That day was bright and sunny, the sun shining brightly, the sky empty without any annoying white clouds, revealing the beauty of the refreshing blue sky.

Birds chirped, decorating the peaceful morning, fluttering here and there across the blue sky.

People started waking up to begin their activities, and so did Axel.

Axel was a guy quite short but filled with muscle rather than fat, especially in his arms. His hair is black, but anyone can see a few gray hairs on his head, and his eyebrows are thin and black.

He might be interesting to some people, but the outfit he always wears seem to suggest he never changes them. Not because he never changes his outfit, but it's always the same outfit.

Axel is a pretty smart guy, proven by his achievements like getting through the tough ReTecs selection with the highest score. He's also got experience working at ReTecs on various big projects.

His programming skills are like, no question about it. In fact, all the ReTecs employee have the list of the top 10 developers, and Axel's chilling at number three. However, it aligns with the risk Axel takes by not getting enough rest since he always has to monitor the program he's working on.

Working at one of the world's biggest tech companies is surely Axel's dream, considering his passion for all things tech. Furthermore, being able to join the Project of Advanced Gaming Alternate Reality, or PAGAR, as the Lead Developer is a source of pride and a great honor for Axel.

###

His rare good sleep got disrupted by Frank —his assistant— calling about their program receiving error code and a security warning code level 2 from SIS-PAGAR. Knowing that level 2 security warnings code only happen if most of the source code is messed up or has errors. so, it's an emergency.

Without needing to shower or have breakfast, Axel quickly rushes to his office, which is not far from his sleeping place. As a good developer, Axel has to make sure he's always on standby all the time. That's why he often sleeps in his office or in one of the office rooms, and occasionally stays in a hotel located about a ten-minute walk from the office.

Upon arriving at the office, Axel heads straight to his room and then to his desk. Every time, he never forgets the step-by-step process he needs to follow. People often call him a robot because he is extremely organized; it's impossible for him to miss a single step in his routine.

After arriving at his desk, he always opens the drawer first and grabs a box of 'CanCoff' candies with coffee and lemon flavor, his favorite. He munches on some of those candies before starting work, he believes it helps shake off sleepiness and keeps him focused on the tasks. Not scientifically proven, but at least it works for Axel.

After freshening up with the help of that candy, Axel quickly tackled his error program. His experience and skills might be on par with three other senior developers.

Because it doesn't take him long to spot the issues in each department's program, he immediately tells all his department members to fix those problems in detail so it doesn't leave confusion among them.

This is what makes him liked by his team. Axel is quick and can swiftly spot the source of issues, think of solutions, and explain them in detail for them to execute promptly.

After finishing giving instructions and guidance, Axel then goes back to his own program and starts fixing it. The error code displayed on the program can disappear in just a short while, and the security warning code level 2 quickly turns off once Axel finishes fixing his program.

However, his tasks don't stop there. There's something Frank missed when informing him about the issues in the program. Well, it's not a problem for now since this part of the program won't be run yet, but later when the entire program runs, it's gonna be a big issue. That's why Axel fixes it.

Axel realized that there was something odd about it. A program typically consists of a line of commands or syntax and comments serving as notes for programmers but won't be executed by the program. Indeed, after Axel fixed his program, all lines of command or syntax were correct and ready to run. But still, Axel found it interesting when seeing Brune's ID comment that only had random characters.

And it gets weirder because Axel is confident that Brune hasn't told him anything about the comments he made. In fact, Brune hasn't touched Axel's program for a few days. Brune usually just looks at Axel's program when Axel explains it.

Axel carefully looks to see if there's a chance of a specific password, code, or sign in that random set of characters, but unfortunately, no. The random characters just spell out 'sdghjkl;TAY5SFYHIK'auewsfnl;'.

Because not know the purpose of that comment, and since the comment was with Brune's ID, he left it for now until he can get confirmation from Brune. Finally, he decided to head to the cafeteria because his stomach was starting to demand food.

###

Axel only grabs simple food like a sandwich and a bottle of soda, and, of course, he doesn't forget to buy his favorite candy as a backup.

Axel is a practical person; he only eats food for the energy, not for enjoying the taste. So, he quickly finishes the sandwich and soda he grabbed.

After getting his energy back, Axel goes to the lobby to check if Brune has arrived or not.

###

Upon arriving in the lobby, Axel noticed that Alice had just arrived at the office. Without much thought, Axel approached her and offered his favorite candy, even though he knew Alice didn't like it. However, Alice declined.

"Have you heard the report?" Axel asked.

"Brune already informed me, but you can tell me the updates," replied Alice, still looking at her tablet screen.

"Not much progress. There are still many system and program code errors, some I've fixed and are waiting for processing," said Axel, enjoying his favorite candy. "And for the subjects, they are all upset, but there's one person who stands out. Subject A101."

Alice glanced at Axel still munching on that candy, "Why do you like that candy so much, isn't it weird-tasting?"

"At first, it was. But what can I do? Coffee keeps you from falling asleep, and the lemon keeps you awake because of its acidity. You know, programmers need something like this because we get so sleepy from staying up all night to manage the program."

Alice just smiled seeing Axel's expression while eating the candy, looking like someone forced to take bitter medicine mixed with the face of someone eating a lemon. Doing it out of necessity.

"Thanks. I'll let Brune know as soon as he arrives, which shouldn't be long," said Alice, then sitting on one of the benches in the main lobby.

"Alright, oh... I almost forgot," replied Axel, about to leave but not quite, "can you tell Brune to meet me in my office soon? I think I found something strange, and for some reason, there's a comment from Brune with random characters."

Alice looked at Axel's face and asked, "Sure, but is it urgent?"

"Not really. But at least he should meet me today."

"Okay, I'll pass it on."

Axel once again offered his favorite candy to Alice, but Alice still refused it for the hundredth time.

Refused, Axel left. Meanwhile, Alice was still waiting for Brune.

However, before he could go far, three people from the SAT or Security Audit Team approached them and told Axel to stop.

Alice moved closer to hear what they were talking about, but she was denied by the SAT members. As the Project Communications Manager, Alice insisted on listening to what the three SAT members had to say to Axel, who was still in the same project with her.

"Okay, if you insist," a spokesperson for SAT, one of the three, allowed her. "Both of you, follow us."

The SAT spokesperson and the other members escorted Alice and Axel to a seldom-passed corner of the lobby. After that, two SAT members stopped a bit farther to make sure no one approached them.

"I'm Ghito from SAT. Our system, the special security protocol, is the most confidential security system and can only be accessed by a few employees, understand?" SAT spokesperson asked Alice and Axel.

"Of course. So what's the problem?" Axel asked.

"The system is designed with separate networks and power to maintain independence in case of an attack on the main security system. Both of you, as the heads of each department in the priority project, the project of advanced gaming alternate reality, have access to level 1, designated ONLY for crucial situations that could disrupt the smooth progress of your project. Do you understand?" Ghito asked again, emphasizing certain words.

Axel nodded, while Alice said, "We understand that. We know you have to dictate the special security protocol allocation according to SOP to us, but there's currently an issue in the project that we need to address immediately. So, can we get straight to the main of the problem?"

Ghito glanced at Alice and then shifted his gaze to Axel, "Sorry, the main issue is our system found a report coming from the director's room in underfloor 3, specifically designed to your boss, Brune Salmith, along with the activation of security protocol level 1. After our division investigated, the protocol was activated by someone and the report content is just random characters that don't mean anything except for the last message that says 'from Axel.' Are you messing around with such crucial security protocols?”

Alice and Axel exchanged looks.

As a SAT member, Ghito had received training to read facial expressions and body language, so he carefully observed the movements and expressions of Alice and Axel.

Alice and Axel did the same, their faces frozen for a moment, as if frozen gas had been sprayed on their faces when Ghito was explaining the issue. Their bodies reacted similarly. Their faces froze and didn't show any brief expressions that could arouse suspicion that they were hiding something, somewhat proving that they also didn't know what was happening.

"Uh... I don't know, sorry," Axel said nervously when Ghito gave him a sharp look to intimidate.

"Are you sure there's no issue with the system or maybe it's a false alarm and a false report?" Alice asked. Even though Ghito gave her the same sharp look, she seemed unfazed.

"No. We've made sure of that," Ghito replied.

Axel tried to calm down as he was about to speak again and somewhat shifted his attention to not directly stare at Ghito. "You've checked thoroughly. You can examine the ID that accessed or provided the report. Besides, you can track when the report was issued. You can also do a comprehensive trace with level 2. I'm sure your boss, Hector, has access to level 2. He should check everything."

"Like I said, we've confirmed it," replied Ghito. "You seem to know the loopholes in the security system."

Alice, seeing Ghito intimidating Axel, quickly came to the rescue. "Of course, Axel and Brune are part of the design of the security system. Ask Hector."

Axel looked at Alice, who smiled at him, then turned back to Ghito. "System errors can be seen from the results provided, not just from AI warnings. Whether the report is compiled using the correct mechanism or, if you look closely, maybe you can find errors like the use of non-standard characters in the system, or incorrect formatting, or wrong IDs. Also, for level 1, maybe it's activated automatically due to a glitch in the program, not an error but the program itself. If so, you can check from a higher level. Higher levels, like level 2, can give you insights into why level 1 is activated.”

Alice was just stunned, listening to Axel's rapid words when he was talking about programs, something that was Axel's expertise and her weakness.

Meanwhile, Ghito opened his tablet and checked it while listening to Axel's words.

"Wait here for a moment," said Ghito, then walked away from both of them.

Meanwhile, the other two SAT members remained on guard.

"Do you get it perfectly or are you just saying things?" Alice asked with a low voice, making sure only Axel could hear her.

Axel looked at Alice, "Are you saying I lied?"

Alice winked her left eye, "You know what I mean."

"No, I really explained it. I feel there's something odd about-"

"Okay, Hector told us to let you go, Alice. Meanwhile, Axel, we need to investigate your office." Ghito interrupted Axel's whisper, slightly surprising both of them.

"What? No way, try asking-" Alice attempted to voice her objection and protect Axel, but Ghito raised his tablet with Hector's orders displayed on the screen. It was a high-status investigative directive that even priority divisions couldn't evade.

Ghito smiled while Axel and Alice, after reading the order, exchanged glances and fell silent. "Alright, if there's no more objection. Alice, please continue with your duty, and Axel, lead the way to your office."

Axel remained silent and nodded, then he led the way.

Not too far, Alice approached them again. Axel and Ghito saw Alice being held back by two other SAT members.

Alice smiled, "Brune will find out about this, and he'll make a big deal out of it."

Ghito responded to Alice's smile with a cynical one and intimidated her, "Do you think we're afraid?"

Alice's gaze ignored Ghito; she only looked at Axel. Axel, realizing this, said to her, "Don't forget my message."

Ghito, who also heard that, immediately turned towards Axel with his sharp eyes.

Ghito is indeed a new employee promoted from ReTecs' subsidiary. Even though he had achievements and respect in his previous company and also at ReTecs, according to SOP and direct orders from Hector, the SAT leader, not to disturb the heads of departments and PAGAR division leaders too much because of the privileges they have, Ghito couldn't do much.

But, right now, that privilege is cancelled by Hector after issuing an investigation order to Ghito, and Ghito can return to his duties from his position as a security member. Ghito can be tough and firm with anyone.

Ghito gives a hand signal to instruct Axel to continue going to his office, simultaneously ordering the other two SAT members to chase away Alice.

The lobby at that time wasn't too quiet but also not too busy, there were some people doing their own tasks. Out of everyone, a few were at least interested enough to glance briefly at Alice and Axel dealing with SAT. Then, after satisfying their curiosity, they went back to their tasks.

Seen by people, Alice stands still, staring at Axel guiding the three SAT members towards the PAGAR-exclusive floor known for its priority and exclusivity.

###

When Axel and the three SAT members stepped out of the lift, there were already dozens of SAT members waiting. Ghito held Axel back, who wanted to lead them, and now Ghito was leading.

One SAT member from the group that welcomed the four of them walked up to Ghito.

Even though he didn't speak to Axel, Axel still heard what the person said to Ghito.

"Report, Neil from the SAT investigation unit. We have received orders from Hector to guard and assist the investigation led by Ghito regarding the alleged abuse of special and limited powers by Axel and the suspected involvement in the project of advanced gaming alternate reality division."

"Report received, I'm Ghito from the SAT," said Ghito, then turned to Axel. "He's Axel, the main suspect. We're heading to his room, a room only accessible by him. So follow us."

"Understood, execute."

Neil then ordered the other SAT members to follow Ghito to Axel's office.

After walking for a short while, Axel tried to approach Ghito. "Are you sure there's no mistake?"

Ghito just ignored him.

"Listen, our project is a top priority and will have a significant impact on this company and the world. You can't treat us like this."

Ghito still ignored him.

"What are you really looking for? Or how about this, allow me to access the program for special security protocols, and I can tell you what the error is."

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Ghito raised his hand, signaling to stop, then stared at Axel.

Ghito's sharp gaze without any other expression was very intimidating. Axel fell silent immediately.

"Listen to me, I know who you are and what you're up to. If you touch the protocol program, it's super easy to manipulate, so I won't let you touch anything related to the program, including your own program," Ghito said.

Then Ghito signaled with his hand again to command their movement, "Just stay quiet and answer if asked, don't show off your special status again, because that status has been revoked by Hector."

###

"EVERYONE STOP WORKING AND MOVE AWAY!" Ghito shouted, grabbing the attention of all the department members led by Axel.

"SAT will take over, please step away from your desks," Ghito continued, moving to the center of the room.

All the department members, around 30 of them, followed Ghito's orders immediately when they saw Axel seemingly captured by SAT.

Whispers filled the air as some department members wondered what was really happening. They had no idea, and they never expected that their division, with various privileges, could be investigated by SAT. All this time, they felt immune to company rules under the protection of Axel and Brune.

Ghito looked at Neil beside him, "Order your members to investigate all programs and rooms thoroughly, follow the SOP, got it?"

"Understood," Neil then turned around, instructing his SAT team members to start the investigation.

Neil's SOP consists of several stages. The first stage is a body check, after which those declared safe will be allowed to leave the investigation site. The second stage is a physical check, which involves checking the items at the investigation site. The final stage is a non-physical check, which involves a thorough inspection of the program, including checking the connected networks.

When Neil and his SAT members checked the department members, Axel was instead asked to open his own office.

Axel is a person who follows rules, so he just followed Ghito's command even though he still felt not guilty and didn't like being treated that way.

In Axel's office, Ghito and two SAT members he brought immediately searched the room. Meanwhile, Axel was tied to one of the chairs in the room.

Ghito didn't need to go through the first stage of the SOP because Axel was already suspected. The main purpose of the first stage of the SOP is to select suspects from witnesses or unrelated individuals.

After quite some time and quite meticulously —although not as meticulous as Axel— Ghito returned to Axel. Ghito untied Axel’s hand.

"Open your program, then open the security protocol on that program, open the SAT Investigation windows. Do you understand?" Ghito said, still using his sharp gaze to intimidate Axel.

Axel was still slightly intimidated, but he did it not because he was intimidated but more to prove that he was not guilty.

After struggling a bit because he was still tied, except for some of his hands released to open his program, Axel finally managed to do what Ghito ordered.

After that, Ghito pulled Axel's chair, almost causing Axel to fall. Ghito then typed something using the holo-keyboard. Meanwhile, the other two SAT members were retying Axel.

After Ghito finished doing what the SOP commanded, several holograms containing all the programs that Axel had worked on and was currently working on opened up.

Ghito, who just saw what he could do, exclaimed, "I like ReTecs. I don't need to threaten someone to open something. Just with my access ID, I can open all the programs you created, Axel."

The SAT investigation window is a special feature that must be present in all programs and computers in ReTecs. This feature allows SAT members who have received orders from high-rank SAT to easily open any program or software on all computers in ReTecs according to the orders they receive.

"You won't like what you did once Brune finds out about this," Axel said, who could only stay still in his room. Although Axel said that, he didn't mean to threaten Ghito but rather to warn him.

But Ghito took it as a threat, "You're the one who will be fired, I'll find your mistakes."

Ghito and the other two SAT members then checked one by one the programs displayed by all the holograms available in Axel's office. They did it carefully and meticulously.

After investigating for a while, Ghito found something that caught his attention. A comment with Brune's ID containing a sequence of random characters.

Ghito opened his tablet again, looking for the message from the report sent along with the activation of the special security protocol level 1.

Then he placed his tablet displaying the message next to the hologram featuring a comment with Brune's ID.

Ghito glanced briefly at Axel who was watching him. Ghito just grinned at Axel and felt happy inside.

Meanwhile, Axel noticed something suspicious about Ghito placing his tablet next to the hologram. However, due to the distance and some other holograms obstructing Axel's view, he couldn't see clearly to figure out what was shown on Ghito's tablet screen and the hologram he was reading.

Ghito then typed something on his tablet and took a photo of the hologram display. After that, he continued his investigation.$

When the SAT members were busy checking and investigating the programs Axel had worked on in the hologram that appeared and surrounded the room, Alice suddenly entered the room.

Noticing Alice, Axel tried to greet her, while Ghito immediately covered Axel's mouth and approached Alice. Meanwhile, the other two SAT members continued with their tasks.

"What are you doing here?" Ghito asked Alice.

Alice ignored Ghito's presence, she only looked at Axel.

Even though Axel was silent, Alice seemed to know what Axel wanted to say earlier. "How? Did you inform Brune?" Alice thought that Axel would ask something like that.

So, Alice answered, "I did. He sent me to ask if everything is under control or if he's still needed,"

Axel smiled hearing Alice's answer without him needing to ask.

Alice's intuition was indeed unquestionable, not her communication skills that became Brune's main reason for choosing Alice as the project communication manager, but Alice's intuition that was useful in understanding someone's empathy and feelings. Although her communication skills were also a consideration.

Meanwhile, Ghito, puzzled about why Alice answered his question with an unrelated answer, just stared at Alice and Axel exchanging glances.

"I don't know if you two can read each other's minds," Ghito said, waving his hands in front of Alice's face, forcing Alice to pay attention to him.

Alice's face immediately turned annoyed when she looked at Ghito, "What?"

Ghito tried to intimidate Alice with his sharp gaze and emphasized tone, "Why did you come here?"

Alice wasn't intimidated at all, she even challenged Ghito back with her sharp gaze, "Brune told me to. What's it to you?"

Ghito smiled and chuckled softly hearing Brune's name mentioned by Alice. Meanwhile, Alice was just wondering why Ghito laughed softly like that.

"Well... Under the authority given by Hector to conduct a thorough investigation into the project of advanced gaming alternate reality division, I ask you to call Brune, who is identified as a suspect, here along with yourself, also identified as a suspect," Ghito said, tapping his tablet screen.

Alice's expression changed throughout Ghito's speech. At first, she responded to Ghito's intimidation with her sharp gaze, then when Ghito was reading the boring SOP, her face looked annoyed and she mocked Ghito by pursing her lips and moving them to mimic Ghito's words. After that, her facial expression changed again to tense and stiff, with her mouth slightly open and her eyes slightly bulging, not believing what she heard because Brune and she were identified as suspects.

Ghito is silent while still intimidating Alice, but this time with his smirk. Meanwhile, Alice stays silent for a moment.

Axel, who had been watching them all along, as the distance between them was not too far for him to hear everything, finally spoke, "You'll regret this if you bring Brune along."

Upon hearing Axel's words, Alice smiled and chuckled softly, "It's a pity if you, who have just joined ReTecs, have to leave ReTecs dishonorably for daring to bother Brune."

Upon hearing Axel and Alice's words, Ghito was reminded again of the information he got from his friend in SAT regarding Brune and the message from Hector.

Brune has his own exclusivity at ReTecs, especially since Hector, his boss and also Brune’s close friend, warned him to be careful around Brune.

Alice's smile and soft laughter also bothered Ghito's calmness. He now started considering what he had done, and the fear of Brune's name began to creep in.

Alice, aware of Ghito's uneasiness, took advantage of the situation to leave while saying, "I'll deliver your message to the suspect Brune, and maybe you should report Brune's suspect status to Hector."

Alice left, and Ghito stayed silent. Shortly after, Ghito approached Axel.

"Dyo... do you know or... do you have you seen anything strange lately from Brune?" Ghito asked, struggling to put his words together after feeling guilty for identifying Brune as a suspect.

"I don't know anything. Alice interacts with Brune more often, while I'm more interacts with the program," Axel replied, noticing Ghito's change but still not understanding.

Ghito then showed his tablet to Axel.

On the tablet screen, Axel could see the content of the message from the report sent simultaneously with the activation of special security protocol level 1. After that, Ghito swiped the tablet screen and displayed a photo showing Axel's hologram of a comment with Brune’s ID. The comment content is identical to that in the message content of the report, especially in the random character part.

Axel looked at Ghito, "So that's why you identified him as a suspect?"

Ghito closed his tablet and smiled, "Exactly. Isn't that strong evidence?"

Hearing Ghito's answer, Axel chuckled softly, "I'm not underestimating you, but it seems like you don't understand programming or, in fact, you're completely blind to it, right?"

Hearing Axel softly laugh, Ghito felt the unease in his heart again, something seemed off. "I get some programming languages and how to program stuff. But what did I miss?"$

"It's just a comment with Brune's ID, it's not an access ID. So anyone with access to the program can use Brune's ID after getting permission from Brune."

"Doesn't that mean Brune allows that person to write the comment with his ID, which implies Brune also knows the comment's content?"

"Technically, yes. In reality, no. Comment IDs can be easily manipulated, and a hacker who can exploit the program's security and access it can also use that ID. Also, the permissions can be set by Brune himself to allow some users to always include his ID in a comment. Usually, Brune does that to mark comments he needs to read."

Ghito was still trying to grasp it, but he quickly drew a conclusion, "So, Brune may not know about the comment's content?"

"Yeah, more or less. So the evidence you have is weak, even extremely feeble, to identify Brune as a suspect."

"What should I do then?" Ghito unconsciously asked Axel.

Axel finally understood what Ghito was planning, "You want to trap Brune? Dig up his mistakes."

"Shut up!"

Ghito then went to the other side of the room, continuing his investigation by examining every detail of the program displayed on the hologram.

However, this time his mind was disturbed by Alice and Axel's earlier words, making it hard for him to focus on what he was doing.

Not long after, there was a commotion from Axel's department room. Ghito and the other two SAT members tried to leave Axel's room to check out what was happening.

But it wasn't needed because Alice came back into Axel's room, this time with Brune.

"What are you guys doing?" Ghito asked, looking at Alice and Brune.

"Stop whatever you're doing. You don't have the authority to investigate this secret project," said Brune, approaching Ghito.

"Sorry, but we have orders from-"

"From Hector? Then call him."

Ghito followed Brune's request, he then called Hector. However, he couldn't reach him, even the call didn't connect to Hector.

Ghito tried again and failed once more.

"Moron. You know this area is specially designed by Hector to block networks in and out. If you knew just this much, you should understand how secret this project is, so get out now," Brune said.

Ghito's gaze shifted to Alice, and Brune alternated, confused about what to say. Finally, Ghito said, "Sorry. I'm just following the SOP for secu-"

"I can change that SOP if needed. I'll contact Hector," Brune replied with a smile.

Hearing that, Alice couldn't help but hold back her laughter and smiled. Meanwhile, Ghito glanced at Alice, as if saying that he now understood what Alice meant earlier. Meanwhile, Axel, who watched from afar, just stayed silent.

"Just like this, stop what you're doing, free Axel, and let's all head to your interrogation room on underfloor 2. You guys totally have that room, right?" suggested Brune.

Since Ghito didn't know what else to do, especially afraid of making another mistake, he agreed to Brune's suggestion.

Axel was released, and then he closed all the programs that had been opened, both in his room and in his department's room.

Ghito and the other two SAT members, accompanied by Alice and Brune, walked towards the lift. After Axel joined them, they all went down using the lift straight to underfloor 2.

###

The SAT interrogation room is rarely used, but the room's security is always maintained by SAT members at all times.

The SAT interrogation room is only used if there's a problem with high-level security, including problems with special security protocols.

In that room now, there are Brune, Alice, and Axel as the main suspects identified by Ghito for abusing special and limited powers by activating special security protocol level 1 with a message of random characters ending with 'from Axel.'

Besides the three of them, Ghito and seven other SAT members are also in the room. They all stay still, watching Brune, Alice, and Axel while waiting for their leader to come.

The situation continues for a few minutes until someone comes and sits in the empty chair facing Brune, Alice, and Axel.

"Good morning, I'm Anderson, Hector's main assistant and deputy head of the ReTecs security audit team. I've learnt the background of this case, where security protocol level 1 was activated in a non-emergency situation, accompanied by a message written as 'sdghjkl;TAY5SFYHIK’auewsfnl; from Axel,'" says Anderson, looking at Brune, Alice, and Axel.

Then Anderson continues, "We suspect this as an abuse of special and limited powers that could potentially cause system damage, system breaches, diversion to hide criminal activities or harm, and several possibilities that could lead to danger or harm to ReTecs."

Anderson then opens the tablet he brought and reads the text on the tablet screen, "The main suspect identified is Axel, with Brune and Alice as other suspects. The identification of suspects is done by Hector for Axel and by Ghito for Brune and Alice."

Anderson looked back at their three faces before continuing, "The investigation has been conducted, and no evidence pointing to any losses for ReTecs has been found. However, the investigation was halted in the middle of the process at the request of Mr. Brune due to concerns about accessing the company's secrets illegally. So, that's more or less what happened. Did I miss anything?"

"Anderson, long time no see you, my friends," Brune greeted Anderson warmly.

Anderson stared at Brune, "Please be serious, you know it's dangerous if left unchecked, Brune."

"Mr. Anderson, I understand your concern about this issue, but are you sure Axel activated the protocol?" Alice tried to persuade Anderson to reconsider the truth.

"Yo-"

"Have you checked in detail? I'm sure there's an access ID that reveals who activated the protocol and sent that message. You can even trace it from the location to the time the protocol was activated," Axel intervened, trying to convince Anderson and cutting him off.

Anderson looked at the three of them, "You planned this, confused us, made us rethink, then gave us false information until we changed our minds. A good plan, I must admit, but unfortunately, it didn't work on me."

Axel was still silent, while Alice just smiled because her plan was exposed, and Brune quietly tapped the table.

Not long after, Brune leaned forward, his face serious as he looked at Anderson, "You say false information, but we don't have any information. We have no idea about this protocol issue, our business with PAGAR is complicated enough. Why don't you show us this information yourself? Proof that Level 1 protocol has been activated."

Anderson stared back at Brune, "Sure, we have evidence, quite a lot to make you not so special anymore. But unfortunately, that evidence is confidential."

Brune banged on the table, "You've already messed with the company's secrets, the company's priorities by sending SAT to investigate our program. Then, we can't see your secrets? Contact Hector, I'll talk to him."

"Hector is securing and auditing the company's security because of your actions, so he can't be reached," Anderson said, still staring at Brune and unaffected by Brune's threats.

Axel watched and listened to this, his thoughts going back to when the first time SAT told him to stop. In Axel's mind, memories raced quickly, trying to recall details of every conversation. Finally, Axel smiled.

Everyone's attention turned to Axel as he started to laugh softly.

"Or you don't want to show it to us because it wasn't me who activated that protocol. From the first time you stopped me, you never mentioned once that I activated the protocol. You only mentioned if there was a message ending with '...from Axel,' it means you actually knew it wasn't me who activated it, but someone else," Axel said, leaning casually.

Anderson stayed and unmoved by Axel's words, but Alice could see one SAT member behind Anderson, and Ghito, who stood next to that person, showed different signs as if they were hiding something.

"Or it's a system error, but you're afraid of getting reprimanded by the board, so you decide to blame Axel for this incident, and Hector is busy fixing it," Alice said with her usual face, but with her cleverness, she played with the intonation of her speech, emphasizing some key words that intimidated them all.

Anderson, still unfazed, said, “How long have you guys been thinking about that? Pretty good, but now I'll prove you wrong. Axel is the suspect for activating special security protocol level 1, are you satisfied?"

Brune sighed and spoke with emphasis, "Here's the deal. PAGAR is the company's priority, and right now, its main programmer is detained, which will disrupt PAGAR and likely infuriate the directors."

After ensuring Anderson's attention was on him, Brune continued, "Release Axel. Let him stop the ongoing program and the other procedures to secure the company's assets. Then, you can contact Hector, or I'll contact the directors. Alternatively, you can present the evidence you mentioned earlier, just one piece that proves Axel or one of us activated that protocol. How about it?"

Anderson stayed silent for a moment, then stood up and walked away. He, along with Ghito and another SAT member, whispered something to each other.

Meanwhile, Brune tapped his fingers on the table rhythmically.

Alice approached Axel and whispered, "It's a code."

"Binary. I know what the message is, but what does it mean?" replied Axel.

While still whispering, Anderson turned back and saw Alice and Axel. "Are you planning something?"

Alice and Axel were startled and trying to come up with an excuse. Brune casually said, "They're dating, so just ignore them."

Anderson squinted his eyes at Brune, "Fine. Ghito and two SAT members will accompany Axel to stop his program, but you and Alice must stay here."

Brune casually agreed, "Deal."

Two SAT members then lifted Axel and escorted him out of the interrogation room, while Ghito led the way back to Axel's office.

###

When they reached Axel's office, Axel wasn't tied up, but he was forced to sit in his chair, with Ghito and two other SAT members standing right around Axel, blocking his way out to escape or do anything suspicious.

Axel didn't need all that guarding because he had no intention of running away or doing anything against them.

Axel just opened his program, checked it briefly to ensure all data was safe, then he typed a few things on his holo-keyboard to stop some running programs.

Ghito and the two SAT members overseeing Axel were equipped with programming knowledge, so they could watch Axel and make sure he wasn't doing anything other than stopping the running programs.

However, Axel knew that. So, he used his skills to deceive his watchers. Axel's speed in managing the programs he created was too fast for Ghito and the two SAT members to understand. Thus, Axel created an opening for himself to input a comment in binary form that made it difficult for Ghito and the other two SAT members to understand.

The binary code in Axel's comment read 'Be careful with SAT, they're after you.' Besides the binary comment, Axel also inputted the numbers 1s and 0s in some parts that would be deleted automatically. He did this on purpose to make it even harder for Ghito and the other two SAT members to understand what Axel was doing.

After Axel successfully made the comment, he actually intended to publish the comment to broadcast it to all PAGAR members so they could be careful with SAT. However, unfortunately, before Axel could broadcast the comment, a power outage occurred, shutting down all things requiring electricity in the office, including the computer Axel was using.

Because of the procedure during a power outage that required all employees to leave until the power could return to normal, Axel just followed along.

Axel, Ghito, and two other SAT members left the room to quickly exit the building. Unfortunately, the door to exit Axel's department room was locked.

Axel, Ghito, and two other SAT members tried to find a way out. Axel wanted to activate special security protocol level 1 to inform their position, but Ghito prohibited him. Ghito stated that the protocol was under investigation by SAT.

There was tension between Axel and Ghito for a moment, but it didn't last long because Axel just complied.

Fortunately, within a few minutes, the medical team came to where Axel was and told him to leave immediately. The same instruction was given to the SAT members.

As an emergency handling procedure, Axel was immediately given oxygen masks and taken to the ambulance.

However, Axel, who already trusted the medical team and the SAT, just gave in and stayed silent when he slowly but surely lost consciousness.

It didn't take long for Axel to completely lose consciousness, precisely when they reached the base floor.

####