The hacker girl was shaking like a sieve.
The half-elf arcanist is still unconscious.
So Angela looked at them thoughtfully: "Master, are these people really professional warriors?"
"Actually, it wasn't bad." Hayden bent down to inspect the group's weapons and equipment. "They used good stuff, and their initial attack was well-coordinated. Their arcanist even managed to dismantle my outer barrier. Overall, for a mercenary squad, they're competent. The failure was just due to tactical errors."
First, they chose the wrong ammunition for their crucial first sniper shot.
Angela's outer shell is coated with an extremely expensive layer of white Orichalcum steel, which possesses anti-magic properties and can resist most spells. Magic bullets sealed with spells ultimately only allow powerful spells to be launched from a distance and activated at close range; they are useless against the white Orichalcum steel coating. To deal with Angela with firearms, one would need anti-materiel firearms specifically designed to counter military golems or armored vehicles. However, such weapons are military contraband, unlike ordinary sniper rifles.
Sniper rifles are legal in this pathetic Union of the Americas. As long as you have a license, you can openly walk the streets with a regular sniper rifle, but anti-tank weapons are a different story.
Therefore, the only way for this squad to harm Angela was to use physical attacks on her, relying on the strength of their armor, just like the old samurai. Unfortunately…
"This is the Type 40 Land Combat Armor produced by Yawata Heavy Industries."
Hayden picked up the crushed, broken parts and immediately recognized its model. Although it was a classic powered armor for land warfare, it was not only a mass-produced product but also a twenty-year-old one. In every respect, it was no match for Angela.
As for hacking… hahaha, since Hayden knows his hacking skills are only third-rate, why would he be foolish enough to try and build a defense system for his own house that can be connected using modern arcane magic? A modern arcane mage who doesn't understand ancient magical rituals can use their powerful magic to break through Hayden's defensive barrier—but sneaking in is virtually impossible. If he breaks in without first dismantling everything, he'll end up like that half-elf with a swollen, pig-like head on the ground.
The best way to deal with Hayden's house is to use heavy firepower to blow it up from a distance, but obviously ordinary mercenaries can't do that in the city.
But that's getting off-topic.
"Even with older equipment, these are still very expensive. They're not the kind of things you'd use for a burglary. Who sent you? Are you some old enemies from somewhere? Or..."
Hayden frowned.
"Which music club sent you?"
If a third-rate hacker breaks into what is likely a company's secret facility, they could indeed be tracked down and even hunted down.
But then again, why didn't the "mastermind" directly send a more professional elite corporate force, but instead hired four urban mercenaries? If they had actually sent a professional elite corporate force, Hayden would either be dead or captured by now, or at best, he would be forced to abandon his house and flee. Because even the strongest freelance mercenary would be helpless against an attack by a large corporation's elite forces.
Even the best special forces soldiers cannot defeat an entire army.
Hayden was just a first-rate mercenary.
The old warrior still refused to answer.
The sniper still sneered.
The hacker girl was terrified. After all, she was still young and, unlike the previous two, had long been mentally prepared for death.
The half-elf arcanist, on the other hand, was more articulate. He was awake by now, his face still swollen, but at least his headache had subsided. Having suffered under the curse, he understood that Hayden could not only kill them, but also make them wish they were dead. So he immediately replied, "Friend, our employer's only request is to retrieve the stolen chip data and ensure that the content hasn't been leaked. We're all mercenaries; there's no need to fight to the death. If you kill us, the employer will only send more people to cause you trouble!"
Hayden hadn't expected this man to be in charge of the negotiations. But having a talking prisoner was certainly more convenient.
"What's your name?"
he asked curiously.
"Varelle Moonsong".
The half-elf immediately raised his head and uttered a very proper elven name, indicating that he was the kind of half-elf who was very proud of his elven bloodline.
"Graduated from the California Arcane Academy. I am a certified Level 6 Transmuter."
Moreover, elves often place great importance on their own arcane skills.
"Wow, he graduated from a prestigious school."
Hayden was finally taken aback.
Arcane masters who graduate from reputable universities, especially prestigious ones, often aspire to stable corporate jobs or remain in academia as instructors. Arcane masters who end up as mercenaries are generally from third-rate universities, vocational colleges, or are entirely self-taught without diplomas or certifications—the last being particularly common. Those who rise through the ranks of the streets, self-taught in arcane arts, and gradually climb the ranks through experience are actually quite popular and it's the norm in the mercenary world.
Very few people graduate from top universities like Hayden and then become mercenaries. He did it partly because he hated the company, and partly, it must be admitted, he was indeed a bit crazy.
So Hayden reached out and projected his business card into the air, which read:
Hayden, the Last Freelance Wizard
World-class city mercenaries
[Certified Tier 8 Combat Arcanist]
We can handle everything, at affordable prices.
"If your employer wants to deal with me, it will take a lot of money and a lot of people. So instead of spouting nonsense, you might as well honestly tell me who your employer is. Understand?"
But he wasn't lying. He didn't lie about these things. Considering he'd accidentally granted Angela's wish the night before, Hayden suspected he was now practically a ninth-tier arcanist, though he didn't have time to take the new exam—and he found it too troublesome. Certificates were just for show; they didn't matter to anyone else.
So now it was the half-elf's turn to be dumbfounded.
However, even if Hayden is truly a top-tier combat arcane mage, in the eyes of large corporations he is merely a super soldier, incapable of defeating an entire army.
So how should we choose this half-elf?
The answer is obvious.
“Friend, you understand the industry norms. How would we know who our employer is? He's been employing us for two months, but all we've seen are the money he sends and the job requirements.”
As expected of a half-elf. Smart people are easy to talk to.
"This time, he only told us that the Wenle Club's server had been hacked and important personality chip data had been stolen. He asked us to investigate, recover the data, and ensure that it had not been leaked. That's all."
He chuckled sheepishly and confessed honestly.
Hayden fell into deep thought upon hearing this.
It seems that, regardless of who the employer behind this is, there's no intention to directly use the company's resources to resolve the issue. What does this mean? Perhaps it's because this employer doesn't represent the official decision-making of a large corporation, and the Wenle Club is just a behind-the-scenes operation; or perhaps it's because the large corporation behind it doesn't want to bring this matter into the open.
Either way, it's good news for Hayden. Going against the main forces of a large corporation is certain death, but if the enemy is just a manager within the company, things are very different.
These mercenaries don't know who their employer is? No big deal. In this information age, as long as you can find a clue, you can always follow the trail.
Wasn't that exactly how Hayden was approached?
"What kind of work has your employer made you do in the past two months?"
he asked tentatively.
"it's not a big deal."
Although his face was still swollen like a pig's head and his body was very weak, the half-elf still managed to shrug, trying to convey a sense of relief.
"The main job was just to have us spread rumors about the daughter of a Mitra Group executive."
……Um?
“I created several fantasies of her dating other young men, then deliberately got caught on camera, and then forged her spending records and membership information, secretly putting them into the systems of several high-end entertainment clubs in New Asia. In order not to make Wenle Club seem particularly strange, we even made fake records there.”
The half-elf continued to explain,
"Apart from that, it's basically just some unremarkable work. Smuggling goods into slums, or protecting specific places... You know, we have no way of knowing what the goods are, or why we're hired to protect a certain place."
Indeed, but Hayden wasn't considering that right now. Because a possibility had already surfaced in his mind.
"You're saying your employer sent you to spread rumors about the daughter of a Mitra Group executive? What's her name?"
The half-elf indeed uttered the name from Hayden's mind: "Alicia Clari Kazmuk Apsara."
Isn't that Hayden's good classmate and best friend, Adam—his wife's name?!
For a moment, Hayden almost forgot that he was interrogating prisoners and blurted out "fxck".
Damn, so all the information he found yesterday about Alicia's possible infidelity was fabricated by these mercenary colleagues?
He was saying last night that Adam was being ungrateful, and now he's the one getting slapped in the face!?
015: War Escape Response
不要慌，数数质数。2、3、5、7、11、13、17、19。
Hayden rubbed his temples, calmed down, and rethought the problem and analyzed the situation.
Adam and his wife Alicia officially met three months ago. This half-elf just claimed they were hired two months ago to spread rumors about Alicia. Could this so-called employer, connected to the company, be trying to thwart Adam and Alicia's office-based political marriage?
This... doesn't seem surprising at all; in fact, it's nothing new. Besides, Adam and Alicia got married the day before yesterday, so this plan has probably already failed.
After much thought, Hayden decided the matter wasn't particularly serious. Considering the employer hadn't directly sent a large corporate special forces team, it was likely just internal office politics. Since they could only hire freelance mercenaries to work behind the scenes, they were unlikely to use a large force to fight Hayden to the death. What was he afraid of?
So he took out a pair of scissors, cut a lock of hair from each of the four prisoners' heads, and stuffed them into four voodoo dolls. The others couldn't understand what Hayden was doing, but the half-elf arcanist was terrified.
“According to Angela, none of you intended to use lethal weapons or kill me from the beginning. Based on the principle of reciprocity, I will not kill you either.”
Hayden picked up the voodoo doll and waved it in front of them.
"But I'm confiscating your equipment as payment for the door repairs. If you dare to cause me trouble again, you'll be even uglier than this half-elf."
"Finally, please pass on a message to your employer: I'm just going to sell this information for money. Whose money isn't money? Don't you think it's too expensive to resolve this by force? Aren't you afraid that you'll just force me to post the information online? You might as well negotiate a good price with me."
Hearing Hayden say this, the old warrior, the sniper, and the half-elf all breathed a sigh of relief. At least they could survive.
"What?!" The hacker girl exclaimed anxiously, "Why would you need to pay for door repairs?! It's already fixed!!"
Just as she said, the door that the old warrior had cleaved open had now been repaired. Angela sang a few lines to the fragments, and they came to life on their own, jumping and piecing themselves back together on the doorframe, fixing themselves. Most remarkably, Hayden detected almost no magic consumption. Any talk of repair costs was utter nonsense.
"That's compensation for emotional distress. You disturbed my sleep."
But there are countless reasons for this. Hayden nonchalantly rephrased the story, picking up the hacker girl's phone and examining it.
"Wow, Mars Industrial Group's Taifeng 10 mobile phone! I remember this thing originally cost over 70,000. We really hit the jackpot today, thank you."
The hacker girl almost cried as Hayden took her phone. However, Hayden wasn't going to be any more lenient with them. "You don't intend to kill me, so I won't kill you either. It's fair. But money is another matter."
"Alright, Angela, see them out."
So he waved his hand and prepared to return to his studio.
The hacker girl was unwilling to accept it and gritted her teeth, but what could she do?
"That's it. That's just how being a mercenary is. That's why you should try to avoid taking on killing jobs."
The old warrior sighed, but instead offered words of comfort to his team members.
The half-elf, still shaken, immediately agreed: "Exactly. As long as we survive, even if we've suffered a loss, we can grit our teeth, grab our spare equipment, and find other work. Just like you always say, Boss, as long as the green hills remain, there's always firewood to burn. It's so good to be alive!"
No mercenary wants to be a mercenary forever, nor can they. A life lived on the edge of death wears them down. The damage and its aftereffects accumulate, making future hardships even more unbearable. The employer pays the fee and runs, leaving behind a crew and fallen comrades. No one can be lucky forever. Bad luck can strike a vital spot with a single magic arrow and be gone. Danger is everywhere, and time is always on death's side.
Is it better to gamble with your life for a chance to make a fortune, or to cherish your life and make long-term plans? Every mercenary needs to carefully consider this question.
This old samurai and his team weren't the legendary mercenary squad that killed the most enemies, completed the biggest missions, or earned the most money, but the old samurai never felt there was anything wrong with that. Nothing in this world is more precious than one's own life. The best mercenaries aren't the most legendary mercenaries, because the most legendary mercenaries all die along the way.
In the old samurai's eyes, the best mercenaries are those who can provide their families with a happy life in a safe and warm home with hot water, hot food, and safety. That is why he has worked on the front lines for so long and has earned the trust of the other members of the team.
The so-called urban mercenaries sound cool, but in reality, it's just a profession for the lower class.
————————————————————————
And so, the mercenary squad was plundered by Hayden, left with only their clothes, and then slunk away.
With the voodoo dolls containing their hair in hand, they probably won't dare to cause Hayden any more trouble in the future.
"The only problem now is how to track down the employer hiding behind the scenes. We might even have to hire a top-notch hacker. Karen wasn't lying to me; getting involved with a corporate dog is really troublesome."
Hayden sat in the living room, talking to himself as he pondered his next plan.
"I sent those mercenaries back to deliver a message. Perhaps there's still a chance to negotiate with their employer, at least enough to buy some time. If all else fails, we'll have to run away."
That's the troublesome thing about being noticed by the executives of big companies.
Alternatively, Hayden could uncover the identity of this corporate spy and resolve the issue completely—which is difficult. If the other party is indeed a manager at a large company, his security and protection would undoubtedly be top-notch. What could a lone wolf mercenary do to him? If Hayden is lucky, it might not be impossible, but the success rate is certainly not high.
Alternatively, the corporate operative might agree to a deal with Hayden to buy back the data Hayden took—but data is easily copied. Even if Hayden sells the originals back, can the other party truly trust that Hayden hasn't kept other copies? Hayden didn't have high hopes for the corporate operative's character.
So, in the worst-case scenario, Hayden would have no choice but to run away. The other party is most likely just an executive of a large company, not the embodiment of the entire behemoth. Hayden, alone with Angela, should be able to find a place where they can't reach him.
This is his home, and he still has over a decade left to pay off the mortgage. Hayden has no intention of running away. But if all else fails, there's no other way.
"These secondhand items should fetch around 30,000 to 50,000 yuan, at least I'll have some cash on hand... Sigh, I never have enough money."
The price of secondhand stolen goods can't be too high, and the middleman will take a cut. Unlike mercenaries and adventurers of old, selling loot is unlikely to make you rich in this era.
And that's how it all happened. Just as Hayden casually complained about not having enough money, his phone rang. An email that would automatically delete after being read was sent to his work inbox.
[Recipient: Hayden]
[Title: A Good Job]
[Sender: Boss Todak]
[Amigo! My good friend! I have a job that just came to me that you might be interested in! 100,000 gold coins to make the wife of a mid-level company manager disappear forever. The difficulty is definitely not a problem for you!]
If you're interested, let me know within an hour. Job details will be discussed in person!