Chapter 122

“Hey, you *&%$&^……!!”

“Uuuup…! Which team, in the middle of all this, is trying to make some pocket money with ransomware….”

“—What a mess.”

consciousness trying to fade away, but the noises from the crowd keep interrupting my focus.

Or perhaps it’s Zero glaring with fiery eyes—literally—at my side, instinctively dissuading me from attempting an Abyss Dive recklessly in a place like this.

Even without opening my eyes or straining my ears, it’s clear to anyone that the exam room’s atmosphere has heated up considerably since I first walked in.

Some are intently watching the Cypher Psy team busily installing some sort of central relay device, intrigued. Others are hard at work trying to tackle the puzzles handed to them.

Among them, those who’ve already had their turn have settled down, enjoying the display as if they’re at a theater.

At a glance, it’s a chaotic but oddly stable landscape, which made it easy to think: “This was inevitable with so many anarchic cyber engineers in one spot.”

But… is it really that simple?

Recall the moment the vault was initially locked. Sure, there were professionals nodding along, convinced it was a worthy challenge, and some eccentrics expressing interest. However, the majority were unimpressed, seeing it as an overly complicated process.

Even the time spent conducting these tests came with the promise of fair compensation, meaning someone cunning or brazen might just choose to lounge around and waste time, treating it as an easy way to earn some pocket money by observing their competitors.

And really, why should anyone spill their most guarded secrets, technologies that are essentially business assets, just to solve some enigmatic and still-unknown request?

I certainly wouldn’t. Considering my particularly unconventional hacking style, which is hard to explain, it’s even less likely.

So originally, I had planned to just walk away and grab some dinner before heading home.

However, everything changed thanks to the antics of the first team and, subsequently, Sir Léonard’s official endorsement.

From that point on, the entire vibe shifted; it was no longer about being observed but rather about pride and competition among professionals.

Cold and stubborn individuals, who despise being confined by formalities, willingly showcase their skills as if proving themselves to fellow collaborators.

“…Disgusting.”

“Ump…! It’s the glorious kind of scar…! Oh, you’re unable to break through Labyrinth-level security, so you can’t understand, right??”

“…Shit!”

Those who possess exceptional skill sets but operate mostly in the shadows finally have their chance to openly boast about their achievements in a network where anonymity reigns supreme.

They flaunt their expertise, reveling in what others couldn’t achieve.

Especially in such clandestine, secret meeting settings.

Harshly speaking, there’s hardly any better way to satisfy an inflated ego.

And as a bonus, since the client wanted this test, the actual cost of the market amounted to nothing more than the tears and sweat of low-level employees… making it incredibly cost-efficient.

And that’s not all.

Participants put their all into cracking the vault, and the successful ones naturally raise the difficulty for future participants, making the event into a sort of sieve.

It’s quite a smart event.

During this process, the client can handpick the best out of four excellent hackers, so from my perspective, it’s hard to believe that this setup happened by accident.

A few sharp ones, like me, must have noticed the oddity of judging performance based solely on time, given the vastly different starting conditions and varying participant numbers.

What Sir Léonard probably meant by ‘fair competition’ wasn’t necessarily about quick vault opening times but rather about everyone getting an equal chance for fair evaluation.

… Given this person didn’t seem like someone who would enjoy this setting and even looked quite annoyed, it’s more likely he was just following orders.

Putting aside the digression, my hypothesis stands:

“This entire situation has intentionally been set up by the organizers, and that first team is probably a plant either from the black market or the client.”

Sounds like over-the-top paranoia, right?

That’s why I’m about to dive into the network to find out. Even if it turns out to be just a misconception, my curiosity about the customer staging such a grand spectacle has been piqued.

First, let’s go after any nearby networks operated by the black market servers.

Even in front of Sir Léonard, a renowned cyber engineering authority, this could be risky. But given that nobody among this crowd of experts noticed the landmines under the vaults until after the twins made their mayhem, it’s clear not even they are aware of everything going on around them.

– Unauthorized networks that aren’t officially registered have been detected. However, even connecting to them might be dangerous, so why insist on an Abyss Dive…?

– Considering we might need to cross into other networks through this one and taking into account the efficiency gained by accelerating perceived time, this is appropriate. With faster response times, I’ll focus more on vigilance rather than support.

– …Understood. I’ll align the signals so you can proceed in order.

That’s why the network lists and wave records weren’t appearing in the cyberware until now.

Only after understanding there was solid reasoning behind my actions did Zero send the data collected by the antenna.

What a relief.

So… ideally, hiding the gateways I pass through would be perfect. If I’m caught, concocting a plausible excuse would be hard.

…Crackle!!

★ ☆ ★ ☆ ★

“The signal relay installation is complete. With this, the probability of the signal intensity near the vault fluctuating within 3 minutes is… Hmm. Low. Anyway, low!”

“…Rather, maybe you’d do everyone a favor by staying silent.”

With a deflating cheer of “Yay~,” Hacker Team Cypher Psycho’s youngest member, Blackcomb, waved.

Nervous reactions rippled through the team as other members glanced at the calculations, prompting worried looks directed at the leader, Chicago.

It wasn’t that Chicago himself enjoyed risking it all to cross dangerous bridges when regular methods suffice.

It was just that, having rearranged their schedules and sacrificed many opportunities for substantial pay at the lure of a big payout, they couldn’t afford to lose their chance due to trivial disruptions or viruses.

Thus, following the team’s opinion that the obscure evaluation criteria should be countered by overwhelmingly dominating the competition, they decided to employ techniques no one else would dare mimic, to resolve the task within 10… no, even within 5 minutes.

“We’ve prepared dummy partitions just in case malicious code reverses back!”

“The existing data lock has been secured, and the vault terminals are working fine.”

“…More than enough unused memory. I can compute alone for around 20 minutes if you need me to, relax.”

“Alright, let’s start brainwave synchronization. Once Blackcomb gives us the signal as our backup and monitor, we’ll proceed.”

Upon receiving reliable reports from his team, Chicago unzipped his jacket.

Zip…

Unfurling his somewhat uncool but highly effective electromagnetic shielding garment, the middle-aged man revealed his upper body.

Wire in hand, Memphis carefully approached from behind, checked the status of the plug near the back of his neck, and then firmly plugged it in.

Click!!

“D…!!”

Though younger brains tend to excel in cyber industries, older minds bring invaluable experience, allowing them to attempt certain last-resort techniques.

“Hey… Isn’t it supposed to feel less painful when plugging into a designated slot?”

“…I’ll stick a relay up your butt next time so you can find out yourself.”

With that vow to give the chirpy younger member a taste of his own medicine, Chicago closed his eyes.

Thump… Thump.

Before long, the heartbeats of the four members, excluding Blackcomb, synchronized into a single rhythm, and their brainwaves coalesced into one stream.

The sensation in his seated buttocks and legs gradually faded, time perception grew distant, and sound from the surroundings diminished as though muffled by thick soundproof walls, transforming the present into a continuum of the past and future.

Just like returning to his mother’s womb, as water pooled and rose, eventually submerging him completely.

Splash!!

“…!”

Slowly emerging from the potential deadly darkness, Chicago rose.

He looked down at his hands.

The clear awareness and shape of his fingers were present, but his brain could only sketch the outline amidst fluctuating information chunks, lacking detailed reproduction.

It was akin to describing a transparent human stained with ink, even more accurately if distorted by ripples.

Nevertheless, he distinctly remembered who he was and his objective.

Since everything has loaded correctly, upon receiving confirmation from the youngest, he would open the way to the vault entrance.

Until then, he would collect his wits…

“What? Why is there someone here?”

“?!”

Chicago jumped at the sudden high-pitched voice piercing through his mind.

What was going on? The three other consciousnesses besides himself should still be in preparation, waiting to be pulled in. Had someone made a mistake? Or had Blackcomb already connected, and he was late to wake up?

Either way, it was an accident. A seemingly minor one that could spiral into a disaster without proper investigation.

Confused, he turned his gaze and…

“…”

Stood face to face with a girl cloaked in the abyss.

He remembered her face. The brash little girl who had fiercely beaten up the Gemini Node twins when they picked a fight.

Which is precisely why it was odd.

Her flowing hair, luminous eyes, the elegantly furrowed eyebrows and pursed lips – how were they reproduced so photographically?

Not just humans but even artificial intelligences or viruses stitched together from a few lines of code can’t hold their identity against the immense information pressure in the deepest, darkest reaches of the network.

Even he maintained his mental entity solely with the aid of recognition data and support from his teammates.

Yet, how could an avatar looking like herself exist here? Did she have the time for such an extravagant feat?

Moreover, regardless of it being a security network set up by Cypher Psycho, this was a twisted world only reachable by someone capable of Abyss Dive.

“Hmm… Sorry, if you’re not explaining what this weird network is about, would you mind leaving? To be honest, you’re kind of creepy, so I don’t know whether you’re enemy or ally.”

As the girl’s arm raised, the surrounding darkness thickened and congealed.

Chicago’s mind raced. The degree and speed of control over this darkness exceeded all expectations. To counter this, I need…

Bzzzzt—!

It was too late. The dark mass shaped into a hand and mimicked its owner’s movements.

The index and thumb drew inward like an arrow released from a bow, while the other three fingers remained extended. A judgmental slap was launched.

-Asha, strictly speaking, we’re the trespassers and the other side is the rightful owner…

Clang!!

With one final mechanical sound, he was forcibly ejected from the sea.

“Gramps?!”

“The connection…!”

Even as he fell backward, Chicago frantically shook his head.

His team rushed over, startled by the severed connection. His forehead burned, and his vision wavered with flashes, but this wasn’t the critical matter.

His life seemed intact, so a check later would suffice. His priority was deciphering what had just happened.

Amidst the expectant spectators, who turned bewildered when they saw the participant awake without hacking, Chicago scanned the lineup.

Expecting to find the girl from before…

“…”

But instead, he spotted her sprawled in the arms of a droid, using it as a pillow.

Before the disparity in equipment, the ease and confidence with which she dived into the Abyss without any visible tension or suspicion left him speechless.

Really…?

“Did you have an unpleasant dream or something?”

A masked opera onlooker gave him an impatient look as if asking how much longer he intended to delay the proceedings, but Chicago paid it no mind.

After all, if such a person was among the participants, solving the vault would be meaningless.

He had initially thought the effort and time weren’t worth the potential reward, but considering the worth in information alone—discovering a monstrous hacker lurking in the data sea—he decided to gracefully step back.

“I’m dropping out. …Had the order been reversed, many would have had it easier. Pity.”

—

And with that, he stepped aside.