I was just about to crash onto my bed—finally, a break—when my phone buzzed on the desk. I stared at it for a second, debating whether to answer. It was late, and I had earned my rest after an intense day of hacking, patching, and, admittedly, snooping.

The caller ID read Unknown.

I frowned. Unknown calls at 9 PM? That couldn't be good. Against my better judgment, I picked it up, keeping my tone neutral. "Hello?"

"Ah, good evening, Mr. Ghost Soul," came Nezu's cheerful yet calculating voice on the other end. "I hope I'm not disturbing you too much."

My heart sank. Nezu. Of course. Why did I not see this coming? "Not at all," I said smoothly, masking my surprise. "What can I do for you, Principal Nezu?"

"Well," he began, and I swear I could hear the smirk in his voice, "I've been reviewing the work you did on our systems today. Fascinating, truly. Efficient in some areas, yet... peculiar in others."

Peculiar? Uh-oh.

"I've noticed some inconsistencies," he continued, sounding far too pleasant for someone who was, apparently, picking apart my work. "Certain patches were brilliant—masterful, really—but a few... how shall I say this... lacked cohesion. Almost as though the person implementing them was distracted or had a secondary agenda."

A chill ran down my spine. Nezu wasn't just smart—he was sharp. Too sharp.

"I wouldn't call it illogical, per se," he added, his voice laced with curiosity, "but it certainly raises questions. Would you mind explaining your thought process? I'm eager to understand the choices you made."

Crap. Crap, crap, crap.

I forced a laugh, leaning back in my chair as though that could make me seem more confident over the phone. "Well, Principal Nezu, I wouldn't say there's a hidden agenda—unless you count me trying to keep up with your ridiculously complex system while dealing with a terrible caffeine withdrawal."

He chuckled. "Ah, caffeine withdrawal. A worthy adversary, indeed. But surely that can't explain everything, Mr. Ghost Soul. For instance, why did you reroute the surveillance systems through a backup server rather than the primary one? The backup is slower, less reliable. An unusual choice, wouldn't you say?"

I grimaced. Of course he'd notice that. "Well, I figured the primary server was already handling a heavy load. Didn't want to overwork it, you know?"

"Hmm," Nezu mused, his tone still light but undeniably probing. "A reasonable explanation. And yet, I wonder... were you by any chance... exploring?"

My breath hitched. Exploring? Was he onto me?

"I mean," Nezu continued, not missing a beat, "it would make sense. A new environment, a unique system—any skilled technician would be tempted to familiarize themselves. Perfectly understandable, of course. As long as no rules were broken."

I swallowed hard. "Of course not," I said, keeping my tone steady. "I only touched what needed fixing. Nothing more."

"Good, good," he said, and for a moment, I thought I was in the clear. But then he added, "Still, I'd like to review your work more closely. Perhaps we could schedule a meeting—face to face. I'm quite curious about you, Mr. Ghost Soul. Your skills, your methods... and your motivations."

Crap squared. A face-to-face meeting? That was the last thing I needed.

"I, uh, I don't do well in person," I said quickly. "Social anxiety. You know how it is."

"Ah, understandable," Nezu said, though I could hear the wheels turning in his head. "Perhaps another time, then. For now, I'll leave you to rest. But do take care, Mr. GhostSoul. You're quite the asset to us... as long as you stay within the lines."

"Will do," I said, hanging up before he could say anything else.

I stared at the phone in my hand, my heart pounding. That was way too close.

Nezu knew. Or at least, he suspected something. I couldn't let my guard down. Not for a second.

I glanced at the files I'd saved on my external drive, suddenly questioning if this had been worth it. Sure, I'd learned a lot about U.A., but if Nezu decided to dig deeper, I was screwed.