This time, Lin Mo skimmed through the chip quickly.
After all, there wasn't much recorded on it—mostly footage Lucy had shot using the drones he'd mailed to her: some photos, some short videos.
It hadn't been many days since he'd assigned her the task.
Finding a single freezer in the garbage mountains outside the city in such a short time was only slightly easier than fishing a needle out of the ocean.
A city's growth inevitably meant producing mountains of trash. Over the years, Night City's waste had piled up at the city's edge—the Badlands.
From the sky, the ground looked like a rolling tide made entirely of refuse.
Maybe, in a few more years, those heaps of junk would become a scavenger's market, and eventually grow into a full-blown scavenger village.
If this were a novel or a movie, maybe one or two "chosen ones" would even rise from that trash sea... Lin Mo's imagination wandered, as it always did.
After all, these filthy, ruined places were the perfect breeding ground for grassroots protagonists to rise up, and endless piles of junk were the best, most reasonable source of "golden finger" opportunities.
By contrast, someone like him—a rich guy—would, in a typical story, more often end up cast as the villain.
Thoughts like these surfaced precisely because he had never left Night City in all these years, had never actually seen this sea of trash.
The perspective inside the game had always been partial and artificial. Now, with Lucy's drone videos and pictures, he realized just how hard it was to find a particular freezer in a place like this.
"Looks like this dump is even bigger than I imagined... my mistake. But you've been taking this job pretty seriously, Miss Lucy."
Lin Mo's eyes were still fixed on the imagery from the chip, but his mouth didn't stop, slipping in some genuine praise.
In several photos and videos, Lucy herself appeared.
Sometimes she was standing atop a mound of scrapped vehicles, sometimes trekking across stretches of scattered garbage, sometimes keeping close to the drone to make sure it didn't fly out of range.
Her expression was always firm, though the faint creases between her brows suggested just how much she disliked wandering through the trash heaps.
Even so, the sheer number of photos and clips was proof enough of her effort.
Unfortunately, she still hadn't found the freezer containing the remains of the legendary netrunner.
Still, seeing such a conscientious "employee"—how could a "boss" like Lin Mo not feel a surge of emotion?
For someone willing to work so diligently without complaint, the right thing to do was to string her along with the promise of raises while loading her with more tasks. With her stubborn, unyielding personality, she would grit her teeth and endure.
Maybe he should mail her a few more drones.
Soon, Lin Mo pulled the chip out of his neural slot, his gaze burning with admiration as he looked at the white-haired girl who had done all the work. He spared no effort in his compliments:
"I've got to say, Lucy, having you around is a blessing. Really. Without you, I wouldn't have the faintest idea how to handle this job. I know you must be wondering why finding some random freezer matters, but trust me—it's important to me."
"Lucky for me you're here!"
Piling on the praise didn't cost him anything. Drawing on the little "business management" he'd once studied at the academy, Lin Mo improvised smoothly.
Lucy's face betrayed no reaction, but her restless eyes darting about seemed to reveal a faint flicker of satisfaction.
"Lin Mo, may I ask... what exactly is this job?"
The sudden question came from Sasha, who had been sitting nearby with a soft smile that now turned oddly cold in tone.
Lin Mo froze.
Why would a full member be prying into what was basically an external worker's task?
After all, making someone slog through a trash heap to find one specific broken freezer—no matter how nicely he dressed it up—wouldn't sound so great if laid bare.
Better to keep this between just him and Lucy.
And really, there was no need to waste more manpower on this—adding another netrunner would feel like squandering a valuable resource.
"As for this job, you don't need to know for now. If the chance comes, I'll tell you later."
Lin Mo decided against revealing the truth.
First, he wasn't even sure if the freezer with the legendary netrunner's remains had been dumped into the open landfill yet.
Second, even if he explained, there would be more questions he couldn't answer—like what exactly was inside.
Besides, if he did eventually find those remains, and managed to inherit their legacy, he would only entrust it to a netrunner he truly trusted.
"Oh, I see..." Sasha didn't press further, her gem-like eyes shifting back and forth between Lin Mo and Lucy.
Something seemed to spark in Lin Mo's mind. He turned back to Lucy:
"By the way, thanks for your hard work these past days. Here, consider this a bonus."
Without a second thought, he transferred ten thousand eddies to her, the blue glow circling in his eyes.
Lucy stared, stunned, as the amount lit up on her balance. She looked at him in disbelief.
"Didn't you already pay me this month's wages in advance?"
"I told you—if the work is good, I don't hold back on rewards. I'm a boss with a conscience." Lin Mo laughed casually, then added:
"If you still feel uneasy about it, you could always say a little something like... 'Thank you, boss.'"
Lucy's surprised look twisted into something odd. She stared at him for a while, realizing he wasn't really serious, just tossing the comment offhand.
After a moment's pause, she finally said slowly:
"Thank you, boss."
Lin Mo blinked in surprise. He hadn't expected her, stubborn as she was, to actually say it.
"Well, then, I hope you keep working hard. I can't tell you the specifics of this job yet, but I can tell you this—it's not only important for me, it'll be important for you too."
"It's good for young people to have dreams. But dreams are still just illusions unless you work hard to make them real."
Lin Mo continued in a mock-sage tone. The more he spoke with Lucy, the more he slipped into the role of "the boss."
He had to admit—it felt great, "bullying" her with money like this.
He didn't plan on treating the rest of the crew this way—for them, he wanted to build trust, since future missions would put their lives on the line together.
But Lucy? An external worker? With her, he had fewer scruples. Why not savor the role of "boss" to the fullest?
Lucy couldn't help but chuckle. Seeing Lin Mo putting on his boss act amused her more than she expected.
She looked at him, smiling meaningfully.
"Then I'll be counting on your guidance in the future... boss."
Sasha sat quietly, watching the entire exchange unfold before her, the smile at her lips never wavering.
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MY CYBERPUNK 2077 SIMULATOR
🧠💻 MY CYBERPUNK 2077 SIMULATOR 💻🧠
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📢 SYSTEM ONLINE! 📢
My Cyberpunk 2077 Simulator has 100+ chapters ahead available on Patreon! 💾🔥
Enter Night City with a simulator, a system, and the kind of advantage most mercs would kill for.
But this is still Night City.
And in a world ruled by corpos, bullets, chrome, gangs, and cyberpsychos, even a cheat-like power doesn't guarantee survival.
⚙️ Level up.🔫 Fight harder.🌃 Stay alive.💀 Or get swallowed by the city.
Read ahead now before the public readers catch up!
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🛑 ALSO AVAILABLE ON PATREON:
🌃 Cyberpunk: Dogtown Legend🔥 Cyberpunk: The Relentless👩👦 Cyberpunk: Lucy Adopted Me and I Got a System🤖 My Girlfriend's a Cyberpsycho—Who Knew?🛡️ Star Wars: The Rise of Mandalore🌌 Star Wars: Relics of the Past🏰 Game of Thrones: Secrets Beneath the Dreadfort⚡ The Rebirth of Harry Potter🌹 R18: Reincarnated in Her World
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