Chapter 12 Chapter 12

On the floor, Halle made a sudden movement.Susan went up and grabbed the pistol and aimed it at him. Hale tried to move his arms, only to find himself bound.He panicked. "let me go!" "I want a password." "I don't have a password! Let me go!" Amidst the sirens, Susan yelled: "You are North Dakota, Ensei Yuka told you the password. I need it now!" "You're crazy!" Hale gasped. "I'm not North Dakota!" Susan asked angrily: "Don't lie to me. Why are all the emails sent to North Dakota in your account?" "I told you!" Hale argued, accompanied by endless sirens, "I peeked at Strathmore's account! His account already has surveillance programs! I just copied Got a copy! That's how I found out about his plan to rewrite the 'Digital Fortress'! I've been following Strathmore's 'Brainstorm' operation!"

"Brainstorming"?Susan paused.Strathmore must have planned to use Brainstorm to rewrite Digital Fortress.If someone peeked at the director's account, he would have already obtained all the information... "Rewriting 'Digital Fortress' is really crazy! Do you know what the consequences will be --- only the National Security Bureau can enter! After the boss above has entered the entire communication system, how can ordinary people fight against such a totalitarian country? We should stop Sri Lanka Trathmore!" Hale screamed as the sirens blared, "I've been here all day and that's what I've been doing—monitoring his accounts, waiting for him to take action, and recording his The conversion process. I need proof that he backdoored it. That's why I copied all his emails into my account. Apparently, he's been monitoring Digital Fortress. I originally I plan to go to the newspaper office and tell all about it.”

Susan's heart skipped a beat.She suddenly felt that this really looked like Greg Hale's style.Susan imagined the headline: Greg Hale codebreaker reveals inside story of US program to control global information! Hale continued to defend himself: "I stopped your tracking process because I thought you suspected that someone was peeking at Strathmore's account! I don't want you to find me!" At first glance, this seems plausible but unlikely. "Then why did you kill Chartrukian?" asked Susan sharply. "I didn't!" Hale screamed over the sirens. "Strathmore pushed him! I didn't do anything!"

"You didn't do anything?" Susan yelled, "You partnered with Youjia to threaten the National Security Agency, at least before you betrayed him. Come on," she pressed further, "Youjia really died of a heart attack disease, or did your brethren kill him?" "You're blind!" Hale yelled. "Don't you see it's none of my business? Let go of me before the security arrives!" "The security guard won't come," she snapped.Hale's face suddenly turned pale: "What?" "Strathmore pretended to call." Halle's eyes widened suddenly, and he seemed to froze all of a sudden.Then, writhing violently, he roared: "Strathmore will kill me! I know he can! I know too much! I am innocent!"

"You're lying! I have evidence!" Susan came to her terminal. "Now, let's see if the tracking program returns information." On the screen, a flashing icon reminded her that the tracking program had results.This message will seal Hale's fate!Halle is— Susan stood there dumbfounded.The information on the screen is incredible: NDAKOTA＝ET＠DOSHISHA． EDU "ET?" Susan felt dizzy for a while. "Ensei Tankado is North Dakota?" Hale said, "What did you find? Tell me!" Susan ignored Hale's question and the noise around her.If Yuga is North Dakota, that means North Dakota doesn't exist.The so-called friends of Youjia are actually just a scam.

At this moment, Susan suddenly realized.Yuga had long wanted Strathmore to peek at his account.He was never at ease to hand over the password to anyone, so he came up with such a foolproof strategy.Of course, to make the whole farce look believable, he used secret accounts...just enough secret to keep anyone from suspecting that everything was planned in advance.Yuka is his own accomplice.A one-man show. Susan remembered that when Strathmore told her about the unbreakable algorithm, she refused to believe it.Now she confirms that thought.What evidence do they have to prove that Youjia really made up the "digital castle"?All he mentioned in the e-mail was a bunch of hoaxes, except of course... TRANSLTR.Anyway, a virus could keep TRANSLTR running for that long, and a virus program is far simpler than an unbreakable algorithm.

Virus. Thinking of this, she couldn't help but tremble all over.The voice of Phil Chartrukian rang in her ears.Strathmore bypassed the "gauntlets"! During this macabre reveal, Susan learns the truth of the matter.Strathmore downloaded the "Digital Castle" file, but Gauntlet refused to let it through because it contained dangerously mutated strings.In normal times, Strathmore would definitely be very careful, but this time he read Ensei Yuka's email --- the mutation string is just used to deceive people!Convinced that the "Digital Fortress" could be safely entered, he bypassed the "gauntlet" and sent it into the TRANSLTR machine.Susan could hardly speak. "There's no such thing as a 'digital castle.'" Yuga waited for the fool to take the bait...and the NSA took the bait.

At this moment, a cry of grief came from far upstairs.It was Strathmore screaming. Strathmore sat hunched over the edge of the table.Susan hurried to the table and shouted, "Director! We must turn off TRANSLTR! We've hit—" "We fell into Ensei Yuka's trap," said Strathmore, hanging his head. "He tricked us all..." He already knew the truth of the matter.All of this is a machination by Yuga - to get the NSA to read his emails, believe that he has an accomplice, and download a virus file. "Mutations—" Strathmore said in a trembling voice. "Youga said, that's just part of the algorithm."

Susan understands the director's pain point. "I bypassed the 'Gauntlet'." Strathmore punched the table with a "bang". "I should have known! Look at his username, omg! NDAKOTA! He's laughing at us! It's a fucking transliteration!" Susan suddenly understood.These letters are spelled TANKADO (friend plus).The world's best code-breaker has yet to see it through. "The TRANSLTR operation must be terminated immediately," Susan said. Strathmore stared blankly at the wall. "I've tried." These were the most feeble words Susan had ever heard him say.

"You tried it, what do you mean?" Strathmore turns the display to Susan: Excuse me.Unable to abort. Susan shuddered.Can't abort?Is this Yuga's revenge?He wants to destroy TRANSLTR!For many years, Ensei Yuka has been trying to let the world know about TRANSLTR, but no one has ever believed him.Therefore, he decided to destroy this big monster with his own hands.In order to defend his beliefs and safeguard his personal right to privacy, Ensei Tomoka fought to the death. "We've got to turn off all the power," Susan said, "and now!" Susan knew that by disconnecting the residual power in the Cryptography Division, she could force TRANSLTR to shut down, and the virus would be removed.Just reformat the TRANSLTR hard drive.Reformatting completely erases the computer's memory information.But TRANSLTR was designed to think, not remember.No information is stored in it.Each time a code is broken, it transmits the results to the main NSA database for-

Thinking of this, Susan was stunned.She immediately fully understood the truth of the matter, "The main database!" Strathmore's voice sounded empty.He had obviously realized this already. "Yes, Susan. The master database..." Youjia used TRANSLTR to introduce the virus into our main database. Strathmore motioned feebly for her to look at the monitor.At the bottom of the screen it reads: Bring TRANSLTR to the public only the truth will save you now...   Susan felt a twinge of terror.The top secret information of the United States is stored in the National Security Agency.Susan couldn't believe that even Ensei Yuka dared to attack the NSA's database. "Fact?" Susan couldn't help asking, "What fact?" Strathmore sighed. "Transcript," he said hoarsely. "Facts about Tcrypt." Youjia is forcing the NSA to make a choice—either release the TRANSLTR to the public, or lose the database.A line of text flashed at the bottom of the screen, as if threatening them: Enter password. Looking at this line of beating words, Susan understood the connection between viruses, passwords, Youga's ring and this wonderful blackmail conspiracy.Passwords can stop virus programs from running.Yuka had no intention of destroying the NSA database at all - he just wanted us to release TRANSLTR to the public!Then he will give us the password and we will be able to kill the virus!Yuka never expected that he would take the first step. Susan slammed her fist on the table. "We need that ring! That's the only code!" She understood now—there was no second code.Even now that the NSA has revealed the TRANSLTR story to the world, Ensei Tomaka is hopeless. Strathmore was silent. The current situation is far more severe than Susan imagined.She still couldn't believe that Yuga had planned this way.Tomoka Ensei is a pacifist.He just wanted the world to know that the NSA was listening to everyone. The siren brought Susan back to reality.She glanced at the weak chief.What he thought was not only that his chance to open a back door for the "Digital Fortress" was gone, but also that, due to his negligence, the NSA was on the brink of disaster, which would be the worst security disaster in American history. "Boss, it's not your fault!" Susan insisted, her voice overpowering the siren, "If Yuka hadn't died, we could still bargain with him—we had a choice!" However, Commissioner Strathmore would not listen to anything.His life ended like this.He served this country for thirty years.This should have been the most glorious moment of his life --- creating the back door in the world's encryption standard.Instead, he entered the virus into the main NSA database.It is impossible for them to stop the virus program.Only the ring can save them... "I've got to turn off TRANSLTR!" Susan offered. Strathmore turned slowly to look at her.He is exhausted now. "I'll go." He said in a hoarse voice, standing up tremblingly. Susan sat him back down again. "No need," she said loudly, "I'll go." Her tone did not allow others to argue. "It's not over, Chief. We haven't lost yet. If David finds the ring in time, we can save the database!" Strathmore said nothing. "Call the database!" Susan ordered, "Warn them that there is a virus in the database! You are the deputy director of the National Security Bureau, and you are a survivor!" Strathmore raised his head slowly, and he nodded tragically at Susan. Baker zipped between the whitewashed buildings on his roaring motorcycle.Who is going to kill me?What is so special about this ring? Baker wondered where the man with the wire-rimmed glasses was.In quiet Santa Cruz, he'd be easy to spot.At this time, the only thing in his favor is speed. Suddenly, the engine stalled.The pointer of the fuel gauge is pointing to the zero mark.As if receiving a signal suddenly, a figure appeared on the path to the left of Baker. Baker ran away. With a "bang", the bullet hit his waist.But he just kept running, weaving through the labyrinth of winding Santa Cruz roads. The road is getting narrower and the footsteps are getting closer.There is a high wall in front, and there is no exit.Baker raised his head and looked at the approaching killer, then lowered his head and looked at the ring.Megan died because of it?He will die for it too? Somewhere nearby, a clock struck. The bells at the top of the Giralda urge people to rise for mass at sunrise.Residents of Seville filed into the alleyways.Helohot squeezed his way through the crowd and rushed to the end of the path.David Baker has disappeared. Strathmore sat alone in the dark, the buzzing TRANSLTR screaming to him: YOU ARE A SURVIVOR... YOU ARE A SURVIVOR... Yes, he thought.I'm a survivor—without honor.I would rather die than live in the shadow of disgrace. I'm a survivor, he thought.You're a liar, his conscience retorted. It's true, he's a liar.He can't be open and honest with a lot of people.Susan is one of them.All these years, she has been his dream.He couldn't help himself.Susan was the most wonderful and beautiful woman he could have imagined. The shrill siren gradually woke up Strathmore.He used his analytical abilities to find a way to escape.There is only one ideal way out, and that is the only solution. Strathmore struck out slowly but surely what he had to say: My dearest friends, today, with my life, I… That way there will be no judicial investigation and no charges will be charged.He can tell the ins and outs of things in detail to the world.Many people have died... Of course, there are still people waiting to be judged. Baker sat in the middle of a bench.Behind them, the doors of the church were about to close.Seville Cathedral has only one entrance.Baker is jammed in the sanctuary of God.He was the only one in the church not wearing black. In the back row of the church, a person was hiding in the shadows, walking slowly along the side aisle.He slipped in just as the door was about to close.Baker is here...I can feel it. Baker knelt on the cold floor.The people in the seats next to him stared down at him--not proper behavior in God's sanctuary. "I'm a little sick," Baker said apologetically.He knew he had to hide below.Just now he caught a glimpse of that familiar figure walking in the aisle next to him.it's him!He is here! Baker closed his eyes and shrank lower. What seemed like a few minutes had passed when Baker suddenly felt someone kick him.He looked up and saw that the people in the row on the right were waiting to leave, the seats on the left to the middle aisle were empty, and the two columns were walking towards the altar along the middle aisle. Holy Communion.The Spaniards took communion first! Strathmore held the Beretta in his hand, read through the suicide note, and put it on the floor of the room.This is the only way to escape responsibility...the only way to avoid shame.Carefully, he aimed the gun at the target, closed his eyes, and pulled the trigger. Susan had just descended six flights of stairs when she heard a dull gunshot.For an instant, Susan froze, her mind blank.Director!She tumbled to the Cryptography Department, where it was pitch black. Susan cursed herself for leaving the pistol with Strathmore.Did she leave the pistol with him?Or is it on the third outlet?She glanced at the opening in the wall of Site Three.The screen inside was dimly lit, and Hale lay motionless on the floor, where she had left it.She was about to walk away when she suddenly realized that something was wrong.She saw one of Hale's arms.Hale is no longer bound like a mummy.The arm was raised above the head. Susan hesitated and walked towards the No. 3 outlet.In Hale's hand was a Beretta pistol. Susan held her breath in horror.Following Halle's bent arm, she saw his head.Half of Hale's head was soaked in a pool of blood. I must have dropped the pistol on the couch, she thought.On the floor, next to Halle was a sheet of paper.Susan walked over, staggering, and picked up the paper.This is a book of death. My dearest friends, today I give my life to atone for the following crimes... Susan stared suspiciously at the suicide note in her hand.It was so surreal—not at all like Hale—that he should have a list of crimes.He admits to everything—creating the NDAKOTA scam, buying the mercenary to assassinate Ensei Yuka, taking the ring, overthrowing Phil Chartrukian, and planning to sell the "Digital Castle". Susan read the last line without any preparation.The last few words of the suicide note hit her head: I am especially sorry for David Baker.Forgive me, I have been blinded by my own ambition. She stood trembling beside Halle, and there was a sound of running behind her. Strathmore emerged from the broken glass window, panting and pale.He looked down at Hale's body. "Oh my God!" he said, "what happened?" Holy Communion. Hulohot recognized Baker at a glance.His prey is trapped here, just find a way to get rid of him quietly.Pistol suppressors are simply the best thing money can buy. Hulohot stared at the khaki jacket as he walked through the crowd.There are only two people... one.Holohot came up behind him.The pistol made two dull cracks. Before the man's back was bleeding, Herohhot pulled him over and dragged him onto the bench.He felt the man's unconscious fingers.No rings.He turned the man's body angrily, horrified.It wasn't David Baker. Mitch Milken stood angrily in the conference room.What the hell is Fontaine doing?She would go to the Cryptography Department to examine it herself. Brinkerhoff appeared out of nowhere, blocking her path. "Where are you going?" "go home!" "Mitch," Brinkerhoff reassured her, walking past her toward the window, "let's let the chief handle it." "Is the Codebreaking Department still in the dark?" asked Mitch. Brinkerhoff, however, did not answer.Downstairs, the warning lights kept spinning, and the clouds of steam kept rolling.Brinkerhof was blindfolded for a moment, and then rushed out in despair. "Director! Director!" The chalice came to Baker's right, and that's when Herohhot spotted the mismatched pair of khaki trousers. A figure ran towards this side, and the shadow was curved and reflected on the Holy Grail.Baker saw a metallic light flash before his eyes, the man drew his pistol, couldn't help jumping forward quickly, and fell into the aisle of the clergy. There were bursts of screams from the other side of the altar, followed by loud footsteps chasing after him.He stumbled into a room.From the left came the sound of breaking glass.A man in a red robe gasped and wiped his mouth, trying to hide the shattered communion wine bottle at his feet. "Let me out!" Baker yelled. Suzanne shivered and sat huddled up on the couch at branch number three.Strathmore threw his coat over her shoulders. "I'm going downstairs to disconnect the power, I'll be back soon." The last words of Hale's suicide note lingered in Susan's mind. "David..." she sobbed.David! Ten feet below the Cryptography Division, every step Strathmore took was the figure of Greg Hale -- staring up at him, eyes full of pleading, and then, the shot. up.Hale died for his country... an honorable death.The NSA couldn't afford another scandal.Strathmore needs to find a scapegoat.Besides, Halle would be a disaster sooner or later. His thoughts were interrupted by the phone ringing. "Where's my password?" a familiar voice asked. "Who are you?" "I'm Zhaogao!" The other end of the phone roared at him angrily, "You promised to give me the password! I want 'Digital Castle'!" "No 'digital castle'!" Strathmore snapped him off. "Deal canceled! I'm not North Dakota. There's no such thing! Forget what I told you!" He hung up and turned off the ringer.No one can bother me anymore. Twelve thousand miles away, Tokumoto Shotaka was dumbfounded.The most important transaction in his life was canceled just like that. Deal canceled.Zhao Tech will never get the unhackable algorithm... NSA will never get the back door. Strathmore chose Zhao Technology carefully.If he got the password, no company would hesitate to make the deal.It is the U.S. government that they do business with, and Zhao Hi-Tech is the least likely to arouse suspicion.Tokugen Shotaka is a conservative Japanese.He hates Americans. The director had never had any doubts about who to choose to assassinate Ensei Tomoka.Ensei Yuga is in Spain, so he has to find Hero Hott.For years, he was in charge of NSA assassinations across Europe.Recently, Strathmore had prepared for him the latest monocle computer developed by the NSA.I bought an air pager myself. Strathmore's first message to Herohot: Kill Ensei Yuka and get the ring. Ensei Yuka is dead, officially confirmed to have died of a heart attack.This is simply a classic murder case --- of course, there is a piece of the story: Zhang Huan Xian Nai Gu Huan Blowing His Eyebrows Eight Sacrifices Strathmore was furious.This was the first time Hulohot had screwed up—he chose a very unfavorable time to do it.Obtaining Youjia's password is of great importance, and the second set of plans is formed accordingly.Strathmore suddenly realized that this would kill two birds with one stone.At half past six that morning, he called David Baker. Fontaine rushed into the conference room. "Look!" Mickey pointed out the window nervously. Fontaine's eyes widened in shock.This is definitely not in the plan.TRANSLTR has never been in such a situation.He grabbed the internal phone on the table and pressed hard on the extension number of the Code Deciphering Department.There's something wrong with the extension. Fontaine dropped the phone with a "bang" and yelled, "Damn it!" He immediately picked it up again and dialed Strathmore's cell phone.The phone is connected. Brinkerhoff and Mickey watched Fontaine pacing up and down the telephone cord.A full minute later, Fontaine dropped the phone again. "Unbelievable!" he growled loudly. "The Cryptography Department is about to blow up, and Strathmore won't answer the damn phone!"