A signal from the past

Bach Lan stared blankly at the computer screen, the blinking cursor hypnotizing her gaze. Almost unconsciously, she placed her hand on the mouse—yet in her mind, an image surfaced.

Familiar.

Too familiar.

Hauntingly familiar.

***

In the howling wind, a warm hand gripped hers tightly.

"Come on, Bach Nhi!" — a deep, hoarse voice urged. "The Celestial Enforcer is hunting us. If you stay here, it'll be too dangerous!"

She stumbled behind him, her cloak snagged on a branch, sweat streaming down her face. Smoke billowed, choking the path ahead, while behind them, the glow of spreading flames lit up the night in ominous red.

"No..." — She stopped abruptly, eyes rimmed with red, her voice trembling with panic.

"What about Trach Hien? What if they hurt him?... What if they catch him?"

The young man turned back to face her, his gaze darkening. He had always been the quiet one—loyal, steadfast, always there when she needed him most.

But this time, his expression was no longer calm.

"You think he doesn't know how to protect himself?" — his voice was strained, barely controlled.

"No! Trach Hien... he's just a mortal... He got involved because of me! If the Celestial Enforcer finds him—"

She suddenly spun around, ready to run back the way they came, but he grabbed her wrist tightly.

"Do you have a death wish?!"

She screamed, tears streaming down her face:

"Let me go! I can't let him be captured! I have to save him!"

His eyes flickered, as if he was about to say something… but instead, he tightened his grip, biting his lip, unable to bring himself to speak the words.

The wind swept through her hair, and distant explosions echoed through the forest. A pillar of light struck down from the sky—Heaven's Thunder. She trembled. They were close. Too close.

"No!" she cried, breaking free from his grasp. A surge of heat burst from her body, erupting into a wave of white light. Trees bent backward, rocks tore from the ground, and the force hurled him far away.

He landed hard, rolling across the ground, battered and bruised. Still, he pushed himself up with all the strength he had left.

"Bach Nhi… don't… don't go…"

***

The wind fell silent.

Bach Lan jolted back to the present, her body trembling slightly as if she had just escaped a deep, haunting dream.

What was that?

A dream? Or… a fragment of memory?

The images were strange, yet eerily familiar. She couldn't tell if the girl in that vision was truly her. Nor did she know the identity of the man cloaked in shadows. But why… why did her heart ache so deeply?

Everything was blurred, like smoke—but the pain lingered, etched into every fiber of her being.

Just then, a light tap on the shoulder made her startle.

Smack! "Hey, what were you so deep in thought about?"

She looked up. "Hoang Phuong?"

Her colleague smiled and placed a USB drive on the desk. "Your sister sent this. Said you'd probably need it urgently."

Bach Lan's eyes widened. "My sister?"

"Who else would it be? You look… strange."

She sat still, stunned.

Just a few minutes ago, her sister had called from the landline. It took at least one hour to get here from home. So how could it… have arrived this fast?

The USB sat neatly in front of her. A cold sensation slowly crept from her palm up to her wrist. She said nothing, simply bowed her head and plugged the USB into the computer.

A strange file popped up on the screen.

She didn't open it. Just stared at it. There was something—something deep inside her—that felt like it was beginning to awaken.

At that very moment, Hoang Phuong leaned in and whispered:

"I just got some inside info…"

"About the new boss?" Bach Lan cut her off.

Hoang Phuong's eyes widened. "How did you know?!"

"..." She gave a sheepish smile.

Hoang Phuong sat down and, as usual, pulled out a doodled chart with a mischievous grin.

"This is Bitter Melon—the Chairman. Bunny is the Vice Chair. And the Bear is…"

"Director Trach Dong?" Bach Lan guessed.

"You're smart. Bears hibernate, after all."

"And… the radish?"

"Bunnies love radishes!" Hoang Phuong winked meaningfully.

Bach Lan blinked, momentarily stunned. Every symbol in that diagram felt like tiny needles pricking into her thoughts. A power struggle? A silent hunt unfolding in the shadows?

Before she could ask more, the Head of Finance strode past, casting them a sharp glare. Hoang Phuong hastily folded the paper and sat up straight.

The room fell back into a quiet hush.

But inside Bach Lan, the storm had only just begun.

The slanted rays of sunset streamed through the towering buildings, casting deep golden streaks across the glass—like old wounds yet to heal. In a high-floor room, silent and cold, a lone figure stood behind a telescope, gaze piercing through the distance.

"It's begun."

The voice was low and rough, hoarse with the weight of years.

"She's started to awaken."

The atmosphere in the room thickened, still as if holding its breath. Behind him, another person stepped closer, their face obscured in shadow.

"What about Trach Hien?"

The man at the telescope didn't turn. He merely curled his lips into a faint, knowing smile—a smile steeped in something unreadable.

"He won't stay quiet. Not when Bach Lan has begun to remember…"

Elsewhere, in the grand lobby on the ground floor of the company building, Thanh Nhi had just stepped out of the elevator. The late afternoon light bathed the marble steps in a crimson hue, and the last winds of winter stirred her long hair, sending the strands fluttering in the breeze. She stopped abruptly, her eyes drawn—almost unconsciously—toward the main gate.

A luxurious car glided past, sunlight glinting off its polished surface. Through the tinted glass, she caught a fleeting glimpse of a familiar figure.

Her face paled, eyes widening in disbelief.

"Dong Ha?" she whispered, the name escaping her lips like a breath, soft but choked with emotion.

Her hand clenched tightly, nails nearly digging into her palm.

No. It couldn't be. It couldn't be him.

And yet… her heart raced to that same rhythm it had once known.

A sliver of memory—long thought buried—began to stir.

Inside the high-rise room, light spilled across the reflective glass, blurring the silhouette of the man watching everything unfold.

"Slower than we expected," came the deep voice again, laced with a sense of inevitability, "but she's finally arrived."

The second figure stepped closer, voice cautious.

"What about Trach Hien?"

"He still remembers nothing," the man replied, the corner of his mouth curling ever so slightly. "But his instincts won't let him stay away. He'll find her."

"You mean… his memories will return?"

"No." He shook his head; eyes still fixed on the scope. "But emotions—they transcend time and reincarnation. We don't need him to remember. We only need him to feel… enough."

The air grew dense, thick with tension, as if about to shatter. Yet the other voice still held a trace of hesitation.

"...And the girl?"

"Thanh Nhi?" He let out a soft, low chuckle—like wind brushing across an empty field. "She's already interfered. A USB was delivered within minutes. Do you really think that was a coincidence?"

"Didn't expect her to make a move this soon."

"We underestimated her. She's not just a sister—she's the final wall standing between Bach Lan and the truth. If that wall collapses… everything will be swept away."

"Then what do, we do next?"

The cold gaze behind the scope deepened with calculation.

"Phase Two," he said, his voice cold as melting ice. "Draw Trach Hien out of hiding. Make him come to her on his own."

"...But he doesn't remember anything."

"He doesn't need to. Just seeing her… will be enough."