The hum of her phone sliced through the silence of Xia's penthouse room.
[Rin Rin đ¸]: Boss. Emergency task. Spot mission.[Rin Rin đ¸]: Hotel LUXURY. Top floor. Retrieve encrypted drive.[Rin Rin đ¸]: Heavy security. You in?[You]: Fees.[Rin Rin đ¸]: 7-figures.[You]: Send coordinates.
She tossed her school books aside and opened a hidden drawer behind her closet. Out came a matte-black duffle. Inside: sleek clothes, gloves, cap, mask. Gear of the legend known only in the underworld as "God Gu".
The hum of her phone sliced through the silence of Xia's penthouse room.
[Rin Rin đ¸]: Boss. Emergency task. Spot mission.[Rin Rin đ¸]: Hotel LUXURY. Top floor. Retrieve encrypted drive.[Rin Rin đ¸]: Heavy security. You in?[You]: Fees.[Rin Rin đ¸]: 7-figures.[You]: Send coordinates.
She tossed her school books aside and opened a hidden drawer behind her closet. Out came a matte-black duffle. Inside: sleek clothes, gloves, cap, mask. Gear of the legend known only in the underworld as "God Gu".
11:03 PM â Hotel LUXURY, Top Floor
A silver light blinked on the vault terminal.
"Scan Denied," it blinked.
Then blinked again.
Then turned green.
Of course it did.
"Child's play," Xia whispered under her breath, plugging in a custom drive into the port with clinical grace. Dressed in all black â cap, gloves, and a voice distortion piece clipped under her chin â she looked like a midnight phantom.
Data bars began loading.
92%. Almost there.
That's when she heard it.
A faint click.
Too confident to flinch, Xia stayed crouched but lifted her eyes toward the reflective glass across the vault. The polished surface gave her a peek.
A tall figure in a tactical black suit leaned casually against the doorway.
Watching her.
Clapping.
"Well, well. So the infamous God Gu isn't just a myth," said the man, voice deep, amused, and too composed for someone who'd just been beaten to his mission.
"You're late," she replied, not turning, not breaking rhythm. The download bar hit 97%.
Li Fan stepped into the vault, slow, predatory, every movement echoing command.
"You've got guts. Not many would dare interfere in my mission."
"And you've got an ego. Not many assume everything's theirs by default."
There was a pause.
Then â he chuckled.
A genuine, baritone sound.
"Fine. I'll admit, that was a decent line."
98%. Xia's fingers flew, encrypting and scrambling her digital footprint mid-download.
Li Fan took another step, now right behind her. "But let's make something clearâthis isn't over. I always finish what I start."
"Then finish losing," she quipped, ejecting the drive with a victorious beep. "Thanks for the company."
She turned to leave, but Li Fan blocked her casually with one arm braced on the doorframe.
"You're fast. But what makes you think I'll just let you walk out?"
Behind her mask, Xia smiled. He couldn't see it â but he felt it.
"Oh, honey," she said, voice modulated to that signature digital lilt that had frustrated hundreds of global agencies, "you can't stop what you can't catch."
In one breathless move, she tossed a smoke disk at his feet â blinding flash.
The vault filled with white mist.
By the time it cleared, she was gone.
Outside â 11:24 PM
Li Fan emerged from the hotel's side exit, the city's cold air hitting his jaw as he loosened his collar.
He should be annoyed.
But he was smirking.
"She really is a ghost," he muttered.
Then, as if fate enjoyed irony, a girl strolled past him near the lamppost. Black cap. Casual joggers. A hoodie slightly askew, as if she threw it on in a rush.
Familiar.
She didn't even look at him. Just yawned and scrolled her phone.
Li Fan's eyes narrowed. There was a sliver of unmistakable confidence in the way she moved â like someone who had just won.
He turned his head slightly. Smirked.
"What a curious night."
He dialed a number.
"Send me every byte we have on God Gu. This one... she's not like the others."
Meanwhile, in Xia's Apartment â 12:01 AM
"Done," she texted Rin with one word and a cat emoji.
[Rin Rin đ¸]: Boss, I LOVE YOU. YOU ARE GOD. OUR SERVER RANK SHOT TO #1.[Rin Rin đ¸]: But... there's a small issue.[You]: What.[Rin Rin đ¸]: Military also wanted the drive. I think they were there. Be careful.[You]: Noted.[You]: They were cute though.
She put the drive in her safe and stretched.
For a brief second, her face flushed as she remembered the way his voice sounded behind her, his presence so close and calm.
"Not bad," she murmured.
"But still second place."
Li Fan's Penthouse â 12:09 AM
He watched the blurry security footage on loop.
Paused it on a freeze-frame: the masked hacker, crouched in the vault.
Then clicked another tab. Enlarged the image of the girl from outside the hotel.
He placed them side by side.
"Same shoes. Left foot turns out slightly when she walks," he said aloud.
His lips curled.
"Found you, little shadow."