The ValeTech Global campus wasn't what Lior expected.
It wasn't cold or sterile. It was… alive.
The building, made of sleek white composites and glass-like polymer, curved like the folds of a brain. Inside, smooth lights flowed like neural waves across the ceiling. Everything hummed—not with noise, but energy. Like the building itself was thinking.
Lior tightened his grip on the silver access card and stepped past the biometric scanners.
The moment his ID was scanned, a message pinged in his vision:
> [UNRECOGNIZED SYSTEM DETECTED]
[WARNING: Multiple AI scans in progress. Cloaking Enabled.]
[Stealth Module Lv.1 Activated.]
He paused mid-step. "...You can cloak me?"
> [Yes. Until further upgrades, avoid direct system-to-system contact with corporate AIs.]
That meant one thing: ValeTech had systems, too.
---
A voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Mr. Vale is waiting."
A woman in a pristine black suit gestured down the hall. Her name tag read: Dr. Lena Cero – Lead Neurotechnologist.
Lior followed, heart pounding, eyes darting from screen to screen—real-time EEGs, deep brain stimulation models, virtual neurotransmitter mapping. His fingers itched with curiosity.
Finally, they reached a large matte-black door.
Inside, the air changed.
This was Renji Vale's private lab.
It was minimalistic and beautiful—an obsidian desk, a wall of holograms flickering with neural data, and a massive aquarium with bioluminescent jellyfish floating behind Renji, casting an otherworldly glow on his face.
Renji stood at the glass, hands in his pockets, the collar of his custom suit sharp as blade edges.
"I wasn't sure you'd come," he said without turning.
"I wasn't sure either," Lior replied honestly.
Renji finally turned to face him—and once again, Lior felt that odd, quiet pressure, like standing too close to something gravitational.
Renji studied him. "You're more beautiful in person."
Lior blinked. "Excuse me?"
"I reviewed the surveillance footage from yesterday," Renji said, unfazed. "That's when I noticed… your system isn't manmade."
Lior's pulse quickened.
> [ALERT: DO NOT CONFIRM SYSTEM ORIGIN. CLASSIFIED.]
"I don't know what it is," Lior said carefully. "It just… showed up."
Renji walked closer. Not enough to intimidate—but enough to be undeniable.
"I want to help you unlock it."
Lior looked up, eyes narrowing slightly. "Why?"
Renji met his gaze. "Because I see pieces of myself in you. The obsession. The hunger. The isolation. And because I think if we work together… we can change the brain's future."
He turned to a display and pulled up a neural scan. Lior recognized it instantly—it was a rare case of primary progressive aphasia, a degenerative brain condition.
"I've been working on ways to map neural decay in real-time," Renji said. "This patient? He was a concert pianist. Lost music before he lost speech."
Lior's eyes welled slightly. "That's cruel."
"It is." Renji looked at him again. "You want to fix that, don't you?"
Lior nodded.
"Then I'll make you a deal," Renji said. "Use my lab. Access everything. But in return—I want data from your system."
Lior hesitated.
Then he asked, "Will you try to control it?"
Renji didn't smile. But his voice was soft.
"No. I only want to witness what someone like you becomes when no one holds the leash."
---
Later that night, back at home, Lior sat at his desk.
His heart was still racing.
He'd just been handed the keys to the most powerful neuroscience lab in the world—and the most dangerous man he'd ever met wanted to stand beside him.
> [New Quest: Analyze Neurological Decay in Degenerative Conditions]
[Optional: Share Encrypted System Data with ValeTech AI]
[Warning: Sharing will generate Renji Affection +10 and Surveillance +5]
Lior stared at the screen.
And smiled.
He accepted the quest.
But did not share the data.
Not yet.
He would play Renji's game.
He would learn from him.
And one day, he would outgrow even his shadow.
Because Lior Ahn wasn't just going to become the best neurologist.
He was going to rewrite the human brain.