Chapter 1 Midnight Fright
On a rainy night, a black sedan crashed through the guardrail on a winding mountain road and slammed into the mountainside, its front end crushed.
The driver died on the spot. In the back seat, a woman covered in blood had already lost consciousness, but she still held the little girl beneath her tightly.
An hour later, at a military hospital in the western military district.
The doors of the emergency room swung open, and several doctors stepped out, removing their masks. They shook their heads at the military commander waiting outside.
“Please accept our condolences. Professor Sandback didn’t make it.”
The elderly man, wearing the stars of a general on his shoulders, trembled slightly. His grip on the little girl tightened. She looked up blankly. As if unable to process what was happening, she stared dazedly at the person holding her.
The little girl was Noelle Yersley. The people who had died in the crash were her parents.
Today was her sixth birthday. Her father, Adrian Yersley, and her mother, Zoey Sandback, were both senior engineers at the firearms research institute.
They were always busy with work, but today, they had managed to carve out time to celebrate her birthday, taking a rare day off to go on an outing as a family.
However, midway through their trip, they received an urgent notification that there was an issue with their project. As key researchers, they had no choice but to rush back overnight.
Even in the car, her parents were reassuring her that they would make it up to her next year, promising to take her wherever she wanted to go. Her mother had even held her close and promised to spend more time with her.
“Elle, once this project is finished, Mommy will retire and spend all my time with you, okay?”
Her mother’s words still echoed in her ears. She hadn’t even had a chance to respond.
Then, disaster struck. The car skidded out of control and crashed into the mountainside. Her father died on impact. And now, her mother hadn’t survived either. How was she the only one left?
Noelle had an IQ of one hundred and eighty. Despite her young age, she understood many things.
Finnick Lawn, the elderly general, looked at Noelle with a complicated expression.
“Elle, come with me to see your parents.”
Noelle remained expressionless. Finnick sighed. Her parents had always been busy with work, so he had watched this little girl grow up. Seeing her like this was heartbreaking.
He wanted to give her more time to process everything, but the situation was complicated.
Adrian and Zoey’s identities were too sensitive. Their sudden deaths left little time to handle things properly.
As top-tier mechanical engineers, they had successfully improved numerous military facilities. They were invaluable assets, serving at the firearms research institute of the military district.
At the time of their deaths, they had been leading a high-profile heavy weapons improvement project, drawing a lot of attention. If word got out that the project heads had died, the consequences would be unimaginable.
So, their deaths had to be classified. Their bodies would be cremated immediately.
Even their ashes couldn’t be placed in the Heroes’ Cemetery. There wouldn’t even be a gravestone.
The suddenness of it all was hard to accept, not just for Noelle, but even for Finnick. The loss to the research institute was immeasurable.
Finnick closed his eyes briefly before carrying Noelle inside.
Adrian and Zoey lay there silently, their wounds cleaned. They looked as if they were merely sleeping.
The little girl’s trembling hand reached out and touched Zoey’s cold face.
At that moment, Noelle, who had been eerily quiet and dazed until now, finally broke down. She sobbed uncontrollably, her wails filling the room.
Everyone present felt a pang of sorrow. The child had always been mature beyond her years. She understood her parents’ work, never whining or demanding their time. She was so well-behaved it was almost unnatural.
But now…
Finnick thought to himself, It’s good that she’s crying. At least she’s crying now. She had been far too quiet earlier.
No matter how much they comforted her, Noelle refused to stop crying. She sobbed until she was utterly exhausted and fell asleep, after which Finnick took her home with him.
For the time being, she lived at Finnick’s house. On the surface, she seemed to have recovered, but she had become withdrawn. She barely spoke.
She often sat in her room for hours, clutching the small laptop her parents had assembled for her. The only time she came out was when she was called for meals.
Noelle had a brilliant mind, but she hadn’t inherited her parents’ talent for mechanics.
Instead, she was drawn to computers. From a young age, she had shown an extraordinary aptitude for them.
Growing up in the military district, she had access to experts in the field. Seeing her interest, they indulged her, teaching her what they knew.
Even though her parents worked at the firearms research institute, Noelle spent most of her time in the cybersecurity office.
It was rare to find a child with both talent and a strong desire to learn, so the top experts there had taken her under their wing, treating her as their protégé.
In fact, they had probably spent more time with Noelle than her own parents had.
Despite her young age, Noelle had a mind of her own. She rejected Finnick’s suggestion of enrolling in school and instead enrolled in the cybersecurity institute.
Over the years, she had worked in cybersecurity in the military district. Her talent was frighteningly advanced, and she had an uncanny ability to focus and learn.
She had quickly surpassed all her mentors, then moved from one military district to another, constantly seeking new challenges. After all, top cybersecurity experts were usually recruited by the military to serve their country.
Her abilities were unparalleled. At just twenty years old, she was already undefeated across all military districts. No one in the cybersecurity institute could surpass her.
That tragic accident had changed her. The once cheerful, lively Noelle had become silent and withdrawn, as if learning and training were the only things that brought her any sense of purpose.
She snapped out of her thoughts. It was rare for her to space out like this.
She suddenly realized her birthday was coming up. She hadn’t celebrated her birthday officially in years.
People assumed it was because she still held onto the pain of that day, but in truth, she had long since let it go. It was just that this habit had become ingrained in her, making it difficult to change.
She didn’t enjoy noisy places. She would rather face a computer than interact with people.
Her newest assignment was to set up a cybersecurity department in Jamore. With the rapid development of cyberspace in recent years, the military district’s cybersecurity institute had been responsible for maintaining security in Jamore.
Now, a separate national cybersecurity department was being formed, and she was appointed as its head.
This wasn’t challenging for her as it was her field of expertise. She had previously been seconded to assist in the establishment of cybersecurity departments in several new military districts. This was familiar territory.
To be honest, Noelle didn’t really care where she lived. Over the years, different military districts had fought over her, but she had never wavered.
The only reason she had stayed in one place was simply because she was used to it, not because it held any special meaning.
Then she thought of something else and sighed. How am I supposed to refuse this?
