]
Although it was unsigned, likely an email sent from a burner Agent or something similar, Mercer knew with absolute certainty that this message must have come from Rogue.
October...
Mercer sighed. Another year was about to pass.
Come to think of it, didn't Rebecca come of age in 2074? Lucy would be around '75, hmm...
Mercer sighed again, unsure whether to be happy or melancholic; when the time came, he wouldn't be able to use their age as an excuse to stall anymore. But he liked Rebecca, and he liked Lucy, and he was also a bit of a V-sexual. This was going to be a little troublesome...
But in the next moment, he tossed these matters to his future self. Let future him worry about it then.
He swung himself up from his chair, stretched, and looked around. He was the only one in the underground base's work area. Due to his work needs, the entire room was bathed in stark white light, making it impossible to distinguish day from night inside.
He checked the time display on his cyberoptics. Was it 8 PM?
Mercer thought for a moment, then sent a message directly to his group chat on his comms app.
[Mercer: Assemble~ Let's have a meeting.]
Then, he leisurely walked out of the work area, washed his face, and called over the few netrunners still busy in the server room to go upstairs with him.
"Why the sudden meeting?" Sasha stretched her body like a cat, her curvaceous figure particularly eye-catching under the netrunning suit.
Mercer only glanced twice before Lucy's piercing gaze pulled his attention back. "Got some news. There's a big job to do."
"A big job? How does it compare to hitting the Biotechnica and Militech convoy last time?" Lucy frowned.
Mercer shrugged. "I don't know, but I estimate it won't be any easier than messing with that convoy."
Lucy sighed, then said, "Still, you've been quiet for half a year without causing any trouble. For you, that counts as an effort."
Mercer chuckled. "Why do you make it sound like I'm such a troublemaker? Isn't this all for the sake of our future development?"
"Really?" Lucy teased. "Have you used that thing we snatched from Biotechnica?"
"If nothing unexpected happens, we should be able to use it this time." After Mercer spoke, he saw Lucy suddenly grow a little tense. He immediately smiled and added, "It's not for me."
Lucy relaxed a little at that, turning to shoot him a glare. "So, who's the target this time?"
"Arasaka."
When Mercer finished speaking, she couldn't help but press her lips together. She looked at Mercer, but in the end, said nothing at all.
Kyoko, on the other hand, said whatever was on her mind. "Arasaka..." she said with some trepidation. "I don't know why, but just thinking about going against them makes me feel a bit... um, nervous."
"What's there to be nervous about? We'll just do what we did to them last time," Mercer said, showing no signs of tension.
On the contrary, he declared with soaring fighting spirit, "If everything goes smoothly this time... we can truly be considered legends!"
"Ha... I'm not really interested in becoming a legend." Sasha sized them up, a flicker of curiosity in her eyes. "You guys have some history with Arasaka?"
"You could say that." Mercer himself didn't mind, but he glanced at Lucy and Kyoko, unsure if they wanted to be open about their pasts with everyone.
The elevator reached the first floor, and Mercer and the other netrunners headed to the living room. Jackie, in a grease-stained tank top, was already there, along with Maine and Dorio, who looked like they had just come from a workout, drenched in sweat.
When they saw Mercer, the whole crew greeted him in unison.
Jackie had done a few jobs with the crew by now and had earned a good amount of money. He was a far cry from the down-and-out man he once was.
Now chromed with a Berserk OS, Gorilla Arms, a Kerenzikov, Heavy Subdermal Armor, and a Projectile Launch System, his cyberware loadout was in no way inferior to Rebecca's or Maine's.
Although his style of dress was more or less the same as before, in terms of actual combat ability, he had left his old self in the dust.
The pistols at his waist were a pair of custom gold-plated guns hand-forged by Pilar, complete with an angel spray-paint job that was very characteristic of Heywood. They looked both high-end and luxurious, giving him the air of a successful man.
And while Maine didn't look much different on the outside, all his cyberware had been upgraded. He had swapped out his old Militech cyberware for the latest models, similar to Jackie's, making him far stronger than his anime counterpart.
Although Maine had agonized over it, wanting to replace his Berserk OS with a Sandevistan, Mercer had managed to talk him out of it.
That thing wasn't something just anyone could install, and he didn't want Maine to go down the path of Cyberpsychosis like in the original anime.
Maine wasn't the crew's leader like in the anime anymore, just one of its heavy hitters. Without the heavy burden of leadership, he didn't insist and obediently went with the crew's standard loadout.
As for Dorio, she hadn't installed too much cyberware. She followed the bioware path, similar to the Animals. Originally an athlete with immense natural strength, she relied only on a Kerenzikov, Subdermal Armor, and some enhancements like Bionic Joints. While her combat abilities weren't exceptionally strong, she wouldn't hold the team back.
As for the others, there weren't many changes to their cyberware installations.
Most of everyone's improvements were to their weapons and gear. Even Rebecca's Guts had been upgraded multiple times; it was now a true handheld cannon.
The caliber of a single one of its shells was nearly that of a sniper rifle. She was the only one who loved something with such ridiculously high recoil.
Mercer only had to wait a short while at the dining table in the living room before everyone quickly gathered, and the meeting officially began.
"First, I need to make something clear. What we're about to do isn't a gig. It's something I plan to do myself, just like the Biotechnica heist. In the short term, we might not even see any reward."
Mercer felt some things had to be said upfront. He looked at his crew members on both sides of the long table and said seriously, "But the danger might be greater than any gig you've ever taken. So, I can't say how much money we'll make. We might even have to sink all the crew funds we've saved up into this."
"Alright, I get it." V cut him off nonchalantly, making her stance clear. "I'm in."
Mercer turned to her with a smile, then turned back and said gravely, "I'm the leader of this crew, not a dictator. I know full well that you all follow me just to live a better life. But this time, even if everything goes smoothly, it might only make our situation more dangerous. I can't guarantee that all of us will make it out unscathed. So, I have to state this upfront, our target this time is Arasaka. We might even go up directly against Saburo Arasaka. You all know what kind of monster Saburo Arasaka is, and you know the risks of opposing him."
Mercer paused, then said earnestly, "I'll understand if anyone doesn't want to be a part of this."
Seeing that V was about to speak again, Mercer gestured with his eyes for her to wait, then continued, "Once the bow is drawn, the arrow cannot be returned. If you decide to join, you'll have to see this through with me to the bitter end. And considering the whole thing must be kept secret, I can only reveal the mission deets after you've thought it over and decided to join. But I can tell you my reasons for doing this beforehand."
Mercer looked at everyone's expressions and revealed a smile. "I want to change this world. Or at least, change this city first. I hope that one day, even ordinary people can walk the streets of Night City safely at any time, without worrying about a stray bullet suddenly taking their lives. I hope ordinary people can earn a salary sufficient to support their families through their own hard work, instead of working for days on end and not even being able to afford a gallon of clean water. I hope we can eat fresh vegetables and meat instead of canned vegetables and bugs."
He sighed softly, looking at the various expressions on their faces. "The corps want to manipulate our lives, squeeze us dry, and finally, manipulate our minds and control our souls. Everything I do, my ultimate goal, is to take back the freedom that belongs to the people. Let the winds of true peace and liberation blow through this city, and then, starting from Night City, let this wind blow across the entire world. Anyway, that's about it."
After he finished, Mercer looked at everyone and said no more, waiting for them to state their positions.
V just sighed, then spoke seriously to the group, "Hmph. If anyone else said this stuff to me, I'd tell them to go spew their crap on TV. The politicians would love a bullshitter like him. But I believe he's not just messing around, so I'm planning on sticking with him. Anyway, if I ever feel like he's unreliable, I'll just ditch him and go solo."
Rebecca grinned, propping her cheek on one hand as she looked at Mercer. "I don't care if there's no money, but after this is over, you have to take me out. Then I'll agree to work with you."
Mercer nodded at her, smiling as he agreed.
As for Lucy, she just crossed her arms, her expression calm. She didn't say a word, but it was clear that the thought of the crew splitting up had never even crossed her mind.
Maine and Dorio exchanged a look. In the end, it was Maine who spoke up. "I don't really care about what's just or not, but since we're a team and you're the leader, your word is final. But I can't lead Dorio to her death for nothing. So, Mercer, you have to explain the whole story behind this mission."
"Of course," Mercer said readily. "And if someone has to die, I promise I'll be the first."
V shot him a glare. "Don't be an idiot. Since when does the netrunner die first?"
Sasha tapped her own lips with a finger, saying with great interest, "This is the first time I've seen someone become an Edgerunner for a goal like this... but, I'm in!"
Her expression turned resolute as she said seriously, "Just like I told you back then, as long as you genuinely want to send those damn corpos to hell, I'll be with you all the way!"
Pilar chuckled and flexed his fingers, speaking nonchalantly.
"Let's just do it! Who cares if it's Arasaka or Militech, or if it's just or not. Anyway, I think Mercer's a reliable guy who wouldn't joke around with our lives, so we just have to listen to him. He's definitely got a plan. If it weren't for him, Rebecca and I would've probably died in some random corner of the streets long ago. So, just give us the job."
In the blink of an eye, only Jackie was left.
He looked around, belatedly realizing he was the only one who hadn't spoken. He quickly laughed and said, "Say no more. The money I've made in the last six months is more than I've earned in the last half of my life. Mercer treats me like a choom, so when something comes up, with or without pay, I've gotta be there! People from Heywood never betray their friends and family, I'm in, mano! Shit, if we really take down Arasaka, won't I have achieved the same thing as Morgan Blackhand?"
As Jackie spoke, he grew a little excited. "I already regret not joining you guys for that Biotechnica gig sooner. I don't have anything good to brag about when I'm out drinking. This time, you have to let me be on the front lines and go for something big!"
Kyoko timidly raised her hand. "I also want to... uh, I mean, it would be even better if there was a little work for me."
Lucy didn't speak, merely pushing her arm down with a disapproving look.
Mercer, however, teased, "Sure, you can cook for V. She's on the verge of turning into a full-blown housewife. She's even starting to give off that 'wife' vibe."
"Screw you! You're the one with the 'wife' vibe!"
V flipped him the bird, and the whole group burst into laughter.
Jackie even winked. "You know, she's not wrong. Especially when she's behind your back, whispering to me about how you just fiddle with your equipment all day, not dressing or eating properly. Just like how my mom used to complain about my dad."
"You wanna die?!" V got flustered, glaring and raising her fist.
Jackie immediately raised his hands in surrender, but from the look on his face, he was clearly just enjoying the show.
Rebecca, however, wasn't smiling. She just stared quietly at V until V couldn't take it anymore and awkwardly started repeating her old lines: "I told you, I'm not interested in kids like him..."
For a moment, everyone laughed. Mercer's laugh was the most outrageous, and naturally, he earned a stomp on the foot from V under the table. He then cleared his throat and brought the conversation back on track.
"Let's get down to business, Yorinobu Arasaka is coming to Night City."
After Mercer finished speaking, he saw that everyone was focused on him and continued, "The job I have for you all is simple. I need to meet him, or find an opportunity to communicate with him that absolutely no one will discover."
"Uh... can't we just get his contact info from somewhere? He must have his own secret way of communicating, right? Do we really have to meet him in person?" V asked.
"Who knows if he even has one? And even if he does, can you guarantee that his so-called 'secret way of communicating' is actually secret? Don't underestimate Saburo Arasaka, especially since I might have already tipped him off."
After speaking, Mercer had another theory in mind; logically, Rogue had already exposed that someone was trying to contact Yorinobu Arasaka. If Yorinobu really had some absolutely secure, confidential method of contacting others, this much time would have been enough for him to find someone to pass a contact method over to Rogue's side.
But the result was that Yorinobu Arasaka had made no attempt to contact anyone else.
This meant either he had no interest in certain people trying to reach him, or Yorinobu wasn't confident he could evade Saburo's surveillance to contact the outside world.
But he chose to come to Night City in person; this was a bit interesting. Despite the recent news of someone in Night City trying to find his contact information, Yorinobu Arasaka was still risking Saburo Arasaka's suspicion by choosing to come to Night City.
If it were anyone else, they might suspect he was setting a trap, that he had been in cahoots with Saburo Arasaka all along.
But Mercer was certain that Yorinobu Arasaka must be coming with a certain degree of hope. Perhaps he couldn't take the initiative to do anything, but he must have prepared himself to meet certain people.
Even if he hadn't, Mercer wanted to try and persuade him. At the very least, based on the original plot, NetWatch had somehow convinced him to bring Silverhand's Relic to Night City.
Since NetWatch could do it, Mercer felt he could too, although he was far behind in terms of power, he also had advantages that NetWatch didn't.
He could genuinely use Silverhand and Alt as bargaining chips, and he truly dared to make a move against Saburo Arasaka.
"So, our goal is to figure out a way to help you meet Yorinobu Arasaka? Or to get something like a... walkie-talkie, a burner Agent, into his hands?"
V looked at Mercer, but he had fallen into deep thought. He pondered for a moment before saying, "To convince Yorinobu Arasaka, I feel like just an Agent call won't be enough."
"What are you planning to convince him of?" Maine asked, somewhat puzzled. "What kind of deal are you trying to strike with him?"
"That's right. I want him to hand over the Relic containing Johnny Silverhand. In exchange, we'll help him kill Saburo Arasaka."
After Mercer finished, it wasn't just Maine; even Pilar let out a "wow."
Pilar raised his hand, his expression exaggerated. "So our goal is to resurrect a rock star who died in a nuclear blast decades ago, and to do that, we have to kill the most powerful man on the planet for the past several decades?"
"Johnny Silverhand is just the catalyst," Mercer replied calmly. "He's a bargaining chip."
He looked at everyone and, not hiding his thoughts, said directly, "Do you know anything about Yorinobu Arasaka?"
"Uh, I just know he's pretty much the next guaranteed leader of Arasaka," Jackie said, scratching his head.
The others' knowledge of Yorinobu was basically limited to that.
"It seems none of you know that decades ago, Yorinobu Arasaka was a public anti-corporate, anti-capitalist freedom fighter."
Mercer's words left everyone in disbelief for a moment.
"If you were to say that the quintessential 'freedom fighter' in the NUSA of the past, who openly opposed Arasaka and the corporations, was Johnny Silverhand... then Japan's representative was Yorinobu Arasaka. He once broke away from the Arasaka family and even founded an organization called the Steel Dragons, which was full of Japanese biker gangs, but they could also be called a group of freedom fighters. Yorinobu Arasaka stole Arasaka secrets, equipment, and funds, funneling them into the Steel Dragons to openly oppose Arasaka. In the end, this act of betrayal infuriated Saburo Arasaka, who ordered his older brother, Kei Arasaka, to execute Yorinobu. At that time, Arasaka had just acquired Soulkiller. What you might not know is that the first high-ranking executive to be internally executed with Soulkiller was Yorinobu Arasaka."
Mercer drew out his words before changing his tone. "His body double."
"Then, after Johnny Silverhand blew up Arasaka Tower in Night City, he actually convinced the then-Kei Arasaka to commit suicide. That's right, after Arasaka Tower was bombed, the guy felt he had brought dishonor to his family and was deeply derelict in his duty, so he committed seppuku."
Mercer shrugged, then continued, "The Fourth Corporate War ended just like that. However, Yorinobu Arasaka, who was thought to have been killed, suddenly appeared at his own brother's funeral. At the funeral, he practically kowtowed and confessed his guilt to Saburo Arasaka. In the end, thanks to his younger sister Hanako's pleading, Saburo spared his life, and he returned to the corporation. For the next few decades, he began to masquerade as a proper successor, gathering factions, but in truth, in his heart, he was still that same righteous warrior who longed to destroy the corporation."
After he finished, Mercer saw that everyone was still processing the mountain of secrets they had just heard, so he changed the subject back to the beginning.
"So, I need him to hand over Johnny Silverhand, as his bargaining chip."
"On the surface, I'm just asking for a Relic, but in reality, once Yorinobu Arasaka hands over Silverhand, it means he has betrayed Saburo Arasaka once again, placing himself in complete opposition to him. Would Yorinobu, who has already endured for decades, choose to bow down and admit his mistakes to Saburo again? And would Saburo Arasaka forgive him one more time?"
After Mercer finished speaking, Sasha propped her face on her hand and said thoughtfully, "So you want to use the Relic containing Silverhand's consciousness to push Yorinobu Arasaka into complete opposition with Saburo Arasaka?"
"That's right," Mercer replied firmly. "The atmosphere of fear Saburo Arasaka has created is constantly eroding his courage. If no one gives him a push, he'll probably just obediently wait for the old man to die of old age. But he can't afford to wait, and I have to tell him that, then strengthen his resolve."
Lucy gently rubbed her temples and said, "So we're just going to help him get rid of Saburo for free and help him take over?"
"Of course not for free," Mercer said calmly. "I will demand a huge payment and Arasaka's support, making them the foundation for our burgeoning growth in Night City. At the same time, we'll use Silverhand as a bargaining chip to get a favor from Alt Cunningham, who has now become an AI. And, Johnny Silverhand still has a whole bunch of old friends and fans. By saving him, we can use his influence to sway that crowd of crazy fans. And his old friends and fans from back then are now fixers, reporters, or still celebrities."
Mercer looked at everyone and said, "He can also be my guinea pig, helping me verify the compatibility between the Relic and Cloning technology."
"What if we fail? Saburo Arasaka won't be easy to kill. He's survived countless assassination attempts in his life. Can we really do it?" Maine wasn't very confident about this.
But Mercer laughed. "Then we run. How about we defect to Militech? Or Kang Tao? With my skills, bringing people and tech to the table, becoming a director would definitely be no problem. We could all still stick together, and we'd all get to wear suits."
He said with a grin, "The worst-case scenario is we all become corpos together... then find another chance to pull off a big one. What do you think?"
V said nonchalantly, "Whatever. Since we've decided to do it, let's see it through to the end! Even if Saburo Arasaka has eight heads, I'll chop them all off."
"Hmm... then let's call this mission Operation Susanoo."
Mercer said with great interest, "In Japanese legend, the eight-headed Yamata no Orochi was slain by Susanoo. That old geezer fancies himself the master of the world; he probably thinks he's a god by now. So let's be true god-slayers for once and chop off all eight of his heads."
Rebecca whistled. "Cool~"
"Since everyone understands my goal, reasons, and motivation, then..."
Mercer looked around and smiled. "If there are no objections, shall we officially begin preparing for the operation?"
"Oh!!" Rebecca cheered along, but after a few silly cheers, she chuckled and lowered her hands. "So? Where do we start?"
"Good question!" Mercer nodded, then spread his hands. "Unfortunately, I don't know either."
Seeing everyone's somewhat speechless expressions, Mercer burst out laughing, then clapped his hands together. "But that's okay. I believe Morning Star will give me some good advice."
Just as he finished speaking, Morning Star's voice suddenly came through the speakers in the living room.
"I believe we might be able to start with the dolls." Morning Star's voice was very gentle, completely devoid of the coldness typical of an AI.
"Dolls?" V looked confused.
"Yes. According to the deets gathered by ctOS, Yorinobu Arasaka has a habit of finding short-term companions every time he arrives in Night City. This information comes from the super VIP lists found on the internal servers of Clouds and several other high-end clubs. After cross-referencing this with past news reports, I can confirm that almost every time he arrives in Night City, he seeks out dolls that catch his eye through various channels, such as professional fixers. There are even records of him summoning the same doll multiple times."
The moment Morning Star finished speaking, Pilar suddenly clasped his hands together in excitement. "I'm telling you, Morning Star, why didn't you say you'd gathered deets that deep sooner? Quick, analyze it for me, which doll club is the hottest right now..."
Rebecca punched him in the stomach, growling menacingly, "Don't interrupt!"
Mercer, however, narrowed his eyes and suddenly said, "I have an idea!"
Everyone's eyes snapped to him.
But Mercer just curled the corner of his lip.
"Morning Star, analyze Yorinobu's preferences for me. Find out which type of girl he likes best. Then we'll place our bet early, find that doll, and bribe a fixer in the city to add her name to his recommendation list."
"Understood. Please wait a moment."
It took Morning Star barely ten seconds to send Mercer several personal profiles.
Mercer's gaze locked onto one woman's face almost without hesitation.
Evelyn Parker.
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6600words