When Lu Mian got back home to the Lu family, it was eerily quiet. Dinner was already over. Grandma Lu and Aunt Xu had retired. Lu Xinya had gone back to her room to try and "win back" Pei Yan. She had no idea where her dear father was.
She calculated the Lu family would want to keep a low profile till the engagement was changed. As for Pei Yan, he would eventually succumb to pressure.
It wouldn't be too long now she grinned. Lu Mian had blocked Pei Yan and had refused all forms of communication with him. That meant, he would either reach out to Lu Xinya (she could win him back!) or, would acquiesce to having the engagement changed!
I should make a habit of coming back late, she mused as she went to her room.After a relaxing shower, she took out the old box Aunt Lin had given her yesterday.
She didn't want the Lu family sniffing about so had taken it with her to school. Now, with no one around, she finally had the time to open it. However, while she yearned to know what her mother had left her, she also didn't feel quite ready yet. She wanted to hold on to it longer, revel in the feeling of having something to connect to her mother before opening it. She ran her fingers reverently along the box, committing each carving to memory. "I miss you mom" she murmured.
Before she could explore more, her phone beeped - it was the alarm she had set to notify her when the people from Titan Mirror project made contact. That was fast. Barely less than an hour since the first conversation, they had reached out.
Dear Lumina,
We are impressed with your skills and want you to join our team for a special project. Because it's highly sensitive, we want to meet you in person to give a debrief. How long will it take you to reach City C?
We are happy to cover the cost of your travel, no strings attached. In case you decide to take on the project, we will need you to start working asap. Project duration 3 days.
Once Project is finished, you will directly get an entry in the special project category at the National Defense Academy.
Ghostwire
Lu Mian's eyes bugged as she read this. To get an entry as a special project meant she would be on level with the elites of the year - she would already be recognised. All she had to do was get decent scores and her admission would be guaranteed.
What was the catch? She wondered. Despite her excitement, Lu Mian also knew this sounded too good to be true.She didn't think it was bogus or spam - the level of encryption was too high level for it to be so.
That left two possibilities.
Either they were baiting her with the National Defense Academy entry - so after the project was done they will vanish. Or, it was legit - and could help her.
In deep thought, Lu Mian packed away her mother's box. This will have to wait till the assignment is done, she thought, while her mind buzzed with possibilities.
Who could it be? What kind of project was it? Will she really get a recommendation?
The only way to find out was by actually meeting them.
On cue, there was a loud knock on her door. "Yan ge wants to talk to you sister" came Lu Xinya's 'concerned' voice. "He had been calling every half hour - who knew you would come back so late, especially when you don't have self study."
Annoyed at being interrupted again, Lu Mian wrenched her door open and grabbed the phone in Lu Xinya's hand. Instead of answering, she flung it over the first floor, with all her force. The cell phone crashed down on the floor and shattered. Lu Xinya's eyes bugged open. Lu Mian was so fast that her phone was broken before she could even react.
"I ignore CEO Pei for one day and he makes you call me. What do you think will happen if he cannot reach me for a few days, hmmm?" she asked sweetly.
"Good luck winning him sister. As you can see, I am far ahead of you in the game." and Lu Mian walked out of the front door with just a backpack, leaving behind a gaping Lu Xinya.
She doubted anyone in the Lu family would search for her. Anyway given her exit just now, it would be seen as running away to grab attention. In fact, in her absence, the Lu family would double down their efforts to switch out the engagement. I've helped you all I can, dear sister. Don't let me down and Lu Mian casually walked away into the night pleased at having bought herself a few days of uninterrupted time.
Her target was an old internet cafe near the night market. She had stumbled across the place by accident - when Pei Yan had forgotten to pick her up on a rainy night. The grumpy Lady Boss had grumbled but allowed her to wait inside and even discreetly laid out towels and a warm sweater to ward off the chill.
She had given this place as the rendez-vous because of two reasons. One, it was so far removed from her usual routine that no one would place her here. And secondly, there was a really leafy oak tree on the side that gave her an excellent view of anyone who entered. She could quietly scout out the other party while remaining hidden, and if she found something fishy, could melt into the night.
Lu Mian climbed up the tree well ahead of the rendezvous time and settled to quietly observe. This was the hardest part of any mission - the high alert wait. Each of your senses must be on high alert. You should catch even a fly moving in the dark, but not give your spot away. With Aegis' words in her ears, she started observing.
She didn't have to wait long. Two figures walked into her line of sight. In the glare of the streetlight, she could make out they were military - the way they moved was a dead give away. The odd part was she found their movements strangely familiar.
When she took a closer look at their face, Lu Mian almost fell off her tree in surprise.
That was Rhino! No wonder he was familiar! That was the same old Rhino, her comrade in her last life who taught her to fight with endless bloody sparring sessions. And the one next to him is Falcon.
Grappling with the new information, her genius brain worked furiously to understand the situation. In one of their drinking sessions, a heavily intoxicated Viper had sobbed about their greatest failed mission - the one in which they lost their brother. Ghostwire. No wonder that name was so familiar!
She didn't know a lot of specifics, all she knew was that there was a spy - and Ghostwire sacrificed himself to save them all.
She had no way of knowing if this current project was that dangerous operation. She didn't even know if they had formed a team or were under Aegis at this point. Did they put a call out in their last life too that she missed because of her stupidity? Or was this a new phenomenon because of her rebirth? Like the injured soldier she met? Lu Mian couldn't be sure.
All she knew was that they were still her comrades! In another life they had shed blood and shared tears. In this life, she would do all she can to help them - and if this was the compromised project, she would not let Ghostwire fall.
Lu Mian took a long steady breath and adjusted her cap, thankful for her disguise. There was no way these overprotective men would allow a 17yr old underage girl assist in a dangerous operation. "I will just have to make sure they don't see through my gender" she murmured to herself and jumped down.
Time to go play the game.