Chelsy Holmes and Nathan Sharles have been next door neighbours since they were toddlers. He is best friends with her brother Max Holmes so she is stucked with seeing him everyday despite how much she hates his guts! But what happens when Chelsy starts growing up and they are past sand-building and swing rides stage? What happens when feelings arise and Chelsy is coming of age?
Will she still see Nathan as just a guy next door who annoys her or will she just realise that feelings for him are starting to surface?
Find out in this sweet tooth novel!!❤❤

WARNING: Book contains Language and Mature Sexual Content. Read at your own risk ;-)

As a dark power is coming to change the human life, a new age starts. Said age is full of searching for truth by the name of dark justice. But this will bring this world into a new age of chaos that will make human lifes hard and difficult, but truthfull.
© 2019 Shada Literature Group based on "Demon Machine Beast" short story by Rongpu

Living alone in Upstate New York for the past two years, that is prior to my time travel, has greatly helped with my survival abilities. I know summer can not stay forever. Leaves will turn and fall and winter will come. And I really don't want to migrate to anywhere and then come back like the birds. I'm here to stay. For Aylen and Oota I'm their man, the pillar of their lives. Their blinding faith in me is enough motivation for me to get up in the morning and getting closer each day to live the life as an Algonquian Indian, not. 
To satisfy Aylen's forever curiosity, I have to tell her and Oota stories each night. It was first just Aylen and Oota. Soon other kids joined then their parents. Pretty soon I have the whole clan sitting around me and the bonfire listening to me telling stories of the world and their world as I know.
I tell them stories about the continents and the oceans surrounding them, about the geography of North America, about Asians arriving here across the Bering Sea and about the more than 500 tribes living on it. 
Has the Aztec Empire already fallen to the Spanish conquest? I still would not know. Let's leave it out.
"Yao, how would you know about these?" Aylen asked, about the stories I have told. "The Great Kun picked me up and I rode with him and saw it myself. The Great Kun has also told me many of the stories. " I can't say I have traveled back in time but want to put the question to rest once for all.  This is as closest as I could to convince Aylen of where I came from. I did not want to freak her out by telling her I came from the 21st Century. And believe me, it wasn't too far fetched. 

The Ojibwe or Chippewa legend has it that two sisters once wished upon the starts and ended up in heaven. Through an old lady's help in finding a tunnel they were able to come down on a rope they made. Upon landing and being stuck in an eagle's nest they called out for help and promised to marry anyone who could save them. An wolverine rescued them and they became his young wives. When the two sisters eventually decided to leave him because of his ugly looks they sought help from the trees. The legend goes that every time the wolverine howls the wind would cause the trees to whistle back to hide the sisters' whereabouts. 

Without a saw or knife or anything metal, the quickest way I could think of in setting up a winter shelter was building a mud hut, the most primitive dwelling I could think of and build. As the thick and squarely mud blocks lay drying under the Sun, my fellow citizens looked on with ever increasing awe and respect. Through trial and error the bricks also came out ok from the mud kiln I built. They would serve nicely as the brick floor for me. I wasn't about to have arthritis when I got older. I figured the average life span then should be no more than 35 years of age. Anything I could do within my own control would help and improve the situation. 
Our neighboring Iroquois are known as the people of the long house, wood framed and pelt covered, my squarely house looked much more solid and stately. Check out the stove and fire place I built in the middle of the room with an open floor plan. It was standard 6 inch clay chimney and kiln fired. To save time and materials I only built the side walls about 6 feet high, but with the gable roof on top of it, it doesn't feel low at all once one goes inside. For the exterior wall, I had it plastered with a thick layer of mud mixed with straw and cow dung, or bison dung I should say. Once tried, I sculptured on the front side a giant Kun and colored it with lime for the body and his eyes dark red with dried animal blood. 

When all finished and done, it looked more and more like a tobacco hut than a house.  I was still impressed. My friends and neighbors looked with envy. My exampled served its purpose. So I spent the next month helping and directing them in building their own mud houses. For a moment I thought I have joined the Peace Corp. But Peace Corp. couldn't get better than this. In half a year's time I have helped everyone transformed out of the Stone Age. As I fine tuned my kiln and adjusted the firing temperature and its duration, I was able to have ceramics produced out of my kilns. As the words got out I was also quickly getting a lots of customers, customers of different tribes coming from farther and farther away. And the quantities they ordered were also getting bigger and bigger. Soon I was having over a 100 people working for me. The trade was still using the barter system then, with winter coming soon, I have already acquired enough food and fur for my workers to survive the winter. It was good there was no minimum wage standard, no employee withholding taxes or 401Ks required of me. They would come later.  I do however have Sunday off for everyone. To be able to feed and house my workers was the single most important objective for me at the moment.

I separated my men from the women with men working at the kilns and women in charge of a communal kitchen I set up and the warehouse of materials we have acquired and accumulating.  To defend possible looting and attacks that might come any moment from other tribes I had to come up with a way quickly to defend us. So I had ceramic arrow heads and short swards fired and produced and armed all my men with them. Twice a week they'd train with me, long distance running for endurance, formation and marching for discipline, archery and stone throwing for attack, and close combat for survival. They were to become my first and alpha company. I wanted to make a flag for my company but we had only stick but no silk. It would have to wait until next year. Training them was essential but still not enough. My men needed indoctrination, an ideal they could work for and even die for. I needed this too. I could teach them to fight for freedom, but they were free to begin with. So I would have to think hard on this. 

Aylen wanted to join the training too I told her no. I wasn't about to let a 15 year old girl to join a bloody fight. But it is time to start a classroom as the saying goes the mind is a terrible thing to waste. So I told Aylen to round up all the kids anywhere between ten to twenty and we were about to starch a school and anyone else who'd be interested would also be welcome. Everything would have to start from scratch. Without any paper the birch bark would have to do. As blackboard and chalk would also take much time to make and of little commercial value I decided to go with a sand box. I could teach them either English or Chinese or both. Chinese derived from pictograph hence close in concept to the Indian symbols and thinking and they appear foreign hence secretive to the Europeans. But I needed to see a society of assimilation and peaceful co-existence. America is a vast land. With only about 50 million people tops, the population size even more that Wyoming, it surely can accommodate people of all races and countries of origin. As the Statute of Liberty would read,  "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" It sounds great plus English is much easier to teach and learn. So I decided to teach my students English. 
The fist class started with more than 60 people. I would teach them about one hour in the morning and one hour after dinner each day. Most of my men also joined in the attendance. Without knowing what year I was in I have to do everything I could to get them ready for the very first "contact." So aside from English, I have also started a class called "ten thousand whys." Starting with teaching them numbers and simple math as I know, I wanted to focus on increasing their knowledge from learning about the basics of the human body, personal hygiene, to the world I know of. To teach them to learn about reasoning and thinking, I would always start the class with a student to volunteer a question why and the class would go from there. 

Winter finally came with the season's first snow fall. The mountains may be blanketed in white, the blood from the coming siege has dyed my compound dark red and became rude awakening for me.

A retired Chinese American lawyer traveled back in time to North America after the fall of the Aztec Empire in the mid 1500s. To defend his newly found and extended family the young Chief Kang embarked on an epic journey to establish an Indian Nation that forever changed history.

John Doe was a strong young man, studying Mathematics in the French university of Versailles. He was quite tall and well built, something that he had inherited from his father. He had blond short hair, and light green eyes, in which you could see a bit of violet, if you looked deeper into it. He was British, but had come to France to study in order to visit the country that he loved since young. Which gastronomy could compare with French gastronomy, and whose wine could compare with French wine ? Furthermore, he was fascinated by all their stories from the middle age, with truly noble Knights, and loyal ladies... Their philosophy, too, interested him, and he couldn't count the number of French books he had read since coming there. 

So John was until now a common student at university, however, he had a dream. Maybe it was a dream that all young men had, but it was at least an important dream to him. That was to rescue a damsel in distress, and if needed, die for that (though he would prefer to die in her arms). 
He dreamt that he would need to fight against evil terrorists for that, and that he would heroically stop a shot from killing her with his arm (the left since he was right-handed). Then she would look at him with gentle eyes and confess her love to him in front of everyone...

Then one day, he was in such a situation... He was visiting the Versailles' castle with a group of friends. He had long whished to do so, since it was the top level of architectural prowess, as well as a decoration masterpiece. And, on that day, he went there, with two French friends who would guide them, and 6 other stranger students. Among them was a beautiful French girl, who he had flirted with since long ago without any result. When they entered the famous mirror gallery, they suddenly heard a sound of shooting right in front of them. John saw two people with submachine-guns, who were shooting at everyone.  He did everything along the script, going up to the men, knocking them out, and earning a few shots in the right chest, arm and shoulder. Then he looked at the girl, named Sabrina, hoping for sweet, thankful look, but she didn't do as he thought she would. Rather, she took out a submachine-gun and killed everyone around them, before kissing him on the lips, and saying "sorry sweetie, I am a terrorist too !" before shooting him to death...

On a road in the Tera Nova main continent, a humvy could be seen traveling at high-speed. Inside that humvy, a driver and 2 men. One short, one tall.
" So, how were your 6 months in hell? Still ready to take on any challenge I throw you? The taller man asked, a grin upon his face.
" If that was your best, there ain't nothing you can throw at me that can scare me, old man. '' answered the shorter one, an arrogant smile on his lips.
" Old man? How dare you? You know you've told me your real age right? You are way older than me. "
" Well maybe, but I look so much better, Haha. "

These 2 men were Commander Joseph Landon and Special Agent Henry Calvert. Commander Landon had opened up to Henry quite a bit over the 6 months of his training. He had kept watch over his results and after being thoroughly impressed with Henry's progress, he had contacted him to keep in touch. Henry had become quite the deadly fighter and a very accurate shooter. Of course this was mainly due to his ACC. He had even earned himself a nickname.
" What's this about your weird nickname though. Crimson Mantis. Sounds like an ugly bug I would want to squash. "
" Yeah Haha, I would like to see you try that old man. " said Henry, a smug look in his face.
" Hmmm. Is that a challenge Henry? You know I didn't become an officer by twiddling my thumbs right? I earned that in mud and blood. Just like this scar in my face. " smiled Landon.
" Yeah about that scar, I've heard some stories on how you got it. But none seemed real enough to believe. How DID you get it. " 
" Tell you what smartass, beat me in a duel on the VCP and I'll tell ya. I'll even lower my strength to yours. Make it a fair fight. "
" Fist fight or armed? " asked Henry with a smile.
" As you seem fit. Be at your best. I've wanted to crush that cocky attitude of yours since we met. Might as well be now. " Landon said with an evil grin.
" Okay, but don't you come crying to me later. "

Landon let out an honest laugh. And with that laugh, they both stopped talking till they got to an army base, located near the coast of the main continent.

The Virtual Combat Platform, or VCP in short, was a tool the military used to train their soldiers in 
real combat. It would simulate your body and transmit it in a program to engage in mêlée combat without risking injury.

Henry was looking forward to test out Landon's combat strength. He wondered if he could take him on now. His training had paid off, he knew it.

His best guess was that Landon thought the training has been greatly improved by the AI. But in fact, Henry had only relied on the System the first few weeks. The rest had been mostly his hard work. Of course he still took assistance from it for tough manoeuvres, it was a tool after all. But he had taken his own skills to a new level on his standard. He had asked the System to run simulations with his new skill set against the scout party he had encountered on Earth, and he had annihilated them. He was now a notch stronger than Captain Hart too. Enough for him not to rely on the AI at all if he were to fight him again. Of course that wouldn't happen. Captain Hart was dead.

Henry and Landon agreed on taking a night's rest before their fated showdown. Landon had been sly enough to tell Henry 'he would need it'. They both went to rest after their day spent travelling, both looking forward to test the mettle of their opponent. Henry got to the commune resting area and chose an empty bunk to sleep.

The next morning, Henry got up, a pep in his step. He was very excited to face off with Landon. He had heard many stories of his combat prowess during his training and he wished to test out his new combat style on a worthy opponent.

Henry knew that Commander Landon had watched his progress and fight recordings. Unfortunately for Landon, Henry had also been training at night.

At the beginning of his 6 month hell, Henry had discovered he could sap energy from his lifespan to recover from fatigue. He had no need to sleep anymore and had used that to train more. Of course such methods were taxing on his lifespan, but since he was being given blood on a regular basis, that was no problem. Especially since the military scientists in charge of him had calculated the blood he needed from the age of the nanites inside him. What they didn't know, was that the nanites had been upgraded and were running super efficiently.

So he was getting Tamarain blood transfusions every week, as upon their calculations, one dose gave him one week. But he was in fact getting 2 weeks from each dose. And that was perfect for his use, since for every day he wouldn't sleep, he lost a days worth of extra lifespan. He knew he wasn't gaining any time from this hack. But at least he was gaining knowledge and technique.

Arriving at the base's training facilities, Henry saw Landon standing near the entrance, waiting for him.
" You're just on time Agent Calvert. " said the Commander. They had agreed during the transport to stay official in the presence of other soldiers. This is the military after all.
" I'm always on time Commander. You thought I would run from our fight did you? " Henry mocked
" Well I had my doubts. " answered Landon, a cocky smile on his lips.
" Then it's time I show you a man's resolve. "

And with that, both men went into the facility. People inside saw both of them coming in and heading for the VCP pods. Wondering what was happening, many of them started turning their comms devices to the military grounds channel and logged on to the VCP community. They could all watch the match from the military closed network if they wanted.

In the next moment, both men appeared in a virtual replica of an old Earth monument. The Coliseum. Landon looked at Henry with a smile.
" Nice choice of venue Calvert. Brings back memories maybe? "
" Aha, shut it Landon. We both know I'm not that old. "
" Well who knows. You might have seen this structure in your young time. I know I haven't. "
" Are we going to fight, or are you gonna trash talk me to death? " said Henry with a cocky tone. He knew Commander Landon was a patient man, but he still wanted him to attack first.
" Okay then, but first, will you be armed or are you going bare fisted. " asked Landon.
" I'll be armed. Double kukri. There are a few tricks I would like to try on you. "
" Fine, I'll go bare fisted. I'm sure I don't need my weapons on you. You're still wet behind the ears anyway. "

Henry smiled. He wasn't going to go easy on him. To him, it was a mistake from Landon's part to underestimate him.
" Hah, don't regret it later then. " and with that, the fight began.

Both men lunged at each other, their speed equal, as Landon had lowered his body's physique to have an honorable fight. Getting closer to each other, the Commander threw a punch at Henry's face, at a speed still barely perceivable for the onlookers.

But before it hit, Henry had already shifted his body out of trajectory, as if he had never meant to go that way. Bringing in his knife towards Landon's face, right before it hit, Henry moved the blade away from it. At the same moment, Joseph had leapt back, resulting in Henry's wrist and blade forming a perfect V shape behind Landon's neck, latching on to him and following him in his jump.

In the process of flying with Landon, Henry brought his other knife in a V opposite to te first one. He also shifted his body to the side and plunged his right knee into Landon's side. When Joseph landed, that momentum and positioning transformed into a spinning force, which in turn, flung Henry around Joseph, his knives latched around his neck.

The head was hewn cleanly off of Joseph's shoulders, flying into the distance. Henry spun another turn in the air and landed on his feet a few meters away.

The spectators were voiceless. Most of them thought it was a fluke. Some with more experience thought it was little more than a lucky guess.

But to Landon, who had reappeared in the center of the arena, things had gotten serious. He had seen the killing intent in Henry's eyes the second he had thrown his punch. It was that look, that had made him try to fall back. He had seen the knife coming but had thought he could dodge it. He understood the real intention of Henry when he had unfolded his wrist and locked onto his nape. He had played right into his hands.

Now he was willing to go in with more focus. This had just awakened his intent to fight for real. He was not going to fall for that twice.
" It seems I might have underestimated you Agent Calvert. Do you mind if I also arm myself this time? "
" Sure thing Commander. I was hoping you would take me seriously the first time though, answered Henry, with a faked tone of sadness. You should also fight with your real strength. " he added.
" Don't get ahead of yourself now Calvert. I still have way more experience than you. It just simply wouldn't be fair. " Landon said.

A pair of gloves with steel knuckles appeared on the Commander's hands. He also brought out a pistol, which he attached to his hip.
" I wont go easy on you this time, rookie. "
" Ohh? Do you mean I can get serious too? " asked Henry with a smirk.
" I guess I'll stop fooling "

Landon didn't let Henry finish his phrase. He dashed right at him clenching his fists. The moment his fists were fully closed, electricity started streaking off the gloves. With shock, Henry's eyes opened wide. Jumping back to dodge the lightning covered fist coming straight for his face, he instantly realized he wasn't fast enough.

* BANG *

Henry's head blew up in a messy red mist. It was now his turn to re-appear in the center of the arena. Commander Landon didn't let Henry time to regain his composure. He landed, pivoted towards Henry, and dashed right back at full speed. Henry barely gasped for air and saw Landon coming right back at him. He understood that Joseph was trying to teach him a lesson. But he wasn't ready to abandon just yet. Making a plasma rifle appear in his hands, he started firing at his adversary while backing away. Trying to keep a safe distance from the Commander, he fired at him, taking strong side steps sideways and backwards.

A plan suddenly came to Henry's mind. Stoping right where he was, he continued firing on Landon, letting him get closer. His rifle suddenly mis-fired.

* click * * click *

Landon wasted no time. Lunging on his foe, he cranked back his arm for another deadly punch. Reaching his target, the fist was only a few centimeters away from colliding with Henry's face. But Henry suddenly dropped down, smiling at Landon. However, Commander Landon had a lot of combat experience. He knew his opponent would try this kind of tactic. He un-holstered the pistol from his hip and fired at Henry. The smile on Henry's face transformed into a grimace of pain. He took the hit in his left shoulder and crumpled to the ground. Landon picked him up and brought him at face height.
" Seems like you still lack enough cunning to trick me. You don't have experience yet Agent. Maybe in a few years. " Landon said, smiling. But his smile suddenly went sour. He heard a few clicking sounds and saw 3 metal pins drop to the ground. Henry smiled, revealing a grenade belt strapped at his waist.

" WHAT THE!! "

* BOOOOM *

After a life well lived, old age creeping in slowly, he's offered a new life with a new body and new identity. But sadly for him, things d'ont go as planed and he's in for a hell of a surprise.

On the morning of my coming of age ceremony I wake up with memories of my past life. I look at the world with new eyes, and it feels like I'm starting over. I remember every moment of both lives. My new world has magic, levels, classes, skills, and ability scores. It's a world where dungeons are places that adventures explore for treasure, not prisons found in a medieval castle. I know with a certainty that terrifies me that it's all real, even if I'm a dragon and it feels like a game. 

I fly down to the river and soak in the fresh water flowing down from the mountain. I should be freezing, but I guess that makes sense. In tabletop games, and most stories white dragons are immune to cold. Even with my eyes closed I know a small herd of deer is timidly approaching the river. I can smell their scent, and hear the quiet rustle of their tentative steps. My human senses were so dull compared to what I have now. I leave them in peace, and enjoy a long soak. Once my head clears I head to my room for fresh clothing. I stumble when I see myself in the mirror. My newly recovered human perspective can't help stopping to stare.

Snow white hair cascades down my shoulders. It looks just as pure and white as the rest of me. Pointed ears and short spiraling horns perfectly accent the most beautiful face I've ever seen. My silver eyes are slitted like a cat, or more accurately, slitted like a crocodiles. Tiny scales cover my hairless body. I didn't think about it before. I've been bruised, but I've never had even a small scrape or cut since being reborn into this body. These scales truly are armor. My feet are closer to a reptile than a human, and have prehensile toes ending in talons. They make climbing easy, but I'll miss shoes. My hands look human, except my fingers end in silver talons instead of soft fingertips. These would have made masturbating dangerous when I was human. A smile curls my lips as I remember just how nice my sensitive prehensile tail can feel. I have better alternatives now. I cup my breasts with a smile. Big enough to attract the eyes without constantly being in the way. No back pain. I wonder if the tail counterbalances my breasts so that my back is under less strain? I turn around so that I can take a look at my butt and tail. Wow. I'm literally the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. My hands drift down between my legs. Everything is hidden behind a slit, just like every other reptile, but memories assure me that it's all there.

A fresh trickle of my parents comforting scent drifts into my room. They are waiting for me. Even the memories whirling through my head can't prevent an excited smile from spreading across my face. I quickly dress and head into the main cavern to meet them.

My parents don't enjoy social games or pompous ceremony, so use the short version of the ceremony.

My parents wait for me in their greater forms. 

Speaking simultaneously they both say, "A century ago we welcomed a precious child into our heart and lair. Is she ready to set aside her childhood and find her own place in the world?"

"I am ready to put aside my childhood."

Still speaking simultaneously they say, "Then you are no longer welcome in our lair. Gather your possessions and meet us outside."

Just a few short sentences brings my childhood to an end. The clothes on my back, a map, a few coins, and my backpack are all I can take with me. I gather my gear and head outside. I'm glad they used the "Gather your possessions and meet us outside" alternative instead of "Gather your possessions and leave." It implies that they have a final gift for me.

Mother and Father meet me in their humanoid form. Father says "We have one final gift to help you explore this world." Mother hands me a scroll, and says. "This will grant the skill [Appraise]. Using it will grant information about your target. The information returned will become more detailed as you grow in power. It also prevents the [Appraise] skill from being used on you."

I thank them for the final gift. 

While I've never seen a skill scroll before, I know how they work. I quickly unroll the scroll and magical runes flow into my mind as raw concepts without using languages or words. The strange twisting power fills my consciousness, and the world is pushed away. When I come back to myself I'm laying on the floor just inside my parents home, and my head aches like the worst hangover I've ever had.

I force myself to my feet. I'm not supposed to be here. I'm an adult now, and this is their lair, not mine. The human part of me doesn't mind, but it feels wrong to my dragon side. I stumble my way outside, and relax when I find both of them are waiting for me. Something about them being outside turns the situation around to my instincts. Instead of me invading their lair, they abandoned the lair, and an abandoned lair is free for anyone to claim. Once I leave they will reclaim it, and our relationship will remain in balance.

"Next time I suggest you wait until laying down and ready to sleep before reading a skill scroll. The skill doesn't activate until you have a full night of sleep anyway." says father.

"Knowing about something is far from experiencing it for yourself." Says mother. 

The crinkling scent of amusement coming from them makes me feel like a child, but I take a deep breath and bury the feeling. It's time for me to live my own life. I head towards the nearest city. At least I hope it's the nearest city. My only map is hundreds of years old, and I don't even know if it was accurate when it was new.

The gods created a game-like world for their high-stakes contest, and Ciarra is the most powerful of their pawns, she ignores little things like racism, bigotry, and societal norms.

One little foxkin who has lived a hard and brutal life becomes Ciarra's pet. For the first time in years, she has hope, and a chance to follow her dreams.

Assuming Ciarra, an amoral sexual sadist doesn't kill her first.

Expect LOTS of sex, DUBCON, lesbian harem, very rough sex, NSFW themes, dark themes with a chance for a brighter future, and dragons eating vanquished foes - both literally and figuratively.

I'm finally free. My little sister really enjoys when I read to her, and with the second volume of the princesses books our mother brought recently, she became once again obsessed with those 'new' stories. 

It has been a really bad year. I went from believing I had a lot of time to introduce all kinds of stories to the world, to realize that I wasn't the only reincarnated person in the world. And the others were not playing around like I've done until now.

One guy has already written three books, with a fourth coming out soon. Another one has somehow made a cartoon for tv. And there were at least three others making their 'own' comic books, if the information my father has is correct.

Fortunately no one has touched any of the titles I love. But that didn't mean that no one was planning on it, or even worse, already doing it. So now I could only work hard and pray for the best possible outcome. 

"Rachel! It's time to go, are you ready?" My father called me. 

We were going to the comic publisher where my father has some friends. I planned to familiarize myself in the comic business to eventually make one of my own. After all, I have a talent for drawing and I know many interesting stories. 

"Yes daddy" I said with a sweet smile. I couldn't have him regret his decision after all the time I had spent convincing him to bring me there. 

"Are you really planning on making your own comic?" My father asked once we were on the road. 

"Yes! After you told me about the other kids my age doing so much, it inspired me" I replied with extra enthusiasm. 

My father sighed at my answer, "I know that you're a really talented girl with a precious gift, but you don't need to try this hard. You're young, and it worries me all the effort you been putting these last days" He said with a soft tone. 

It's true that I have been working hard lately. And I'm grateful for the care that my father always gives me. But it's nothing serious, he's just perplexed with the sudden change in my attitude. I went from a relaxed and playful girl, to a hard working one who hardly plays anymore. 

"I know daddy. I just want to try it out and see what happens with my own eyes" I finally said. There was no way I could explain to him the importance of not wasting time. 

The rest of our time in the car was filled with the typical questions about school and the friends I've made. My suffering only stopped until we arrived to our destination, where I finally could get out to get some needed space. 

I didn't had any expectations for the place, but still I have to admit that I was somehow disappointed. It was just a building, with no special details worth mentioning, besides the big sign at the entrance. 

Fortunately the interior had more life to it. There were some people walking from one side to the other, talking and discussing loudly about many things. 

Among the group of people there was one of my dad's friends, an amicable looking middle age guy, who was a little on the fat side. When he saw us, he approached with a happy expression on his face. 

"Robert! Nice to see you" He said before giving my father a short hug. 

"I see that you haven't left the hamburgers, huh?" My father joked. 

"Hahaha, I tried it for a couple of days... Never again!" He replied. And then they proceeded to joke around for a extremely long time. In my unbiased opinion. 

"Glenn, this is my daughter. Rachel" My father suddenly said. I was starting to think that he forgot to introduce me in the first place. 

"Hello Mr. Glenn, I'm Rachel. It's nice to meet you" I saluted him politely. 

"Nice to meet you too!" He said to me with a smile, "Are you sure that she's your daughter? She's cute and well mannered after all" He joked again. But I sure wasn't going to let them go at it again. 

"Mr. Glenn, what is everyone doing? They seem to be discussing something important" I asked while pointing the group of people in front. 

"Oh! They are discussing about work, we have some deadlines to accomplish after all... Although the topic now is about Michael. A kid who's making this really cool comic book named 'The walking dead' " He explained. 

"Is Michael here?" I asked quickly. I really wanted to meet another person in my situation. Maybe the possibility of working together wasn't impossible after all. 

"Yes, do you want to meet him?" He asked with interest. 

I just nodded in confirmation, and after some more small talk between the 'adults', we went towards one of the rooms in the building. 

Inside, there was a young kid my age discussing with two adults about something related to the violence of the comic, according to what I could hear. 

The kid, that should be Michael, had a beautiful shiny blonde hair, although a little too long for my liking. He had pale skin, a small pointy nose, and deep blue eyes. He's definitely cute. 

"Ok, let me ask the boss" One of the adults said, and then walked away. 

Taking advantage of the situation, I approached quickly with a clear intention on mind. "Hey there. I'm Rachel" I introduced myself to the pair in front of me. Although my eyes never left Michael. 

"Hello Rachel. I'm Thomas and this is my son Michael" He said once he noticed his son's lack of interest. 

"Tom! How is it all going?" Glenn asked once he and my dad got closer. 

Like I supposed, there was a problem about how violent the comic was turning out. What did surprise me, was that no one mentioned the fact that a little kid imagined that violence in the first place. 

The adults were discussing about it, so I finally made my move, "Hey, are you planning in doing the whole farm storyline? I ask because I wasn't really a fan of that part in the TV show" I said with a mischievous smile. 

I totally caught him off guard. His expression transformed quickly from irritating and expressionless, to one full of surprise and I even dare to say relief too. 

"Come with me" He simply said after a while, and walked towards one corner of the room. I signaled my father where I was going and then followed him. 

"So another one has appeared" He said playfully when we reached a 'safe' spot. 

"Why are you trying to act like I didn't surprise you? Your face before was pure gold" I joked. 

"Ha ha, a funny one I see" He said, adopting a more serious expression. "Let's drop the act. Why are you here?" 

"Do I need a reason to present myself to you?" I asked back. I wanted us to have talked casually for a longer period of time before we started with business. But he obviously had other plans. 

He just sighed with a tired expression at my words, "Well, let me present the situation from my perspective first, so we'll both are in the same place" He said with a low tone that totally didn't match his boyish looks. 

"I don't know how many reincarnated people there are. And I suspect, given the people I'm aware of, that we all were born around the same year... What I do know, is that we have a big opportunity to succeed thanks to our bast knowledge of future inventions. But like the kids we are, we are limited in our actions... So, the entertainment industry turned out to be the best alternative for us to tackle. Comics, books, tv shows, music. There's a lot of possibilities... "

"I'm aware of that. In fact I'm planning to make a certain story on my own. Which, as you could have guessed, is the principal reason of my presence here" I said with a small smile.  

"That's cute" He smirked, but it didn't last long before his serious expression returned "...In my case, once I realized the situation I was in, all I could think of was to make this one property I loved and make it my own. Give it my own spin if you may...But I was late" 

That sucks, I really hope that doesn't happen to me. And considering that 'Harry Potter' is very popular, it could happen at any time. 

"What was the property you wanted to make?" I asked. I didn't want to pry, but my curiosity was bigger. 

"Star wars" He admitted, "A girl named Carla presented the idea earlier to other comic publisher" 

I completely forgot about that one. It will be hard to make it popular at this time though. And introducing it with a comic instead of a movie, will make it even more difficult. 

"Do you know of others like us?... Besides Carla I mean" I was curious, and he seemed to know more than me about the others. 

"So you really want to join the fun, huh?" Michael said, while he genuinely smiled for the first time. "Well you're in luck, thanks to my father I was able to get to know about most of the competition... 

There's this unknown girl, who I believe will participate in a kid show. But she's going with the music route, so I'm not that interested about her.

Miguel, who I discovered recently, is writting 'The chronicles of Narnia'. Although I been told that it will take him some time to finish.

And the worst of all, even more so than Carla, is this guy who doesn't know how to take it easy. Samuel..."

Samuel Bane, a guy who was just a normal 23 year old in another life, was living in a new world with his memory intact. 

The new world is almost exactly the same as the one he lived before, except that the period of time was similar to the mid 80's that he knew by the movies and tv shows he watched.

This story will focus on how Sam enters the entertainment business. Getting his works published and meeting new people on his way towards an unheard level of success. 

The concept of the story has inspiration in "I'm really a super star", but it's nothing alike.


> Currently I'm posting a chapter every Tuesday.

The wind whistled in Leo's ear as he prepared for landing. His balloon had been swaying across the ocean and small lands for days, and he was bored to his skin. He had been waiting so long for this trip, to see his uncle, to go on crazy adventures under the ocean and to do so many things that he'd never dream of doing, never in his life. But he was here, in the moment, and he was ready to give it a shot. He checked all his luggage, hoping he had everything. He searched through draws, and under the bed. There was a book case, in which was stacked with books for him to read on his journey. He had read every single one of them, and checked the shelf in case he forgot one of his own. He had searched the place through and through and had got everything together. He made the bed, and cleaned the place for the next person who was to board the balloon next for wherever they were off to. Flying over the ocean made Leo feel a bit sick at times, but there had never been an incident on these services before so he came to trust himself. These were fine conditions, too, he had never come across dark clouds or rain, it had just been cloudy and sunny days. It had never got too hot not too cold, it was just perfect. Hey he was bored out of his skin, so landing down on the ground and finally having other things to do, he was pleased about very much. He stretched and yawned and did a few moves, using his legs to the fullest. Eventually, the island came into sight. It was very large, and very high up. It was more of a cube shaped mountain, with everything on top, buildings and shops etc. It was a marvellous sight to Leo, having never seen something so magical. A small red dot in the horizon marked out his landing zone, where he would hoist the rope and hook himself down. He was still a few minutes away so he decided to wait things out. He thought about his Uncle. His Uncle was a nice man, and was so happy to hear them at Leo was coming. They had only met twice, Leo meeting him at age 3 and 7, both time's in awe of what his Uncle would tell him. Stories from the deep. That's what his uncle called them. So meeting his uncle would be very odd, as Leo had changed quite a bit. Leo had short, brown hair, wavy and silky. He had green and blue eyes, a sort of mix, creating a small turquoise. He was wearing a blue shirt and comfortable lacy shorts, and a pair of not so flashy trainers. He wasn't in to fashion so much. He was 17 of age, but looked almost 5 years older. He was always underdeveloped as a child, small and skinny, other children growing over him and he thought he wouldn't get anywhere, but when he got to 15 he just shot up. People wouldn't ask for ID when he purchased things, because they could just tell he was older, even if he was truly under age. He didn't like it that way though, so he kept himself quiet about it. He sat silently for a few minutes, away with his own thoughts, until he was just about hovering over the small bases on the mountain. There was only 5, and about 9 people lived there. One shop between them, and that was all. Just a lonely island. Leo brushes his hair out the way to get a better look, before picking up his bags. He grabbed a large, cold metal chain and marked out a position. Below him, was the corner of the island. He was floating just above landing zone. He was thinking about what the area would look like. Would it be dark? Would it be beautiful or just a dingy looking place? All of this would be revealed. Leo looked down over the side of the balloon. He could see two small dots, obviously people. They were waving some red sparklers to mark out where to land, so Leo signalled that he was to drop down the heavy anchor. The two people moved out of the way, as Leo went back to the chain. He unravelled a few strings and flipped a switch. The anchor dropped down immediately, hoisting the balloon down, some books falling off the edge, leaving Leo falling in a thud. The wind howled, as the balloon slowly went spiralling downward, and Leo held on. The ground was getting bigger as he was going down, and he was only a few metres from the ground now. He finally ate something, some sweet tea cakes, and took a swig if water. He was here. The balloon finally landed on the hard stone ground, and Leo looked around. It was a nice place, with a few birch trees having and blowing softly in the cool breeze, and shrubs and bushes of all sorts. He caught sight of a woman in a white coat. She looked at him and nodded. So Leo bent over the edge and placed one foot down on the ground, and then the other.

Kai has lived his 13 years of life in the small village of YaoLang and seeks for a better life than the dismal and plain one he abides. But when a girl comes into his life, Ling, he immediately falls in love. After spending days and months with her, drying the soaking misery of his life, he soon finds out the girls secret charm. Ling, the girl he once loved, is not really a girl at all. Instead, she is a dragon.

This girl was a redhead, and literally. Her hair was scarlet, almost the hue of blood, just enough on the unnatural side to be magical. She flaunted it, obviously quite proud of it. It set off her pale, almost milk-white complexion, and the scattering of faint freckles along her cheekbones only seemed to accentuate them more.

 She might have been ten, but she knew she was beautiful, how to use it, and was obviously known by all those about. Her attire was clean and simple, but the flame symbol at her throat was an alert to anyone who knew anything that she was a sorceress of flame, and even if she wouldn't be very powerful at her age, those dark robes meant she had a backer, and testing them would be a bad idea.

 She was very confident and at ease, clear in her beauty and power, but few could see that behind her golden eyes was a clear and cold mind at work, that knew the ugly parts of the world and what they meant. She was neither clean nor innocent, despite her appearance, and she knew how to survive and play the game of life.

 And then she stopped in place, blinking in consternation.

 There were three people in front of her, two girls and a grown woman. They were all definitely singular in appearance. The woman was tall and graceful, dark of hair and golden of skin, a beauty desirable by any man... and in the robes of a Sylunar Priestess, not to be touched by those who desired to see the next evening. The older girl's hair was pure green, a strange hue that did not seem to be related to water or plants or anything, really. The smaller girl was like a doll, white haired and pale-eyed, and staring at her in nearly as much consternation as she was at the two girls.

 She had never felt a sensation like this. It was like... sisterhood?

 Instantly her defenses came up. Strangers were always trying to take advantage, it had been a cruel lesson she had learned repeatedly.

 Both of the girls looked up at the woman with complicated expressions. "You're right, she is one of us, Sister Hazé," the emerald-locked girl said, before turning her eyes back on the scarlet-haired girl.

 "The Void Brothers are rarely wrong about such things, especially the Fire and the Sword."

 The girl with scarlet hair froze on hearing that. She lived in a certain segment of society where dire stories proliferated, and those of the Void Brothers were definitely among those. The Fire and the Sword was a Mage Slayer incarnate, something no arcane Caster would take lightly.

 The Priestess looked at her, assessing. "What is your name, little sister?"

 This question was not light, coming from a Moon Priestess. It acknowledged her as a Fellow Caster. She puffed up despite herself.

 "I am Amber, m'lady," she said, even managing a partial bow despite herself. This woman came from a very different class of people then did she, but she wasn't any more beautiful, only more powerful... for now...

 "Would you be available to have a short chat?" The Priestess gestured at a park nearby, and an empty bench there. Amber looked over at, debating risk and reward. Her errand was not that urgent, and this did not sound like it was dangerous. The eyes of the two girls staring at her were filled with strange, knowing emotions... she suddenly felt like they were older and wiser then her, even the little one who didn't come up to her chest. "Verd and Veis would like to speak with you."

 "I, I think I can spare a few minutes," she sniffed proudly.

-----------

 "What is it you wish to speak me about?" Amber asked, glancing after the Priestess who was walking away from them, her brow furrowing. She was on guard against the Priestess; who knew what magic the woman commanded, but these two felt like talking to two new best friends, a very odd sensation to her, who had mostly dealt with older women around her all her life.

 "I see that you can feel the sisterhood bond between us," Verd spoke up, and Veis, with her huge pale blue eyes, nodded along, so incredibly cute Amber wanted to pick up and hug her despite her resentment. The sadness in those eyes was aching to see, overriding her estimation of the girls' high stations.

 "I... sisterhood?" She felt uncomfortably aware that if she lied, it would be sensed immediately.

 "Yes. We are all Hagchildren." Before Amber could process that, Verd pointed at herself, fingering her hair. "My Hagmother is a greenhag. Veis' Hagmother is a stormcrone. Yours is a shellycoat."

 Amber felt her breath catching in her throat, her heart pounding at a revelation like this. She looked back and forth between them, a refutation, an accusation, denials and protests trying to leap off her tongue... and found she simply couldn't believe they were lying to her.

 That... she was the daughter of a shellycoat? "I-I don't know much about Hags," she whispered, her eyes wide, and stomach doing flipflops. "I thought I had a bloodline of fire from my father..."

 "You might, but it's irrelevant. Your Hag blood will take over, unless it's stopped. We came here to help you, and take you away from here before your Hagmother grabs you, and makes you one of them."

 Amber found herself shivering so hard she almost convulsed. My Hagmother is coming for me... the words whispered in her mind, like a nightmare slowly uncoiling, waiting for this very moment to stir in her a dread she'd never known.

 "I can't... my mother, my aunts-" she started to protest. Both girls, with their sad, sad, pained eyes, shook their heads together.

 "Don't go back there." Veis' voice definitely had an aristocratic accent, despite her age. "It's a very bad place."

 Amber felt her anger rising, and her face flushed with resentment at their judgement, but Verd spoke up before she could defend it. "It's a werespider nest."

 Her passionate defense of the women she lived with and their lifestyle being judged by those born to higher station suffered a choking death in her throat. Amber felt like she had almost swallowed her tongue.

 "We-werespiders?" she repeated, almost screeching, as things began to crawl in the back of her mind. Glimpses of strange things she attributed to the illusion magic so many of the women who worked there had, adding an air of mystery and danger to everything.

 "You've never been down below, have you? Below the basement with all the costumes," Verd said. 

 Amber felt her pulse roaring in her ears. She knew that sometimes abusive, cheap, or notorious customers were sometimes brought below, and never heard from again. The women just laughed it off with knowing smiles, men getting their rightful comeuppance from women who knew how to take care of themselves...

 "It's a spider's nest, a big one, where they go in their alternate forms." Verd's nose wrinkled. "They have a servant spider down there, guarding their treasures, meals strung up in great cocoons. Oh, and there's a phase spider that can go ethereal guarding the whole building. Its webs run inside the walls, and keep out stalkers. It lives up in the attic, and eats all the thieves that try to break in."

 "Ugggh." Veis' shudder was more convincing then a thousand stories. She squirmed with a total revulsion that was impossible to emulate.

 Amber swallowed again. She had been told there was a monster in the attic that ate thieves, and not to disturb it, ever. She had once seen a client who refused to pay get taken down by a poisoned stiletto, hauled up to the third floor, and bundled up the ladder to the attic. Something had reached down and hauled him into the darkness, and they'd shut the ladder up and left it, just like that.

 She had definitely never gone up to investigate.

 "I... what about my mother?" she asked, wide-eyed now. "I mean, I look so much like her..."

 Both girls shook their heads. "No," corrected little Veis firmly. "She looks like YOU. She's a Red Widow. They can look however they need to. She's not-not your mother!" Veis started tearing up like she was going to cry, and Verd pulled her back for a hug. Amber was not at all sure she wanted to hear the story behind that statement, as she had the feeling it was far too much like what she was confronting.

 She took a deep breath, trying to calm her raging emotions. She had always been around the workers at The Crimson Rose, women who were calm, calculating, and deadly if they needed to be.

 All of them, so much alike in temperament. Very few arguments, very few differences, performing their duties in the sex trade with complete aplomb and occasionally dangerous proficiency. They never seemed to get sick, they all had wonderful complexions and dark charms, especially her mother...

 Not like any other brothel in this city. The women there looked beaten so quickly, exhausted by the trade and its unrealistic demands for the soiling of perfection. And they all had bouncers...

 There were no men working at The Crimson Rose. There was no venereal disease among the women...

 Amber swallowed again, trying to bring all this together in her head. "They work for my Hagmother..." she found herself saying, and knew it was true.

 Verd nodded with her. "Probably. Shellycoats are almost all involved in the sex trade. The werespiders have been spreading a nasty form of syphilis which can be activated with a magic Ritual. Sister Hazé has already let the White Mothers know, and is working on an antidote for when they activate it. It will probably hit thousands all at once, their clients and their other lovers."

 Amber wanted to laugh coldly about such hypocrites getting a taste of their own medicine, but the women they were cheating on were not guilty of anything, and would die too. She had certainly seen enough of them, cheated on by husbands and lovers for mere coin, giving the lie to all their promises of love...

 "I-I," she started, and then stopped. "I don't know what to do..." It was a very hard thing to admit. She prided herself on being able to take care of herself, but this, this...

 "Come with us. We sisters need to take care of one another," Verd said, and Veis stepped forwards to take Amber's hands, staring at her.

 Hagchildren. Sisters cursed by Hags, bound by more then blood. No one else could understand what it meant to be someone like them.

 Amber swallowed as she looked into the too-old eyes of this little girl, and knew that her own eyes were starting to reflect the same thing.

 "What... what about my mother, and my aunts?" she found herself asking. She knew she couldn't go back. The women were sharp, attentive, and would notice something was off about her immediately.

 Both of the girls looked in a certain direction, and Amber followed suit, turning around.

 Back in the direction of the Crimson Rose.

 Fire exploded up in the sky, erupting out from below, a raging cone of fire of tremendous fire. A cyclone of flames spun out of it, roared back down in the distance. She heard the rumble of the explosion seconds later, and another blazing set of flames rose in the distance, sending smoke soaring high and far.

 "Sister Hazé started at the bottom," Verd said calmly. "She's killing the rest of them now." She looked at Amber sympathetically, as the red-haired girl turned back. "She's already killed the Red Widow." There were two strokes of lightning coming down from above, in different locations. "Those are the safehouses they are trying to reach. She trapped them last night. They're burning too." More pillars of smoke joined the climb to the skies. "She'll be back in a few minutes to bring us away from here. Do you want her to save you from your Hagmother?"

 Amber thought of Rose Crimson, the premier courtesan and owner of The Rose Crimson, who she had always called mother, and until this moment, thought actually was. A false love, a manipulation that had started with the day she was born, no doubt...

 A stranger, taking advantage...

 "I don't have anywhere else to go," she murmured, and knew it was true. There were places she could go, certainly, but the first thing they would want to do is take advantage of her beauty, and she knew what would follow thereafter. "She isn't a hagchild... is she?" She did not have any sense of sisterhood with the woman.

 Both girls shook their heads. "Teacher!" they said together.

 Amber didn't debate long, seeing the pained conviction in both of their eyes. "I will come with you..." she murmured, and both girls smiled sadly, yet happily.

 "It's going to be horrible," Verd promised with a straight face. "She's a total slave-driver, insisting we be able to take care of ourselves."

 Amber could totally agree with that philosophy. "She is obviously powerful..." Both girls nodded.

 "And you will love Mama!" Veis spoke up happily.

 "Mama is wonderful," agreed Verd calmly, and Amber found herself looking forward to meeting her, despite herself.

------

 It was only ten minutes before Sister Hazé returned, unmarked and unruffled, and not looking at all like she had carried out a massacre of werefolk and a demonic shapechanging arachnid. She just looked at Verd, who nodded; so did Veis; and her eyes turned to Amber, who also slowly nodded.

 They walked a short distance away into an alley. Magic came up, and took all four of them away.

Note: As of 5/15/2020, this novel has moved to Royal Road (chapter 534).
 
Some time ago, a great and powerful Archmage tried to save the planet of Terra from impeding disaster by inventing a VR game to train the gamers who survived the apocalypse to defend humanity.

That game was the Power of Ten.

This is not that story.

This is the story of what happens when your patron gods realize you've invented a system to imprint ass-kicking VR characters onto souls, and decide to take advantage of some of those character templates!

Book One:
Join Sama and her allies as she first has to endure what it means to be a hagchild, and then on her road to Ten!
----------
Book Two: Space, the final frontier. In the grim darkness of the far future of a galaxy far, far away, there came a hagchild...
QX!
----------
 If you want exclusive, early access to upcoming chapters, you can support me on my new Patreon @ https://www.patreon.com/ThePowerofTen
 added 10/24/2019!

Updates Daily (on Royal Road now). Average Chapter length is about 2,000 Words (4+ Word Pages).

I have some expired Discord links in the author comments. My Discord Channel is The Power of Ten, TPoT, and I have Discord up all the time I'm on line, if you have questions or want to chat. The permanent link is:   https://discord.gg/gJ6fRs9

If you have confusion with terms or abbreviations, just reply to one of my comments, and I'll put it into the author notes for everyone!
If you are reading through, make sure to check the reader comments areas. I answer a lot of questions there.
I have added more acronym explanations to the early chapters in response to reader feedback. As of 6/8/2019, there is a glossary addended to Chapter One!

Even before he asked, Hyunwoo could detect her real identity because her face clouded suddenly.
At that moment, Principal Daewon Kim stopped him in a quiet voice.
"Sometimes you had better pretend not to know even when you know it all."
Only then did Hyunwoo realize he made a mistake because he already knew why Yuni of Hey Girls quit her entertaining career. Besides, he was also aware of her hidden story not known to the general public, which he heard from Jinyoung Paek.
She had to quit because of Taesu Ahn, the president of AT Entertainment. When Taesu demanded she had sex with him, she refused. Then, he fabricated a sex video about her and spread rumors about her affair with him.
In particular, the sex video scandal shocked the public. Though Yuni denied it, it was impossible to identify her because of its bad image quality, and as a result, the video quickly spread under her name. 
That happened when she was only 22, something she could not bear at that tender age. Worse, AT Entertainment didn't give her an opportunity to appear on TV.
Even after her contract expired, broadcasting companies rejected her because of  the pressure of AT Entertainment, which was regarded as a big player in the broadcasting market.
Yuni disappeared from the broadcasting world, and it's been three years since then. 
I now see her real name was Soyun Han.
Hyunwoo looked at her again.
When the meeting was over Hyunwoo couldn't stay anymore. And he felt sorry for her.
"Well, let us leave now."
"Thanks. We'll hold a music contest sooner or later and try to select the best music entry."
"Sure, we'll be ready then."
Hyunwoo left the alternative school, but could not erase her face from his memory for a while.

***
"What a poor little girl!" said Heejung's grandmother, letting out a sigh.
As she was so poor, Heejung had to give up studying, let alone her dream.
Though her grandmother wanted to make money to support her granddaughter, she couldn't.
With a deep sigh, she headed for the senior center, the only place where she could find solace. 
Suddenly, she saw a sign on the top of the building that housed the senior center, called 'Ani & Funny'. The sign was small and dimly lit in the night, so nobody paid any attention to it.
To Heejung's grandmother, however, the sign was so beautiful and precious. For her granddaughter had a dream in it. 
For a while, Ani & Funny was the topic of the seniors. They came to know the senior center, located on the 2nd floor of the building, was built thanks to the active support of Ansan City. They felt that even though the sign was nondescript and small, the company Ani & Funny must be a promising one.
It would be great if my granddaughter could work in that place, she thought.
While she was looking at the sign for a while, someone said hello from behind.
When she turned her head, it was Hyunwoo, the representative of Ani & Funny. 
Hyunwoo sometimes visited the senior center with bread and meat, so she knew him well.
Today, he was holding a heavy package on both hands. Actually, he was on his way back after checking with the customs office of Ansan City to see if he could find an experienced customs agent looking for a job.
"Oh, it's you, Hyunwoo. What's that?"
"Some bread and soft drinks for you. Why are you out here and not coming in?"
"I was about to."
When they went in, Hyunwoo found an old lady called Mrs. Paenamu who was familiar to him as she often went on outings with him. 
"Enjoy then," said Hyunwoo.
"Thanks for this."
After briefly saying goodbye to them, Hyunwoo walked up to the office of Ani & Funny upstairs.
As soon as he left, Mrs. Paenamu began to praise him.
"Do you know what a great guy he is? You know that orphanage called the House of Happiness over there, right?"
"Yea, it's a very large one."
"I heard he bought computers for the kids and even hired some teachers to teach them."
"How wonderful!"
"Besides, many students are coming here every evening to learn from Hyunwoo upstairs."
"What is he teaching them?"
"Animation."
Heejung's grandmother's jaws dropped at that. Receiving personal tutoring on animation was her granddaughter's long-cherished dream, and that had been happening upstairs without her knowledge for a while.
Suddenly, she came nearer to Mrs. Paenamu and said, "Can I ask you a favor?"
"What favor?"
"In fact, my granddaughter was anxious to…"
Hearing her explanation, Mrs. Paenamu felt it was an easy job.
"No problem. Let's go upstairs now."
"Right now?"
"What's the difference if we do it now or tomorrow?"
When they came upstairs to the office, there were no Anifan kids there, only full-time staff, along with Hyunwoo.
"How can I help you?" asked Hyunwoo.
"Well, I've got some favor to ask of you."
"What is it?" asked Hyunwoo seeming to agree before he'd even been asked.
Mrs. Paenamu explained to Hyunwoo that her granddaughter, a sophomore in high school, was studying animation but could not go to a private tutoring center as she could not afford to, and asked if he could accept her as a part-timer.
Then, Heejung's grandmother stepped in quickly and said, "Phew, you don't have to pay her if you accept my granddaughter as a part-timer. I just thought she could learn a lot while working here as a part-timer."
And then she tried to read Hyunwoo's mind. She was nervous because he might reject her favor. 
But Hyunwoo was already thinking of it favorably.
Oh, I've got an idea!
In fact, Ani & Funny was short-handed now. There was no tangible progress in the speed of animation production even though his staff concentrated on Garbage World at the expense of Tuti & Angelica for the moment. 
Suhim Yu, the storyteller, already completed several stories. Some of them featured flowers and insects with a rose and bees as the main characters and some about school supplies with a stubby pencil as the naughty main character. Her brain was full of ideas.
But they could not embark on making the characters suitable for the stories, let alone the storyboard because they were short of hands.
That's why Hyunwoo rejected Jinhon's request for another music video, and instead okayed a couple of music videos per year through an open contest at their alternative school. 
With a bright smile, Hyunwoo said, "Please bring her here. I'd like to test her abilities first. Even if she fails, I hope you won't be disappointed."
"Thanks a million, Hyunwoo. Thanks so much," said Heejung's grandmother.
Then, she held his hands tightly.
That evening Mrs. Yang's granddaughter visited the office, but she was not alone. She brought four friends of hers.
"Hello. I'm Heejung Yang. My grandmother told me to come over here for a test. These are my friends. We're learning animation together."
They said hello to him, feeling sorry that they came with Yang without his approval. 
But Hyunwoo didn't blame them. The more, the better for him.
After talking with them briefly about animation, Hyunwoo got more interested in them.
All of them had been interested in animation since they were middle school students, so they had at least two to three years of studying in animation.
Kyungsu and Sanggyu were still in the office.
Hyunwoo said, "Could you test them?"
"Sure. Tell me about your strength in animation work."
"I don't know that yet. We've just drawn several animations for practice."
"Really? Can I see that?"
Heejung handed him a USB, and her friends also took out USBs one by one. Kyungsu played them. Their animation works were simple video snippets showing the fighting scenes, a crying  girl running on the street and a witch casting spells. 
Certainly, their work had an amateur's touch. The picture was rough, and the coloring was clumsy. Nonetheless, there was something attractive beyond description.
Sanggyu played one USB several times and uttered an exclamation.
"Who did the layout for this? Was it you?" asked Sanggyu, turning to Heejung. 
She nodded.
"Though you are amateurs in drawing, your sense of the space layout is much better than mine," said Kyungsu, praising her.
"I think you used the story very effectively. In particular, the fighting scene was pretty dynamic even with a few charts of story."
"Wow, she is good at seizing the right movement of the characters. Look at the moving hair!"
Sanggyu suddenly stopped it when he was about to point to a girl's bosom with his finger. Actually, the girl's full bust in the animation work was expressed too bluntly.
Though he wanted to praise it, he realized Heejung and her friends were high school students in uniforms, so found it awkward to point it out. 
"Anyway, I feel good about your work. You can do better if you develop your sense of animation further."
"Then, can you accept us?"
Heejung and her friends asked with full of expectation. With their arms folded before their bosoms, they looked so desperate.

Miracles don't come walking your way by themselves.

It is your decisions and will that determine these.

A story of a man who created miracles.

**Munpia Novels**

------
The previous chapters were mistakenly released under 《Remember The Name》. It's finally fixed.

coming of age short stories

Coming Of Age

Demon Machine Beast

Indian Nation

A fool's dream

The time I was reborn a God of War

Ciarra the Cold

The road to success from a familiar past

Dragon Lost

The Power of Ten: Sama Rantha

The Famous Millionaire

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