A young and blooming businesswoman strikes a deal with the biggest South-Korean entertainment agency, only to realise the deal isn't what it seems to be... (dun dun dun) keep reading to enter an intriguing realm of betrayal, love and mystery.

I've always been a fan of Korean girl groups; Girls Generation and Wonder Girls, whenever I see them on the internet I feel in awe, I idolized Ruslana Korshunova before she died such a sad death, I'm also a fan of Alyona Subbotina with her pure white and fair blonde beauty, but honestly what I truly want to be is a star.
I want to model for famous brands and act in a few TV dramas, but truly what I want to do is sing. I'm the lead singer in my schools choir, I usually get the lead female role in my schools plays and musicals, and I love the spotlight.
I know that it will be difficult for me to become a famous singer here in Kazakhstan because music isn't taken very seriously here, but if I go to South Korea and become famous there; then people here will love me and it will help me become a famous idol.
I've never spoken to my parents about my dreams because I'm sure they'll tell me that I'm crazy and utterly absurd, my eldest brother is currently in a university in Germany on a full engineering scholarship while my second brother is in his final year of high school. I know I need to become a trainee for a good company soon or I won't be able to debut but I dont know how to go about it, but luckily for me my friend Anna sent me a message that she has an idea on Saturday so when we meet today (Monday) I'll know what I need to do.

School hours are 8am-4pm with lessons from 4pm-7pm, its already 7:30am and annoying ass Julia is still eating breakfast. 
'Juliaaaaaaa! if you dont hurry your annoying ass up and come I'll leave you! I cant be late today!' I shout from the hallway, he responds lazily with 'you cant go anywhere without me' and continues eating slowly. I ran back to the kitchen and half dragged him from the dining table while shouting 'bye mom' and running out to catch the bus.
My school is located in the city centre so I have to take two buses to get there, luckily it has a primary school so I can go with my younger brother, my older brother goes to school by six so that he can study for his finals so I barely get to see him, it sucks but what can I do?
Eitherways, when on the bus I stay close to my brother and when I sit I make sure he's right next to me or he stands infront of me if there's no space, everyone needs to know that I have a guardian or I might be followed or worse.
Once we get to school I drop my brother off at his gate (he thinks he's too big for his elder sister to walk him to class), and then run off to meet Anna who's waiting for me.
Anna is legitimately the most beautiful person I've ever seen; she doesnt look Kazakh for one, she looks more Italian? she has Hazel colored eyes, waves of brown hair that just move effortlessly as she moves and the smallest face with high set cheekbones. She has an olive skin tone that's honestly to die for and her voice is so soft; it's like you're talking to a princess. All the boys like her and she's the most popular girl in our grade, and shes my best friend, we've been friends since pre school and I doubt that anything can get in between us after everything we've been through. 
'hey Anna! how have you been? how was your weekend? how's your mom?' her mom had been feeling sick the past week so I was worried and couldnt visit her because Julius had soccer practice all weekend and I had noone to go with me. She replied 'Great!' in the cheeriest voice and 'my mom's much better, she was just having one of her off days' I nodded and we continued walking. As we entered the building I asked 'so what's your plan?' she responded 'easy, OP Entertainment is having a worldwide audition, so I'm going to record a video of you singing and we'll send it in, we're also going to send it to 3 small companies that I've researched about that seem good and hope for the best' she finished off with a cheery smile. I could've screamed and jumped up with with happiness but I was in school and had a reputation to maintain so all I said was 'thank you so much Anna! you're the best', she replied ' I know'.
Lessons were long and boring as usual, for literature we were reading Tolstoy and Lord help me that man is annoying, who writes a book that long? with so much plots to take in and characters to learn and understand? and are we still in the USSR that we have to read Russian literature? Urgh this is so annoying. Luckily the class was a blur so within 80 minutes it was over, despite my complaints though, I was one of the only students in a class of 30 who wasnt sleeping. After literature we had history and Lord if theres a hell on earth, it should be history class, because history is the most boring thing on the planet.  I look to my left where Anna usually sits and shes barely keeping her eyes open, her eyelids are just dropping and she has no control over them, she then yawns and falls asleep.
The day goes back in a haze, we have our short break, math, and then our long break.  We're preparing for the musical version of Cinderella, I'm playing the lead role of Cinderella so I spend 20 minutes eating and the remaining 30 practicing in the Theatre Room. I usually eat lunch there while going over my lines with the male lead Aizat. To be honest I cant really stand Aizat, he's pretty good looking, but has this weird slanted eye look when he's looking at me. He has pretty brown curls and a well chiseled face with the tan bronze look that's currently in fashion, but I just feel off about him so I always refuse his offers to go out or get lunch in weekends.
After practice, we have study hall until 4 and then a short 30 minute break before our study period begins; we generally do our assignments and go through our study class work book and answer the assigned number of pages and read the handouts before taking a 15 minute food break. After school I went home with my brother, we had dinner which was one of my mothers Continental Cuisine experiments: an Indian Butter Curry with White Rice, it tasted pretty good. I helped her load the dishwasher then ran upstairs to annoy Fyodor by singing at the top of my voice and messing up his hair. Fyodor looks alot like me and has a calm but easy going personality and is easy to talk to. After I was done bothering him he turned around and was like 'Sup little sis?' I responded with 'can I bother you with a small problem with mine?' he nodded and I started ' I really want to be a Kpop idol, I actually want to be a famous Kazakh singer but I feel like Kpop will be my take off point, Anna said I should send in a video of myself singing to some companies as they're having a global audition but I'm so scared I'll be rejected, what do you think I should do?' after a short but thoughtful pause he responded with 'well if you never try you'll never know right? I'd recommend you sing something by a famous korean singer with lots of range to promote yourself and make yourself stand out a bit, dont you think?' I nodded slowly and he continued with 'if you need any help being videod I'll love to help'. I jumped up and hugged him with happiness and replied with 'I'll practice for a few days then can we take the video on friday?' he nodded and said 'sure, whenever you're ready'.
I went off to my room, skipping happily, I checked my Lnstagram and then went on VouTube and typed famous Korean Kpop stars with wide vocal range despite knowing in my heart that I wanted to cover a Kim Taeyeon solo and once I saw her name I started debating whether I should choose between singing Fine or Spark, I drifted off with that in my head and heart

I've always wanted to be a star, so desperately, I've worked so hard and done my best; but finally when I reached the peak of fame I find myself here; in a prison like place, lost, and I just dont know what to do.
this is the story of Hallie, a girl from a poor family who leaves her life behind to go to the city and pursue her dreams of being an music idol and debut in a girl group only to realize that life isn't as easy as it seems.
this is a story of hard work, learning the value of friends and family and making the difficult choices to enable ones success as an idol.

Chapter 19
 
Jiwoo exclaimed, "Wow, that sounds like real love to me."
"Well, at this point, I can't say it out loud. I can't call it love yet. When I do call it, whatever it may be, I want to do it in front of Hyoyoung first."
"Hmm…"
"So Hyojun is…"
Kiwook was going to continue when Hyojun's room door opened and Hyoyoung walked out.
Hyojun announced, "Math time is over. Who's next?"
Kiwook raised his hand slowly. Hyojun walked up to him and tried to put his hand on his shoulder, but Kiwook was faster this time. He grabbed Hyojun's hand and squeezed hard. He whispered to Hyojun, "Not again. I won't let you push me around anymore."
Hyojun frowned and squeezed back as he replied, "You are her tutor and nothing more. Don't do anything stupid."
***
Kiwook had a blank face until he entered Hyoyoung's room with her. After the door closed behind them, he grimaced and complained, "Oh my god, I feel like my hand is going to break. What the heck!"
"What's wrong?"
"Your brother! Gosh, why is he so strong?"
"Yeah, Hyojun Oppa has crazy hand strength. Let me have a look at your hand. Oh my god, it's so swollen!"
"I know! If he squeezed any harder, my hand would've been destroyed. I can't even move it anymore. What the heck!"
"Oh no! I thought you guys are going to start practicing your choreography tomorrow, right? This is bad then, isn't it?"
"Yeah…"
"Give me your hand."
"Huh?"
"Give me your hand now! I can put on some anti-inflammatory cream for you. It's good for muscle aches."
Hyojun must have put all his strength into squeezing Kiwook's hand, because it was red and swollen. Hyoyoung frowned and focused on applying the cream on Kiwook's hand.
He asked her quietly, "How did you know that we start practicing tomorrow?"
"Don't you remember that I am in your fan club? Knowing about The M is my job as a fan."
"Then, are you going to come with us to practice?"
"Are you going to wear the shorts again tomorrow? Because after practice, don't you have a live show again with the fans? Well, I guess it might work. The fans like it sometimes when their idols wear their own regular clothes."
Hyoyoung started to massage his hand, which made him gasp in pain.
"Arg! That hurts!"
"Keep still. I need to rub it so the cream gets absorbed."
A silence fell and suddenly, Kiwook couldn't hear a thing. Until now, there were many noises outside that he could hear. The sound of the loud cars, the other members in the living room chatting noisily, faint music from the neighbors, and a baby crying in the distance…
He could hear all these noises, but suddenly all he could hear were his own breath and his heart pounding loudly.
Kiwook could feel the blood pumping through his veins. His hand Hyoyoung was holding was burning and tense. It was still red, and he couldn't tell if it was because of Hyojun's squeeze or because Hyoyoung was touching it.
Hyoyoung seemed oblivious to his feelings. She finished massaging his hand indifferently and announced, "All done."
She took out a disposable wet towel to clean her hand and continued, "It looks like it's just inflamed, no permanent muscle damage. So later tonight, you should put a cold compress on it, ok? Make it cold. Now, we are going to be working on Korean and literature, right? Well, you should know that I'm actually pretty good at these subjects."
Hyoyoung sat down at her desk and turned toward Kiwook. They looked at each other and Kiwook turned red, while Hyoyoung seemed completely at ease.
"Really? So you are good at languages?"
"Yeah, I've always been good in this department."
"Then why don't we take a break and just talk? You must be tired from your intense math lesson."
"No way. That's not right. If you promised to tutor me, you should do your job. What's the point of chatting? Let's just start working on some problems."
"Hyoyoung…"
Kiwook gently took Hyoyoung's arm, but she turned away and refused to look at him. Her arm trembled slightly, but she didn't say anything else.
Kiwook sighed and said to her, "Alright. Let's study."
Hyoyoung was clearly determined to ignore his feelings, so Kiwook let her arm go. He sat down beside her and looked at the textbook.
Time passed by slowly.
It was hard to tell, however, how much time had passed. To Hyoyoung, it felt surreal to be with Kiwook in her room.
He explained things with a calm voice. He was reading the textbook paragraphs, but to Hyoyoung, it sounded like a gentle love confession.
Knock, knock.
Suddenly, the knocks woke Hyoyoung up from her daydream.
"Who is it?"
The door opened and Jiwoo peaked in.
"Hey, you guys are so focused! Literature must be very interesting. It has been over two hours since you started, don't you know that?"
Kiwook jumped and checked his watch.
"Oh, you're right! I didn't notice. I think Hyoyoung needs some rest. Let's give her a break before starting her next lesson."
"Of course! Besides, we have to go to our own practice, Kiwook."
"What practice? Isn't it supposed to start tomorrow?"
"That's what I thought, but they called and told me that there are already a few guide songs ready. We should go to the recording studio now."
"Oh, alright. I'll get ready. You are coming with us, right, Hyoyoung?"
Kiwook grinned at her.
Ba-dum!
Hyoyoung wasn't prepared for his smile, and when it came at her, her heart started to pound loudly.
'Oh my god! That was too much.'
Her face reddened as she replied, "No, I'm going to stay home and study. You don't need a stylist today, right? You guys go ahead without me."
Kiwook looked at her in disappointment, but he nodded in the end and left the room.
Hyoyoung thought to herself, 'Snap out of it, Hyoyoung Ahn!'
She was finally alone in her room, and she felt faint as if all the blood had drained from her body. She laid on her bed weakly and closed her eyes. She could remember Kiwook's voice as he read an excerpt from her textbook. Strangely, she could remember every word as well.
'Wow, how is it that I can remember every single word he said?'
Kiwook had such a charismatic and hypnotic voice that could move people. His voice was low but focused as well as warm and memorable.
She loved his voice.
She felt sorry for her brother Hyojun, but she couldn't help how she felt. Whenever she remembered Kiwook and her childhood, her heart started to pound. She now remembered Kiwook protecting her. She also remembered the feeling of his hand and his chest.
She remembered the way he looked at her and the way he used to call her name and talk to her.
His calm whispers to her…
Everything about him made her heart ache.
But the truth was, she wasn't ready to accept Kiwook's feelings. She was worried about the other members, her brother Hyojun, and her parents.
And also…
She was worried about Kiwook's parents whom she might someday have to meet.

2nd year of High School, Yoona. Her mother had left the world early and left her and her father by themselves. She relieves her stress caused by her troublesome father and schoolwork through watching Idols. But one day, her father announces that he will be getting remarried! And her new stepmother has a son?
Yoona suddenly gets a new brother...

Until 4 PM, Hayden learned various piano pieces, specifically, two anime openings, which he thought was beautiful. He reminisced of the time he watched those two shows and almost teared up. However, if any pianist saw Hayden's memorizing speed and that he could play a song perfectly without even looking after watching a single video and doing it once with concentration, they would've questioned their own talent and effort.

"Such sadness…" Hayden sighed as he remembered the two scenes. "Well, it's already 4:00, let's try to learn some Korean!"

Going to his computer and turning it on, he went to a site called Language Archives. The Language Archives was a site established by the World Government that has the aim of granting free access to lessons of all the languages of every nation.

Hayden was thankful to the World Government at this moment as he didn't need to pay a single credit for knowledge. He clicked on Korean and clicked the first video.

He used Divine Perception making him focused, allowing him to clear his own mind. With this, he tried to learn Korean until 7:00 PM.

…..

Finishing the seventh video lesson, Hayden had a sudden headache. On that note, he turned off Divine Perception and his computer. He lied down on his bed, closed his eyes, and sorted out the knowledge he acquired.

As he was having streams of data being infused with his brain, he was too active to be able to sleep even though he was mentally fatigued.

"I guess there is a limit to how much knowledge I can actually absorb…" Hayden mumbled. "It's a good thing I discovered that early."

He thought it was a fortunate matter that he discovered a limit so that he knew when he would stop in the future. Abruptly, his stomach grumbled, asking for food.

"All that learning actually made me hungry. Let's cook." Hayden knew that there was no food inside the house right now as his mom left early. As for his dad, he was only home during weekends due to his work being far from home. Because of this arrangement, Hayden thought he needed to learn how to cook at least simple meals.

Ever since 7th grade, Hayden was learning how to cook. With two years of training, he can cook a numerous amount of dishes, including Filipino dishes, common Asian cuisine, and western ones.

This night, he cooked rice and a dish called Chicken Adobo. He spent the next hour eating while browsing news. Even though he was an introvert, he still tried to keep up with the latest news as it was kind of interesting to see the world develop around him.

"Aswang? (1)" Clicking on a viral article, he saw a murder of a man in Taguig City, with the organs hanging out from its corpse, while the murderer set up the corpse so that it was hanging akin to that of a butchered pig. "That's gruesome… That's why they call the murderer Aswang, huh?"

Aswang were Filipino myths that brewed since the Spanish era. Aswang were said to transform into people during the day, and become human predators at night, killing and eating people. This particular killer was called Aswang because of the organs hanging on its corpse.

Despite reading and imaging such a bloody matter in his mind, Hayden kept on eating his meal. He was numb to gory stuff on a screen as he watched too many horror and thriller movies with gore and serial killings.

Closing the article, he scrolled past more. Seeing there was nothing else that was interesting, he opened Streamlink to watch some movies.

When he finished eating, he washed the dishes and took a shower. While in the shower, he was attempted to rearrange the knowledge in his mind once more.

"Wait, I can already speak some?" Hayden uttered in semi-perfect Korean. He was surprised that he knew the exact translation of the sentence he said, and that he can speak Korean already. "What the hell? I merely watched eight thirty-minute videos!"

He was far from mastering the Korean language as those seven videos were merely conversational basics. Nevertheless, it was good that he can speak some Korean already.

Switching off his 'Korean state,' Hayden spoke regular Filipino again. "That's amazing! I learned to speak basic Korean within four hours?"

Needless to say, he needed to practice if he wants to retain this ability to speak the language, otherwise, he would definitely lose it in a few days. Knowledge that isn't used is considered as unnecessary memories, thus, the brain forgets it if it isn't practiced often, similar to how a gamer's skills rust when he or she doesn't game for a few months.

"Wait, I have eidetic memory, who am I kidding?" Hayden face slapped himself before returning to shower. Regardless of him remembering that he had an eidetic memory, he still chose to practice, just in case.

…..

Putting on his clothes, he sat down in front of his computer. He then started up the computer. Because of the two people arguing earlier, he was itching to play War of Honor, this time, he wanted to become an Apex Rank now.

"Wait, wouldn't I have godlike mechanics if I used Divine Perception?" Hayden asked himself. "No, that would be too much of a cheat now. Divine Perception already gave me a passive boost, and I still want to use it for this? Jeez…"

He got rid of the mindset of using Divine Perception on every aspect of his life. He wanted to rely on it mainly to learn things, not cheat on games. Don't get him wrong, he still considered this cheating, but it would be stupid to not use Divine Perception, and it would also be equally stupid to use it on a simple game.

Launching War of Honor, Hayden readied himself to play on his old account. He played for an entire hour, losing the first match as he hasn't adjusted yet, and winning the next match by an absolute land slide.

"I can't believe I carried that game." Hayden still had some leftover adrenaline while his hand was shaking a little. "I did so well on Downpour, killing enemies here and there, dodging every skill thrown at me with godlike reflexes, goddamn…"

Downpour was Hayden's main superhuman whenever he played War of Honor. He also dabbled on playing many other superhumans, it was simply that he felt Downpour's skillset was too suitable for him.

"That's enough for now, I'll play ranked matches tomorrow." Hayden said. He needed to sleep in order to cement what he learnt today. Plus, he overexerted himself too much when he spent seven hours straight keeping his Divine Perception active, learning all those.

After brushing his teeth, washing his face, and applying some skin care products, he went to sleep. The second his head hit the pillow, he went drifted off to dreamland.

…..

Waking up, he found himself feeling refreshed. Scanning his body using Divine Perception, he saw that his brain and his cognitive functions was back to normal.

"Did the increase healing factor also affect my mental state?" Hayden was confused. Especially when he looked at the time. It was only 3:00 AM! He slept at 9 PM. Usually, he needed at least eight hours of sleep, sometimes even needing ten hours if it was busy nights at school!

Yet now, he was feeling absolutely refreshed and new with a measly six hours of sleep? It was all too illogical! This made him draw the conclusion that the increased healing factor from Devil's Persistence fixed or created new brain cells for him.

"Well, what am I supposed to do at three in the morning?" Hayden wrinkled his nose, wondering what he would want to do. "Playing the keyboard would not be the best option as it's literally three in the morning. There were people sleeping. Playing a game would not be an option as there were too many people asleep, also, I'm in no mood. Exercise? Wait…"

He stopped in his tracks as he noticed that his body was brimming with energy. "I did some pretty intense exercises yesterday. More so, those three sets of exercises with just a five-minute break in between… No delayed onset muscle soreness at all?"

Moving around, he found out that there was indeed no DOMS. On the contrary, he felt stronger, as if his body has some kind of newfound power. "Exercises damaged the muscles, and the body repairs them… Through this repeated cycle of destruction and rebirth, new power is born… It makes sense that I would feel stronger… The increased healing factor's effect is really noticeable!"

Hayden couldn't help but praise the increased healing factor stemming from Indestructible Devil. "So that's why after five minutes, I still had the power to do more exercises!"

Only now did he make sense of the strange events that he thought was normal yesterday. He thought that adrenaline was coursing through his veins at that time. He now realized how greatly mistaken he was.

"So now, I will be able to increase my strength faster! I can run farther with only a little rest, and I can also sprint longer!" Hayden still had the feeling that everything was surreal. "Overnight, I already changed from a regular human into a person with superpower. I wonder, what are those who gained an Ability like me doing…?"

Saying that, Hayden readied himself to run around in the park.

…..

In an abandoned slum within Taguig City. There was a man snoring away, his face contorted as if he was in pain.

Abruptly, the man woke up. This man had a terrifyingly ugly face, fat build, and messy hair.

"What was that? Why did I suddenly drown?" He hurriedly craved for air, confused of what happened in that dream. As he didn't know what a lucid dream was, he believed that that dream was some kind of alternate reality. "How did I get there? I only remember sleeping here? And what was that? I turned invisible and experienced so much power in my arms during that dream…"

Calming down, the man rubbed his chest. He touched an odd bump underneath his shirt. When he looked, he saw a crystalline prism embedded on his chest.

"What the fuck is this thing? Get it off!" The man shouted as he panicked. When he tried to remove it, information rushed into his head.

When the information was done transferring into his brain, he finally understood what happened. "So that was actually true? I do have that power? And what Ability Wielder? What bullshit nonsense is that? What kind of name even is 'Invisible Hunter?'"

He tried to make himself invisible while laughing. Consequently, he looked at his arms and saw it was gone. With this, he ceased his chortling and knew that everything was true.

"Holy shit! I can steal money with this! I can go into many places where men shouldn't be…" With various thoughts streaming into his mind, he formed a disgusting face that resembled that of a pig. Not like anyone will notice as he was invisible. "I'm going to be the most powerful person in the world!"

His laugh was only a normal laugh. Be that as it may, if anyone were in the room with him, they would sense the pure malevolence contained in this laugh. In addition, he was invisible, adding to the factor of horror.

"With this power, I will finally not need to hide from those fuck-ass losers!" Turning Invisible Hunter off, he grinned, revealing his yellowish teeth. "I will be coming for you people!"

Going out of his run-of-the-mill house, he went to another house while using his newly found power. As he created no sound, he was discreet without putting in any effort whatsoever.

There was only a single person in the house. Seeing this, the man grinned. Not that anyone could see it as he was invisible. The person inside the house he broke in was a hooligan that bullied him for years, made fun of him.

At that instance, he felt his nails growing out. It became claws! The man laughed loudly, startling the hooligan inside the house,

"Who's there!?" The hooligan shouted. Looking around, there was no one there. "Fuck you! Come out, now! Don't be such a pussy!"

"I'm here." The fat man grinned while standing in front of the hooligan who turned his neck away from him. When the hooligan heard this voice, he turned in front of him.

He almost fainted because of the huge scare the fatty gave him. "You fucking pig! how did you snuck in!?"

When the hooligan came into contact with 'fatty,' he was startled. Those were the eyes of a person who wanted to kill! And that smile… It was so eerie that it gave him, a man who loved bullying people, goosebumps.

"Get out of here, now!" The hooligan steeled himself.

When the fatty heard this, he laughed. "You don't have the power to make me get out!" Immediately, he grabbed the hooligan's neck and lifted him up in this manner.

"I do indeed have powerful strength!" The fatty laughed maniacally, like a psycho.

Meanwhile, the hooligan was struggling to say something. "L-l-let m-me go… y-y-you fucker!"

He was wondering as to how the fatty suddenly gained such strength. It terrified him of what might come next.

"You! You bullied me ever since I got here! Called me a psycho! A fucking pig!" The fatty shouted angrily. "You son of a bitch! You're in this situation and you still have the guts to not fucking beg and even have the backbone to act arrogant in front of me!?"

"L-l-look man," the man said. "I-I'm sorry, o-okay? We-we were only having fun… right? You ha-had fun, r-r-right?"

"Oh, yes, I had fun!" the fatty laughed. A few seconds of laughing later, the fatty stopped and looked at the hooligan dead-straight in the eyes with a crazed expression. "I had so much fun that I want to kill you!"

Raising his left hand, the fatty dug his claws into the man's chest. Because of this, the hooligan shouted as he experienced pain that he never experienced before. On top of that, he can't breathe, which made everything worse.

The fatty laughed again. "Farewell! see you in hell!"

When he finished his sentence, the fatty ripped apart the hooligan, killing him in an instant. The fatty slashed open the hooligan before finding an electric cord to hang him, making it look like a pig that was butchered.

"Oh, look at you, I pity you." The man formed a sad face towards the hanging corpse. "Look at what they did to you. You were butchered like a pig!"

Afterwards, the fatty laughed. This fatty was precisely the viral Aswang. Aswang was always made fun of ever since his parents died, leading him into depression. Living 24 years of his life in a sedentary manner, his body turned to this, and his head was a little screwed because of all the abuse that the people of the slums did to him.

In fact, nobody, not a single soul, ever pitied him. They all laughed at him, badmouthed him, and gossiped behind his back!

"Now, I will get my revenge." The fatty laughed, resembling a crazy man. "Oh, I love the feeling of digging my claws into flesh! And the experience of ripping that guy apart… It suits him well! A pig, truly a pig!"

Satisfied at his 'artwork,' he went out of the house using his Invisible Hunter again. Because no one saw him, nobody would suspect that it was him. He had motive, yet he was 'powerless.' Nobody, not even the police, would suspect that he, a 'fatty' was the one who killed the hooligan!

Aswang went back to his own home, licking the blood off of the claws he used before retracting it. "The pig's blood tastes nice!"

"Who should be my next target?" Aswang said with a shrewd smile, which turned into a cackle. "Perhaps I should do something a little 'indecent' to my next victim first, hehe… I have never experienced sex in my entire 24 years of life, I guess I'm getting it now."

…..

Spending the last hour doing push-ups, lifting weights, pull-ups, crunches, and tiptoe squats, Hayden was exhausted.

He rested for about fifteen minutes, browsing social media, before he sensed that his body was already okay. "Wow, I just did intense exercise for an hour and resting for only fifteen minutes, I can already move? This power's too much!"

Additionally, he didn't feel any pain whatsoever! A few minutes ago, he was aching all over his body, not able to stand up, now, it was healed!

"Okay, time for a run!" Hayden felt energetic. He now wanted to exercise because of the effects of his own healing factor. Switching to his running attire, he went out of the house while observing his surroundings using Divine Perception.

He was already jogging a little. 'Philippines was a safe country with a low crime-rate, however, it doesn't hurt to be careful, right? I mean, there's literally a murder right inside Taguig City. A horrifying one at that.'

While thinking, his body shivered a little as he felt somebody staring at him. Turning his head into the direction of one of the house's roof in the neighborhood, he didn't see anything.

"Strange." Hayden squinted his eyes as he continued to jog. "I really should be careful."

…..

1 Aswang – A mythical being, considered as a monster by many, in Filipino folklore. Aswang can be either an umbrella term for a group of monsters or a term that identifies a singular person, mainly, the latter. For the general term, in Filipino folklore, Aswang can refer to various beings, the Tiktik, a birdlike creature that eats fetuses, Wakwak, a similar creature, except that the Wakwak is a vampiric bird that eats humans, the Viscera Sucker, or Manananggal, who splits with their lower portion while the upper portion hunts for human prey, and many more. Meanwhile, for the term that identifies for a singular person, Aswang can mean a monster in general, a man-eating monster, that sucks blood from their prey with their proboscis-like tongue during the night, and blend with people during the day. Unlike vampires, Aswang do not get hurt by the sun. Some versions, however, puts vampires are categorized under the umbrella term of Aswang.

For more info about Filipino folklore and mythical creatures, here's a link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippine_mythical_creatures

Wouldn't you just want to possess superpowers in this modern world? What would you do if you suddenly come to possess superpowers? Would you want to play the hero? Or perhaps the villain? Or continue living your life, using your superpowers for your own personal gains and well-being, instead of planning evil acts, or trying to save the day?

Well, that is the precise situation that Hayden Emperador, the main character of our story, is going to face.

Jennie's POV

Lisa dried her hair with a towel and handed me another clean one. We just reached back her car and she didn't mind that were both soaked with water.

"That was insane Lisa! I've never done such thing in my entire life!" I gasped and turn off the AC of her car.

"Please tell me you didn't regret it, because if you did, we seriously can't be friends anymore." She said while closing the window of her car.

"It was wild but..." I said. "I definitely loved it. That was one hell of an adrenaline rush I got there!" I giggled and she just give me a soft chuckle.

"Haha im not usually that risk taker but i just love doing something exciting. Well nothing felt wrong with that. I really love discovering new things" she start the engine and we left, i honestly don't know where were going.  "Hang around me more often and you'll become as crazy as me."

"I guess I will agree with that. You just made me do the things I've never thought of doing!" Shake my head in disbelief. I just let this woman bring the excitement in me yet it was wonderful.

"You look extra cute when you laugh," she said softly still focused in the road. "It's like your eyes disappear and all of a sudden you're just full of life."

I brushed my hand on her arm, feeling a little tingle in my spine. "You made me really happy today."

"You sure about that? Because if I remember correctly, you were yelling at me like more than half of the time," she smirked.

"I know, I know," I admitted with a guilty look on my face. "You win. I should have just trusted you that you were about to give me the ultimate thrill of my life." that's true, I dont know when was the last time i feel excitement.

Lisa pull over and turn on the heater. There was complete silence for a few seconds. All I knew that moment was that we were staring into each other's eyes, just inches away from each other's faces.

Lisa started to lean forward, until her lips so close to mine. I could feel her warm breath on my face as she started to move closer.

I bit my lip and then lean back. I shouldn't be doing this. I had a boyfriend who was waiting for me back in our apartment. My hands started to shake as I managed to spit out the stupidest thing.

"Um... Lisa?"

"Yes?" she whispered, still looking at my lips.

"I'm.... hungry."

All of a sudden, Lisa burst into soft chuckles.

"You know what Jennie?" she grinned. "You never cease to amaze me in your own little ways. Definitely not so proper on the first date."

I opened my mouth, giving her a teasing smile. "Who even said this was a date?"

"Well, today was definitely better than any date I've been on, that's for sure," she grinned.

I felt my cheeks burn.

I'm hungry? Who the fuck says that right before a kiss?

Lisa noticed that im like frozen good and in an awkward state, she took my hand and started the engine. "I'm actually hungry too. Do you want to make some sandwiches with me or should we go on a resto?"

"Either of the two." i smile and she nods. 

Lisa drive for about ten more minutes before we parked on an unfamiliar restaurant.

There are characters that were written outside but i couldn't understand, I've never seen those before.

As much as i tried to remember if I've seen those, i failed. I heard Lisa's small laugh that made me look at her.

"This is Feuang Nara, it's a famous restaurant in my homeland." She said and smile. Oh my god that smile could sail a thousand ship!!

"Homeland?" i frown. Why didn't i even noticed that she isn't a Korean??

"It was surprising that you didn't think different of me but you're right, im not a Korean, im from Thailand." smile at me before shutting off the engine and get off the car.

That's why she looks like their Elephant when she isn't smiling...

Oh God isn't Thailand famous for elephants? or not?!!

Well nevermind.

"Jennie.." I heard her knock from the outside.

"Jennie... hey did you hear me?" She called and i was about to open the cars door but suddenly there was no switch inside.

"Jennie...."



"Jenniee...." Her voice suddenly change. It becomes masculine.

"Babe wake up.." She said. . . . . No, It wasn't her voice.

I slowly open my eyes and saw Jongin looking straight at me. All of a sudden,  it hits me, i was back in the real world.

"how long have i been sleeping?" I asked and yawn feeling a little stiffy.

"Like about five hours." he said with a worried face. He probably thought i wouldn't wake up. "I was waking you for like five minutes already. You must've been really tired "

"Really?" i asked in disbelief. I've never slept that long in daylight. I sat up straight and give him a small smile. Suddenly my stomach growls that startles the both of us. Jongin laughs so do I. In my dreams, i was about to eat in an alien restaurant, i wish i was able to eat first before he wakes me up. ugh..

"Oh. I'll cook dinner for us." He smile and give me a peck on my forehead before he went to the kitchen.

i must have gone insane, why would i dreamt the same person repeatedly...

While i was waiting for Kai to finish cooking, i took my phone and Googled something.

Dreaming of the Same person Every Night |

There are a lot of result came and i decided to click the first one entitled Dreaming of The Same Thing Every Night" and a few  more rticles popped up. I clicked the one that said Dream Continuity and started reading.


Dream Continuity: Picking Up Where You Left Off

Have you ever had a dream you wouldn't mind getting back to? Have you ever had a dream that left you feeling angry or upset and you wish you could change the dream's outcome? Have you ever been in the middle of dreaming something really pleasant that you would love to get a chance to finish? A technique I learned over the years as I was becoming proficient at lucid dreaming was the art of continuing a dream minutes, days, and even years after it has ended.

To continue a dream you had the night before do this:

1. Get ready for bed and make sure you're nice and tired and ready to go to sleep.

2. Lie down in your bed on your back with your eyes closed and replay the previous night's dream in your head, concentrating on every detail you can remember and how you felt in the dream.

3. Let yourself fall asleep when you get near to the point where your dream left off.

Now, it might take some practice and some confidence, but if you keep doing this I think you'll be surprised at how easy it is to return to a dream you've had previously. It's not a sure thing, but your success rate will increase with practice. I've been able to revisit a dream even years later. But you've got to remember the details of the dream and especially how you felt in the dream. For some reason, the emotional aspect of the dream is important for getting back to it.

No. That wasn't the answer to my question!

I keep on checking every articles but it doesn't solve the issue. I didn't intend to have the same dreams, it just happened without me knowing why.

It wasn't supposed to bring out my curiousity but a thought came into my mind, What if Lisa actually existed? What if she was true and everything that happens inside my head while i was asleep was part of being futuristic? Oh damn thats ridiculous!!

I typed Lisa Manoban on sns but i found nothing, there's a lot of Lisa, and few Manoban but no one shares the same name as her. What the actual fuck. why am i stressing my self over someone i didn't know.

"Jennie! The food is ready!" Jongin called me. Yeah, and i have a boyfriend over here!


We finished dinner at eight. Jongin was busy on his painting while im stucked again on the screen of my laptop. I couldn't help but remember Lisa.... again. The way she looked right into my eyes as she leaned forward to kiss me. The way her wet lips curved at the sight of my own mouth. I could still remember the feeling of herbreath against my face.

Maybe... just maybe... it would have been worth a shot. Maybe I should have made the most of the moment. I should have taken control. After all, it was only a dream, right?

If only I had known that I was dreaming. It would have caused no harm.

I let out a soft sigh as i stare on the bright screen. I've had lots of petty regrets in the past, but this one bugged me the most at this moment and worst, it was just from my dream.

"Shall we sleep?" Jongin came inside the room holding the small crumpled paper probably one of his scratchs. Glancing at the clock and it's already eleven.

"I'll just finish this." I faint a smile. 

No matter how hard i tried, i know i won't be able to finish it if Lisa's face keeps on flashing on my mind.

It started when Jennie fell in love with the girl of her dreams. . . . No scratch that. . . . 


She fell in love with the girl IN her dreams. 


The only time she ever got to be with her. . . . . was whenever she would drift off to sleep.

-------


NO PART OF THIS BOOK MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT ANY WRITTEN PERMISSION FROM THE AUTHOR.

"Jealous? There's no point."
Lao Hei stood up, trying to hug Meng Fan's shoulders, only to realize the young man was too tall. He couldn't hug Meng Fan at all, maybe just grip his arm, so he elbowed him and said with raised eyebrows. "This Korean guy is our taekwondo teacher. He's good looking and knows how to flirt. Most of the female students are here because of him. He's our star teacher. I don't know why women like Koreans so much. Is it because of their nickname, "club?" A club is nothing, I'm a stick!"
Meng Fan laughed. "Maybe they just like good-looking guys; nothing to do with clubs or sticks."
Lao Hei looked irritated. "So what if he's good looking, he's such a dumb c* and really arrogant."
Meng Fan laughed. "Aren't martial artists supposed to be blunt? If you think he's arrogant, fight him. Lao Hei, you aren't afraid of losing, are you? If you can't beat him, then you can't complain."
"You think I can't fight him? He can't beat me even if I just stand there and don't fight back." Lao Hei looked even more annoyed, then he grew sheepish. "You don't get it. This Korean guy is a big money-maker for the school, even Coach Yang has to kiss up to him. I have to play along. Let's go, I don't want to see his face anymore."
Meng Fan followed Lao Hei on their way toward the big practice room.
"Eh, isn't that guy Meng Fan?"
A few of the dozen students recognized Meng Fan. He was so noticeable it was hard to stay hidden.
"It is him! What's he doing here?"
"I hate him!"
"Why doesn't he just explode?"
Meng Fan was confused by the ridicule and cursing. Lao Hei was confused, too. How did these female students know about Meng Fan? They looked like they could murder him. Did the young man do something horrible to them?
"Meng Fan?"
Jin Taiyun looked energized when he heard the name. He glanced at the focus of the female students' attention and perked up. After marching toward Meng Fan, he stopped about three steps away with a bright smile on his face. "Meng Fan, how are you?"
Meng Fan was cussed out by the female students. When Jin Taiyun walked over, with Lao Hei's explanation, he knew this man was Korean, so he thought of another Korean guy, realizing why the women were cussing him. His brows furrowed, "Do we know each other?"
"You don't know me. I know you."
Jin Taiyun looked to be in a good mood. He introduced himself, "I'm Jin Taiyun, from South Korea. I teach taekwondo at Feng Ji. Are you also a student here?"
Meng Fan answered, "Kind of. What do you want?"
"Great."
Jin Taiyun seemed even happier. "I heard of you after the video of your fight with Park Jae Hye. After the fight, everyone said South Koreans are too weak, and three of them can't fight one of you. Some of them even called you the Iron Hero. I saw the video, you ambushed them. Now that I've run into you, I want to challenge you to a fight. It's not for Park Jae Hye, it's for the honor of the South Korean men."
Meng Fan was speechless. "So you just want to beat me up?"
Jin Taiyun smiled, "You can think of it that way. You can refuse the fight too, but refusing is admitting defeat. I don't need you to apologize to anyone. I need you to admit that you won by ambushing."
Meng Fan wrinkled his eyebrows again. "Win? You think winning is more important than right or wrong for the video incident?"
"Right or wrong?" Jin Taiyun shook his head. "This happened in your country, Huaxia. Who knows what really happened. Even the video could be fake."
"Right!"
"Park Jae Hye wouldn't hit anyone!"
"The video is fake!"
"Coach Jin, teach him a lesson!"
"Go Coach Jin!"
After Jin Taiyun spoke, most of the female students started shouting. They looked ready to attack Meng Fan at any time.
"You South Koreans are known for admitting nothing and taking credit for everything."
Meng Fan was angry now. It wasn't because of Jin Taiyun saying something real was fake, but these female students who all looked like they had air in their heads.
Pointing to Jin Taiyun, Meng Fan asked Lao Hei, "Is it illegal if I kill him?"
"Master Meng, it's definitely illegal if you kill someone."
Lao Hei's face grew grim. He wasn't sure of the origin of the drama, but he could feel Meng Fan's rage and worried about the possibility of Meng Fan making a lethal move. But then he realized Meng Fan's real question, "But, as long as you don't disable him, it should be fine."
"Kill me?"
Jin Taiyun laughed as if he just heard the biggest joke. "C'mon, let's get started. I'll make you kneel and admit you did an ambush."
As he talked, he walked toward a practice area and began warming up. He wasn't afraid of Meng Fan getting away since people were already recording. He would bring honor back to Park Jae Hye. This Iron Hero is just trash!
"Go Coach Jin!"
"Coach Jin, make him cry!"
The female students didn't leave and rushed to cheer on Jin Taiyun.
Lao Hei's glance at Jin Taiyun was as if the man was a moron. Was the Korean man that full of himself?
Seeing Meng Fan's grim look as he walked toward the fighting area, he sighed. Master Meng, take it easy. Don't kill Coach Yang's money maker.
Then he turned happy. He's wanted to beat up the Korean guy for a while but never had the chance. Now, it'd be so great to see him getting owned.
"What happened?"
As Lao Hei considered, the owner of the money maker, Coach Yang of the dojo, appeared. He probably heard of what's going on. He rushed toward Jin Taiyun and blocked him, "Jin Taiyun, what are you doing?"
Jin Taiyun looked serious. "Yang Feng, he's accepted my challenge. Please don't stop me."
If I don't stop you, you'll be disabled!
Yang Feng and Meng Fan had fought before, so he knew what Meng Fan could do. Meng Fan had a power move. If Jin Taiyun was snatched by Meng Fan, he'd be finished.
Yang Feng knew Jin Taiyun's level of strength all too well. He was good at looking hot and posing, but if he tried to kick Meng Fan, the Iron Hero, his foot would be gone.
Jin Taiyun was strong in taekwondo, but the sport wasn't really powerful in fighting.
Even if Meng Fan didn't know takedown and snatching, it'd be hard for a taekwondo black belt to beat him. You could kick Meng Fan a few times, but once he got close, his strength would end you!
Yang Feng smiled without humor. "Jin Taiyun, you can't beat him. What if I help apologize for you, and this could end here."
"I apologize? I can't beat him?"
Jin Taiyun's face turned stern. "Yang Feng, is he better than you? Is anyone at this dojo, other than you, a match for my leg kicks?"
Yang Feng wanted to crawl into a hole. Bro, people just played along with you. Most of the coaches here could beat you to a pulp.
But how could he tell the Korean guy this now?
"Yang Feng, don't worry about it. I won't be too hard on him. I know there can't be private fights at dojos in Huaxia. We're just playing."
Seeing Yang Feng's shadowed expression, Jin Taiyun smiled coldly. He knew Yang Feng was protecting the people of Huaxia, he didn't want them to lose face.
Iron Hero, hah, I'll break you!
He walked onto the fight area.
Yang Feng wished he could send this moron to the guillotine. Did he think taekwondo has any actual fighting advantage?
Whatever, he can die if he wanted to!
Yang Feng turned away, not wanting to see the fight, but then he walked toward Meng Fan and raised his hand. "Mr. Meng, do me a favor. Go easy on him, think of it as practice."


To reward Meng Fan for his bravery before his heroic death, the cosmos rewarded him with a 'system', sending him back in time to three months ago, alive.

In the Shanghai Galaxy Network Club, a guy wearing cotton slippers smoking a cigarette was sitting on a large computer sofa chair, turning off the voice chat in a huff.
"What the hell!" The spiky-haired guy cursed.
"Lu Lian, what's wrong?" A young man wearing headphones who was sitting beside him asked.
"Nothing, just that I came across a team called Skycrown that wanted to have combat practice with us. After searching a bit, f*ck, they're just a newly formed team with nothing to their name, isn't that just f*cking wasting our time?"
"Don't bother about them, whatever their names are, Skycrown, XX, OO or whatever shit, there are many teams like them out there. They're not worth concerning yourself over." The youth said.
"True. Are the members from Team Shadow Wind here already?"
"Soon, we'll play our best. Team Shadow Wind is good, and they will have no problems getting into the finals."
***
There was an uncomfortable silence in the club room after that incident. Since Xiao Jia had placed the call on loudspeaker, majority of the people in the room had heard the conversation.
Trash team?
The words uttered by that guy were heavy and harsh, and it pierced their hearts. The members of Team Skycrown were unsure of what to say for a while. Just when you thought that society nowadays was harmonious and courteous, who knew there were still so many assholes out there!
"That...I'm sorry you guys, I didn't expect that Lu Lian was this type of person. This was my fault, I'll find some other team to have combat practice with you." Xiao Jia said, his voice full of guilt as he looked at the ashen faces of Team Skycrown's members.
"It's not your fault," Luocheng said, shaking his head.
"Yeah, what he said was true anyway. Right now, we are worthless and a trash team." Zhou Yan said quietly.
"Nonsense, you guys are really great! Without you guys, our SHU team wouldn't even dream of stepping into the top four teams. Team Galaxy is the trash team, being so high and mighty just because they are the champions for the National Internet Club League!" Li Meiqi exclaimed.
"Yeah, they're the trash team. We don't need to play against them." The members of the E-sports Club were all protective of Team Skycrown as they knew how strong they really were after all.
"We'll try to find some other team then, otherwise we'll just have to play rank games." Luocheng said.
"Luocheng…" Xiao Bei had never expected to be met with such pure discrimination, and he felt a little uncomfortable. The words said by the other party just now was really hurtful.
Luocheng smiled and patted Xiao Bei on the shoulder.
"Rest assured, after this competition, a lot of people will be scrambling for a combat practice with us. Second-tier and even first-tier teams will come looking for us, and your title of the strongest ADC will also be known to everyone!"
"Yeah!" 
Xiao Bei had always believed in Luocheng's words, so he nodded his head in agreement.
"It'll be soon, this month we'll still be some trash team to other people. After this month, we'll be the strongest team!" Da Luo said determinedly.
"You don't even have to say it, it will happen!" Wu Sen said, laughing.
"I'm familiar with Aijing, do you want me to give her a call to see if Team 71's second team can spare time for a match with us today?" Lin Dong asked.
Team 71's second team had gone missing in action for a while after the incident previously, and was now resurfacing after everything had calmed down. The members of the second team had all been replaced, and their strength was stronger than before. It would seem that they were currently the best team that Team Skycrown could ask for in a combat practice at the moment.
"I contacted Feilong and he said they can have a match with us tomorrow." Xiao Jia said, walking back to them after his phone call.
"With Zhejiang University's first team?" Jian Feng asked.
"No, Feilong will bring Team Revelation's second team, which is the official team he's in." Xiao Jia replied.
Everyone knew the strength of Ceng Feilong, it was seen in the fact that he alone could carry the powerful Zhejiang University team by himself.
And Feilong was not the captain of Team Revelation's second team, he was just one of the members. From this, you could ascertain that the team was definitely a second-tier or above, and being able to have a combat practice with them would help a lot for Team Skycrown!
As soon as Xiao Jia's call was ended, Lin Dong smirked as he looked at Luocheng.
"Boss, it seems that female analyst—Zheng Aijing is interested in you."
"Who's that?" Luocheng asked, his voice tinged with suspicion.
"Shit, you actually forgot her? When you were ghost-playing in the internet league semi-finals, she was the one standing behind you watching. She's the tactical analyst of Team 71, and only the few teams in the top four would have official analysts in their team. For others, having a coach is already considered good." Lin Dong said.
"Haha, at least we have a coach then, and it's even a world-class champion coach!" Wu Sen laughed.
"Also, Aijing was hesitant at first and said she would try. Once I said that our Team Skycrown coach was you, she immediately agreed. Really, our boss is just too irresistible." Lin Dong said further.
"Ah geez, just hurry up and train. If you lose the elimination matches, you can just forget about it all, get yourselves drunk and get lost." Luocheng said instead.
Since they had managed to arrange a combat practice with Team 71, naturally they would be going all out.
***
After all the members were present, Aijing was quick to connect the call with Lin Dong.
"Use the tournament server, there won't be any lag issues that way," Aijing said.
"Uh...we don't have the client for it." Yang Ying said apologetically. 
"Tournament servers are essential to professional players for practice and competitions. You'd better think of a way to apply for one."
Lin Dong nodded his head. "We'll find a way."
The tournament server had all the champions unlocked, as well as high amounts of IP and RP. If you played competitions on the normal domestic server, you could probably do it. The real professional matches however, were played on tournament servers. This was so there would be no issues with account names or graphic problems…
Team Skycrown really didn't have anything right now, and it was just a pitiful sight. Fortunately, Aijing was reasonable, and allowed them to log in directly to a custom game room that they had created.
***
71 Club was located in Shanghai Pudong New District. It was a very large factory building renovated into a residential base for them. In the training room, all of the members were sitting in their computer chairs, and you could hear the clicks of the keyboard as they keyed in their account username and password to log in.
"Aijing, who are we playing against? They can't even get tournament servers. Playing in the Ionia server would definitely lag, and there isn't any OB option." The captain of Team 71's second team—Hai Ming said. 
"Yeah, are they any good?" Another member—Huang Jiulong asked.
"I'm not sure either, they're just newly formed," Aijing replied.
"What the hell, you're kidding right, Aijing? Getting a team that's newly formed to play against us, it's better if they just go and play ranked games to train."
"Individually, their members are strong. Play properly, if you lose, then that means an additional two hours of practice tonight." Aijing said.
"How is it possible for us to lose. If we win, you'll spend two hours chatting with us then?" Hai Ming said jokingly as he laughed.
"Is that so, wait until you can reach the first team's base within twenty minutes, then we'll talk." Aijing responded with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
"Alright…" The members of the second team didn't have any more to say to that.
Those crazy first team members rarely practiced with them because the gap between their strengths were just too big. Of course, even though they couldn't beat the first team, they could still beat up this team who had no name.
"Team Skycrown? Who has heard of them?"
"Nope."
"Never…"
"I've heard of Lenovo, which is the team sponsored by them…"
"Then Skycrown would probably be a joint venture between Skydance Media and Crown Regency Hotels? Haha!"
"Hahaha…" The members of the team laughed.
Aijing didn't laugh, but just stared at the members coolly. "Just play properly, I'm going over to the first team to see their match against the Korean team."
"Speaking of which, we're playing two matches against them, right?"
"Yes."
"So if we beat them within an hour for those two games, we are free to play anything else during the next hour?" Jiulong asked, smiling.
"Alright."
"Aw yeah, that's great."
"Alright, let's beat them in twenty minutes!"
"Remember to record the match," Aijing instructed as she left.
***
Aijing left the second team's training room, heading toward the first team's training room.
Team 71 was playing against the Korean's top team this afternoon, both sides would be reserved and trying to test the waters against each other.
It wasn't that she didn't want to see Team Skycrown's strength, but understanding the strength and tactics of the Korean team was more important at the moment. There were limited opportunities to play against Korean players, and she needed to analyse their plays and tactics with the limited games they had.
Stepping into the room, the five members of Team 71 were sitting rigidly in their seats. Looks like they were treating this combat practice seriously like an actual competition match. 
The temperament of Team 71's first and second team were completely different, they were serious and rigorous. No matter what type of opponent they were up against, they would never underestimate them nor laugh about them like the second team was doing. This was the attitude a top team needed after all.
"Aijing, take a look at this. Their chosen lineup is a bit strange." Team 71's middle laner—Tang Xiang said.
Aijing walked over and glanced at the screen, her brows furrowing slightly.
"They might be doing it on purpose, not wanting to expose their strength and tactics so early." Aijing mused.
"What should we do then, should we also deal with them casually, hiding our real strength?"
"Choose a regular line up, don't use your core champions," Aijing said.
"Alright."
Even if the other party was intentionally hiding their real strength in this combat practice, Aijing still needed to analyze it carefully. She was hoping that she could get some information hidden beneath the layers in this match.
Sadly, it seemed like the other side also had a good analyst. In champion selection, coordination and tactics were all hidden, and Aijing couldn't see through any of it.
"The Korean analysts have always been good, that's why they have always managed to claim first and second place." Aijing muttered to herself.
The combat practice between the first team and the Korean team ended quickly, and even if they had won, it didn't mean anything in terms of strength.
Two games, one win each, and it was over in less than an hour.
Aijing shook her head in frustration, not getting what she wanted. She would have to go over the recordings and study it. As she walked back to the room, she suddenly remembered that the second team was playing against Team Skycrown, and she could vaguely hear angry shouts and other noises from their training room.
Aijing was surprised, and instead, headed toward the second team's training room.


When a national athlete of China laughs at the concept of being able to win a gold medal in video gaming, what a pro-gamer like yourself ought to do is take your size-42 shoe and measure it against his pretty face!
When parents, relatives, friends, and all the rest of society scoff at pro-gaming and say it’s not a real job… what else can you do but hold true to your passion for the competitive multiplayer scene, and resolutely turn away from their doubts!
Have you ever thought that it could actually become an official event during the Olympics, perhaps within the next four years—a game of split-second reactions and seamless teamwork between five-man squads, the ultimate test of reflexes and finesse, in an arena where players compete with all their heart and soul… 
This is e-sports!
Let the champions roar ‘Demacia!’ and rock the world to its foundations!

Trisha came to look for me. When we reached the entrance of the campus Avika and Riya were already waiting. We had a joyous and stress-free day outside. As we had some delicious snacks and lovely desserts it felt bliss to us. Since we ate distasteful food for so long our tongues were robbed of the taste buds.
After trying out various outfits Riya and Avika selected a few. 

It was 5 in the evening when we came back. Sun has yet to set. After resting for a few minutes I turned to ask Avi about hitting the gym as we had lots of desserts today and didn't go in the morning. But as I approached her she was in a deep sleep. I tucked her in the light blanket and she snuggled to it with a content smile. 

Smiling I wore my activewear and sports shoes. As Avika wasn't with me I decided to run. Attaching my earphones I began to run. Music blasted in and my mood uplifted. There were many people in the garden. Players practising their games, girls chatting around, couples sitting quietly gazing the horizon or exchanging sweet promises while the sun was going to set. I decided to sit quietly in some place after running two laps.

After 15 minutes I completed my workout and sat in a good place to admire the sunset. Looking at the serenity of the scene I thought of a few words, not that good but apt for my mood and scene.

"Everyday when a day ends
It feels so relaxing to me
Every emotion blends
Sometimes merry sometimes gloomy
Sunset is beautiful
As it marks that the day is finally ending"

I sat there thinking nothing. Just staring at the sunset and breathing deeply. Sort of meditation. Sun sat at last. Sky still contained few hues before turning all dark. Breathing for the last few times, it was the time to get up. 

"Hey, are you okay?"

I jumped in surprise with a sudden sound. I noticed it was Avika. I thought that if it would be a movie it was the perfect time when Mr.President shows up. These coincidences often happen between the lead actors. Not that I was thinking we were the main leads.

"Yeah, just enjoying my quality time. You woke up sleepy head?" I said.

She sat beside me. 
"I was looking for you and assumed you would be working out as you are not a morning person, next possible place was the library." She said.

"You know there is a thing called a mobile phone, dummy." I laughed flashing my phone towards her.

"Tch, I know that. Just my phone ran out of battery after our outing and I slept soon after I came." She said making some faces.

"Come on let's go, it's getting darker." I stood up and pulled her up with me.

Next few days flew very fast. I continued to follow my schedule dutifully. In Psychology, we were taught so many things that fascinated me. The working of our mind is truly a miracle. Today was the day we had to present our papers at the Literary Club. After lunch, Trisha and I went together. Today I reached earlier.
I had seen Mr.President from afar a few times. He was present most of the time in the library as he said earlier. Idiot Sourav didn't disturb me any further as the librarian was always there. She talked happily with me each time I issued books. I had seen him playing basketball in mornings when I get a chance to work out. 

We had settled down and Trisha told me about Korean-dramas she had watched. I used to watch Korean-dramas and Chinese dramas. Here however I don't get time at all. We talked happily until everybody came in. As we were 14 members everybody read their papers. When Mr.President started I was happy that he liked the book. Every book has got it's the charm. It ended pretty well and everybody got a glimpse of other's capabilities. 

We got to know that the drama is set on the novel Pride and Prejudice. It was a beautiful romance novel by author Jane Austen. It was one of my favourite classic books. It was the story in which Elizabeth overcomes her prejudice and Mr.Darcy does his pride and then both surrenders themselves in love. I was very excited about it. Normally I heard colleges play Romeo and Juliet as a drama but this is really great. I do want to see the casts and hopefully, their actions would be top-notch. I want to see the characters brought to life. Many of us have read the novel here and was a squeal of delight when we heard about it.

As we discussed we were told to meet the Drama Club. Trisha and I walked towards the drama club as we wanted to meet Avika and Riya. While Avika was a dancer, Riya was a singer. They both aren't going to participate in the drama but will be there during the meeting just to see the preparations. 
When we reached we started talking and joking with each other. 

"Manya?" I heard someone call. I turned and saw Mr.President calling me over while he was talking to two people there.

"See she is the one I told you about." Is he serious? No, I don't want to act at all. Maybe I would like to do some work but no acting. I admit I had done some acting in my high school days but this was too much.

"Please excuse us for a moment," I said to them and dragged him away. 

"Did I tell you to recommend to me?" I said.

"No, but on Saturday I asked, you didn't deny either." He said with an expression that seemed annoying to me.

"Please tell them I'm not going to participate in the drama." 

"Why?"

"Because it's MY decision," I growled 

"Okay, don't get mad. I didn't say anything I just told them how nicely you have written your assignment paper. I told them that you could assist me in screenwriting. If you want to act that's another story." He said, totally cool. So that's what he was talking about. Screenwriting is the thing I would enjoy but still,

"But still, you should have told me before you were planning to do so," I said

"I'm sorry," he said so sincerely that I felt guilty.

"I want to apologize too as I was too rash," I said biting my lips.

"So are we cool?" He asked softly.

"Yeah. Well, is the post of screenwriter's assistant is still open?" 

"No, someone took it." He said

"Who?" I asked

"Some girl named Manya Verma." We laughed. 

"Do you agree?" He asked.

I contemplated for a moment. Screenwriting would be good, it's my favourite novel and I don't have to do most of the work what more a lazy soul like me desires?
"Yup, I agree," I said

We walked back together and he told them about him being the screenwriter and me being the assistant.
I wanted Avika to try out the auditions but she is in dance which requires a lot of time and energy. As this fest programme's responsibility was Drama Club's they are already divided into several groups and at last very fewer people were left in performing actual drama part. 

As the fest was approaching at the end of mid- August we had time in our hands. Even though the script has to be ready early. Mr.President and I decided to work in the library the next few days as we shortened the entire drama into 30 minutes. 

Today since he called me over I hadn't gotten a chance to talk to my friends. I followed him everywhere. A few minutes later everybody started departing. I got a message from Riya saying they are returning to their practice and Trisha is accompanying them. I sighed and maybe the person beside me mistook it for boredom or tiredness because he flashed me an apologetic smile. He then quickly wrapped up the conversation and led me to the cafeteria.

He told me to order whatever I like, but this was college cafeteria and not a very good place to order 'whatever I like'. Anyway, I didn't want to eat my regular sandwich so I ordered some french fries after asking him if he would help me finish it and a cup of coffee. He too ordered a coffee.

We sat in the same place as the other day.
While sitting he said.

"Next time it wouldn't be this cafeteria." I laughed at this.

"I don't know in which year you are studying," I said thinking carefully.

"You really didn't pay attention to the first day, did you?" He asked.

I was really embarrassed.
"Yeah, I didn't. After the library incident, I felt dejected for a long time and I bear grudges so I didn't pay attention." I said truthfully.

"Bearing grudges, I'll remember that." He chuckled.

"Will you tell me or not," I asked

"Let's do this again. Our introductions." He said and then continued.
"Hello, my name is Vihaan Kashyap and I'm a third-year student here. Hobbies are playing basketball, reading books and listening to music."

"I'm Manya Verma, nice to meet you. I'm a first-year student here. Hobbies are reading, dancing, painting, listening to music and watching movies and dramas." I said mimicking him.

"You paint and dance too?" He asked surprised. This surprise didn't offend me, rather I wanted to tell him more. 

"Yeah. I love cooking. Baking at that." I said.

"You cook too? Would this lowly creature someday would have the fortune to taste your cooking?" He said

"Yes, you could as you aren't any lowly creature but my esteemed senior. But I don't know how and when." I said.

I know he is just joking but my silly heart sped when he said he would like to taste my cooking. Our order had arrived he went to the counter to bring things over.

"Have you read Pride and Prejudice?" He asked.

"Yes," I nodded enthusiastically. Now things will get interesting as I'll get to write (or help in writing, whatever) dialogues of Elizabeth and Mr.Darcy.

A girl with a past she couldn't let go. Once cheerful and chirpy, she began to question her values, intention and even existence.

"God? Have you kept me here just to feel immense guilt each moment I breathe?" She asked, voice breaking and trembling in between her sobs as she tried to compose herself.

After suffering she regained her will to live but still didn't overcome completely. Will the arrival of her soulmate relieve her or will she lose this opportunity too?

Gun-Ho usually came to work at his Korean restaurant at 9 AM.
All other staff arrived at the restaurant around 10 AM, and by 11:30 AM the restaurant was already ready to serve customers. When he ran his restaurant in Noryangjin, he had one kitchen lady working for him, so Gun-Ho had to handle various work himself. Here was different. Since the labor cost was low in China, he could hire eight workers. They all had their own role and work, so Gun-Ho didn't really have to work at all.
"There are four ladies working in the kitchen, and Dingming takes care of the counter. For the hall serving, Mae-Hyang Kim and other two ladies handle it. This is going great so far."
Gun-Ho usually sat at an unoccupied table and read a Chinese local newspaper. He particularly paid attention to articles about real estate. While he was reading a newspaper, he sometimes asked Mae-Hyang to translate the sentences he couldn't understand. There was another thing he did in the restaurant. Whenever Korean workers or Korean businessmen who had a business in China came to the restaurant in the evening, Gun-Ho was the one who served them. This job couldn't be delegated to the staff.
"Let's look around at West Lake today on a bike. It seems like they are building new luxurious apartments in Baochoolu area around West Lake. I want to see it."
The West Lake area was filled with tourists when Gun-Ho arrived on a bike. Gun-Ho had fun riding his bike there.
"Whoa, the residential community over there has a lot of luxurious single houses. They look like the houses in Seongbuk Town in Seoul. How much would they cost?"
Gun-Ho sometimes stopped his bike to eat street food. He ate Hotteock*, some other snacks and a bottle of water.
"Haha. The Chinese merchant understood my Chinese when I asked them how much it was."
 
After looking around at the West Lake area, Gun-Ho came back to his restaurant around 5 PM. There wasn't any customer for dinner yet. They would start coming in after one or two hours.
"Where is Mae-Hyang Kim?"
Gun-Ho looked around the hall and found Mae-Hyang having a meal with a lady at the table behind a column.
"Oh, G-jjong, you came back. This is my friend."
Mae-Hyang stopped eating when she saw Gun-Ho coming into the restaurant and introduced her friend who she was having a meal with to him.
"Hello."
Mae-Hyang's lady friend stood up to say hello to Gun-Ho.
"She is my hometown friend. She graduated from Jilin University and came to Hangzhou City to find a job."
"Oh, really? Enjoy your meal. Don't mind me, please."
Gun-Ho sat at another unoccupied table.
"Do we have an evening newspaper?"
Gun-Ho started reading the newspaper. Even though he couldn't speak Chinese, he could read a newspaper. Well, he at least could understand the big titles in the newspaper. If he saw something he couldn't understand, he would mark it and ask Mae-Hyang later. He was reading the newspaper when Mae-Hyang came to talk to him.
"Umm, G-jjong. Do you by any chance need Poodao?"
"Poodao?"
"A private tutor. For your Chinese language."
"Oh, there is a private tutor for the Chinese language?"
"Umm… my friend over there, she is staying with me right now. Once she finds a job, she will find her own place. She majored in Korean language in college. If you—G-jjong—need a private tutor, she can maybe teach you two hours a day. What do you say? She speaks Korean and Chinese very well. You can pay her 600 Yuan (72,000 won)."
"Hmm…"
"She has experience with teaching a Korean when she was in Shanghai. She is very good at it."
"Let me talk to her."
Mae-Hyang's friend came to Gun-Ho; she seemed to be shy.
"What's your name? I'm Gun-Ho Goo."
"I'm Eun-Hwa Jo. I am from Jilin."
"You are a Korean Chinese. Is it possible to get Poodao in the restaurant? The place could be distracting."
"That's totally fine. You can do it anywhere. This restaurant is cozy since it is a hotel restaurant and a perfect place to study."
"What time would be good for you?"
"I guess the mornings should be good since you won't have customers in the morning."
"Let's do it then. How about from 8 AM to 10 AM? The kitchen ladies will come to work at 10 AM."
"That sounds good. I agree with you."
 
Gun-Ho started having his private lesson from Eun-Hwa Jo on the following day.
Eun-Hwa had a very decent accent since she was from the north. She spoke the standard Chinese language. She also spoke Korean very well. Gun-Ho's Chinese improved notably.
"Eun-Hwa Jo is playing her role very well as a teacher. She is giving me a lot of homework."
Gun-Ho did his homework diligently. After completing the conversational Chinese book, Eun-Hwa brought the elementary textbooks used from 1st to 6th grade and started teaching Gun-Ho using them.
"Chinese children know about 3,000 Chinese characters once they graduate from elementary school. If you, G-jjong know the same, you won't have any problem reading a Chinese newspaper or magazine."
After two months, Gun-Ho started hearing and understanding simple Chinese.
 
It had been four months since Gun-Ho came to China.
Gun-Ho was doing well in China. It was summer already. It was really hot especially the southern area of Yangtze River. It felt like being inside an oven. However, Gun-Ho's restaurant was cool. Its air conditioner worked great since it was in the hotel building. Some of the restaurant staff stayed in the restaurant even after their work hours because the restaurant was cool and pleasant while their homes were really hot.
One day, Dingming came to Gun-Ho from the counter and said there was someone on the phone looking for him.
"Who is it?"
"He said that he is from Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, and he wants to talk to G-jjong."
Gun-Ho thought he wouldn't be able to converse through the phone with a bank with his level of Chinese language fluency. So he called for Mae-Hyang.
"Why don't you take the call for me?"
Mae-Hyang picked up the phone and told the person on the other side of the phone that she was the interpreter.
"The branch manager of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China would like to meet with you, G-jjong."
"Me? For what? Ask him when would it be convenient for us to meet?"
Mae-Hyang got back to Gun-Ho and told him what the branch manager had told her, "He is suggesting 12 PM tomorrow at the Pinghoo Chinese restaurant & bar around the West Lake area."
"It's not difficult to meet with him. Tell him that I will be there."
 
The following day, Gun-Ho went to the Pinghoo restaurant & bar with his interpreter, Mae-Hyang. He took a taxi instead of his bike because he thought it was not appropriate to show to a bank's branch manager.
"I guess I will have to rent a car or something when I meet people like this."
The Pinghoo bar was huge. When they told the bar that they were the guests of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the staff in Qipao led them to the second floor. It was a private room with the West Lake view through the window. The view made Gun-Ho feel cool. The branch manager and others with him were already in the room waiting for Gun-Ho. The branch manager looked like he was in his late 40s. He was with two other female bank staff who both looked like in their 30s.
"I'm sorry that I am late. I'm Gun-Ho Goo."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Jangbingchao from Industrial and Commercial Bank of China."
Gun-Ho gave him his business card that said, 'CEO of Mando Food Co., Ltd.'. He also gave it to the two other staff as well. The branch Manager handed over his business card to Gun-Ho. His business card said 'President' instead of 'Branch Manager.'
"President? The president of the bank came here from Beijing headquarters?"
Mae-Hyang took a look at the business card, and said,
"That means a branch manager. In China, we refer to a branch manager as a president."
"Oh, really?"
Gun-Ho smiled bitterly once he understood the meaning of the president.
 
 
Note*
Hotteock – A popular street food that is similar to a pancake that has sweet fillings.

This is the story of a poor young man whose poverty even shreds apart their family willing to climb his way through society and into the top. A very realistic novel that moves away from fantasy and sci-fi and focuses solely on the issues of society and life.

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