Verdant Hills was a place where secrets slept behind triple-layered glass and alarms sang lullabies to billionaires.
Xia stepped into her new fortress barefoot, leaving a trail of water behind from her post-shower stroll. Her damp hair clung to her cheek, the scent of black pepper and cedarwood clinging to her like a secret no one could afford to know. In a navy robe and a towel draped lazily around her neck, she looked less like a girl who'd been kicked out... and more like a goddess who had granted her enemies mercy by leaving quietly.
With one tap on her custom-made phone—built from tech no nation had clearance to use—she opened CipherLink and typed casually.
God Gu: "Any jobs?"
The screen didn't blink for more than three seconds before a storm of emojis and capital letters exploded back.
Rin: WAIT WAIT WAIT—GOD GU?! YOU'RE ALIVE?
Rin: I thought you were meditating in the Swiss Alps or hacking Mars.
God Gu: "I need a mission."
Rin: WHY??! You're GOD GU. You have money, satellites, probably a dimension or two.
God Gu: "School fees."
Silence.
Then—
Rin: ...SCHOOL FEES??
Rin: Like...school?? With lockers and lunch breaks??
Rin: Wait. Wait. Are you a TEACHER?? Please say you're a teacher.
God Gu: "No. Student."
On the other side of the world, Rin dropped his stylus.
He was leaning back in a gaming chair with his shirt half unbuttoned and one eyebrow permanently raised—probably from years of disbelief caused by her—and his jaw hung open.
He stared at the screen like it had just slapped him.
Rin (muttering): "She's... still in school? But she's God Gu. I thought she was like... some mysterious retired war hacker in her thirties. Or at least mid-20s with a tragic love story."
He ran a hand through his silver-tinted hair, blinking at his own reflection in the monitor. Messy hair. Sharp jaw. Sleepy eyes that looked like they'd seen too many secrets—and yet nothing prepared him for this.
"School fees," he whispered like a prayer. "God Gu's a high-schooler."
He sat up straighter, suddenly questioning the entire hacking underworld.
Rin: I...I don't know whether to call CPS or bow.
God Gu: "Kneel."
Rin: 💀
Rin: Fine. I have something. Defense-grade encrypted data retrieval. International client. High risk.
God Gu: "Send it."
Rin: You're a minor! Should I be worried about ethical boundaries here??
God Gu: "I build weapons of mass destruction in my free time. You're worried about school forms?"
Rin: ...God Gu, will you marry me.
God Gu: "No. You're handsome, but not worth the paperwork."
He choked on his own tea.
To the outside world, Rin was a legend. Second only to the faceless hacker-god known as Mighty X. And now that very same god was texting him, asking for a job like some broke college intern?
Rin leaned back in his chair and whispered, "She's terrifying."
But also—he grinned—she was back.
As Xia flicked off her phone, her lips curled ever so slightly.
He didn't know her real name. Didn't know her face. Didn't know that the legendary God Gu was also the girl who sat in the third row of her classroom, dodging math teachers and sucking lollipop
But he would.
Sooner or later—everyone would
She was done hiding