You're Out Daddy

Chapter 527

It had been a few days since they last heard from Thalia.

Anthony was on the phone with her downstairs.

“Thalia, is it true that you have returned to Darknetz?” asked Anthony.

“Not yet. But soon.” On the other side of the line, Thalia sounded a little awkward.

When Anthony heard that, he knew something was wrong. “Spencer went after you when you left that

day. Did he manage to catch up with you?”

Thalia said nothing.

“Are the two of you together?” guessed Anthony.

“Uh, yes,” answered Thalia half-heartedly before asking, “Is there anything you want to tell me?”

“It's nothing really. Things are almost done here, so I'm meaning to say, if you want to return to

Darknetz, you can take Benjamin and me with you,” said Anthony.

“Has Nat agreed?”

“We have spoken about this before, and Nat has agreed. I just need to convince my daddy. But it

should be fine. He will surely listen to Nat,” replied Anthony.

After giving the matter some thought, Thalia responded, “All right. I got it.”

“Then...”

“I'll contact you before I leave,” said Thalia.

The moment Anthony heard that, he knew something was going on between Thalia and Spencer. He

immediately said, “Okay, there's no hurry. The two of you go ahead with whatever you have to do. I'll be

waiting for you whenever you are ready.”

After that, there was no response from the other end of the line before the call was disconnected.

Anthony glanced at his phone and shook his head helplessly. “Once she's found friends of the opposite

gender, she forgets about her buddies.”

“But, aren't you also a friend of the opposite gender?” Just then, someone behind him spoke.

Anthony turned around to see Miguel standing not far away.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, narrowing his eyes.

At that instant, Miguel walked up to Anthony and stared at the boy with those X-ray eyes of his.

“Is there something on my face?” questioned Anthony.

“I think you must be Anonymous!” guessed Miguel.

Anthony was taken aback and said, “Are you crazy? What gives you that idea?”

He turned his head and saw Miguel getting down on his knees.

Anthony was dumbfounded, his adorable face filled with shock.

“W-What are you trying to do?” exclaimed Anthony.

“I know you are Anonymous! Please accept me as your disciple!” begged Miguel.

“I'm really not—”

“Yes, you are!”

“I'm not!”

“You are!” proclaimed Miguel with such persistence and determination. “I have secretly recorded a

video showing how Anonymous operates. I may not have watched the video ten thousand times, but I

have definitely watched enough that I can remember everything very distinctly. The day when we were

fighting against Vermillion Base, I found your style of doing things very familiar. However, I find it hard

to believe that the infamous Anonymous can be a child. But, one of my buddies noticed your smooth

operation that day and recorded your moves. After repeated comparisons and days of analysis using

the computer, I can finally confirm that you are Anonymous. There can be no mistake about this,”

declared Miguel.

Anthony looked at him and was at a loss for words momentarily. He is usually such a bubbly and

energetic person. No wonder he looks so unkempt right now. It turns out that he hasn't been sleeping

for the past few nights.

At that moment, Anthony scanned the surroundings to make sure that no one was around. He then

leaned over, squatted down, and pondered before saying, “Has it ever crossed your mind that

Anonymous is the one who taught me those skills? That's why the way we operate is similar.”

“Even so, it won't be exactly the same. It's the same logic with twins. They may look alike, but are their

fingerprints the same?” retorted Miguel.

Anthony fixed his gaze on Miguel for a long time before helping the latter up. “Please get up first. If

other people see this, what am I supposed to say?”

Miguel stared at him and begged once again, “Then, please take me as your student!”

“Why will I do that? I don't know anything. I learned my techniques from someone!” said Anthony.

Miguel looked at the boy begrudgingly and still refused to get back up on his feet.

“You really have no intention of getting up, right?” asked Anthony.

“If you don't accept me as your student, I won't get up.”

“Are you threatening me? Let me tell you something. I will never be threatened by anyone!” claimed

Anthony.

“Fine then. I'll continue to kneel here. Later on, if anyone asks, I will tell them the truth.”

Anthony was speechless.

Initially, he was quite determined not to give in. However, as he looked at Miguel, he could feel his

resolution weaken.

“You can't behave like this, you know? You need something from me, but in order to get your way,

you're threatening me. That way, even if I've agreed to take you as my disciple, I might not teach you

properly, right?”

Miguel kept his eyes trained on the boy and remained silent.

Anthony tried to fool him into getting up. “Please stand up first, and we can talk this out.”

“Really? You are going to discuss this with me?” asked Miguel.

Anthony nodded. “Sure! Of course.”

Miguel then got up reluctantly.

“Miguel, you are so much older than me. I'm only a child. It was just a coincidence the other day. I was

lucky, that's all. You want to meet Anonymous so bad, don't you? Later on, I'll get him to give you a call

and verify this matter. Is that okay?” asked Anthony.

Once again, Miguel looked at him and said nothing.

“Since you're not responding, I'll take it as you've agreed. Well then, that's all for today. I still have

something to attend to. I'll go upstairs first.”

Still, Miguel remained quiet.

“I-I'll go first,” said Anthony before he took a few tentative steps forward.

Just then, Miguel took out his phone. “Hi, Dave. You wanted to know who Anonymous is, didn't you?”

The moment Anthony heard that, he pivoted and ran back toward Miguel, yelling, ”Give me the phone!

Give it to me!” He hopped with all his might, trying to take the phone from Miguel.

“How can you do that? Give it to me!” Anthony demanded.

Miguel handed the phone to him. It was then the boy noticed he was fooled. There was no ongoing call

showed on the screen.

Anthony was furious. “How dare you lie to me? No one has ever lied to me!”

With an ingratiating smile, Miguel said, “Master, please take me as your disciple. I promise I'll obey you

in the future. Also, I won't tell anybody about your secret.”

Anthony studied the man with a doubtful expression.

“I swear if I ever reveal your identity, I will never be successful, and my name will be removed from the

world of hackers. For the rest of my life, I'll never be as good as the others—”

“All right. Enough.” Anthony looked at him and let out a long sigh.

“Does that mean you agreed?” asked Miguel.

“Since you have already addressed me as your master, how can I refuse you?” mumbled Anthony.

An ecstatic expression instantly appeared on Miguel's countenance. “I knew you will take me in as your

disciple, Master!”

“But, let me clarify something. I'm not Anonymous. Your master is Anthony, not Anonymous!”

Miguel was a tactful person. Thus, he hurriedly answered, “Of course. Even if your name is Dumbo and

not Anthony, I will still gladly be your disciple.”

Anthony was at a loss for words.

How dare he call me “Dumbo?” He's the dumbo!