"To sing to the wine, how fleeting life is."
After walking for nearly half an hour, Felix and Ling finally reached the mountain's peak. At the summit stood a small pavilion; upon its stone table sat several flasks of wine and two empty cups waiting in the moonlight.
The night over Shangshu shimmered like a dream. Felix stepped up the stone stairs and entered the pavilion. He poured wine for both of them, lifted his cup, and drank.
"Refreshing," he sighed.
Ling smiled softly. "I rarely drink with others. You are an exception."
"Oh? And why is that?"
"One doesn't need a reason to drink," she replied, her tone calm but distant.
Her words left Felix momentarily speechless. Out of habit, he quietly checked her favorability—twenty. More than a stranger, less than a friend. No malice, no hidden agenda. That was good enough.
They drank cup after cup beneath the starlit sky. Ling's tolerance was formidable; Felix, on the other hand, began to feel his strength fade. Leaning against the armrest of the grand chair, he felt warmth spreading through his body, like being wrapped in a soft cloud.
"Rest well, young hero," Ling's voice drifted to him like a lullaby.
As his eyelids closed, he caught a fleeting glimpse of her smiling gently from across the pavilion.
Then, the dream began.
He dreamt of a dragon, an eastern dragon to be exact.
Or perhaps… something far greater than any dragon.
Its immense form writhed through clouds that raged with thunder and lightning. The sky boiled with black storm clouds, the earth trembled beneath its shadow. Could that truly be a dragon?
Felix looked down and found himself standing atop a fortress wall. Around him stood soldiers—faces grim, eyes resolute, ready to die. Their armor bore the mark of the Great Yan.
A general at the front roared commands, voice breaking with strain. The soldiers raised their weapons, trying in vain to resist the rolling storm. In an instant, the black clouds devoured them.
This wasn't war. It was a massacre.
Time blurred. Now the skies were clear again. Felix stood upon the frontier battlements, staring down at the desolate plains below, where eerie creatures cloaked in dark mist gathered.
From above, a master in a bamboo hat descended like a divine bolt, striking down two of the abominations with twin palms. The wind blew past, revealing part of their face—
Felix's eyes widened. That's…!
Elsewhere, Ling sat atop her streetlamp, summoning a draconic spirit. She swung her long sword, cleaving through another swarm of those twisted beings.
"What is this…?" Felix murmured.
Then, the scene shifted again.
He saw Nian—working alone in her workshop, hammering away at a sword upon her anvil. Outside knelt a young man, hesitating before knocking on her door.
He saw another sister, the scholarly dark-haired lung, painting in the water towns of Jiangnan. Her brush strokes brought entire worlds into existence—each line a universe, each stroke a lifetime.
He saw a brother in embroidered robes, leading a caravan through bustling markets, ledger in hand, calmly calculating his profits.
He saw yet another sibling, coughing weakly as he played a game of Go against himself, only to fling his bowl aside in a fit of frustration.
He saw more still—
A lung girl barefoot in a rice field, laboring under the sun. She lifted a handful of golden stalks, wiped the sweat from her brow, and smiled gently in his direction.
Is this… a dream? Or is this reality?
Felix looked down. He was standing among the ripened rice fields, the lung girl before him speaking words he could not hear.
Are they… the brothers and sisters Ling mentioned?
Each of them possessed a strange, almost otherworldly quality. Felix reached out—his hand passed right through the lung girl's cheek, like mist.
Strange. He had never met them before, yet somehow their faces felt familiar, as if engraved in memory.
He frowned, resting his chin on one hand. Dreams are made from fragments of memory. Without memory, such vivid faces shouldn't exist.
Then why… did this one feel so real?
"Ling… Are you there? is that you?"
"You truly are fated with me," her voice replied softly.
Ling approached from behind, walking past to stand beside him. "Well, young hero—what did you think?"
"Your brothers and sisters are scattered across the world," Felix said quietly. "Do you ever miss one another?"
"Hmm… if we wish to meet, we can. But when we do, we always end up tiring of each other. Sometimes, not meeting is better."
"Every family has its own troubles," Felix sighed.
He stepped forward again, his feet sinking lightly into the soft soil of the paddy field. "Still, your siblings live such full lives."
"Full… lives?" Ling repeated with a faint smile.
"Content in their own ways," Felix said gently. "Most people live not for themselves, but for others—family, money, ambition. But your siblings… they live for what they love. They find joy in their own world. Maybe that's the most perfect way to live."
"Tell me, young hero—what do you live for?"
Faced with this question from a drinking companion he had met by chance, Felix didn't feel the need to reply with lofty ideals or empty words.
"To live," he said calmly, "is to become stronger."
Ling tilted her head slightly. "And what does it mean… to become stronger?"
"It means having the power to do whatever I wish to do."
"And what is it that you wish to do?"
"To survive."
Hearing this full circle of an answer, Ling couldn't help but laugh. She swirled the wine flask in her hand, taking another sip even within the dream. "Interesting. Truly interesting."
"Someone like you," she said, glancing at him, "may not exist twice in this world."
Felix's gaze rested upon the golden rice fields ahead. He took a few steps back and sat down on the warm soil, letting the gentle breeze wash over him.
At some point, the lung girl who had been working the fields came to sit beside him. She said nothing, only wrung out her damp sleeves and wiped the sweat from her brow.
Wasn't that the point from the start? Felix thought. Just to survive. In this cruel world where a single misstep means death, becoming stronger means I won't die so easily. It means I can keep doing what I want—to live. Perfectly reasonable, isn't it?
And really, don't overthink it.
As for the bonds formed along the way—the promises made—Felix didn't see them as burdens.
Dreams? Let them be dreams. A harem? If it happens, so be it. In Terra, where suffering is universal, finding a bit of happiness for himself and those around him already felt like an accomplishment. Why bother with those philosophical musings about belonging or meaning?
"I've met a few Sankta before," Ling said suddenly.
She sat down on Felix's other side, and for a strange moment, it felt like they were three friends in an old photograph—peaceful and oddly complete. "They didn't give me the same feeling you do."
"I'm an odd one among the Sankta," Felix replied lightly. "Don't mind it."
"No," Ling said, smiling faintly. "That's not what I meant."
She pointed toward his forehead. "You feel… ancient. As if you're someone from a thousand years ago."
Then she gestured toward the ground.
Felix followed her gaze and saw his reflection rippling in the clear water of the rice field. At some point, two luminous Sarkaz horns had appeared atop his head, glowing softly. As he rose, a faint, transparent tail shimmered into view behind him.
Unlike the usual black horns of most Sarkaz—or the white ones of Shining—his glowed with ethereal light. He reached out to touch them, but his hand passed through as if they were made of air, like halos.
"Have I… fallen from the heavens?"
"You call it 'falling,' do you?" Ling took another drink, chuckling. "In my eyes… using Yan's words, young hero, I'd say—you've simply found your own path."
"I don't quite understand."
"That's exactly what makes you unique."
Ling leaned closer, her voice soft, her scent warm—a blend of wine and the subtle fragrance of a mature woman.
"There's something about you that intrigues me," she whispered. "Perhaps, by staying near you, I'll one day find the answer I seek."
Felix looked back toward the rice field. The horns and tail had already faded away.
"Do you know what that was?" he asked.
Ling shook her head, circling him thoughtfully. "Hmm… it doesn't quite fit in with this world. I can't see it clearly yet."
"Then will you come with me?" Felix said half-jokingly. "Like Nian did?"
Ling chuckled, brushing a lock of blue hair from her cheek. "Tempting—but I still have duties to attend to."
She tilted her head and lightly tapped his forehead with her finger. In that instant, Felix felt his mind clear completely. The world began to recede around him—the fields, the sky, Ling's silhouette—all drawing away like mist.
Only the lung girl remained, standing knee-deep in the paddies, watching him with a serene smile as he faded from the dream.
When he was gone, Ling stretched lazily, handing her wine flask to the lung girl. This time, the girl's form solidified enough to take it.
"Top-grade rice wine, Sister Ling," she said with a smile. "Even in a dream, you've managed to recreate the flavor perfectly."
Ling laughed softly. "I still have to visit Yumen again. It seems the only place I can meet you now… is in dreams."
The younger lung sister let out a soft sigh, blinking her curious eyes.
"That young man… is he someone my elder sister has taken an interest in?"
Ling smiled faintly. "There's a secret about that young hero that stirs my curiosity. What do you think, Shu?"
"…I can't see it clearly," Shu replied quietly.
Ling gave a small yawn. "Then I suppose it's up to me to take a closer look myself. Haa… after I've had a proper sleep, of course. We still have a long road ahead."
"Elder sister," Shu said with a hint of exasperation, "you shouldn't drink every day. Remember to eat breakfast, and don't overindulge at dinner—"
But before she could finish, she realized Ling had already vanished from sight without a sound. Shu sighed helplessly.
"Honestly… what would this household do without me?"
---
When Felix awoke, he found himself lying in the bed of a roadside inn.
He rubbed his head and sat up. Given how much he'd drunk the night before, he should have been suffering from a splitting hangover—but instead, he felt perfectly clear-headed, refreshed even.
There was, however, a faint, pleasant scent around him… of rice?
"Did Miss Ling bring me back yesterday?"
As he washed up, he caught his reflection in the mirror. No horns, no tail—just his usual self.
So it really was just a dream, then.
If he'd truly fallen, returning to Laterano would've been impossible anyway… not that he had any intention of going back.
A knock came at the door.
Knock, knock, knock.
"Come in," Felix called out.
The door swung open almost immediately. Ch'en Hui-chieh stepped inside and scolded him at once.
"Not coming back last night? What were you thinking?"
"Uh…?" Felix blinked.
Behind her, Lin Yühsia entered as well, her calm tone carrying a trace of teasing amusement.
"There was an incident last night."
"What happened?"
"The envoys from Kou-wu City were ambushed on the road by bandits. Everything they had was stolen, and the two young masters of the He family were knocked unconscious. They're still in the infirmary."
Felix's expression stiffened. "Bandits? At a time like this?"
"That's what they claim," Lin Yühsia replied coolly. "In truth, we don't know what really happened. Kou-wu City is under the control of the nobility now, and internal power struggles among them aren't out of the question. This might well have been an attack from within."
Felix said nothing, but when the system window popped up in front of him—
C-Rank Mission: [Bandit Saint of Mount Shu]
—he couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
So there really were bandits, huh?
"Who else knows about this?" he asked.
"Only the officials involved in the meeting. The situation could grow serious, but for now, it hasn't reached the local authorities."
"The Grand Tutor has taken full charge of the case," Lin Yühsia continued. "The Ministry of Justice has already mobilized its investigators to pursue the culprits."
At that, Felix grew uneasy.
If they caught the culprits first, how would he claim the mission rewards? It wasn't much, but still—several thousand experience points weren't something to scoff at.
When the Grand Tutor saw Felix volunteering to assist, he raised an eyebrow. But upon noticing Ch'en Hui-chieh beside him, his expression softened in understanding.
Well, a husband supporting his wife—or was it the other way around? Either way, it made sense to him. He patted Felix on the shoulder.
"Young man, what do you need?"
"Are there any surveillance devices in Shangshu City? I'd like to review last night's recordings."
Thanks to the rapid advancement of Originium-based technology in Yan, Felix had already noticed several surveillance orbs during his recent scouting around the city.
The Grand Tutor nodded slightly. "A good idea. However, the Ministry's investigators are currently reconstructing the footage. It may take some time before we have a clear result."
"I can handle it," Felix said confidently.
Neither Ch'en Hui-chieh nor Lin Yühsia spoke—they simply trusted him. That silent faith caught the Grand Tutor's attention, prompting him to glance at Felix once more with mild curiosity.
Will Wei Yenwu and Old Lin start fighting over their future son-in-law someday? he mused privately.
When they entered the operations room, the members of the Ministry greeted the Grand Tutor respectfully, and upon seeing Felix and the two women, they followed suit.
No unexpected trouble—a good sign.
From the window, Felix reached out to catch a small, invisible drone that had silently returned from the skies. He connected it to his terminal with a thin cable.
"Search for the faces of the He family's young masters."
On the drone's small display, a cartoonish expression appeared:
( (o_O) ? )
The Grand Tutor's eyes widened slightly as he watched Felix operate the device.
He recognized the technology—it was similar to what the Tianshi Bureau were developing—but the one in Felix's hands was far more compact and efficient.
Had the drone not revealed itself upon landing, the Grand Tutor might never have noticed it hovering overhead.
Felix wasn't accessing the city's surveillance alone; he was also reviewing data recorded by his own drones, which had been patrolling the skies around the clock.
Within minutes, images began to form on the screen: ten to twelve masked figures, agile and precise.
Each struck down one of the He brothers before dispersing into the rain, retreating swiftly into the night.
Yet one by one, Felix marked their positions and movements, tracking them all.
Their identities weren't the point.
What caught the Grand Tutor's true interest was the drone itself—and the program running it.
It seemed… far more advanced than anything their own engineers had achieved.
Felix felt the Grand Tutor's gaze and allowed himself a faint, knowing smile.