Lunch with Mao Mao’s best friend was as awkward as he’d expected.

  The young miss, ever prideful and straightforward, was very clearly showing off how close she and Mao Mao were. All their conversations were about things the two had gone through, and there was no easy way to enter the discussion.

  Now that wasn’t to say he couldn’t do it. It wasn’t his first time being ostracized after all. He had ways of steering the conversation to his favor.

  In all honesty, Yang Xuetian just didn’t feel like doing it.

  On one hand, it was a hassle. His method was bound to cause friction if implemented, and he didn’t want to argue with this young girl. While it was a bit annoying to be ignored, it was clearly a dominance py, showing Yang Xuetian that he was not as close to Mao Mao as she was.

  More importantly, Mao Mao needed the distraction. The day had been stressful for her, and she needed some girl talk to ease the tension.

  While Yang Xuetian was good with women, he could not hold that kind of conversation with one.

  He didn’t want to sleep with Mao Mao, so his flirtations might cause more problems than solve, and he didn’t feel close enough to her to treat her like family.

  He was still trying to figure out how exactly to treat the mermaid.

  Acting professionally with her felt too distant since she was his meal ticket, but his ‘friendly’ demeanor tended to make women misunderstand him. Even LM, someone he’d watch grow from a small child to a wonderful young woman, has wondered about his intentions once or twice.

  He couldn’t help but wilt at the thought of her, wondering briefly what was happening back home. LM was close to giving birth, and it was the anniversary of her brother's death. His dying must have caused problems.

  He could only hope he could get back before anything went wrong.

  “Brother Yang?”

  XY blinked, surprised by the looks he was getting from both girls. Mao Mao understood, since she was a softie, but the look of concern on Yu Jiajia’s face was a surprise. She had all but made it clear that she didn’t like him much.

  “Hm? Something wrong?” He asked, smiling softly.

  “Your face just now…”

  Shit, had he ruined the mood with his face? He wasn’t usually that careless. Perhaps he’d let his guard down since they’d seemingly been ignoring him.

  “Ah, sorry! I was just thinking about before.” He stated, his mind coming up with a quick excuse. “Getting caught in the rain was such a bother! What if I get sick and can’t have any fun outside?”

  Mao Mingxia: …

  Yu Jiajia: …

  Yang Xuetian: …

  Shit, that sounded dumb! Was he a child who compined about such little things? Kids could say that kind of stuff, but he was an adult!

  Still, he wasn’t one to back down when cornered.

  “Considering my condition, I have to take care of my health.”

  At that, the pair seemed to come to an understanding.

  “So you really have amnesia?” Yu Jiajia asked, looking doubtful. “I thought that was just a thing that happened in dramas.”

  Yang Xuetian had somehow died and ended up in this supernatural modern world, so he felt that amnesia was the most pusible excuse he could use. It was easy to fake since he sincerely knew nothing about the world.

  He nodded, confirming the woman’s thoughts.

  “It would expin why his ears and tail are out.” Yu Jiajia compined, staring at the man with a questioning look. “Riding with him was such a hassle.”

  At that, Yang Xuetian felt a bit embarrassed. Since all the vehicles he’d ridden on so far were so much bigger than normal, he had never noticed how much space his tail took up until he was cramped in the back seat of the taxi with Yu Jiajia. His tail, while flexible, was a bushy thing and moved without his input sometimes, leading to the woman being swatted in the face with it a few times.

  He noticed a lot of people gave him questioning looks as they walked.

  It was only then that he realized that he was the only adult showing such obvious traits. He knew there were other animal spirits around, but none but him showed their tails.

  It was an embarrassing revetion, but one that Yang Xuetian could do nothing about.

  How was he supposed to know how to make his tail disappear? He’d been here less than a day!

  “I wish I could tell you more about me, but I really have nothing else.” He said, looking remorseful. “Hopefully, my memory starts to come back.

  “Or we could consult a fairy doctor.” Yu Jiajia suggested casually, tapping her chin. “They’re a bit expensive, but I’ve heard they have medicine for the mind.”

  Is that really something they have in this world!? That'd be really troublesome for him!

  As if reading Yang Xuetian’s thoughts, Mao Mingxia spoke up. “A bit expensive?! Riches have nothing to do with it. Could a lowly actress like me even dare request a visit, let alone buy their medicine?”

  Ah, Yang Xuetian really liked these two. They made understanding the world so much easier when they talked like this.

  Still, it’d be best to get off this subject before they come up with a solution to his amnesia.

  “Since I can’t tell you guys about myself, how about I get to know you?” He suggested, politely offering her a pte with cookies on it. “You said you were an actress? I’m guessing you aren’t super popur yet?”

  “How’d you know!?” Mao Mingxia blinked, surprised.

  “We’ve been all around town, yet you’ve shown no hesitation in showing your face.” He expined. “I initially thought you had a regur job, but I guess I was wrong.”

  “Whoa, Brother Yang is smart!”

  Yang Xuetian didn’t think so, but perhaps it was because he had already had the suspicion that he’d come to this conclusion so fast. Perhaps other people wouldn’t have pieced those clues together all at once.

  Now he was just wondering how much of his suspicions were right.

  “You said before that you came from the countryside after your family reached out to you, right? But becoming an actress is a huge investment. High risk but high reward if you py your cards right.” He was mostly talking to himself just then. She had told him quite a bit before, so he could basically piece together her ‘storyline’.

  “It is a bit risky. My manager hasn’t given me a lot of jobs just yet since I’m new.” Mao Mingxia mumbled, staring down at her fingers. “I might have offended someone big in the industry before, but-”

  “It was a sleazebag who wanted to sleep with you in exchange for ‘sponsoring’ you, right?” He guessed, still in his own head.

  Mao Mingxia blushed, lowering her head even more. While she didn’t regret her response, it was embarrassing for him to say it out loud so bluntly.

  “Why didn’t you tell me about this?!” Yu Jiajia turned to stare at Mao Mingxia, angry on her behalf.

  “There's nothing you could do even if I did tell you.” She replied, taking the girl’s hand. “I’m not someone whom one can take a gamble on. Even if I hadn’t offended that bigshot, who wants to invest in a no-name actress with no work to speak of?

  “Still…” Yu Jiajia grimaced, looking aggrieved. She wanted to help her friend, but there wasn’t much she could do. Even if she tried to ask her dad, he’d reject her. One doesn’t get to be a successful company by dragging personal matters into business.

  “Regardless, I’m surprised that you really guessed my life so accurately, Brother Yang.” Mao Mingxia chuckled, turning to the silent man across from them.

  Yang Xuetian was reeling from the revetion.

  God damn, this chick was a stereotype! Shitty family, illegitimate child and an actress. Anymore and he’d bump into her cheating boyfriend/fiance who's secretly hooking up with her best friend or step sister.

  In fiction, it's amusing, but in reality, it’s just frustrating.

  “Let’s just call it… Fox intuition.” He replied, not really wanting to expin tropes and the like to her.

  “Oh? I thought only dragons had such intuition?” She said, though it was clear she accepted his expnation. “So foxes have it too?”

  “Obviously.”

  Looking at Mao Mingxia, Yang Xuetian realized that she really had the look of a female lead. He’d only half considered the notion of her being the protagonist of this world since that would be a hell of a coincidence. For him, the one sent here, to bump into the protagonist randomly while wandering about.

  Wouldn’t that just be weird?

  Still, with her backstory, it made more sense than not. He just wondered where the Male Lead was. The event from st night was definitely ‘first meeting with the male lead’ worthy, yet it was only he who showed up.

  Had he derailed the story by showing up?

  He didn’t regret it, since he was sure she’d be in worse shape had he waited even a few minutes. More importantly, what kind of bastard stood around when someone was being assaulted?!

  As such, he could only move forward and help Mao Mingxia. If she were the protagonist of the world, he’d help her along. With the stories he’d read before, transmigrated characters usually got to leave after the main story concluded.

  Him being around meant he could speed things along since it was only due to dog blood drama and misunderstandings that things went so damn slowly.

  Lack of communication and unexpined actions made the simple complex and would dey his chances of returning home. So he’d lurk about and make sure whoever the fuck her male lead was, he’d man up and marry Maomao as soon as possible.

  Mao Mingxia shivered, feeling targeted for some reason.

  ***

  The history of the world was very different from his own, but the main points of interest were the inclusion of mythical creatures from beginning to end. Monsters and myths were well documented and spoken about as casually as the historical figures of old.

  Gods were less clearly defined as they very rarely interfered with the mortal realm. Even wars with thousands dead barely got more than a light show.

  The supernatural, however, was very involved.

  Some had no boundaries, as their origin varied depending on the lineage. A rose by any other name, it seemed to be the norm.

  Others were ‘bound’ to their homend, sworn to protect those under their care. Those were, namely, old gods, who were indifferent at best, and ancient beasts, who were fickle at best.

  The ones who ruled China were dragons.

  While humans, the majority, ran the nation on most matters, the ultimate rulers were the Dragon cn. They rarely got involved, allowing elected officials to dictate the rules.

  While everyone knew who was truly in charge, not much was known about them. The cn was very secretive and isoted, only allowing their presence to be known during the most prestigious and sacred of times. And even then, it was rarely the current ruler. Most times, it was a regent, a face that many a generation had seen as the decades passed with nary a wrinkle on their faces.

  That ageless face was what Yang Xuetian was looking at currently as a newscast aired in the cafe the trio were dining at.

  To his surprise, dragons looked like regur humans, though they were taller than most. The one on TV was handsome, with light blue hair and a cold gaze that made people want to look away.

  A bold choice to have this kind of face dead center during the broadcast.

  Were they hoping his good looks would boost views or scare people away with his frigid gaze?

  For a second, Yang Xuetian thought about the princess he’d met. The guy was also huge and had an oppressive aura.

  No, more importantly, hadn’t he met a dragon the day before?!

  As he thought of the fluffy beast he’d met in the bathroom, all thoughts of the princess faded away. Considering what little he had learned about dragons, perhaps the one he saw was young? That would expin why he found an actual dragon rather than a humanoid form.

  “I won’t turn fully into a fox, will I?” He had asked, curious about the matter.

  “Only children do that.” Yu Jiajia replied, not at all concerned about Yang Xuetian’s common-sense questioning. “That or injury, but that's rare.”

  According to her, the circumstances to make an adult change into their natural form were extreme. Even those near death wouldn’t turn back fully.

  So Yang Xuetian concluded that the creature he saw in the bathroom must have been a child. He felt bad for ditching the kid and promised to make it up to him ter with more head pats.

  The ‘child’ in question sneezed, growling under his breath at whoever dared speak ill of him.

  The three eventually made it to Mao Mingxia’s apartment. It was a humble abode, good enough for a single woman to live in, but the addition of another body made it a bit tight.

  “I still don’t think this is a good idea.” Yu Jiajia whispered to Mao Mingxia, the pair watching as Yang Xuetian checked the pce out. “What if he has bad intentions?”

  “Don’t you trust my judgment?”

  “If you had good judgment, would your life be so pitiful?” She shot back.

  Mao Mingxia was the unwanted child who had been dumped in the countryside with her ailing grandmother. She had only been invited back for clearly nefarious reasons. While her fiance seemed nice on the surface, anyone with more jaded eyes could see him as a scumbag using her.

  It was just a mystery as to what he wanted from her.

  Mao Mingxia, despite her misgivings, tended to trust people until they betrayed her. While sweet, it often left her to be the victim. As such, Yu Jiajia wanted to make sure this new face wasn’t going to harm her good friend.

  As if sensing their misgivings, Yang Xuetian called out to them. “Why not have Jiajia spend the night?” He suggested with a smile.

  Yang Xuetian, too, felt that Mao Mao was a bit too trusting. He appreciated the gesture, but he was getting a bit worried about her.

  “Are we so close fr you to call me that!?”

  “Why not? Otherwise, will you allow someone who uses your full name to stay in the same house as your best friend?” He challenged, acting brazenly. “I think it's only right!”

  After much discussion, it was decided that Yu Jiajia and Mao Mingxia would share a room while Yang Xuetian slept in the living room. It suited him just fine as he was sure Yu Jiajia would be worried all night if she left.

  After everything was settled, Yang Xuetian took a moment to rex. All alone with his thoughts, he sat by the window and gazed up at the full moon with a sense of… emptiness?

  It felt strange to think he was in a whole other world. If he didn’t have a tail swaying behind him, he’d think he was back home.

  But no, he had a tail. He’d asked back at the police station if there were any of the familiar businesses from his world, but nothing came up. Even world-renowned CEOs were met with a confused gnce.

  He had really gone somewhere else.

  As if to punctuate his feeling of otherness, he was shocked to realize that his body was not done changing. He’d briefly wondered why his hair was white the night before, but spent the day with a dark reddish color.

  Turns out, his hair, head to tail, changed under the moonlight.

  He hadn’t even noticed at first, just staring out the window before turning to get some water. His gaze unconsciously drifted to his tail, possibly in an attempt to see if it had finally disappeared.

  What met his eyes was a snow white appendage that moved with his thoughts.

  While his expression was calm, his mind was racing.

  Why was it like this?!

  Had this always been the case?

  Should he ask?

  He wasn’t sure if he should ask. Out of all the things he’d seen in the st 24 hours, changing color under the moonlight felt mundane but….

  Something told him that he shouldn’t let others know about this.

  Perhaps it was the st remnants of the original owner of this body or just pin old survival instincts. Either way, this body had been killed, so he couldn’t do anything too reckless.

  This left him exhaustedly staring up at the night sky, wishing his life were less troublesome.

  He sighed, counting the few stars he could spot in this city. A few were airpnes, but he found the activity kept him calm.

  Then, from the corner of his eye, he spotted a weaving star. It wasn’t a falling or shooting star. He was pretty sure it wasn’t a star at all!

  The way it moved was serpentine, the way a snake would glide through the grass. If not for the stark white color, its speed made it hard to identify.

  All he could discern was that something was flying in the sky like an excited puppy, twisting and turning about.

  The sight made Yang Xuetian chuckle, watching the show bemusedly. His aching heart and mind faded as he enjoyed the dispy.

  It was a lovely night.

  *****