Beside the corporate SUV, three people stood, and the atmosphere fell silent for a moment.
Until movement came from the SUV's trunk.
"Wuh, help! Is anyone out there? Save me!" A panicked male voice came through the car body, creating a commotion that shook the vehicle.
"Alright, put down the gun." Stott took a deep breath and waved for the Mercenaries to lower their weapons. The Mercenary who had collapsed nearby was now also clutching his nose and staggering back behind Stott.
Seeing Stott initiate a friendly signal, Arno also lowered the hand holding his gun.
"Go make that guy quiet!" Stott, with her sharp features, blonde hair, and blue eyes—likely of European Descent—was as intimidating as a lioness when she got angry.
The Mercenary nodded, opened the vehicle's trunk, and roughly dragged the suit-clad man with bound hands out.
As soon as he was out, before the man in the suit could even shout, he was struck in the face with the butt of the Mercenary's pistol, making him see stars. He was then pressed against the car body, a gun pointed at his head, and threatened into silence.
Now, it was finally quiet.
"Anthony Gilchrist." Arno took the lead, speaking the man's name.
"How did you... never mind." Stott was about to ask Arno how he knew the man's name, but then thought better of it and kept silent, waiting for Arno to continue.
"You're investigating whether he's connected to the stolen convoy." Arno clearly stated Stott's plan.
"I can tell you, it was indeed this guy who leaked the information." Arno said pointedly.
Stott's hand paused, while Anthony's eyes widened and he immediately tried to argue, but was roughly pushed back by the Mercenary's gun, almost getting another smack.
"Hehehe... so you just wanted to tell me this." Stott put the newly lit cigarette back in her mouth, staring intently at Arno. "What I need isn't suspicion, but evidence, raw evidence. I believe there's some truth to what you're saying, otherwise I won't believe a single word you utter."
"Simply put, show me the evidence." Stott took a drag from her cigarette and said.
To be honest, she wasn't enforcing the law impartially, trying to exonerate Anthony.
In fact, she couldn't wait to confirm Anthony's guilt so she could use this achievement of eliminating an internal mole to advance further in the company. She was confident she had a chance for promotion, just missing that final push.
With such a great temptation before her, she herself wanted to take a shortcut, framing Anthony to get him locked up.
But unfortunately, her superiors, those Militech board members, weren't fools. The company's executives were all shrewd, and simple framing wouldn't fool them.
That's why Stott was so eager to find evidence to convict Anthony.
After all, she had backing, and Anthony did too. She had to quickly confirm his guilt before the forces behind Anthony could act, otherwise, she herself might be the one dealt with by the company.
Thinking this, Stott's gaze towards Arno now held a hint of eagerness. She hoped this big guy wasn't just shooting blanks, but could actually produce some solid proof.
And in fact, Berry indeed had solid proof.
It was indeed this Anthony who betrayed Militech and leaked the convoy's information.
In the game, evidence of this guy's betrayal can be found in the All Foods Factory later on, and in the late game, players can even discover that this guy betrayed Militech because his girlfriend was kidnapped by Adam Smasher.
But now, he can only be caught early.
"I believe that in front of the company, you employees certainly have no privacy to speak of." Arno slowly began, staring at Anthony, who was being held at gunpoint. "Let's put it this way, this guy's girlfriend was kidnapped by Arasaka's people, who then blackmailed him into becoming an internal spy to cause trouble for your company."
"As for how to verify it, I don't think I, an outsider, need to say anything more, do I?" Arno looked back at the blonde, blue-eyed Stott.
"Hey, immediately re-examine Anthony Gilchrist's data, focusing on his girlfriend's information. Don't miss any clues." Hearing Arno's words, Stott didn't hesitate, immediately dialing the company's internal phone to issue orders.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck!!!" At this, Anthony, who was being held at gunpoint, no longer cared about being threatened. His eyes filled with panic, and he started yelling curses at Arno.
"No, no, this Mercenary is talking nonsense, Stott, you wouldn't actually believe this guy's bullshit, would you!"
But unfortunately, seeing Stott immediately take action, she clearly believed him.
"Don't move!"
"No! Goddammit, let go of me!"
Seeing this, the desperate Anthony began to struggle violently, and one Mercenary couldn't restrain him. At this moment, the Mercenary with the bloody nose stepped forward, grabbed Anthony's hair, and punched him twice in the face, hitting him until he was dizzy. After he painfully bent over, he delivered two knee strikes to his abdomen.
The effort he put in made one suspect that he was taking out all the anger from being knocked down by Arno's headbutt on Anthony.
Then, the Mercenary from behind took out plastic zip ties from the car to bind his hands and feet, and then used tape to wrap around his head a few times, firmly sealing his mouth. Only then did Anthony completely quiet down, writhing uselessly like a maggot in the hands of the two Mercenaries.
"Hahahahaha! Anthony, you stinking idiot, this time you're dead for sure!" Stott laughed like a cawing crow, terribly unpleasant, but it wasn't hard to sense her excitement and exhilaration. Now she had truly caught him red-handed.
Stott's eyes couldn't hide her excitement. There was no need to wait for the Agent's reply; just by looking at Anthony's appearance, she knew that what the Mercenary said was most likely true.
"You..." After mocking the ashen-faced Anthony, Stott turned back to Arno, her excitement mixed with complexity. She had initially thought this Mercenary was here to cause trouble, but she never expected him to help her so much with just a few words. "You're very good."
Shaking off the accumulated ash, Stott looked at Arno with satisfaction.
"This intel is excellent, I'm very satisfied. What do you want as a reward?" Stott glanced at Arno's Mercenary attire and spoke again. "Money? I can give you a large sum of money, enough to let you live comfortably for half your life."
Because the tall Mercenary in front of her had solved her big problem, Stott was now very generous.
In her opinion, weren't these Mercenaries just living for money? So she would give a large sum of money, enough to satisfy him.
"No, this is just a gift." But Arno spoke coldly again, making it impossible to guess his thoughts.
"What?" Stott was somewhat taken aback. At first, she thought she had misheard, but only when she saw Arno's unchanging expression did she come back to her senses. "Are you saying you don't want a reward?"
Arno remained silent, but nodded.
"Interesting..." Stott held the cigarette in her mouth to hide her uncontrollable surprise. Now she was a little confused. If this Mercenary wasn't doing it for money, then what was it for? It couldn't be just to do good deeds, could it?
Stott thought for a moment, then immediately laughed at the idea that popped into her head. Good deeds? She hadn't believed in those since she was three.
Shaking her head, Stott thought this guy probably wanted more, something beyond money.
Stott had indeed guessed correctly.
"I also know where the lost convoy cargo is." Staring at Stott, Arno slowly revealed his true purpose. "I'm looking for a robot, a flathead."
"It's with the people who hijacked your convoy, and I want that robot."
"Also, the Centaur exoskeleton armor, a product of your company. I want to get one."
Berry's plan required Centaur exoskeleton armor. That thing, though called an exoskeleton, was actually a full-fledged mech. Unlike the industrial junk, the Centaur exoskeleton armor produced by Militech possessed the most advanced neural conduction technology, allowing one to control the mech as flexibly as one's own little brother. Berry really wanted to get one.
"flathead, Centaur exoskeleton armor." Stott repeated, frowning.
Both of these were advanced products of the company. The flathead stealth robot was fine, but the Centaur exoskeleton armor was no small matter. If that thing fell into the hands of terrorists, it could at least rampage through four or five streets. This was a grave concern.
"Who are the hijackers, and how do you plan to deal with them?" Stott crossed her arms, the cigarette smoke drifting lazily. She decided not to bring up the robot for now.
Confirming Anthony's betrayal was only one part of her mission; finding and dealing with the guys who stole company property was another.
It wasn't that the prototype tech company didn't have backups; if it was lost, it was lost. But the company didn't want to lose face without getting it back. Otherwise, any Tom, Dick, or Harry would dare to mess with them.
"It doesn't rule out using violent means, but it can also be bought with money." Arno replied to the thoughtful Stott.
"I can make the decision for the flathead, but not for the Centaur Armor. If you cause any trouble with it, I'll end up like that dead dog Anthony."
"No need for the physical item, blueprints will do."
Berry thought, as long as she had the blueprints, she could replicate it, as long as she knew the principle behind it.
"Do I look like an idiot to you?" But hearing this request, Stott rolled her eyes.
Blueprints, really? Should I tie up the research scientists too?
A single machine couldn't be replicated on the black market, but if the blueprints leaked out, then there would be real trouble. Stott wasn't that stupid.
Now that she thought about it, giving a prototype might not be unacceptable.
"Alright, I agree to your terms." Stott nodded, holding her cigarette, and walked to the car to retrieve a pink credit chip. "But I also have a condition: if you're going to buy it, use our money."
Stott's expression was normal, but she was plotting her own scheme.
The lost cargo and tracking down some terrorists weren't the end of it. This chip contained a virus. As long as the carjackers used it, the virus would embed itself in their systems, tracing the true mastermind behind the incident.
"Pleasure doing business."
Berry, having played the game, of course knew there was a virus inside, but what did it matter to her? Even if something was uncovered, it would be Militech and Arasaka fighting like dogs, and she was happy to watch.
At this, Berry and Stott officially concluded their deal.
Just as Arno took the chip, Arno's off-road vehicle drove out of a nearby cave entrance. The window rolled down, revealing Berry's face.
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