Dragon Raja: Reboot

It spans eleven time zones.

The three professors on duty gathered inside the control room, ready for anything.

Regarding the current situation, Manstein briefly summarized: "So, Lu Mingfei and B007 are suspected of being attacked by the dragons, but they are unharmed, though they have lost a valuable SS-level file?"

Wearing a nightcap, Professor Guderian, dragged out of bed, exclaimed, "Mingfei has performed exceptionally well! That was an attack from a dragon, and he's only a freshman!"

Schneider waved his hand and said in a low voice, "The most important thing now is to retrieve this document. It's what the Board of Trustees wants. Believe me, you don't want to face the Board's wrath."

Manstein frowned and said, "I think the appearance of the dragon is more important."

Schneider paused for a moment and explained, "I don't deny that a magnitude 3 earthquake cannot destroy a newly built station with an aluminum alloy frame structure that can theoretically withstand a magnitude 8 earthquake in an instant! But our first goal now is to retrieve the files and documents that the Board of Trustees wants."

"I know, this is called a shoddy construction project in China!" Guderian suddenly jumped out.

"If you don't understand, then shut up!" Manstein glared angrily. "A magnitude 3 earthquake wouldn't even knock down a dilapidated building!"

"I don't know, I've never heard of such a word of power," Schneider said, shrugging. "According to the brief report just submitted by B007, from the moment they noticed the anomaly to the disaster, it was all over in an instant. What kind of word of power could destroy an aluminum alloy waiting hall that could hold thousands of people in an instant?"

"This intensity is almost on par with the Rhine!"

"Do we still have time to send an investigation team?" Manstein asked.

"There's no investigation team, and the board of trustees has given us a deadline of 19:00 PM local time tonight." Schneider glanced down at his watch. "There are still about eight hours left."

"Damn it, has anyone been chosen yet?" Manstein said weakly, covering his face with his hands.

"The school affairs department does have a group that can make it; they're on vacation locally, but they can only be used as support. Specialists must have a bloodline advantage," Schneider said casually.

Manstein sighed, "Very well, so that means we should use the cadets, right?"

"In terms of bloodline advantage, Chu Zihang, who is 'A' grade, and Lu Mingfei, who is 'S' grade, both have an absolute bloodline advantage. Moreover, their families are local and are currently on vacation."

Guderian jumped in again: "Yeah, Mingfei is great! Mingfei is an 'S' level!"

As Lu Mingfei's mentor, he always had great confidence in Mingfei, even though his student had just failed two courses last semester, and was barely passing the rest of his subjects, and had not yet mastered the power of words.

But that doesn't matter, he believes Mingfei is the best!

"Shut up! Your 'S' rank just messed up a mission, and we're cleaning up after him now!" Manstein snapped.

Guderian grumbled in protest, saying, "This is force majeure! It has nothing to do with Mingfei, he's a good kid!"

Schneider said calmly, "Don't even think about it. Now we only have two options: Chu Zihang and Lu Mingfei. The B007 bloodline concentration is too low, and he's currently hospitalized with a suspected concussion."

"Don't even think about it! I know Chu Zihang is your student, but he's a complete violent type. He has twelve demerits in his mission file. Do you know how dangerous his current situation is?" Manstein said with an unfriendly expression.

Schneider looked him straight in the eye and said, enunciating each word clearly, "So, what other choice do we have?"

Manstein took a deep breath and painfully closed his eyes.

The saddest thing in the world is knowing what the worst option is, but you have no other choice but to choose it.

"Chu Zihang is indeed very talented, but he is also too sharp. He can only be a member of a team, not a solo player, so..."

Manstein paused for a moment, then said quickly,

"Commissioner Chu Zihang, Assistant Lu Mingfei!"

"Okay," Schneider said calmly.

They reached a compromise in the shortest possible time because time was of the essence.

"Norma, Chu Zihang will be the commissioner, Lu Mingfei will assist, and the school's public affairs department will be added as reinforcements. Submit this list of executive team members to the board of directors for review!" Schneider said in a deep voice.

"Understood." An elegant female voice came from all directions.

"The Board of Directors has replied, and the team has been adjusted. 'S' level Lu Mingfei has been appointed as the mission specialist, and 'A' level Chu Zihang will provide assistance to him. Chu Zihang should obey Lu Mingfei's orders."

A few minutes later, Norma's voice rang out again in the control room.

The three professors on duty were dumbfounded, and the scene was completely silent.

"My God! The Board of Directors really recognizes Mingfei's talent!" Guderian waved his hands in delight.

Manstein and Schneider felt a tightness in their chests and shortness of breath, and were speechless for a moment.

As the school's new S-rank student, Lu Mingfei was truly the most useless S-rank student they had ever seen. He had no magical powers and failed his courses.

They tried their best to find something good in him, but to no avail.

They were initially worried that Lu Mingfei would commit suicide by shooting himself because he was too outstanding, just like the previous S-class.

But the facts proved them wrong; they had been worrying unnecessarily.

What was the school board thinking, letting such a loser command a lion?

Do they have high hopes for the new S-level student Lu Mingfei, or do they want to harm him?

"Three questions," Manstein asked suddenly, looking directly into Schneider's eyes.

"Ask away, as long as I can answer."

"First, what exactly is this SS-level file?"

"Secondly, why not have B007 bring this important information directly to the academy headquarters to report? Instead, why arrange for a freshman on summer vacation to make contact? Do we need this intermediary? Lu Mingfei seems to be just a deliveryman in this mission."

"Third, even if someone was needed to deliver the package, why wasn't Chu Zihang assigned to it? Chu Zihang and Lu Mingfei live in the same city. He is the president of the Lionheart Society. Although he hasn't graduated yet, he has already completed several internship missions and is as experienced as a senior executive specialist. If he had been assigned to it, these problems wouldn't have arisen."

Manstein looked Schneider in the eye and emphasized,

Explain for me!

Schneider was silent for a moment, then said in a low voice:

"This file contains classified records from the past five years in China regarding 'unknown types of crime.' It documents a variety of inexplicable crimes. The vast majority are simply cases of cunning criminals, intricate and unpredictable methods, or rare events that can be explained by science. However, a very small number of these cases are related to dragons. What the Board of Trustees needs is this last point!"

"Furthermore, B007 mentioned in his daily report that he might be being followed. Although we couldn't find concrete evidence, he was a student who had taken our courses, and having such a strong feeling made us take precautions. That's why we arranged this handover. In order to send the files back to the main campus discreetly and quickly, we used a student. We just didn't expect the system to automatically assign the task to Lu Mingfei, probably because he was the closest? As for Chu Zihang, although he would be convenient, I removed him from the list of 'available for task deployment.' Now I've decided to use him, but it's out of necessity."

"You've hit the nail on the head, continue."

Manstein pressed on relentlessly; this has always been the style of the head of the disciplinary committee, and it's part of his professional conduct.

"There's a case in this file that might be related to Chu Zihang... We don't want him to know."

"What case?"

Six years ago, a Maybach was involved in an accident on an elevated highway due to a typhoon and heavy rain. The car was abandoned and had extensive, inexplicable damage, as if it had been stamped on a series of machines and then cut with a laser welding torch. But the driver was not in the car. No one has ever seen the driver again; he vanished from the face of the earth.

"So what? What does this have to do with Chu Zihang?"

"He is Chu Zihang's biological father."

……

……

The phone, sealed in a waterproof bag, suddenly lit up.

Chu Zihang stepped out of the shower room.

The call connected, and a hoarse but calm male voice came from the other end, "Chu Zihang. It's me, von Schneider. Do you have a pen? I'm ready to take notes."

"Wait five seconds," Chu Zihang said.

Schneider silently counted to five.

"Execution Department Emergency Mission, No. 2S: Retrieve an important document by 19:00 PM tonight. Norma has already sent the details to your email. Remember, keep things calm and don't go too far! Minimize casualties. You are in China!"

"2S? Got it." Chu Zihang tore off the note, folded it, and stuffed it into his pocket.

Schneider paused for a moment and said, "You're going back to headquarters tonight, right? Norma booked a direct flight, UA836, to Chicago for you and Lu Mingfei. Once you have the files, you and Lu Mingfei can come back together."

"Lu Mingfei?" Chu Zihang was taken aback.

He was previously surprised by the difficulty of the 2S-level mission. He had only ever taken on A-level missions before, but he went whenever his teacher asked him to. Now, however, upon hearing this name, he expressed even greater astonishment than before.

Schneider was silent for a while. He himself felt it was outrageous, but it was a decision made by the board of directors. Even if the principal objected, it might not make a difference.

He could only carefully choose his words and said, "The mission specialist for this operation is Lu Mingfei. You will be responsible for assisting him and will need to follow his instructions."

Chu Zihang also fell silent.

For a moment, he was a little confused.

He could understand acting with Lu Mingfei, but what did it mean to follow orders?

It's like the emperor summoning the general and saying, "I'm going to send you and Grand Eunuch Lu to suppress the rebels." The general naturally knows that Grand Eunuch Lu is there to supervise him; he'll have to fight the battles himself, but the credit will go to Grand Eunuch Lu. Yet, he can only accept the imperial decree and express his gratitude.

The problem is, the emperor has said he's sending you and Eunuch Lu to suppress the rebels. This time, Eunuch Lu will be in charge of the front lines, and you'll be in charge of cheering him on and running the logistics...

Is this an attempt to kill Grandpa Lu?

Does the school have a problem with him, or with Grandpa Lu?

"Understood," Chu Zihang said succinctly.

He doesn't like arguing; as the saying goes, once the teacher makes a decision, he's responsible for carrying it out.

Chu Zihang stood in front of the mirror, his face as cold and hard as iron. After removing his colored contact lenses, a faint golden light, like a ghostly fire, flickered in his pupils, revealing a ferocious look like that of a demon.

Looking directly into his eyes at this moment will surely lead you to the deepest hell.

Is it Lu Mingfei?

He was very familiar with the name.

But this familiarity doesn't refer to his S-class "prestige" or the shot he fired on Freedom Day, but rather to a scene he witnessed at Shilan High School.

The rain pattered against the window, and the playground was a white expanse.

The rain was incredibly heavy; the weather forecast said a typhoon was coming. The rain was torrential, and the thunder was deafening.

It wasn't until later that he realized it was the arrival of a king.

The arrival of a monarch is inevitably accompanied by the wrath of heaven and earth.

That day, the football field was covered with tire tracks, the grass was turned upside down, and almost everyone had been picked up, leaving only myself and a junior high school student who had been refused a ride by a female classmate.

The young boy squatted under the eaves, staring blankly at the torrential rain, watching the car that refused to take him silently glide into the rain until even its taillights disappeared completely into the rain.

He saw him stand up, his neck crooked, his head drooping, and slowly walk away along the eaves, looking utterly pathetic.

As Chu Zihang watched his retreating figure, a thought suddenly popped into his mind.

Perhaps I could give him a ride.

Unfortunately, before he could call out to him, that wretched kid wrapped his coat around his head and ran headlong into the torrential rain, fleeing in a sorry state, his lonely figure resembling a stray dog.

That was the first time Chu Zihang had heard the name Lu Mingfei, and he never forgot it since.

It wasn't until I later entered Kassel College that I heard that name again.

Chu Zihang then realized that it was also a tragedy of bloodshed.

It turns out that during those years at Shilan Middle School, there was always a boy who looked just like me.

The reason he has never forgotten this boy all these years might be because he recalls the details of that rainy night every night, or perhaps it's because the boy's disheveled figure that day was exactly like his own in the rain...

Chu Zihang turned around, pushed open the wardrobe door, and pulled open the extra-long tennis bag lying in the corner. The black sharkskin-wrapped knife handle was pressed against the tennis racket.

He gripped the hilt of the sword, drawing it an inch from its sheath. A bluish-gray light flashed out, and a chilling aura rose rapidly from his wrist.

He gripped the knife, as if he had returned to that rainy night six years ago.

Chu Zihang slowly closed his eyes.

Memories of her time with that man flashed through her mind.

……

That night.

They were all once homeless dogs.