Emica Kana is 18 years old. She has always loved writing stories., They were her escape from reality. She always wished that a man would come and save her like they always do in the stories.
Well, she got her wish.
Emica entered a small writing school that was near a river. Her friend had joined her. But, the teacher had an odd vibe around him. Emica became a little scared of him. She especially became scared when the teacher started to pay more attention to her. One day, when she runs from him, she falls into a world of adventure, risk, and abnormalities. 
But, her teacher is what scares her more than this new world. What secrets and schemes did he use to get her here?

Anna Sebastian had her heart broken by Benedict Jay Tan Jr. when they were in high school. Now that their paths crossed as adults, Anna was afraid of the same feeling towards the guy suddenly resurfaced. Will she keep her lessons of the past rule or will she allow herself to get burned again?

"Following the time" was originally a characteristic and privilege of the aristocrats because only the aristocrats held the tools and methods to accurately calculate time. Whether they were magic timers or mechanical clocks from the Dwarf Kingdom, all of them weren't items that civilians could possess. Thus, the aristocrats viewed "following the time" as a part of upper-class society, treating it as an etiquette and rule, while civilians simply relied on the sun and astrology to roughly gauge the time and arrange their work using that. This was a normality at any aristocratic territory other than the Cecil territory. 
However, in the Cecil territory, everyone's lives would strictly follow "time" — which hour and minute to start work, which hour and minute to end work, what time the mess hall served meals, what time night classes began. Everything had a precise timescale, from the territory officials to the common people; that was the case for everyone. 
This was the change that Gawain brought. It was a change made to reverse the chaotic, primitive, and inefficient production model; only an exact timetable could ensure that factories could operate smoothly, and only an exact timetable could have people aware of the importance of efficiency. Initially, many civilians were rather puzzled by such a requirement; only because of the feudal lord's great prestige did they confusedly follow this newly set rule. However, at this point, "punctual" had become a familiar term in the territory: even young children understood the necessity of punctuality. 
This was because they had to come to school punctually for lessons — even earlier than the adults — and study longer than the adults; the requirements for them were even stricter. 
Gawain had yet to implement full-time schooling for the time being, so the children of the Cecil territory currently had to spend half of their day helping their parents with manual labor at home. After lunch, they had to report to the "Cecil General Academy" located in the south of the territory. 
This was a brand new school constructed using bricks and cement. Its main building was the territory's most stylish building, with the largest area other than the various factories. And the Cecil territory's flag fluttered above the square by the school, the huge and prestigious emblems of Cecil and Anzu printed on the walls —— Gawain was firmly convinced that the sense of honor and belonging had to be fostered from a young age. Compared to the adults whose worldview was already solidified, having children develop knowledge of this aspect early was even more important. Moreover, the distinct and dignified symbol of the school also helped in raising the civilians' enthusiasm about "enrolling in school": receiving education arranged by the feudal lord in such a stylish facility, this would become something very honorable in the eyes of many. 
Even if they could not sense honor, Gawain wanted to instill in them the thinking that doing so was very honorable.
The adults' night school began after work had ended in the evening, whereas the children attended lessons in the school from the afternoon. They would learn here until the sun set, then have a free dinner with the teachers (this dinner was also one of the motivations for adults being willing to send their children to school), and then continue learning after dinner. When the adults' night classes ended, the children would return home together with their parents.
The mindset of adults was typically solidified: accepting new knowledge would become something rather difficult. Thus, Gawain's demands for the majority of the adult workers in the territory was simply being able to read and count; at the least, they would be able to understand the operating instructions of the machines in the factories. On the other hand, children were precious "blank papers": they had yet to be polished and numbed by life and could still accept liberal new thoughts and new knowledge. Therefore, Gawain always attached great importance to the children's education. 
At the beginning of the territory's construction, there were almost no children in the entire town. This was because those who fled from the old Cecil territory were basically all robust adults. Although women and children were given priority during the evacuation, under the Dark Wave's corroding environment, more than half of the children who had weaker constitutions weren't able to survive. —— Only until several population expansions later did the Cecil territory finally have a juvenile generation once more. Some were slaves sold here together with their parents (if not for Gawain's liberation system, these children and their descendants would be slaves for generations). There were also the homeless rescued by Joan and Tom. Even though these children still had to live in the buffer camp with their parents, there were arrangements for them to come for lessons at the academy every day. 
Today, they were adding a special new course.
Santis Seid nervously tidied his clothes in the staff room. The staff room was very simple and unadorned, but there was a full-length mirror. A maxim that the feudal lord bestowed to the teachers of the academy was pasted on it: Be a mirror.
Santis straightened out his slightly worn magic robe, smoothing out the creases on the robe a little clumsily. He saw the maxim on the upper section of the mirror; there was wisdom in the feudal lord's words, yet he still couldn't quite understand why this maxim would appear here. Only, compared to understanding this phrase, he was more worried about whether he would be able to smoothly cope with this first lesson. 
He was going to teach a group of poor children, getting them to learn knowledge that even children of wealthy merchants and Knights might not be able to take in. Could this really be done?
He had once worked as the family tutor of some merchants or small aristocrats; those children of the wealthy could more or less be considered "the future upper class of good upbringing", but teaching them to study was still a chore, and now, he was about to face a bunch of children of serfs, slave laborers, contract slaves, and freemen. This young Grade 2 Arcanist literally didn't dare to imagine how he would begin this first lesson with them. 
But the bell for lessons was about to be sounded. Through the window, he saw the hunched old man responsible for sounding the bell already walking towards the brass bell hanging in the courtyard with a small hammer. Any more hesitance at this moment was meaningless. 
Santis Seid tidied his collar one last time. Then, with a determined expression, he picked up the rough draft and lesson plan that he had prepared at the side, pushed open the door of the staff room, and strode out on wide steps toward the children's classroom. 
After pushing open the door, he saw two apprentices who were cleaning the room stare blankly at him —— he'd gotten the wrong door. 
"Sor—sorry!" The haughtiness and imposing manner of an occupational spellcaster was completely absent in the young Arcanist. He nervously apologized, his face flushed due to embarrassment. Without waiting for the two apprentices to respond, he had returned to the corridor like he was escaping.
The bell for lesson had already sounded, but Santis consecutively pushed open the wrong door twice in the corridor before he found the classroom where he ought to be holding his lesson. He pushed open that door almost frantically. Upon seeing a room full of disorderly, dirty children of staggered ages dressed in patched clothes, he finally heaved a sigh of relief.
The children who rushed to lessons were making a din. Despite this not being their first time entering the school, the word "discipline" still hadn't entered their heads. These children of different ages who came from different places treated the classroom as a place for gatherings, making it noisy and chaotic. Their parents could be serfs, freemen, slaves, or even refugees, but they'd yet to grasp the concept in this aspect, so all the children were mixed together, a complete, utter mess. 
Usually, the teachers who taught the general-studies lessons could use loud voices to intimidate these children, but Santis Seid did not have such a loud voice (or the courage that corresponded with a loud voice). When he'd just pushed open the door to step in, the classroom had indeed gone quiet for a moment, but that was merely the children temporarily pausing their racket due to curiosity. Soon, the noise returned, and this time, the children's focus of discussion had changed from dinner to the magic robe on Santis.
"Look! A new teacher!"
"A new teacher wearing a magic robe. That must be a magic robe!"
"The new teacher is a Mage lord! He must be able to conjure a dragon…"
"Shh, you'll be dead if he gets angry!"
"That magic robe is so old…"
The slightly older children still knew to look at Santis's magic robe and the short staff at his waist with fear, but those younger were completely fearless. They had yet to learn to immediately bow humbly upon seeing Mage lords, like their parents would. —— Similarly, Santis had also failed to grasp the "guts" of the common Mages who would casually toss out a small fireball when they were offended by rude lowly commoners and cripple them. 
He could only release that few arcane bullets a day. 
Hence, he could only open his mouth futilely, his voice so soft that even the first row could barely hear him well. "Be quiet… Everyone, be quiet. It's time for class…" 
No one listened to him, just as he had expected: the children of civilians were even harder to handle.
Santis felt perspiration oozing out on his face. He felt that his first lesson might have failed, but a handkerchief was suddenly handed to him from the side. —— He looked over in surprise and saw a girl with big eyes holding the handkerchief, looking at him. 
This girl was slightly puny but was dressed in a very clean and neat cotton dress; there was also a small hairpin on her head. This showed that she probably came from a rather well-to-do family. She held the handkerchief forward again, opening her mouth to make "ah ah" sounds. 
"Than—thank you…" Santis didn't think that there would be a child this sensible. He immediately said his thanks while he took the handkerchief, wiping his perspiration and smiling. "You didn't scream and shout like the others. You're really sensible…" 
His words had just fallen when a boy suddenly shouted out, "Because Pea is a mute!" 
The girl with very big eyes immediately glared at the boy. The latter quickly shrunk his neck. "Sorry, Sister Pea…" 
This girl was called Pea, and she was a mute?
Santis faltered for a moment. He recalled that he had indeed seen the odd name, "Pea" previously in the student register, but he didn't expect to actually have a mute amongst his students.
And within two seconds of his daze, Santis suddenly caught, through his peripheral vision, a small hand poking out from under his desk. This hand was holding a slate used for writing; several words were crookedly written on it: Use a magic, sir. 
Then, this slate was swiftly retracted. Santis didn't even get a clear look of who it was from.
He was stunned for a moment and finally responded. Then, he briefly lifted his right hand. —— He only had a few precious chances of spellcasting everyday, and he was using one on his first lesson.
A small arcane energy ball flew out from his hand, all the way to the middle of the classroom; then it exploded with a pop. The magic sparks that scattered in all directions looked as if a firework had been lit up in the room. 
All the children quietened down at once.
They watched their new teacher in awe, as if they'd only finally realized now, finally confirmed that —— this was a true Mage. 
Just like Madam Heidi, he was a Mage.
The children gazed speechlessly at one another, while Santis finally knew what he ought to do.
"Children." The young Grade 2 Arcanist put on a smile. He tossed his former experiences of tutoring the young aristocrats and merchants to the back of his head, throwing away those meaningless ostentatious opening remarks, throwing away those "etiquette of first contact" and rules, and said what he most wanted to say right now. "Let me tell you how to distinguish runes, as well as the basic theory for them to be effective." 
These children might not be able to release one spell using their own hands all their lives.
Santis turned around and used chalk to write down the title of the first lesson on the blackboard. 
No one in history had considered imparting all the secrets of magic to every single person without reservation. 
The fundamental runes for earth, fire, wind, and water were transferred from the tip of the chalk to the blackboard, followed by the derived runes of frost, lightning, and various others. 
However, these children could use their brains to remember this knowledge, using paper and pen to calculate this knowledge. Miss Jenni had already proven the value of such "calculations"; the feudal lord also believed in these values.
Santis turned around. What he saw were dozens of curious and intent eyes —— they were capable of paying attention. 
"Let us begin the first lesson."


During Gawain transmigration, a little problem occurs.
After hovering in the sky above the land of a strange world for over hundreds of thousands of years, he realizes that perhaps his transmigration is completed by acquiring a physical body.
Never did he imagine that he would have to guide the body out of a coffin after going through great difficulties to obtain it, only to come face-to-face with his two extremely shocked great-great-great-great... great-granddaughters, and also—
Be thrust into a world that's the verge of its era’s end.

Xue Jing only wanted to sell to someone that gave him good vibes. Good vibes were hard to define, but somehow, he felt that he wouldn't be upset if he sold his flat to Fang Zhao and the apartment was completely renovated.
Just as Fang Zhao put it, different arrangers would handle the same song differently. Different styles would come out. Everyone was equally entitled to leave their mark. Any buyer was simply a temporary custodian of the property.
Property prices in Qi'an were quite high, especially in this neighborhood. Flats that were located on the 100th floor or higher usually cost at least 10,000 dollars per square meter. There was only one penthouse apartment in the building. The entire property took up some 200 square meters, but the flat only accounted for half of it. A garden and a parking space took up the other half.
The price tag was 10 million, which was cheap compared to similar properties in the area. The market value was no less than 20 million.
One of the reasons why real estate in that neighborhood was expensive was the presence of security guards and regular patrols. Quite a few Yanzhou celebrities bought homes in the area to avoid media attention. Xue Jing had bought this place back then because he'd wanted the peace and quiet. He was no celebrity, but he was quite influential in the music industry. Many people sought him out for favors, hoping a word from Xue Jing would translate into shortcuts. Xue Jing got so fed up he moved here. "There's another reason I invited you here, besides selling you my apartment. It's entirely up to you. No pressure," Xue Jing said.
Fang Zhao had thought a favor might be attached when Xue Jing had announced his asking price. Given Xue Jing was so generous with his pricing, Fang Zhao would comply as long as it wasn't too big of a favor.
"Please continue," Fang Zhao said.
"As you know, I'm not teaching these days, focusing instead on editing and writing textbooks." Xue Jing looked at Fang Zhao. "I'm working on a book about symphonic works. I'd like to use your songs as an example."
Xue Jing was writing a textbook that analyzed symphonies and served as a how-to primer. Symphonies were an offbeat genre. Music students tended to avoid the specialty. Even though symphonies enjoyed greater prestige within the industry, they weren't too popular.
Xue Jing wasn't only concerned with turning a profit. The elders in the industry didn't bother with symphonies, but the genre had to be preserved. Xue Jing didn't want to cut and paste like previous authors. He wanted to present contemporary examples. This would require Fang Zhao to discuss his creative vision, his sources of inspiration, and some memorable moments from the creative process. In short, Xue Jing wanted Fang Zhao to pass on his knowledge and expose more students to the genre of symphonies. It would be the equivalent of a master class in written form. Of course, it was up to Fang Zhao to decide how much to reveal.
"As you know, this isn't a hit single. There won't be much money in it." Xue Jing was frank.
Fang Zhao's emergence gave Xue Jing hope. The "100-Year Period of Destruction" series probably made for the most memorable symphonic pop songs in the past century. More importantly, the series was not condescending. It took the accessible form of pop music and reached a broad audience.
Many young composers were reluctant to share their creative insight, so Xue Jing thought Fang Zhao would take his time to consider the request. Little did he expect Fang Zhao to agree immediately.
"No problem."
But Fang Zhao wasn't actually that young. He was happy to share his knowledge and pass on the lessons he'd learned from the end of days. Human life was finite, but there were no bounds to shared experience and knowledge.
Xue Jing was delighted. "Terrific. Terrific. I'll add your name to the list of consulting editors."
Textbooks in the New Era—whether in print or electronic form—identified their authors clearly. University regulations also required them to identify their editors and consulting editors.
Normally, protocol dictated that if the length of your contribution was brief and the content wasn't essential to the book, you weren't listed as a contributing editor. Xue Jing was thinking Fang Zhao probably wouldn't share at length, but the fact that he was willing to open up and share was worth applauding. Xue Jing was glad to give him credit.
"My assistant will brief you on the mechanics of contributing to the book. You could also organize your thoughts ahead of time. As for the apartment, I'll send for packers right away. I'll have all the paperwork completed and the flat vacated in three days. There's no rush in paying me. If you can't pay the full amount in one go, you can pay in installments over a few years. No hurry."
"It's OK. I can pay in full now," Fang Zhao said.
Fang Zhao left the apartment after the conversation ended. Xue Jing had him chauffeured back to Silver Wing. Fang Zhao got a call from Zhu Zhen, Duan Qianji's assistant, while en route.
"Fang Zhao, someone from Leizhou wants to use the third movement in a movie soundtrack. They don't want to buy the song outright—just license it for 30 days." In other words, there would be a moratorium on the song's release in other formats for 30 days after the film began screening in theaters.
Orders like this from another continent were rare and often translated into new opportunities.
"We haven't discussed the price yet. Chairman Duan wants to get your OK first," Zhu Zhen said.
"To use on a soundtrack? It's a production company from Leizhou?"
"Yes. The deal will help promote the song, but the production company doesn't have a great reputation."
Every continent had protectionist measures in place to shore up their own music and film industries. "Cocoon Breach" was a good example that illustrated this trend. After the song was proven to have an impact on Hull virus patients, the publicity on other continents glossed over the title of the song or made brief mention of it. The focus was on its effect on Hull virus carriers and related topics. The medical discussion took precedence, obscuring any talk of Polar Light or details about the first and second movements.
It was one thing if the two songs were merely released as songs. But the two movements were inextricably linked to a virtual idol, so they were heavily censored in Leizhou.
Media coverage of the songs in Leizhou not only buried the title of the songs and the names of the composer and production company—Polar Light wasn't mentioned at all. Few people who read the news reports searched for the songs. The first two movements also weren't available for download outside of Yanzhou.
So what Duan Qianji had in mind was using the Leizhou film as an alternative platform, even though it might be a crappy production. Given the fact that the two songs were not available for download outside of Yanzhou, they could license them for placement in films. This didn't affect their marketing plan in Yanzhou.
But Duan Qianji was worried that Fang Zhao would find the placement degrading if the film was a mediocre production just judging from appearances. He might be turned off. That was why she had asked Zhu Zhen to run the plan by Fang Zhao first before entering into negotiations.
After being briefed by Zhu Zhen, Fang Zhao thought for about two seconds. "I'd like to get a sense of the plot of the film and where exactly the song will be placed."
"I'm not entirely clear on either. Let me get back to you."
Half an hour later, Zhu Zhen sent Fang Zhao an encrypted file that outlined the plot and where the third movement would be placed.
The document also listed the names of the production company and key investors as well as the main actors.
The credits would have meant nothing to someone outside the entertainment industry in Yanzhou. But anyone from Leizhou could tell from the names of the production company and investors that the film was a shameless ploy to promote a certain star. What wass funny was that, despite their corny story lines and shitty acting, films like this did OK at the box office. People usually bitched as they watched these movies online. They knew they were crap but they couldn't resist watching. Maybe it was a form of venting.
Fang Zhao spent an afternoon watching previous releases backed by the same production company and investors. He had his answer by sundown.
"I'll sign off on this. My only request is that the third movement only be used for the scene specified. There is no leeway on this. It can only be played then."


"Every time background music plays in my head, I feel like there is nothing to be afraid of." —Fang Zhao
Toward the end of the apocalyptic period, Fang Zhao lost his life. However, instead of dying, he found himself 500 years later in the body of a young and aspiring composer who shared the same name. Having received a second chance at life, Fang Zhao sets out to achieve the previous owner's dreams.
Armed with the experience of living through an apocalyptic age and his profession as a composer before that period, Fang Zhao uses his talent, wits, and knowledge to make his mark in the entertainment industry of the future.

Kagome grew restless in her room. Apparently, after her falling asleep in the garden, Sesshoumaru had brought her to her room, and informed Izumi to make sure she stayed there, and could only come out for eating and bathing.

After a couple days, she was mostly depressed, but upon hearing Sesshoumaru out, instead of becoming angry, she agreed it was best to stay off of her feet until a healer arrived. She had been surprised when she had first confronted the demon lord, that he had not moved to strangle her because she had yelled at him. Upon realizing her behavior, she apologized. He seemed to not care whether she was truly sorry or not, but nodded his head to appease her.

Most of the time during her confinement, she admired her room. The furniture was reminiscent of western civilization, not Japanese. Four poster bed, wardrobe, and dresser, all in oak and adorned with the mark of the white dog house, the crescent moon. Izumi had said that when Sesshoumaru had traveled as a pup with his father, they had come across people who slept on raised beds that were comfortable. The former Dog Lord had commissioned people to build the beds based on his descriptions of them from his memory.

Kagome sometimes would hobble to her bedroom window, yet it seemed someone was always outside her door, and would either carry her to the window or back to her bed. At one point, she requested pen and paper, just to keep her from going stir crazy. She wrote about her journey and even somehow found enough of a creative streak to write over a dozen poems. Sometimes she drew. She had always loved to draw and had been told she was fairly good. She had after much begging, drawn Izumi.

After a week, Sesshoumaru ushered Rin into her room.

"Since you have become bored, here is your student. I expect you to teach her proper grammar, writing, etiquette, and any other suitable subject," Sesshoumaru said, as Rin latched onto Kagome.

"Yay! Rin is going to learn many things from Kagome!" she exclaimed, her grin revealing that she had lost another tooth.

"Ooh, looks like you lost another tooth!" Kagome smiled.

"Yep! Jaken says my big people teeth are growing in," Rin said and then was sad. "He said when Rin has all of her big people teeth that Lord Sesshoumaru will send Rin away."

"That idiot. Jaken knows not what this Sesshoumaru will do," Sesshoumaru growled, very angry to learn that Jaken was saying cruel things to his ward.

"So Rin will get to stay with Lord Sesshoumaru when Rin's big people teeth are all in?" Rin asked, very hopeful.

"Yes," Sesshoumaru replied.

'I'm going to punt that toad over the moon!' he growled to himself as Rin hugged his leg.

"Thank you, Lord Sesshoumaru. Rin is very happy and honored," she grinned as tears of happiness flowed freely from her eyes.

The scent of tears alarmed Sesshoumaru, but it confused him as her face clearly had a grin on it. Kagome remembered that Inu Yasha had been confused when she had cried tears of joy and quickly responded, "Rin is very happy. Sometimes humans, when we are happy and the emotion is great, we cry tears of happiness. I know sometimes it is confusing for demons that are not familiar with human ways, as even InuYasha had been confused about it too."

Sesshoumaru looked down at Rin and leaned down, something a demon lord was rarely found to do, and at eye level said, "This Sesshoumaru is pleased that Rin is happy ,and wishes for Rin to always be happy."

Rin hugged Sesshoumaru, shocking both the great demon and Kagome. Kagome was almost sure that Sesshoumaru would have growled, but he let her hug him, then carefully removed her, saying, "Now is time for your lessons with Kagome."

"Yes! Rin will learn many things and make Lord Sesshoumaru proud," she grinned as Sesshoumaru rose and exited the room.

Now that Rin occupied her time, Kagome's cabin fever vanished, as she happily made out lessons for her. Kagome had taught Shippou how to read and write, so she was certain she could also teach Rin.

Finally, after two weeks, a healer arrived and observed Kagome's ankle, then commended Sesshoumaru for his expert hand at taking care of the sprain. The healer then said that Kagome could venture about, however, she was not to overtax herself.

Kagome was ecstatic, however surprised InuYasha had not visited yet. She still felt a bit guilty for sending him away and also because she was not helping out with the shard hunting. Kagome's decision had forced InuYasha to ask of Kikyo's help, according to Sesshoumaru's cunning ways of obtaining information. That in itself worried her, since InuYasha had said that Kikyo had put a spell on him. She hoped that InuYasha would avoid any alone time, as she was certain Kikyo was stubborn enough to keep pursuing him. She wondered what InuYasha was doing and thinking. She even wondered how her friends were doing. She laughed, just thinking how many times Miroku had probably got beaten upside the head for groping Sango. She worried for Shippou, knowing how he and InuYasha sometimes got on each other's nerves. InuYasha could be a bit rough, but he never hurt Shippou terribly.

Sesshoumaru entered her room, interrupting her thoughts. She looked up and smiled. He had been pleasant and she decided, 'Perhaps it is not so bad here.'

"What can I do for you today, Lord Sesshoumaru?" she said, bowing.

Sesshoumaru was a bit surprised. Kagome had never bowed to him before, and rarely called him by his title. It was kind of unnerving as he was getting use to her ways. He was pleased that she was giving him the proper respect.

"No need to bow, Kagome. You will start training with this Sesshoumaru starting next week," he informed her. "Izumi will be in shortly to take measurements for your fighting uniform."

"Thank you, milord," Kagome replied as he left.

Kagome runs from Inu Yasha thinking he betrayed her. She ends up running into Sesshoumaru thinking her life has literally gone to Hell. Despite her travels to find the shards of the Shikon no Tama, her journey is about to get much more fickle than ever.

Relaxing music from The Legend of Zelda series played in the background as Eranoth prepared to write about one of the darker sides of shapeshifting. "I do not plan to write down all the ways to apply bloodshifting as that would take out people's creative thunder and take way too long."
The man paused to drink more of the 3rd can of mountain dew baja blast. 
"Blood-shifting in simple definition is that there is something in the blood of the creature in question that allows for a transformation. The most common application of bloodshifting is blood corruption. 67% (made up statistic) of Lycanthropy lore is based around blood corruption."
Eranoth popped his fingers and smirked. "To start with the 'easiest' to find lore; we will use a very generic example of this: A Werewolf. Though just a reminder, this applies well beyond the scope of werewolves. Lore and application are different."
"If one does an in depth study of werewolves they would find that there are actually over 30 different variations of werewolf lore so don't begrudge me if I don't use the lore you are expecting. I will likely cover it in a different chapter."
"Whether it is a disease, a curse from a god, or a deal with a devil, most werewolves claim to be humans that have become corrupted by the 'blood of the wolf'. Even the Elderscrolls series uses a blood corruption."
Eranoth slapped his face and erased a few things to avoid going on a tangent. 
"As I said before there are a lot of factors to consider when dealing with shapeshifting. So let's start. Blood corruption Go!" He lifted his hand in a fist heroically.
"HOW? When component X enters the bloodstream of a creature the blood becomes tainted and corrupted. In the case of a werewolf it is the substance known as 'Lycanthropy' With Blood corruption transformations you have to pay close attention to this. If you don't, it is easy to accidentally lore break. The specifics of how can be changed easily: skin touching skin, saliva, blood, (Omitted words for those not yet adults), and so on." 
"WHAT? This is something for the individual author to decide. Usually there is one of four outcomes however more can become applied after all, creative geniuses exist everywhere.
1:Instant mutation- X turns creature into a new species. (In werewolf lore, there is a thing where instead of having a full moon transformation, they just become a wolfman like creature sometimes feral sometimes not.)
1.1 Permanent transformation- Some Lore dictates that once you have become a a new creature you will always be that new creature. In werewolf lore there is some of this as well. Once a werewolf always a werewolf. Most often this lore has a 'conditional release' like meditate in the morning dew every day for a month without eating meat. A condition that would be nearly impossible to complete as the new creature but usually feasible if you were your old self. (This is usually a one-time one-way transformation with conditions to undo it)
1.2 Temporary transformation- Other lore exists that say the transformation acts like a cold or a flu. You catch it, are under its effects and then you get over it and it goes away. In werewolf lore there is a supposed strain of lycanthropy that turns the victim into a bloodthirsty feral werewolf for 7-10 days where they go kill and infect others and after the time, they return to normal unless they catch it again.
2: Conditional Mutation- Under Y conditions, Creature becomes a new species. (Full moon transformation, consumption of a specific substance, etc are conditional transformations)
 2.1: Creature is only new species under Y and is normal species when not. This is rare in werewolf lore but more common with other types of magical transformations. 
 2.2: Creature is extreme new species under Y, is still tainted even when Y is not around. This is the most well known lycanthropic lore. 'You are a werewolf. Things about your human self have changed slightly and you turn into a wolf or a wolfman during the full moon.'
 2.3: Once Y happens, mutation is permanent. This one is not common in lycanthropic lore however other blood curses act under this thing. This is usually a conditional hostile takeover. If resolved before the condition is met then no problem but if the condition is met it is difficult to overcome. 
3:Slow mutation- A progressive change occurs almost so naturally that it is hard to detect until it is too late. (This is also not common in werewolf lore. However think of it in terms of a health defect that progressively gets worse over time. Often it goes unnoticed until it causes a very significant problem. These usually start with the logic and emotions and inner workings of the body before they manifest externally. Most often there are ways to treat the symptoms but not treat the problem.
4: Genetic override or blood swap- Very similar to the permanent instant transformation and slow mutation types. This one is a bit different though. After X infects the bloodline it rejects the creature's original self completely. Turning the creature into a new being. This can be a long or a slow process but this transformation type is often dangerous to put into stories without careful consideration as this is one of many types that can lead to lorebreak easily. My sister RedPandaChick's novel Chdrtlsy: A Short Story uses this form of transformation."
"WHY? Usually it is done as a curse, punishment, or just plain being unlucky. Very rarely is a Blood Corruption type of transformation done willingly or for a good thing. (There are always exceptions to the rules.)"
"As for the other questions, those are more individual to the writer when it comes to blood corruption transformation. Speaking of other questions, with blood corruption there is an extra question to consider. If the creature dies under the effects of the transformation do they revert to their old selves or do they remain in their transformed state?"
"If there is a need for clarification on Blood corruption shapeshifting feel free to let me know. I know not everyone speaks Eranothian. Please know this is only the first of many chapters regarding shapeshifting lore. If I haven't covered it yet, I probably will, as I write more, lots more.
Eranoth took a deep breath. "Whoo, that is a lot. Mother is trying to call me over to figure out my work schedule for the week. So I will take a short break and continue writing."
He rubbed his temples. "Now that that headache is out of the way for the evening… time to continue my info dump in chapter 3. More dealings with blood. As a side note, bloodshifting will take a few more chapters."

© J Eranoth

Eranoth's Lore books are a series of books about otherworldly lore. They are designed to bring clarification about subjects that are not easily understood. 
This particular lorebook is dedicated to the many methods of shapeshifting. 

Eranoth's actual novels will come out at a later time when they are ready to be unleashed upon the world. Please know that Eranoth's lore books are not his world's lore, they are general lore for the use and adaption of writers.

For those seeking logic for lore, feel free to let me know what types of lore you want me to write books for. Before you get all excited, I WILL NOT waste time writing lore books on topics easily found with google OR adult content. If you want a lorebook on those types of things don't ask.

Happy reading and Writing!
Note: Due to the nature of the book, there is very little 'story' but I have tried to break it up a bit with story to make it less of a straight info dump.

Tutor Wentai was no ordinary man: he was a scholar. And as a scholar, he was very passionate about Philosophy, Science and of course, the Creative Arts. But while he revelled in the delights of knowledge and the discovery of new and exciting concepts, what deterred him most from being a scholar, particularly a tutor, was a disengaged student. And for a while, Tutor Wentai did not enjoy the tutelage of the youngest of his Lord's sons. That was, until recently.

"So, Great Emperor Yueran unified Saim before he became the leader of the Jade Lotus?"

Tutor Wentai nodded. "That is correct, Young Master."

Taehyung peered down at his book in thought. "Then that must mean the Parks have been leading Saim for three generations now."

"It will be four once the emperor produces an heir" Jongin added from beside him. Taehyung glanced at his brother and he continued, "It is very likely that he may already have offspring that we do not even know about. As the only male heir, His Majesty has the biggest responsibility to produce heirs so that the Park dynasty will continue."

Tutor Wentai nodded approvingly at his star pupil. Out of all the Kim brothers, Jongin, by far, was his favourite. He glanced at Taehyung from across the new library, where they were holding their lesson. Normally, the seat across from him was always vacant, but as of late, Taehyung had been punctually occupying it.

"But what will happen if he does not produce any male heirs?" Taehyung addressed Tutor Wentai. "Who will the throne go to?"

Tutor Wentai cleared his throat. "That will not happen" he spoke bluntly with confidence. "His Majesty will definitely bear a son."

Taehyung persisted, "But say that he does not. What will happen then?"

Jongin turned to look at Tutor Wentai. Even he too was curious.

"Then," Tutor Wentai began, "the next eldest male in his family will inherit the throne."

"The next eldest male?"

"Yes," he replied, "this might be his nephew, distant cousin or in rare cases, brother-in-law. Any male relative may be eligible for the throne although, he must prove the legitimacy of his claim."

"But what if there are no males left?" Taehyung continued to question. "Then what will happen?"

At this, Jongin knew the answer. "Then there will be civil war."

Taehyung was taken aback by his brother's words. "Huh? Why?"

With a dark expression he responded, "With no clear heir, no one knows who should rise to the throne." He gaped at Taehyung as he explained further, "As you know, Saim was unified a century ago. Under the Jade Lotus, the clan leaders are kept in order. Without an emperor to lead them, the clan leaders will fall into anarchy as they compete for the throne." His eyes narrowed at the prospect. "Saim will fall because of man's greed for power."

"That is correct, Master Jongin" Tutor Wentai praised grimly.

"But what if the emperor has daughters?" Taehyung questioned even further. "Surely they can inherit the throne instead?"

With a wry smile, Tutor Wentai replied, "That cannot be. The throne can only be inherited through the male lineage."

"It is unheard of for a woman to inherit the throne" Jongin added when he noticed Taehyung's confusion. "Women do not bear the same weight of importance as men."

Taehyung looked like he was about to contest Jongin's statement when Tutor Wentai interrupted him. "Young Master, while I am pleased you are engaging with your classes, such forward thinking is unnecessary for our History lessons."

"But I was just stating a hypothetical scenario."

"Yes," Tutor Wentai agreed, "but it is a morbid scenario that we should not be discussing during our History lesson." He sighed wearily. "We should avoid adding oil to the fire by not speculating on what ifs. As it stands, the issue of the succession and the royal family is already a sensitive topic."

"Because of the new emperor?" Taehyung ventured to ask.

Tutor Wentai was hesitant to respond.

"I have heard things about the new emperor" Jongin interjected while fiddling with his ink brush. "Brother Junmyeon says that he has a peculiar aversion to women. Is that true?"

Still, Tutor Wentai remained silent.

"The emperor dislikes women?" Taehyung echoed. "Why?"

Jongin shrugged. He was just as clueless as Taehyung. "If it is true, then there will definitely be an issue with the next heir. So far, it is only a rumour."

With a coy smile, Taehyung uttered, "Maybe the emperor prefers the company of other men…"

Finally, Tutor Wentai found his voice again. "Blasphemy, child!" he exclaimed. "You must be cautious of what comes out of your mouth!"

"I only jest, Tutor Wentai," Taehyung said while stifling a laugh. He glanced at his older brother who had turned away to hide his amusement. "It is too early to tell what kind of man the emperor will turn out to be. He has only been on the throne for less than three months."

"Regardless of whether you jest or not" Tutor Wentai responded hotly, "it is unwise to speak ill of His Majesty like that."

Taehyung rolled his eyes.

The elder tutted to himself. And here I thought the Young Master had finally matured…

"But how did the Jade Lotus manage to maintain the peace with the clan leaders?" Jongin questioned. "Even if they had lost against the Jade Lotus, surely, they could have combined forces to defeat them?"

"Excellent question!" Tutor Wentai exclaimed. "The Jade Lotus was able to prevail over the clansmen because there was trust between the families." He picked up his ink brush and began writing fervently on the sheet of paper in front of him. "It was your great-grandfather who coined this adage."

Taehyung and Jongin leaned forward as the elder showed them what he had written.

"Kin before Kim" Taehyung read aloud. "What does that mean?"

"Brotherhood before oneself."

Transported to an unknown era, Subin, a teenage girl raised with western values, wakes up in the body of a serf. In this unknown land, she encounters the aristocratic Kim brothers and finds herself entangled in the webs of deceit; woven by rivalry, politics and hunger for power.

This was the last week of June, it was time for the end of the first school semester.
This meant Exams.
The students were already used to their notebooks and pens. It was way better and cleaner than using slateboards and chalk.
Landon had given all the children below ages 15: 4 empty notebooks, 3 eraser pencils and 7 pens (2 blue, 2 black, 2 red and 1 green).
If they needed more, their parents were to buy it for them. And those who were orphans, could take them free of charge from the school canteen.
The adults who took classes were required to buy their own textbooks as well. Afterall, they all worked and the books and pens were cheap.
9 pens cost 5 copper coins, 9 pencils cost 5 copper, while 1 book cost 3 copper coins.
The teachers still used chalk of course.
With these books, the students could go home and revise their lessons.
For those that came to school in the middle of the semester, they would only be given tests on what they know so far.
But within the 1 month break, it was compulsory for them to take make up classes, so as to catch up with the rest for the next semester.
Those that couldn't catch up would repeat their classes on the next semester. While those that passed would move on ahead to the next phase.
All they had been learning so far were language and math. Now, it was time to introduce them into the world of Chemistry.
Of course it wasnt intense chemistry, just the basics.
With the basics, they could go about and have assignments like science projects and so on.
Those that passed and did well, would advance and take Math 3, Language 2 and Chemistry 1.
Today, the little princess Linda, from Yodan empire was taking the final exam for the semester.
Back at Yodan, 9 year old Linda was ignored and bullied most of the time.
Since she wasn't a favoured princess, the maids, servants and even her teachers looked down on her. The only people who cared for her, were her mother Winnie and brother Beri.
She would cry daily and sometimes even feel like she was trapped, with no where to go.
But ever since she came to Baymard, the people were nice and she could finally go to school with other children who were very humble.
And for some reason, the food tasted better here as well.
Landon would come to her school and read amazing stories to her and the other children. She even played on the metal swing and something called a slide.
The little princess was very happy.
She loved everyone, even the funny grandpa Willow. He would always put flowers on her hair and push her on the garden swing (yet, he gave trouble to Landon for plucking Tulips).
.
.
Linda sat in the large classroom nervously.
Although she had math teachers and language teachers back in Yodan, she had realized that Baymard's educational system was different.
It was way better and more detailed. Plus she loved her rainbow painted exercise books, pencils and pens, which were much better and simpler to use.
For the tests, she liked that they were evenly spaced throughout the week, giving her more time to read at home.
The moment of truth had come.
The teacher placed a sheet of paper face-down in front of her.
Today, she was taking her first exam... Math 1.
Once all the papers were shared, Grace signaled for them to start.
Somewhere in another classroom, Linda's mother Winnie, Kim and Lucy, were also giving out the same exam.
Today was meant for math 1. So even if they weren't teaching it, they had to help supervise the exams as well.
All tests had different sections within them. Some of the sections in Math 1 and math 2 were similar to one another, but not actually the same.
Math 1 had 7 seven sections:
•15%: Additions
•15%: Subtractions
•15%: Playing with operations (using + or -)
•10%: Number writing
•15%: Word problems (using only + or -)
•15%: Measuring Length (using only + or -)
•15%: Measuring Time(using only + or -)
Linda looked through the section titled 'Addition' and began.
First question: 145 + 74 =? (show rough work)
She immediately started using her fingers and even showed the carry over process on the paper.
The more she answered, the more confident she became.
Time went on and she arrived at the 'Playing with operations (using only + or -)' part.
>Question: Achieve the result 20, by using the numbers: 2, 6 and 4, as many times as you like.
He looked at the question and her eyes lit up.
'6 plus 4 is 10, 10 plus 4 is 15....no no no!! its 14..' she thought.
Just like that, she completed that section.
Now, it was time for 'word problems'.
Question: There are 67 bird families living near the mountain. If 32 bird families flew away for winter, how many are left near the mountain?
She immediately started writing the main points, as she was taught in class.
'67 bird families.... flew away..... 32 bird families..... ahhh!! this is a subtraction.. this is taking away' she exclaimed inwardly as she immediately did the subtractions.
When she was at the last section, Grace kindly reminded them to drop their pens, pencils and papers.
She was currently in the last section and had 3 questions left to answer. She couldn't help but curse the 6th section for slowing her down.
All in all, she felt like she was going to do very well in the exam.
After the exam, she discussed her answer with some of her friends.
"Did you guys succeed in finishing the exam?"
"Ahh!!! I only had 1 question left, and then they took away for paper"
"Woo woo.... I'm not sure I did well"
"Don't cry, who can say that we will all pass?"
"Yeah plus there's still make up classes during the break."
"Don't forget that if you do well in Math 2 and Pyron 1, you will still advance."
"We have to study hard for the next tests"
"Ahh!!! Question 5 in section 4 was very confusing"
"It was definitely a trap"
.
.
And just like that, the Math 1 exam had officially come to an end.
Two days later, the exam for Math 2 began.
The Exam had 8 sections:
•12%: Multiplication tables
•12%: Multiplication
•12%: Divisions
•12%: Playing with operations (using × or ÷)
•10%: Number writing
•14%: Measuring length (using only × or ÷)
•14%: Measuring Weight (using only × or ÷)
•14%: Measuring Time. (using only × or ÷)
Under, the section titled: Multiplication tables, Linda moved like lighting.
Question: 3 × 7 = ?
And under the Multiplication section, Linda still felt it was easy.
Question: 727 × 4= ?
Moving forward, Linda realised that she had spend too much time with the Section 'number writing'.
Question: Write Nine thousand four hundred and sixty-one, in numbers.
'Thousand..thousand... Ahhh!!.. its 1000.. but since its 9, then its 9000...'
She also spent time doing the measuring length, weight and time sections.
Question: 2 m = ? cm
Question: 20 kg = ? g
Question: 9 hrs 45 min = ? min
.
.
Once again, she was unable to finish her exam on time.
Was it a curse for her to never to finish on time?
She quickly went home and started practicing her pre-tenses, present tenses and so on, for her Pyron exam.
All the people in Pyno spoke 1 language, so the language spoken in Yodan was the same as that in Arcadina.
Another 2 days passed and it was time for her final exam.
Pyron 1 was divided into sections:
•18%: Nouns, verbs, adjectives and pronouns
•18%: All Tenses: Present, past, simple.. etc
•9%:   Writing numbers into words
•15%: Prepositions
•20%: Choose correct/ Incorrect sentences
•20%: Choose complete/Incomplete sentences.
Linda kept seeing questions like;
Question: choose whether the following sentence is a simple or compound sentence.
Question: Which sentence shows the proper use of a noun?
Question: Write 109 in words.
Question: Which is not a complete sentence?
Question: Identify the adverb in the sentence
For her, language was easy compared to math. So for the first time ever, she had successfully finished all the questions for the exam. She even had 10 minutes to spare, so she decided to go over her work once more.
Once the exam papers were collected, she truly felt free as a bird. She had never had this type of feeling before.
She began discussing with her friend on what they would do with this 1 month vacation.
She had been told that the exams would be posted on the 12th day of July.
Also, the next semester was going to start in August.
 So for the entire month of July, she would hopefully have no school.
To be honest, she didn't want to spend the entire July doing makeup classes. That's why she earnestly prayed that her results would be atleast alright to take her to the next stage.
She had been so stressed during this exam period, that she didn't even care how her hair looked like when she left the house early this morning.
Her mom wanted to fix it, but she refused as she needed to use all her time for studying.
She looked at her mom as if saying: 'Mom, my holiday is at stake here and your worried about my hair?'
Right now, she didn't even want to see a single book, atleast until august.
'Finally, No more exams'


Chu Yi dies in a car crash and becomes Landon Barn, the illegitimate son of king Barn, ruler of Arcadina. Because his mother was a maid and the king’s greatest disgrace, his father had always despised him. The same could be said for his half-siblings. 

When he turned 15, his father had announced that the city of Baymard would be given to him, and would no longer be under the empire's control. It was a well known fact that Baymard’s lands were barren, and poverty stricken.... For god’s sake, this was banishment.

His deadbeat father had indirectly banished him from the empire.

Chu Yi woke up in a carriage, on his way to Baymard with a system

"So what if my father hates me? So what if I’m banished?.... I will turn my territory into a modern society"

  
.
.
Author here, thank you all for tuning in..... english is my second language... so I promise to try my best.

P.S, please dont compare my Novel to others... not all world development novels have to have the same format.

After the speech. All students headed for their respective homerooms. Guided back by their classroom teacher.

And Seaside Academy's curriculum had been turned upside down. Originally, grades one and two would only have to worry about lectures on soul master topics or even basic cultural lessons in their studies while the third grade would be a mix of combat exercises and training for the young kids.

That applies not anymore starting from now.

Seaside Academy's student teaching guidelines changed. It changed for the better. 

Grade one students would have to be in class before seven am or face a little punishment. From there the morning classes would compose of chopped up, simplified explanations and lectures about soul master topics. Theories and history coupled with cultural classes.

For the afternoon. Students would have to change into P.E. uniforms but what they would participate in for the rest of the hours was no simple P.E. class.

It was combat class. Real combat class.

For the rest of the afternoon. Seaside academy would be one whole semi-illegal children's fight club. Sans the spectators or the underground arena. Less bloody too!

Kids would spar against one another using their martial souls. And after that they would be given an assessment by the teacher on areas where there are lacking. Reccommendations on how to improve and what combat path to take. 

Earth's school system was broken and impractical. Humans vary from one another. Each one unique and special but if you judge a fish by it's ability to climb a tree then the uniqeness of each human would turn into wasted potential. Unable to be brought out only for it to fade after everything is too late.

Such a principle was taken into account for the new structure of Seaside academy.

There were still written exams and quizzes but grades for students have been Separated into thirty percent for written works. Fifty percent for performance and twenty percent for exams.

You can get a low score in exams and maybe even fail it but if your written and performance scores were splendid. You can pass.

Grade two students on the otherhand. Are introduced to the concept of professions.

Class A, B, C, and D had been replaced. Grade two students are no longer reffered to as that.

Replaced with Mecha Designing Basics Class,
Mecha Making Basics Class, Mecha Mechanic's Basics Class, and Forging Class.

Mecha Crafting lessons. Depending on a student's preffered choice be it Mecha Designing. Mecha Making or Mecha Mechanics. These lessons would be taught to them early on to set a greater foundation.

Giving a huge headstart for the students of Seaside academy. It was well known that only in the second or third grade of intermediate academies do students learn about Mecha related topics due to their advanced nature.

Grade two sounds taxing and busy but the truth is, the third grade's class structure was the most illustrious of of the three grades.

Afternoon classes are still about fights but the morning ones are the real focus.

It dwelled on experience. Internship in a way.

Using the topics learned from the second grade. That already built foundation of knowledge would be refreshed and reinforced before being put to the test!

Lectures would improve the student's understanding of their chosen profession. 

Mecha Designers would be instructed to draw their creative designs for mechas. It will be passed to the teacher who will then examine it. Point out flaws and give a honest recommendation on how to improve.

Mecha Makers does the same but they carve soul circuits on basic cheap metals.

Mecha Mechanics would be given a small mecha component and have the goal of pointing out mistakes or damages on them then listing ways how to solve it. Guided by the teacher afterwards.

Forging Classess involved actual forging. Hammering and purifying metals as practice.

Of course. Everything comes at a price. 

For the forging division. Three of their metals products made per week would be taken into the custody of the academy who will sell it to gain funds for running the school.

Same goes for the other classes. Their products taken by the academy for selling or practical use.

Of course. Seaside academy still respects their students so if a student was able to make an exceptional piece of work. For say able to thousand refine a metal which only rank three blacksmiths and above could do. It wouldn't be forcefully taken away.

Instead. The kid can choose to do whatever they want with it. 

One may even be able to pay for tuition fees once they become a third grade student who could make cash with their knowledge and experience.

New teachers started to head for Seaside Academy while new facilities were being built on the island.

With the new system starting to slowly settle in. Students became motivated to study.

Seaside academy has changed! Over the course of three years here even if they can't become a powerhouse or a monster worthy of attending shrek they would have a bright future ahead of them!

They can even choose to give up on trying to be the best soul master like no one ever was and take the path of professional work to become rich!

Kids learned and absorbed things easier due to their young age. If kids were able to have good work ethics and experience at an early age then what more if they become adults?

In other words. Yu Ge stayed through to his words. Investing lots of resources just for the Student's development.

If one does not achieve anything despite being provided good nurturing conditions like these.

Then that student would truly be trash. No exceptions whatsoever.

-----

A small white speedboat cut through the ocean waters in a hurry. The roar of the engine had reached the peak. Producing droning sounds that deafened the nearby flying birds.

Riding and driving the speedboat was a young kid dressed in Seaside Academy's blue uniform that had white lines adorning the fine tunic.

For a six year old kid. He was pretty tall. Standing at four feet seven inches tall. He rode the water vessel at maximum speed.

Black hair long hair with long smooth front locks running down his chest that turned blue at the tips.

His long back hair was kept neat thanks to a metal ornament on top of his head that turned the long hair into a ponytail.

Sharp sword like eyebrows and dull gray eyes gave him a serious appearance. But his lips were quivering at the moment. Nervous and anxious was the expression he wore.

Excited lights flickered in his pupils at the sight of the island with buildings that grew closer as seconds passed.

Ding! Dong! Dong!

"Crap I'm late!" The boy's heart tensed up even further hearing the morning chime of the school. Indicating that all students should be in class now.

The little speedboat struck land. A shadow bolted from the boat and ran off towards the school gates. Passing the gate, the eerie silence of the school grounds served to intensify the boy's anxiousness.

Everyone was in class! It had already started!

Affected and discouraged by being late. The boy wanted to just go to the dorms first and skip the whole day only to attend tommorow instead.

Though his feet made quick strides for his classrom. Grade one Class A.

-----
With the new curriculum set in place. Guang Lingdao found himself even more amused. Things were starting to turn a bit interesting.

Yu Yan's sweet gentle voice aroused the spirits of the children who was eager to learn. She had started checking for attendance.

"Yun Li!"

"Present!

"Chen Er!"

"Present!"

"Zhen Yu'er!" 

"Present."

It was the usual routine for the teacher to check attendance. Those who missed two months of classes will be expelled thanks to not being able to follow one of the few basic guidelines of the school.

You can't cut classess at all.

The rule that a student must always attend class does have room for exceptions. Students can not attend as long as they were involved in some accident or was currently recovering from an illness.

Lingdao looked to the room's entrance doors. He could hear something. He closed his eyes. Isolated and ignored all other distractions. Choosing to focus only on that faint constantly loudening sound.

Panting and shoes hitting the tiles made itself known to Guang Lingdao. He found it amusing.

By the sound of things. A boy was headed for the classroom despite it already being late.

His hazel eyes peeked to his right. There was a vacant seat there.

At first. He found it strange why there would be a vacant seat so he asked Zhen Yu'er who was supposed to be sitting on it.

"Um... I don't really know but apparently the one who was supposed to sit there got into an accident and was bedridden for a whole two months." Zhen Yu'er honestly answered him.

Lingdao's curiousity grew towards the mystery schoolmate. The two of them could be said to be on the same boat.

He had attended school late. And the missing student was stuck in a hospital bed for two months.

"Hou Ming..." Yu Yan called out. She looked at the empty seat and shook her head.

The kid had called in and told her that he would be able to attend school properly now after healing from his injuries. Yet on his first day he was absent.

Just as she was about to mark an x on the student's attendance. A ragged call turned her head to the side.

"PRESENT!" The new boy struggled to mouth off a response so he shouted it instead.

Bending over, his arms pressed down on his trembling knees for support. Chest heaving back and forth to urgently take in much needed air.

Long black hair turning into blue at the tips with long front locks while sporting a neat ponytail. Dull grey eyes and sword like eyebrows.

His name was Hou Ming.

After catching his breath. The boy stood up straight and bowed in apology. Yu Yan smiled warmly at him and urged him to take his seat.

His eyes became relaxed and carefree. He scanned the class and a pair of sharp hazel eyes locked with his own.

Hou Ming trembled in place upon seeing Guang Lingdao.

The little kid looked curiously at him like looking at an animal in a zoo but that was not the point.

He could feel that the aura the boy emitted was strong. Much stronger than the homeroom teacher that he had just declared his prescence to.

His steps sped up. The class looking at him in interest and upon seeing his seat arrangement. Many heaved pained sighs.

Hou Ming strode towards his seat. But he looked at Guang Lingdao all the time who raised an eyebrow at him.

His stopped by the space between his seat and Guang Lingdao's. Scrutinizing him with his determined gaze. A deep breath filled his air with lungs.

"Those eyes! That posture and that proud air surrounding you. That dense aura too!"

"You're strong!" The kid declared while looking at Guang Lingdao.

The class sweated.

We already have a weird freak in class. Another one appeared! But this time he's just outright weird!

"So?" Guang Lingdao calmly questioned. Looking down at his mecha designs and storing them away.

He crossed his arms and leaned on his desk with those crossed arms. Looking at the strange boy with a questioning smile.

"My name is Hou Ming! Six years old! Nice to meet you now please fight me!" Hou Ming loudly asked. Looking expectantly at Guang Lingdao.

The boy desperately wanted to fight with those he deemed strong. And for some reason Guang Lingdao caught his eyes at first glance.

Lingdao sighed. Finding the matter both troublesome and somewhat amusing.

'Great... A battle junkie has appeared.' He rolled his eyes in his head and looked weirdly at Hou Ming.

The black haired kid with blue tips frowned in confusion.

'Does he not want to fight?' The black haired asked himself. Failing to notice something.

Guang Lingdao sighed and answered blankly.

"I will fight you but sit down. You are disturbing class and is being rude to teacher Yu Yan. Not only are you late but you also have the courage to look for a fight. How brave of you." Guang Lingdao sarcastically replied while chuckling a bit in the end.

Hou Ming turned his eyes to the side. Catching sight of the big breasted teacher who was smiling so innocently yet dangerously at the same time.

Immediately, the kid slammed his butt on his seat and paid rapt attention to the teacher. His back drenched with cold sweat and a wry smile spread out from his lips.

First day of school. Hou Ming had already embarrassed himself.

He cursed his own impulsive battle seeking tendencies and desperately prayed that everyone would just forget about the contents earlier five minutes.

He even wished for a hole to jump into out of shame.

Life had never been so kind for our poor little protagonist in his first life. Having seen an unfortunate fate befall his two beloved parents at a young age. It was enough to drag him into the a dark stray path.

No matter how much he tried to change. Fate found ways to drag him back into the darkness. Sealing his destiny to become one of a butcherer for the human race.

Heads fell. Blood ran like rivers and Cities became silenced under his endless bloodthirst.

After life came to an end. A random event sent him striking up a deal with one unknown entity. Sending him into his next life inside a world turned fiction.

Steeling himself to seek the pinnacle of strength. Guang Lingdao goes through a journey. Meeting friends and foes alike.

As a cold blooded murderer trying his best to turn over a new leaf and protect everything new and wonderful to him. How many more does he have to kill to protect his peace?

There were many occasions in life, when Wangji felt that words were not necessary and several times when words simply failed him.

A-Yuan doesn't seem mind that he is quiet.

By resolutely not allowing himself to think of any moment beyond this one, this breath... this situation...he had been able to painstakingly begin a routine. A-Yuan would arrive at seven am every morning, quietly following Lan Ai along what must seem like endless corridors, but his little face was always happy when he walked inside the Jingshi.

A-Yuan is a quiet, obedient child, often nervous but never timid. He sits just inside the door, ignoring the stool to remove his boots, before quickly padding inside, excited to learn and discover.

His cheerfulness is surprising, considering that the Cloud Recesses are new environment and to be frank, he was Wei Ying's son. A man who might have been a feared demonic cultivator as an adult, but Wangji had known him as a troublemaker well before that, flouting rules like water flows off a crane's back. Yet, he had taught A-Yuan manners, patience and kindness, so much so that the boy is a pleasure to teach and his table manners for a three year old, are impeccable.

Wangji has effortlessly become 'Father' a fact that would worry him, because it is a title that belongs to Wei Ying, but in A-Yuan's mind, Wei Ying is still his mother. The child refuses to think otherwise, so Wangji allows the subject to lie dormant, but recently he has learned that there was at some point, a Grandmother. He is curious but Yuan goes quiet and barely speaks for the rest of the lessons, so unlike the usual effusive response, so he asks nothing further.

Xichen is pleased to see how well he has settled in and A-Yuan is soon calling him uncle, sitting by his feet when he plays his xiao or tells him stories, that even entertain Wangji.

"You are a father now, Wangji. I am proud of both you." He says one night, as he leaves.

He is a father. It seems so strange to have earned that title, to look at this beautiful child, so adorably loving and be able to say that he is his son.

When he plays Inquiry, he pleads for Wei Ying to come home. To come back to him.

When he plays Sorrow, he asks about Yuan. Asks if Wei Ying is angry, he is now Yuan's father, in an official sense. There is no reply, but Yuan finds a red ball with no owner, the following day and Wangji wonders if this Wei Ying's blessing.

During their lessons, he ignores the pain and tries not to think about Wei Ying too much. He uses the time to engage with Yuan, to teach and to strengthen their bond, because that is what Wei Ying would say. "Without roots a tree cannot grow Lan Zhan!"

Roots. Yes. So he tries to overcome his own reticence. He learns that Yuan has understandable issues with food, that he tries to overcome. The issues are born from starvation and Wei Ying himself had a complex relationship with food. He enjoyed it, when he remembered to eat, but seemed to be able to go days without sustenance, well before he became the Yiling Patriarch or even studied inedia.

The answer he finds, is to cook them a meal for the midday break. He would be lying if he claimed the look of wonder on Yuan's face is not part of the reason, but the unconsidered benefit has been Yuan's excitement.

He would stand by Wangji watching from the floor, transfixed by curiosity and the memory of days long hunger, so Wangji picks him up and places him on a stool, or holds him as Wei Ying did once, so he can watch from a safe distance. He has never tolerated touch well, but he finds he doesn't mind holding Yuan, who sits quietly in his arms, one tiny hand holding the edge of his robes.

Yesterday, he told Wei Ying playing Sorrow again, that Yuan had patted cheek like he used to do with Wei Ying. That he still hugs his knee and sometimes laughs when Wangji picks him up. He tells him that Yuan now walks excitedly towards him at the door, instead of running, but still calls 'Father' in an excited tone.

The breeze touches his hair and he hopes it is Wei Ying.

Cooking and eating together, this becomes a small ritual, the same recipes never losing their allure, tiny hands offering him a spoon or seasoning, those ocean eyes filled with awe. He always without fail, says thank you in the Yunmeng dialect at the end of the meal and collects his utensils as if this is a old tradition, his smile happy.

It turns out that Yuan dislikes spice, much to Wangji's relief, but the experiment bears fruit that is unexpected. After a week, Yuan begins to speak quietly, telling him about Wei Ying mostly, small stories that Wangji treasures. He learns that Wei Ying played the flute for him every night, how his love had told him stories that Yuan now repeats.

Some of them are wild tales, perfect for entertaining a young mind, but others are disturbing, speaking of a time in Wei Ying's life, he knew nothing about. Tales of being hungry on the streets as way to explain Yiling he supposed, of his deceased parents and dogs chasing him, while adults shouted or laughed. How he promised Yuan that his past, would never be Yuan's future, while Wei Ying still breathed.

It won't be his future now, not with Wangji at his side.

Those stories are hard to hear and worse to think of. He thinks of all the different things people have said over the years and he wonders how long Wei Ying lived by himself on the streets. How it explained so many facets of his personality and how when kicked, Wei Ying fought, refusing to kneel to anyone, those grey eyes flashing with anger, so old nothing could wash away its fire.

Lan Ai tells him of the standard for young children and Wangji finds that Yuan has surpassed this in many ways. He has a vocabulary of three hundred words now, he can answer simple questions in sentences of five to six words, he understands time and can pronounce each word clearly. He was however struggling with numbers and Wangji had been so proud when A-Yuan had counted from one to one hundred without stopping.

In the coming weeks he plans to teach him the basics of stretching and centering his mind, as flexibility is a test he cannot fail, but for now he focuses on his basic knowledge. It was a joy to teach him. He was an avid learner, his mind inquisitive and his hopeful expression, when he moved the complete page closer to Wangji was heartbreaking but sweet.

Despite his worsening condition, he hid the effects from A-Yuan, not wanting to upset the child, or force him to relive difficult times. It was a balm to his shredded heart to see the little boy settle into a new life, away from death and heartache.

Wei Ying would be so proud but more than that, he would be happy, that the little boy he loved so much, was alive, safe and growing. That everything he had suffered to keep him alive had been worth it. Some days he could imagine Wei Ying running with Yuan as he played with his toy butterfly, laughing as he showed it to his growing audience of curious rabbits.

These daily lessons are proving to be more of a success than he thought. Yuan's vocabulary is growing and it is a relief to know that his first days of formal education will not be difficult for A-Yuan when he reaches the appropriate age. They will not be able to easily use his early beginnings against him, by claiming he is not intelligent or well-read. Wangji will give them no excuse to taunt Wei Ying's son.

It had been a wonderful discovery that A-Yuan's writing was an echo of Wei Ying's style. The same strokes and careless curves that Wangji would never correct, marveling at the similarities when he carefully added his new words to the pages to memorize.

The days pass slowly and he thinks of Wei Ying more than ever. He won't become his father, he thinks. Wei Ying would be horrified, would look at him with pity, as if those choices were taken from him, so he became what he found hard to forgive. A man who found no joy in two sons and only focused on his pain. Wei Ying would not forgive him, for hurting Yuan either and he finds that seclusion is no answer and he promised that he would not find death, not when he has a son to care for.

I will not falter Wei Ying, I will not fail either you or Yuan, not in this.

So he stands by the door every evening, Yuan at his side, strengthened by the knowledge that he must consider tomorrow's lesson.

A boy spoke from his memories, "Look at me Lan Zhan! Lan Zhan! You could try words."

"You did well today Yuan." He says suddenly, staring down at ocean eyes that brighten with happiness immediately.

"Thank you Father." Wangji nods and smiles internally at the Yunmeng dialect.

Goodnight Father." He then says softly still staring up at Wangji, when they both heard Lan Ai knock on the door, arriving to collect him for dinnertime.

"Goodnight." He replies, patting his head gently, his mind already thinking of Inquiry.

To find Wèi Yīng, Lán Wàngjī has to find himself and he unknowingly has thirteen years to wait.

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