In the deep web, five names from the Dark Hacker (DH) Group are infamous for terror and awe - Sigma, Instant, Madhatter, Law, and Nano. There"s little information on their real ident.i.ty.
No matter what they do, they couldn"t track down them down. They might as well sitting right in front of the authority and drinking tea while sending a worm into their system, but n.o.body would know. They obviously like making fun of the authorities.
For the next few months, Ren has tried to send many messages to Nano. There"s not a single response. Instead, Nano hacks Ren"s computer and deletes his game and p.o.r.n collection. Nano also reveals his whereabouts to authority.
Ren is kicked out after being hacked by Nano. He is naturally disqualified to stay in the Dark Hacker group since his defense was weak. He"s also caught by the authority. The outer circle feels bad for him. Rarely, top black hat hacker would bother to hack a gray hatter. Ren must have done something to annoy Nano.
After serving for three years, Ren comes out of prison. Kamiyama Kiyohira is waiting for him.
"My friend." Ren wraps his arms around Kiyohira. "I am so happy to see you again."
"You saw me last month when I visited." Kiyohira frowns at him. "Will you let me go? People will misunderstand us."
"I do not care, Kiyohira." He looks up at him and sniffles. "Did Rie Chan contact you?"
"No." He sighs. "Do you hate her for sending you to prison?"
"I dare not." Ren lets go of him and chuckles. "Prison wasn"t that bad. I can spend a few more years if she talks to me once."
"She deleted your p.o.r.n." Ren cried for days in prison - not for being in prison. He was heartbroken for losing his precious collections. He would complain about Rie being a horrible person for erasing his entire collection to Kiyohira.
Ren"s eyes well up. He grabs Kiyohira again and cries his heart out. "Rie Chan, I hate you. I hate you."
Kiyohira stares up at the sky and wonders why he"s comforting his wife"s first love for losing his game and p.o.r.n collection.
After spending time at the prison, Ren doesn"t want to go back to his old hacker life. He decides to work in the domain of cybersecurity awareness. Because he has nothing to fear or lose anymore, he still leaves messages to Nano. After two months, Nano responds to his messages.
[Nano: Have not learned your lesson?]
Ren presses his palm together and looks up at the ceiling. His prayers have been heard.
[RENREN: Please don"t be mad at me. At least, tell me why?]
[Nano: Why do you keep leaving messages when I don"t even know you?]
[RENREN: You don"t know me?]
[Nano: Did we ever meet?]
Wait? Nano is not Rie.
[Nano: I hate it when strangers like you call me a friend in public forums. If I didn"t send you to prison, I would have sent men to a.s.sa.s.sinate you.]
Ren gulps down. Did he misunderstand from the beginning? If Nano is not Rie, then where"s Rie? He notices that Nano is not gone yet.
He is enraged. His game and p.o.r.n collection!
[RENREN: Hey, I mistook you as one of my old friends. You could have told me once that you didn"t know me. Did you have to send me to prison? Why did you delete my p.o.r.n? It was torture in prison because I couldn"t play games or see p.o.r.n.]
[Nano: Hmph! Why did you mistake me as a friend? Is she a hacker too?]
[RENREN: She is a part of the DH"s inner circle.]
[Nano: Why did you think that it was me?]
[RENREN: Your timing of appearance.]
[Nano: Idiot.]
[RENREN:???]
[Nano: Do your research well. Instant might have got noticed a few months after I came, but that one came to the DH around the same time.]
Instant appeared 8 months after Rie"s disappearance. Because Nano appeared only weeks after Rie"s disappearance, Ren mistook her as Rie.
What does he know about Instant? That hacker has terrific speed. That black hat hacker was nameless until they gave her the name "Instant".
Nano"s targets are usually government organizations. Her actions are boastful. Instant is not like that. Other than having amazing speed, she is quite precise and sophisticated.
[Nano: What an idiot! But everyone knew that you were messaging me. If Instant was your friend, that person would have contacted you.]
[RENREN: I knew it! My best friend wouldn"t delete my p.o.r.n. She was never that cruel.]
[Nano: You don"t cherish your life.]
[RENREN: You cruel person! I hope that you rot in h.e.l.l. #%!!!!]
Suddenly, this computer"s screen turns black. Nano has done it again.
"Nano, you!" Ren roars in anger. "I will find you and I will do the same to you."
It"s the season of sakura blossom. The soft petals are floating in the air. It reminds him of the fireflies that floated around Rie that night. It was that night when he realized that he already had feelings for her.
Things have changed. He"s not the same Kiyohira. He lights his cigarette and takes a smoke.
Using his new connections, Kiyohira found out that Tsuchiya Tsumi is alive and what happened to Has.h.i.+moto Chisa.
He couldn"t blame his secretary for bringing Tsuchiya Tsumi. She"s the one who saved Rie. Even if she escorted Rie to the Dark Hackers, Rie wasn"t forced. If she was forced, would they help her punish Has.h.i.+moto Chisa like that?
He thinks about the days before she disappeared. That night, she asked him whether he loved her. When he held her hand, it was cold. When he kissed her, she looked at him with a smile but there was no playfulness, love, or hate in her eyes.
That night, she made the decision to go to the dark hackers.
Her heart didn"t move once when he was with her. Could she not believe his words once?
He tried to contact her. She never responded once to him and Ren. She would rather become a black hacker than be with him.
If she had been forced, he could still understand. Why did she not make a single contact with her father? Why let everyone believe that she"s dead?
He understands already. They are all abandoned by her.
He raises his hand, trying to grasp the sakura petal. When he unfolds his fingers, there"s nothing but air. He leans back and closes his eyes.
"Brother!" He hears Takes.h.i.+"s yell. He grimaces in his direction. Takes.h.i.+ is running toward him while pointing at the house like a crazy man. "Brother, Sister-in-law..."
Kiyohirar widens his eyes. He doesn"t wait to hear more. He dashes toward the house. Did she come back to him?
In the living room, Tsuchiya Tsumi is standing in a simple black suit with a wide smile on her face.
"Mr. Kamiyama, it"s been a long time."
Kiyohira looks around with expectations. He can"t see Rie.
A young child steps out. He crosses his arms and looks up at Kiyohira. "So, you are my father."