Perhaps because the partings from family were filled with a certain melancholy, most of the people in the truck remained silent.

  After helping Elena unload her luggage, Lucy didn't say much either. The two of them simply leaned against each other and, without realizing it, drifted into a hazy sleep.

  Occasionally, Elena would open her eyes slightly, squinting through the blur. To her surprise, she saw Elias. He was eighteen, the same age as her, sitting diagonally across from her and staring right at her.

  "What terrible luck," Elena thought.

  She swept her gaze elsewhere, acting as if she didn't know Elias at all. She wasn't about to let him bring her trouble like he did in her past life.

  Elena then remembered—yes, five years ago, she had also encountered Elias on this truck, and subsequently, she had met Sienna. If history were to repeat itself so strikingly, Sienna would surely appear. Elena scanned everyone on the truck one by one. Sienna wasn't there. Good.

  "Elena, are you feeling unwell?" Lucy asked.

  "No." She responded to Lucy's concern. She wasn't feeling sick at all. In her past life, she had suffered from motion sickness, but this time, she had bought medicine before leaving. Besides, after training for a while, she didn't seem to get motion sickness as easily anymore.

  After two hours of bumping along in the truck, they transferred to a train.

  The train ride was much smoother. Elena found a seat meant for only two people. She specifically let Lucy sit by the aisle while she took the window seat, hoping that would make it harder for Sienna to spot her.

  She peeled a boiled egg and was just feeding it into Lucy's mouth. She looked up, and—of course.

  The gears of fate really do turn. She saw Sienna.

  Sienna had foster parents who treated her well; she wore brand-new clothes, the bow in her hair was a fashionable style, and even her backpack and suitcase looked more high-end than anyone else's.

  She was a bright, cheerful, and polite city girl with a smile as radiant as morning light. She made a point of smiling directly at Elena.

  A bystander cried out in surprise, "Oh my, you two look so much alike!"

  Feeling utterly helpless, Elena returned a polite smile that lasted barely a second.

  Then, Sienna leaned down and spoke to the man sitting in front of Elena. "Hello, my name is Sienna. Would you mind switching seats with me? My seat is number 034."

  The man, likely assuming Sienna and Elena were sisters, simply nodded and left.

  "Hmph, she's coming specifically for me," Elena thought.

  Five years ago, she had met Sienna by chance in the aisle. Out of a sense of kinship, Elena had gone out of her way to greet her.

  It turned out it was no "accidental encounter" at all; it was a revenge plot Sienna had designed long ago. Elena remembered how she had treated Sienna as a sister five years ago, befriending her with total sincerity. How stupid. She had been bullied by a devil while believing she had met an angel.

  "I think we look very much alike too," Sienna said, flashing her white teeth in a smile before sitting down.

  "Do we?" Elena returned a polite smile, casually sizing Sienna up. "We really do. If someone just caught a glimpse, they'd think we were long-lost sisters. You boarded at Vandora, right? What a pity—our family doesn't have any relatives in Vandora."

  Sienna's smile stiffened. She had intended to use the "long-lost sisters" angle to get close to Elena, but Elena had completely shut her down before she could even start.

  What did she mean by "no relatives in Vandora"? Was she trying to sever all ties?

  Beside them, Lucy was also looking at Sienna. She studied her seriously for a moment and then shook her head firmly. "At first glance, there's a resemblance, but actually, you don't look alike."

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  In her mind, Lucy summarized: Although both had similar almond-shaped eyes, there were subtle differences. Elena's eyes were naturally "smiling"—even when she tried to act cold, there was always a trace of humanity and warmth in her gaze.

  Sienna was the exact opposite. Even when she deliberately smiled sweetly and brightly, she couldn't hide the fierce hardness in her eyes. Her pupils were always darting, looking around, constantly on guard against others.

  "Which camp were you assigned to?" Sienna asked, trying to find a topic to build a connection.Elena feigned exhaustion, squinting her eyes to sleep and ignoring her. Others, however, picked up the conversation with Sienna.

  "I'm with the ammunition depot guard unit. What about you?"

  "I'm in the hangar unit."

  "Guarding a warehouse means you don't have to go to the front lines, right?"

  "How do you all know where you've been assigned? I have no idea."

  "Shh, lower your voice. You have to bribe the officers to get an early arrangement. It's not cheap—50,000 pesos per person. My family thought it was too expensive, so we didn't pay."

  Elena listened to them discuss in silence. She already knew the truth: all the men and women on this train were going to guard warehouses at the front. The two armies were going to declare a ceasefire in a few days, and the buffer zone would be separated by UN peacekeepers.

  So, whether they were guarding warehouses or assigned to transport ammunition, they would all end up farming and producing food for the army once they reached the front. Bribing the officers was just a waste of money.

  Elena thought of her parents. Had they received such bribery offers? Probably not. What dim-witted officer would send bribery information to a family as poor as theirs? Besides, even if they had received the offer, there was no way her parents would pay 50,000 pesos for her.

  Seeing Elena's complexion worsening, Lucy thought she was tired and let her rest her head on her shoulder.

  "Miss Voss, you don't look like you're in good health," Sienna said. Since she was pretty and generous, she had already become a favorite among the group. She was now impatiently trying to rally the others to ostracize Elena. "You'll have to train and carry ammunition at the camp. Don't fall ill—and don't go begging everyone to help you when you do, tee-hee."

  Although she used a joking tone, Elena saw right through her intentions.

  Elena opened her eyes and scanned the crowd that was looking at her. She said calmly, "It's too early to say who will get sick. Besides, we haven't introduced ourselves, and no one has called out my name. How do you know I am Miss Voss? Did you secretly check my files to steal information? That is espionage!"

  Sienna's face instantly turned dark.

  She had been too impulsive.

  Before Sienna could think of an explanation, Elena spoke again. "However, I see you are beautiful and healthy. Your muscles look quite powerful, and your body seems strong and sturdy. You must be very capable. When everyone faces difficulties later, you must make sure to take care of them."

  The others listened to Elena's words and nodded in agreement.

  After saying this, Elena continued to stare at Sienna with an expressionless face. She thought to herself: In my last life, I was a fool, doing my own work and then helping Sienna with hers. In this life, Sienna can forget about using excuses to dodge physical labor.

  Sienna was stunned.

  What did Elena mean?! Was she calling her a "sturdy, powerful giant"?

  Sienna's figure was actually quite good, with curves in all the right places. But because Sienna was indeed two years older than Elena and didn't have Elena's pale, thin, and frail look, she found herself unable to refute being called "strong, sturdy, and muscular."