Elizabeth's face was marked with professional indifference as she continued her self-introduction with a blank expression. "I've led several international hacker organizations. I've taken down government servers, bypassed multinational companies' supposedly impenetrable firewalls, and with just a few keystrokes, manipulated financial markets…" Each of these achievements was impressive on its own, yet she spoke as though they were insignificant details.
"The work I've done for Cahill has involved covering up their long-standing illegal activities, helping them destroy evidence, and going head-to-head with law enforcement. Without me, the Cahill Family would have collapsed long ago." Elizabeth paused and looked at Michael. "Do you understand what I mean?"
Michael was intrigued, clearly impressed by her abilities. As for the question she posed, he raised an eyebrow and spoke plainly, "Are you trying to inflate your own worth?"
Elizabeth's expression darkened slightly as she locked eyes with him. "No, Cahill and I only have a working relationship. No one is my boss. What I want to know is, what do you need my help with?"
Michael smiled. "I'll get straight to the point. In my view, you're exactly the person I've been looking for. Now, tell me, what are the conditions under which you'll work for me?"
"I'll tell you upfront, the way I work is different from what you're used to. Under my terms, you'll get the best conditions. But you will be fully at my disposal. Wherever you are, at any time, you'll be on call. In other words, you'll become my personal hacker." Michael lowered his voice, making sure every word was clear.
Elizabeth's already indifferent face grew even colder, as if the temperature in the room dropped. She stared at him expressionlessly. "You're very interesting. No matter what terms you offer, if this is how you want to work, you can leave."
"Hey, don't rush." Michael said slowly, unruffled. "I'll offer you the highest pay in the entire hacker world. I'll provide you with the materials you need, all the hardware, including things that you can't even imagine, things that would drive everyone in the world crazy..."
But Elizabeth remained unmoved, cutting him off before he could finish. "I told you, the deal's off."
"Didn't Moretti tell you?" she asked, her voice cold. "I only work for employers who are stronger than me."
"So, I could never work for you, especially not for someone who shows such arrogance and a lack of sincerity." She stood up as she spoke, ready to leave.
Michael's expression shifted slightly. Had her earlier words been a way to inflate her own worth? It didn't seem that way now. He remained calm, observing her. It appeared she truly didn't care about his conditions at all, dismissing them as if they were nothing.
He smiled calmly and immediately extended his hand to stop her, his voice suddenly calm as he spoke, "What if I told you I'm stronger than you?"
"Stronger than me?" Elizabeth's gaze seemed to say she was listening to a joke.
"Yes, stronger than you." Michael looked at her, his voice firm. "And I'm talking about hacking skills. My hacking skills are better than yours."
Each word was said with such confidence that Elizabeth was momentarily taken aback.
"You'll find out if you try." Michael added, retracting his hand and issuing the challenge. "Do you dare? I have a computer."
Elizabeth smiled with slight disdain, shaking her head, finding the whole thing to be a ridiculous charade. But in the end, for reasons she couldn't explain, she sat down. "Fine. Let me see your so-called legendary hacking skills."
"I'll get the computer." Michael said, gesturing for her to stay seated. He stood up and turned, heading towards the café's exit.
Elizabeth watched him with a puzzled look as he walked to his car, still shaking her head. "I must be crazy..."
At his car, Michael opened the trunk, which contained a box of miscellaneous items he had moved from his old place. He pulled out an old but relatively clean laptop.
It was a Dell Latitude laptop, long obsolete, the silver exterior scratched and worn. The screen was dim, with a faded Windows logo flashing on it.
It was a far cry from the advanced, high-tech equipment most hackers would use, but Michael didn't seem bothered. He wiped the back of the laptop with his sleeve, blew a puff of air onto it, and muttered, "Well, it's the best I've got."
He also found a notebook and a pen among the miscellaneous items.
Closing the car door, he took a deep breath and returned to his seat.
"This is your hacker computer?" Elizabeth's eyes widened slightly. "What are you playing at?"
Michael cleared his throat and calmly looked at her. He handed her the notebook and pen. "The challenge can start now. Let me explain the rules."
"Since you say your hacking skills are so great, your privacy must be well hidden. You can write down any question about yourself on the paper, and I'll find the answers within ten minutes, using hacking methods."
Elizabeth stared at him, her expression cold and skeptical. "Are you joking?"
"Afraid you can't do it? You can start writing now." Michael said, looking at her seriously.
Elizabeth scoffed, taking the notebook. She didn't even look at him as she said, "What's there to be afraid of? This pointless game—you can't win. Let me tell you straight, finding my secrets is harder than finding a needle in the ocean."
She glanced at the notebook and pen in her hand. "Hey, what are you, some kind of office worker? You've got this stuff in your car?"
Michael didn't answer, merely gesturing with his mouth, signaling her to write.
Elizabeth shook her head in resignation, picking up the pen. "Interesting. What exactly do you want me to write?"
Michael replied, "Something about yourself—things you think others don't know. Like your address, age, high school, measurements, and so on."
Elizabeth started writing quickly. Within moments, ten questions were laid out in front of Michael.
Michael read through them from start to finish. "Clark?"
As he looked at the names that appeared on the notebook, he raised an eyebrow. "Clark's age, Clark's school, what Clark likes to eat, what Clark enjoys, where Clark's family went…" He looked up at Elizabeth. "Why is everything about this person?"
"She's my sister. Now, get to work." Elizabeth replied, her expression unchanged.
Michael added, "Not done yet. You also need to write the correct answers on another sheet of paper."
Without hesitation, Elizabeth tore off a page from the notebook, swiftly wrote down all the answers, and then folded the paper. She slid it into the corner of her clothing, between her garments.
Michael looked uncertain. "Are you sure you want to put it there?"
Elizabeth's face didn't change. "Let's get started."
Michael lowered his head, his expression serious. "Fine then."
He opened the old laptop, his fingers dancing across the keyboard, the rhythmic sound of keys striking the air.
Elizabeth rested her chin in her hand and spoke in a low tone. "You've got ten minutes. I've already started the timer."
As Michael pretended to focus, he said, "Don't peek at my screen."
Elizabeth chuckled. "I won't. I'm not interested."
The old, slow laptop's processing speed was almost like that of a snail. Elizabeth grew impatient. She could only sit there, waiting as the seconds ticked by.
Not long after, she glanced at her phone. "Sir, it's been nine and a half minutes. Last half-minute."
Michael didn't look up from his work, silent the entire time, his hands still moving over the keyboard.
Elizabeth shook her head, bored, and gazed out the window.
Suddenly, the entire scene seemed to freeze. Michael stood up from his seat and, as if completely indifferent to the room around him, walked toward Elizabeth. His shoes clicked sharply against the wooden floor.
He stood next to Elizabeth, the two of them standing close to each other. He expressionlessly looked down at her, while Elizabeth, unaware, stared out the window. Her gaze froze on the street outside, and everything around her froze too. The bustling noise from the café, which had been so loud just a moment ago, suddenly disappeared. The coffee, mid-pour from one container into another, seemed suspended in mid-air.
Michael took a deep breath.
On his former seat, a Dell computer remained open on a text editing page, filled with a jumble of hastily typed code.
At the very end of the code, there was a line that read: 'Time Acceleration, one thousand times.'
"Why did you hide the answer there?" Michael stood there, shaking his head with a touch of helplessness.