The news of Daniel''s death sent a wave of shock and unease through the Bureau and the highest echelons of the U.S. government.


    Though they had suspected Ss might kill Daniel, they hadn''t anticipated the way it would happen—Daniel taken out with eerie precision, without a trace of Ss''s physical presence.


    The chilling manner of Daniel''s death left them acutely aware of just how elusive and dangerous Ss was bing.


    Shortly after the report of the murder came in, the Bureauunched a secret investigation to determine the identity of the killer. Though deep down, most of them suspected who was responsible.


    Despite their efforts, no substantial evidence had surfaced. The investigation only served to highlight how little control they had over the situation.


    In one of the offices of the Bureau, a tense group of Phenomenals, including Elizabeth, David, Pablo, and several others, gathered around the television as the news looped endlessly, rehashing the mysterious circumstances surrounding Daniel''s demise.


    When the broadcast finally ended, Elizabeth turned off the television and faced the group, her face unreadable as her gaze swept over them.


    "What do you all think?" she asked, her tone neutral yet pointed.


    An ufortable silence settled over the room, each of them reluctant to speak the obvious truth. Visit m,v le,mpyr today


    Elizabeth''s eyes moved from one face to another, and in each one, she could see the same tense expressions—fear, apprehension, and resignation.


    They all knew what was likelying next, but no one wanted to be the first to voice it.


    "It''s because of that bastard Daniel," Pablo finally snapped, mming his fist onto the table.


    "This was all his doing. From the beginning, his n was doomed to fail, and we all knew it. But now we''re the ones left to face the consequences."


    His outburst cut through the silence, and a few of the Phenomenals shifted ufortably.


    Unlike some of the others, Pablo had never believed in Daniel''s grand n to bring down Ss.


    He''d known from the start that going after someone as formidable as Ss was asking for disaster. And now, his fears had materialized in the worst way possible.


    "Daniel didn''t just fail," Pablo continued, his voice low and bitter. "He created a monster out of Ss. You''ve all seen the footage of him racing through the streets like something out of a nightmare. He''s beyond anything we''ve ever known, and now he has every reason toe after us."


    Pablo''s anger simmered beneath the surface, but he knew there was nowhere to direct it.


    Running wasn''t an option—no one can leave the Bureau that easily. In fact, no one can leave after joining.


    Besides, where would he even go? Ss was too powerful, and hiding wouldn''t save him from someone who seemed to have no limitations.


    Elizabeth looked away, her expression grim. She wished she could ease Pablo''s fear, but she felt just as powerless as he did.


    The call she''d received from Ss during the school incident haunted her. His calm warning had held a quiet threat, one she had tried to push aside but could no longer ignore.


    She knew he woulde for them, that he held them just as responsible as Daniel, and if he came… there would be no reasoning, no escape.


    In her heart, Elizabeth was certain of one thing: if Ss arrived at their doorstep seeking retribution, they would be forced to confront him, and the oue had already been decided.


    The Bureau and the Phenomenals would be outmatched. She sighed, her frustration and exhaustion evident as she leaned back in her chair, staring nkly at the wall.


    Why did it have toe to this? Why did someone like Daniel and Ss have to exist? She wondered, feeling a wave of resignation settle over her.


    ***


    Inside the Oval Office at the White House, a simr tension filled the air. The President sat behind his desk, silently flipping through a slim folder of documents, his expression a mixture of irritation and disbelief.


    He slowly raised his head, his eyes locking onto the two men standing before him.


    "Would one of you like to exin what this is?" he asked, his voice barely concealing his frustration as he tapped the sparse document on the desk.


    The Director of the CIA, a tall man in his sixties with silvering hair and a weary look, stepped forward.


    "Mr. President, that''s all the information we currently have on Ss… that''s everything we were able to gather," he replied, his tone cautious.


    The President''s hand mmed down on the desk, the sudden bang reverberating through the room.


    "Do you think I''m blind?" he snapped, his voiceced with anger. "I read it, and I know this is supposed to be information on Ss. What I''m asking is why there''s so little in here!"


    The second man, the Director of National Intelligence, tried to interject, but the President held up a hand, cutting him off.


    "Are you telling me that we can''t gather information on one of our own citizens? Did you even contact Goggle, social mediapanies, anyone who might have something?" His tone was incredulous, his eyes zing with frustration.


    "We did," the CIA Director replied, shifting ufortably. "We reached out to every major data aggregator and tech firm. But they don''t have anything on him—not a digital footprint, no records, nothing."


    "So?" The President''s voice was barely more than a growl.


    The CIA Director hesitated, then spoke quietly. "We''ve got nothing, sir."


    The President sat back in his chair, staring at the two men in front of him, his gaze filled with barely-contained fury. He had expected setbacks, but he hadn''t anticipated hitting a wall this thick.


    For a moment, he simply red at them, and the silence in the room grew thick with tension.


    The truth is that he hasn''t been taking anything the Phenomenals has been telling him about Ss serious but now he understood.


    Finally, he leaned forward, his voice low but cold. "Are you telling me that one young man—one—has managed to slip through every system we have in ce? That there''s no trace of him? No records, no history?"


    The Director of National Intelligence took a cautious step forward. "Sir, I believe there might be more going on here than we initially realized.


    If I may… it''s possible that someone with ess to highly sophisticated technology has been concealing his identity for years. This isn''t the work of an ordinary hacker or a private citizen. Whoever or whatever has protected Ss''s records… it''s beyond our reach, for now."


    The President sat back, his expression hardening as he processed the implications. He could feel the weight of the situation bearing down on him.


    The knowledge that an unknown entity was capable of shielding someone so thoroughly from the full force of the U.S. intelligence apparatus. It was something he hadn''t encountered before, and it unsettled him deeply.


    He took a slow breath, then spoke with a grim finality. "So you''re telling me we''re dealing with someone who has ess to technology that surpasses our own?"


    The CIA Director nodded reluctantly. "Yes, sir. And if we''re right, it means Ss isn''t just an anomaly; he''s potentially aligned with powers and resources we can''t yet understand or track."


    The President''s jaw tightened, and he looked away, his thoughts spiraling. If Ss had ess to such advanced technology, then he wasn''t just a potential threat—he was a ticking time bomb, one that could erupt at any moment and drag them into an international crisis.


    He felt that he might even be rted to a group simr to that group but he can''t confirm anything for now.


    For a few moments, the room was silent as the President''s mind raced. Finally, he looked back at the two men, his voice steady but ice-cold.


    "If that''s the case, then we need to be ready for whatever mighte next. And we need to be smarter than we''ve been so far."The President''s eyes narrowed as he considered the options.


    He knew that approaching Ss directly could be risky, but he couldn''t afford to sit idle and wait for Ss to make his move. At the same time, the idea of provoking him any further seemed dangerously unwise.


    He exhaled sharply, his gaze shifting between the two men. "I want every possible lead explored, every angle considered. If there''s anything we can find—no matter how small—I want it documented, understood, and prepared."


    The Director of the CIA inclined his head. "Understood, sir. We''ll redouble our efforts."


    The President gave a curt nod. "Good. And I expect results. I want to know who we''re dealing with and what we can do to contain him."


    As the two men exited the office, the President leaned back, his mind churning with dark possibilities.