Chapter 3

As Chester froze, I pushed him out of my way and sat before my computer.

With two minutes of reverse tracing, I quickly pinpointed the location of the stolen account.

Their password was laughably easy to crack. In under five minutes, I recovered the 200 billion dollars lost.

My colleagues heaved a sigh of relief, and even Gary expressed his gratitude.

Nancy's expression remained dark. Once Gary left, she handed me a termination letter.

"You wanted to resign, didn't you? I've decided to fire you. You may leave now."

She threw the termination letter at me, her tone icy. "The work you handle involves confidential information about the bank. According to the contract, you're barred from working in the same industry for five years. If you need, I can help you get a job as a security guard."

I curled my lips into a mocking smile. "You're kicking me out right after recovering the money? Nancy, have you forgotten that I'm your fiancé?"

Nancy hooked her arm through Chester's and gave me a cool glance. "I can call off the engagement, but Chester can't miss his chance to go permanent. I'll tell Mr. Smith to inform the bank that Chester's tracking program saved the day, and you had nothing to do with it."

With Nancy backing him up, Chester shoved his hands in his pockets, no longer looking half as timid as before.

"Why so cocky? Everything you did just set the stage for me. It's hard to find jobs now. You'd better pack up and leave soon, or you won't even land a job as a waiter!"

One colleague couldn't stand it anymore and spoke up for me, "Ms. Cost, this isn't right. Spencer just saved our asses earlier. Besides, it was Chester's fault. How could you pin the blame on Spencer?"

Nancy shot them a cold, intimidating glance and said sharply, "Anyone defending him can come get your termination letters from me. The firewall Spencer was responsible for was breached, so he should take full responsibility. I'm just thinking ahead for all of you."

Her words sounded noble, but everyone could see it was just selfishness in disguise, passed off as looking out for the team.

I tapped the table calmly and replied unhurriedly, "The tracking system is linked to my computer. If the bank checks, they will know that my computer recovered the money. Every workstation leaves its own trail. Do you really think changing your story will fool anyone?

Chester glared at my computer angrily, then tugged at Nancy's sleeve and told her, "Nancy, why don't we smash his computer? Then, we'll just say my program recovered the money. No one will ever trace it back to him."

Conflict flashed across Nancy's gaze.

There was far too much confidential code on that computer. Destroying it could cripple the bank’s entire core system.

Anyone could see that, let alone Nancy, who had worked here for almost ten years.

Yet Chester squeezed out a couple of tears, lamenting that his chance of going permanent was gone.

Nancy hardened her resolve. Lifting her chin, she demanded, "If anything goes wrong, we'll just say your computer broke. You'll still hold full responsibility. So what's your choice? Will you do it yourself, or do you need me to break it for you?"

I slammed my hand on the desk and stepped in front of the computer, my voice ice‑cold. "You'd better think carefully about the consequences."

Nancy's face hardened. She grabbed a chair and smashed it straight into the desk.

The custom connectors, the network blockers—every piece of specialized equipment was reduced to wreckage.

The mess on the ground was everything I'd spent years building with my own hands.

She stepped on the router and ordered coldly, "Your equipment's wrecked, and you're useless to the bank now. Pack up your stuff and leave now, won't you?"

I stood rooted to the spot, a slight smile playing on my lips. "Are you sure you want me to leave?"

Right after I finished talking, the security system suddenly erupted in a rapid series of beeps. The system showed that the 200 billion dollars had just been stolen again.

Nancy's eyes went wide. "W-What is going on?"

Gary suddenly hurried back, looking as though he might burst into tears.

"I just told Mr. Watch that the money was recovered. He's arriving in two minutes. Hurry, get the money back!"

Hearing Felix's name, everyone panicked and turned to look at me.

"Spencer, hurry and recover the money! You know how Mr. Watch is. He'll definitely get us all into trouble!"

I kept my hands in my pockets, surveying the wrecked equipment with a carefree smile. "Sorry. The equipment's destroyed. I can't recover the money."