If that happened, the old fox leading Sigma Network would surely find an opening. “Besides, I don''t want Shanley to know what I went through back then," she added. Lue fell silent. She was right. Juniper had endured immense hardship to build Subterra Vanguard from the ground up. Just when things were finally looking up, Sigma Network had emerged as a formidable rival. It was as if their organizations shared a single brain, constantly converging on the same markets, resources, and research. But there was only room for one king on the mountain, and for one to thrive, the other had to suffer.


    To protect their interests, Sigma Network struck first. They came in hard, bombing a Subterra Vanguard cargo ship. Juniper had been asleep on board and barely escaped the inferno. That incident ignited an all-out war.


    For years, neither side had rested. It was a constant cycle of retaliation—a gunshot for a gunshot, a bomb for a bomb. Juniper, still just a teenager, had suffered immensely in her fight against them. The worst was when a bullet went straight through her head, leaving her inches from death. That was why Subterra Vanguard considered Sigma Network their public enemy number one.


    "Sigma Network has probably heard that Binary Oracle is participating in the World Hacker Competition," Lue said, her voiceced with hatred at the mention of Juniper''s alias. "They''ll be ready for us. Juniper, this is going to be a tough fight. You need to be prepared."


    “Prepared?” A humorless smile touched Juniper''s lips, her eyes glowing with a dark light. "I''m not the one who needs to be prepared. They are."


    The inds of Moralia Country were open to anyone, and as it happened, one of Subterra Vanguard''s ships was anchored nearby. The hardware on that ship was enough to blow their enemies to kingdome and back a hundred times.


    "That''s our Specter," Lue chuckled. After a bit more small talk, she hung up.


    Meanwhile, in the adjoining study, Shanley was finalizing his own ns with his people from Sigma Network.


    "Chief, since Binary Oracle has


    registered for thepetition,


    Specter is guaranteed to show," Flint reported, brimming with confidence.


    "Our setup this time is perfect.


    have the manpower and the...


    We


    resources. There''s no way Specter is leaving that ind alive."Content


    "Keep the noise down," Shanley ordered, rubbing his temples. “Juniper is in Moralia Country. I don''t want her to worry."


    "Understood, boss," Flint replied respectfully. "We''ll be extremely careful. Ms. Payne won''t suspect a thing."


    After ending the call, Shanley returned to the bedroom and found Juniper awake, eating fruit while ying a game on her phone.


    "When did you wake up?" Shanley


    her and fed her a piece of


    sator''spetition is


    fruit.


    tomorrow. Is there anything you need my help with."


    "Just now,” Juniper saidzily. “After Tucker wins, we''ll need the Schwartz Group''s


    media machine to create some buzz."


    "So certain he''s going to win?" Shanley chuckled, gently wiping her mouth.


    "Of course," Juniper looked up at him, her tone firm and unwavering. "This championship should have been his a long time ago."


    This time,


    she was going to reim


    every bit of the honor that was stolen from him. She would make sure the entire global techmunity knew the name Tucker. And she would show the so-called tech superpowers who looked down on their country just how rapidly their industry was advancing.