Chapter One: Rejected by an Entire Industry

The silver text continued. [COMEBACK MISSION 001: PROVE THAT YOUR FAILURE WAS MANUFACTURED.] [OBJECTIVE: OBTAIN THE COMPLETE EVIDENCE CHAIN BEHIND HANHAI'S FABRICATED LEAK WITHIN EIGHTEEN HOURS.] [REWARD: ONE COMMERCIAL-OPPORTUNITY PROJECTION; LOCATION OF ESSENTIAL STARTUP CAPITAL.] [FAILURE: CANDIDACY SUSPENDED; HANHAI ACQUIRES ZERO'S PHYSICAL HOST WITHIN FORTY-EIGHT HOURS.] [HINT: THE TRAP IS NOT IN THE CODE YOU TOOK. IT IS IN THE CODE THEY WANTED YOU TO SEE.] As the final line appeared, an offline printer in the corner came to life and spat out a single sheet. It contained only a timestamp: `2038-11-17 03:14:22` Exactly twelve years in the future.