After receiving the system rewards, he naturally carried out the same old revenge plan. Once all his enemies had been wiped out, he took over the modification shop and used it as a trading location.
After all, given his status, there were many rare materials and pieces of equipment he could not get his hands on himself. He could only rely on other connections.
As the shop's reputation for weapon performance gradually spread through Hell's Kitchen, Kingpin took notice of him. Many of his materials were therefore supplied by Kingpin.
Naturally, progress accelerated afterward, and the atomic engine for vehicles had recently been developed as well.
Queens, Roosevelt Avenue, Walden Apartments.
As the low rumble slowly faded away, Merlin stepped out of the car and took the elevator up to his home.
Just as he inserted and turned his key, a stern voice reprimanded him from beside him.
"Merlin, wear your Helmet when you ride from now on. And don't come home so late. It's too dangerous for you to ride your motorcycle so brazenly through the streets."
The neighboring door quickly opened, and a middle-aged man in a suit stepped out. When his sharp gaze fell on the teenager in work clothes before him, it carried a hint of helplessness.
George Stacy, sheriff of Manhattan, Liberty City, and the father of Merlin's classmate, Gwen Stacy.
He was also Merlin's neighbor.
The original owner's father had been an off-the-books member of the Liberty City Police Department and a close friend of George's.
The last time, his identity had been exposed and he had been murdered by his enemies. The original owner had also been captured on his way to school.
Thus, George, who had promised to look after Merlin, felt deeply guilty about it. When Merlin had opened his eyes after transmigrating, the first thing he saw had been George's guilt-ridden face.
"Mm, I understand. Thank you." Merlin had never known how to face the man's kindness. He could only return a gentle smile before opening the door and entering his home.
Bang!
George looked at the closed door, opened his mouth as if to speak, but ultimately sighed.
"Merlin, I understand that you want to commemorate your father through the modification shop, but Hell's Kitchen is too chaotic. You're just a kid. It's dangerous."
"So, during this vacation, I hope... you can stay home obediently."
There was no response from inside. George pressed his lips together and bared his teeth in a helpless grimace before returning to his own home.
Faced with his wife's questioning gaze from the sofa, he could only shrug helplessly.
"How about having Gwen take him to join the band? Maybe he should relax and take his mind off things." After George poured himself a drink and sat back down on the sofa, his wife made the suggestion.
"No. That kid runs to his father's modification shop every day. He doesn't want to go anywhere else." George shook his head. "He's like a silent little bull. Nothing can pull him back."
He gloomily downed the entire glass in one gulp.
"Isn't that because you're always busy with who knows what, letting those people find their way directly to the school?" His wife had no solution either and could only complain.
George said nothing, merely pouring himself another drink.
In the neighboring room, Merlin fried himself a stuffed flatbread to settle his late-night hunger. After washing up, he lay on his bed and immersed himself in the system.
[Reputation Points have reached three million. Reward issued: Supercharged Technology, Electromagnetic Pulse Gun Technology, MK2 Combat Machine Gun]
Seeing that none of the technologies he wanted were among them, a trace of disappointment appeared on his face.
Rewards were issued every time his Reputation Points increased by five hundred thousand. Each reward contained between three and ten technical documents, depending mainly on the difficulty of the technology.
The game had been released for three months now. In this era, reaching three million downloads was already enough to stand at the very top of the gaming industry.
However, Merlin had no intention of stopping there. Once the time was right, the real-world version should go online as well. When that happened, Liberty City would become even more free.
Los Santos would naturally be no exception.
After digesting the technologies in his mind, Merlin opened his Notebook again and browsed the game forums.
[Anyone willing to take me to the casino? I mainly want to unlock the clothes.]
[Playing Doomsday for the first time. Anyone want to join me?]
[Fleeca Bank job. Anyone want to come along?]
[How do I unlock Explosive Rounds? Please share a guide.]
[Going to the island, going to the island, taking newbies to the island...]
[Who said you could spray an armored truck open with a gun? I was already broke!]
[Merlin's Beard, this game is truly mind-blowing. I feel like every game I played before was complete garbage.]
[Oh shit, I just went to Fort Zancudo to borrow a plane for fun. Why did I immediately get three stars the moment I went in?]
[Where the dream began, North Yankton!]
As the game exploded in popularity, major news outlets and newspapers began reporting on it in addition to the game forums.
The Daily Horn: Morality and Rule of Law 5 is not merely a crazy and entertaining video game; it also satirizes the dark realities of contemporary Eagle Country.
Brook Times: This is a game that surpasses all single-player and multiplayer games. Online and offline, all three protagonists have their own backstories. It is a vast sandbox.
Liberty Tribune: Although the game contains a great deal of violence, it is still an excellent game.
Of course, while there was plenty of praise, there was no shortage of criticism as well.
Ding! Just as Merlin was reading the online comments with great interest, his phone suddenly chimed.
He picked it up and looked. It was a payment notification.
Kingpin must have received the goods and transferred the money over.
After browsing the forums for a while, Merlin began to feel sleepy and soon drifted off.
Today, he had obtained Electromagnetic Pulse Gun Technology. Next, he needed to find a way to acquire the equipment and materials he wanted.
Over the final half month, nothing major happened at Merlin's modification shop. It seemed that, due to Kingpin's deliberate protection, no fool dared to come make trouble.
Merlin was not surprised. With the many weapons and Modified Cars he sold, Kingpin could not possibly ignore him.
Although Merlin's father had been an unofficial member and had close ties with Sheriff George of Manhattan, certain events that occurred during that period could still be manipulated.
On the day the vacation ended, Merlin opened his system.
[Reputation Points have reached 3.5 million. Reward obtained: Phantom Cone Customization Technology, Lester's Hacking Technology, 801 Bati Technology]
Lester, the god of wealth!
When Merlin saw today's rewards, his eyes immediately lit up.
Lester's hacking abilities were beyond question. Not only could he hack into police systems and remove bounties, but he could also place bounties on others for you.
Besides that, he could decrypt FBI planning documents.
He had planned many major cases, both online and offline.
He just ate a little too much...
Before you continue