The feeling in the motel room changed. The brave determination they had felt just moments before began to sour, turning into a cold and sharp fear. They had successfully stolen their weapon—the shocking data—but actually using it felt like they were signing their own death sentences. The small data drive, which had felt like a winning trophy, now seemed like a live grenade. They were holding it in their hand, and the pin was already pulled.

"We need a plan for what happens after we release this," Evelyn said, her voice cutting through the tense quiet. She nervously traced a line on the motel's cheap, plastic-coated desk. "The moment we send this data out into the world, we can't be in this room. We can't be in any place they might think to search for us."

"We need new identities," Kaito said, his gaze locked on the laptop screen as he started making secret, protected copies of the data. "Better ones than these 'Miller' IDs. OmniCorp already found us with them; they're useless now. We need to vanish without a trace."

"Vanishing costs money," Silva grumbled, a deep frown on his face. "A lot more money than we have left." He gestured toward the small stack of bills on the bedside table. It looked tiny and helpless against the huge problem they faced.

Ace listened to them, but part of his mind was elsewhere. The new "Corporate Espionage" ability inside his head was working, analyzing their situation without any feeling. It was like a cold, logical computer calculating their odds.

<<<>>>

SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS: HOW TO SURVIVE AFTER RELEASING THE DATA.

- WHAT WE NEED: TO COMPLETELY GET RID OF OUR CURRENT FAKE IDENTITIES.

- WHAT WE NEED: TO MOVE TO A DIFFERENT CITY OR STATE.

- WHAT WE NEED: A LARGE, STEADY SUPPLY OF MONEY TO LIVE ON.

- CONCLUSION: THE MONEY AND RESOURCES WE HAVE NOW ARE NOT ENOUGH. WE MUST FIND ANOTHER WAY TO GET MONEY.

<<<>>>

Alternative funding. The words sounded clean and professional, but Ace knew what they really meant. They needed a big pile of cash that couldn't be traced back to them, and they needed it immediately. A bank wouldn't loan them money. They couldn't rely on luck. The only path left was to steal it. The System guiding him clearly had no problem with theft if it was the only way to stay alive.

Before he could put this disturbing idea into words, something even more urgent happened.

Evelyn, who had gone back to watching the parking lot through the window, suddenly went completely still. "Ace," she whispered, her voice so quiet the others could barely hear it. "A car. A black sedan. It just parked outside. That kind of car doesn't belong in a place like this."

The mood in the room shifted instantly. The nervous energy of making plans vanished, replaced by the heart-thumping terror of immediate danger. Silva was on his feet in a flash, moving to the other side of the window to look out without being spotted. Kaito slammed the laptop shut, the color draining from his face.

"Describe it," Ace said, moving quickly to stand beside Evelyn.

"Black. Expensive. Tinted windows," she reported, her voice steady but laced with a fear she was struggling to control. "It parked right across from the office, not in a parking spot. No one has gotten out yet."

"Could it be Ramos?" Kaito asked, his voice shaking. "Did he find us?"

Silva shook his head, his expression serious. "No. This doesn't feel like him. This car is too clean, too polished. It looks... corporate."

Just then, the driver's door opened. A man stepped out. He was tall and slim, wearing a perfectly fitted charcoal-grey suit that looked more expensive than everything they owned put together. His hair was neatly styled, and his shoes were so shiny they gleamed even in the motel's poor lighting. He didn't look like a criminal; he looked like a high-powered lawyer or a company executive. He closed the car door and, instead of going to the motel office, he turned his head and looked straight at their door—Room 114.

Then, he started walking right toward them.

A cold fear, different from the kind they felt around the violent Ramos, settled over Ace. This was the enemy they had just been reading about on the computer. This was OmniCorp, in the flesh.

"Kaito, the drive!" Ace said urgently.

"Got it," Kaito replied, quickly pulling the small data drive from the laptop and hiding it in a secret pocket he had sewn inside his backpack.

A sharp, clean knock sounded on the door. It wasn't the loud bang of the police; it was the confident knock of someone who fully expects you to open the door for them.

Everyone froze, their eyes turning to Ace. His thoughts raced. They couldn't escape out the back; the window was too small and opened into a fenced-in area with dumpsters. They couldn't start a fight; this man was surely not alone, and a shootout would bring the police, who OmniCorp probably controlled.

"Open it," Ace said quietly to Silva.

Silva's eyes widened in disbelief. "What?"

"Open it. Let's hear what he has to say."

With a look of deep suspicion, Silva unlocked the door and pulled it open, using his large body to block the entrance.

The man in the suit stood calmly on the doormat, his hands relaxed at his sides. He gave a thin, businesslike smile that didn't warm his cold, evaluating eyes. "Ace. May I call you Ace?" His voice was smooth, educated, and carried a disturbing calmness. "My name is Mr. Sterling. I represent OmniCorp. I'd like to have a conversation."

He knew Ace's real name. Their fake identities were completely useless against him.

"What do you want?" Silva growled, not moving from the doorway.

Mr. Sterling's eyes moved past Silva, scanning the cramped, shabby room, the laptop on the desk, and the three other anxious faces. He looked mildly disgusted, as if he had walked into something dirty. "I assure you, my intentions are peaceful. I'm here with an offer. May I come in? It's rather unprofessional to discuss business out here in the open."

Ace gave a slight nod to Silva. Very reluctantly, the big man stepped aside, allowing Sterling to walk in. The man seemed to bring a chill with him, his presence making the room feel even smaller and more pathetic. He didn't sit down, choosing to stand in the middle of the room as if touching the furniture would soil his expensive suit.

"We know about your recent... activities," Sterling began, getting straight to the point. "The unfortunate incident with Mr. Ramos. The even more unfortunate misunderstanding with Mr. Vincenzo. You've had a difficult time. We know you're resourceful. We know you're skilled."

He let his words hang in the air, his gaze finally locking onto Ace, clearly seeing him as the one in charge. "OmniCorp is always searching for unique talent," he continued. "We have an opening for a... problem-solving team. Your specific skills would be extremely valuable to us. The pay would be very generous. A fresh start. New identities, a steady monthly income, a clean record. All the chaos and trouble of the last few months? We can make it disappear."

It was an incredible offer. It was everything they had been desperately fighting for: safety, financial security, and a chance to begin again. For just a moment, Ace saw a flash of desire in Evelyn's eyes and a hint of temptation on Kaito's face. Even Silva looked briefly shocked by the proposal.

But Ace heard the hidden threat underneath the smooth, polite words. We know every illegal thing you've done. We have the power to erase all your problems, or we have the power to make them all collapse on top of you.

At the same time, he felt the System inside him instantly and coldly analyzing the offer.

<<<>>>

ANALYSIS OF THE JOB OFFER FROM OMNICORP:

- ON THE SURFACE: A GOOD DEAL. IT PROVIDES EVERYTHING WE NEED TO SURVIVE.

- THE HIDDEN MEANING: COMPLETE CONTROL OVER OUR LIVES. THEY PLAN TO ABSORB YOU AND THEN ELIMINATE YOU.

- THE LIKELY OUTCOME IN THE LONG RUN: BAD. ONCE THEY HAVE LEARNED AND COPIED YOUR SKILLS, YOU WILL BECOME USELESS TO THEM AND THEY WILL GET RID OF YOU.

- FINAL DECISION: THIS OFFER IS A PREDATORY TRAP. IF YOU ACCEPT, YOU ARE GIVING UP YOUR FREEDOM AND ULTIMATELY GUARANTEEING YOUR OWN DESTRUCTION.

<<<>>>

Ace looked at Mr. Sterling's perfectly calm face and knew the System was right. They wouldn't be employees; they would be property. They would be like pampered pets on a very comfortable leash, but only until they were no longer needed.

"We're not for sale," Ace said, his voice level and firm.

Sterling's smile didn't disappear, but it became even chillier. "I would strongly advise you to rethink your position. The alternative to our generous offer is... very unpleasant. The world can be an incredibly dangerous place for people with no allies and a long list of powerful enemies. Your financial situation is unstable. You have no legal status. It would be a true shame if the last few escape routes you have were to... suddenly vanish."

The threat was now out in the open. He was clearly telling them that he would freeze their bank accounts, invalidate their fake IDs, and leave them completely helpless and exposed to Ramos, Vincenzo, and the police.

Evelyn found her courage, her fear turning into sharp defiance. "Are you threatening us?" she asked.

"I am simply describing the situation as it is," Sterling corrected her gently. "I am offering you the only lifeboat available. A terrible storm is coming. I suggest you get in the boat."

"We'd rather take our chances swimming," Ace said.

For the first time, a flicker of real emotion—annoyance—showed on Sterling's face. It disappeared instantly, replaced by a mask of polite disappointment. "A very unwise decision. But it is, of course, your choice to make." He reached into the inside pocket of his suit jacket, and Silva immediately tensed, expecting a weapon.

But Sterling only pulled out a single, clean white business card. He held it out delicately between two fingers. "This is my direct phone number. You have twenty-four hours to come to your senses. After that," he said, placing the card carefully on the wobbly bedside table, "the lifeboat will leave without you. And the storm will hit you with its full force."

He gave a small, mocking nod, turned around, and left, closing the door softly behind him. The quiet click of the door closing was somehow more frightening than if he had slammed it.

They stood in complete silence, listening to the sound of his footsteps fading away, then the sound of his car door opening and closing, and finally the soft purr of the sedan's engine as it drove off.

The room felt dirty, violated. The tempting offer hung in the air like a poisonous illusion of safety.

Silva was the first to break the silence, his voice a low, angry growl. "That slimy, polished—"

"He wasn't lying," Kaito interrupted, his hands trembling as he opened the laptop again. He went to their bank's website and tried to log in. His password was rejected. He tried again, with the same result. "He's already started," Kaito said, looking up, his face pale. "Our bank accounts. They're frozen. All of them."

Evelyn hurried over to the small pile of cash on the table and began counting it with frantic fingers. "This is it," she whispered, her voice full of despair. "This is all the money we have left in the world."

Ace picked up the business card. It was thick, high-quality paper. It was embossed with nothing but a name, "Mr. Alistair Sterling," and a single, ten-digit phone number. No company name. No job title. It was the card of a man who was so powerful he needed no introduction.

He looked at his friends, at their faces, which were a mix of terror and a new, burning rage. OmniCorp was no longer just a shadowy idea. It had a face, a name, and a voice. And it had just declared war on them in the most politely terrifying way possible.

The choice was made for them. They had tried to hide, and the enemy had walked right up and knocked on their door. There was nowhere left to hide.

Ace crumpled the business card in his fist.

"The lifeboat is a trap," he said, his voice cold and absolute. "Our only choice is to sink OmniCorp, or we will drown with them."

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