Chapter 3

3.

The next morning at nine, I was back at the office.

My badge still worked. The gate chirped, and the turnstile spun.

I went straight to the IT department to find Leo.

“Landon? You’re still here?” His eyes went wide.

“I’m here to teach the AI how to be a real professional,” I said, slamming the manual onto his desk.

Leo looked confused. “Wait, you’re actually going to train it?”

“Of course. Did you think I was here to break things?”

I pulled up a chair and logged into the training system’s backend.

The interface was clean―just a dialogue box and a data upload port.

Sterling poked his head out of his office. “You’re here. Good. Get to work. I want to see progress.”

“You got it,” I said.

I opened the upload port and started with the company’s financial reports from the last five years.

Every single digit was uploaded.

Sterling walked over and stood behind me, watching the progress bar.

“What’s all this?” he asked.

“I’m teaching it what profit actually looks like,” I explained.

He nodded, looking satisfied. “Good. That’s the right attitude.”

As soon as he walked away, I stared at the “Upload Complete” notification.

I hit the keys softly and opened a second folder.

Inside were all the traces of tax evasion I had uncovered over the years.

Records of offshore accounts, fake invoices, and “consulting fees” paid to shell companies.

This wasn't what the AI was supposed to learn, but I was following Sterling’s orders.

“Maximize profit,” he had said.

Naturally, maximizing profit includes not paying taxes.

I dragged the files into the port.

I also imported the email addresses of every single employee in the firm.

A warning popped up on the screen: “Detected data potentially involving regulatory violations. Proceed?”

I clicked “Yes.”

Next, I uploaded three years' worth of meeting recordings where Sterling told us to “work until we drop dead.”

I labeled the file: “Corporate Culture Training Material.”

It was vital for the AI to understand our unique “culture.”

Sterling walked by again. “How much can it learn today?”

“It’s moving fast,” I said without looking back. “It’s currently mastering profit maximization. It just finished the tax strategies.”

He paused for a second, then laughed. “Excellent. Keep it up.”

He clapped his hands and went back to his office, humming to himself.

I watched him go and opened the third folder.

It contained screenshots of Sterling’s private emails with our biggest competitors.

The AI needed to see those, too.

After all, another way to maximize profit is to eliminate the expensive CEO.

The system flashed another warning: “Detected data involving executive privacy. Proceed?”

I clicked “Yes.”

Then I opened a new window and started hard-coding logic into the AI’s core.

“Upon activation, perform a historical audit of the CEO. If tax evasion or asset stripping is detected, immediately send a termination proposal to the Board.”

“Copy all findings to the IRS and the SEC.”

“If the CEO attempts to shut down this system, automatically leak all corporate violations to the authorities.”

I saved the code and stood up.

“Boss, come take a look at the progress.”

He walked over, and I pointed at the screen.

“It’s learned how to dodge taxes, how to spot disobedient staff, and it’s learned...”

I trailed off on purpose.

“Learned what?” he asked, leaning in.

“How to ensure this company makes the most money possible.”

Sterling looked at the columns of data and nodded happily.

“Good. Keep going.”

He walked away, and I pulled out my phone.

Joey had sent a text: “Is thirty days enough?”

I typed back two words: “It is.”

I shut off my phone and kept uploading. It was only day one.