High school students set up for Halloween Party where trick or treats happen..

Chapter 2. Rebirth (2)

"I am going to school."

"Watch out for cars. Be safe."

Ren tightened his shoelaces as he left his room. It's been a few days since he had again started going to school but it always felt refreshing.

'Youth sure is nice.'

Ren felt that being young was best. It's been a few days since he had became young again and Ren felt that his body was full of energy.

It's been a few days since he had transmigrated into another world and it still feels surreal to Ren. 

At first, he had thought the he will again wake up in his 47 year old body but he was relieved that it wasn't a dream.

These few days, he was also adjusting to his new life. At first, he had trouble talking to his parents but he had now adjusted to it.

He already have the memories and feelings of the previous owner, so he didn't have much trouble admitting them as his parents.

At first, it was awkward to have conversations but he gradually got used to them and the memories and feelings also helped him.

The second thing that he was doing this past week was finding information on the internet. Although he had the memories, he still felt the need to search for information.

That's why he was browsing the internet for any information and what he found was unbelievable. 

Although the history of this world only had slight difference, he found that the culture of both world was vastly different.

Nearly all the movies and songs of this world was different from his own world. Although the quality was not that different, the songs and movies were still different.

Not only the songs and movies but the stars of this world were also different. There were no Charlie Chaplin or Robert Downey Jr in this world.

All the stars and celebrities in this world was unfamiliar to him. It was also the same for books.

All the famous books like the world famous «Harry Potter series» and literary masterpieces like «Gone with the wind» are missing in this world.

Ren was sad that he will not be able to read those masterpieces again but he was also happy because this world has its own collections of books which Ren had never read before.

Their quality were also not inferior. There were also top quality literary masterpieces and intense fantasy novels in this world.

That's why he had been mostly reading those books these past few weeks.

In this world, Ren's family wasn't rich but they also don't have money problems and the previous owner had also saved up quite a bit of money.

It was his pocket money which he had saved for buying a video game which Ren had used for buying the books.

It wasn't like Ren hated video games but instead of games, he was more inclined towards books. He will rather read a book than play a game.

As he was thinking about that, he reached his high school. It was still early but there were already students entering the school.

His high school name was Gahai high school and it was a fairly old school that was famous in the area.

The school was located besides a small hill. The hill was small and only small animals like rabbits and stray dogs live there but it was a famous spot for students.

The sunset from the hill looked good and it was a popular spot for confessions and you could even see some couples there in the evening.

As he was thinking about that, he soon entered his classroom.

The atmosphere of the classroom was heavy like usual. Ren was in his third year of high school and it was the time when students are the most worried about their university exams.

Ren could see various students studying and only some students were talking among themselves. 

Those talking among themselves were also only making small talks as not to disturb the students who were studying.

Ren quickly found his seat and moved towards it. His seat was in the last row besides the window.

As soon as he sat down on his seat, his shoulder was tapped by someone. 

"Hey, Ren, did you read the light novel I lent you?"

"Yeah, I read it. It was fun."

The person who spoke to him was a average high school student. His name was Kenzaki Kei. He was his best friend.

He was a average looking youth with black hair and black eyes. Most of his features are ordinary and the only thing that stood out was his passion.

"I know, right. It was a great read. It was only the author's debut work but he really hit it off from the start. It was really entertaining and I even heard that there would be plans for a spin-off and a anime series will be also be airing soon."

"Hey, Kei, can't you keep it down."

Hearing Ren's words, Kei glanced around the classroom and saw that several people were looking at him with dissatisfied expressions.

Kei hurriedly lowered his head out of embarrassment and shame.

Kei was always like this. He always got passionate about his likes and hobbies when talking about them. His likes were also peculiar. They were light novels, mangas and anime. Overall, he was a otaku.

"Ah, it is the most embarrassing thing that had happened to me."

Hearing Kei's words, Ren snickered and said.

"Isn't the most embarrassing that happened to you was getting rejected by the school queen?"

"…..Can't you forget about that."

Kei groaned as he said with a embarrassed face.

"How can I forget about that? You fell in love with the school queen just because she smiled at you."

Kei hided his face when he heard Ren's words. It was a embarrassing moment for him. He had gone to confess to the school queen back then and he was rejected as soon as he confessed.

The school queen didn't even gave him a glance and rejected him without thinking a second.

"….I was naive back then."

"You are still naive. Haha."

Ren was already familiar with Kei after a few days of talking and they had also become good friends. Ren knew Kei will not mind his words.

Kei also didn't say anything about Ren's mocking. He knew he was just making fun of him and didn't mean it seriously. 

"The teacher is coming."

Someone shouted and the whole class turned silent hearing that. All the students hurriedly pull out their books. Even Ren and Kei pull out their textbooks.

'Slide!'

With the sound of door opening, the teacher entered the room. 

The teacher was a middle aged man in his 40s and he had a rather intellectual look on his face. He was even wearing glasses which made him look more scholarly. 

His name was Shiki sensei and he was the history teacher as well as Ren's homeroom teacher. 

He was a rather popular teacher among students because of his kind and gentle nature and his teaching methods. 

"Let's start the homeroom."

Fame, wealth, prestige, genius, destruction, despair, loss and failure.

Those are the eight words which describes Ren's life completely.

He was hailed as a genius but his arrogance led him to despair. From a genius, he became a failure.

He was just struggling with his life when fate gave him a second chance.

Now, what will he do after he found himself waking up in another world.

Nakagawa Aokiji addressed Kazuki as a student, mainly because the latter looked really young like he was just 16 or 17 years old. Besides, he had a delicate face.
"The Final Forum?"
Seeing the puzzled look on Kazuki's face, Aokiji chuckled and began to explain.
Kazuki eventually understood what this forum was all about.
Back in 2009, a guy who believed in the 2012 apocalypse had created an online forum which was known as the [Apocalypse Mutual Aid Association]. The forum was popular during that time due to the rise of the apocalyptic theory, plus many people would rather believe it to be true than not.
However, the world did not end as 2012 ended. The forum slowly turned dull. Aside from some elderly people who used to post threads on the forum, even the original moderator gave up on the website and left.
After all, the moderator created this forum solely because he believed in the apocalypse. Since the world did not end, there was no reason for him to stick around this forum.
Later on, the moderator of the forum changed twice. Aokiji was the third moderator, he knew that things could not go on like this. Hence, he made a significant transformation like the forum and guided the change from an apocalyptic forum to the current discussion forum dedicated to horror and supernatural. 
This change brought a revival of activities on the dull forum, even the forum name was changed. Until now, the [Final Forum] is among the top five most active supernatural forums in Japan.
Even some horror movie directors would discuss with fellow members on the forum.
Many people on the forum had the experience of joint adventures, they would specifically go to places with horrifying rumors. Thus, when they talked about their experiences on the forum, they would spice their talk with imaginary horror, making their stories incredibly realistic.
The exploration of Akichi High School was only a small activity within the management. Therefore the number of participants was relatively low.
Aokiji, who was the moderator, was the only member apart from the two administrators.
The two other girls were friends of the two administrators. Aokiji secretly told him that both Yamazaki Masato and Yasuda Aohi were pursuing the girls, respectively. While this activity appeared to be an adventure, it was actually an opportunity for the two administrators to pursue the girls.
After all, a man could offer a strong sense of security to women in a terrifying environment.
Kazuki nodded in acknowledgment. He had been wondering whether he should wait for the others to finish before entering Akichi High School on his own to have a look.
But after some thought, he felt that it was better to let nature take its course.
Above all, if they really ran into ghosts and something were to happen, they would definitely choose to call the police. Then Kazuki wouldn't have come all this way for nothing.
"Student, are you here for an adventure too?" Aokiji asked curiously after roughly explaining.
Obviously, it was not merely for the sake of fun for a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old high school student to come to Akichi High School.
"Yeah, I came to draw materials for my new book."
"New book?" Masato, who was standing beside asked in surprise, "Are you a novelist?"
"I'm a newbie… I used to read a lot of horror novels, now I've decided to write a light horror novel. But I have no idea how to heighten the eerie atmosphere, so I want to get a taste of it at Akichi High School."
Kazuki had already figured out an answer back when Aokiji was talking earlier.
He truly is talented and brave…The trio did not say anything, but their eyes were beaming with admiration.
Moreover, Kazuki was just a high school student, his courage to come to Akichi High School alone earned him great admiration.
Masato and Aohi came here to chase the girls, they would definitely not dare to go to Akichi High School alone.
It was the same for Aokiji. Most importantly, Akichi High School had been demonized in recent years, plus the school was constructed on top of an unmarked burial mound in a remote area. The amount of psychological pressure of going there alone was imaginable. 
Soon, the two other girls brought the freckled girl over as well.
There was a trace of astonishment on Sakai Keiko's face when she came over. "Team leader, Chiba is a novelist, she came to Akichi High School alone to feel the terrifying atmosphere as a preparation for her next novel."
What!? What a coincidence?
The expressions of the trio were perplexed when they heard it.
Sakai Keiko and the other girl were stunned as well upon understanding the situation, but their ability in observing facial expressions was quite good as corporate slaves.
Judging from the slight blank looks on the faces of Chiba Shiori and Kazuki, it was apparent that they did not know each other.
Kazuki took one glance at the freckled girl named Chiba. Seeing that she was also staring curiously at him over the big frame of her glasses, he couldn't help but nod in greeting.
The girl was clearly well prepared, the freckles on her face and the blemish on her right cheek were intentionally done with makeup. 
However, Kazuki did not find it strange. The girl looked about his age, safety issue must be given paramount consideration when going to unfamiliar places by herself.
One of the methods for a girl to increase her personal safety was pretending to be ugly.
Soon, the members of Aokiji's group had increased from five to seven. All the way, everyone took the initiative to engage in small talk to ensure that the two newly joined youngsters did not feel alienated.
Kazuki made a slight observation and noticed that all the five members of the [Final Forum] had good personalities as well as good qualities.
But this was expected, judging from his conversation with Aokiji, he could tell that the latter was a gentleman. He was willing to let Masato and Aohi tag along and helped them to pursue Sakai Keiko and Suzuki Aichi. The others must've been lovely people as well.
After all, birds of a feather flock together.
"Kimura, Chiba, did you guys do any research on Akichi High School before coming here?"
"A little bit, but I heard about Akichi High School from a net pal. There was a huge fire outbreak at Akichi High School five years ago. Many had died in the incident," Chiba Shiori brushed a strand of hair from her face. The movement lost the sense of beauty in contrast with her appearance. She calmly said, "Now that the new campus is constructed, the old campus has long been abandoned. I've seen pictures taken by netizens too, that's why I want to come and have a look tonight."
Kimura Kazuki did not say anything, signaling that he did not know much.
Masato exclaimed, "You two are way too reckless, not even doing any research before coming to explore." Especially Chiba, a moment ago, Yamazaki thought Kimura was incredibly daring. He would have never expected Chiba Shiori, who was a girl, to be so bold to come alone as well.
The others nodded along when they heard what Masato said. Seemingly, they knew more about this place.
Aokiji strongly agreed with Yamazaki. He continued, "I had specifically done some research for this activity before I came. You guys probably don't know how the fire broke out five years ago."
They walked toward Akichi High School while listening attentively to Aokiji.
"Akichi High School was located at a remote place, it was a gated school where students would typically live on campus. Mobile phones were prohibited, and should it be found it would be confiscated immediately. This left the students nothing but studying and club activities, basically there was no time for entertainment."
"As time passed, the students became depressed. At Akichi High School, good students were usually placed in Class 1 and Class 2 while bad students were placed in Class 3 and Class 4."
"The incident happened in Class 4 of the second grade. Back then, the students in this class were forcefully sent to Akichi High School by their parents owing to their lousy grades and unwillingness to study. Because they were bored, they gathered and discussed playing a game to enliven their monotonous high school life."
"But one person had to be sacrificed in the game…"


Time travelling from the majestic era after the Recuperation of Reiki, he became Kimura Kazuki, a 16-year-old high school student in Japan, one year before the Reiki Recuperation.

Tentatively, he set out to hone himself to the bone, burning candles at both ends to stockpile resources in preparation for the imminent Recuperation of Reiki. His goal was to be many steps ahead of all humanity when the time comes.

However, it seemed like fate had decided to play a cruel trick on him.

One year later, the Recuperation of Reiki... did not happen as expected.

In a certain high school in Tokyo, on a sunny Monday morning, the day that all students hate, a young man was on the roof.

This young man was reading a light novel in a carefree manner with an arm behind his head and earphones in his ears.

This young man was Shinmei Tatsuya. Tatsuya is a rather handsome person with dark hair and soft amber eyes. For a Japanese, Tatsuya was exceptionally tall, he was 184 cm tall, which made him one of the tallest boys in high school. His school uniform consists of the black school jacket draped over his shoulders and a dark blue sweater with a slightly unbuttoned white shirt. He wears it with black uniform pants and black shoes. His dress style was nonchalant.

Tatsuya is a relaxed, carefree and calm staff. He is also a bit stoic because he finds everything boring, for this reason he spends his time sleeping and daily other students can see him sleeping on campus or in class. The only thing he finds fun in his life are the light novels, manga and movies he watches because he finds them innovative and full of dreams.

As he calmly read his light novel, his light novel was snatched from his hands and a scream followed.

"Toriumi-kun! You get up now or do 40 rounds of land when we get back from Kyoto!"

Recognizing the voice, Tatsuya jumped up and sweat appeared on his forehead. Before him stood Yuko-sensei, alias "Hannya".

With a furious look, Hasegawa Yuko was the teacher in charge of Tatsuya's class. Yuko-sensei was 28 years old and she was a social science teacher and very popular among the students. Yuko-sensei is a beautiful tall woman measuring approximately 1.70 meters with a slim waist. She has purple eyes, raven black hair tied in a long braid placed on her right shoulder and square glasses with a mole at the corner of her left eye. She wears a black cardigan and black pants highlighting her figure, in particular her "phenomenal ass" according to the boys. Under her waistcoat, she wears a white shirt which she cannot close because of her chest with a wide neckline and a pair of black heels. Due to her enormous rack, the males of her class obtained photos of her cleavage and worship her, however, they live in fear of being discovered by her.

Yuko-sensei is an incredibly kind, friendly and responsible teacher who is open-minded and believes in the future of each of her students. She cares about all of her students, even problematic students like Tatsuya, who is a lazy man. She also likes to have fun with her students and observe their interactions, which makes her very accessible to students. She is quite wise and gives advice when needed. She is always ready to give advice and guidance to her students like a loving mother.

However, she is also feared throughout the school because of her other side. Yuko-sensei can be incredibly authoritarian, strict and violent, especially since she is an expert in martial arts. She is the advisor to the Kendo and martial arts club and offers "lessons" to students who end up crying in pain at the end. The taboo with her is her age and marital status, you should never tell her about her age and her status as a bachelor if not ...

Looking at Yuko-sensei, Tatsuya, who was not afraid of anyone except his parents, had cold sweats. Yuko-sensei was one of the few people who could put pressure on him.

"Yuko-sensei! I'm standing, what do you want me to do?"

Tatsuya didn't want to piss off his teacher because the last time it happened, she forced him to go around the soccer field 50 times. As a result, he fell asleep on the beds of the high school infirmary when he was finished, his clothes were dusty and torn.

"Toriumi-kun! Did you forget ?! We have to go to Kyoto today and because of you, we had to delay the start by 30 minutes! The whole class is looking for you!"

Hearing Yuko-sensei's words, Tatsuya remembered that his class had an excursion to Kyoto and he cursed himself for having forgotten it. He swallowed because he knew he was going to be in trouble. Tatsuya took a sip of saliva and with an awkward smile, he rubbed his head and with a nervous voice he spoke.

"Ha ... Hahaha ... It looks like I forgot about it ... It's incredible, isn't it? ..."

Yuko-sensei looked at Tatsuya with a deadly expression and she grabbed Tatsuya's ear to forcibly drag him to the school parking lot where the bus was waiting. All along the road, Tatsuya exclaimed in pain with tears in his eyes.

"Ouch! Ouch! Stop Yuko-sensei! You're going to rip my ear off! Please, let go of my ear!"

"Hmph! That will teach you to be on time, this is your punishment."

"It's not a punishment! It's mistreatment!"

Tatsuya was dragged by Yuko-sensei over three floors. All along the way, Tatsuya had the impression that his ear would come off. The worst was dragged before everyone's eyes towards the bus.

When they finally arrived, Yuko-sensei let go of Tatsuya's ear before looking at him coldly. Tatsuya quickly grabbed his aching ear and looked at Yuko-sensei with revenge. The other students watched the exchange with humor because it was a routine for them. Since the beginning of the year, Yuko-sensei and Tatsuya have been playing this cat and mouse game.

As Tatsuya watched Yuko-sensei go talk to the bus driver to sort out the final arrangements, Tatsuya was approached by the handsome guys from high school.

"Toriumi. You should be more serious and responsible."

"Hahaha! Tatsuya, you're really fun. I can't wait for our next fight!"

"Toriumi, you should be more responsible. You annoy the class and you take advantage of their kindness."

The first to speak was Yajima Reiji, a very handsome and attractive young man. He has burgundy, messy hair that falls on his forehead. He wears square glasses which give him a wise look despite his wild look. Reiji is a calm, almost cold young man with a sophisticated and polite manner of speaking, however, each of his words is harsh. Despite his rigid appearance, he still has a sense of humor, although dry.

Reiji has always considered Tatsuya a nuisance because he spends his time hanging around instead of working seriously. He finds Tatsuya a mess. However, he does not deny Tatsuya's abilities and calls him a "lost genius".

The second to speak in an amused tone was Tanaka Yuujiro. Yuujiro is an extremely muscular young man and generally stands at least one head higher than most of the other characters, he measures 190 cm. His hair is reddish-orange in color pushed out of his face.

Despite his wild appearance, Yuujiro generally behaves very calmly and on the contrary, he is in the Top 75 in high school exams. However, he is known for his love of good fights. For his battles, Yuujiro will think very little of the consequences that his actions could have, that Tatsuya has personally experienced.

One day, Tatsuya confronted delinquents who harassed a young girl of her class, Yuujiro who passed by there was frozen when he saw the force of Tatsuya which demolished the delinquents one after the other. The next day, at the entrance to the school, Yuujiro attacked Tatsuya. During the fight, Yuujiro laughed happily and enjoyed the battle when everyone was worried. Finally, the teachers had to intervene and Yuko-sensei showed that his title "Hannya" was justified. The two had to clean the toilet for the next two weeks. Tatsuya found himself crying in the face of the injustice committed, he had asked nothing.

Reiji and Yuujiro's best friend is Sakamaki Akira. He is a young man with dark blue hair generally separated with a lock reaching his nose and the tip of his hair reaching the top of his ears. The back of her hair covers her neck. His height was 1.80 meters and he had a toned physique. He has turquoise blue eyes that almost match his hair color. He wears his uniform in a strict and neat manner as would a model student showing his perfectionist attitude. There were at least a few dozen girls who fell in love with him and confessed, but he rejected them all.

Akira has an idealistic, determined and flamboyant personality. He says that just helping is a reward in itself. It helps everyone who needs it. This mentality makes him very manipulative and prevents him from having self-esteem. Akira is extremely stubborn when he begins to accomplish something, such as protecting a classmate constantly harassed by other high school students. In the end, the bullies lowered their hands and gave up. Akira is nicknamed "the Hero" by the girls of the school because of his personality coupled with his beauty.

Seeing the handsome guys from high school talking to him, Tatsuya sighed in his heart and replied casually.

"Ai! Ai! Now I'm just going to sleep. Wake me up when we get to Kyoto. In the meantime don't bother me."

Tatsuya went to sit on a bench away from the crowd, waiting to board the bus. Tatsuya put his earphones in his ears and crossed his arms in front of his chest before closing his eyes. Seeing Tatsuya strolling for the umpteenth time, the other students sigh.

Suddenly while Tatsuya was relaxed, a pleasant voice awoke him.

"Hi ~ Toriumi-kun. You sleep as usual. Moo ~ you have to wake up, it's bad to always sleep."

Opening his eyes, before him was a pretty girl in front of him.

The girl in front of Tatsuya was Yoshikawa Yui. She is the high school princess. Yui is a very beautiful young woman, she is so beautiful and so pure that she is known as "the Princess". She has a very frail appearance, she has long bronze hair which has two long spiral strands at the front, reaching her belly, with her separate bangs on the left and bright golden eyes, she has a very beautiful and attractive appearance. She also wore a red jewelry necklace and a light pink lipstick. Yui is a shy person, with a soft voice, eager to please, gentle and very calm, however she can be determined and very stubborn. 

Yui is above everyone, she is famous all over Japan because of her artistic talent. She is able to create works that can attract the soul of spectators. For this reason, their school has won the title of "best art school" for two consecutive years. She is the undisputed pride of the school. Yui has a serious but clumsy personality, however, she cares for everyone without instinct. She is very popular and a fan club is dedicated to her.

Yui cares a lot about Tatsuya for a reason unknown to everyone. A beautiful girl with a successful life close to a sleeper is a strange situation.

Because of her, Tatsuya was often annoyed by the others, often by the other boys, however, all those who tried to attack him physically found himself in the infirmary without exception. In response, they could only stare at him with a murderous look, wondering "why this guy ?!".

Seeing the crowd around, staring at him with a killer look, Tatsuya sighed. He is not dense, so he has an idea of Yui's feelings but he finds it troublesome, because it would disrupt his lifestyle: sleeping, reading light novels and manga, then sleeping again.

(What a bore.)

"Hello, Yoshikawa-san. How are you?"

Hearing Tatsuya's response, Yui smiled thinly but cheerfully. Seeing Yui's expression, Tatsuya felt problems coming.

"I'm fine, thank you. ... Toriumi-kun, I-I have a question? ..."

Yui looked at Tatsuya with a nervous look full of expectations. Instantly Tatsuya felt cold sweats flowing from his forehead.

"What is it?"

"Etoo ~ ... After finishing school visits ... I would like you ... to accompany me to Kyoto ... alone ...

Tatsuya broke out in cold sweat. He knew that if he went out alone with Yui in Kyoto, the guys in the class would make his life hellish, he couldn't relax in high school. For someone like Tatsuya who favors his hobbies rather than his social life, it is a nightmare. Tatsuya didn't have to use a second to think.

"Sorry, but no. I have ... other plans in Kyoto..."

Hearing Tatsuya's response, Yui's eyes were sad. However, she did not give up.

"Then I can go with you. Anyway, I didn't have a program."

"Sorry but no. It's ... quite private."

"I could wait for you. Besides, I won't bother you, I'll help you if you have a problem."

(You're the problem!)

The crowd around looked Tatsuya with dislike and looked at him with those eyes "You dare to reject her? Huh! ". Tatsuya knew he couldn't speak now. If he did, it would only create problems for him. Suddenly the handsome guys from before intervened.

(Thanks, guys! Sacrifice yourself for me! I choose you!)

"Yoshikawa-san, why don't you come with me. I have been to Kyoto before and I know many charming places unknown."

Akira spoke to Yui with a bright smile, all that was missing was the flickering of her teeth. Akira was a friend of Yui from college, because the two were exceptional among their classmates, they became friends during their college years.

"Sorry Akira-kun, but I want to take a walk with Toriumi-kun. After all, if I don't encourage him, he will spend all his time in the hotel sleeping or reading his light novels and manga."

Akira smiles awkwardly, with an indescribable expression. For him, Yui had to accept after all they had been friends for a long time. Tatsuya, on the other hand, felt bad, after all, what Yui said was rather humiliating, she treated him like a lonely otaku, which is not wrong.

"Seriously ... You are too nice Yui ..."

From Akira's point of view, Yui is only kind and worried about Tatsuya. After all, how an excellent girl like Yui can have feelings for someone useless like Tatsuya who spends his time sleeping or lounging. For Akira, Yui only wastes her time. On the other side, Akira's two friends had different reactions.

"Ohoh ~ It looks like our little sleeper is quite popular ~. Hahaha."

"Yoshikawa-san is not suitable for Toriumi. After all, Yoshikawa-san is serious and very good at studying while Toriumi is still irresponsible."

Yuujiro took everything with humor, especially since his muscular brain was not thinking enough. Reiji, on the other hand, is always logical. However, Tatsuya ignored their words like the wind and pretended to be nothing. All he thought was "leave me alone !!".

Tatsuya looked up and prayed "Please, make this group disappear before I die in frustration.".

When Tatsuya was desperate, another person added to the mix.

"Enough! Don't you see we have to go! Go get your things and get on the bus!"

The person who spoke was Azuma Hanae. Hanae is the class delegate and head of the Naginata club. Hanae is a beautiful young woman with a voluptuous figure, very long black hair and enchanting black eyes. Her hair is usually tied in a long ponytail, with two strands framing the two votes of her gorgeous face. Hanae is the very embodiment of an ideal «Yamato Nadeshiko» and she also has the combativeness of the legendary warrior, «Tomoe Gozen». A True traditional Japanese beauty.

Hanae is a strict girl as a martial artist, she is also very organized with an expression always serious.

At Hanae's words, Akira's group nodded and after a few words, they left to pick up their things before getting on the bus. Yui, on the other hand, fixed Hanae with defiant eyes however Hanae looked at her without emotion. Yui eventually gave up and left after glancing at Tatsuya.

Seeing the problematic group leave, Tatsuya sighed in relief and looked at Hanae like the messiah surrounded by a golden light.

"Thank you, Hanae-chan. You are a saint."

Seeing Tatsuya's grateful gaze, Hanae turned her head and sniffled.

"Hmph! Don't call me Hanae-chan at school, call me Azuma-san or Kaichou. I don't want others to know that we are childhood friends."

The boys who got on the bus, looked at Tatsuya as the number 1 public enemy, thinking "Don't talk to Hanae-sama, you bastard!" and the girls thought "Don't defile Onee-sama!" However, the two ignored the others because over the years the two have grown accustomed to these reactions since elementary school. The reason for their reaction is that Hanae is adulated by girls because she is their model and for boys, she is one of the two beauty of the class and one of the few in high school and that Tatsuya rubs shoulders with the two beauties frequently.

"Eh ~? Why ~?"

"Kuh ?! Because you would make me ashamed! I am the class representative and I must remain respectable in front of our comrades."

"It's true. After all, Hanae-chan's dream is to become the first female prime minister of Japan, right?"

"That's right. So don't disclose my past."

"Eh ~ Like what? Your maid outfit? Or the day you promised to marry me- ?!"

Hanae grabbed Tatsuya's shoulders and looked at him with a cold expression and with a scary aura she said to him with a smile that did not reach her eyes.

"H-Ha-Hanae-chan ... You scare me ..."

"You shouldn't say anything. U-N-D-E-R-S-T-O-O-D?"

Tatsuya nodded his head continuously with cold sweats.

"Good. Now get on the bus and next time come on time and don't keep us waiting."

When Hanae released Tatsuya, he fled. Watching Tatsuya's back get on the bus, Hanae pouted and whispered "... Idiot".

He quickly got on the bus to escape and relax. When he got on the bus, he saw Yuko-sensei looking at him with dangerous eyes. Tatsuya dodged his gaze and in the bus, he sat in the back where the seats are larger and the rays of the sun are scarce.

(I'm tired. I want to sleep ~.)

Tatsuya put his earphones on his ears and crossed his arms before closing his eyes to fall asleep. A serene expression was on Tatsuya's face.

(Ah ~ Peace is the best thing.)

Finally, after a while, everyone got on the bus and they left for Kyoto.  In the front of the bus, Yuko-sensei explained the program of their visit to Kyoto, but out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Tatsuya sitting in the back of the bus, eyes closed and earphones on his ears, ignoring her words.  Yuko-sensei clenched his teeth in frustration when she saw Tatsuya ignore everyone for the hundredth time.

(Tch! This idiot ... I hope he will get lost in Kyoto and come back crying.)

....

In the middle of the journey to Kyoto, Tatsuya was awakened by screams. Opening his eyes the first thing he noticed was that everyone on the bus was enveloped in blue light. Looking at his hands, Tatsuya noticed that he too was enveloped in this mysterious light. Taking off his earphones, his ears were overwhelmed by the panicked cries of his classmates.

"What's going on ?! I'm scared!"

"Yuko-sensei! What's going on ?!"

"What is happening to us ?! Why is everyone shining ?!"

"Help me! I don't want to be kidnapped by aliens!"

Among all these screams, Tatsuya was relatively calm despite the nervousness. "What is this light? It looks like something supernatural ..." However as the seconds passed, the light surrounding them became brighter. As everyone continued to panic, the light soon became blinding and everyone closed their eyes because of the intensity of the light. When the light disappeared which disappeared after a few seconds, the bus was empty, the only things still present were the objects of the students and the bus which continued its journey.

A passing driver was shocked to see a bus on the road with no driver or passengers. He thought he saw a haunted bus and he accelerated to sow this scary bus as quickly as possible.

....

The next day, all Japanese television was shaken.

A bus full of students was going to Kyoto, but passing near Mount Akaishi, the bus capsized and fell on the cliff. However, it was not the most shocking, the most shocking was the disappearance of the 23 students and 2 adults, their teacher, and their driver, in total 25 people disappeared.

This event caused a huge outcry around the world because the incident left no trace of the missing.

"Haaay, my future is bleak and my money never stays in my wallet for weeks. How the hell am I in this situation? " 

Ellatrise grumbled to herself as she goes to work. 

Ellatrise is an independent woman, she was an orphan who pushed through life by hard work and talent alone. She does not ask her orphanage for support as she can support herself financially by having part time jobs in City A. Her daily activities are mainly studying, working several part time jobs and reading novels, mangas or watching animes on her free time If she ever have. She graduated in college and works as a teacher nowadays but she rarely goes outside after work, she is an introvert through and through. She can stay inside her house through the day without getting bored. She does not have any man who made her heart beat. The only ones who excites and make her happy is watching BTS, most especially her bias Jungkook. She is already old to be a fan but she cannot help herself. They are just so admirable in every things they do. They are almost good in everything and handsome to boot. After dreaming about them, being a fan day and night, her boring life continues. 

"Good morning, open your Purposive Communication book at page 78.

We tackled yesterday about the elements of human communication. 

Who can give me the seven elements in chronogical order and give me a brief explanation of each? 

No one? Salazar? Stroam? Volzkhi?"


Her students looked at each other, talking with only their eyes as they then all bow their heads as if understanding what the result of their silence is going to be. In their minds they are thinking, it's going to be a long, long day. 


 Her students often referred her as the embodiment of hard work or the female version of Snape. Because once she enters the room, she has this commanding presence on which you cannot help but straighten your back and listen to her as she teaches in front. She also will talk without interuption if ever she had something she did not like her students did. Her students often has earmuffs or earplugs hidden to stop or lessen the noise of her endless rambling. 


She had never imagined herself as a teacher when she was young. The professions she often envisioned herself as were engineers, doctors, architects, businesswoman and other high profile jobs. Well, her classmates never doubts her as she was really intelligent, in their elementary and high school, she was always on top. But in life, always expect the unexpected because she became a teacher even though she never liked children and she has no patience teaching others in the first place. 


" Is there no one who can answer my question? 

Didn't I just explained yesterday about this, how can you not know the answer?!


And the long speech is finally happening... For about thirty minutes she has been talking ceaselessly 


..." So you did not understand my explanation then, if that is so then from now on all the remaining topics will be reported by all of you. 

Class representative? "

" Yes, ma'am? " 

Answered the class representative 

" Allocate the remaining topics on your classmates, group yourself by 3 accordingly. "

" Understood, ma'am. "


 Then the bell rings... 


" Okay class, on our next meeting, be sure to be ready on your report. 

I want all of you to be ready to report on the day we meet again!" 



As she leaves her class, the students all sighed in relief. As the embodiment of doom finally left their presence. 

As Ellatrise entered their faculty. She sits on her desk and massaged her temple. 

"Haaish!!! If only I just spent my elementary and high school not so serious and being a loner, I may have had friends and maybe chose a better course if I had someone who can somehow put a word for me to have a scholarship. But I cannot depend on that because there are already so many who lined up for scholarships and they also have some sort of connection on the government like being relatives of those officials or employees. 

And now, look where it got me, a teacher???!!! 

What the heck! I never once thought of myself being a teacher. 

No offense meant for teachers for I am one myself right now but being a teacher just sucks. 

A not so enjoyable job, a low wage, lack of time to relax or have vacation, tiring job composed of teaching those students who do not seem to listen or anything, and most of all, I cannot save even a single penny for its barely enough to cover my daily expenses and I also cannot forget the orphanage, they have helped me so much, I owe them so much for what I have today."


And her endless rambling to herself continues as she went home. 


" It's true that I studied so hard in elementary and high school but that is because I have no choice, it was the only way for me to rise in the society ruled by those who are rich, powerful and have so many connections. Life is a rice, if I don't run fast, I'll be left behind. " 




 It was because I was too picky on my course that I was not sure what to take and also there are various reasons why it is not possible for me to take most of the professions. 

If I was going to be a lawyer, I might be killed and there will be many death threats, I can't live my life living in fear. 

If I choose to be a chef, I am not that good of a cook, I'm a foodie so that is not possible. 
If I choose to be a teacher for children, I might hurt the them with my measly patience, I will go to prison certainly with parents being too paranoid of their children. 

If I choose to be a stewardess, I'm not beautiful, graceful and I'm not proficient in applying make ups and if the plane crashes, I don't know how to swim, it's the same with being a marine. 

If I became an engineer or architect, I might not pass my exams because I hate math and I'm not good at it, also I might fall off the building while getting on higher floors and I also have a slight fear on heights. 

If I become an accountant, I will be the first victim if a thief comes running by and they might make me pay the losses. 

If I become a doctor, I will spend more or less ten years studying, I don't have the money and I don't like seeing blood and insides of people, it totally grosses me out.

If I become a nurse, there are too many already. 

Life is truly hard and most professions need so much money and that is the thing I do not have so much... MONEY!!! 

Even simple things at first might be really complicated, I may have never thought about it. 

But before I should have gone to college, I should have thought throughly what course I need to take. 

I should have considered my likes, my dislikes, strengths and weaknesses. 

I need to choose something I enjoy doing because apparently, I have to do that work for many years. 

But all was lost for a mistake I made. 

I was too conceited that I can take any course but the truth was, I only made my life harder. 

I just have so many issues in life, I often get depressed and be stressed. 

I have so many PROBLEMS, the orphanage, my work, my students, my personal life and funds. 

My life is so complicated... (sighs)

My life sucks...

I wish I can go back in time, rebirth, reincarnation, transmigration or whatever you call it like those novels I read on Webnovel, start life all over again, I wish I was born with a rich family even if the life of the rich seemed not so simple with all politics and underhanded schemes but I will have a family on my back, supporting me at all times and I will have less to worry. I can truly be happy and have a normal life with a husband and my own family. How great it would be to be born again with a rich and powerful family, with superior looks and intelligence to help me through but that's all fiction...things can never be reverted, mistakes cannot be undone and the past can never be changed... Oh how I miss those times... I wish I can go back, back to where it all begun and change my past... " 


As she complained, grumbled and cried all night about her life in her window, sitting and with a cup of coffee which already turned cold, looking up at the starry skies desolate with any stars in the dead silence of the night. And then suddenly, a shining, shimmering and dazzling shooting star passes by and her whole world suddenly turned dark.

In a world where men mostly dominates business, entertainment, fashion industry and many others, Ellatrise suddenly found herself being reborn as a baby in a family considered to be royalty. And being the only princess and the youngest in such a family, she will enjoy most of her life which she never experienced before and enjoy her every day to the fullest while exploring the world she now lives on.

Follow her journey as she gains fame without her family's influence and with only her beauty, charm, knowledge and talent to conquer the entertainment industry and the heart of the man of her dreams.

its already 10:29 pm in a quiet neighborhood where a 17 year old male highschool student  named Takahashi Allen a Japanese-American who lives alone in a house, his mother was working overseas, while his father passed away 10 years ago.he often stays up late at night on his computer trying to wrote some novels that he can published on the Internet and he also have a Blog about his works. a lot of people loves to read the novels he wrote as they were always related to what you can encounter and experience in real life. he can also earn money from this, he earns slightly more than enough plus the money his mother gave him every month as allowance.

"Finally, job done" said Allen, to himself after making a few short sentences in the novel he's currently working with. after he lay down to bed and prepare for his school tomorrow.

*alarm clock rings*....*snooze*      "*yawn*...its already 7am " said Allen to himself finding it hard to get up from bed. he gets up 7 minutes after snoozing the alarm, he opens the curtains and while the sunrays hits his face through the window, he slowly inhales for a fresh new day, in his new school. he goes  to the bathroom took a quick shower then after eating his breakfast he gets ready to leave. he makes sure everything is alright before leaving. walking in the streets surrounded by groups of friends and couples makes him feel uneasy, as he doesn't like it when things are crowded and he rarely do this things as he likes to stay at home and do his things. as he arrive at his new school which is    "Hideyoshi High School", he starts to feel nervous, as this was a much bigger and different school. he starts looking for his classroom, after a few minutes he found it. he then enters its and sit to his assigned desk. he begins to plan what he should do next as he starts to glance around to see every other students which is now his classmates and it will only be a matter of time 'till he finally knew everyone. the school bell rings as everyone sits at their perspective desk, the teacher comes in. they start with the greet and their first day of school including Allen, begins.

*(a few moments later)* its lunch break, and almost everyone in the room leaves to go to the cafeteria, Allen is organizing his things and decided to eat his lunch at his desk in the class. but as he search his bag he realize that he forgot to bring his lunch with him. he always bring his own lunch as he didn't want to go to the cafeteria as he hates things that are crowded and he didn't want to spend money on foods that you can cook at home. he starts to feel frustrated as he never has an alternative solution to this kind of problems were he feels confident that he wont be able to make this kind of mistakes.

"um...Allen, is that you?". a familiar voice caught his attention, as he look behind him he spotted a look that is very familiar to him.        " ah, I knew it was you!" Allen then replied         "what the f*ck, Kazuki? what are you doing here?!" he then stand from his chair to come closer and greet Kazuki, one of his most trusted friend from his previous school and a fan of his novels and other works.

"we both know why im here, same for you." they started to feel gloomy, as they already knew the reason why they have to transfer to Hideyoshi High School. to lighten up the mood Allen, raise his face witha a smile and said       " hey, look at the bright side, we're still attending the same class. I wish there were more of us here" Kazuki returned the smile and reply" Actually my class is next door, but yeah I miss my other friends too, are you having lunch right now?" Allen, realize he still need to find a way to eat lunch.
"yeah, but I forgot to bring my food and you know me about going through the cafeteria"
Kazuki then Nod "I understand, need anything?  I can get it for you" Allen then hands Kazuki some money and say" Please buy some bread or other pastrys, Thank you" Kazuki said Ok, and he leaves the room, Allen sat down at his desk waiting for Kazuki to return. his mind flashbacks on the days were he was in his old school with his friends and how things work back then. he is also popular for his high Academic grades and because alot of students there read his novels. and now he thinks how things will be different in his new school quite far away from his previous one.                  *( 5 minutes later )*                                             ● Kazuki : " hey, here's your bread and your change"
● Allen : "Domo Arigato!"
● Kazuki : " no problem, well see you later, oh by the way would you like to hang out later?"
● Allen : " sure, we'll look something after school"
● Kazuki : "Hai, Wakarimashita!"
kazuki then leaves the room, Allen finishes eating up his bread and moments later class starts again.
*(moments later)*
school day is over and everyone is packing their stuff. on his way to the main entrance he saw Kazuki waiting for him.
" oh there you are" said kazuki " sorry for the wait, lets get going " they started to walk in the streets near the school to find somewhere to lay down. as they are walking they started a conversation about the differences of their old school to their current school and other topics such as games and anime. then they found a cafr named Star Ducks. " how about this one?"
ask Kazuki, Allen then nods. as they enter, they notice that is just  an old man drinking coffee and a lady in the counter inside the cafe. the lady in the counter said "Good evening Sir! how can I help you?" Allen said to Kazuki to order him coffee while he will find a table for them. he then went on to find a table while Kazuki place their order. Allen spots a table in the corner and sits there. he glance around and relax for a little bit thinking it was so peaceful and quite. Kazuki arrive holding a tray with a slice of cake, orange juice and his coffee. " are you sure your Okay with just coffee?" ask Kazuki. Allen replies " yes, it helps me relax"
"ok then" says Kazuki. they start to drink their beverages quietly while sitting and just relaxing. then a group of girls then enter and sat down at the other side of the cafe. while Allen is taking a sip of his Coffee he notice that one of the girls are starring at him while whispering to a another girl. he then whispers to Kazuki "hey, do you know those girls?" Kazuki looks at the direction Allen was pointing at. "no, but I think they attend the same school we currently go to". they both realized that the girls are now cheerfully talking to each other while glancing at them. "whats up with them? why are they acting like that?" Allen becomes uncomfortable as he feels irritable when someone is starring at him. " I dont know but-" Kazuki's sentence was cut as he take a bite out of his cake.   "*chewing* but I think... (munch)..they are talking... (swallow)...ah, about us" Allen looks at him "of course, thats why I ask you. anyway I have to leave now" Allen stand up and gave Kazuki some money to pay for the drinks.    "oh okay then, i'll see you tom-" his sentence was once again cut by taking a bite of his cake. as Allen walks to the entrance he pretends that nothing weird happen by waving at Kazuki and looking at his phone to shake off the girls suspicion. while walking his way home he couldn't stop thinking about those girls, especially the girl who starred at him. he thinks that those girls are making fun of him or just accidentally glance at him but he  suspected them at doing something bad already or maybe it was Kazuki that they were looking at. "I dont know" he said to himself. he is always paranoid about things like these as he experience bullying before. and the only thing people suggest to him is to prepare for everything. which he already knew, he is always prepared for something and its proven quite effective but others including his friends think that he may be over-reacting. but its wasn't actually the case. what he should do is try to relax, forget about what actually happen and just think that the girls accidentally glance at him or instead was starring at Kazuki. "there is no big deal to that" he though to himself. and continue his walk home excited to continue his work and his blog.

(Translated by Diodra)

When he woke up the next day, he was full of spirit. Before slept last night, he spent three hours to type sixty thousand words. Combined thirty thousand words that had been sent, his novel now had around ninety thousand words. 

In the next two or three days, he would complete it.

Although this workload seemed like a burden, it was nothing to a martial artist.

After eating his breakfast, Xia Ping left the house to go to school. But soon he discovered several aunts and uncles gathered around gossiping about something.

"Hey, did you hear? There were two perverts last night running around naked near Tianshui City 95th high school. People nowadays were degenerating with each passing day. How could some people do such immoral things?!"

"Of course I heard that. That two perverts seemed to have run for one and a half lap before someone saw them and they were reported to the police. Three police cars filled with dozens of policemen came to arrest the two of them as the surrounding people who witnessed the scene cheered."

"It's a good thing arresting them! If such perverts were not taken away, social security couldn't be enforced! I wouldn't dare to let my daughter walk alone on the street, because I'm afraid some perverts were going to attack her!"

"I just heard those two were the students of Tianshui City 95th high school."

"No way, they are students?! Are they crazy?! Young people already have done such immoral things, they are complete beasts!"

"The university's entrance exams are approaching,  they might be stressful from their study."

"But that didn't make their immoral action could be compromised. It was still a crime!"

"But there is no need to worry about them for the time being. According to the policeman, they have violated the law by disturbing public security and have been detained for seven days according to the rules. They couldn't even be bailed out!"

"But sooner or later they will be free, they need to be monitored."

" Right, right, monitor them. They have potential as criminals in the future. You can not let your guard down."

That group of aunts and uncles were chatting vigorously.

Xia Ping was left speechless. He was completely sure that The two perverts were Yang Wei and Gao Wan. He didn't expect them to be so unlucky that they got arrested by the police.

However, he put this matter behind his mind. Soon, he arrived at school. But, today seemed a bit different than yesterday. With all the things that happened lately, he had become a new celebrity.

After he entered his class, countless students looked at him intently. It seemed yesterday matter about their classmates got arrested by the police had been heard by them.

Xia Ping was very calm. He sat at his chair with ease, completely ignored the surrounding eyes. He started to type his novel. He needed to take this seriously because he would get his money faster.

'Ding-dong ding-dong'

The bell rang. Teacher Qiu Xue immediately came in. She looked around the class and immediately noticed two empty seats. She asked in confusion, "Where are Yang Wei and Gao Wan? Why didn't they come to the class?"

"Teacher, they were arrested by the police," a student shouted. "I heard they were going to be detained for seven days and couldn't be bailed out."

Arrested and detained?!

Qiu Xue was stupefied and felt a bit stunned. 'What the heck happened?!'

Although she only taught for half a year, including some trouble makers, she never thought one day two of her students would be arrested by the police. What the heck were they doing to be arrested?!

"How could this be?! Why were they arrested by the police?!" Yesterday, because she had some matters, she left Tianshui City right after the class, and just came back this morning. So she didn't know many things happened when she had left.

"They ran around naked, disturbing people with their immoral acts, so some aunties with a sense of righteous reporting them to the police." another student replied with bizarre expression.

Because he was there last night, he watched Yang Wei and Gao Wan were arrested by the police. Like a criminal, they were brought inside a police car. They screamed feeling injustice, like a slaughtered pig, it was so tragic that he was feeling sympathy for them. Worse, some aunties started throwing things out. Eggs, vegetables, anything that could be thrown out. The scenery became more tragic.

Qiu Xue was slightly  dumbfounded, "Why were they running naked?!" She remembered those two, they were not good students, always bullied their fellow students. But still, it wasn't to the point that they were doing immoral acts.

"They were having too much stress, probably." Xia Ping replied casually.

Too much stress?!

All students looked at Xia Ping with scorn,'Too much stress my ass! It was you scoundrel that forced them running around naked around the school because of that contract!'

It could be said Yang Wei and Gao Wan got arrested by the police because this bastard was forcing them. If it was an ancient era, this was the as forcing an innocent girl to prostitution, but this guy had a thick face saying they had too much stress. Were you not ashamed?!

"Oh? too much stress?"

Qiu Xue didn't understand clearly about the details, but she thought the reason was a bit acceptable. Was it too stressful? It was only five months left from the starting of the college's entrance examinations, this was a big event that determined their fates.

Yesterday, she even told the class discussing the seriousness of this matter. She was afraid this causing them felt the pressure increasing. This made them doing something unexpected, like running naked.

'Ah, it was my mistake. I didn't notice their mental states much earlier and couldn't help them in time. I didn't expect something like this would happen. I needed to visit the police!"

Thinking up to here, Qiu Xue couldn't sit still anymore, "Alright students, today's class will be changed to self-study. Teacher has to visit the police station for a while in case they have anything to help."

After that, she left the class in a hurry.

The classmates next to him all looked at Xia Ping, the troublemaker. But Xia Ping was calm not affected by their gazes.

"Self-study? Well, that's good. I can use this time to type the rest of the story faster." Xia Ping was happy if there wasn't a class. He would have more time to finish his novel.

The day passed by, there was nothing special at school today. Xiong Batian who was defeated yesterday didn't come to school. He was treated at the largest public hospital in Tianshui City, he couldn't come back for the time being.

Yang Wei and Gao Wan also got arrested, it would be seven days later before they came out.

After returning, he was having dinner and in his room, Xia Ping typed for several hours non-stop. He got more than one hundred twenty thousand words that day and uploaded all at once.

He opened Penguin Novels Platform, looking at his novel. Because it was short in time, his novel had not been recommended so there were only have few readers. It didn't look promising at all.

"I can't let this keep going, I need to stir up something to make this novel popular!" Xia Ping's eyes flashed a crafty light.

“Shameless Xia Ping, not only did you steal my martial arts manual and medicinal pills, you even took my fiancée! We’re not finished!”

“He’s the embarrassment of the Martial Way and a parasite of the human race. A complete scumbag.”

“There’s nothing that he won’t do. Not only would he not help an old person cross the road, but he would also steal the lollipop of a three-year-old.”

“He causes problems everywhere. All of the geniuses of those big families have been beaten up by him before. Now, he’s no longer tolerated by either humans or gods!”

Countless martial arts experts of Yanhuang Star hated Xia Ping down to the very bone. They were just itching to completely crush him into pieces.

As for Xia Ping? Facing the hatred of so many people, he just calmly pulled up the interface of the “Grand Hatred System” and looked at all the wonderful things there. He rubbed his chin, “I’ve already saved up so many Hatred Points. What should I exchange for now? Saint-grade medicinal pills? Or perhaps that Primordial Pill? The peerless martial art skill, Tathagata Palm also seems pretty good too. But then there’s that divine weapon, the Cosmic Cauldron. It is too difficult to choose!”

Author  : 拉姆

He woke up in a familiar world that had vastly changed.

His familiar school had become a mystical school that teaches magic, encouraging everyone to become a mighty magician.

Outside the city, many wandering magical beasts and monsters attacked and preyed on humans.

His world of advanced science changed into one that praised magic. Despite this, his ambition in life, and his social status remained the same; one of the dregs of the society with a struggling father and a disabled step sister that couldn’t walk.

However, Mo Fan found that when most people could only practice a single major element of magic, he was a Versatile Mage!

Jiang Shen had a short but sweet dream. 

She was living alone with her pet in a beautiful apartment at the heart of the capital, with a job she loved and a stable salary. 

When she woke up, Jiang Shen had a slight frown on her face with a face still a bit out of it. 

"I'm sorry, I just wanted to ask if you knew how to read this?" The person gestured to an english novel he was reading. 

Jiang Shen rubbed her sleepy eyes and squinted at the book. She pointed at a particular word to confirm and the person nodded. 

"It's renaissance," Jiang Shen slowly spoke out with perfect English. She had no accent and the words flowed naturally out of her mouth. 

The person smiled sheepishly. "Thank you. I didn't know how to read it and I thought you'd know." 

"You're welcome." 

And just when she was about to return to her nap, the science teacher came. She couldn't help but frown but still tidied herself up. After all, introductions would take place. 

"Good morning, students." Teacher Pang nodded at them and set down his sling bag. "I'm assuming you all know me already." 

All of the students nodded silently. 

With a small smile on his lips, he said in an enthusiastic voice, "Would you all like to introduce yourselves?" 

Immediately, the majority of the people shook their heads while some quietly nodded. Jiang Shen didn't really care since nobody needed to know her. 

"Too bad, you still need to introduce yourselves!" Teacher Pang clapped his hands and pointed to the first person on the left side of the room. 

"Miss Jiang, please introduce yourself," Teacher Pang smiled. 

"And by the way, it has to be English." 

The students groaned while some even banged their heads on the tables. While they were considered an advanced class, in a countryside school that most people wouldn't ordinarily pay attention to, some didn't bother to polish up their English. While some were still having a hard time verbalizing what they know. 

Jiang Shen had an annoyed look but still stood up. With a voice that couldn't be more monotonous, she spoke in perfect English, "Hello everyone, my name is Jiang Shen. I am seventeen years old. I live about a ten minute walk from school and my hobbies are writing and painting. My rank is seventh." 

It was mandatory in their school to announce their rank while doing introductions, so that the teachers would be aware of how well they were doing academically. Not only would it be helpful for teachers to memorize them by rank, students would compete for the high ranks in order to be favored by a teacher. This meant that the higher your rank was, the better treatment you get, the higher the tier of the university you will go. 

Jiang Shen only wanted to go to a school where her major was available. And because it wasn't widely popular nor was it a necessary major, only three schools offered it in the capital, which was nearer than going north or south. 

Some students gasped, these were the ones who managed to get passed the ranks and barely managed get in the advanced class. While the others, specifically the ones who rank higher than her, had no reaction. 

Besides An Pan and Cho Jing who had thumbs up, there was one person whose eyes sparkled. 

Yang Mu was ranked 4th overall. He was very studious and loved to study, so it was no surprise that he would rank high. What he never expected was the class setting. 

The previous seniors had told them that once they reached senior year, classes would no longer be like junior year, where students were ranked in class by their average grades. 

It seems that the teacher department decided to change it. A lot of aspiring students would lose interest in studying because of the lack of competitive standards in classrooms. So to ignite the student's will to study, the majority voted that they should implement class ranks. 

While competitiveness is often looked down in because of fights breaking out with the difference in ranks, the students at Xu Academy were mostly all obedient, save for the students in some classes. 

Jiang Shen sat down again and waited for introductions to be finished. And while the teacher began to lecture and warn them about the diagnostic assessment the next day, she looked out the window with tired eyes and drifted to daydreaming. 

Teacher Pang only looked at her once before returning to teaching with a booming voice. Her attitude did not garner much attention, save for the bottom ranks in Class A. 

The day was quite uneventful. Jiang Shen learned that her seat mate was named Li Er, who enjoyed reading comics and the occasional novels. He was a bit of an airhead in her opinion but his rank was higher than her by a grade. 

The first ranker, which was respected as An Pan, would always be together with Cho Jing, who ranked third. They were always together but it didn't bother Jiang Shen much. They weren't exactly on close terms with each other but only good friends. 

As she packed up her bags and arranged her chair, Jiang Shen prepared to leave. But not until he heard the three boys who were whispering quite loudly in the back of the room. 

"Come on, just suck it up and ask her!" 

"I really can't! She seems to be in a bad mood and I don't want to ruin it even further." 

"What a sissy! You know what." 

Mo Ran grew tired of the sissy and grabbed his arm tightly while walking towards Jiang Shen. She stared at them with a hint of curiosity.

"Jiang Shen." 

"Yes?" 

He gestured at Yang Mu, whose whole face had gone red with embarrassment. "This guy was wondering if he could go home with you. His house is just a few blocks further away from yours." 

Jiang Shen thought deeply. Shi Fen was out because he woke up too late and decided not to go to school. Kang Shu would go home with Cao Wei, who lived in the opposite direction. And the two couples who she considered her great friends went out on a date together at the mall. Seeing the sun setting soon while the breeze lightly carried the scent of chalk, she nodded. 

"Okay." 

Yang Mu went stiff while Mo Rand and Li Er snickered to the side. They had been planning this for awhile now. 

"Aren't you coming?" Jiang Shen called out from the door as she stared right at him. 

"Oh! Sorry, i'm coming." He fumbled with his bag and gave a glare towards the two. 

As they walked outside the building filled with the liveliness of students, Yang Mu gripped his bag strap tighter. He walked at the same pace as Jiang Yue and together they walked through the long pathway to the school gate. 

He noticed the peculiar stares directed towards him but tried to ignore it. After all, Jiang Shen was still quite a well known figure in school. Her popularity would only rise as she formally introduces herself as part of the student council. 

Yang Mu shook his head and walked beside her a little bit closer. 

'Focus on this, Yang Mu. This might just be the beginning of something.'

Jiang Shan prefers to be left alone, leaving her with fewer friends than her peers.

After starting senior year, she is determined to spend her days at home to think about her plans for the future.

The strained relationship with her family, her unstable mental health, a complicated relationship with a boy, playing her part in the student council, and studying for the coming entrance exams.

All of this had been managed to be swept up in a storm called Yang Mu.

Even if she had the money to pick it up in the bookstore, she might not be able to choose a book that suited her so well.
When Qiao Nan reached home, Qiao Dongliang and Ding Jiayi were already around. Qiao Nan put away her school bag. She saw that Ding Jiayi had a look of excitement on her face, both eyes were as bright as the daylight - did she pick up some money from the streets?
"Zijin is so capable. A prominent school lives up to its name. The High School Affiliated to Renmin University of China is excellent. I feel that I have made the best decision in my life by admitting her into the school."
"It's not bad. Have you gotten someone to bring the money over to Zijin?" Qiao Dongliang was all smiles too, with a expression full of glory."Zijin is not at home, today, you should prepare a good meal too, we can celebrate." 
The elder daughter was so capable, Qiao Dongliang was really pleased.
"Fine!" Ding Jiayi agreed without any hesitation."Good food today all thanks to Zijin."
While saying that, Ding Jiayi shifted her glance to Qiao Nan, if not for the sake of celebrating for Zijin, she also did not wish to prepare a good meal when Zijin was away and benefit the wretched girl. 
"Nan Nan is back." Qiao Dongliang, who was in a good mood, saw everything positively. "Nan Nan, Zijin got a place to participate in the provincial city essay writing competition. Your sister has really improved." 
"Provincial city essay writing competition?" Having heard this, Qiao Nan raised her eyebrows. Such a coincidence?
But, with Qiao Zijin's essay, was she qualified to join the competition?
"Yes, Nan Nan, when you study in the senior high school, like Zijin, you will also have the opportunity to participate in the Provincial city essay writing competition." At the thought that the younger daughter's grades were better, Qiao Dongliang believed that she would certainly have the chance to do so in future.
"Old Qiao, you don't need to give Qiao Nan so much pressure, can any Tom, Dick and Harry take part in the provincial city composition competition? Zijin asked someone to passed the message that the whole school only sent 10 people. One out of 10, there are so many students in the school, and all these are good students. Zijin has done us proud!" Ding Jiayi became more excited as she continued. "You used to control Zijin. Zijin told me that, putting the storyline aside, the writing in the novels that she read previously is good. Reading more will help greatly in essay writing. You see, Zijin did not waste money or read the books without giving any thoughts. She had a reason for reading those books."
While drinking her water, Qiao Nan casually asked, "Dad, when is Sister going to the competition?" 
"Your sister will not be back next week, she has to stay in the school for training because the essay writing competition is on the weekend of the week after next."
"Oh, same for me too."
"Same?" Qiao Dongliang blinked his eyes. "Nan Nan, you are also joining the competition?"
"Yes."
"What yes, Zijin is participating in the provincial city essay competition, how can it be the same?" Ding Jiayi casted an unhappy look at Qiao Nan.
"I am also joining the competition, and at the same timing as Sister, that's why I said it's a coincidence."
Qiao Nan's words should be good news for the family, but at that moment, the smiles on the faces of Qiao Dongliang and Ding Jiayi were frozen for a while.
Qiao Dongliang was happy, but at this moment he had further thoughts.
Qiao Zijin was able to participate in the competition and would not be coming home next week. She specially asked someone to sent a message to request money from the Qiao couple to buy an essay writing book to read.
When the child has progressed in her learning, performed well, and wanted to buy a decent and proper essay writing book, there was no reason for the parent to reject this request.
So, Qiao Dongliang and Ding Jiayi had come up with 10 yuan and asked the messenger to pass it to Qiao Zijin.
There comes the problem. Both daughters would be joining the competition. He had given the elder daughter 10 yuan to purchase learning materials, it would be unfair not to give the same to his younger daughter? 
Qiao Dongliang, who always like to advocate "Fairness, Justice, and Transparency", was hesitating as he thought about the amount of money in his pocket.
There was famine in the family, and without savings, Qiao Dongliang did not feel assured and had been finding ways to save up a little here and there.
The 10 yuan earlier was already an extra expense. If he had to give away another 10 yuan, that would be really hard.
If he did not give, Qiao Dongliang felt bad about being biased, but if he give, that would be too much expenditure. Qiao Dongliang was feeling the pinch.
Ding Jiayi quickly pulled Qiao Dongliang. Qiao Nan was not at home, and was not aware that they had given 10 yuan to Qiao Zijin. "That's a good thing, I am going to prepare dinner, you may return to your room quickly to read your books."
For the first time, Ding Jiayi was so willing to watch Qiao Nan go to her room without helping in any household chores and read her own books.
"Yes." Qiao Nan replied with a word and went to her room, while carrying her schoolbag.
Before the couple could breathe a sigh of relief, at the moment where Qiao Nan opened the door of her room, she turned her head and asked. "Sister will be joining the competition, did you all give her money to buy the learning materials?"
Ding Jiayi's smiling face turned stiff at that instant.
Qiao Dongliang was full of embarrassment. He already said, he could not let his child suffer no matter how poor he was or how hard he had to work. Qiao Dongliang bit his tongue and reached into the pocket of his trousers. "Yes, I just asked someone to bring 10 yuan for your sister. Qiao Nan, come, take this 10 yuan. If you need any learning materials, go and buy. It is rare to have this opportunity, we have to cherish this." 
Ding Jiayi wanted to open her mouth to shout when she heard that they were also giving 10 yuan to Qiao Nan.
Qiao Dongliang glared at Ding Jiayi. "If you are not willing to, sure, I will make a trip to Zijin's school later and retrieve that 10 yuan?" 
"Is it the same, Zijin is in senior high school and the materials are expensive. 10 yuan is fine. But she is only in junior high school, and joining different competitions, not together. Can't you just give her a few yuan?" Ding Jiayi was making a lot of noise.
"Why don't you just give one or two cents?" Qiao Dongliang rolled her eyes at Ding Jiayi. "Equal treatment, if Zijin gets 10 yuan, of course Qiao Nan should also get 10 yuan. This matter is decided. Nan Nan, take the money!"
Looking at the 10 yuan that was forced into her hands, Qiao Nan initially felt bad but she felt more at ease now.
At least her father tried his best to be fair to both Qiao Zijin and her.
"Dad, I don't need it. Sister bought so many essay writing books. If I really need it, I will read hers. But next week when we are at the competition outside, 10 yuan is not necessary, but you still need to give me two yuan. I can't possibly let the teachers treat me to the meals." After returning Qiao Dongliang 10 yuan, Qiao Nan separately asked for the money.
Qiao Nan's words made Qiao Dongliang felt quite bad. The elder daughter had so many revision materials. In his impression, the younger daughter had never bought any.
Fairness, the family had never been fair.
But he had no choice. Zijin would be taking in a son-in-law in future. The child of Zijin would bear the surname of Qiao. If he could treat Nan Nan better, he would try his best to do so. "Fine, here's three yuan. Keep it." 


Qiao Nan: Crap! I am your biological daughter, yet I am treated as if I was picked up from the streets. In fact, you treat me worse than that!

Mother Qiao: Qiao Nan, you are not as pretty or smart as your elder sister. You are not as blessed as her. You have no right to study, marry, or to have your happiness!

Qiao Nan: Why am I not allowed to study, marry, or to seek my happiness? I will find a man right now and marry him!

Qiao Nan is dumbstruck upon discovering that the man right beside her is a powerful figure in the quad—the person who has the most promising prospects to be the future Chief.

Qiao Nan stares at the well-built man in front of her. He has firm abs and cold, chilling eyes. She swallows the lump in her throat as she says her greetings, "Good Morning, Chief!"

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