CH 5

As rays of the sun covered the darkness, dawn arrived.

Feng Ping Lan put on his clothes and went down. As he arrived at the dining hall, his footsteps came to a halt.

All five of the demons excluding Quetzal were seated at the table, Conglong and Morris’ expressions looking incredibly reluctant.

Conglong had his head lowered as he drank his milk, and when he saw Feng Ping Lan, a flash of uneasiness shone in his eyes. He raised his head, staring at Feng Ping Lan’s each and every move.

Only to see that Feng Ping Lan was the same as usual, an overly-dazzling stupid smile on his face. He spoke in pleasant surprise.

“Wow, you guys are all here! Are we eating hot pot?”

“We cannot use our powers to go to school.” Dongya said, “Yin Su Shuang contacted us earlier. Since we’ve chosen to be identified as students, we’ll have to act like students. We’re not allowed to use our demonic powers outside of the Shadow Academy and our homes.”

“Is that so.” Feng Ping Lan sat down, realizing that Conglong was staring at him, “What’s wrong?”

Conglong looked doubtful, “You…”

“Mm? Could it be…” Feng Ping Lan lowered his head to inspect his own trousers.

“What are you doing?”

“I was wondering if my fly was open since you kept on staring at me, if Xiao Lan-Lan was exposed, hahahahaha!”

“Brainless! You idiot!” Conglong reprimanded, rolling his eyes moodily.

It seemed that he had thought too much of it. There was no way the dispute yesterday night would be able to affect this guy’s mood.

Conglong mocked himself secretly, and his heart relaxed a little due to it. He lowered his head and continued drinking his milk.

“Troublesome…” Morris tsked impatiently, one hand propping his head up as he crunched on his whole-wheat biscuits.

“Then how are you guys planning on going? On foot or by using the public transport?”

“By sitting on this.” Conglong took out a magazine, placing it on the table.

On the page was a sapphire blue sports car. Its dazzling appearance and trademark insignia at the front divulged in its considerable cost.

“Students can’t drive cars, and that kind of car is really expensive!”

“Then we buy it in white.”

“White ones will be just as expensive!”

“I was thinking that it would be cheaper without any paint on it.”

“No matter how expensive that car is, it’ll become a rancid car the moment you sit in it. You should obediently go on foot, hehehe…” Byriel licked his lollipop, looking incredibly pleased and contented.

Feng Ping Lan took a bite out of the toast in front of himself, “By the way, how did Class Advisor contact us? Using magic? Did he suddenly speak to you guys from a mirror?”

“Using the phone.”

“I see.” Feng Ping Lan nodded his head, “Then let’s use the public transport. It’s slower and nothing happened to Conglong the last time we rode on it.”

“Not just the way we get to and from school!” Morris exploded, “Other than our powers being restricted, we even have to follow the school rules! We have to do everything a normal student does, all the rules that they follow! Including handing in homework, sitting in exams, participating in school activities— this is too absurd!”

“Oh, so you’re unhappy because you don’t want to do homework?”

“No! That’s not the point!”

All of them were Prince Shuekan’s strongest generals! Why did they have to be subjected to this kind of joke!

“Don’t we have any ways to evade this?”

“None. If we don’t choose this way to appear, we’ll have to hide like Zhong Xian does by our Summoner’s side, or stay inside the Shadow Academy’s wards. That kind of option is more restricting, and we’ll have less free will to do what we want.” Dongya explained.

“What about Quetzal?”

“He was gone before we received the call.” Byriel replied languidly, “Since he chose the position of school doctor, he’s less restricted, because staff members can have the liberty to move more than students. For school doctors, the most basic thing to do is to stay in the sick bay and wait. They don’t have any fixed jobs like teachers and administrators do.”

“Damn it! Why does that guy get to take advantage of all the good stuff!” Morris complained, gritting his teeth.

“Not necessarily. Who knows, he might be saddled with an unexpectedly formidable job. Let’s wait and see. Hehehe…” Byriel curled the corners of his lips up, with a smile that said that he was about to watch something good unfold.

After eating breakfast, Dongya, Morris, Simo and Conglong prepared to go out with Feng Ping Lan to use the public transport. Byriel sat leisurely on the sofa watching TV instead.

“Aren’t you coming along as well?”

“No, I’m waiting for someone to fetch me.” Byriel tapped his foot, switching the channels indolently.

The group of people left and went down the mountain to wait at the bus stop. On the way there, a brilliant scarlet sports car came over head-on, driving up the mountain. Conglong watched the sports car unblinkingly, looking on as it went.

“Don’t look anymore, we won’t be able to afford it.” Donga patted Conglong.

“Even if we were able to afford it, he wouldn’t be able to sit in it.” Morris casually shattered Conglong’s dreams.

“Shut up! I was just looking!”

The group of people continued on their walk.

Five minutes later, the red sports car passed them by once again. The car stopped by the road, the windshield slowly winding down.

Byriel was in behind the window, a beautiful and mature-looking woman by his side in the driver’s seat.

“I’ll be going first, see ya.” With that, he waved.

The car started, whistling past, leaving the afterimage of red flame behind.

*

The day classes were the same as usual, conducted as dully and as harmoniously as the day before.

The only difference was, the teachers that had turned a blind eye to the demons’ rule-breaking behavior before this were now bluntly pointing them out, treating them as any other student.

For example, their class advisor.

“Byriel, Conglong, Morris, you did not do cleaning duty this morning. Stay behind after school today.”

“Why do we need to do such a lowly task!” Conglong and Morris couldn’t accept this.

“These are the rules.” Yin Su Shuang said with a severe face, “I can let you guys become even more lowly. If you don’t want to clean up the dog feces on the sidewalk, shut up and do what I say!”

Conglong and Morris muttered unhappily, and could only swallow the words they wanted to say.

Byriel was completely uncaring, because their female classmates were already quarreling on who to help him complete the task.

“Furthermore, Dongya.”

“Yes.” Dongya replied respectfully, “I have already arranged the cabinet, and I have also cleaned your seat.”

“I know.” Yin Su Shuang spoke a little helplessly, “Do not use bleach to wash my mug…”

“Oh, I thought it would be a little cleaner like this.”

“You almost caused me to wash my intestines. The point is, do not touch my personal belongings!”

“Oh, alright.” Dongya nodded regretfully.

“Also, Simo.”

Simo was called out, and she glanced at Yin Su Shuang anxiously like a deer caught in headlights, terrified and frenetic.

Yin Su Shuang held his forehead, giving out a long sigh, “…You cannot simply break through our internet website filters…”

Simo trembled slightly.

She gathered her courage, using all her best to protest using a faint voice, “But… that will… cause a lot of websites to…”

“No.” Yin Su Shuang overruled her coldly, “Do not make me receive another notice from the information center…”

Simo sucked in a breath, hands covering her mouth, looking disbelieving and about to weep.

In other classes, the teachers would directly call the demons out to answer questions and press for homework. The demons were incredibly unaccustomed to this, but could only obediently obey.

As for Feng Ping Lan, ever since finding out the Shadow Academy’s existence, he couldn’t help but try to guess during class: were the teachers before his eyes demons or Summoners? What did they look like in battle state?

When class was over, Su Li Wan came over to Feng Ping Lan’s side with a file in hand.

“Ping Lan, have you completed your maths homework? I’m not too sure about a few questions, can I refer to your answers?”

“Ah, I forgot to do it!” Feng Ping Lan slapped his face, “Thanks for reminding me!” He hurriedly pulled out a few wrinkled papers from the drawer under his desk.

“Then I’ll come to find you next period.”

“It’ll be done soon, I’ll bring it to you then.”

After Su Li Wan left, Bai Li Rui immediately turned around to question, “Since when were you so friendly with Su Li Wan?”

“We’re all classmates, nothing too friendly or not friendly with us.” Feng Ping Lan lowered his head to write as he replied.

“Why does she call you Ping Lan?”

“Because my name is Feng Ping Lan.”

“Why does she call you by your given name? Since when did you guys make so much headway!”

“You can also call me by my given name. Or you can call me Xiao Feng, Xiao Ping, Xiao Lan or Xiao Ping Lan.”

“It’s too weird for two guys to call each other by nicknames.” Bai Li Rui wrinkled his forehead, “Then why does she ask you for homework and not me? I’m wearing glasses, I should look more intelligent from our appearance!”

“You look more like Jasmine’s useless husband, that guy doesn’t look very smart to me.” Conglong rebuked, “Also, this guy’s ranked first among the Spec Ad students.”

“You look like the blue little imp on the website filter’s webpage! Also, who do you say is ranked first?”

Conglong pointed at Feng Ping Lan.

Bai Li Rui laughed lightly, “You have quite the sense of humor. How can this naive and simple guy be a Spec Ad student? He probably can’t even beat the dead last among them—”

“Phew, I’m done.” Feng Ping Lan released a breath.

“You guessed the answers, am I correct?” Bai Li Rui picked up Feng Ping Lan’s answer sheet.

The answers and workings were impeccably perfect. Feng Ping Lan had even worked out some questions that he didn’t know the answers to.

Bai Li Rui was silent for a few seconds, before handing the worksheets back to Feng Ping Lan.

“Using a natural appearance to make the girls lower down their guard, then creating a bridge with your knowledge to capture your target effortlessly.” Bai Li Rui pushed his glasses up, gazing at Feng Ping Lan in respect, “I never thought you were such an experienced love hunter. I’ve underestimated you!”

“I’ve only ever hunted for rare items.” Feng Ping Lan took his answer sheet, walking towards Su Li Wan’s seat.

“Thank you!” Su Li Wan accepted the answer sheet, then after glancing around for a while, she lowered her voice to ask, “The weapons for martial arts class, have you prepared them yet?”

“Not yet, I was planning on going to the marketplace to buy them after school finishes.”

“The marketplace?” Su Li Wan was astonished.

Thinking about it carefully, they didn’t have any means of acquiring them. A normal person would be hard-pressed to acquire bladed weapons and the like.

“Can I accompany you there? Perhaps I could be of some help…”

“Of course you can! Thank you!”

Feng Ping Lan was about to return to his seat, but noticed the mirror on Su Li Wan’s desk. “Um… is Zhong Xian present?”

Su Li Wan nodded her head, her gaze moving towards the mirror.

Feng Ping Lan bent forwards curiously, leaning his head in.

The mirror reflected the state of the classroom, looking no different from a regular mirror.

“Where?”

Su Li Wan pointed at the corner of the classroom.

At the windows facing the corridors, what was shown wasn’t the walkway but the inverted image of the classroom. The inverted image of the classroom was empty, with only a figure with a long braid sitting languidly on one of the seats reading an antiquarian book.

That little figure only took up a little surface of the narrow mirror. In order to follow that small figure, Su Li Wan was always staring at that mirror.

Feng Ping Lan raised his head, “Does he know that you’re looking at him?”

“He probably doesn’t…” Su Li Wan forced a smile, “If he knew, Zhong Xian would definitely hide and not let me see him.”

“Is he always this haughty?”

Su Li Wan shook her head, “He wasn’t like this when he was my father’s Contract. It’s probably because I’m too weak, and he doesn’t want to obey such a weak master.”

“He prefers uncle but chooses you to become his Summoner. What an awkward guy.”

“He did not choose me.” Su Li Wan smiled bitterly, “It’s because my father passed away that he had to be handed down to me. Once the previous contractor has passed away, the Contract will be passed down to the next generation. Both sides cannot refuse.”

For a Summoner like her that had had her Contract passed down, no matter if it was herself or her Contract, both sides did not have the right to refuse. Her fate had been decided for her the moment she had been born, and there was only one path for her to walk on.

Feng Ping Lan did not know what to say, and the ringing bell thawed some of the awkwardness.

“See you after school.” Su Li Wan smiled as she spoke.

“Mmmm! Alright!” Feng Ping Lan answered energetically, as if this would easily shake away that faint frustration present in his heart.

*

After school was over, Feng Ping Lan and Dongya boarded the bus to head to the marketplace, and the others had gone straight to the Shadow Academy instead. Su Li Wan had used another route to go there, so that Bai Li Rui wouldn’t try to join in if he saw them together.

Classes for Shadow Academy started at six thirty, and they had half an hour to use their time.

Once they reached the marketplace, Dongya and Feng Ping Lan parted ways. One was to go to the basic necessities section to stock up on cleaning supplies. The detergents, washing powder and dust filter paper were used up pretty often due to Dongya’s diligent housekeeping.

The other headed towards the kitchen implements section.

“Some kitchen knives are light and sharp, and are pretty effective as weapons.” Su Li Wan stood under the harsh lights where the knives were displayed, handing a sharp blade to Feng Ping Lan, “For example this knife used for slicing fish, you can slice your enemy’s flesh like a piece of meat.”

Feng Ping Lan received the blade, and the image of flesh being sliced off piece by piece appeared in his mind. He swallowed, “I think we should choose something else.”

“A watermelon knife’s a pretty good choice.”

“A watermelon knife feels really vulgar!” He selected an expansive cleaver, “How about this? It’s even advertised as antibacterial.”

“Kitchen blades used for cutting and scraping have short handles, and their edges are short as well. They’re not very suitable as actual weapons.”

“Is that so.” Feng Ping Lan nodded his head, walking forwards a few steps. His eyes lit up, and picked up a frying pan, “How about this? There are even colored designs on them!”

“It might be suitable as a shield, but turning it into a weapon isn’t very feasible.”

“What about that? That electronic blender has three different revolutions per minute, it looks really threatening! And there’s even a Hello Kitty design on it!” Feng Ping Lan held the test sample up, pressing the on button. The mixer at the front of the machine started spinning rapidly.

“How do you plan to attack your enemy?”

“I was thinking that it could effectively tangle my enemy’s hair— ah! It’s the machine that creates shaved ice!” Feng Ping Lan put down the blender, rushing towards the machine. “I want this!”

“Can this really become a weapon?” Su Li Wan asked helplessly.

“I can place poison in the ice. Then as long as it drips into condensed milk, I’m certain that nobody will be able to avoid such a fatal temptation!”

Su Li Wan smiled slightly, “You won’t be able to use it when winter comes, though.”

“You have a point. For winter, we’ll need something to boil…”

“Let’s go to another section to have a look!” Taking advantage of Feng Ping Lan’s attention not getting caught up by something else yet, Su Li Wan hurriedly suggested, “The hardware section should have plenty of choices.”

When they arrived at the hardware section, they unexpectedly bumped into a familiar face.

A ponytailed figure stood by the adhesive corner, her gaze fixed on the various hammers placed on the racks next to it.

“Class Rep! Class Rep!” Feng Ping Lan yelled as he sprinted towards her.

Liu Yi Chen heard the shout, turning her head, and distinct irritation flashed in her eyes as she saw Feng Ping Lan. When she saw Su Li Wan behind him as well, she was slightly astonished.

“Class Rep, you came to shop as well!”

Liu Yi Chen couldn’t avoid conversing, and could only reply, “The kennel’s broken, I came here to fix it.”

“You keep pets?”

“My family opens a pet shop.” She replied curtly, not wanting to create too much interaction.

“Wow! That’s really amazing!” Feng Ping Lan paused for a while, “Does Yerde live in a kennel?”

Liu Yi Chen sneered, “I wish.”

“So Summoners can do other stuff too? I thought that they only exorcised demons or had jobs relating to spells and whatnot.”

“My mom’s a Summoner, but my dad’s a normal human. He was the one who opened the shop.” Liu Yi Chen replied coldly, then cast a side-glance at the empty-handed Feng Ping Lan, “What are you here for?”

“We’re here to buy weapons for tonight’s classes. Li Wan’s accompanying me.”

Liu Yi Chen’s gaze swept towards Su Li Wan, who gave a courteous smile in return.

Liu Yi Chen wrinkled her brow slightly at that proper and dignified action.

She turned and continued gazing at the tools on the rack.

“If it’s convenient, would it be possible for Student Liu to suggest a few suitable tools for Ping Lan to use?” Su Li Wan asked politely in a gentle tone, “Student Liu has an outstanding performance in either day school or the Shadow Academy. Your recommendation will most certainly be helpful.”

“He doesn’t have a foundation in martial arts, so it’s probably best for him to choose a weapon with a strong offensive power.” Liu Yi Chen spoke indifferently without thinking.

“How about this?” Feng Ping Lan picked up a Swiss knife, “It has twenty different functions!”

“But not a single one of them will save your life on the battlefield.” Liu Yi Chen turned her head, “Why don’t you look around the kitchen section, wouldn’t choosing a knife be more simple and saves the trouble?”

“We came from there.” Su Li Wan explained, forcing a smile, “Ping Lan doesn’t seem to prefer using knives.”

Liu Yi Chen furrowed her eyebrows, “Why?”

“I feel like using knives to cut down people would really hurt.” Feng Ping Lan explained seriously.

He had previously cut himself to help Quetzal, and although it had healed entirely, his palm would throb every time he thought about it.

“That is to protect yourself.” Liu Yi Chen crossed her arms, asking dubiously, “Or are you like those humanistic hypocrites, who think that harming another for self-defense is a cruel thing to do? Are you someone who doesn’t want to stain your hands with blood, sending your Contracts to do your dirty work, then fancying yourself a good person to set your mind at ease? What do you think Summoners are? This isn’t a profession that you can play around with.”

“Don’t be so harsh, Ping Lan isn’t very clear on Summoners yet…” Su Li Wan tried to excuse Feng Ping Lan tactfully, but deep in her heart, there was a trace of acknowledgment for Liu Yi Chen’s words.

Feng Ping Lan was always smiling and joking around with every single thing. He was just an outsider that didn’t know anything, yet could not feel the slightest bit of nervousness or caution, that it made her feel, like they were being looked down upon…

“Oh oh, it’s not like that at all!” Facing the class rep’s aggressive behavior, Feng Ping Lan smiled to deny, “It’s a little embarrassing to admit it, but I don’t really like the feeling of blades slicing through a person’s flesh, hehehe.”

He wasn’t as good and honest as Liu Yi Chen said he was. When using a blade to forcefully cut down your opponent, the feel the sharp blade break through the skin, the feel of it jabbing into the flesh, would travel through the blade and transfer onto the hand gripping it.

That would make him mentally associate it with the feel of being cut himself, as if he could feel the pain as well.

“That kind of feeling will really cause me goosebumps.” Feng Ping Lan frowned, “For example, the sound of nails scraping on a blackboard – even if you’re not using your own nails to scrape, it’ll really make you feel uncomfortable!”

This explanation unexpectedly gave rise to Liu Yi Chen and Su Li Wan’s resonance.

“I don’t like the wounds created by blades either.” Su Li Wan was in favor of this, whispering, “…Using fine thread to bind and coil, that kind of feeling that’s tight and squeezes your opponent is really the best feeling ever…”

“Using a sword to pierce your enemy is too weak-willed.” Liu Yi Chen lowered her voice, “It’s definitely not explosive enough to have a shocking effect.”

Su Li Wan and Liu Yi Chen paused, glancing at each other.

Feng Ping Lan did not notice the exchange between both of them, his attention caught by something else.

“Wow! A nail gun!” Feng Ping Lan raised the staple gun excitedly, “So cool! It can shoot consecutively! It’s too awesome!”

Liu Yi Chen glanced at the staple gun in Feng Ping Lan’s hands, “You have quite a good eye. But it’s pneumatic, so it can only be used with an air compressor.”

“I see…” Feng Ping Lan put the nail gun back onto the rack with great pity.

“Ones that are manually-operated or battery-charged would be more convenient, but will be less formidable in a fight.”

“Is there anything that’s powerful and can be carried around at all times?”

“There is. Gunpowder-based nail guns are stronger than pneumatic ones, and it can fix onto concrete and steel plates. Ones that are modified can be used like any other actual gun.” Liu Yi Chen muttered, “The feeling of steel nails piercing through hard boards is extremely powerful. But the sturdiest one is definitely still a hammer, the thick feeling of it cracking down, as if your own soul is crying out at the same time…”

“Class Rep, there aren’t any gunpowder-based nail guns here.”

Liu Yi Chen snapped out of it, “Those kinds of nail guns are comparably expensive, so you’ll need to inquire the store workers for stock. If you want to use a nail gun, choose one that’s battery-powered. It’ll have a much more formidable power than manually operated ones. Remember to tear off the safety before using it, or else you won’t be able to immediately fire.”

“Class Rep really knows a lot of stuff!” Feng Ping Lan said with reverence, “What can I do to become as great as Class Rep?”

“You must first have a useless and troublemaking family member with you.” Liu Yi Chen’s tone was slightly helpless.

“Is that so.” Feng Ping Lan grabbed his head, “Then this won’t be much use to me, since I’m the troublemaking one of my family, hahahahaha!”

“I can see that…”

“But this is counted as machinery. I wonder if this follows the regulations?” Su Li Wan asked apprehensively.

“He’s so weak anyways, might as well find a way for him to survive before talking about the rules. There’s a pair match-up in the sparring session today, Kaido will definitely take this chance to challenge him. Facing that kind of opponent, we should prepare to the fullest.”

“I’ll go take a look at other places!” Feng Ping Lan pushed his own cart to circle around the metal hardware section.

Su Li Wan and Liu Yi Chen stood there, not walking, nor were they talking. The two who did not have anything in common entered a bout of awkward silence.

Liu Yi Chen cast a sideways glance at Su Li Wan, who returned a smile. Liu Yi Chen turned her head away, and continued to pick out her purchases. Su Li Wan did not mind, quietly standing there, waiting for Feng Ping Lan to come back in a dignified stance.

Liu Yi Chen placed her things in her cart, and her gaze subconsciously moved towards where Su Li Wan stood.

Su Li Wan stood by the racks, looking quietly at the things on it, arms folded before her. Finely thin raven hair hung behind her head, the striking red string curling around the slender braid, a fringe neatly covering her forehead, not a single hair out of place.

As exquisite as a doll, begging to be pampered.

Her mother was just this kind of woman, gentle and dainty, quiet and dignified. It was what Yerde had always hoped she would be.

It was what she would never be able to be.

Su Li Wan met her gaze at that exact moment.

Liu Yi Chen knitted her eyebrows, meeting her eyes head on, not meaning to shrink away from that gaze. Then, Su Li Wan smiled subtly.

“What are you smiling at?”

“I originally thought that Class Rep was the type of cold person that followed the rules to the letter, but you patiently gave him your opinions earlier.” Su Li Wan gestured politely, “I apologize for the misunderstanding.”

“No need.” Liu Yi Chen turned her head, stating coldly, “I’m doing this for myself. If he continues performing badly, it’ll affect the whole class. I’ll be the one responsible for guiding him in the end anyway.”

“You are very conscientious. This is a really extraordinary attribute to have.” Su Li Wan looked at the side of Liu Yi Chen’s face, realizing that the ponytail at the back of her neck had loosened had gone askew, then raising a hand to pull the tottering hairband down.

“What are you doing?” Liu Yi Chen turned her head to reprimand.

“It’s going to fall.” Su Li Wan gave the hairband to Liu Yi Chen, pulling out a comb from her bag, “Here.”

Liu Yi Chen hesitated for a moment, taking it to comb for a while, then using the hairband to bind the hair up messily. She handed the sharp-ended black comb back to Su Li Wan.

“I’ll give this to you.”

Liu Yi Chen knitted her eyebrows, “No need.”

“Keep it, I have many more.” Su Li Wan smiled.

Liu Yi Chen stared at her for a moment, and although she didn’t really want to accept it, she couldn’t find a reason to decline, so she kept the comb away in her pocket. She did not say thanks, because this wasn’t something she wanted, but Su Li Wan did not mind, smiling gracefully as usual.

“I’m done!” Feng Ping Lan pushed his cart, a foot on it and another pushing it forwards, rumbling as he appeared. “Let’s go meet up with Dongya at the cashier!”

Su Li Wan and Liu Yi Chen lowered their gazes to look at the things in the cart, then raising their heads doubtfully.

“Are you sure you want these?”

“Other than the nail gun… you want to bring the others to martial arts class?”

“That’s right that’s right! These only suit me after looking around.” Feng Ping Lan said in satisfaction.

Liu Yi Chen looked at Feng Ping Lan, sighing helplessly, “You better shape up.”

*

At 6:25 in the evening, the school compound lit by the sunset was completely silent.

The school regulations were written as stated: all students were to leave the school compound within half an hour, and the classrooms were not open for self-study. Exam candidates that wanted to study had to move to the library’s reading room. As for group studies and discussions, they had to move towards the multimedia building situated quite a distance from the school building, and book an empty room there.

Feng Ping Lan hadn’t paid much attention to this special rule at first, and had originally thought that the school had done this out of worry in case anything happened to students who stayed behind after school, but thinking about it now, they must have done this to coordinate with the Shadow Academy’s classes.

Tonight’s Shadow Academy classes, were slightly different from the night before.

The first period was set for a class named ‘the development and coordination of multi societies’.

He had thought that it was a class focused on career-planning and whatnot, but the lessons were actually teaching them how to create fake identities, credentials, certificates. It included not only certificates for domestic areas but also ones for overseas too.

The teacher introduced them the basic knowledge of various industries, special terminologies, the language of the trade, as well as notable individuals, sectors and organizations. She also explained how the phone, email, internet community operated many personas to extreme realism.

Of course, there were also the lessons on drag and make-up.

“There are always serial numbers on international certificates. There are also student profiles in various agencies, so it’ll be more secure to directly acquire certificates for your false identity. However, it is usually difficult to implement this, so most will disguise as those bearing certificates instead, duplicating a copy of that person’s certificate. Doing so will thus simplify matters and avoid inspection, but you will need to familiarize yourself with the profiles of the person you are disguised as. The first option would be useful for a long-term double identity, and the latter option is usually used for a short-term mission. No matter which option, you will need to understand the basic knowledge of the certificates and credentials. You cannot possess the graduation certificate of a culinary academy, yet have not picked up a single cooking knife in your life..

“…There are at least two needed phone numbers that you have to carry with you. Do not apply for phone numbers in the same region, nor use Dual-SIM Standby. If it falls into the hands of your enemy, this will equal to standing stark naked in public. You’ll be unable to cover your own tracks. This goes for the website community as well – it is best if you open one or two accounts and add as mutual friends, clocking in and out of your accounts, sometimes posting a few nonsensical discussion threads or food pics to increase the sense of reality. Posting erotic photos will attract more insignificant friends, but if this inadvertently attracts the media, it will force you to be in a predicament of having public exposure…

“…It’s best for you to choose a hairstyle and color that is much different than how you actually look. This goes for your features as well – makeup can transform you into a completely different person of a completely different nationality. The more differences, the better.”

Feng Ping Lan was stupefied as he listened, even forgetting to jot all that down.

“Is this class meant to teach us how to swindle?” He questioned Su Li Wan sitting next to him in a low voice, “Could it be that those kind of phone calls with children crying and then threatening ‘your child is in my hands’ or ‘the goods that you have bought were accidentally switched to being paid in installments’ created by Summoners?”

“It’s not like that.” Su Li Wan explained with a forced smile, “Due to the basic requirements of a mission, Summoners will usually have two or three fake identities. Other than disguises for a short-term mission, there are double identities for a longer term.”

“Why do you need to do this?”

“For self-preservation. Dead men will always lower one’s guard. The more realistic your false identity is, the more you act like another person, the more it will save you at the most critical moment.”

“I see, then why don’t you use a spell to do it?”

The teacher glanced at Feng Ping Lan’s spot, and the two of them obediently shut their mouths.

“Are there any questions?”

“I have!” Feng Ping Lan raised his hand, “Um, why can’t we use concealment spells or hypnosis like the demons do?”

The bob-haired teacher with red-rimmed glasses looked at Feng Ping Lan, pursing her lips, “Spells can be used for temporary disguises, but it cannot be used for double identities. As long as there are spells present, there is always the risk of it being undone.”

“But wasn’t it mentioned yesterday that demons cannot undo a human’s spell?”

The other students started whispering and sneering, looking very disapproving of Feng Ping Lan’s words.

“Moron…”

“How can he not know such a basic thing…”

The teacher humphed exasperatedly, “The ones we have to deal with aren’t just extended toward the human world, nor the demons threatening the human world. There is another larger part of the threat that comes from our companions that have walked down a diverging path. Besides—” Her gaze swept across all of the students sitting before her, “The ones sitting among you may work for different people, and may become your own enemies in the future.”

The atmosphere in the room instantly became strained.

“Do you understand now?”

Feng Ping Lan nodded.

As the teacher turned to write on the blackboard, Feng Ping Lan couldn’t help but turn towards Su Li Wan to question.

“What does companions that have walked down a diverging path mean? Summoners that do drugs?”

“No. Those are ‘Opposers’, the Summoners that have separated from the Association’s jurisdiction.”

“Must we enter the Association? We’ll get arrested if we don’t enter? Why does this feel like a pyramid scheme…”

“It’s not the problem of entering or not entering. All Summoners must register with the Association and agree to the regulations set by them. This is to ensure the whole world’s order. To possess extraordinary powers and not be restricted by anything, this is incredibly dangerous and dreadful.”

“Hilarious, who knows if all Summoners will follow those regulations or not.” Morris sitting behind them heard this, sneering.

“It’s true that every rule-breaker will receive punishment, but before they are proven guilty, every Summoner of the Association will be protected.”

“I see…” Feng Ping Lan nodded his head repeatedly.

Conglong, who sat at the back did not say anything, but his expression was a little complicated.

This was their reason for entering the Shadow Academy…

Receiving approval from the higher-ups to be counted as their own, and as their own people they wouldn’t quarrel amongst themselves. On one hand they would have one less enemy, and on another hand they would get some level of a reinforcement.

Even if the price they paid was part of their freedom.

He felt a bit of resentment and remorse for himself who had lost self-control yesterday night.

Hearing the chatter, the teacher turned back once again. Sweeping a gaze across Feng Ping Lan’s gaze, her tone was a little unpleasant, “Are there any more questions?”

“I have.” Feng Ping Lan raised his hand, “Teacher, is your current identity a fake one?”

The teacher’s lips curved into a ruminating smile, “…Do you think that I am stupid enough to tell you?”

The bell rang. The students dispersed out, departing for the next class.

This was when Feng Ping Lan suddenly realized, that their teacher had not introduced herself. No one knew her name nor her identity.

How mysterious indeed.

*

Second period was spell-casting, and as usual, Summoners and Contracts were separated.

Having experienced the night before, Conglong and Simo both brought laptops. Conglong had originally wanted to play online games, but there was no wireless internet in the classroom, so he could only open up the offline apps to play Minesweeper depressingly.

Simo took out a rented movie, putting on earphones and bundling herself up in a corner of the classroom to watch it happily.

Dongya put a notebook down on the desk, a calculator placed on the side as he settled the bills spent today, his long fingers rapidly pressing down on the buttons. But as the bill calculations went on, the fingers pressing them gradually slowed, gradually getting heavier.

Morris propped his head up, staring into blank space.

Quetzal stood in the same spot, eyes closed, quietly waiting for time to pass.

Byriel had his legs placed on his desk, one hand holding a lollipop, the other hand scrolling through his phone.

“Hey, what are you looking at?” Ivan once again approached him on his own accord, sitting beside Byriel, gazing curiously down at the phone.

“At the messages people sent me.” Byriel did not avoid him either, letting him approach.

“Your friend? Is it a demon? Woah, that makeup’s really thick.”

“Human, met her in a nightclub a few days ago.”

“Wow wow wow!” Ivan clapped both his hands over his mouth, revealing an over-exaggerated surprised expression, “How could you go to such an unhealthy place? We are still students!”

Byriel licked his lollipop, smiling lightly, “With the ages of both you and I, we could get a senior citizens’ discount to wherever we go, hehehe…”

The finger scrolling down paused for a moment. That handsome face stared at the screen for a moment, shaking his head as he smiled.

Ivan moved his head closer, “Ah, breasts!” Although it was a shocked cry, he didn’t seem like he was going to turn away anytime soon, his eyes staring directly at the screen. “I never thought you were like those inferior humans, the ones who like taking photos of these.”

“I didn’t take these, it was that woman I met last night.” What was she called again? Nevermind, he had already forgotten. “She said she had a tattoo in a special place, wanted to let me see it.” Byriel deleted it in passing, “In the end it wasn’t really special at all. I thought it would be in her esophagus. Now that would be interesting, hehehe…”

“Why do you want to go to that kind of place? Do you like alcohol?”

“No, because it’s interesting.” Byriel put away his phone, “It’s depressing, yet so lively; they scheme against each other, yet they yearn for trust; they gather in such a congested gathering, yet they exude such a solitary and estranged aura. I have never seen such a self-contradictory place.”

He paused for a moment, “Oh, also, hugging human women is also quite comfortable, and that place just has plenty of women who are willing to throw themselves at me, hehehe…”

The ones surrounding him heard this, the same thought resounding in their hearts at the same time.

What a nasty guy…

“One minute left.” Byriel put his leg down, “Did you come to challenge me?”

“I’m not your master, I’m not as stupid as him.” Ivan wrinkled his nose, saying innocently, “Before this, I challenged many people to gain points, and even beat them up really badly…”

“So?”

“So they seem to have teamed up today, to settle things with me.”

Byriel sighed exasperatedly, “You bastard…” He had already guessed his intent.

Ring!

The bell rang, and the area suddenly expanded, the walls vanishing.

The demons surrounding them swiftly flitted over to where they were, about eight types of weapons and ten spells shooting towards Ivan and Byriel like a meteor.

Byriel flung his whip lightly, creating a protective shield.

“Looks like they’ve now considered us part of a team.” Ivan pretended to be distressed as he said this, the blades in his hands nimbly chopping down two of the demons’ hands.

“Isn’t this what you intended from the start?” Byriel waved his hand, hundreds of needles shooting out to pierce his opponents.

“Seems like it.”

Byriel laughed lightly, looking disapproving of being used by someone, “I will retaliate, you know.” He warned with a smile.

Ivan returned another innocent smile, “You will need to find a chance to retaliate first.”

He turned his head to survey the demons that Byriel had injured, “Although, you seem to have gathered quite a lot of enemies. It’ll be a little troubling to get revenge in tomorrow’s battle.”

Byriel gave a resplendent smile, “You think too naively.” He then continued to cut down the enemies rushing forth, not saying anymore.

With the experience they had yesterday, no one dared to challenge Quetzal. His haughty figure stood silently by the wall, but his defenses did not let up even once.

When the bell rang, Simo had reached a critical point in her movie, and did not want to pause watching at all. She reached out to the fork necklace on her neck instead to return it to its original size, raising a hand to bang heavily behind her, and the halberd sounded a cry to create a circular shape, shielding her surroundings. Then, she continued to smoothly watch her movie.

The demons that tried attacking her were blasted far away as soon as they touched the sound barrier.

Conglong had stepped on quite a number of mines and was not in a good mood, proceeding to vent his anger on the demons challenging him.

Dongya didn’t have many people challenging him originally, but his movements weren’t very fluent tonight, his attacks and defenses a very obvious step back from the night before. The opponents by the side made use of this chance, jumping into the battle in groups to attack Dongya.

The tattoo on Dongya’s left hand lit up, embedded like a sharp blade on his arm. The tattoo transformed in the wake of his attacks, sometimes changing into a thorn, sometimes turning into a hook, sometimes a sword.

Although his attacks were handy and agile, he still did not use his right hand.

A demon caught hold of Dongya’s blind spot by his right side when he attacked, stabbing through his side.

Oh no!

Dongya was too late to avoid it, about to clench his teeth to receive this attack, but the sword was intercepted by a purple light on its way.

Dongya turned, only to see Tan Hua standing by his side.

Seeing that Dongya had a companion, and that it was Tan Hua, the group of demons knew that they were outmatched, retreating one by one.

“Thanks.”

“This isn’t the ability that you should have…”

“I just did a little experiment, that’s all.” Dongya smiled, waving a hand, the tattoo curling back onto his arm.

Tan Hua looked at the Dongya’s right hand covered by his sleeve, muttering, “Do not struggle meaninglessly.”

“I was just simply curious.”

“Even if you struggle to be free of the Association’s clutches, you will not be able to escape the contract between a Summoner.” Tan Hua sighed lightly, “To have such an incompetent master, it must be exhausting.”

“Ping Lan is great. Our relationship is different from others.” Dongya smiled as he spoke, “On the contrary, to have a master like that, it must be even more exhausting for you.”

“Kaido is not as bad as he looks on the outside, that is the manner he acts to protect himself.” Tan Hua lidded her eyes, pausing for a moment before speaking, “I heard that the conflict for the throne has commenced for quite a time now… Prince Sialei, how is he?”

“He was killed in battle not long after the conflict started.” Dongya did not mention that Tan Hua’s disappearance was one of the main reasons for the Second Prince’s swift defeat.

“Is that so…” Tan Hua was silent for a moment, “Then, is Prince Shuekan also…?”

“He is not dead yet. We are just residing temporarily in the human world. When the time is right, we will return to make a comeback.” Dongya looked at Tan Hua, slightly hesitant as he asked, “Do you want to come back with us?”

“No.” Tan Hua lowered her head, “There is nothing left for me in that place.”

“Is there something for you here?”

“Possibly…”

Morris traveled back and forth through the arena, trying to find Zhong Xian to compete against him. Although nobody dared to attack him, it was too crowded in the area, causing him to be caught in random battles for some reason. After catching sight of Zhong Xian with great difficulty, the bell to signal the end of the battles rung.

“Damn it!” Morris growled unhappily.

Tan Hua nodded at Dongya slightly, before turning to proceed toward Kaido’s side.

*

Martial arts class.

Carrying a long strip-sized bag on his back, Feng Ping Lan had a look of eagerness on his face.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” Conglong looked at Feng Ping Lan, asking a bit concernedly.

“Don’t worry don’t worry, I’ve found a super amazing weapon, it’s absolutely fine!”

“That troublesome guy keeps on glaring at you.” Morris used his chin to point at the Kaido staring daggers from a distance, “Did you go provoke him again?”

“Nope.” Feng Ping Lan turned his head to see Kaido, waving at him happily.

Kaido extended his forefinger, tracing across his throat, a threatening aura exuding out of him to the max.

Feng Ping Lan also extended his forefinger, touching his lips. He then blew a kiss over to him.

Kaido glared, a huge vein appearing on his forehead.

“Kaido seems to be in a bit of a bad mood.” Feng Ping Lan tilted his head to think a little, “A lack of calcium? Conglong, share some of your milk with him.”

“No way!”

Yerde walked over to the podium to announce, “Noblemen, such is learning through int’raction, such is carving and refining our w’rk. The exchanges between pe’rs shalt beest beneficial f’r thy growth. Bef’re we starteth, th’re shall beest a five-minute sparring session.”

Liu Yi Chen gripped her sword, and Su Li Wan pulled the red string attached to her hair. The both of them did not move yet, just standing near Feng Ping Lan to observe the situation that was bound to happen.

As expected, Kaido walked over as soon as Yerde announced the battle to start, blade in his hands, pointing the tip of it at Feng Ping Lan, “Contracts won’t be able to help you this time. Let’s make a bet to compete with our own ability.”

Feng Ping Lan flung the long bag onto the ground, “Humph humph, betting two grains is enough for me! Huah!” He pulled open the bag, taking out his own weapon.

Kaido raised his sword a little higher guardedly, but as he saw the stuff in the bag he stared blankly for a while, “What’s that?”

“A retractable clothes clipper made of stainless steel!”

As Feng Ping Lan said this, he twisted the red retractable ring at the center of the rod, the metal stick extending in length slowly, “It can extend up to two meters! The prongs can increase its thickness and width, and multiplies by weight! There is a knob where you grip it – putting light pressure on the knob will easily clip clothes in high areas!” Stopping at this point, he pressed the knob twice, and the Y-shaped prongs clipped the air at the same time.

“It’s also exchanged for sales points. Doesn’t even cost a single cent.” Dongya added.

“Come!” Feng Ping Lan waved the long rod a few times. He was originally going to dashingly wield it like a short spear, but his movements weren’t very fluent, almost hitting his own head.

Kaido’s vein popped, “Do you think that this is funny?”

“Don’t look down on it, hey, look at this.” Feng Ping Lan grasped the long rod, waving it towards Kaido.

Kaido raised his blade, blocking the metal rod before him.

“You are just as ridiculous and lamentable as your weapon.”

“Oh, is it?” Feng Ping Lan pressed the knob, the prongs at the end moving, clipping Kaido’s nose by chance. “I’ve stolen your little nose!”

Kaido exploded in anger, slapping the rod away and waving his blade around, not giving Feng Ping Lan the time to breathe, the edge of the knife chasing rapidly towards his opponent.

“Die! Useless trash!”

Feng Ping Lan hurriedly gripped the long rod with both hands, shielding himself with great difficulty to avoid the blade cutting into him.

Kaido attacked repeatedly without stopping, making Feng Ping Lan back quite a few steps away, blocking as he fled.

“He’s stronger than you by a hundred times, just put your all into the fight, don’t waste your time doubting yourself!” Liu Yi Chen reminded from the side.

Byriel looked at Liu Yi Chen, smiling lightly, “So that’s your type…”

Liu Yi Chen rolled her eyes at Byriel, not giving an explanation.

“Since Class Rep has said that…” Feng Ping Lan halted his footsteps, a hand reaching behind, abruptly raising something before him, “Hey! Eat this!”

A wave of short blasts rang out, a chain of five silver fine and long objects shooting at Kaido.

Kaido leaped back, waving his sword to hit the sudden concealed weapon off its tracks.

Ding! Ding!

The crisp sound sounded out once again. Kaido focused his eyes on it, realizing that a few nails were rolling around the floor.

“Nails?” He glanced at Feng Ping Lan, only to realize the there was a nail gun in his hands.

“I’m not done yet!” Feng Ping Lan wedged the clothes clipper using an elbow, the free hand swiftly extending to the back to grab a black handgun.

Kaido widened his eyes, “You’re using a gun as your weapon?!”

“Scared now?” Feng Ping Lan smiled in satisfaction.

“This is against the rules!” Kaido warned coldly, “If you dare shoot, you’ll find yourself in some annoying trouble…”

“No matter how annoying it won’t be as annoying as you.” Conglong rebuked from the side.

“Oh, a certain someone’s starting to mention the rules now.” Feng Ping Lan’s thumb braced the trigger, twisting his face into a smile that he thought was cool, “Repent in the depths of hell!” With that, he pulled the trigger with all his might.

Kaido did not expect Feng Ping Lan to really pull the trigger, frantically turning to avoid it, but it was too late.

He felt something hit the abdomen area of his clothes. He couldn’t help but make a low sound, a hand covering his stomach, bending on one knee.

“Uh!”

However, the expected pain did not appear, and instead an icy-cold and wet feeling seeped through his clothes and traveled up to his heart. Then, there was the faint smell of strawberry.

Kaido lowered his head in confusion, just to see his pristine white clothes stained with a huge pink smear, not a trace of an injury on his body.

“Hahahahaha, it’s filled with juice inside! How could I possibly place real bullets in it!” Feng Ping Lan pointed the gun at himself and pulled the trigger, shooting the pink juice into his mouth, “Mm, delicious.”

Snickers rang out from all around; the students that had been secretly watching couldn’t help but laugh, and even Liu Yi Chen gave a smile.

Kaido had never experienced such ridicule.

Resentment, humiliation, rage, burnt like a wildfire in his heart. He gritted his teeth, vowing word by word, “I will kill you…”

“Do we really have to fight each other?” Feng Ping Lan put down the water gun, breaking into a smile, “Relax, let’s be friends.”

Kaido did not speak, lunging at Feng Ping Lan’s throat as his answer.

The crowd surrounding them were shocked by Kaido’s attack that was enough to kill, sucking in a breath.

But Kaido’s blade, just half-a-meter distance from Feng Ping Lan, was blocked by a sword.

It was Yerde. He glanced at Kaido blandly, but Kaido did not sheathe his sword, looking like he wasn’t intending to back down anytime soon.

“If ‘t be true thee has’t intention to square, I shalt accompany thee. ” Yerde warned.

Only then did Kaido angrily put away his sword.

Yerde turned his gaze, stopping on Feng Ping Lan’s strange and comical outfit, brow wrinkling, then turning to Liu Yi Chen standing by the side.

“The situation earlier, I anon knoweth.” Yerde’s tone carried a bit of reproach, “Xiao Liu, didst thee teachest him as such?”

Liu Yi Chen’s body quivered slightly, “I…”

“Lamentable.” Yerde shook his head, “The mast’ry of studyeth lies in diligence, yond thee neglect f’r m’re ent’rtainment. At which hour didst thy goal turneth into such a laughable clownish role?”

Liu Yi Chen hung her head, “I apologize. I will better myself.”

Seeing that Liu Yi Chen was being reprimanded, Feng Ping Lan hurriedly came in to interrupt, “Um, Class Rep helped me a lot, I think it’s very good!”

Yerde turned to cast Feng Ping Lan a sideways glance, “The lady is different than thee.” Then he spoke to both of them, “This class is not suit’d f’r both to participate, prithee moveth to the weaponry warehouse to crisp the weapons.”

“But—” Liu Yi Chen tried to explain, but was cut off.

“Ere thee can prove yond thou art not a clown, yond way is whither the both of thee belong.” Yerde moved a step to the side, a hand extended to indicate ‘please leave’ with a gesture of a hand.

Liu Yi Chen bit her lip, standing at her place, unmoving.

“Xiao Liu?”

Liu Yi Chen breathed in deeply, turning, moving towards the staircase to go down.

Feng Ping Lan went after her hurriedly. Su Li Wan and Conglong’s group tried to follow, but was stopped by Yerde.

“Others art not to interfere, enwheeling Contracts.”

Byriel shrugged his shoulders. The other demons also stayed behind, waiting for the class to end to reunite with Feng Ping Lan.

With Feng Ping Lan out of the class, they could take a breather, since they could avoid Kaido’s provocation properly.

Kaido had planned on continuing the battle with Feng Ping Lan, but due to Yerde’s intervention, he could only look on as Feng Ping Lan left the rooftops.

This wasn’t over…

He thought silently.

*

Liu Yi Chen had her head lowered all the way there, walking at a fast pace without saying a word.

“Class Rep, I’m really sorry, I didn’t think it would become like this and caused you to be punished, hahaha…” Walking behind her, Feng Ping Lan forced out a laugh.

Liu Yi Chen still did not say anything, her head down.

Feng Ping Lan grabbed his own head, “Um… Class Rep, are you crying?”

“I’m not!” Liu Yi Chen denied violently. What astonished Feng Ping Lan was, that her tone of voice was completely filled with anger, not a trace of dejectedness or sorrow on her.

“Luckily it’s nothing, because I’m out of tissues. Haha.” Feng Ping Lan rummaged around his pockets, “Oh, there’s one left, although it’s a little wrinkly…”

“Are you done?”

“Be a little happy, Class Rep, things aren’t as bad as you think.”

“Happy? You want me to be happy?” Liu Yi Chen halted her footsteps, turning around to glare angrily at Feng Ping Lan, “I’m not you!”

“Ah?”

“Why can’t you be completely stupid? You act like an idiot every day without a care in the world, but you’re actually ranked first out of all the Spec Ad students; you’re absolutely useless in spell-casting, magic ability, and martial arts, but you have six S-class demons in your arsenal. Things that people can’t even get with hard work don’t mean anythingto you at all – you ignore everything and don’t uphold any responsibilities or expectations! Do you know what an eyesore your very existence is to every Summoner apprentice?”

Liu Yi Chen clenched her teeth, muttering angrily, then casting her head to the side, humphing.

Feng Ping Lan blinked, looking a little flabbergasted. Facing this long chain of criticisms, there wasn’t a hint of anger or shame on his face. Instead he asked in concern, “Class Rep, you seem a little stressed…”

Liu Yi Chen frowned. Feng Ping Lan’s reaction made her angry at herself for losing control, so she turned around to resentfully continue forwards.

“Class Rep, are you okay?” A concerned question came from her back.

“I’m fine.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“You’re really really fine?”

“I said I’m fine—”

The person following from the back took a large step forward to block in front of her.

Feng Ping Lan stared at Liu Yi Chen’s face, smiling.

“That doesn’t look like a face that says they’re fine…” He held the wrinkled piece of tissue, moving it towards Liu Yi Chen’s face. Avoiding the glasses, he gently dabbed around her eyes.

This was when Liu Yi Chen realized, that before she knew it, there were angry tears rolling down her eyes. She frowned, slapping Feng Ping Lan’s hand away from her face.

“Are you like that bastard Bai Li Rui, who thinks he’s Romeo?”

“Me? I’m not the same as Li Rui, I don’t even like you that way.” Feng Ping Lan was still smiling, “You look all better now.”

“Humph.”

Facing that kind of smiling face, Liu Yi Chen couldn’t find it in her to get angry anymore. She could only turn her head to the side.

The two of them did not talk to each other on the rest of the way to the weaponry storehouse, quietly arranging the weapons on the racks when they arrived.

Liu Yi Chen took down the practice sword, mechanically inspecting the dust on it and rubbing maintenance oil before throwing it back onto the rack. That dazzling line-up of longswords before her held absolutely no appeal in her eyes.

“Did Class Rep originally use swords before this?” Feng Ping Lan asked curiously.

Liu Yi Chen was silent for a long while, before she answered, “No.”

“Then what did you use?”

Liu Yi Chen did not reply.

“Why did you change your choice of weapon?” Feng Ping Lan continued to ask.

It was another long silence, but there was a reply this time.

“…Yerde asked me to. He wants me to be exactly like my mother, but he isn’t satisfied no matter what I do…” The last sentence was said very quietly.

Yerde was always using her mother as her model. Her mother’s weapon was a violin, where customized strengthened string was hidden on the bow – other than playing songs, it could also slice through her enemies’ flesh; the base below the strings was inlaid with sharp steel pieces, and by dragging a few mechanisms it could pierce her opponent’s throat.

Her mother was so very gentle and elegant, that she was also as graceful and dignified during battle. Yerde respected her mother very much, so much that he wanted her to inherit her mother’s every perfection.

The weapon that she was originally using had been requested by Yerde to be switched, due to its roughness, into either a bow or a soft whip. The Western sword was the only compromise that she had been able to achieve after begging for so long.

But she did not like the Western sword at all, not even a bit!

“If he won’t be satisfied with whatever you do,” Feng Ping Lan’s words pulled Liu Yi Chen back from her thoughts, “You might as well do what you want.”

Liu Yi Chen rolled her eyes, “You say it so lightly, nobody can be as carefree as you…”

“Of course it’s said lightly. Everyone knows that actual practice is really hard to do, but the hardest part is actually coming up with the courage to put it into practice.” Feng Ping Lan said this as he wiped a blade, “Besides, getting expectations from someone is a truly wonderful thing to have.”

Because he had no expectations put on him, that he was not deemed as anything important, nothing mattered anymore in the end. The thing known as freedom, was actually just complete abandonment and unconcern.

Being entrusted expectations and receiving fetters, being forgotten and ignored yet enjoying freedom. Which lead to more happiness? Which led to more sorrow? He had already experienced one side of the story, so he was incredibly curious what the other would be like.

“Are you always this optimistic?”

“If crying or smiling would end up all the same anyways, then smiling to get through it would make it a little better. At least I won’t look as pitiful, hahahahaha.” Feng Ping Lan laughed as he turned his head, “Class Rep is really optimistic too. You still have such a positive outlook even if your mother’s gone, you’re really amazing!”

“Who says my mother is no longer here?” Liu Yi Chen frowned, “My mother’s just not well, so she transferred her Contract over to me. She simply goes overseas with my dad on holidays all the time. She’s incredibly free.” She had irresponsibly left her and Yerde to care for the shop and the house.

“Class Rep’s parents are both currently overseas?” Feng Ping Lan’s eyes lit up, looking as if he had found a companion, “My parents too! My mother’s condition is really bad, so she and my dad moved out the country three years ago. The medical facilities have better progress there, and the environment’s good for nursing too. My brother works there too, so he can be there to look after them, isn’t that amazing! My brother’s really amazing, he’s even in charge of a major company! After my parents retired, my brother was the one who single-handedly supported the whole family!”

“If every member of your family is normal, how did you inherit your Contracts?”

“Uh, um…” Oh no, he had let something slip!

Liu Yi Chen said exasperatedly, “Yerde told me that you have special circumstances and for me to be more mindful of you, in case you blurted something out. You really did live up to our expectations, huh.”

She looked at her watch. There were just a few minutes left before the period ended, so she stood up to pack her things, “You should think of a lie when you get back. Also, don’t go around telling anybody about your family history if you can, it won’t be good for you if you give out too much information. You probably shouldn’t say anything about Summoners and Shadow Academy to any outsiders, including your family. This is to protect them, as well as to protect yourself.”

“Oh oh alright! Thanks Class Rep!”

“Oh, that’s right.” Liu Yi Chen’s movements paused for a second, “If your whole family is out of the country, who’s taking care of you?”

Feng Ping Lan smiled slightly. He did not answer.