1 Chapter 1- Ruby

*Yawn~*

Mornings are the worst. I don't understand how morning people function. Do they just wake up naturally energetic and motivated or is it some sort of talent or skill that they developed? Maybe it's their state of mind and attitude towards life? Whatever it is please share some with me because I most definitely am not a morning person.

I pushed aside my blanket to look for my smartphone which I used until late last night to read some novels and play some games. In a novel I read before, staying up late and not sleeping is akin to "cultivating to become an immortal". If this was true, then at this point I should probably already be half an immortal.

"There you are you glorious piece of technology."

After finally finding my smartphone I immediately unlocked it. Not seeing any important notifications, I checked the time and saw that it was still early. I could go back to sleep but the last time I did this I woke up to see that it was already one hour passed when school starts. I decided to be absent that day.

And so I begrudgingly got out of bed. No need to fold my sheets because it will end up the same way later tonight.

I scrolled through my messages on my smartphone while heading over to the bathroom. When I arrived and saw myself in the mirror I gasped.

'Now that's the face of an immortal cultivator.'

Dull black eyes with noticeable bags underneath and a head with short black hair uniquely styled by my pillow. I am not what you would call a beauty but I'm pretty enough to turn a few heads when walking through the school hallways. However right now I'm sure that even a true immortal cultivator will run from me once they see my face. The atrocious hairstyle only complemented the wicked face I have on now. If a panda minus the cute fluffiness and a T-rex had a child, it would look like my face. I headed over to the sink to freshen up and prepare myself for the day.

Just like magic, I was able to look human again with one splash of water. Finishing up, I put on my generic sailor school uniform and voilà: A 17-year-old, 164 cm tall high school girl with a short wavy bob hairstyle is reflected in the mirror.

"Oops almost forgot."

I tucked my lucky charm that I always have around my neck behind my clothes. It was a simple necklace with just a small red gem the size of a pinky finger nail tied on a black string. It was given to me by my Dad who said that it belonged to my Mom who I never met. She died giving birth to me so my Dad has been working his butt off so that we can have a stable life. I was named Ruby because of this thing and it has been my keepsake since forever.

*Ding*

Speak of the devil, I just got a message from my Dad.

"Good morning precious. I left a sandwich on the table for breakfast. Had to rush off to work due to something urgent. I'll be home late. Take care and do good in school. Love you~ :*"

I quickly replied with "Thanks, Dad. I love you too."

Kids my age are tend to avoid showing affection to their parents due to embarrassment. But I'm different. I truly appreciate my dad because I know how tough this world can be. Right now we live in a small comfortable home in a decent neighborhood but it wasn't like this in the past. My Dad struggled a lot to raise me up alone, continuously moving places and taking up all sorts of jobs. As a result, I frequently had to change schools which made making friends pretty hard.

But eventually my Dad was able to find a good stable job thanks to a friend he made. The problem was that it was in a different country so we had to get a loan just for the airplane tickets. After 10 years of working in his company my Dad now has a managerial position and all our debts are cleared. This solidified my Dad's image in my eyes as the best Dad in the world and no one can tell me otherwise.

The first few years after moving to a different country was difficult for me due to the language barrier. But now I'm able to speak both the native language and English good enough to have a decent conversation. Though I tend to mix my sentences with both languages when talking to others and I have a slight accent which my friends tell me is cute.

Finishing reminiscing my past, I ate breakfast and left for school. It wasn't far away but I was too lazy to walk so I took public transportation to arrive at school quite early. Entering into the room I was surprised to see almost half of the students already here. As an "immortal cultivator" I usually wake up late and arrive to class just before the bell rings so it's my first time coming this early. Taking my seat, I noticed one of my friends, Flaire, heading over to me. She was an energetic and positive girl with straight black hair reaching slightly passed her shoulders. Also she was a morning person much unlike me so I'm not surprised to see her here already.

"Hey Ruby. First time I've seen you come to school early."

"I know right. I woke up early and wanted to sleep more but I was scared that I would wake up late."

"Like that one time you were absent?"

"Yup. So I'm just gonna sleep here since there's still like 30 minutes before the bell rings."

"Alright. Sleep tight."

Flaire is one of my two closest friends in class. The other is Danae who was not here yet. Danae is a smart girl who is always competing with the top students to be number one in class. Me and Flaire are just slightly above average in terms of grades. If Danae didn't let us copy her homework sometimes, we would probably just be at the barely passing line. Having a smart friend is a blessing and I recommend everyone to have at least one.

Laying my head over my arms on my desk I nod off to dream land.

###

"… the… that?"

"We… com… ere."

"… it get… ri…"

'Ugh keep it down please. Someone's trying to get some sleep here.'

The classroom started getting noisy as I was sleeping. I placed my head deeper into my arms to try and block some noise.

"I think that… one call the teacher?"

"Paul already went to…"

"Woah! It's getting intense."

"Ruby wake up! Something's happening."

I wake up slightly annoyed to Flaire's shouting. I expected the bell to be the one waking me. I opened my eyes to see Flaire standing with Danae at her desk. At least I think it's her desk. Hard to see with this bright light blocking my sight causing me to squint. …Eh? Bright light?

"It's getting even brighter!"

"I can't even open my eyes anymore!"

The light increased in intensity causing me to fully close my eyes. What the heck did I just wake up to?

Suddenly the ground started shaking.

"Kyaaa!"

"Earthquake! Everyone get down!"

Okay something is telling me that shit is about to go down. The ground shaking increases and I suddenly feel a weird pulling sensation making me slightly open my eyes which I immediately regret doing. I saw an assortment of blindingly bright waving lights.

'So bright! Am I high right now?' was my initial thought which shouldn't be the case because I've never been high before. But if I were to get high I think that it would feel like what I'm feeling and seeing right now.

Suddenly that pulling sensation increases and I nearly hurl my breakfast out. The lights go all out almost like an explosion causing me to close my eyes tightly once more in fear of becoming blind. I feel myself falling so I push my hands out trying to catch myself.

'I… I think I'm gonna *blerg*.' And there goes my breakfast. Now I know I'm not very ladylike but even I was embarrassed by the sound and action I just did. The sensation increases further and my dizziness gets worse. The sounds around me start to fade as I try to stay conscious but after a few more seconds of resistance I black out.

###

'Ugh what happened?'

As I push myself up while shaking my head I remember what happened. Right now I rush onto all fours in a very unladylike position hoping that I wasn't laying on my breakfast. I try to open my eyes to see how my breakfast turned out. But I didn't see anything. And I mean nothing because all I can see is black.

'... Oh shit did I go blind?'