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Before Dave left, Tony called out, “Alpha Dave!”
Dave turned over his shoulder to look at them. “I need to deal with something. Do as you please.” Having said that, he strode out.
Tony and Ben immediately went after him.
Outside, Dave belatedly realized they had tagged along with him. “What’s the matter? Do you need anything else?”
Tony said, “Alpha Dave, let us come with you. We might be able to help you.” Dave frowned.
“Alpha Dave, don’t doubt us. We can help you. Just think of it as a test. If we can’t do anything, you can ignore our suggestion and assume we’re just kids. Will that do?” Ben suggested.
Despite their adorable looks, they are exceptionally smart. I can’t think of them as ordinary children. Just look at how persistent and eloquent they are.
After thinking over their suggestion, Dave gestured for them to follow him. Tony and Ben promptly broke into huge grins and went after him.
Dave walked into the hidden room to see Miguel in front of the computer. The latter was sucking on a lollipop and seemed nervous.
“What’s wrong?” Dave asked after coming to a stop behind him.
Miguel looked up, seemingly stumped. “Dave, the car you told me to keep an eye on disappeared.” “What? When did that happen?” Dave demanded.
“Just a while ago. I called you right after I realized it went missing. Only five minutes have passed since its disappearance,” Miguel replied.
The kids raised their hands and glanced at the location on their watches. They exchanged a look silently.
“How did that happen?” Despite his scowl, Dave was concerned.
“The GPS tracker was discovered, or he had entered an area where the signal was disrupted,” Miguel guessed.
Dave’s expression was dark. Never mind if Alpha Kilian had discovered their GPS tracker. If he had entered an area where the signal was disrupted, it would be hard to find him again.”
They were deep in thought when Tony broke the silence. “Alpha Dave, we have Daddy’s address!” Dave whirled around to look at him.
Without further delay, Tony raised his arm and clicked on his watch. A map with a red dot indicating the car’s location was cast to the screen.
Dave narrowed his gaze when he noticed the location was similar to the location they tracked down. “How did you get this?” he questioned.
“You tracked his car down using a GPS tracker, and I found his car using his license number. As long as I hack into the local Overseer System, it will be pretty easy to find his car. However, there are lesser surveillance cameras in the uninhabited zone, so the location isn’t that accurate,” Tony explained.
Dave looked him in the eye. “Did Anonymous provide the location to you?” Tony paused before nodding. “Yes.”
It’s good that Anonymous can be the scapegoat.
Miguel stiffened when he heard Anonymous being mentioned. Gazing at them, he asked, “Anonymous? Are you talking about the legendary hacker, Anonymous?”
Tony gave a calm nod. “Yes.”
“Y-You know Anonymous?” Miguel could barely hide his amazement. “Is that strange?” Tony asked.
“Of course! You’re too young to know Anonymous!” Miguel insisted. Many hackers wanted to get to know Anonymous but got disappointed.
Anonymous might be a hacker just like him, but he was on a different level.
Tony didn’t take his words to heart. “Is that strange? He’s a member of Darknetz, and so am I. Isn’t it normal that we know each other?”
“You’re a member of Darknetz?” Miguel was even more surprised as he widened his eyes. “Is that shocking?” Tony got curious.
Miguel turned to look at Dave. Did he just allow a member of Darknetz to come in? To his astonishment, Dave remained unfazed and replied, “It’s fine.”
Tony assured Miguel, “Don’t worry. I have my own principles. I might be a member of Darknetz, but I’m also my daddy’s son. I won’t betray his best friend.”
Hearing his words, Miguel turned over his shoulder and looked at the kids. Flashing a grin, he said, “I don’t mean anything. It’s just an occupational habit of mine.”
Tony wasn’t bothered.
Dave asked, “Those from Darknetz are willing to help your daddy?”
“They aren’t helping my daddy. They are helping us,” Tony corrected him.
“Then does Darknetz know about your daddy and your previous identity?” Dave probed.
“Besides Thalia, the woman you saw that day, the others don’t know anything,” Tony said honestly.
Dave had barely left the room when Miguel approached Tony and Ben . He smiled at the boys and produced two lollipops. “Here, these are for you!”
He was clearly after something.
Tony glanced at him knowingly but accepted the lollipop all the same. He unwrapped the sweet and placed it in his mouth.
Ben , on the other hand, stared at the offering suspiciously.
“Come on. It’s yummy!” Miguel promptly unwrapped the lollipop and stuck it in the boy’s mouth. Ben ‘s face scrunched up in displeasure, though he quietly ate the lollipop since it tasted all right.
By then, Miguel had taken a seat beside the boys. He hemmed and hawed before asking, “Hey boys, do you know what Anonymous looks like? Is he handsome? Is he exactly like how the rumors on the web paint him out to be?”
“Rumors? What rumors?”
Miguel elaborated, “Well, everyone says he’s cold and cruel and unpleasant. Is that true?”
His words immediately brought a frown to Tony ‘s face, and the boy demanded, “Cold and cruel and unpleasant? Who said that?”
“Everyone! And based on Anonymous’ working style, it’s not completely unlikely. I mean, he acts swiftly and mercilessly whenever he performs a hack.”
Ben turned to look at his brother, whose brows were knitted tightly in displeasure.
Tony piped up, “But I heard that Anonymous is super smart, shrewd, talented, and knowledgeable.” “Really?” Miguel blinked a few times and questioned, “Who told you that?”NôvelDrama.Org: text © owner.
Are we even talking about the same person here? Tony insisted, “Everyone says so!”
Ben tried his best not to laugh.
He’s just extolling his own virtues!
Noticing his expression, Tony elbowed Ben hard in the ribs. Ben hastily swallowed his laughter and looked away.
In the meantime, a clueless Miguel scratched his head and muttered, “Really? I’ve never heard anyone say that. Are you sure we’re talking about the same person?”
“Who else could I be talking about? How many hackers out there are called Anonymous?” After some thought, Miguel agreed with Tony ‘s argument. “That’s true.”
“If you haven’t heard of it, that just means you don’t know enough!” Then, to back up his statement, Tony asked, “Didn’t you chat with Anonymous before?”
“How do you know?” asked Miguel defensively.
“I know much more than you could ever imagine!” Tony shot Miguel a cryptic look and continued, “Don’t worry. I’ll share all these rumors you’ve heard with Anonymous and get his thoughts on the matter!”
Miguel immediately protested, “Please don’t tell him! I was just joking! I swear!” Tony sucked his lollipop quietly in response.
Just then, Miguel looked at him and asked, “Could you introduce me to Anonymous? I’d like to know him better.”
With nary a hint of hesitation, Tony retorted, “Whatever for?” “I want him to teach me!” Miguel offered shyly.
Baffled, Ben sputtered, “Teach you?”
“Of course!” Miguel nodded earnestly and added, “Anonymous has been my idol for the longest time, and I would be honored if he would pass down his knowledge to me. Well, I’m not sure if he’s open to the idea of accepting students, so I’d like the two of you to ask him for me.”
“I can’t deny that you have good taste!” teased Ben .
The sarcasm was lost on Miguel, who declared proudly, “I think so too! Well, will you help me?” “I don’t think you need our help…”
A sharp elbow dug into Ben ‘s ribs once more. After collecting himself, Ben smiled weakly at Miguel and said, “Perhaps you should ask Tony . He’s closer to Anonymous.”
Miguel’s gaze immediately moved to Tony .
“Well…” Tony trailed off as he contemplated a suitable reply for his admirer. Just then, Dave re- entered the room.
A lightbulb went off in Tony ‘s head, and he said, “You’re from DX Group, and Anonymous is a member of Darknetz. Don’t you know these two groups are enemies?”
Miguel replied, “I’m under Dave, but I’m not an employee of DX Group. Dave mentioned that he would never interfere with our activities outside of work as long as we don’t reveal company secrets.”
Stunned, Tony stared at Dave and asked, “Is that true?” Miguel also looked to Dave for confirmation.
Dave paused for a moment before nodding at his audience. “That’s right. As long as my subordinates perform their jobs properly, I won’t restrict their freedom in pursuing other activities!”
“Aren’t you worried about losing your subordinates to competitors?”
“If that happens, it merely shows that I didn’t do enough to retain the talents around me,” explained Dave confidently.
Impressed, Tony exclaimed, “Alpha Dave, you’re a great boss!”
Dave chuckled in response. “That’s not up to me to decide but rather, what my employees think of me!” Tony appraised Miguel, who positively exuded youthful energy and motivation.
In hindsight, Dave’s lack of restriction was probably a great incentive for retaining talent.