He had barely noticed the cleaner before. To a man like Richard, people in blue jumpsuits were part of the furniture, tools used to keep the room presentable."Excuse me?" Richard’s face twisted into a scowl of pure disbelief. "Did you just talk to me?"Adrian didn't flinch. He didn't look away. He stood with his shoulders back, radiating a strange authority that didn't match his humble clothes. He nodded slowly. "Yes. I am talking to you.""The audacity!" Richard’s voice dropped to a low, vibrating growl. "Oh, so this is it, Lilith? You’ve brought in the help to insult me? Is this your final act as CEO?""No, Dad!" Lilith cried, her eyes wide with terror. She tried to signal Adrian to stop, but he ignored her."At least hear me out," Adrian said, stepping forward. He didn't wait for permission. "Look at the reports from before this crisis. Under Lilith’s leadership, Global’s stocks went up over one hundred and forty percent.The stats are right there in black and white. Many of the a

"I will," he said, pocketing the card. "Just stall her. Don't let her near that office until I give you the signal."The lunch break arrived, and the hallways of Global Corp emptied out as employees headed for the cafeteria. Adrian, dressed in his dusty blue janitor's uniform, pushed his mop bucket with a slow, rhythmic motion. To anyone passing by, he was just "Michael," the invisible man who cleaned the floors. He slipped into the advertising wing, checked both ways, and swiped the silver card against Fiona’s door.Click.He stepped inside, leaving his mop bucket in the corner to act as a doorstop. He sat at Fiona's desk, inserted the bypass card into the terminal, and watched as the screen flickered to life, bypassing the password prompts.Meanwhile, in the bustling lunchroom, Fiona was surrounded by her inner circle. She wasn't eating. She sat with her arms crossed, her face twisted in a permanent scowl. "I’m telling you," She snapped at the HR Director sitting across from her,

On the other end of the line, Adrian heard the sound of a glass shattering. Lilith was furious. "Can you imagine?" she hissed, her voice trembling. "I knew I should have fired that woman the moment I took over! She has been bleeding us dry while acting like a loyal employee. She will pay me back every single penny if I have to strip it from her skin!" "Don't act yet," Adrian warned, his tone commanding. "Anger won't get the money back. We have the 'where,' but we don't have the 'who' or the 'how.' We don't have the final proof of the offshore account where this money is being stashed. "If we move now, she’ll just claim it was a clerical error or blame a third party. We need to catch her red-handed." "How?" Lilith asked, trying to steady her breathing. "How do we find a hidden account in a web this thick?" "We need a hacker," Adrian replied. "Someone who can tear down their website’s firewall and pull the back-end data. "Once we have the transaction logs and the destination

One of the men pulled out a high-tech handheld scanner and passed a beam of green light over Adrian’s face. The device emitted a sharp ping, and a small holographic display showed a green checkmark. "Michael. You’re on the list. Move through."Adrian looked at the solid brick wall, confused. But then, the person behind him,a young man with neon-blue hair and a high-end tablet stepped forward. As he hit the wall, the bricks rippled like water. It wasn't stone; it was a perfect, high-definition 3D projection. Adrian took a breath and stepped through.The sensation was like walking through a cold liquid. On the other side, the silence of the alley was replaced by a deafening roar.He had entered a massive, subterranean arena that looked like a high-tech gladiatorial stadium. Hundreds of people filled the rising tiers of seats, their faces illuminated by the glow of thousands of screens. High above, in private glass booths, wealthy men in expensive suits smoked thick cigars and sipped go

Suddenly, Ghost-Code and Binary Beast’s stations exploded in a shower of blue sparks. Their screens turned a brilliant, terminal red."SYSTEM TRACED," the speakers boomed.Adrian’s station hummed softly, returning to a calm, cool blue. The smoke cleared instantly."Shit! He caught us both!" Binary Beast yelled, throwing his headset onto the floor in a rage."Ghost-Code and Binary Beast are OUT!" the MC screamed, his voice reaching a fever pitch. "The newcomer has made it to the final round! I don't believe it! Michael and Viper are the last men standing!"The VIP section was in an uproar. Men who had bet hundreds of thousands against Adrian were now whispering frantically. "Who is he? How did he loop a dual-trace in under three seconds? That’s not possible!"Viper stood up, his face red with fury. He kicked his chair back, the metal screeching against the floor. "Hey, boy!" he shouted, pointing a trembling finger at Adrian. "Want to give up now? Wanna run home to your mama? Get up and