Tony sat right beside Miguel. Instead of looking at the latter or the laptop, he was texting someone on his phone.
Even after hearing Miguel, Tony continued to type as he responded, “Are you aware that trouble won't find you unless you ask for it?”
“Uh... Yes.”
It was then that Tony lifted his head and smiled at Miguel. “Glad you know that. You should think first if you're capable of doing that.”
Miguel grinned in return. “I was just joking.”
After rolling his eyes at Miguel, Tony turned his attention back to his phone and resumed texting Nelly .
As for Miguel, he sighed and began looking for the files again. Time ticked by.
While Miguel searched through the laptop, he would frown occasionally. Ten minutes later, Tony piped up, “How is it going? Ten minutes is almost up.”
“You were actually timing?”
“Duh. You have thirty seconds left. Twenty-nine. Twenty-eight—”
“I'm almost done!” Miguel yelped, his fingers flying across the keyboard.
Tony merely shot him a glance before going on, “Ten... Nine... Eight... Seven...”
Miguel sped up along with Tony 's countdown. Finally, in the final three seconds, Miguel hit the last key and announced, “Done.”
He finished just in time.
When Tony looked at Miguel, the latter nudged the laptop over and chirped, “This is everything I found.”
Without a word, Tony glanced at Miguel and then at the screen.
Miguel explained, “There isn't much information about Magus. They used to commit crimes as a gang, so the only notable incident about him was when his gang abandoned him. I checked the prison he was in and hacked their system, and I managed to find his confession and the videos of their crimes in action. Everything is here. Please take a look.”
At the sight of the neatly arranged files in the folder, Tony curled his lips up. “Not bad.” “I didn't embarrass you, did I?”
“You finished it at the last minute, yet you're proud of it?”
“That's because I didn't expect you to time me for real. If I had known, I would have finished the task earlier!”
“Whatever you say,” replied Tony nonchalantly while staring at the computer screen. “I'm telling the truth.”
Miguel knew that Tony was actually training him, so he was secretly delighted. After all, even just a few words of compliment from Tony meant he was progressing.
In this aspect, Miguel was quite insightful.
As Tony went through the files, he noticed there was indeed limited information on Magus. They only knew that Magus was deserted by his gang members, which led him to be arrested and leave a record behind.
Miguel moved closer to Tony and pointed out, “This was Magus' confession. Although he was betrayed by his gang, he did not name the other members. He said nothing in court and shouldered everything himself.” Following a short pause, Miguel couldn't help lamenting out loud. “This guy is surprisingly loyal. I can't believe he did that even when they turned their backs on him!”
His words brought a frown to Tony 's face. Perhaps it was just his personality, but Tony would never let the betrayers off if something like this were to happen to him.
That was, however, his own opinion.
At that thought, Tony turned to Miguel. “If you were Magus, what would you do?”
“I'd rat them out for sure. Of course, we should serve our prison time together!” Miguel answered without hesitation.
“Really?”
Miguel straightened his back right away. “Of course. I wouldn't complain if they accidentally left me behind, but I heard countless rumors saying the gang did that on purpose so someone could take the blame. In that case, why should I let them off?” Miguel spoke passionately as if he were the one who was betrayed, and just imagining the situation made him feel angry.
Mulling over what Miguel said, Tony narrowed his eyes. “Right. Anyone in their right mind would do that, let alone Magus, who abhors injustice.”
Miguel realized the same thing right when Tony said that. “You're right...” he agreed. “Something about this feels off,” Tony muttered.
An idea seemed to occur to him as he quickly searched for something on the computer, but he furrowed his brows after a while.
“What's wrong?” Miguel queried.
“There are no records about their crimes and his gang members. We might be able to find something if there were any.”
“Yeah. Miguel took the blame alone back then, so there are no records of the others at all.”
While they were deep in thought, Thalia walked out and noticed their pensive expressions. Leaning toward them, she asked, “What are you guys doing?”
“Contemplating,” said Miguel flatly.
moment later, Thalia ventured, “If I'm not mistaken... the man's name is Doggo?”
As soon as she had said that, Tony and Miguel both wore skeptical expressions on their faces. “Doggo? You're certain?” Miguel asked incredulously.
Who would name himself such? Even dogs have proper names nowadays. Why would he regress and use a dog's name for himself?
At that, Thalia frowned. “Wait a moment. Let me rack my brain for a bit...” With her lovely brows knitted together, she mulled it over solemnly. Some time passed before she abruptly remembered the name. “Oh yes, the man's name is Diego!”
“Diego? Are you absolutely sure?” Tony 's eyes were fixed on her.
“Yeah, it's Diego, all right. I remember I even investigated him back then and once saw a photo of him!” Thalia asserted.
Tony shifted his gaze to the laptop screen. It so happened that it displayed the information Miguel found, a picture of a man holding a gun. Seeing that, he immediately turned it to face Thalia. “Is this the man?”
Thalia leaned forward for a closer look. In the next heartbeat, she slammed her hand on the table. “Yes, it's him!”
“Are you really sure, Thalia?” Tony queried, afraid that she might have gotten things mixed up in her mind.
“I'm a hundred percent sure because this was the photo I saw at that time!” Thalia enunciated.
Hearing that, Tony instantly turned the laptop back to face himself. “Got it!” After he had said that, his fingers flew across the keyboard. In no time, he found some leads on Diego.
“Gotcha!” he crowed.
At once, Miguel crowded over. “What did you find?”
“There's not much on him, only this portrait photo of him that was taken inadvertently... Eh, wait. That's not right. He seems to have been arrested when he committed a crime two years ago. Coincidentally, he's imprisoned right here!” While saying that, Tony swung his gaze to Miguel and Thalia.
Thalia sat across from them and did not crowd over for a look, but her eyes narrowed a fraction when she glimpsed the look in his eyes. “What are you up to now?”
Tony held her gaze. “Thalia, you must have some connections here as well, right?” “Don't tell me you want to go—”
“Yup!” Tony interjected before she could even finish her utterance, his eyes on her glinting with sheer determination.
Thalia inhaled deeply. “It's not difficult to make arrangements for that, but is there a point in doing so?”
“I can't tell for sure, but I know we'll definitely gain something by going there!” Tony maintained.
A slight frown marred Thalia's countenance. Defeated by his penetrating stare, she finally shot to her feet irritably. “Got it! I'll go and make the arrangements right away!”
“Can you make it today?” Tony asked.
Jerking her head back, Thalia glared at him. “Why don't you just ask for an immediate meeting?” “That works, too! I can leave anytime!”
“Argh!”
“I believe that it's undoubtedly a trivial matter, considering your capabilities!” Tony exclaimed. Since he had flattered her such, there was no reason for Thalia not to unleash her capabilities.
Sweeping a gaze over him, she boasted, “Well, you're right. It's indeed a trivial matter!” With that said, she walked away with her phone in hand.
Tony shared a look with Miguel, upon which Miguel wondered, “Is she really that powerful?” “Are you looking down on Darknetz Ace?” Tony retorted.
The instant Miguel heard that, he bobbed his head. “Ah, that's true!” “Perhaps you can consider joining Darknetz?” Tony drawled.
However, Miguel promptly declined, “Forget it. I'm scared Dave would kill me!”
“Were you not scared Alpha Dave would kill you when you joined my team, then?” Tony countered.
“That's different. Speaking of that, I acknowledge you alone. Besides, Dave treats you differently. You're his best friend's son, so he won't have any objections if I join your team. But if I join Darknetz, it'd be another story altogether!” Miguel explained. Although he had aspirations and dreams, he also had his bottom line. At the end of the day, there were some rules he would never break.
Eyeing the man, Tony said nothing further. He shifted his gaze to the laptop. Nonetheless, a ton of conjectures were already playing in his mind then. Just as his thoughts were running wild, Thalia returned.
She walked right up to him and declared, “Let's go.”
Upon hearing that, Tony raised his eyes to her. “You've made the arrangements?” “How could I disappoint you when you've already praised me to the skies?” Thalia riposted.
At the confirmation, Tony swiftly stood up and put the laptop away. Beside him, Miguel stammered, “C-Can I go?”
“Who's going to drive if you don't go?”
When Miguel heard that, he quickly rushed forward in delight to help carry Tony 's bag. “Allow me, Master!”
Tony shot him a look. “You're growing increasingly tactful!” “Of course!”
Despite Tony 's remark, he did not release his hold on the bag. “I'll carry it myself. I'm not in the habit of having someone else handle my laptop.”
Miguel knew that every hacker had their own habits. Moreover, their laptops were their core possession. Hence, it was only natural that Tony was reluctant to allow others to touch his laptop. For that reason, he did not insist.
As they were gearing up to set out, Ben and Donna walked out of the house. “You're all going out, Tony?”
Only when Tony caught sight of them did he remember about them. “Yeah, we're going out to settle something. Would you both like to tag along?”
Glancing over her shoulder, Donna exchanged a look with Ben .