"I love you walking alone in the dark alley,
I love the way you refuse to kneel,
I love you confronting despair, refusing to shed a single tear…"
The familiar melody of The Lonely Brave flowed softly through the cramped apartment, filling the night with a faint sense of stubborn warmth.
Lu Xingye leaned back in his chair, eyes half-closed, letting the song wash over him.
Just then—
The phone rang.
The music stopped abruptly.
Lu Xingye glanced at the screen.
Junior Sister Tongtong.
He raised an eyebrow and pressed the answer button.
"Hello."
"Senior…"
The voice on the other end was soft, anxious, and a little flustered.
"This is bad."
"My computer has a virus. Can you come take a look?"
Lu Xingye straightened slightly.
Tongtong—full name He Xiaotong—was a sophomore in the Dance Department at Yanjing University. They had met at a dorm mixer, and though there was a two-year gap between them, they kept in touch. Most of the time, she contacted him for help with computer problems. In return, he occasionally went to watch her performances.
A calm, lukewarm senior–junior relationship.
Through the phone, Lu Xingye faintly heard the hum of a hairdryer.
"A virus?" he said casually. "Just install antivirus software—"
"Senior~ I tried," Tongtong interrupted quickly. "It doesn't work. I can't even install it. The screen is locked, and I can't do anything."
"I forced a shutdown too, but when I turned it back on, it was still the same."
"And… all my roommates' computers are infected as well."
Her voice lowered, clearly anxious.
"There's a lot of very important data inside."
Lu Xingye frowned.
"That's more serious than I thought. Have you contacted the school's network security teachers?"
"…They couldn't fix it either," Tongtong said softly. "They said the virus spreads very fast, and it's extremely complicated. Senior, you're the only computer expert I know."
The plea in her voice made refusal difficult.
Lu Xingye hesitated for a second.
If this were before, he wouldn't have gone. He majored in computer science, not network security. If professionals couldn't solve it, he certainly wouldn't be confident.
But now—
He glanced subconsciously at the computer back in his apartment.
At J.A.R.V.I.S.
"Alright," he said. "I'll come take a look."
It was already past seven in the evening.
Downstairs at the girls' dormitory, streetlights glowed softly under the night sky. Couples sat on stone benches, whispering to each other without restraint.
Lu Xingye stood aside, waiting, sending a message.
I'm downstairs.
As he put his phone away, his eyes accidentally caught a couple leaning far too close together.
"…These people really don't care where they are," he muttered, turning his head away.
Just then, footsteps echoed from the stairwell.
He Xiaotong walked out.
She was wearing light pink spaghetti-strap pajamas, simple and unadorned. The thin fabric outlined her tall, graceful figure, and her skin looked fair under the lights. With damp hair loosely draped over her shoulders, she looked fresh and natural—far more eye-catching than many heavily made-up celebrities.
Lu Xingye glanced, then immediately looked away.
"…When did she get this pretty?"
"Tongtong, over here," he called.
"Here!"
She walked over briskly, holding a laptop in a pink computer bag.
"Senior, I brought it down. Can you see what's wrong?"
Lu Xingye took the laptop and opened it.
The screen lit up.
Then—
A black-and-white skull appeared.
A countdown timer.
A large QR code.
[Payment QR Code]
[23:05:58]
[Congratulations. Your computer has been encrypted.]
[Pay 10 Dragon Coins within 24 hours to restore access.]
[Failure to comply will result in permanent data loss.]
The skull grinned eerily.
Lu Xingye's expression turned serious.
"This isn't a simple virus…"
"This is ransomware."
The hacker wasn't just skilled—he was bold. Brazen enough to target an entire university network and openly extort users.
This wasn't a prank.
This was a crime.
A large-scale one.
"How is it?" Tongtong asked softly, standing close beside him.
A faint, clean fragrance drifted over.
Lu Xingye stiffened slightly, took half a step aside, and closed the laptop.
"I need to take it back," he said. "This isn't something I can fix on the spot."
Tongtong nodded quickly. "That's fine. Just… please don't reinstall the system. The data inside is very important."
"I'll do my best," Lu Xingye replied.
He placed the laptop back into the bag and turned to leave.
"Senior—wait."
He Xiaotong hesitated, her face reddening slightly.
"In your eyes… I'm a good junior, right?"
Lu Xingye paused and looked back.
"Yes."
"Then… you won't randomly look through my files, right?"
Lu Xingye smiled faintly.
"I won't."
That answer seemed to ease her worries.
He waved lightly and walked away.
Back in his apartment, Lu Xingye placed the laptop on the desk and powered it on again.
The skull appeared once more.
He leaned back in his chair.
"This hacker picked the wrong target."
"J.A.R.V.I.S.," he said calmly.
"Yes, sir."
"Analyze this ransomware. Trace its encryption logic and propagation method."
"Understood."
In the dim room, the holographic interface flickered to life.
Lines of data streamed silently.
Lu Xingye folded his arms, eyes steady.
This wasn't just about helping a junior.
It was an opportunity.
An opportunity to test what J.A.R.V.I.S. could do in this world—
and to quietly take his first step into the shadows of the internet.
Outside, the city slept.
Inside a small apartment near Shanghai University, an invisible battle had begun.