Digital Hackers' Memories

Especially when it comes to his younger sister, Erika Mishima, Ryuji spares no effort.

Therefore, even if it meant stealing Goro Matayoshi's personal account or infiltrating the computer crime investigation department's server, Ryuji would not hesitate at all.

Makiko Date is the "eccentric policewoman" that Ryuji unexpectedly meets during this process.

Chapter Thirty-Three: Hackers of the Old Era

In the early days of EDEN technology, Japan once had a hacker group that was widely recognized as the best—JUDE (Book of Judas).

There are many stories about this legendary hacker group, so many that even today, hackers on the EDEN network still tell their tales.

The most famous of these is undoubtedly JUDE's attempt to attack and crack EDEN's main server, Valhalla.

In an era when "capturing Digimon for intrusion" was not yet mainstream, hacking into EDEN's highest-level servers with pure code and technology was both a challenge and a desperate act.

Even if hackers possess the most advanced technology, they can only sigh in despair when faced with hardware that is more than a generation ahead.

Therefore, after JUDE's attack on the Valhalla server failed, the leader of JUDE, OTAKU HACKERS, chose to disband this legendary hacker group.

Among these disbanded members were Ryuji and Chitose during their youth.

Especially Ryuji, as the second-in-command of JUDE, besides being rebellious, he also possesses superb hacking skills that are no less than those of OTAKU HACKERS.

In this sense, the "Butterfly" organization, reorganized by Ryuji and Chitose, has more or less inherited some of the style of JUDE (Book of Jude)—that is, having extraordinary confidence in their own technology.

Compared to the new-era hackers who are accustomed to using the power of Digimon, "Butterfly," who came from the old era, relies more on her own hacking skills.

This applies not only to Erika, who inherited the mantle of Ryuji and Chitose, but also to Keisuke, who joined later.

Unless they encounter a truly overwhelming gap, the members of "Butterfly" usually don't use the Digimon on their own, because their abilities are just too overpowered.

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After the era of JUDE (Book of Jude) ended, the second to reign supreme in the Japanese hacker world was the strongest hacker—ZAXON, led by YUGO.

As a new-era hacker group emphasizing "Digimon power," YUGO led ZAXON to become the undisputed king of the Japanese hacker world after overcoming the initial pioneering phase.

Under these circumstances, Ryuji, who did not want any further turmoil in the EDEN online world, took the initiative to contact YUGO, hoping to help the EDEN online world return to peace as soon as possible.

This is the romance of hackers in the old era, and also the "justice" that Ryuji and Chitose firmly believe in.

Logically, the "butterfly," reconstructed from the remnants of the Book of Jude, became known to hackers as the "cleaner," "convenience store," "ZAXON's lackey," and "remnant of the old era."

It was thanks to the funding from the massive hacker organization ZAXON that Ryuji was able to provide sufficient funds for his sister's continued treatment after his parents' car accident.

As long as there's money to be made and as long as it helps Erika's recovery, Ryuji is even willing to endure the "dirty things" he's always loathed.

This is the "cleaner" of the butterfly—Ryuji Mishima, a top hacker who pursues freedom and romance, but is forced to chase profits due to various practical reasons.

"If every mission could be this 'easy' as this one."

Thinking back to his previous act of secretly infiltrating the "Computer Crime Investigation Division's" server and quietly deleting some of the data, Ryuji couldn't help but sigh.

"easy?"

Just then, a blank-faced, indifferent-looking boy appeared behind Ryuji without warning through a special redirection channel.

"I think you might have misunderstood something. This mission is by no means easy."

A-Zhe, a former 9-dan Go player and current three-time Yu-Gi-Oh! champion, known as the "Invincible Stone Buddha," said this calmly.

"Capturing a hacker may indeed seem like a difficult task to outsiders..."

"But for professionals like us, it is indeed a very easy thing."

Aside from YUGO and OTAKU HACKERS, Ryuji has never lost to anyone in terms of hacking skills.

Of course, now we might also add Erika.

Despite needing to constantly back up her memory data and upload it to the appropriate server to reduce the burden on the system in order to continue living due to her illness.

However, it is precisely because her brain is constantly connected to large servers that Erica has acquired technical and learning abilities that surpass those of ordinary hackers.

Apart from these three people, Ryuji has never encountered a real opponent in the hacking world.

Even those new-generation hackers aided by Digimon, Ryuji is confident he can defeat them with his skills alone.

“She is not just an ordinary hacker.”

The naturally aloof Ah Zhe didn't say much, just coldly uttered this sentence, and then turned and disappeared into the crowd.

Since he was going to put on an act, he had to go all the way. Zhe didn't want "her" to see him on the field—even though the competition was very important to him.

But what does it matter if we give up the victory of a game, as long as we can reconnect with "her"?

"What an unlikable employer."

Ryuji frowned again, not liking A-Zhe's attitude, even though A-Zhe was his sugar daddy.

"But who exactly is this hacker who can get the 'Stone Buddha' to pay such attention?"

Although Ryuji doesn't pay much attention to things outside of EDEN, he does know a little about A-Tetsu, the Go master known as the "Invincible Stone Buddha" and a 9-dan player.

It is said that he was a genius boy with an IQ of 160, who won the world Go championship at the age of fourteen.

After that, he participated in various international Go tournaments for many years and rarely lost.

With a win rate of over 90%, coupled with his aloof and indifferent personality, he gradually earned the nickname "Invincible Stone Buddha".

However, just three years ago, this young Go master suddenly announced his retirement from the Go world and then joined the then-not-so-popular "Yu-Gi-Oh!" tournament, where he achieved the terrifying feat of winning three consecutive championships.

It's important to understand that while the Yu-Gi-Oh! tournament does require strategy, it's completely different from Go, which A-Zhe was previously good at.

If Go is the most complex and unpredictable game in human history, it is all about strategy and planning.

So the "Yu-Gi-Oh!" tournament is simply a competitive game.

Aside from luck, the biggest factor in winning or losing comes from the clashes and tests between people.

From the initial card combinations to the calculations of human psychology during the duel...

It can be said that the biggest highlight of the "Yu-Gi-Oh!" tournament is who can stage a comeback under immense pressure.

Compared to Go, which is inherently complex and difficult, the Yu-Gi-Oh! tournament is more often just a low-barrier, highly stimulating form of entertainment.

In terms of both professionalism and the time of their establishment, the two are completely incomparable.

Therefore, when the "Invincible Stone Buddha" chose to retire and participate in the "Yu-Gi-Oh!" tournament organized by Shindai, it wasn't just industry insiders who were shocked.

Will that hacker really show up on the field?

His eyes involuntarily glanced at the players who were engaged in fierce battle. Ryuji really couldn't figure out which hacker had the audacity to invade this place right under the nose of the company.

And why is Ah Zhe so certain that the other party will appear today?

Or more precisely, why would that genius teenager hire him?

Logically, after determining the time and location of the hacker intrusion, inviting cybersecurity experts to defend against it would be the most correct choice, right?

"Unless, his goal is not to prevent hacking."

Recalling A-Zhe's emphasis on "catching the hacker" when he commissioned the job, Ryuji felt that he might have guessed some of the truth.

"If that's the case, then I don't need to hold myself back."

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PS: Regarding the weapon of SwordEmperormon, it has been changed from the previous "Spear Fork Fortress" to "Impact Cone".

Because of the initial translation issues, although I thought the name was a bit cringey, I never imagined it was actually a random translation.

This time it's considered a correction!

Chapter Thirty-Four: Guardians of the Digital Space

"Is this the charm of the 'Yu-Gi-Oh! Tournament'?"

After spending several hours in this special digital space, Chen Ze still hadn't figured out the specific gameplay, but he had a general idea of ​​how fun it was.

A gigantic monster roars menacingly, and cards with different effects turn the tide of battle...

In today's world where virtual reality has become a reality, those "battle scenes" that were originally only meant to be imagined seem so lifelike, as if we were personally experiencing battles between monsters.

In particular, the players' composure under the attack of the monster phantoms perfectly embodies the "heroic image" in mythology.

"No wonder this game has so many fans."

Watching in amazement as a flying dragon descended from the sky only to be pierced by a ground snake that suddenly emerged from the earth, Chen Ze suddenly became very interested in this game that combined trendiness with chuunibyou (adolescent delusions of grandeur).

Just as every boy has dreamed of piloting a Gundam, commanding powerful monsters in battle is also an enduring dream in the hearts of boys.

"It seems like we've already reached the finals."

Unlike Chen Ze, Yaohu Beast X didn't find the game particularly interesting; she was simply curiously observing the constantly changing and converging arenas around her.

Thanks to the financial strength of the Kamishiro Corporation, the competition, which would normally take several days to complete, finished all the preliminary rounds in less than one night.

All players participating in the duel are simultaneously assigned to different arenas. Whenever someone wins, another arena will move westward to merge into a larger arena.

This greatly simplifies the competition process, allowing the sixteen strongest participants to be determined in the shortest possible time.

In fact, such frequent battles not only test the contestants' wisdom and luck, but also their physical strength and perseverance.

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"They haven't even started playing yet?"

On the edge of an unknown arena, a tall woman looked around at the ring, a hint of anxiety creeping onto her face.

Where did he go?

The tall woman muttered to herself, having already explored the entire digital space, but still hadn't found the person she was looking for.

"That brat, is he trying to drive me crazy?"

Without reflecting on her own intentions at all, she vented her anger on the person who had not yet appeared.

Knowing full well that today is the day of the "Yu-Gi-Oh!" tournament preliminaries, the tall woman deliberately did not participate in the competition, which she did not consider a coincidence.

In fact, based on the tall woman's understanding of that person, although he was usually a bit dull and slow-witted, when it came to winning or losing in competitions, he often had a winning mentality that most people couldn't understand.

"The 'Stone Buddha' must be looking for you, right?"

Just as the tall woman was about to use force to invade the entire digital space and interrupt the competition, Ryuji's calm voice came from behind her.

"To be able to bypass Kamishiro Corporation's security system, you must not be human, right?"

Ryuji stared at the tall woman in front of him, his expression more serious than ever before.

Ryuji can hack into this game space.

Even cracking Kamishiro Corporation's firewall system is something Ryuji could barely manage.

However, all of this is based on the premise that Ryuji must use ruthless hacking methods, at the cost of alarming cybersecurity experts, in order to successfully break in.

This has nothing to do with technology anymore; it's simply that this digital space uses a rare "whitelist" mechanism.

Unless it's a hacker who accidentally discovers a vulnerability, it's impossible for an ordinary person to break in here, let alone leave no trace.

"You've mistaken me for someone else. I don't know what you're talking about."

With her eyes slightly narrowed, the tall woman refuted Ryuji's statement in a disdainful tone.

"It's no use trying to argue. I just searched the server for this space, and there's no information about you on it."

Generally speaking, even if a hacker steals someone else's information and uses that information to access this digital space, the server will still record the relevant data.

But this tall woman was different; Ryuji couldn't find any data about her on the server, not even a "fake" one.

"So you're definitely not human."

Despite not being on the "whitelist" of invitees, they were able to gain access using methods far beyond what hackers could imagine...

Ryuji was convinced of his judgment; the guy in front of him could not possibly be a normal human being.

Anyway, this wasn't the first time Ryuji had encountered such a being. Back when Tetsu refused to reveal any relevant information, he already had a general idea.

"Searching the server? You've alerted the security experts here?!"

Realizing immediately what Ryuji's actions meant, the tall woman suddenly widened her eyes and stared at him with an incredulous look.

Even I can't hack into a server without alerting the firewall, so this man certainly doesn't have that ability either.

In other words, the other party forcibly cracked the server's firewall and then scanned and read the data right under the noses of cybersecurity experts.

Most importantly, as one of the digital spaces created by Kamishiro Corporation, this place contains more than just a simple "firewall".

"Intruders, you have been discovered."