Chapter 207: Relentless Counterattack
Hayley’s POV:
Finished. Thomas answered respectfully, “Sorry, Alpha, I don’t know the exact details. By the time I realized what was happening, it was already too late.”
“Alpha, hurry up! I’m on the 16th floor of Laguna Tower.” He gave me the address. Without hesitation, I jogged out of the school gates. Seeing no one I recognized, I immediately handed control over to Hera and ran toward the address at full speed. On the way, I used my phone to track their location.
To my surprise, they were incredibly clever. With the phone’s tracking capabilities lagging, I was still a step behind, and the hacker managed to escape.
Once I arrived at Laguna Tower, I immediately sat down at a computer and started typing furiously on the keyboard. Thomas held his breath, the air almost feeling frozen. It seemed the other party was deliberately waiting for me, sending over a series of codes.
A slight smile curled at my lips. I wasted no time in launching a counterattack on their defense system, breaking through their seventh layer in under a minute. Thomas silently clenched his fist, his face showing a glimmer of joy. But just as I was about to continue, the computer screen suddenly went blue.
I slammed my hand onto the keyboard. “Damn it, we’ve been tricked.” This was the first time in years that I had encountered an opponent skilled enough to challenge me in hacking. But it seemed like the other side wasn’t interested in competing directly. Instead, they seemed to be trying to lead me in circles.
When the computer rebooted, everything seemed to return to normal as though nothing had happened. I quickly checked and found no trace of the other party. They had disappeared without a trace.
“Alpha, what’s going on?” Thomas asked, confused. I glanced at him and explained, “We’ve been targeted, but it doesn’t seem like they have any real hostility. With their skills, they could easily have breached our system, but they didn’t. It seems like they were trying to get our attention.”
Thomas’s eyes darkened. “Who could it be?”
“Is there anyone whose hacking skills are better than your Alpha out there?” I said. “Whoever they are, we must stay vigilant. Let’s upgrade our defense systems immediately and set up a…”
Thomas nodded respectfully and said, “Understood, Alpha. I’ll get started right away.”
After checking the internal systems again and fixing a few vulnerabilities, I did another sweep. I didn’t find any traces left by the other party, which meant they had come well-prepared.
Afternoon, I finally wrapped things up and left Laguna Tower. I took the elevator down to the first floor and was surprised to find the place surrounded by people. It was obvious they were fans of some celebrity. But as I stopped, my gaze caught one of the fans holding a sign that read Gillian Carr.
The name triggered a rush of memories. Gillian was someone I’d shared the same world with but had neglected for so long. It looked like our paths were bound to cross again.
“Gillian! Gillian! Gillian!” The fans chanted her name in unison. Suddenly, the crowd shifted. Security escorted Gillian onto the stage. Holding a microphone, she smiled warmly and greeted the crowd. “Hello everyone! I’m Gillian, and I’m thrilled to meet you all here.”
I stood among the crowd, watching the glamorous Gillian on stage, my emotions a tangled mess. Gillian had become a top-tier singer, releasing several popular albums and winning numerous music awards. She was now the diva of the music industry.
I had no interest in her, so I turned and walked away. But just as I had taken a few steps, a figure flashed out from the crowd and grabbed my wrist. “What are you doing here?”