Morning broke over Tokyo with a heavy, gray silence.
The events of the previous night still haunted the air around Ren and Aoi. She hadn't said much since waking up, her hands loosely folded around a cup of tea, wrapped in a blanket on the lab's couch. Lucia hovered quietly nearby, running background scans and monitoring external threats.
Ren stood at the central terminal of the AI lab, face lit by the glow of ten different screens—surveillance footage, data extractions, encrypted audio, and the digital trace Lucia pulled from the failed kidnapping.
"Tracing uplink to secure network," Lucia announced."Encryption: triple-shielded. Source masked through offshore relay nodes."
Ren didn't blink. He'd seen this signature before. He brought up an older file from the archives—one from Naruse's early business days.
Perfect match.
"Lucia. Full confirm: Naruse?" he asked, his voice low.
"Affirmative. Probability of direct order exceeds 94.6%."
His fingers curled into fists.
"Not anymore," he whispered.
Elsewhere: Naruse's Penthouse Office
Naruse stood by the window, sipping wine, gazing down at the glittering cityscape. His phone buzzed.
Unknown Number.
He answered, and a slow smile spread across his face."Was it done?"
The man on the other end coughed nervously.
"It… failed. The girl was protected by some kind of shield. An AI. Almost like magic."
Naruse's eyes narrowed. He gripped the phone tighter.
"I pay you to succeed. Not fail."
Then, with a chuckle:"No matter. That just makes the next act more exciting."
Back at the AI Lab
Aoi finally spoke. "You knew, didn't you? That he might try something."
Ren knelt in front of her, his hand gently taking hers. "I had a feeling. But I didn't want to believe he'd go that far."
She looked at him, eyes glassy. "I'm scared, Ren. Not just for me—for you. You're digging deeper and deeper into this. He'll try to destroy everything you've built."
Ren smiled softly and touched the necklace she still wore. "He can try. But this time… we're fighting back."
Lucia floated over.
"Ren. External surveillance drone detected observing the lab. Orders?"
"Follow but do not engage," Ren said. "I want to know who's watching… and who they report to."
He turned to Aoi, voice steady.
"We need to outplay him. Not react. I'm finishing the suit. And then we're taking this battle to him—on our terms."
Elsewhere, on a rooftop near the AI lab
Saki crouched behind a vent, watching through high-powered binoculars.
She saw Ren. She saw Aoi. She saw the drone.
Her eyes were bloodshot. Her nails dug into her palm.
"Why her?" she muttered. "Why not me?"
Behind her was a notebook—pages filled with maps, Ren's daily schedule, building layouts…
And at the top:
Plan C: Separate ThemStep 1: Expose the AIStep 2: Frame AoiStep 3: Make Ren Choose