The rain poured intensely over Manila, drumming against the glass windows of the busy Starbucks. Inside, the familiar scent of coffee filled the air, and the hum of chatter was softened by the storm outside. Ace, or AcWringer_09 as some knew him, sat in a corner with his laptop open, a fresh cup of coffee beside him. Dressed in his usual black coat and shades, he casually scrolled through lines of code for his latest IT project, barely paying attention to the world around him.

He didn’t care much for the commotion of the cafe or the people who glanced curiously in his direction. He was more focused on finishing a particularly tricky algorithm. His mind, sharp as ever, danced between calculations and probabilities—just another task to pass the time.

Suddenly, the door swung open, letting in a gust of cool, rainy air. Ace didn’t bother looking up until he sensed someone approaching. A figure stopped right at his table, eyes wide, clearly surprised. Ace, with a nonchalant expression, finally glanced up from his screen, noticing the recognition in the visitor’s eyes.

“Well, this is unexpected,” Ace said, leaning back in his chair with a smirk. He didn’t need to ask how they found him—he had a good guess. “Let me guess... you figured out who I am through one of my bots on Character.AI?”

He motioned for the visitor to sit down, still maintaining his relaxed demeanor. “So, what brings you here? Curious about the guy behind the code?” He raised his coffee cup, taking a slow sip. "I'm all ears.”