5: Rian Pratama

Rio left the Black Market with steady steps. His next destination was a café in South Jakarta, where he would meet an acquaintance from his past, a teenage boy who had skills in the virtual world. They knew each other from their previous lives, when the Apocalypse had occurred.

The café Rio was going to visit was located in the corner of South Jakarta. It was the meeting place with the teenage boy who now worked as a waiter there. The young man had a special skill: being the most famous hacker in the Deep Web. Not just in the regular web, but in the Deep Web—a place full of chaos and hidden from the world's eyes. The teenager was one of the leaders of the hackers in that dark world, driven by his urgent need for a cure for his sister.

Rio had a strong reason to visit the teenager. Besides reconnecting with their past relationship, Rio also realized that having access to this dark and dangerous virtual world could be a valuable asset in his preparation for the approaching Apocalypse Entertainment World.

Rio arrived at the small café that was his destination. It was a simple building, open from nine in the morning until nine at night. After parking his car, Rio entered the café. Inside, the atmosphere was classic but still clean and pleasant.

As Rio entered the room, he was greeted by a woman and a teenage boy standing at the service table. The woman and the teenage boy quickly showed respect as Rio approached them.

"What would you like to order, sir?" the woman asked.

"A cup of vanilla latte with three sandwich rolls!" Rio ordered with a wide smile.

"Of course! Rian! Did you hear that? I'll make the coffee, you make the sandwich!" the woman ordered the teenage boy next to her.

"I know, Senior!" Rian, the teenage boy, replied, moving to start making the sandwich. The warm atmosphere of the café and the friendly service created a pleasant impression for Rio.

Rio sat in the café, enjoying the freshly ordered sandwich and a cup of vanilla latte. His gaze alternated between the sandwich he was biting into and the cup of coffee he held. The relatively quiet café with only a few customers enjoying their drinks and food created a comfortable backdrop.

Meanwhile, the teenage boy he was looking for, Rian Pratama, worked behind the service table. Rian, a high school graduate skilled in computers and networks, had become a leading and famous hacker in the virtual world. As one of the leaders in the Deep Web, Rian possessed rare and highly sought-after skills.

Rio knew the reason behind Rian's entry into the hacker world, where Rian had a rather tragic reason. Rian's older sister suffered from an unknown and peculiar illness, and Rian embarked on his journey in the virtual world to find a cure for his sister's disease. After a year of searching in the Deep Web, Rian had yet to find a satisfying answer.

Currently, Rian was studying at the Central Jakarta State University of Computer Network Information. His efforts to seek help from acquaintances at the university had also yielded no positive results. Rio could sense Rian's desperation in his efforts to save his sister from the mysterious illness that showed no signs of improvement.