Sunday morning arrived, painting the sky over Bo City in a brilliant wash of gold.
I stood in front of the small mirror in my dorm room, running a hand through my hair.
I had swapped my typical dark tactical Hunter gear for something much more relaxed: a crisp white button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, dark denim jeans, and a pair of clean civilian sneakers.
I was going on a date.
Of course, neither Ye Xinxia nor I had formally slapped the label of “date” onto the outing, but given the way her friends giggled when I came to pick her up from school, and the way Mo Fan had aggressively wiggled his eyebrows at me before I left the room, the subtext was written in neon lights.
Mo Fan, for his part, was staying behind.
He was dedicating his entire Sunday to forcing his stubborn Fire stars into submission.
I left him with a few snacks I had bought yesterday and a warning not to blow up his mattress.
I slipped out of the Tianlan Magic High campus and caught a taxi heading toward the residential district where Xinxia lived with her aunt, Mo Qing.
When the taxi pulled up to the familiar quiet street, Xinxia was already waiting on the front porch.
The sight of her made me pause for a fraction of a second.
She wore a soft, pastel blue summer dress that fell gracefully around her knees, and her long, dark hair was pinned back with the very same silver butterfly hairpin I had bought for her years ago at the Tianlan Shopping Mall.
Her legs were still weak, a symptom of the dormant Parthenon Soul resting within her, so she sat comfortably in her sleek, modern wheelchair.
But her physical limitations did absolutely nothing to diminish the pure, gentle aura that naturally radiated from her.
“Xiaohou-gege!” she called out, her dark eyes instantly lighting up the moment she saw me walking up the pathway.
A soft, rosy flush dusted her cheeks.
“Hey, Xinxia,” I smiled warmly, walking up the porch steps.
I smoothly stepped behind her wheelchair and gripped the handles.
“You look beautiful today.
Are you ready to go?”
Her blush deepened, and she nodded, looking down at her lap with a shy smile.
“Mhm.
Auntie said I have to be back before dinner, though.”
“I’ll have you back safely,” I promised, effortlessly guiding her wheelchair down the ramp and onto the sidewalk.
We didn’t go to the crowded commercial malls this time.
The weather was far too perfect to spend indoors under artificial runic lighting.
Instead, I pushed her toward the Bo City Riverwalk, lined with weeping willow trees and magically powered glowing lotus lanterns that floated lazily on the water’s surface.
It was a popular spot for civilians and off duty mages alike.
The gentle breeze coming off the river carried the scent of blooming jasmine and street food from the nearby vendor stalls.
We spent the first hour simply enjoying the atmosphere.
I bought us both some roasted sweet potatoes and fresh fruit skewers, walking at a slow, leisurely pace so we could just talk.
We talked about her classes, the books she was reading, and the absurd rumors circulating around Tianlan Magic High.
Eventually, we stopped at a raised wooden observation deck that offered a stunning, panoramic view of the Bo City skyline.
I locked the brakes on her wheelchair and leaned against the wooden railing beside her, taking a bite of my sweet potato.
Xinxia was quiet for a moment, her dark eyes tracking the distant silhouettes of Sky Hawk riders and military mages patrolling the clouds high above the city safe zone.
“You’ve been studying and training so hard since you awakened, Xiaohou-gege,” Xinxia said softly, breaking the comfortable silence.
She turned her head to look at me, her expression a mix of admiration and mild concern.
“Fan-gege complains about how exhausting meditation is all the time, but you never complain.
You just…
keep going.
Why do you push yourself so much?
Is it just because it’s dangerous outside the walls?”
I stopped chewing and looked out over the river, letting the question hang in the air for a moment.
How could I possibly explain it to her?
In my past life, the universe was governed by cold, rigid physics.
If you were born average, you died average.
If a truck hit you, you died.
But here?
“It’s not just about the danger, Xinxia,” I said, my voice dropping into a deeper, more profound tone.
I turned to look at her, letting my genuine, unmasked passion bleed through my usual calm facade.
“I love magic.
I genuinely, deeply love it.”
Her eyes widened slightly, captivated by the raw intensity in my gaze.
“Think about what magic actually is,” I continued, gesturing toward the sky.
“It is willpower made physical.
The universe tells us we are just small, fragile humans made of flesh and bone.
But with magic?
If the world is too cold, I can summon fire.
If a mountain is in my way, I can shatter it with lightning.
Magic is the ultimate freedom.
It is the ability to look at the rules of reality and say, ‘No, I reject that.
I make my own rules.’ ”
I leaned my forearms against the railing, a quiet smile touching my lips.
“I train so hard because I refuse to be a side character in this life.
I want to hold the steering wheel.”
Xinxia stared at me, completely mesmerized.
The gentle breeze caught her dark hair, framing her flawless face.
For a teenager, I sounded incredibly philosophical, but Xinxia had always known I was different.
She didn’t find it weird, she found it entirely magnetic.
“I think that’s beautiful,” she whispered, her voice barely audible over the rustling willow leaves.
She looked down at her own hands, resting uselessly in her lap.
“I hope…
I hope when I awaken, I can find that same freedom.
I want to be a Healing Mage.
I want to be able to fix things.
To fix people.”
“You will,” I said with absolute certainty, reaching out to gently pat her head.
“You’re going to be the greatest Healing Mage this world has ever seen.
I’d bet my life on it.”
She offered a bright, radiant smile, leaning slightly into my touch.
“So,” Xinxia began, her tone shifting, becoming a little more playful as she tilted her head.
“If magic is freedom…
what is your ultimate dream, Xiaohou-gege?
Once you’re strong enough to make your own rules, what do you actually want?”
I chuckled, scratching the back of my neck.
I could have given her the standard, noble protagonist answer.
I could have said I wanted to protect the innocent, eradicate the monster hordes, and bring peace to the world.
But I wasn’t Mo Fan, and I wasn’t a saint.
I was a reincarnated person who had been given a System and a second chance at life.
“Honestly?” I smirked, deciding to drop the polite facade and be entirely truthful.
“I want absolute, unquestionable power.
I want to reach the very top of the magical hierarchy, high enough that no arrogant clan leader, no corrupt politician, and no monster can ever look down on me or dictate how I live.”
Xinxia nodded slowly, expecting that answer.
“And?”
“And…” I leaned back, crossing my arms and looking up at the sky with a deliberate, cheeky grin.
“I want a massive, luxurious estate.
And I want to fill it with a few incredibly beautiful, loving girls to share my life and my wealth with.”
Xinxia blinked.
She blinked again.
The profound, philosophical atmosphere I had just carefully built shattered into a million pieces, replaced by the sheer audacity of my declaration.
“A…
a few?” Xinxia stammered, her jaw dropping slightly.
The soft pink flush on her cheeks instantly flared into a bright, indignant crimson.
“Yep,” I nodded shamelessly.
“Why limit myself?
The world is a big place.
I have a lot of love to give.”
Xinxia puffed out her cheeks, an adorable, highly expressive pout forming on her lips.
She glared at me, crossing her arms over her chest.
It was a rare display of jealousy from the usually tranquil girl, and I found it absolutely hilarious.
“You sound just like Fan-gege right now,” she huffed, turning her head away to look at the river, though I could see she was still sneaking glances at me from the corner of her eye.
“Greedy.
Are you planning to build a harem?”
“I prefer the term ‘collection of soulmates,’ ” I corrected smoothly, fighting the urge to laugh.
“Hmph,” she mumbled, her fingers tapping nervously on the armrest of her wheelchair.
She was silent for a few moments, clearly battling with a specific thought.
Finally, her curiosity and her insecurity won out.
“So…” Xinxia started, her voice dropping, trying to sound casual but failing miserably.
“If you want beautiful girls…
what do you think about Mu Ningxue?
Fan-gege talks about her all the time.
Everyone in Bo City says she’s the most beautiful girl in the province.
She’s an Ice prodigy, she’s rich, and she’s gorgeous.
Is she…
going to be one of your soulmates?”
I looked at Xinxia, registering the genuine tension in her shoulders.
She was actually worried.
She thought that because Mu Ningxue was the pinnacle of unattainable beauty in our city, I would naturally be drawn to her, just like Mo Fan and every other teenager with a pulse.
I didn’t hesitate.
I didn’t even have to think about it.
“Mu Ningxue?” I scoffed, waving my hand dismissively.
“Not interested.
At all.”
Xinxia’s head snapped back toward me, her eyes wide with shock.
“What?
Why?
She’s perfect!”
“She’s a living statue,” I said flatly, leaning back against the wooden railing and looking directly into Xinxia’s dark, expressive eyes.
“Sure, objectively, she has a pretty face.
But she’s completely cold.
She suppresses all her emotions, she never smiles, and she expects everyone around her to decode what she’s thinking by the micro elevation of her left eyebrow.
I don’t want a block of ice for a partner.”
I took a step closer to her wheelchair, crouching down slightly so I was at eye level with her.
“I don’t like girls who hide how they feel,” I said, my voice softening, entirely sincere.
I reached out and gently tapped the tip of her nose.
“I like warm girls.
Girls who pout when they get jealous.
Girls who smile when they eat sweet potatoes.
I like expressive, kind, and genuinely caring girls.”
I held her gaze, leaving absolutely zero ambiguity in my words.
“Girls exactly like you, Xinxia.”
The indignation completely melted out of her posture.
The crimson blush returned, but this time, it spread all the way to the tips of her ears.
Her breath hitched, and she looked down at her lap, a massive, brilliant smile breaking across her face that she couldn’t hide even if she tried.
“You’re…
you’re just saying that to flatter me,” she whispered, her voice trembling with happiness.
I just smiled.
“I never lie about things that are important.”
I stood back up, moving behind her wheelchair and grabbing the handles once more.
The tension had completely evaporated, replaced by a warm, electric comfort between us.
I had laid my cards on the table.
She knew about my ridiculous, greedy ambitions, and she knew exactly where she stood within them.
At the very top.
“Come on,” I said, pushing her gently along as the sun finally began to dip below the horizon, casting the city in twilight.
“Let’s go get some elemental ice cream before I have to take you back.
I hear they have a new mango flavor.”
“Okay,” Xinxia agreed softly, resting her hand over mine where it gripped the wheelchair handle.
As we walked through the fading light of Bo City, I looked up at the sky.
The date had been a success, I guess.
I know building a harem and saying things to her like this might hurt her now, but this is my second chance at life.
I don’t want to be another “average” guy in this world, too.
If I continued like this, in another four months, I would reach the Tier 3 rank.
So be it.
The grind never stops.
To be continued…