Ch.137Do your best!

#137

In the white van parked near Orbis Inc., which served as a disguise, Dexter and Himena were changing clothes among the three people inside.

“Himena, I don’t mind you looking at my body, but why do you keep swallowing so hard?”

At another time, she might have blushed and denied it, but they were past such pretenses now that they’d seen everything there was to see of each other.

“…Don’t you think your attractiveness is the problem?”

At Himena’s bold words, Dexter made a lecherous expression and said:

“Well, you’re not wrong.”

“Ugh, give me a break.”

Hearing Jesse’s harsh criticism of their sweet talk, the half-naked Dexter flexed his chest muscles and said:

“Even with this?”

When his chest muscles momentarily twitched, Jesse’s eyes sparkled for an instant.

But upon seeing Dexter’s lecherous smile, Jesse immediately put on a serious face and said:

“…If you weren’t so handsome, I think I would have cursed you out for a lifetime.”

“Thanks for the compliment.”

Though Jesse was being snippy, she too was stealing glances at Dexter’s body before changing the subject.

“I thought a van would be stuffy, damp, and smelly, but the air conditioning works great, it smells nice, and it’s really comfortable!”

“How can you compare surveillance vans used by the FBI or police with one used by OSA? Everything is top-of-the-line, and there’s equipment here that even people within OSA can’t easily access without permission. Even an amateur hacker could crack the Pentagon within 10 minutes with this van.”

“…And I’m the one driving this van? I’m just a mechanic who knows how to fix cars….”

When Jesse spoke with uncertainty, Himena waved her hand dismissively and said:

“Come on, even Dexter can’t use more than half the equipment here. And Subtron will control everything remotely, so don’t worry too much. Just do what Subtron tells you to.”

“That’s a relief… But what if we need to escape? Do I just drive the van away?”

“Yes, just run. If you can’t reach me, ask Subtron, and he’ll give you some guidance on how to handle the situation.”

After explaining a few more contingency plans to reassure Jesse, Himena finished changing her clothes.

The two of them, dressed in casual business attire with glasses, and Jesse joined hands, looked at each other, and nodded once.

Then the two of them exited the van and headed toward the Orbis Inc. building.

Perhaps due to the aftermath of the Pink Industrial incident, there seemed to be more security personnel inside the building than usual.

Soon, Dexter approached the reception desk staffed by security personnel and Orbis employees, and presented his OSA all-purpose ID.

“We’re from NetWatch Security.”

The receptionist who took Dexter’s ID politely said:

“I’m sorry, but due to security concerns, we need to go through a verification process. Is that okay?”

“Yes, of course.”

The receptionist held the ID and made a call to NetWatch Security.

At the same time, an alert with a message sounded in the van where Jesse was sitting nervously.

-Orbis Inc. attempting wired communication with NetWatch Security. Connection will be established to your location in 5 seconds.

“Phew… Connect it.”

Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Jesse nodded and answered the phone in a clear voice:

“NetWatch Security Operations Security Team, how can I help you?”

-This is Orbis. Your company’s employees are visiting us, and I was wondering what the purpose of their visit is?

Hearing the receptionist’s gentle voice, Jesse twirled her hair with her fingers and said:

“Ah, actually… we were supposed to send our Operations Security Team Leader because of the Varuna System, but was there no reservation made?”

-Reservation… No, there’s no reservation from NetWatch Security, so I’m not sure what you’re talking about….

When the receptionist spoke with confusion, Jesse replied in a somewhat mocking tone:

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about either, but even without a reservation, there’s an error in the Varuna System that’s causing critical security vulnerabilities.”

-What? A, a security vulnerability?

“The person you’re speaking with probably doesn’t know all this information, but if this security error isn’t fixed, Orbis Inc. might go into lockdown, and all employees might not be able to leave the company until the error is fixed. Would that be acceptable?”

-Uh, um… Just a moment, this is beyond my authority to handle….

Hearing the flustered receptionist’s voice, Jesse smiled brightly and continued in a troubled voice:

“Sigh… Please get the details from our team leader, the large man. The woman is one of our team members. They’re here for a security check, so I’d appreciate it if you could let them in quickly.”

-Yes, yes….

After the receptionist hung up, Jesse giggled.

“Wow, I’m so good at acting! I should have become an actress!”

While Jesse was celebrating in the van, the receptionist looked nervously at Himena and Dexter and said:

“I-I’m sorry. Your identity has been confirmed, and you can take these access passes.”

“Hmm, it seems our employee was a bit harsh. The error check won’t take long, so there’s no need to worry too much.”

“Yes, yes….”

Seeing the receptionist’s nervous demeanor, Dexter spoke in a reassuring voice:

“Also, I’d appreciate it if you could call the security manager or someone of equivalent authority.”

As the receptionist made a call somewhere, Dexter and Himena looked around.

Meanwhile, Dexter whispered to Himena:

“Are we connected to the outside?”

“No. As soon as we entered the building, the connection with Jesse was mysteriously cut off. We might lose contact with each other when we change floors too.”

“Hmm.”

As Himena had predicted, they couldn’t communicate with the outside through their wireless earpieces.

To ensure the success of the infiltration mission, they needed to install a signal amplifier.

Soon, a middle-aged man in a neat suit and a disheveled younger man approached the two.

The middle-aged man shook hands with Dexter and said:

“I hear you’re from NetWatch Security? I’m James Soyer, the security manager.”

“I’m John Linner, Operations Security Team Leader at NetWatch Security. This is Clara Pierce, one of our team members.”

“Ah, yes. I heard you came because of a security issue, but we haven’t had any issues on our end….”

As Soyer spoke with a light smile, Dexter frowned and said:

“Are you really the security manager?”

“Excuse me?”

“Such a casual response to a major incident, I can tell right away. You there, you seem to be the one who actually does the work.”

“What? Are you talking to me?”

When Dexter pointed to the young man next to Soyer, the dazed young man was startled.

“Yes, what’s your name?”

“Jack Kramer….”

Dexter glanced at Himena, then spoke to Kramer:

“Listen, Kramer. There’s definitely a security issue related to the Varuna System. Isn’t that right?”

“Well, it’s still uncertain, but other companies using the Varuna System have reported that there might be a bug….”

As soon as those words left Kramer’s mouth, Dexter patted Kramer’s shoulder heavily with his large hand.

“Oof.”

While Kramer was startled by the impact on his shoulder, Dexter cut in:

“See this! The actual worker knows differently! As expected, he knows something! Clara, go with this guy and check the server room first.”

At Dexter’s command, Himena stuck close to Kramer and said:

“Yes, understood. Mr. Kramer? Could you explain where the server room is?”

“No, wait….”

“Wait? What are you waiting for! Mr. Soyer, let’s have a chat! As a security manager, how can you know nothing about recent issues?”

“Well, I originally worked in a different team….”

“Oh my, this won’t do. Call all the team leaders from server maintenance and Varuna System maintenance. Right now.”

“Right now?”

“You might lose your job over this. In times like these, if you lose your job, you and your subordinates might have to worry about medical insurance while sucking your thumbs. Are you okay with that?”

“What? Is it that serious?”

Dexter stared intently at Soyer and continued with frustration:

“Do you want your boss to become Jobs or Wozniak? From what I see, if this problem is neglected, they’ll become Jobs.”

“That’s….”

While Dexter was half-threatening the security manager Soyer and guiding the relevant managers to a conference room, Himena was taking Kramer to the server room.

“Orbis Inc. uniquely has two server rooms, right?”

“Y-yes. One has the database with the company’s data, and the other is the Varuna System server room with the supercomputer used to run the Varuna System.”

Himena pushed up her non-prescription glasses and smiled slightly:

“Mr. Kramer, you know we need to check the Varuna System first, right?”

“But, only authorized personnel are allowed in the Varuna System server room….”

“What are you saying, Mr. Kramer? Who has better permission than us? We even got approval from Security Manager Soyer.”

“But you need an access pass. Even I don’t have an access pass for the Varuna System server room….”

“Hmm, is that so?”

To exploit the bug in the Varuna System, they needed to either directly enter the server room running the Varuna System for a quick solution or find a physical workaround, which would take longer.

Himena approached Kramer and fiddled with his clothes.

It would be foolish not to use an easy and simple method when one was available.

“Mr. Kramer, I think you could get an access pass for me, couldn’t you?”

“That’s, that’s difficult for me to obtain….”

“If you could get that for me, I’d think you’re so manly and cool….”

When Himena’s hand touched Kramer’s chest and collar, he flinched.

“You can do that for me, can’t you?”

As Himena smiled, Kramer unconsciously nodded.

“If you do well…?”

“Great, I’ll wait in front of the server room for you, Mr. Kramer. I’ll continue.”

“Continue?”

“To wait right here.”

When Himena smiled lightly, Kramer nodded frantically and disappeared somewhere.

“I sent the worker away. I’ll look for a place to install the signal amplifier.”

-That Kramer guy. He totally fell for a pretty woman’s words.

“…It’s because of my acting skills.”

-Sure, that’s better for Kramer’s reputation.

While Himena waited for the access pass Kramer would bring, Dexter was waiting in the conference room Soyer had guided him to.

‘I need to gather all the managers involved with the Varuna System here and keep them distracted.’

That way, even if an alarm goes off in the Varuna System while Himena is extracting data, professional countermeasures would be delayed.

By now, the conference room was filled with people who could either solve the security issue or take responsibility for it.

Soyer approached Dexter, sweating profusely, and asked:

“I’ve gathered everyone, but what now…?”

“I’ll handle everything.”

Dexter adjusted his tie and stood at the podium.

Facing dozens of people staring at him intently, Dexter cleared his throat and confidently said:

“Are you aware of the major security issue with the Varuna System?”

At Dexter’s words, the room briefly became noisy before quieting down.

“You didn’t know? Really? Not a single one of you knew about this?”

While there was indeed a security issue with the Varuna System, it was only an issue from the perspective of OSA’s aliens who could exploit errors through qubit CPUs to send interference signals to security systems.

From the perspective of humans who hadn’t even properly invented qubit CPUs yet, it wasn’t even considered an error.

Naturally, the IT department staff of Orbis Inc. looked around with expressions suggesting they were hearing this for the first time, which made Dexter smirk as he walked around the conference room and said:

“I heard that Pink Industrial, the factory manufacturing Orbis’s Polytech, was already breached once. Do you people really care? Or are you just a bunch of idiots trying to collect easy money?”

“Hey, Mr. Linner. That’s a bit harsh.”

When Soyer tried to intervene, Dexter put his hands behind his back and said:

“Sure, you can ignore it. Security issue? Why does that matter? A game company just needs to sell games well, and a console company just needs to sell consoles well. Who cares what investors think as long as those two things are done well, right?”

Faced with this obvious sarcasm, the IT department managers looked uncomfortable.

“What if hackers leak all the information about upcoming games and consoles? What if the source code that forms the basis of the games is made public, making it easy to illegally copy the Watcher series?”

Dexter pretended to be angry as he looked around and said:

“Investors will cut off funding! Users who enjoyed Orbis’s games won’t pay for them! And who would buy a $2,000 console from a company whose games are being released for free anyway?”

Returning to the podium, Dexter slammed both hands down and said:

-BANG!

The atmosphere, which was about to become noisy, immediately became subdued.

Dexter had taken control of everyone in the conference room.

“But there is a solution.”

Dexter stretched both hands forward and said:

“You need to show how willing you are to resolve this situation.”

“…You’re saying we can solve a security issue by showing our willingness?”

A stern-looking female executive raised her hand and asked.

Dexter looked at the female executive who had challenged him and said:

“The issue is passion, ma’am. This is when your passion for resolving security issues should shine.”

Dexter winked at the female executive and continued:

“Although I’m an external security consultant, the top management of Orbis Inc. has granted me appropriate authority.”

Dexter pointed his index finger at the ceiling.

“Those at the top have said they will provide a 1000% performance bonus, or even more, to the person or department that resolves this issue.”

With Dexter’s smile, the eyes of those around him began to gleam with gold.

“Is there anyone who can tell me a definitive way to resolve this issue?”

With that, everyone in the conference room eagerly raised their hands.

“Here, our department can do it!”

“You guys can barely fix printers! Of course, it should be our network team!”

“We have the Varuna System maintenance team, who are the experts!”

Seeing the people filled with enthusiasm who looked like they might rush at him, Dexter smiled lightly.

‘I hope those two can resolve this well.’