Hearing that name, Linden was quite surprised. It didn't sound like a criminal gang; rather... it sounded like a self-important, arrogant academic organization.

"What kind of organization is it? What do they do?"

"I don't know." Fat Cat shook his head.

"Are there many people in their organization? Are the members... really all high-IQ geniuses?"

"I don't know." Fat Cat shook his head like a rattle-drum. "I really don't know anything, can't find anything!" His expression was very sad. "If it weren't for a chance opportunity that allowed me to grasp a clue, it's as if this organization doesn't exist in the world at all! I find it really hard to imagine how they've managed to remain so hidden, leaving no trace in history!"

"I've investigated for so many years! But now, I don't know where they are, who they are, or what they plan to do... The only rumor I could find related to them is—"

Fat Cat turned, staring at Linden with a serious expression. "The rumor says that only the wealthiest magnates, the most extreme geniuses, and the most powerful bigwigs... can receive an invitation to this club."

...

"I see." Linden nodded, now fully understanding. "So that's why you're robbing the bank, right? You want to get a lot of money, but your ultimate goal... is still to receive an invitation to The Dawn Code."

"With that invitation, you'll be able to find the club's headquarters, and then go in with a machine gun to avenge your daughter."

"But with all due respect, Fat Cat, if the threshold for this Genius Club is really as high as you say, then I don't think just robbing the money from the bank... will be enough."

Fat Cat sighed. "But I... I have no other way. I can only gamble."

"Actually, that rumor isn't even guaranteed to be true; it's just hearsay, vague and unsubstantiated. But what else can I do?"

"I know that robbing a bank won't be enough, but with this seed money, maybe I can do something bigger. At least it's more hope for revenge than I have now, right?"

With that, he glanced at his watch.

00:07

He frowned. "Brother, it's already this late. Are you sure we still have time?"

"It's not that I don't believe you, but I still want to go into the vault and see if there really is no money."

Linden pulled the gun from his pocket, ejected the magazine, and checked the bullet count.

Click!

He pushed the magazine back in. "Don't worry, Fat Cat, I promised you I'd make up for the lost time."

"Can you run? Get out of the car with me!"

The two jumped out of the car. Linden strode forward, with Fat Cat hurrying behind him.

Click-clack!

Linden chambered a round! He raised his hand, aimed at the minion at the door—Bang!!

"Aaaah!" Fat Cat screamed!

"Dirty hands, can't keep him."

Fat Cat was still stunned in place... but Linden had already briskly walked into the bank!

"Wait... wait a minute, brother! Why did you kill my minion?!"

Bang!!

Another headshot! The electrical box was covered in blood!

"Aaaaaaaaaaah!!" Fat Cat screamed, clutching his head!

Linden looked back at the fallen body, letting out a humph. "Someone who flirts with my woman deserves death even more."

"Oh my god! How do you know everything?! Where do you hear all this?!" Fat Cat was on the verge of a breakdown!

However, Linden didn't stop, already disappearing at the end of the hallway.

"No, big brother! Slow down!!" Fat Cat ran forward, his face pale. "I suddenly don't feel like we're in a rush anymore! Can you slow down?! This makes me feel very insecure!"

Bang!!

When Fat Cat ran out of the hallway...

He stared wide-eyed at another black-clad minion lying in the underground passage!

"Brother, brother, brother, brother, brother, brother!!!" Fat Cat slid to his knees, hugging Linden's arm. "Don't kill anymore, big brother! You've killed all my men! No need for you to clear out the house!"

Linden pulled Fat Cat up and pointed his chin forward. "The vault is just ahead; we'll be there soon."

Fat Cat wiped the sweat from his forehead... following Linden, still feeling a bit shaken.

"Brother, to be honest, your marksmanship is really good, like a sharpshooter!"

"I just watched your three shots; you didn't even aim, just raised your hand and fired! Yet you still got headshots every time... How many years have you been using guns?"

"About ten years," Linden said flatly. "I used to play a lot, basically had gunfights with the police every night."

???

Fat Cat's face was dumbfounded. "Gunfights with the police?!"

"Sometimes I'd even duel with snipers, but I could never beat them. Sniper rifles are much harder to handle than handguns."

"Duels?!" Fat Cat was utterly flustered!

"Hahahaha," he laughed awkwardly. "You're talking about a game, right? A shooting game, right? Right?"

...

They soon reached the vault. Linden reached behind Fat Cat's waist, pulled out C4, and stuck it to the combination lock door.

"Run!"

"Shift—"

Boom!!!

Boom!!!

As the dust cleared, Linden pulled Fat Cat to the blown-open hole, checking his watch.

00:09

"Not bad, right, Fat Cat? I think this was the optimal route."

"You did great! Just don't do it again!"

With that, Fat Cat darted into the vault. He looked left and right... left and right...

"Damn!" he cursed. "That master hacker dared to lie to me! There really isn't a single penny! What do we do now?"

Linden turned around, pointing to the passage they came from. "Let's go to the underground passage first and move your minion's body here. His build is very similar to yours."

Then, under Linden's direction, the two carried the fat minion's body into the vault. They put Fat Cat's clothes on him and also put Fat Cat's Lynx mask on the corpse.

"That's it." Linden clapped his hands, satisfied. The disguise was flawless.

"You're so clever, brother!" Fat Cat had now removed his mask; a round red mark in the middle of his face, like a monkey's butt, was from where the Lynx mask had squeezed him.

"Brother, what's my task next?"

Linden bent down, retrieved the handgun from the dead body on the ground, and threw it to Fat Cat. "Hold onto the gun, hide behind that safe over there, and wait for my signal before coming out."

...

Everything was ready, just waiting for the prey to take the bait. Linden paced beside the fake Fat Cat's body, occasionally checking his watch. In the previous two dreams, CC had appeared around 00:20.

Linden waited until 00:21. He turned around and shouted into the darkness beyond the wall hole. "Come out! I know you're there!"

...

...

A dozen seconds later.

A slender figure slowly emerged from the darkness. She wore an Ultraman mask and tilted her head, looking at Linden. "Who are you?"