"That's a pretty good idea, and a partnership is also a great suggestion. I was originally planning on doing similar work starting from Dog Town later on...
Do you know where the chips on Japan Street come from? It's the new Voodoo Gang that just moved to Dog Town not long ago.
They're also doing network work for Colonel Hanssen, while flipping some cyberware, reprogramming it for Dog Town folks, refurbishing junk and selling it off."
After Mercer finished speaking, Daichi understood his meaning and looked worried: "You mean the Voodoo Gang might find trouble with us for stealing business?"
"They'll definitely come, in Night City, every profitable business has its owners, and if you want to snatch someone else's market, it's not about the quality of the products.
The major markets are all held by the Voodoo Gang now; if an ordinary hacker gets involved, the Voodoo Gang's mad dogs will chase them down."
Mercer finished speaking but then reassured him: "But don't worry, the Adcardo people aren't to be messed with, and the Dog Town Voodoo Gang isn't as crazy as those in the Taiping Prefecture.
I'm saying, you focus on the business here, while I head over to Dog Town and chat with their Voodoo boss, Hua Tiao, and then we can all make money together.
By the way, I need to find a job for Lucy and Kyoko too, let's start with programming, it's perfect timing since they probably aren't in the mood for deep dives lately."
Daichi nodded and smiled: "Got it, then I'll wait for your news, Brother A."
"Oh, come on... but whatever, Pan'an really has a big mouth." Mercer figured it out immediately, this "Brother A" nickname must have come from Pan'an.
He waved his hand, tucked the chip into his pocket, and then remembered he hadn't squared up the cab fare with Pan'an from yesterday, so he sent her 1,000 Euros directly.
Mercer wasn't stingy about such a small sum.
To him, taking on any job could easily start at 100,000 Euros.
But for someone like Pan'an or V, at the bottom of society, 1,000 or 2,000 Euros would be enough to live frugally for a month.
"I'm heading out first to get everyone new identities—by the way, send me a photo, a proper one, so I can get you some new identities.
Think about what new names you want, and let me know. Oh, if you have any special thoughts about age and birthday, you can tell me those too."
Daichi was a bit taken aback, almost forgetting about the need for name changes with new identities: "Understood."
Lucy also fell into thought, starting to consider the details of her new name.
Mercer waved them off to let them think for themselves while he prepared to set out—he put on his mask, deciding to drive out alone today.
Yesterday, there was a lot of stuff and a lot to do; today shouldn't just be a day of unexpected events for a simple meetup and meal, right?
Then Mercer found his Canary Viper parked outside the camp.
This junk car, picked up from the Chaotic Blade Association, had been patched up along the way, turning from junk into premium junk.
Low-key to drive out yet not lacking in defensiveness, it should be enough to protect him during a hail of bullets at a crucial moment, and the Adcardo mark on the car would keep many people from bothering him.
Mercer started the car and drove to the address V gave him. With navigation, he didn't find driving much of a hassle.
The ride was smooth, without any gang fights encountered, and there were no drive-by shootings on the highway; Mercer hummed a tune, and the traffic in Night City after the morning rush hour was relatively smooth.
But driving all the way from Evil Land to the city, then to Japan Street, still took him over an hour. By the time he arrived, it was already 9:40.
Mercer just got out of the car when he saw V squatting like a street rat by the restaurant side, while Qiwei leaned against her car, smoking a lady's cigarette.
Seeing Mercer get off, V stood up, clutching her stomach: "Yo, Brother A, what took you so long? We've been waiting for half an hour."
"The road was a bit long, coming from Evil Land took over an hour already, and I was speeding as fast as I could. You should be grateful there wasn't any traffic today."
But Mercer grudgingly admitted fault: "But... late is late, so, it's my treat."
"Great!" V instantly changed her demeanor and enthusiastically replied: "Brother A is generous! Being a little late is no big deal!"
Qiwei, however, kept her eyes on Mercer, and when Mercer made eye contact, she nodded slightly, then hesitated, put down her cigarette, and, with a serious tone, said, "Thank you, A."
"No big deal. Even without me, with your skills, you should've been able to escape quickly."
Mercer said, without anything special to say to her, just waved his hand: "Come on, let's talk inside, V looks like she's about to go crazy from hunger, I'm afraid she'll start gnawing if we don't move."
Saving Qiwei was just an impulsive decision; subsequent arrangements were just about seeing things through. In reality, Mercer had no ulterior motives for Qiwei.
If she wanted to go solo as a lone wolf hacker or join him, Mercer didn't care.
After all, Qiwei did promise to pay up, and 50,000 Euros was enough for V to raid that black sex doll shop ten times over.
"Oh, come on... It's not like I'm starving because you made me work last night." V mumbled, pushing the door open and walking in.
As soon as she entered, she stopped dead in her tracks.
Then, V turned her head and said: "For the love of God, there's a bunch of Animal Gang members here... They usually never hang out in this area."
Mercer leaned over to take a look as well, and sure enough, not-so-big a restaurant, yet a booth was stuffed full by a group of strong men.
These guys generally had no cyberware noticeable, their muscles bulging, with veins popping out in a way that didn't look like natural training.
There were only four of them, but each looked hard to deal with, all carrying rifles and shotguns, seeming more prepared for war than a meal.
"What do you say? They look like they're just passing through for a bite, shouldn't cause any trouble."
After V finished speaking, Mercer gave her a glance: "Next time, don't jinx it with words like that..."
Mercer thought about possibly finding another place to eat—these bulky guys were the least welcomed group among hackers; they typically didn't use much cyberware, relying entirely on drugs to achieve the Power of Nine Dragons.
The implants they had were at most subdermal armor, metal bones, or even just a layer of iron plated over the skin... really digging in, there wasn't much cyberware to overload.
Running into hackers, these big guys often disconnected any brain-computer interface and charged in, making them notorious hacker nemeses.
But as his gaze shifted, a small girl's pretty face suddenly appeared in his view.
This caused Mercer to stop abruptly.
Green twin tails, pale skin, a few pink tattoos, a rebellious little face with eyes color-modded to a red-pink-yellow scheme that stood out...
Sitting across from her was a tall, skinny young man... uh, though the guy wore sunglasses, had an exaggerated mohawk, and a full beard.
Rebecca! Pira!
No doubt, it had to be them!
"Since we're here... let's go eat."
Without a word, Mercer walked in.
To put it frankly, he was a true die-hard fan of Rebecca—had even searched for her urn in the game several times!
Well, since they're here...
His collecting obsession was starting to stir.