I just find that guy's story simply heartbreaking, the fact he continues looking for that HDD to this day and all this situation started because his mistake.
If only he was more careful when he needed to be, he would be enjoying his early retirement in a lovely tropical island or in a luxurious apartment in a Japanese metropolis, but instead, in this timeline he finds himself swimming in garbage for years, handing over half of the possible reward to some corporation in exchange for help. Life can be cruel sometimes.
I don't know how I would feel if I was in his shoes, I would need several bottles of rum to keep going with the search.