Chapter 21
In no time at all, the computer’s main screen popped up with a verification box. Mirabella deftly entered a few words and
cleared the verification, and only then did she gain access to the website’s homepage.
But before she could even make out the details of the page, the screen dimmed once more. A user login dialog
appeared.
Mirabella watched the screen expressionlessly, typing in her username and password while shaking her head in
disbelief. What a piece of work this site was, always with the dramatics. It was going to crash and burn one of these
days.
A chime sounded swiftly, and she logged in successfully, greeted by a bright, bold line of text at the top of the
homepage,
[The Mirror. If you can dream it, we can sell it.)
Mirabella’s lips twitched violently at the slogan.
She casually scrolled through, finding nothing particularly fresh or challenging, and was about to close the site in
boredom.
Just then, her account avatar started flashing. Someone was looking for her.
Raising an eyebrow, Mirabella clicked on the avatar, and a message popped up. A little green dot beneath the sender’s
icon indicated they were online.
CoolAutumnBreeze: Holy smokes, kiddo, you’ve finally shown up!
CoolAutumnBreeze: Where in the world have you been all year? Why haven’t you been online?
CoolAutumnBreeze: Kiddo, you there? Why the silence?
Mirabella stared at the computer for a long while before sluggishly typing a symbol
BaldyBabe
The nickname was a random choice she made when registering, and since she couldn’t be bothered to come up with something else, she never changed it. To her annoyance, the site didn’t offer a rename option, so she was stuck with this ridiculous moniker.
CoolAutumnBreeze: Dude, where have you been? It’s been a year without a trace of you.
Mirabella’s fingertips paused, weighing her response, and after a moment-
BaldyBabe: Ever had a time–travel experience, darling?
Across the computer, Riley was sipping water when he read the message on the screen and nearly spat it out.
CoolAutumnBreeze: Oh man, you haven’t been hacked, have you? You’re asking such a daft question!
BaldyBabe: …Scram!
The familiar irate response, the same old Mirabella.
CoolAutumnBreeze: Ha, just kidding.
BaldyBabe: Logging off.
CoolAutumnBreeze: Wait up, buddy, don’t go. I need to ask about someone.
BaldyBabe: Who?
CoolAutumnBreeze: Cian,
Mirabella’s expression twisted oddly at the name, and she stayed silent, not responding right away.
After a long wait, Riley sent another message: Dude, are you still there?
ht away
19-14
Mirabella’s gaze lowered slightly, her fingers moved, and she replied: Don’t know him. But why are you asking about
this guy?
CoolAutumnBreeze: Just helping a friend. They’re looking to buy some meds from him. Heard he’s quite the enigma. At
first. I thought you might know him.
BaldyBabe: I don’t know him. I’m out.
CoolAutumnBreeze: Alright then. If it’s cool with you, bro, can you leave me a contact? We’ve known each other for
nearly three years.
BaldyBabe: Not cool. Bye.
Mirabella promptly shut down her computer.
Baldu
Riley watched his friend BaldyBabe’s‘ avatar go dark and scratched his head in frustration. The bald monk was still as
aloof and heartless as ever!
He closed the website and pondered for a few seconds before grabbing his phone from the table and sending out a text
message.
Since Mirabella returned to the Davis household, aside from her daily morning jogs, she spent most of her time
indoors. Delilah had tried to coax her out several times, only to be turned down with the excuse that she had to study.
This was really making Delilah quite vexed.