Ryan pressed the confirm button.
He waited for the satisfying, heavy vibration of the phone. He waited for the Warlord Protocol to acknowledge the absolute subjugation of a hostile asset. He expected the dark interface to drop down, flooding his veins with the chemical rush of a ten-figure multiplier.
Instead, the screen froze.
The spinning grey loading wheel stuttered, hanging suspended in the digital ether for three agonizing seconds. Then, the OLED display flashed a violent, blinding red.
[TRANSACTION FAILED]
[ERROR: ROUTING ENCRYPTION REJECTED. HOST NODE ACTIVELY BLOCKING UNVERIFIED INBOUND LIQUIDITY.]
The harsh crimson light painted sharp, jagged shadows across Ryan's knuckles.
The silence grew instantly suffocating. The rhythmic, metallic dripping of water from the rusted ceiling suddenly sounded like a hammer striking an anvil.
