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Chapter 26: Literally Filler
The Middle School was a fief in itself, though its stewardship of many li of farms and towns was passed down through ties of blood, but by the old monsters selecting one among their number to lead. Farms were necessary to feed those pitiful sect disciples who had...
Chapter 25: Old Monsters
The day came at last for Daphne to meet the old monster assigned to watch over her cultivation. He was a middle-aged looking man with a clean-shaven face, and certainly did not fit the image of the old monsters of her old realm who liked to sport long, flowing beards...
Never forget one's foundation! But yeah, it's especially Tracey seems out of place as names for a xianxia setting. I justify it to myself as one of the rare instances she's drawing on original Daphne's instincts rather than her own, because I've basically wiped out any Chinese sounding names for...
Chapter 24: Courting
Daphne admired herself in the mirror as one did. When a master craftsperson had devoted hours of their life to creating art, it was only proper to take a moment to appreciate its beauty.
“Prince Hadrian will be left stunned,” Maid said, making small adjustments to the...
Chapter 23: Familiar Issues
Daphne stroked the catcus’ back with gentle strokes, eliciting a purr from the spirit animal. Alice, Daphne decided, would be her name.
“Do you even know the first thing about raising familiars?” Blaise asked.
She had heard tales from her old monster of a...
Chapter 22: Interlude - Roll It Out
Never in her wildest dreams did she expect Daphne Greenglade to be her patron. She was under no illusions of her own importance, and even the hystors had not wanted to keep her on for another year. Her only hope had been to find service and sponsorship with...
Chapter 21: To Thicken Plot
The day arrived at last when Broken Nose came to them bearing pills which would be the pillars of their cultivation.
“You bought a whole bag’s worth?” Daphne asked, counting the number of pills inside.
“You’ve asked for it twice now,” Broken Nose said. “I...
Chapter 20: Add Fluff…
On a cool autumn day, the Middle School turned into a field filled with fumes and clangor. One might think the estate under siege, until one realized the smoke and sounds were coming from within the school’s grounds.
To Daphne’s understanding, it was Artificer’s Week...
Chapter 19: A Recipe for A Slice of Life
Classes in the Middle School always came in categorical pairs. There were courses, which were a series of lectures, and the one-off talks, closer to what Daphne was familiar with. She could not imagine an old monster setting aside time each week to...
Chapter 18: The Mark of a Cultivator
The marble hall was heedy with the scent of high spirits. They were already on their third round of oaken barrels by Daphne’s count, and Prince Hadrian only served the finest vintages for his masquerade ball—Ambrosia, Grandgrove Gold, Darkland Red, and even...
Yup. And Ilyos (the root word of Ilyosi) comes from Ilios, the anglicized writing for "Sun" in Greek :)
The Daphne persona transcends time and space. Long may she reign in our hearts
Chapter 17: Interlude - The Young Master
She’s getting smarter, Blaise thought as mist exploded outwards from Daphne, rolling off the makeshift arena. Dame Marian, a veteran of eight battles and a knight of eighteen years, peered at the fog with fear’s better respected cousin: caution. It was...
Chapter 16: The Pillars of Power
Cousin Blaise was waiting in her room when she returned, his nose buried in some history textbook about a battle. Was there really so much to write about? All that changed was the when, where, who, why, how, and how many—all trivial details when the outcome was...
Chapter 15: The Duality of Face
Daphne arrived at the gates of the Middle School, where Genevieve’s servant had told her they would be assembling. The midday sun was warm against her fair skin, but not scalding, so she waved away Maid when she brought out a parasol of swan feathers to shade...
Chapter 14: Trading Pointers
“You can’t seriously be thinking of entering the tournament,” Blaise said in an exasperated tone as they walked out of the arena at the end of class.
Daphne frowned at him. “Of course I’m joining,” she said. Not only had the heavens presented her with another...
Chapter 13: Killing Intent
The first day of classes found Daphne among the tiered seats, looking down into an open air arena. Their instructor was a man in his forties with a great beard and a cape that kept billowing despite the lack of breeze. Ten paces from him were several straw dummies...
Chapter 12: Courtesy?
The ordinary woman is always doing things, yet many more are left to be done. When nothing is done, nothing is left undone. This was wei wu wei, the dao of doing non-doing.
There was no need for Daphne to scheme out how to better the foundations of her lessers, it would...
Chapter 11: Arrogance
Daphne’s new serving girl was a natural jade beauty—raw, rough, and unrefined, but brimming with potential.
Maybe with a nicer dress, Daphne thought. Cobalt or emerald would compliment her rich, dark skin and brown eyes nicely. A few hours each morning meditating on...
Chapter 10: The Dao of Disappearance
The academy commanded many li of land beyond the walls which surrounded the school proper. It held dominion too over a small forest and many villages and farms which provided for its upkeep. It was easy to tell when they had crossed into these lands as even...