.The East City harbor—
finally started moving again.
Cranes rotated.
Machines roared.
Massive lights illuminated the ships resting on the dark sea.
Everything looked normal.
Too normal.
As if—
nothing had almost collapsed just hours ago.
But for them—
nothing felt light anymore.
The Nutritional Guardians sat near the harbor fence.
No one was truly relaxed.
Only—
silence that lasted too long.
Bimo stretched his body.
"…okay…"
He let out a long breath.
"…that was the weirdest machine we've ever fought."
Dika laughed quietly.
"A machine that eats lunch energy."
No one really laughed.
Rani stared at the ocean.
Dark.
Calm.
"At least…"
she spoke softly.
"…we stopped it."
Lila never looked up.
Her eyes stayed fixed on the tablet.
"Distribution is normal."
Farhan added,
"No route changes detected."
Pak Rahmat nodded.
"You stopped something that could've destroyed the entire system."
Bu Maya spoke quietly,
"If that thing had fully activated…"
"…many cities wouldn't have food tomorrow."
Bimo tried to smile.
"So… we're safe now."
No one answered.
Because they all knew—
the word "safe"
didn't feel real anymore.
Arga opened his lunch box.
Light appeared.
Nine grains of rice.
More stable.
But—
deeper somehow.
Like there was something hidden behind the glow.
Sinta watched him carefully.
For a long moment.
"You feel different?"
Arga nodded slowly.
"…stronger."
He paused.
"…but also…"
"…heavier."
Farhan glanced at the data.
"Your energy output almost doubled."
Bimo muttered quietly,
"…that's not normal."
Sinta answered immediately,
"This isn't about strength."
She looked directly at Arga.
"…it's about control."
Arga didn't respond.
But his hand tightened slightly—
almost unconsciously.
BEEP.
Everyone immediately turned.
Lila stood up.
Tablet already in her hands.
"…network message."
A map appeared.
Green dots—
everywhere.
But—
one red point.
Brighter.
Sharper.
Like—
it wanted to be seen.
Pak Rahmat stepped closer.
"…what is that?"
Lila scanned the data quickly.
"…major interference."
Farhan leaned in.
"Not a warehouse."
"…not a kitchen."
"…not distribution."
Sinta frowned.
"…then what?"
Zoom.
A massive building appeared.
NATIONAL MBG DATA CENTER
Silence.
Rani whispered,
"…that's the heart."
Farhan nodded slowly.
"Every system runs through there."
Bimo sat upright.
"…if that falls…"
He didn't finish.
He didn't need to.
The ocean wind blew again.
Colder now.
Arga slowly closed his lunch box.
The light still pulsed inside it.
He stared at the screen.
"…they're not attacking the food anymore."
Sinta turned toward him.
"…then what?"
Arga answered quietly.
"…they're attacking us."
Silence.
"…through the system."
Far away—
inside a dark skyscraper—
screens glowed softly.
Footage of the destroyed container replayed repeatedly.
But there was no anger.
Only—
interest.
The Dominion leader stared at the screen.
"The experiment succeeded."
The man in the hat frowned slightly.
"…but the machine was destroyed."
The leader shook his head.
"That wasn't the objective."
He zoomed in on Arga's face.
ENERGY LEVEL: INCREASED
STATUS: UNSTABLE
"This is what matters."
The man in the hat spoke quietly.
"He's getting stronger."
The leader smiled faintly.
"…and easier to access."
Silence.
He tapped the screen.
The map shifted.
NATIONAL MBG DATA CENTER
"…if we take this…"
He paused.
"…we won't need to attack them anymore."
"…they'll collapse on their own."
The lights dimmed.
"…and this time…"
"…they're already too late."
Back at the harbor—
Arga stood facing the ocean.
His lunch box felt warm in his hand.
The nine grains pulsed softly.
But—
he felt something.
Very faint.
Very far away.
Like—
something was calling back to him.
His body stiffened.
"…they…"
Sinta turned immediately.
"What?"
Arga didn't answer right away.
His eyes shifted slightly.
"…they're already inside."
Silence.
Meanwhile—
in the center of the city—
the national data center stood peacefully.
Lights stable.
Systems running.
Everything appeared normal.
But—
deep inside the network—
one small pathway changed.
Unseen.
Undetected.
Only—
waiting.
And somewhere deep within that system—
something that did not belong to them
slowly
began learning
how to become part of them.