"Take it and sell it second-hand, you can find yourself a new home and start your life over."
"No... you take it." Bruce looked up, his expression uncertain if he was crying or smiling: "I've got a hidden stash of secret funds... I won't starve."
"Then you'd better transfer it quickly, I've erased the surveillance program in your head, but I can't erase what they saw.
They're most likely monitoring your actions 24/7, so your secret funds aren't really a secret."
After Mercer finished speaking, Bruce lowered his head once more in despair. After taking a deep breath, he struggled to stand up and retrieved a Money Chip from a cabinet in his safe house: "Then please help me take it, and give it to me when it's safe."
Mercer didn't ask how much money was in it, he just accepted it and said: "Bruce, no matter if everything before was their setup or your true nature, at least everything you've been through is real."
"A street 'hero' who only knows how to bully small-time thugs? Hah." Bruce let out a bitter laugh.
"Justice is justice. What you did was just inefficient, but that doesn't mean it was meaningless. There are always people who were saved by you, and surely someone has genuinely thanked you for what you've done, so look on the bright side, man."
Mercer handed the Money Chip to V, who was dressed like a Street Kid, but her clothes certainly had plenty of pockets.
"This money is waiting for you to take, I've sent my contact info to you."
Mercer sent his contact information to him, and Rebecca turned her head to look at Mercer, hesitantly saying: "Why don't we take him with us? Him being alone like this… isn't it a bit too pitiful?"
"Do you need to find a place with us where you can have some peace and quiet for a while?" Mercer turned to look at Bruce.
Bruce shook his head, speaking with exhaustion in his voice: "Thanks, but... I just want to be alone right now... at least for now."
"Let's go, let him have a moment of peace alone. I'll leave that Mykino car for you, if necessary you can drive it back to the city."
After Mercer said this, he nodded at Bruce and then turned to leave.
Rebecca and V both lost their previous excitement, even the cool black Sword in the Stone seemed to have lost its appeal in their eyes now.
Mercer watched as the door of Bruce's secret base closed again, feeling conflicted as he pointed at the Sword in the Stone: "Who wants to drive?"
"Hmm... you go ahead."
V had also lost the mood for driving, looking seemingly preoccupied.
Mercer first transferred his belongings from the Mykino to the trunk of the Sword in the Stone, then deregistered the Mykino's vehicle certification and sat in the main driver's seat.
V and Rebecca squeezed into the passenger seat; this two-seater sports car wasn't designed to be compact, so with V holding the petite Rebecca, it wasn't too cramped.
The engine of the Sword in the Stone roared deeply as it drove out of the tunnel, but the people inside didn't have the same high spirits they had when they set out.
"I'll take you back first." Mercer said.
"Hey... is there something you're not telling us?" V turned her head to look at him, her expression very serious: "I can feel it."
Mercer was silent for a moment, finally he just said: "There are some things... how to say it, I just feel... maybe I should be more cautious in the future."
"What, got scared?" V laughed: "Don't be a wimp, A."
"It's just that you don't know how deep the water really is, V." Mercer sighed and said: "Do you think this Bruce is really Bruce?"
"What do you mean?" V frowned.
"I'm worried about upsetting Bruce, so I didn't say it... I suspect that maybe the real Bruce Will is already dead, and he's just some guy, not sure who, who was reconstructed and brainwashed to become the current Bruce."
After Mercer's words, the car fell into silence.
Rebecca tightly pursed her lips, uttering an incredulous 'ha'.
"You're saying that this Bruce might not really be the real Bruce, but a replacement brainwashed by Ye Corporation using someone else?"
V's voice grew louder: "How the hell is that possible?"
"I also hope I'm wrong, that way, at least Bruce really is Bruce, and not someone who doesn't even know their own name, having to live on using someone else's name and memories."
Mercer's tone was a bit down.
Rebecca opened her mouth: "No way..."
V was also a bit confused, but after a while, she just hummed and looked at Mercer again: "Is there anything else? Any other problems?"
"What problems?" Mercer feigned ignorance.
"What are you holding back in your heart? Don't think about hiding it from me! I'm telling you, the things I have a strong premonition about have never been wrong!" V persistently said.
"A beast's intuition?" Mercer mused.
V's hand silently squeezed onto his shoulder, causing Mercer to feel some pain—damn, his shoulder is supposed to be strong as iron!
"Alright, alright, I'll talk." Mercer, being smart, knew the wise thing to do.
He turned to look at the two and said: "I just feel that, as your leader, I should be more serious, more careful in doing things, I can't, like today, impulsively bring you two into such dangerous matters."
"Damn, we didn't say we were scared! What are you afraid of?" V didn't like seeing him showing a hint of dismay now.