The backlash did not arrive loudly.
There were no protests, no headlines, no sudden collapse of trust.
It arrived in the form of questions.
---
The first email came just after noon.
> Subject: Clarification Request
We've noticed unusually high customer retention on your recent releases without corresponding marketing activity. Could you explain the mechanism behind this performance?
Danindra stared at the screen longer than necessary.
"Do we answer this?" Amara asked quietly from beside him.
"We have to," he replied. "Just not… fully."
---
By evening, three more messages had arrived.
A trade association asking about "unregistered enhancement methods."
A supplier inquiring whether Oneiro had "quietly shifted positioning."
A former collaborator hinting at "shared techniques" in exchange for exposure.
None of them accused.
None of them congratulated.
They circled.
---
At Oneiro Rewear, Yunitra listened as Aulia read through social sentiment reports.
"They don't know what to criticize," Aulia said. "So they're inventing concerns."
"Good," Yunitra replied calmly. "Confusion buys time."
"But time for what?" Aulia asked.
Yunitra didn't answer immediately.
"For choice," she said at last.
---
In a small conference room, Jayantara tapped his pen against the table.
"If we scale this," he said carefully, "we'll be forced to explain it. And explanation invites control."
"And if we don't?" Melati asked.
"Then others will copy badly," he replied. "And blame us when it fails."
The room fell silent.
Danindra leaned forward. "Then we do neither."
Everyone looked at him.
"We let the city decide," he said. "Not the market."
---
That night, Wirasmi sat on the floor of her workshop, surrounded by fabric she hadn't touched in weeks.
The hum beneath the city had grown more complex.
Not louder.
Crowded.
She pressed her palms together, breathing slowly.
"They're pulling at you," she whispered. "From too many directions."
The fabric near her shifted.
Uneasy.
"I won't let them tear you apart," she said gently. "But you have to trust me too."
The hum softened.
---
In LionCity Raya, Ace received a secure message.
> If Oneiro cannot define its advantage, others will. Are you prepared for intervention?
Ace typed a single reply.
> Not yet.
He paused, then added:
> If harmony must be defended by force, it has already failed.
---
The next morning, an article appeared on a mid-tier business site.
"The Problem with Comfort-Based Design: Are Consumers Being Manipulated?"
No accusations.
No evidence.
Just suspicion.
Amara read it twice.
"They're scared," she said.
Danindra nodded. "Because this doesn't need them."
Outside, GarudaCity moved as it always had.
But now, beneath the routines and rhythms, something fragile was being tested.
Not by attack.
But by attention.
And for the first time, the unnamed thread trembled—not from activation—
—but from pressure.