02:30 AM (At the peak of the citywide chaos)
"The Pit" – An illegal orphanage in the Forbidden Industrial Sector
Condition: Damp odors, moldy walls, and the sound of rats scurrying behind rusted pipes.
While Rion led the field operations, Ren stepped into an old building that appeared to be a derelict warehouse. However, beneath it lay a labyrinth of narrow cells. This was "The Pit," a place where orphans with special talents were hidden, to be sold to the highest bidder.
Ren stopped in front of steel cell number 09. Inside sat a petite 14-year-old girl named Mia. Her face was smudged with dirt, but her large eyes radiated an intelligence that was out of sync with her age. On her lap was not a doll, but a completely dismantled police communication circuit.
"You're ten minutes late based on the guard's patrol schedule," Mia's voice was thin but sharp. She didn't even turn to look at Ren.
Ren smiled faintly. "That guard is busy extinguishing a fire at the docks. You're the one who set off the alarm, aren't you?"
Mia finally turned. She scanned Ren from head to toe. "You aren't a typical buyer. You don't have a briefcase of cash or muscle-bound bodyguards. Who are you?"
"I am someone who can give you access to real data libraries, not just electronic scrap from these gutters," Ren knelt to match Mia's height behind the bars. "My name is Ren. And I know you're the one who breached Ironport's population registry server last month just because you were bored."
Mia fell silent. Her most dangerous secret had just been casually revealed by this stranger. Mia was an Information Savant—capable of absorbing, processing, and connecting data points that appeared random to anyone else.
"It's chaos out there," Mia whispered. "Small factions are attacking Seifong. The police have lost their way. Is that your doing?"
"It is our doing," Ren corrected. "But I need someone who can see beyond the chaos. I need eyes that can track Sinclair's fund movements before he even realizes it. I need Mia."
Mia stood up and approached the bars. Her frame was so small, she looked like a fragile child trapped in a world of monsters. "If I come with you... will I still be a prisoner?"
Ren reached into her dress pocket and pulled out a small silver badge shaped like a lion's head—the symbol of Nero Familia that the world had yet to see. She placed it in Mia's dirty palm.
"In Nero Familia, there are no prisoners. Only family. You will be the brain that protects us from behind the scenes."
Right then, the sound of an explosion echoed in the distance. Mia looked at the badge, then at Ren. For the first time in her 14 years, she saw an exit that didn't lead to a slave auction.
"Take me away," Mia said firmly. "And I'll tell you where Sinclair hid his third black ledger."
Ren smiled triumphantly. She had just found the final piece of her puzzle. Mia wasn't just a teenager; she was a walking information vault that would make Nero Familia invincible.