Ever just woke up and wondered to yourself 'What the fuck', yea me too... seriously though. I died, or so I thought. Apparently not, now I have to figure everything out about this new world while avoiding dying for 'real'; I guess next time might be my last.

So, when you have nothing to do, don't always look in the mirror
This habit is really not good.
Because you don't know,
the person in the mirror, is really your projection, and can only mechanically follow your every move and move together
Or,
he is just treating you as a fool, playing with you, and seeing that you still can't discover his existence, he secretly snickered and snickered.
The person in the mirror only stopped slapping his face after about seven or eight seconds. He stood in the mirror. At first, he wanted to continue pretending to be Xu Qinglang.
But thinking about it..,
looking at Zhou Ze and Xu Qinglang's current expressions, he knew that it would be a little boring for him to continue pretending.
Previously, it was him who treated others as a fool and followed a man to apply skincare products together. He thought it was very interesting to slap his face. If he continued to pretend now, he would be treating himself as a fool.
He silently retreated, his figure getting further and further away, and smaller and smaller. He wanted to leave this place.
Zhou ze believed that even when the police academy taught methods of capturing and chasing criminals, they would definitely not teach how to catch them if they hid in the mirror.
But now, he had this problem.
First of all, it was impossible to break the mirror. The people inside probably wanted him to do so, but to hide in the mirror?
Zhou ze stretched out his hand to try, but his own hand was unable to penetrate the mirror. Obviously, this attempt also failed. Of course, Zhou Ze did not have much hope in the first place.
If the mirror could really be easily penetrated by any person, then the number of children who accidentally fell into the mirror and went missing every year would definitely be much greater than the number of children who swam in the river and drowned.
The Cunt in the mirror was getting smaller and smaller. He even turned his head with interest and made a "Slit throat"gesture at Zhou Ze and the others. He was really very arrogant.
"Heavenly Ultimate Wuji, Mystic Heart Technique!"
Xu Qinglang formed a seal with both hands, and a heart-protection mirror was slapped on the surface of the mirror.
It had to be said that old Xu was perfect in both the movement of the seal and the posture of taking out the heart-protection mirror. He looked like a metaphysician. However, after the heart-protection mirror was attached to the mirror, the man in the mirror only tilted his head as if he was still smiling, obviously, Old Xu's method did not work.
"Old Daoist, crotch!"
Zhou ze shouted.
The old Daoist subconsciously reached out to touch his crotch,
then..,
he actually took out another talisman!
One had to know that the old Daoist was not wearing a Daoist robe, but a bathrobe. This also meant that after the old Daoist changed his clothes, he even transferred the talisman over!
"Grand Supreme Lao Jun is as anxious as a command. Western Buddha, listen to my command!"
As he chanted a nonsensical incantation, the old Daoist directly pasted his talisman paper on the mirror.
The talisman paper turned red, and the image in the mirror distorted. The person inside seemed to have let out some painful cries, but he still did not come out. Moreover, it seemed that he had been stimulated by the talisman paper.., this made him, who originally wanted to stay in the same place to show off, start to prepare to run away.
"Is there any more?"Zhou ze urged the old Taoist.
He didn't believe that if there were ten or eight pieces of the mirror, the guy inside would be forced to come out.
The old Taoist reached out his hand and dug again. Then, he opened his hand, and in his palm, there were only a few black curls of black hair,
there was nothing else.
"No, boss, I only brought one today."
At this time, the person in the mirror was only a small black dot, almost disappearing.
Zhou ze closed his eyes and opened his hands. His fingernails grew out and layers of black mist began to rise from his palm. For Zhou Ze, there was only one method left to try.
In the face of something unreasonable, it seemed like he had to try an unreasonable method.
As the old priest and Xu Qinglang looked at the Fool, Zhou Ze held his hands in front of him and began to make a tug-of-war gesture.
In fact, Zhou Ze himself didn't catch anything, but he was still pulling back as if he was really holding something in his hands, and it was quite strenuous for him to pull it out.
Did he have to be so exaggerated?
Did he have to be so imaginative?
The corners of the old Taoist's mouth twitched. He really wanted to tell the boss that this method was even more unreliable, but the corners of the old Taoist's mouth soon stiffened because he saw that the guy who was originally only a dot in the mirror was actually slowly running back.
Oh My God!
He was really caught by the boss!
The old Taoist suddenly felt that he couldn't understand this world. How could this work?
"Help me!"Zhou ze shouted.
Help You?
Xu Qinglang and the old Taoist were stunned for a moment, and then they joined in, pretending to help Zhou ze pull together. Xu Qinglang felt that he was like the ministers in the Emperor's new costume story, doing very silly things, but the crux of the problem was.., as he and the old priest joined in, the guy in the mirror really retreated faster!
"If you believe in your heart that you can pull him back, then you can pull him back. He is in the mirror, but in fact, he is more in our eyes,"Zhou Ze said a very philosophical sentence.
The role of the mirror was to reflect light, but it only served as a medium. Rather than saying that there was something in the mirror, it was more appropriate to say that there was something in his eyes.
Of course, this involved a lot of philosophical arguments. It would be too troublesome to investigate in detail.
As he pulled and pulled, the person in the mirror slowly became the same size as Xu Qinglang when he first applied the skincare products.
He was about to be pulled out..,
he was about to be pulled out..,
use more strength!
Use more strength!
He was about to be pulled out!
The old priest shouted beside him, shouting his number. Vaguely, he seemed to have returned to the days when he was a porter on the dock. However, when he shouted his number, it was more like the three men were currently serving as midwives.
Finally, a corner of the clothes in the mirror was revealed.
But then..,
with a crisp "Pa"sound, the mirror actually exploded.
Then, a black shadow drilled out from inside. Perhaps Zhou Ze and the others were too immersed in the scene, the three of them actually fell back together, as if the rope suddenly broke during a tug-of-war.
Zhou Ze didn't know whether to laugh or cry. When he quickly stood up and reacted to grab the black shadow, he found that he had already lost the initiative.
Zhou Ze's fingernails only hooked onto the other party. After hearing a scream from the Black Shadow, the black shadow shrank again and broke away from Zhou Ze's control.
Then, it went into another glass door in the bathroom.
However, this time, it seemed that he could not completely get in. A part of it was still outside, like a leech. Perhaps it was because of the injury that affected his performance.
Zhou Ze's fingernails swept over, and the glass door immediately shattered. The Black Shadow let out another scream and escaped again. It was like a wild rabbit, very fast.
"Don't let him escape. He can only hide in something that reflects light. You guys go and find him. I'll trap him First!"
Zhou Ze's fingernails pierced into the ground, and the black gas spread out in an instant, completely enveloping the entire small villa. Previously, when he faced the attack of the Anaconda, Zhou Ze had done the same thing, but that time, it was to protect himself, this time, it was a voluntary confinement.
Meanwhile, the old priest and Xu Qinglang rushed out of the bathroom and began to look for something that could reflect light to see if that thing was hidden inside.
The beginning of the matter was unimaginable, but the process of the matter was even more shocking. As for the fact that it had directly turned into a game of hide-and-seek, it was something that no one had expected.
In fact, in the end, it was still because the old priest and Xu Qinglang were both living people. Living people lived in this world and paid attention to the birth, aging, illness, and death. There was science, logic, and rules to speak of, which was also why.., their horizons were sometimes not as rich as Zhou Ze's.
For a person who had been to hell, nothing was unacceptable, and nothing was impossible.
The search process was very troublesome and tedious because there were too many things that could reflect light here. He had to confirm them one by one in case the other party shifted their position, even if Zhou Ze had already locked down the area inside the small villa, but it was not an easy task to find that thing.
The old priest searched around, but he could not find it. He did not have any leads either. He felt that he was going crazy. His mind was filled with glass, and he wished that he could become glass too.
Xu Qinglang searched around but couldn't find anything. They were too embarrassed to ask Zhou Ze if he really stopped that thing. What if that thing wasn't in the villa and had already escaped?
"Oh right, the hot spring!"
The old priest ran to the side of the hot spring. The water in the hot spring pool had already been drained, but there were still several puddles of water. This could reflect light, and it could also be used as a mirror!
The old priest jumped under the hot spring, looking for puddles one by one, but he still could not find it.
The old priest, who was somewhat exhausted, simply sat down under the hot spring.
He could not find it..,
that thing could crawl into the mirror, and God knows where it had run off to. Amitabha, immeasurable heavenly venerate, Merciful Lord, please show yourself and let this poor priest find him.
Zhou Ze, who was in the bathroom, could not hold on any longer. He kept shouting in the bathroom to ask if he had found him.
This made the old Taoist feel even more stressed.
Damn it, if only I could call the police and ask them to help me find him. The old Taoist's thoughts ran wild. Then, he was stunned for a moment and took out his cell phone from his pocket.
The cell phone screen was also a mirror, and it could reflect light!
Moreover, it was always on him, so it was easiest for the lights to go dark!
The old priest immediately pressed the phone screen, and the screen lit up. The old priest's screensaver was a classic picture of Marilyn Monroe blowing up her skirt. But now, there was a black shadow under Marilyn Monroe's skirt on the screen, it was like a layer of mosaic, and it was still squirming.
The old Daoist was so happy that a bubble appeared on the side of his nose,
he looked very excited,
he immediately reached out to grab the "Mosaic"and muttered excitedly,
"Amitabha, this poor Daoist has finally found you, hehehe!"


A doctor has died, and returned to life as a bookstore owner, finding himself catering to the dead. The world of ghosts and ghostly encounters opens up before him, and as old tales mingle with new, and the worries of the dead carry over to the living, he finds himself caught as an Envoy between the two worlds, and life and death are no longer idle terms to him...
A bookstore that opens late at night...
Welcome.

"Yes." Abdullah answered loud and clear. "My admiral."
Antonius gave Antonius a pat on the shoulder. "I am sorry my brother, but I need you to depart soon, and there will be no departure ceremony for you. Only me, holding a cup of Cyprus grape wine, I hope you don't mind."
"That is more than enough." Abdullah replied with his hands trembling. "That is more than enough."
Antonius gave him a hug and continued. "Anjelo, I need you to start giving speeches, propaganda, awards or what ever ways you have to motivate the mass public convincing them to stand with us giving their firm support once again. And, do help me pick out those rats hiding under the carpet like those who are spreading rumours or sending intelligence for foreign powers, I here by give you the right to execute them on the spot once found."
"Leave it to me, admiral." Anjelo acknowledged. "Although I am old, but my eyes are still eagle sharp."
"Alexios, my 'investor', I am sorry, but it seems like you will have to postpone all plans to create the codex of law. You got a more urgent thing to do now. I need you to assist our new calvary tutor Khalid in going around purchasing slaves with horse riding skills, all expenses shall be reimbursed by me later on."
Khalid hurriedly bent forward to bow towards Alexios but is stopped by the grinning Alexios in the middle reaching his hand forward. Khalid hesitated for a bit but still reached his hand forward too, the two hands shake firmly standing for a new corporation between the two men.
"And also, I will need you to import all the necessities in preparation for the battle later, raw resources like metal, wood, leather. Weapons, arrows, armours, medications, bandages and even people, as long as you see these things and it is up for purchase, buy them, we don't have the time and effort for morale values now. And also, always keep an eye looking on the price of wheats, barley, oats and rye, there will be some bastard who will take advantage of the crisis and try to make the crop price fluctuate to gain benefits for themselves… If you catch any one like this, I grant you permission to execute him on the spot. "
"Worry not my lord." Acknowledged Alexios. "I don't think any one can compete with me in trying to control the gran's price, I earnt my first bucket of price through this…"
Antonius gave him a stare halting Alexios' words making him grin shyly scratching the back of his head.
"Now, the most important task…. Helio! Come out!"
Helio, who is standing there silently in one corner, totally did not expect the admiral to call the name of a pawn like him, quickly came in front.
"Helio, I know that you are a untalkative person always being taciturn in conveying your ideas. Yet I can see that you are the most careful and conscientious lad captain even with an educated back ground, always being able to finish your work exactly as what I have instructed and with honesty too. Thus, now I have a work that is right for cautious people like you, and this work shall decide the fate of this city, tens of thousands and people, you and…" Antonius pointed towards himself. "Me."
Helio nodded and stood upright waiting for his orders.
"First of all, I must tell every one of you, that I am going to meet the Ottomans in out field combat, I will not be seating inside the city waiting for my destiny to come."
"What?"
"Admiral are you serious?"
"Admiral I urge you to re…"
"There is no need for that." Antonius sighed looking around. "Let me be a dictator this time round, I shall not change my mind. Now, Helio, I need you to construct a defensive fort near the village of Diavata which will serve as our back done and reliance when we are out there combating the Ottomans, as I will need to try to force the Ottomans in to a long term stand off with me wasting their resources dragging them until they collapse and retreat, or, in a worse case scenario, force them to attack the fortification. I am sorry Helio but I can only give you two month, can you do it?"
"I can." Helio replied and said no more words.
"Good… Abraham! I need you to go east wards out of the city with only four hundred men, and construct an outpost under the Mount Chortiatis near the village of Anthoupoli, in case the Ottomans decide to launch an surprise attack from the north passing all the way through the thousand meter high mountain. And one out post in the east side near the village of Thermi, if the Candarli Halil Pasha decide to do a round about going all the way there to sneak to our back."
"Affirmative, admiral."
With all the missions being assigned the people scrambled in to their respective works, leaving only the admiral Antonius wandering about in the government house with out a goal. He might look like he is in his usual state being that confident brilliant strategist Antonius in front of others, but within him he too is like a lost lamb seeking a way out of this. A hundred thousand people! It is a hundred thousand enemies! Almost the entire population of Genoa, since when has he confronted so many enemies in his life alone before? Looking back at history there has only been a handful of battles that one side has more than a hundred thousand people involved, and the usual result is always the same with the weaker side getting crushed.
Antonius moved up and down the government estate feeling lost looking at all the lavish Mosaic arts and the various artefacts decrypting famous historical events and Jesus Christ. When he saw the mosaic art decrypting the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, he stopped in his path an groaned. "Oh, Jesus, Jesus, how I wish that you are real, so you can come down and help me through all these problems?" Then, suddenly some thing caught his attention, it is another art piece showing the historical battle of Thermopylae, a similar battle to the one he is facing now, with only few amount of people against a hundred thousands foes. Thinking about this battle his eyes shined and glittered thinking of another idea, and thus he decided to.
Go take a bathe.
Well, since Thermopylae is always known for its boiling sulphur spring, and Antonius too like all other people he too also needs to take a break some times. So, Antonius went back and changed in to another set of normal clothing that would make him blend in perfectly to the surrounding environment among the crowd, and sneaked out of the government building while other people are still busy with their tasks, heading straight towards the down town to Bey Hamam, now renamed to Paradise Bath, to relax himself.  
After striping naked for the hot bathe, Antonius caught sight of this large two men sized bronze mirror right on the middle of the wall, apparently made for visitors to look at their appearance considering the fact that many people in this era does not own a mirror at home. Antonius looked left and right seeing that there are no one in the surrounding, went in front of the large mirror and began flexing his muscles, appreciating the beautiful body shape of himself, and he saw his ding dong and two grape shot shells hanging there and sighed. "Ah my old pal, until when can I final use you?"  
Just as Antonius is there looking at his pacs and muscles, a child and an elder, supposedly his grand father, walked past and the grand son exclaimed. "Hey! Look! Papa! That man has got a very long ding dong!"  
Hearing this Antonius immediately covered himself and went in to hiding with his face blushing red, and waited until the two people walked away in to the bath laughing, then did he dare to peek his head out and go inside the bathe too trying to forget all that embarrassment just now.  
However, it just seems like he is having an exceptionally bad luck today, just as he settled down in a hot bathe stimulating a spring soaked in perfume and traditional medications getting ready to fully relax his tense muscles and mind, he heard a familiar sound coming right in front him. Yes, it is the grand father and his grand son just now, chatting and playing over there merrily depicting a harmonious image of family having fun time together. Feeling Antonius' sight, the grand father and son smiled and waved towards Antonius, and Antonius had no choice but to wave back and grinned embarrassingly.  
Now he has no choice but to stay seated here trying to forget the embarrassment. While at least it is not all bad with the laughter of that kid making him remember himself when he is young.


AD1453, a year that divides Medieval and Modern.
Caused by the fall of one city.
Her name is Constantinople.
Stood there for one thousand years.
Strong and firm as always.
Persistent against all foes that dreamed to take her.
But tonight, everything changes.
The young sultan on the outside.
And the old emperor on the inside.
Guns fired, woman weeps, men yells.
They pray to god, for god will send them a saviour.
To save both the falling city, and their helpless souls.
In the twist of history, god answered their call.
For god has sent them a new emperor.
Antonius, came from the seas.
Who shall lead the Romans.
Back to another peak.
And end the terrible fate of the city.
In the year 1453.

-------------------------------------------------------------------
AD1453, as the city of Constantinople prepares for its final fate, a pirate captain and crew sailed into the golden horn, history made an abrupt turn from this point onward....

Discord: https://discord.gg/eZKHzjNZz9

I was illuminated with a sunshine penetrating my sleepy eyes. Everything was cloudy, I saw a man moving and I tried to open my eyes but I was unsuccessful. I tucked my head inside a blanket and slept again.

I finally woke up, stretching my hand to its fullest (which I usually do). I swiftly opened my eyes and gazed at right and left. The bedsheet was different -plain white. I wore man's shirt and a trousers then, which were quite loose - I was a hanger to those clothes. 

I scratched my head, my mind was still dizzy - Damn, it was hard to concentrate on objects. I searched for my phone, I got my purse at the side table.

I immediately zipped it and took out my phone. 

I contacted Piya.

"Hello," I said.

"Hello, well, did you enjoy last night?," she said with an evil smirk running from the corners of her lips (it was evident from her speech).

I paused for ten seconds and cried.

"What happened?"

I cried again.

"What happened? Say me something,"she asked again.

"I don't know where I am now," I sobbed smudging my misty eyes.

"Hold on....."

My battery collapsed.

A man entered the room and sat at the edge of the bed. He asked me if everything was fine.

Nothing was fine.

His face looked familiar. His eyes were magic, tawny brown in hazy sunshine which locked my witch hazel eyes. I immediately moved my orbs and placed it on that plain yellow wall. God Damn, his eyes were mesmerizing. 

"Did anything happened last night?," I asked.

He smiled wickedly and replied, "Not really"

I squinched my eyebrows and uttered, "What does that mean?"

He perched his hand on the bed. His hands had a tattoo and I examined it.

"Did anything happened last night," I asked again gravely.

"I think I have answered your questions."

"Where are my clothes?," I questioned.

"In washing machine"

Flashback hit me and I remembered that I spilled the breezer on my favourite red dress.

He walked away. 

"Aren't you hungry?," he asked at the threshold.

I gulped the lump which was forming in my neck.

"Y-yes," I sounded almost inaudible.

He decoded my feeble sound somehow and waited for me. 

"Did you changed my clothes last night?"

"Umm-hmm."

I was dazed. 

He overtook me. "You are very slow"

"Can I use your bathroom?"

"Sure"

He showed me the bathroom.

I saw a huge mirror, I splashed handful of water on my face. The makeup was faded completely. 

The mirror reflected the innocence hidden in me for two years. I got panic attack, my veins were numbed. I was feeling extremely hot, I gently placed my body on that mosaic floor, the bathroom wall was tiled. I crawled at the wall and perched my cheeks on them, it was chilled. I was feeling better. I pulled myself more closer and sank into a deep slumber.

_______________

The door reverberated, the persistent knocking disturbed me. I gained my consciousness and unbolted the door.

"It's been fifty minutes."

"I was...."

"What?"

I hugged him immediately and took a refuge on his warm arms. I wept on his white tshirt making it wet. 

"Please save me"

"Please save me"

"Please save me"

"What happened?,"he shouted sounding panic-stricken.

"I am scared," I shivered.

He patted my head gently and I gripped his tshirt tightly.

"Don't worry.," he still caressed my brunette hair.

My eyes were filled with tears when I fixed my gaze on his eyes. 

I realised that I was at man's arm, I immediately pushed and settled myself.

I swallowed my dry saliva. I removed the tears.

"There's a cockroach.," I lied.

"What?"

"It's gone, it's gone."

He laughed weirdly as if I was a cartoon standing there in a man's dress. He looked really cute giggling. I really adored his childish carefree chuckle. I was exactly like that few years before; giggling, happy, cheerful and more welcoming. I was more alive than 'D-E-A-D'.

Maya, the main protagonist of this novel. she is a troubled girl who needs to be free from the trap of loneliness. she encounters a popular youtuber of India, Ajey Nagar.

(Goddess's side)

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!... C'mon...kiss him already..."

In the white space, there is a busty woman lazing around in pj and watching something in a grand golden embroidered mirror. Beside her, there was a table full of pastries which are completely full. The goddess kept eating and eating (Author: what a piggy) however the number of pastries never decreased. New pastry would just appear in the spot where the table was empty.

"Please start doing your work goddess." a small ball of light hovered above the head of the goddess constantly reminded her about the request of the mortal beings in her world.
"But I don't want to." She started to whine and ignore the white ball. "Wait, I forgot what was the request of the mortals... what was it again?"

Sigh, the light ball knew that the goddess has a tendency to forget and not care about her world and view other worlds in for her entertainment.
"The mortals have requested that you summon a mighty Hero to slay the Demon Lord."

"Demon Lord?... Do you mean by him?... Why would I… Wait, I have an idea!" 

The goddess got up and ran towards the exit of the space. The small ball slowly followed the goddess worrying about the crazy idea that his goddesses will come up with. Because it's a past experience, every time that the goddess had a "wonderful" or "interesting" idea, it resulted in a catastrophe for others.

After exiting the space, she flew towards a dark hole in the space where all types of auras were combining or fighting each other. It was a beautiful sight to see because of the millions of colours that co-existed which created a beautiful mosaic. However, the small ball did not have the time to anticipate the view. It was too worried about the amount of work that it would have to do when the goddess achieved her goal. 

"HEY!!! I need a level 0 transfer." The goddess yelled at the guy with glasses. He was surrounded by a wall of paperwork. 

" Why you NEED it?" The guy stared at the goddess with tired and annoyed eyes. 

" Shani, c'mon. Pretty please!!!" The goddess also restored in clinging onto his leg and started to beg like a child throwing a tantrum. 
Shani sighed and silently stared at the goddess. 
"Give me ONE excellent reason for this."

"The mortals have requested a Mighty hero."

Shani looked at the small ball, "Is that true?"

"Yes." 

"I see… Permission granted, however, you can only choose a level F world"

"What!?... Noooooooo, pleeaasee at least level E. Pleeeeeeaaaassseee."

"No. Now get lost before I change my mind."

"Fine~...." The goddess looked over thousands of galaxies and ponder a bit. She selected a planet which had 80% of humans and 20% of other species. After a while looking, she felt lazy to select which person to transfer so she spun the planet in a very high speed and randomly stopped at a location.

A girl, from a different world, was summoned by the goddess to slay the demon king. 
However, fate had different plans. 
Now she has to deal with a cowardly husband, a good (but mischievous) dragon and annoying goddess mother-in-law, 

(This is my first time writing a story so please tell me any mistakes. Also, enjoy the story!)

I DO NOT OWN THIS BOOK

just purely make for easier reading time

She LiangLin came to with a weak moan. His throat felt like he had swallowed sand, his body was aching in parts, numb in other parts. He tried to blink his eyes open but the lids were too heavy so he gave up. He could feel a thin blanket covering him from his toes to his shoulders, and he realised he was stark naked underneath – but he didn't have the energy to care.

"Lin'er, how are you feeling?" LiangLin recognized the voice to be one of his sisters, yet their tones were so similar, he couldn't distinguish which one was hovering over him at the moment.

Like shit. Instead, LiangLin managed to croak, "Water..."

The cold rim of a cup was pressed over his lips and he parted them, eagerly lapping at the lukewarm water that was poured into his mouth. Feeling invigorated, LiangLin cracked his eyes open and hissed. The candle light shone in his eyes, blinding him momentarily. Dark blotchy patches danced before his field of vision before he could make out his eldest sister, LiBai sitting beside him, peering down at him, her sculpted brows furrowed with concern.

"What happened?" LiangLin hitched himself up, leaning into his elbows. The blanket slid from his shoulders below his navel. His skin looked almost see through in the faintly lit room – like a corpse that had just been fished out of water. LiangLin groaned as he saw his state. He remembered the terrible tightness across his entire being, and the need to consume life-force – not just any life-force, that specific one that smelled like exotic flowers. Everything after that was muddled and hazy at best.

"You passed out with a fever." LiBai said, her eyes studying him, or more precisely, his forehead. LiangLin instinctively reached up to touch it. His fingertips brushed over raised edges of large scales and he froze. How could this be? How was the mark of a snake god showing? Why now?
LiangLin scrambled to get up and get a glimpse of himself from a mirror or in the least, a reflector. But his feet were not still awoken from their slumber and he winced from the sudden sting at his hip and fell back on his elbows.

"You should stay still for now." LiBai said, as she pulled the blanket over LiangLin. "You are not in a condition to work."

"But-" 

"Ma ordered you to rest and stay in your room for now." LiBai said, pressing the words 'ma' and 'ordered', hammering over LiangLin's head that this was the orders of the patriarch herself.
LiangLin held back any protests he had thought of. He merely nodded obediently and sunk back on the bed. LiBai checked his temperature, her cool hands laying comfortably against his forehead. LiangLin sighed in content. The touch felt good, calming.

"Are you hungry? I brought some congee for you, Lin'er." LiBai said as she removed her hand and stood up, rummaging about in the room. There weren't many places she could had left the congee. The bed LiangLin slept upon was pressed against the far wall, a table for two situated in the middle while a scarce bookcase and a flower vase seemed to be the only decorations within the otherwise mundane room. LiangLin only slept here, there was no need to pack it full of diversions – something LiangLin suddenly realised to be a problem now that he was stuck within these four walls for god knows how long.

"I'm not hungry." LiangLin muttered, silently cursing his sudden bad luck! How did it come to this? He had never heard of any shapeshifters showing signs of their real form out of nowhere. He had never heard of any shapeshifters contracting flu or fever and passing out from it either!

"I'll leave it on the table and get back to work. You get some rest and eat something when you feel better. We will check on you later." With that, LiBai stepped out and closed the door behind her. As her stepped disappeared behind a corner, LiangLin tossed the blanket aside and stretched his feet. He wriggled his toes, sending unpleasant needle like prickles along his numb limps. Kicking his feet a few times he jumped up and pulled his clothes on. One of his sisters had been kind enough to fold his robes in a neat pile over the chair.
 
As he pulled his clothes on, something glinted in the candle light before it hit the ground with a thud. It had dropped from within his clothes. Picking the pendant up, LiangLin studied it with curiosity. He was sure he hadn't seen this jade before, he would remember if he had stolen it. It was of deep, dark green jade, looking almost black in the dim light. Carved into a dragon, heavy in the hands, priceless by the feel of it. How come it was here? LiangLin's face scrunched up as he thought about it. He had gone through every pendant he had stolen at the pier, and even the most valuable one he stole was mere trash compared to this jade.
 
Before his thought process was concluded, the pendant came to life. When at first, the dragon was coiled up in a ball, it now moved, uncoiling and wrapping itself around LiangLin's right wrist as he looked at it awestruck, frozen in place. As the dragon stopped moving, it now laid neatly against LiangLin's wrist, tight enough he couldn't remove it, but loose enough his blood flow remained sufficient.
 
What in the world-
 
LiangLin blinked as the ground seemed to shift from beneath him. He leaned over the small table, taking in a shaky breath as his head swirled. He looked up at the little mirror that stood idly on the bookcase. His hand shot up to his forehead. The mosaic scale was gone!
 
He turned his attention back over to the jade and as the ground regained its stability, he tried to pull the pendant turned bracelet off his wrist but it didn't budge. It seemed to tighten more the longer he tried to wrung it off his arm. When pulling it didn't work, he turned to hit it against the corner of the table. Precious jade or not, LiangLin was determined to get it off him, be it intact or in pieces!
 
The jade didn't even chip no matter how hard he tried to crack it against a sharp edge of the table, the bookcase, the bed, even the wall. He bruised up his wrist in the struggle, but the dragon seemed brand new and unbothered.
 
LiangLin gritted his teeth. What the hell was this jade? He had heard of magical artefacts, but this was something entirely new. Pulling his robes properly on, LiangLin hurried out of his room. Even though he might not know of these items, surely his father would. He hurried pass drunken patrons and his sisters who threw surprised looks at him, but none of them tried to stop him. After all, his body had returned to normal and not even a scale was present over his smooth skin. LiangLin kicked the kitchen door in and a smoke pillar hit him in the face. 
 
"Dad? What did you burn this time?" LiangLin coughed and heaved as he waved his hand before his face and stepped into his father's lair. 
 
"LinLin? Why are you out here? I thought we told you to stay in your room!" Master She emerged from within the smoke, his stirring spoon in one hand, waving it threateningly. "You shouldn't be walking around in your state-"
Master She's words died out as he realised the blue mosaic scaling was gone from LiangLin's forehead. Master She let out a relieved sigh and even managed to chuckle. "Oh, so you already feel better?" 
 
"It depends." LiangLin said, rubbing his wrist dejectedly. "I have a little problem."
 
Master She tensed at the words and his jovial air was gone as fast as it had appeared. "What is it, LinLin?"
 
LiangLin pulled up his sleeve and showed his father the pendant. All blood seemed to had drained out of master She as his eyes bulged at the bracelet.
 
"Where did you get that? It wasn't there last night!" Master She nearly bellowed within the small kitchen.
"I found it in my robes. What is it, exactly?" LiangLin was surprised by his father's sudden outburst, the man was almost a saint, always jovial, smiling and nodding with agreement to his wife's every whim. He didn't like the way his father was looking at the bracelet. This didn't entail anything good.
 
 "That is a-"
 
At that moment, madam She stepped in, and seeing that his son was in full health and strength, said,
 
"AhLin, if you already feel better, take the wine bottles upstairs this instant. A new customer has ordered all the wine we have to be distributed to all the patrons within the brothel, he will pay all the expenses. Go, now! They are waiting!"
 
How could there be someone so generous? LiangLin pondered as his mother piled wine bottles over his stretched out arms and ushered him out the door. Master She called after him but LiangLin was already back in his work mode. Surely the pesky bracelet could wait. And if LiangLin was honest, the bracelet did look nice on him. Not to mention, it must have been priceless. It was only a little magical  bracelet, nothing more! 
 
 

[BL - boys love]

LiangLin is born into a snake god family, the leading snake clan of the Hei’ang city, and the sole owners of the largest brothel within 100 miles. 

XueYa is a sorcerer, on his quest to reach immortality and become the greatest sorcerer who ever lived. To do that, he must retrieve the body of a blue-belly snake.

The two lives intertwine when XueYa steps into town and steals LiangLin's body away - literally.

On his journey to retrieve his body back from the sorcerer, She LiangLin will learn that, yes, even that one-eyed bastard of a sorcerer has a heart, no matter how small and ugly it might be!

And XueYa... well, it is up to debate if he learns anything, at all.

---
Cover by Valiantxvillainous!  https://twitter.com/trashcanxval

Read her novel: QT: Don't believe in fate here -> 
https://www.webnovel.com/book/qt-don't-believe-in-fate-(bl)_19716791906167305

TW - Descriptions of a panic attack; scroll past the section marked by the /// if that makes you uncomfortable.
~ × ~ × ~ × ~
It didn't happen suddenly.
It wasn't like one day she woke up and suddenly knew her past life. Nor was there a catalyst, no accidents or shocks, no identifiable triggers.
She was simply taking a walk in the rose garden, scoffing at her father's audacity. He had thought to appease her with a mere garden when it sort of clicked.
Ah, this was a scene in the game.
There was a rose garden like this. But the scene had not been from her point of view. If she was right, there should be a little boy in the greenhouse right now, hiding from his retainers.
And she would go there to drink tea and read her book - and come across her little brother for the first time.
///
Her heart began racing in a way that was almost painful. Her chest ached with a kind of panic and fear and she had never felt before.
It felt like there was a hand, squashing her lungs, making it hard to draw in a breath.
"Your highness, are you alright?" one of her ladies-in-waiting asked. She reached out a hand as a high pitched wailing began screaming in her ears.
Her vision began blurring and then the world was spinning - no it wasn't the world, she had fallen to her knees.
Some distant part of her realised she was having a panic attack but there was nothing she could do but gasp for breath.
There was shouting around her, distant and muffled - and then she was being carried and oh.
///
No.
She was supposed to meet him today. They couldn't take her inside. That same part of her that had recognised the panic attack, was urging her to carry on.
There was a plot.
A story.
She had to follow the story.
But that was beyond her control. The person who had been carrying her lay her down and she curled up on her self, closing her eyes.
When she woke up again, she felt sluggish. Her head ached and the room was dark.
Marielle couldn't explain the sudden panic - the urgency - like she had been injected with adrenaline - this was a scene and her job, her purpose, was to see the scene through and because she had recognised it, because she had, in some subconscious part of her brain, decided to rebel against the scene, pressure descended on her like a noose around her neck. 
She sighed, using both hands to rub her temples. 
It was already dark outside - she had passed out for the better part of the day. 
She picked up the bell on her bedside table and rang it sharply - almost instantly, the bedroom door opened and two maids entered. They were lower-ranking maids, most likely still nobility, but not of high rank - she didn't recognise them.
"Your royal highness," they curtsied formally - Marielle stared at them, their faces were fuzzy like there was a mosaic over them, but as she continued to look, they slowly came into focus, a minute passed of her not acknowledging their greeting - until she gave them permission, they could not rise from the curtsy. 
She sighed when she saw the younger maid's legs start to tremble, it seemed they really were new - all of her usual maids had gotten used to her sudden moods - the more unfortunate ones were strong enough to curtsy for an hour without moving. 
"Rise, tell me your names," she said finally - noting the visible relief on their faces.
"I am Lena, your highness," the elder one said eagerly, 
"My name is Cleo, your highness," the younger one followed a beat behind. 
Marielle regarded them for a moment - in the past when she was in a bad mood like this, she would have taken it out on her maids. She would have sent them on impossible errands and laughed at their struggle or humiliate them for the smallest mistakes.
Somehow though, that no longer felt right - it felt petty and cruel. 
"Get me some tea - something to soothe a headache," she ordered instead, they curtsied again and scurried out like they were desperate to leave. 
This was weird. 
Marielle felt strange like there was a film over her eyes - everything looked distant and glassy. Like she was a passerby staring into the window of a shop. Separated by a wall of glass from her immediate reality. 
She stood up - she was dressed in a nightgown - probably the work of her ladies-in-waiting. Her hair had been brought down from its usual elegant bun and instead was a plait down her back. She stood in front of the ornate cheval mirror and felt like she was looking into the eyes of a stranger.
Her body... didn't feel odd. But, somehow, she felt like she shouldn't look like this. 
Her hair was too long, she somehow remembered it being shorter and her eyes looked rounder. And they were pink. That was weird right?
She touched her cheek and felt a little nauseous when the girl in the mirror followed her movements. 
She pinched her cheek hard and watched the pink eyes fill with tears. She rubbed a soothing palm over the red spot. 
"Right. Weird." She mumbled. 
The girl in the mirror was beautiful - but she was wrong. She wasn't Marielle. 
The maids came back to find her stood in front of the mirror in a daze. They exchanged glances when the princess didn't glance back at them, wondering if they should disturb her or just leave the tea and go. 
"Your highness, we have brought the tea," Lena finally mustered up the courage to say, Cleo had a plate of cookies in hand as well. 
"Yes, of course, thank you," Marielle muttered reflexively, not hearing anything she was saying. 
The maids exchanged glances, as their famously temperamental princess thanked them and obediently sat down to drink her tea, still staring blankly into the distance.
~ × ~ × ~ × ~

When I realised I had gone back in time, I realised that the Goddess had given me another chance.
I had the chance to save my beloved kingdom and my precious family.
I would not let this chance go, no matter what. 
I would prevent the disasters to come and I would save everyone - but for that I needed power.
 * * *

mosaic mirror novel

APOCALYPTIC MOSAIC

Prosaic to Mosaic

Mirror Mirror

Midnight Bookstore

1453: Revival of Byzantium

THAT SAD KIND OF BEAUTY

I hate you, Goddess!!!

Beyond Redemption

To Capture a Snake God [BL]

The Princess Royal

People search mosaic mirror also like: