2026-07-27 02:51:27After about thirty minutes, Adrian leaned back and popped his cramping fingers, as his fingers were aching from pressing the keys for thirty minutes continuously.
“There it is.” He smiled
A 48-digit BitLocker recovery key appeared on the screen.
“That thing was here the whole time?” Maria leaned closer.
“I'll read the numbers. You type them into your laptop.” He nodded and pointed at her laptop.
“Okay.”
She carefully entered each group of numbers.
The recovery key was accepted, and the Windows sign-in screen appeared.
“Yes! It worked! You're amazing!” Maria's face lit up.
Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around Adrian.
Adrian froze. Her soft warm body pressed against his side. His heartbeat jumped.
Jesus fucking Christ
Before his imagination could run wild, another translucent panel appeared in front of him.
[Hacking successful]
Adrian's eyes widened.
A grin slowly spread across his face.
Holy shit… My first successful hack.
“Sorry... I got excited.”
Maria quickly realized what she had done and let go, rubbing the back of her neck with an embarrassed laugh.
“It's... fine.” Adrian cleared his throat.
“I—I should get going, my students… I have a class tonight.” She blushed hard.
“Okay.” He nodded.
She stood up and quickly went out of his room.
Growl!
His stomach growled in hunger as he had to skip his lunch because the schedule didn't meet. Adrian looked at the clock. 6:44 P.M.
He got up from his bed and grabbed his Android phone, which he had been using for over six years. The screen was cracked but usable. Then he wore his worn-out black hoodie and took the laptop in the laptop bag.
The moment he left the apartment building, Chicago's October wind hit him.
“Fuck!”
The cold cut through his hoodie. Adrian pulled his hands into his pockets and started walking toward Giordano's.
…
The smell of cheese, tomato sauce, and freshly baked crust hit him the moment he stepped through the door. His stomach immediately growled again.
Fuck me!
He didn’t realize how hungry he was. He looked around and found an empty table near the edge of the restaurant and sat down.
He placed his laptop on the table and booted it up.
The fan immediately began screaming. A few people looked in his direction, but Adrian completely ignored them.
System, scan the POS terminal.
[Target detected.]
[Target: Giordano's POS terminal]
[Security rating: ★★★★]
[Estimated succes rate: 21%]
Shit! Only twenty-one percent. That's not good enough…
Then he looked toward the restaurant’s wireless network and narrowed his eyes.
What if I hack the restaurant’s wi-fi network first? System, scan the Giordano's Wi-Fi network.
The interface updated.
[Target detected.]
[Target: Giordano's wi-fi network]
[Security rating: ★]
[Estimated succes rate: 81%]
Much better.
A smile slowly appeared on Adrian's face. He leaned toward his laptop and started to press the keys.
“Excuse me, sir. What would you like to order?” A young waitress stood beside his table.
Adrian stopped for a moment and looked up. His eyes widened as she was one of his classmates.
“Adrian?” Her eyebrows lifted as soon as she recognized him at the same time.
Seriously? Of all the people I could run into tonight…
“Kaitlyn! You work here?” Adrian stared at her, then at the restaurant, then back at her.
“Yeah, Adrian. Kind of hard to miss.” Kaitlyn laughed awkwardly and gestured toward her uniform.
“Right.” Adrian looked at the uniform again.
Very hard to miss.
She had her black hair pulled back into a ponytail. She was attractive despite being petite and slim.
His eyes briefly traveled over her before he caught himself.
Focus.
His eyes returned to the laptop.
Shit! Shit!!!... My original plan was to hack the payment terminal. If it worked I would order with my eye closed… And if it didn’t, I would simply leave. Except now Kaitlyn is standing right in front of me.
“Can I get a few more minutes?” Adrian forced a confused expression.
"Okay, just inform me when you're ready.” A small smile appeared on Kaitlyn's face. She pointed toward the kitchen and walked away.
Adrian watched her for a moment. Then he looked back at his laptop.
That should buy me some time.
Adrian cracked his fingers and began to press the keys. Within a few minutes he hacked into the wi-fi network.
[Hacking successful]
Adrian stared at the screen and smiled.
That was easy. Now let's scan again… System, scan!
The interface filled with new results.
[Potential target detected.]
[Target: Giordano's POS terminal]
[Security rating: ★★★★]
[Estimated succes rate: 72%]
— — — — —
[Potential target detected.]
[Target: Hannah's iPhone]
[Security rating: ★★★★]
[Estimated succes rate: 69%]
— — — — —
[Potential target detected.]
[Target: Devid's Android phone]
[Security rating: ★★★]
[Estimated succes rate: 92%]
— — — — —
[Potential target detected]
[Target: David's android phone]
[Security Rating: ★★★]
[Estimated Success Rate: 92%]
— — — — —
[Potential target detected]
[Target: Restaurant administration computer]
[Security Rating: ★★★★]
[Estimated Success Rate: 55%]
— — — — —
[Potential target detected]
[Target: Security camera system]
[Security Rating: ★★★]
[Estimated Success Rate: 89%]
Adrian's eyes widened. More than fifty panels appeared.
His mouth slowly fell open.
What the fuck? The restaurant's Wi-Fi had changed everything. Before, the system could only identify targets I directly interacted with. Now everything connected to the network is potentially visible. Phones, computers, cameras, printers, payment terminals…
Adrian stared at the growing list as his heartbeat accelerated. Then his eyes returned to the POS terminal.
For a moment Adrian hesitated as his finger hovered above the keyboard.
This isn't my money… The restaurant isn't Gunther’s… It hadn't fired me…
Adrian stared at the screen. He hated that his morality was making this complicated. He had no money, was hungry, rent was due, and his mother needed medicine. And here was an opportunity sitting directly in front of him.
Adrian shook his head.
If I have to survive this corrupt world. I have to bend few rules.
He started typing.
Time passed. The POS terminal was much harder than the Wi-Fi. Adrian’s fingers began to ache, his neck hurting, his shoulders stiff.
[Attempt failed.]
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
Silver Bridge Capital.rar
“System, scan the secondary encrypted archive.”The translucent interface appeared immediately.[Scanning Secondary Encrypted Archive.][Potential Encrypted Archive Detected.][Estimated Hacking Completion Time: 2 Hours 47 Minutes]“Fuck!! The archive is heavily encrypted.” Adrian stared at the result.He leaned back and considered the situation for a moment.He could start working on it immediately, but before doing anything else, he decided Evelyn deserved to know exactly what he had found.She had hired him to locate whatever her father had hidden, and even though he technically already had enough information to complete the contract, this newly discovered archive seemed far more important than the visible account itself.He opened HackersDen again and returned to his private conversation with Evelyn.Ronin: I have accessed your father's financial account. The current balance is $84,363. I know this was the main reason you hired me, and I can provide you with everything you need to
S24
Adrian was reviewing Evelyn's documents one more time when his eyes suddenly stopped on a particular section.He leaned closer to the screen.There, buried inside one of the documents she had sent him, was a credential that appeared to be associated with the restricted financial account.“Umm… The password is actually here?” Adrian blinked.He leaned back against the headboard and stared at the screen for several seconds.He had specifically told Evelyn not to send him passwords, authentication codes, or other private credentials until he understood the situation, yet she had apparently decided to give him everything anyway.“Maybe she started to trust me.” Adrian's expression became thoughtful.Or perhaps she was simply desperate. Either way, handing over something this sensitive told him that Evelyn was putting a considerable amount of faith in him. She wanted answers badly enough to trust a stranger she had met through HackersDen with access to something her father had deliberately
Dr2
“Is Table Six's order ready yet?”Adrian, dressed in the restaurant's black waiter uniform, leaned through the kitchen window.“Yeah.” The cook slid the plate onto the counter without looking up.Adrian picked up the tray and stepped into the dining room.Yesterday I got only $75 tips. Today is even worse. If it continues like this, how am I supposed to send money to mom? Forget buying a phone. I'll be lucky if I can pay next month's rent.“Isn't that Adrian? The broke loser?”A voice stopped Adrian for half a second. He turned his head just enough to see who it was.It was his classmate from college, Gunther. He sat comfortably at one of the tables.His arm wrapped around one of two stunning girls sitting beside him. They laughed at whatever stupid thing he just said.Adrian looked away and carried the tray to table six.“Here you go. Enjoy your meal.” He set the tray on table six and gave the customer a professional smile.The elderly couple smiled and thanked him.As he was approac
Dr.
[Ding!!!][System activated!]Suddenly, a sound rang in Adrian’s head, and a translucent black screen appeared in front of him, floating in the air. Fonts and edges glowing with faint golden light.Hearing a sound so close, he stumbled backward on instinct. His shoulder slammed into someone walking behind him.“Watch where you're going, asshole!” The man shouted.“S-Sorry.” Adrian apologized and stepped aside immediately. His eyes never leaving the floating panel.“Deepshit” The man muttered and walked away.Adrian's breathing had become heavy. His heartbeat beating faster.A—am I… hallucinating?[Hacking System][Host: Adrian Miles][System level: 1]— — — — —[Skills:][Hacking level: Beginner]The interface suddenly shifted from landscape to portrait, and lines of text were scrolling downward.“How the hell does this thing know my name?” Adrian stared in disbelief.He raised his hand to touch the panel. But before he could touch it, the black panel expanded and a series of golden l
Hotel
Evelyn led Adrian out of the café, but the moment they stepped onto the sidewalk, she slowed slightly and looked around. The streets were busy enough that nobody paid particular attention to them, yet she still kept one hand close to the small bag containing the flash drive, almost instinctively protecting it now that she knew just how important the device might be.Adrian noticed the gesture.“You really are worried about that thing.”Evelyn glanced at him.“It is the last thing my father left me that might explain everything.”Her voice was quieter than before.“I know.”Adrian adjusted the strap of his laptop bag and looked toward the street.“You said you were going to get a hotel.”“Yes.”“Then let us find somewhere close. The sooner we get somewhere private, the sooner we can find out what is on that drive.”Evelyn nodded.A few minutes later, they reached a nearby hotel, and Evelyn stepped inside first. The lobby was spacious and brightly lit, with polished floors, a large rece
D
“Is Table Six's order ready yet?”Adrian, dressed in the restaurant's black waiter uniform, leaned through the kitchen window.“Yeah.” The cook slid the plate onto the counter without looking up.Adrian picked up the tray and stepped into the dining room.Yesterday I got only $75 tips. Today is even worse. If it continues like this, how am I supposed to send money to mom? Forget buying a phone. I'll be lucky if I can pay next month's rent.“Isn't that Adrian? The broke loser?”A voice stopped Adrian for half a second. He turned his head just enough to see who it was.It was his classmate from college, Gunther. He sat comfortably at one of the tables.His arm wrapped around one of two stunning girls sitting beside him. They laughed at whatever stupid thing he just said.Adrian looked away and carried the tray to table six.“Here you go. Enjoy your meal.” He set the tray on table six and gave the customer a professional smile.The elderly couple smiled and thanked him.As he was approac
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