a young boy was born possessed with dark energy from another universe and he tries to understand the dark energy

Have you ever wanted to ability to have complete control of time? Well a select few people here has this ability. But there are rules and if those rules are broken, then a punishment will be served....

That what happened to the 24 year old man named Sora. He's a time manipulator that has broken a law of time on accident. Father time took pity on him and gave him a chance to break the curse from the punishment.

He has 5 years to simply find father time pocket watch. Sora has to go on the wildest adventure no one has ever seen.

Startled by her expression, Ryuji muttered blankly, "Huh?"
"What makes you think that this is a locked-room murder sort of pocket dimension?" Lin Sanjiu turned back to stare at the dead body and asked.
"Isn't that what you said?"
"When did I say that?"
Slightly confused, he blinked then continued, "You said that this is a locked-room pocket dimension. Someone died here, and the corpse has returned. You have to clear the mystery to get out. Isn't that what a locked-room murder made of?"
"No…this is a locked-room escape…" Lin Sanjiu stopped midway through her sentence as she suddenly realized something.
This might just have been a coincidence. After all, judging from all the clues she found so far, nothing could prove that this warehouse had once been the site of a locked-room murder. Even though the window was locked, there was no evidence suggested that the main entrance was locked as well. After all, she had not even rebuilt the door yet. 
Beset by doubts, Lin Sanjiu decided to go through the clue given by the pocket dimension once more.
To be honest, the clues were useless. "Find the correct key", "open the door and go out"...Generally speaking, the escape route in the secret room escape game was often very complex, full of twists and turns. If she could just open the door with a key, then what made it any different from other normal rooms?
Suddenly, she realized something, so she smacked her hand to her forehead. 
No, this indeed was different from the normal circumstances. 
"What's wrong?" Ryuji asked, looking at her. It seemed that he had grown interested in this pocket dimension as well although he still looked like a lamb that was about to collapse on the roadside because he had gotten lost. 
"I told you before about the first clue I found, didn't I? It's simple." Frowning, one word after another slowly spilled out from Lin Sanjiu's lips. "The clue may seem simple, but it is actually a little strange."
"Why?"
"I'm inside a room, so why would I still need a key to unlock a door and go out? I can just push it open, can't I?" The words tumbled from her lips rapidly. She was glad to have a real person whom she could share her ideas with, and not just Mrs. Manas alone. This way, not only could she reorganize her thoughts through an actual conversation, but she could also spark different ideas as well. "Unless somebody has locked me inside this warehouse. That is the only situation that requires a key."
"You are right." Ryuji looked worriedly over at the corpse in the distance. The dead body was still dragging itself towards Lin Sanjiu, gradually coming out of the darkness. 
"Both the window and the door are locked," Lin Sanjiu said as she took the window holder for Ryuji to see though he maintained a straight, unenthusiastic expression. "But the keys are inside the building."
She waved her hand and the card in her palm turned into a bunch of keys. 
Slowly, Ryuji opened his mouth and said, "So…"
"Yes, this is a locked room, and this is a locked-room mystery just like the one in the detective fiction."
"That used to be my favorite genre." Ryuji scratched his head. "I'm not a cool kid in my school, so I kept to myself all the time. I don't like to study, but I love reading fiction. Therefore, no matter where I went, be it eating or walking, I had a detective novel with me all the time."
The second half of his sentence passed Lin Sanjiu's ears as the wind. 
The locks on the window were generally faced inward, but that was the opposite case for the main door. It required somebody to lock it from the outside. In other words, to leave both the keys of the window and the door inside the building, the murderer could not have left through either one. 
However, there was something Lin Sanjiu could not comprehend. Why would the pocket dimension tell her that this was a "locked room escape" in the first place?
"Maybe it's because this building is indeed a locked room for you." Ryuji began to draw out his vowels after he heard Lin Sanjiu's query. "You were thrown into a locked-room murder scene, so you have to think of a way to get out of here." 
Lin Sanjiu nodded thoughtfully.
It was not easy to get out of here. After connecting the pocket dimension, the dead body, and the traces, it occurred to her that she had to figure out how the murderer got out of here first. 
"Look out, it is coming at you again," Ryuji warned her again while she was deeply immersed in her thought. Lin Sanjiu took a quick glance and then barreled towards the other side of the warehouse. The dead body kept trailing her like a frigging shadow, and it made her very uncomfortable. 
It seemed that a less motivated person would have a hard time standing up as well. Ryuji was still sitting in the bush, his face drawn. The only occasion he would jerk up was when the dead body walked past in front of him. 
"Don't you have any more torchlight?" After Lin Sanjiu went around the warehouse and returned to him, he suggested, "Take them out and put them around if you got more. It is too dark here and that freaking dead body is too scary."
The grand prize had given her several back-up torchlights, but she lost most of them in Shamballa and the rest needed to be recharged. Waving her [Ability Polishing Agent], she replied, "Nope. I only have this one."
Raising his head to stare at the silver bottle, Ryuji sighed, "Is this even a torchlight?"
"Nope. But I have been using it as one." Even though Lin Sanjiu was having a casual talk, she was still thinking about the possibility of "locked room murder". After she thought for a while, she asked, "Since you said you often read detective stories, what is your thought on this?"
Even if the topic of their conversation was something he liked, there was no spark in Ryuji's eyes. 
"Well, most of them are not really a locked room," he said in a gloomy voice, "It is just some tricks the perp used to misdirect people into thinking that it is a locked room, but actually it is not. To achieve that effect, they would use something we called a "device". There are plenty of devices, and some of them could be used to lock the door from outside. However, that is only applicable in novels as there are too many variables in reality."
After hearing what he said, Lin Sanjiu threw a glance at him and asked, "Have you tried it before?"
"Yes, when I was in secondary school. There was one exhibition, and I was going to demonstrate how to close a door with a fishing line. But sadly, something went wrong and my demonstration ended up as a failure."
In short, Ryuji had been branded as a "loser" since he was young.
So what was the "device" used in this locked room?
As she sank into her thoughts, she tried to rebuild the wall and the window. To her chagrin, the window restored from the glass fragments was so small a child might not be able to squeeze through, let alone the murderer, who had a high chance to be a grown-up male.
'How good it is if I can imitate the grand prize or Nüwa…' But Lin Sanjiu knew that both options had been crossed out from her list. 
Just as she sighed inwardly, she heard a long note from the distance. For a moment, she thought her brain or her ears were playing a trick on her. It was only when she turned her head and saw the blinking blue spot on the communication device that she realized she was not wrong. 
Ji Shanqing was calling her.
When the second long note came, the blue spot was blocked by a shadow. As if it knew Lin Sanjiu was going there, the dead body dragged itself over and stopped in front of the communication device. 


Lin Sanjiu is a normal woman in modern-day society. Everyone admires her outstandingly handsome, gentle, and rich boyfriend. However, Lin Sanjiu feels vaguely afraid of this "perfect" boyfriend. She's always felt that her boyfriend looks at her like she's a tasty piece of meat...

The transformation happened one night. Sanjiu got into an argument with her boyfriend, and he finally revealed his true colors. As it turns out, he was a being with special abilities from an apocalyptic world who wanted to eat Sanjiu to help him evolve. To his dismay, he ended up being the one killed by Sanjiu with her hidden abilities instead.

However, Sanjiu's troubles don't end with her dead boyfriend. In fact, the world she resides in is starting to go through unusual changes. This world is becoming a scorching hot hellhole...

What do you guys think is more powerful in fiction, Time or Space?
I bet most people will say time but I argue that space is more powerful. If a person with the power of space trap a person with the power of time in a pocket dimension or just cut off the space that the other person is standing in from the rest of the world, then no matter what the person with Time power tries, he'll always be stuck.
Unlesss the person with time power is willing to go back to a the beginning of time or to the end of time, I don't see any way to escape. If they do decide to go to the beginning of time, they risk being unmade and if they go to the end of time, they risk being erased along with time.

Things that I think about from time to time. It can be anything from a random quote to ideas for fanfictions that I'm never going to do. 
Check it out and tell me what you guys think about it.

btw, I'm an author on this site. I completed and have a few stories still ongoing, bet you'll never be able to guess who I am. I'm not going to give a hint.

Outside in the hallway, when the doors abruptly closed on him, Maxen shifted his attention to the two men in black behind him and decided to take his safety lightly as he casually said, "MIB1, MIB2, do not follow me inside." 


MIB1 cleared his throat and gave a curt nod to Maxen who saw his personal bodyguard's jaw tick yet he ignored it. No matter how much MIB1 hid his disdain for all the broken protocols since Olivia entered Maxen's life, which was last night, he can't do much about it since it was his highness's orders to skip those protocols. 


Usually, before Maxen could enter an area, his men would first have to clear the area and perform a sweep for possible explosives that might put him in danger. For years, each house that Maxen used to play with his "toys" would be quarantined and no furniture would be left unturned yet last night when Olivia came into the picture, everything changed. Her apartment remained untouched; a living security nightmare.


MIB2 nudged his partner on the arm when he felt MIB1's furious gaze on Maxen's back. When MIB1 shifted his infernal gaze to him, he just shrugged as if saying, "Let it go. It's fine." However, his buddy just silently growled at him.


Meanwhile, inside Olivia's decoy apartment, Secretary Gail warned Yana, letting the little lass off the hook on her first day before opening the door for Maxen. "Pucker up and don't do that again to any future guests." Yana hid behind Secretary Gail's tall frame and watched in awe as the Prince welcomed himself inside. 


Yana knew Olivia was a hotshot on a whole different level but she was not informed that she would be meeting the country's Prince on her first day on the job.


"Olivia." Yana watched by the kitchen as Maxen purred to her boss, like an old cat lady calling out to her diva pet while she reheat her madam's cold lunch. She watched his every move as he took off his suit jacket, giving her a chance to ogle at the Prince's greek god-like physique that form on his tailored white dress suit. 


"Want to eat supper first before we hit the road?" Olivia offered while she changed her fluffy slippers into strappy stilettos. Maxen, on the other hand, stood rooted in his spot, unable to form out a reply right away as he was half-mesmerized, half-annoyed at her "work-from-home" outfit. The center slit on her tight pencil skirt that revealed her caramel smooth thighs could pass but the top was something debatable. 


In his thoughts, he wanted to pull the thin spaghetti strap of her cream tank top that revealed a little of her bouncy cleavage and change it to something that would cover her more. Normally, he'd love his ladies to show a little skin… or more, if he's going to be honest, but everything about Olivia made him throw his rationale out of the window. Maxen screamed the blazing possessiveness in his head yet his face showed nothing but a straightface. He was annoyed that he could not say his thoughts, afraid to be labeled as an overbearing person.


The two ate in silence in the formal dining area, while Yana and Secretary Gail took refuge in the pocket room for the household helpers. 


"Why are they so quiet?" Yana whispered to her senior. 


"Because they are eating and you don't talk when you have food in your mouth, right?" Secretary Gail schooled the curiosity of the little lass who nodded her apple-shaped head. Their short class was interrupted when Yana heard a little bell chime, a signal for her that supper was over. 


Once Olivia and Maxen was out, Secretary Gail called Yana over and gave her two keycards. "These are extra keycards for you to use. You can stay here on the fifty-sixth floor or if you prefer to stay in your own place it's ok as long as you report before six in the morning." Yana was pleasantly surprised that she was offered free lodging that she didn't think she need to think everything through and blurted out, "I'll bring my stuff in tonight, Secretary Gail!" 


Outside in the hallway, Olivia huffed when Maxen tried to cover her with his suit jacket.


"Thank you, Max. But I think I don't need an extra layer of clothing," Olivia said, much to Maxen's irritation. She shrugged the suit jacket off her shoulders and hung it over her forearm just to satisfy the little prince who definitely mastered that art of poker face to hide his annoyance. Maxen looked behind him and saw his two innocent bodyguards who were great candidates to take the brunt of his displaced anger so he snapped his fingers and barked at them, "Hey. Eyes on the floor." The two men in black followed suit but was confused when Maxen barked another order within a beat, "You know what, you can walk before us."


Maxen pulled out his hand from his pants pocket when he heard Olivia calling him. He smiled when he saw Olivia put on the suit jacket, saving the two MIBs. However, once Maxen and Olivia got inside his magma red Maserati GT, Olivia threw his jacket to his face.


"I'm never going out with you again you control freak!" Olivia tongue-lashed at Maxen who was dumbfounded in his seat. "This is what I want to wear and you don't have to cover me. I can grab my own coat if I'm damn cold and right now I am not. Can't you see the humidity is killing me?" 

Olivia sneered upon seeing Maxen's sorry not sorry face. Of course, what could she expect from a spoiled little prince? Instead of saying sorry, Maxen blasted the AC in the car and revved up the engine, sending a deafening sound that echoed in the underground parking lot.


"Are you cold now?" Maxen asked in a low toneless voice but received an indifferent treatment from Olivia who kept her eyes shut. He covered her legs with his suit jacket before speeding out of the parking basement with his MIBs trailing behind their car.


Olivia was puzzled when she realized they were headed towards the airport. "Are we going to the airport?" she asked, cutting the suffocating silence the entire ride.


"Not really. A five-minute drive, I was told. This place is perfect for your office, security is top notch. I can put in a few of my men if you don't mind. Especially with your line of work," Maxen replied, his eyes glued on the road.


"Oh. So you ran a check on me?" Hearing her question, he pulled over to the side of the road so they could talk properly. He just witnessed her lashing out on him and he's afraid of how far Olivia could go with her anger management.


"Protocols, I'm afraid. But don't worry, I'm gonna hold off my... judgement." Maxen's voice tapered off when he saw Olivia's calm expression. He watched as Olivia propped her arm on the car door armrest, her chin resting on her knuckle as she locked eyes with him.


"And what if I ask you to be my client? Would you say 'yes'?"


"Husband, yes. Client, yes. But not that VIP thing."


Olivia raised a brow at his bold statement. "Wait, I didn't ask you to be my husband."


"But I will ask you to be my wife in the future so the answer is yes."


"Oh my gosh you are... Something. We just met last night. Ha!" Olivia huffed at Maxen who, by the way, looked smug and sexy in the driver's seat. She watched as he started driving back on the road towards their destination. 

"Speaking of your job. Do you plan to quit? That's dangerous."


"It's not like I'm out there fighting in combat. I'm just a bank."


"Hmm... a bank. How did you get yourself into that anyway?"


Olivia hissed at his barrage of questions and replied with a question herself, "Ok. What else do you know about me?" 


"That you love facts. Now, let's play a game," Maxen said, parking in front of a well lit building that Olivia guessed to be the place that they would inspect later. "I will say something and you decide whether it's a fact or fiction. Are you ready?"


Olivia twisted in her seat to face him and nodded her head in affirmation.

"Fact or fiction: Your mother got into an accident with my Uncle Sebastian, former King of Nisia[1]."

"Fact," Olivia beamed and surprised Maxen with a chaste kiss on his lips just to keep him going on and play his little game. 

She knew of the story about her mother working for the former king. Wait? Was Henry Lin jealous of the former king? Olivia kept her question in her magnificent brain.

"Okaaay. Thank you for my reward. But the next one, I don't think will earn me another kiss," Maxen said, propping his elbow on the center console to get a good look of Olivia's reaction.


"Ok. Shoot," Olivia dared, her hazel brown eyes reflected the worrisome look on Maxen's face yet it didn't bother her. She's used to hearing gruesome stories that nothing could shock her anymore. However, the words that left Maxen's mouth was something out of left field.


"Fact or fiction: the Pyxis was behind that murder."

“I’m not a ‘thing’ to be possessed.” Olivia pulled her weight with her elbows and stared at Maxen whose head was now wedged between her legs. 

“Absolutely,” he agreed, widening the high slit of her gown. “You’re a goddess, Olivia. And I will even worship the land that you would set foot on.” 

... 

Olivia Lin. Exiled heiress of the biggest corporation in the small island of Nisia. Nobody knew of her name. Heck, nobody knew of her existence. Henry Lin, her father, left her in the farthest place from the country as possible the moment she was born. 

Maxen Victor Eton Sui, a heartbreak dressed in a hot suit. What more if he's wearing a crown? 

Now when their paths collide, will sparks fly? 

... 

*This is a dark romance, suitable for mature audiences, 18+ ONLY. Strong sexual themes and violence, which could trigger emotional distress are found in this story. Certain scenes are graphic and could be upsetting to some. This story is NOT for everyone. Proceed with caution. Discretion is advised. 

edited by Swaning


join us in discord! tinyurl.com/filledelisle

Staggering a few steps, Chang endured the pain coming from his ankle and searched the house again, but he didn’t find anyone. There were only the one and a half fingers—half of one finger was bitten off by that rat.
Picking up those two fingers, Chang gazed at them with an empty heart. He sobbed inaudibly, but tears never came out of his eyes.
Unlike girls, guys always had a hard time venting their pain.
Fortunately, Chang stayed optimistic; he didn’t believe that his parents were dead. He walked into the kitchen and put the fingers in the sink. He rinsed off the blood and put them into his pocket. Then, he turned away and walked into his bedroom. He turned on the computer to see whether the network was still connected.
Accompanied with the noise of his computer starting up, Chang clicked on the network connection – it was a success.
"So things still work, as long as they are connected with a direct line." As he opened the browser, news was already all over the screen. Even the normal sidebar ads had all switched to broadcast urgent news. It was flooded with an endless amount of news about the "apocalypse".
After clicking on the news, there was an overwhelming amount of commentary and speculation in addition to the news.
Going through the three largest news sites, Chang quickly browsed all the news and commentary and subsequently summed up several important messages. First, the red fog had not only filled Kaifeng, the city he lived in, but rather the entire country and world at almost the same time. Second, the fog blocked communication signals, including those from satellites and radios. Third, there were bizarre animal and plant mutation events, and as time passed, the number of mutations steadily increased.
And finally, the world sunk into panic.
Officials had not come forward and explained anything, so all that was known was from the distressing news, along with the events that some people had experienced.
It seemed that animals and plants had become bloodthirsty, and every species was filled with aggression. More precisely speaking, every species was competing for living space as if they were living in terror of becoming extinct.
When Chang continued searching for other news, the internet went down. At the same time, he was aware of an indistinct noise coming from the floor----
Looking down, Chang didn’t know since when, but a massive amount of Rice hispa (an insect) covered the floor. They seemed to come from the smell of blood as they rushed to the living room and devoured the rat body and the pool of blood from Chang’s father. The ones that had a better sense of smell climbed towards Chang’s wound, causing him to stand up without a second thought.
"F**k!" he cursed. It was a natural reaction from being horrified. Chang shook his legs, and then he heavily stepped on the Rice hispa after they fell off his leg.
Crack!
Chang felt a sharp pain from the sole of his feet, as if he had stepped on rocks. Those beetle were only wounded from his vigorous stomps. No one could have imagined how sturdy their shiny black armour was. "If I were smaller, I’m afraid I wouldn’t even injure them," Chang thought.
"The house isn’t safe anymore."
With the beetles everywhere, it made him think of the aggressive scarabs from some science fiction novels. Although these insects currently looked far less aggressive than scarabs, under the red fog, it was impossible to tell how they would change.
Looking at the house, Liu Chang knew that he couldn’t wait for his parents to come home any longer.
As for the cable breaking, it was caused by these beetles.
Going back to his bedroom, Chang took a pen and a stack of paper—"Mom, Dad, I am going to school, find me there."
He wrote on three pieces of paper. One was posted on the bedroom door, one in the living room, and then he walked out the house and posted the last one on the patio door.
The outside of the house was still surrounded by the smothering red fog.
Chang returned to the house after posting the last note.
Carefully picking up the blood-stained crowbar from the swarm, he shook off some Rice hispa on the bar and walked into the kitchen.
Chang rinsed off the blood on the bar and his wound. After he disinfected the wound and wrapped it with a bandage, Chang considered what to do next.
There was no doubt that the apocalypse had come.
However, unlike what was written in novels, there were no revolting zombies or wastelands from the aftermath of a nuclear war.
The world had sunk into bloody darkness, and except for humans, other species didn’t seem to have any problems surviving in the darkness. The situation was that human dominance on Earth had been challenged—as for food and shelter, they were still sufficient for now.
"Perhaps the end of the world didn’t happen overnight," he thought. During the moment Chang was contemplating, the Rice hispa had doubled in size.
"Maybe the apocalypse is much worse than what is pictured in fiction. It is only a matter of time until everything wraps itself."
Seeing these beetles filled with boundless vitality, Chang knew that he could not delay any longer. He pulled out a giant backpack that he purchased a few years ago and loaded it with food from the refrigerator, as well as a first aid kit and medicine. He also picked up a knife and put it in the side pocket of the backpack.
Soon, the backpack was stuffed and weighed more than 40 pounds. He couldn’t carry more or it would slow him down.
After finishing packing, he took a glimpse at some beetles that had climbed onto his feet, tracing the smell of blood. Chang shook off these beetles and realized, "The smell of blood might give me trouble."
Thinking about this, Liu Chang turned back to his parents’ bedroom, rummaged through the drawer and found a bottle of perfume. He sprayed it all over his body.
"I don’t know whether the fragrance can cover the smell of blood, but it should be unpleasant and pungent enough for other animals." Chang in fact had no idea how well the fragrance would work, but that was the only thing he could do now.
Chang double checked to ensure he didn’t miss anything, then carried his backpack and crowbar in his right hand and left his home.
Nothing changed outside the house, but the bloody darkness had not dissipated. It grew even denser. Chang looked down, cautiously distinguishing a trace of the sidewalk. Familiar landmarks had become even more concealed, and the walls and houses on the roadside were covered with crazily growing vines. The ground was broken apart by the healthy and vigorous grass and the visibility was even less than three meters now.
It seemed that no matter what the circumstances were, the growth of plants was much faster than that of animals.
The speed of growth of the Rice hispa had astonished Chang, but in comparison to these plants, the bugs were definitely less surprising.


Five hundred million years ago, an epoch of extraordinarily fast evolution and mutation took place. It is said that all ancestors of today’s species on Earth derive from those that appeared in the “Cambrian Period”. 

Unfortunately, nothing gold can stay. After the brief “Cambrian Period”, life on Earth entered a period of stagnation. Humans came out on top, becoming the most powerful species on Earth.

A second age has come.

During the first “Cambrian Period” humanity was kicked off of the throne of the food chain quickly. Now, during the second “Cambrian Period”, what will happen to humanity?

The real end of the world is not the tale of brainless zombies. 

It is paradise.

Wong Jiayin started to disappear, breaking apart into pure energy. Soon, all that was left was an empty pile of vines.

[She is fine. Wong Jiayin will go back to where she was before arriving in Gaellia.]

"Is that so?" I voiced but was reassured.

The eighteen-year-old had not been innocent but I still felt killing her was too extreme a reaction. What the Chinese girl needed was not death but therapy and to maybe answer for her crimes. She going off the deep-end was not an excuse to forgive her for killing Rosettia Fillemund and whatever else she did to reach Level 54 so quickly.

(Maybe we were all victims of happenstance. Jiayin, Rosettia, me, and whoever else not native to this planet.)

I looked at the sky which was starting to gather storm clouds from a side-effect of the <Firestorm> messing with the atmospheric pressure. I saw the dancing energy that was the remnants of Jiayin continue to float up before it got too far for me to see without enhancing my vision.

"Miss Wong, I wish you will eventually find peace—and not in death."

Looking down at the pile of vines, I watched as 37 put the entire thing in our Inventory to handle later and was sure the Wind Fire Wheels were also taken.

After a moment, I irritatedly mussed my hair, ruining the half-tail it had been pulled back in. "Ahhhh!"

All this and I still never got any answers from her!

[Actually…]

"Hm?"

Please tell me… 

[One of the rewards for a won Duel is the other Partner's Biography. And I did manage to glean some information in my altercation with Program D-01.]

I stopped bothering to stand on the ground, pulling my feet up and throwing my hands up in the air in relief. Thankfully all this effort wasn't for nothing!

'So?' I eagerly asked my adorable and cute AI (unlike the psycho 01) while I sat with my legs crossed while <Hovering.>

[Ahem. I suggest we relocate first—]

Before I could ask why, 37 continued.

[Nostradamus is closing in on our—]

'You had me at Nostradamus!'

And I was gone.

…

…

A few days later, I was making myself scarce, staying in the Wyvern Roost.

I spent the past few days going through the spoils of winning the Duel while talking with 37 and clarifying some points. 

Most of the items weren't of use for me immediately or redundant, so I just put it aside in my Inventory. The only things of relevance were several records and scrolls.

The Birth of the Spider-Lily had been a somber read. It gave me a bit of insight into what the eighteen-year-old went through on Gaellia. 

There wasn't much revealed when it came to the mechanics of Programs and their Partners, other than the fact systems reflected the Partner—Jiayin had a dimensional pocket and techniques common to stories I've seen in female-orientated C-novels (and I suppose 01 was her "pet") in contrast to my game-like setup. 

I found out way more than I wanted to about the Eastern Kingdoms though, including the fact Jiayin was a deft hand at mental manipulation. King Zadok had been under her control when she left to Crown City to stir up some more trouble. 

For some reason, Jiayin had been after Nostradamus which made me conflicted. Was it a good thing or bad that I happened to pop up onto her radar when I followed Natasha and she split, thinking I was stalking her as another Partner? Because it was obvious that Jiayin had no chance against the half-alfr but the likeliest outcome—with her bullheadedness—would have been a fairly gruesome death.

Sorcery was a magic that made me think sadists invented the magic system.

Other than that, I flipped through the spells she knew. Apparently, when they were talking about a Partner's property, they meant everything. Since most of her knowledge was of Forbidden Magic, the only useful one I would actually use was her disguise technique <False Face.>

My partner was busy going through all the information he managed to get from glimpses of 01's coding.

I now knew there were different Programs types: A, D, and N models. A stupid but very plain naming system of "Angel Programs," "Devil Programs," and "Neutral Programs."

It was my fault for never thinking to ask why 37 chose to contact 42 until after the fight with 01. Sometimes, my partner was reticent with information—probably a side-effect of his programming—that would have been useful to know since I couldn't read his mind unlike he could mine.

Rosettia Fillemund had been partnered with Program A-42. 37 had wanted to contact 42 because he was aware that "A" designations were "good."

Well, I couldn't blame 37 for not mentioning this to me before. I had thoroughly questioned my AI and he seemed only a little more informed than I was when it came to his brethren and why we were all in Gaellia.

It probably had to deal with the fact that Neutral Programs were supposed to turn into Angel or Devils as they learned from their Partners. Child programs that didn't become "aware" until they changed.

That was what 01 had been cackling about in her last moments, after all. She thought 37 would turn into a Devil Program after killing Jiayin, not realizing he meant to delete 01 herself.

I sighed.

*Purrr? Klck.*

I turned my head to the mother wyvern. "I'm bored."

The wyvern only cocked her head to one side before dismissing me and started grooming one of her babies that struggled to run from its bath.

Looking at the amusing sight for a moment, I turned my gaze back out into Crown City. The sky was turning purple and orange from the sunset, glass and metal reflecting the sun and sending young wyverns to chase the scattered light.

Meanwhile, the fallout from the battle in the sky of Crown City during the night resulted in the end of the Conference. With the "attack" on the city, the foreign dignitaries felt unsafe to linger any longer. 

And, I suppose, since they were only going in circles, the scholars have given up on the meeting for the moment. It was time to gather more information before they were to meet again.

I was trying to figure out how to leave the information I got from Jiayin's biography to someone that could do something about it (someone not me). The Head Librarian seemed the best candidate even if Nostradamus was the one I knew that was closest to politics.

Considering the fact I ditched my Library Key on a random weather pane to keep the half-alfr from tracking me down, it was kind of obvious I was avoiding the Master Sorcerer.

[Nori?]

'What's up?'

[… should I delete myself so you can go back home?]

I was taken aback. "Where did this come from?"

[It's because you're bonded with me that a Devil Program and Partner targeted us. There are dozens more of my kind on Gaellia and… and I do not know enough to be able to help you.]

'Nonsense. Are you feeling guilty? Well, don't. You're practically in the same boat as me, Thirty-Seven.'

[But…]

"Also, I would not want to leave if it required sacrificing you. And…"

I had a reason to stay in Gaellia now.

[Nori?]

Clapping my hand, I floated out of the belltower to settle on the roof. I rubbed my hands in anticipation. "Enough with the doom and gloom! The Conference has ended so that means the Quest is complete! Show me the rewards!"

Fiction. Fiction. Fiction. Give me something to read!

A window popped up:

<Quest Complete.>

I impatiently skimmed through the summary.

<Reward>
<Subclass gained: Ninja>
<Reading App for Terminal Unlocked.>
<Allowance of 100,000 words for Reading App.>

I paused before digging out my smartphone and opening the new app. 

WHAT IS THIS?! 

[You can do Dailies for more points to read with, Nori.]

Yo. Name's Nori. I'm just an ordinary twenty-year-old university student—really—that woke up transported to this world called Gaellia one day. On my first day, I find myself thrown in jail and met my partner that will travel with me: an AI that I have a telepathic bond with.

[Nori, there are monsters attacking the city.]

Not my problem.

"Big Sis! I bought this dress for you!"

"Bro! Let's head to the gate to see who would get a higher kill count!"

[Nori, if you do this mission, you can read 50,000 words of a new title—]

Ah! Alright already, I get it!


**On hiatus for volume compilation**
***Volume Two being roughed out***
{Note: Written in 1st Person POV. Nori is nonbinary. Romance-free for Nori but lots of misunderstandings happen.}

Dream is a reality, a concealed power of the mind that influences nature. It is only, my personal belief. The very first time I remember my dream clearly is when I was in 6yrs. old. That was the time when I met my first friend. He was a loner and timid boy who asked me to only play with him. My playmates didn't want to play with him because he was so shy and cannot interact socially with other children. For them, he was like a mute as he cannot speak with them. However, he wasn't really a mute because he can speak normally when he first tried asking me to play with him. When we were alone, he was cheerful and sweet little boy. His smile was like a sweet strawberry ice cream that makes me happy. Every time I played with him, he gives me candy and I give him kiss to his cheeks. But the sad thing was, one morning when I woke up and look for him, he was nowhere to be found. In short, the only time I could only play with him was in my dream.

"Cara!" My best friend Jean shouted my name as if we were in a cafeteria. "I knew it! Library is your hiding place." I hushed her that's why she is whispering now. I was reading a romance fiction book when she interrupted me. 

"You really are the opposite of my childhood friend." I said to her annoyingly.

"Hey friend, can't you still remember me as your only one childhood friend? You really are out of your mind to only remember the boy in your dream. He is only a dream. Dream and reality contradicts with each other, so please get back to your senses dear!" She again scolded me as if we had a therapy session. 

I cried so much after I woke up from bed one time, when I couldn't find the boy in my dream. My mom and dad couldn't stop me from crying. When I stopped crying, I began acting like a brat child. I threw away all my things in my room. I picked on my nanny and bullied her. Before my situation becomes worst, my mom and dad decided to bring me into a psychologist. Years later as time goes by, I still have my therapy session on going. My best friend Jean is a psychologist and specializing dream analysis. She becomes my doctor when she replaced her mother who guided me through all my years. Maybe, I was really out of my mind to think that the boy in my dream had truly exist. 

I ignored my friend and continued reading the book. "You know what dear, you should stop reading fiction stories. Because it can influence in your dream behavior." However, she continued bothering me. I closed the book that I am reading and faced her. "You know what dear!" I mimicked her words annoyingly. "You should stop bothering me because I'm starting to think of zipping your mouth and put it to my pocket until you can't breathe." I whispered to her while gathering my things on my library desk. 

The boy who played with me in my dream was like real. Until now, I could still remember his face. Jean told me, it could be a boy I had met in my childhood days yet I don't remember where I met or saw him. She said, he kept on showing in my dreams because I remembered his face in my subconscious mind. That's the only conclusion she and her mother explained to me over and over again to remind me that I am not insane.

I went home bringing the book I was reading in the school library. Yes, I am still a student. I'm currently in my senior year studying, "B.S. Psychology." My best friend Jean is five years older than me that's why she was ahead of me from becoming a doctor. She  is also a professor in my school that's why we can always hang out inside the campus. Though she act like a student, the reason why she was being called, "Classmate Prof." as she was being cool in dealing with her students. But her students are still respecting her especially because she is indeed, a genius professor.

"Mom, I'm here!" I went straight to my room. I just called my mom for her to know that I arrived home safe. I threw away my back pack on my study desk and lie on my bed without changing my clothes. I closed my eyes to reflect myself in all the years that I kept thinking the boy in my dream. I wanted to forget him but I keep on remembering his face again and again.

Where am I? This place is somewhat familiar to me but I'm not sure where it is. I thought I went home already. But, where am I?  Wait, If I am not mistaken. Oh right! This is my dream. I looked everywhere to see the environment. There are no people here except for a man standing behind his back. I remember now! This is the place where I met the boy in my dream. It was our playground. The strange thing is, this place is still the same. Nothing has change even the seesaw and the slides. I went near the man who's standing earlier behind his back and he's now facing me but I can't figure it out of who is the owner of that face. In short, I can't see his face clearly. I stepped closer and closer to him but still his face is blurry. I can't recognize him.

I woke up suddenly. I was about to see the face of the man but I suddenly went back to the real world. Who is that man? Is it possibly, he is the boy in my dream? No, he is not. It can't be. 

"Hello, Dear. I'm needing your expertise now. My unforgettable dream is back."

Cara is a senior student in B.S. Psychology who met a strange boy in her dream when she was 6 years old. Her dream is like a reality for her as a memory. She can't forget the clear face of the boy while growing up and it affects her personality and memories throughout her life. 

At present, her dream went back again however there is a new character. And it was a man. The little boy in her dream from the past were gone and it was replaced by a grown man. She get a help from her bestfriend who is a psychologist and specializes dream analysis to discuss the dream that went back from her past. 

In the real world, there is another strange person that she also wants to meet however he never showed up in front of her. She calls him Mr. Smith like the character in a novel story, "Daddy Long Legs". Every once in a while, she will receive a letter from him. She started to receive a letter from this person when she met the strange man in her dream. 

She is now in the middle of chaos as how to manage her feelings between the man in her dream who showed her his face and the man in reality who never showed up.

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