This World Can't Handle A Cultivating Bad-boy.

About a month ago.

"Are you avoiding me?"

Aegon immediately stopped his reps as Mr Collin's head popped up from above, and asked him a rather perculier question like it was nothing.

Gently setting the bar down, he sat up, his entire form drenched in sweat and his breath strained. "What?"

Collins slid his hands into his pockets, still in his teaching attire, so it was clear he didn't come to train or anything.

"I haven't seen you this session, especially since the attack." Collins added, narrowing his eyes as if meticulously studying Aegon.

"Yeah," Aegon scratched the back of his head. "...Been busy."

Collins arched a brow. "Been busy?"

"Yeah." He said hurriedly, already getting up to move. But Mr Collins followed him.

"Heard about your outburst in class where you called a teacher naive."

Stopping, Aegon shut his eyes and groaned. "Don't tell me you're here to lecture me?"

"Have I ever lectured you?"

"Then why are you here?"

Collins took a deep breath. "I'm gonna ask you a question based on the evidence I have and have been collecting for a while now, and I need you to answer me truthfully..."

****

"And somehow, you suck everyone into your fucking orbit." Mira cursed with a smile on her face as he twirled her across the polished dance floor.

——♬♫♪♩

The melody intensified as Aegon spun her back into his hands. "I can't know how I'm ruining your life if you don't tell me."

"Everything you're doing," she hissed without even the slightest change in demeanor. "... why can't you just follow the novel's plot?"

He said nothing, kept his features, however few visible through the mask, neutral.

But the silence told her everything she needed to know.

She pulled him in closer, fingers digging into his. "You don't know the plot?" Her voice threatened to yell. "How could you not know the plot? Didn't you read the novel?"

...

He continued in silence and she eyes widened even more. "You didn't even read the novel."

"Correction." He added finally. "I read the first five chapters."

"The first five chapters?" She repeated, completely shocked. "Then, how did you even know about the dual cultivation technique?"

"The fandom."

She froze upon hearing his words. She actually did read the book, so, she'd known for a while how Aegon was copying affinities.

Her grip on Aegon tightened involuntarily.

"You…" she breathed, her voice barely above a whisper.

Aegon tilted his head slightly. "Hm?"

"You're…"

"I'm…?"

She couldn't take it. The sensation, the overwhelming feeling was too much.

Without another thought, she shoved Aegon aside, breaking free from his grasp as she rushed toward the balcony.

Ignoring the voices calling after her, she barely made it past the threshold before she crumpled to the floor, gasping for air.

Mira wiped her lips hastily, steadying herself before turning slightly, meeting his gaze.

Aegon stood there, watching her with an expression she couldn't quite place.

She gripped the railing hard, chest heaving in and out as she just stared at the moon. "Aegon, there's something you should know..."

"Do you care to tell me what it is?"

This night had been nothing short of an exhausting roller coaster. There were too many things to process. Too many thoughts that demanded my attention.

"You're changing the plot too much." She said without looking at him. "And someone's noticing..."

Aegon gently shot an eyebrow up. "What?"

"If you read the book, you'd know that there's a Paragon who can see the future... the future of the novel, in other words..."

"The plot."

They said in unison.

She continued. "He was the one I was talking, on the phone with, during the last party—"

"So, what?" Aegon cut in. "Why does it matter if he knows or not?"

Her breath hitched as she whipped herself back to him. "If you think Nightwalker is bad, just wait till you see the other Paragons.

I promise you, he's not pretty."

He shook his head slightly, the tubes from the orchestra still drifting into the balcony where they stood, but it was merely background noise now.

The other guests who'd been staring at the two had now dispersed after seeing it was just talk.

The discordant taps from the dancers inside was still the most prominent sound that could be heard.

"So~" he said in a sing-song manner. "Tell me everything he knows about me."

*Sigh... He saw me immediately I was born and instantly knew I wasn't right. The real Mira Stark was supposed to die during birth so, me being alive at all changes the plot.

Which is why when he finally saw me he made me a deal, I can live on the condition I remain as insignificant as possible...

Then you came into the picture, we initially thought it was Micheal as that would be the most probably— also, I forgot about your character entirely.

So, I was supposed to watch Micheal and then it changed to you."

"Where is he?" Aegon replied. "Where is he right now?"

"He's a Paragon of Aeralithe so, he has his own Nation to protect."

Aegon stepped forward, avoiding her gaze and gripping onto the rail. "Tell him I want to speak with him."

"..."

"...?"

Saying nothing, she stared at the side of his face, blinking profusely.

"You're changing the future and he wants to kill you..." She began again. "... And you think the solution is to meet him?"

"He needs to know to understand that I'm not doing this on purpose, neither am I afraid of him." He turned to her. "I'll meet him."

They remained locked in a stare on the balcony for a while, Mira's mouth opened and closed— words to rebuttal were lost.

He was fucking crazy.

CLINK!——

The clinking of a champagne flute drew them out of their stare and back into the party where the dance had ended.

The dance that had been more of a recruitment meeting finally ended as the awakened students and the pristine guests finally parted to either side of the hall.

All eyes went back up where a different man stood at the centre of the second floor with a raised glass and eyes sharper than said glass.

Nightwalker.

"Hello, everyone." He said smoothly. "As you all know, I'm Nightwalker.

The greatest hero the world has ever seen, and maybe, will ever see."

The guests took off the masquerade masks and laughed subtly like this was just like Nightwalker.

He continued. "I merely came to this gala to see how amazing these said students were, but I've been decently surprised...

To think that students who were Novuses about half a year ago had grown into these promising talents you see before you, it's quite something."

To those who didn't truly know who this man was, this was heartfelt and inspiring.

To the guests, it was the pinnacle of awakened saying the next generation would be better, who wouldn't want them on their side. To the students, a Paragon himself was raining praises on them.

But... For those who knew, they narrowed their eyes, crossed their arms and waited for everything to either be about him or figure out what his true intentions were.

Nightwalker continued. "I mean look at Aegon Dhalar—"

'Oh, shit.' Aegon thought but forced a sharp smile for the guests who had just turned to him.

"—barely even an adult and he's eliminated a hitman, who'd killed dozens of heroes.

Such an impressive feat.

So much so... He'd been doing a lot more since then, haven't you?"

He locked eyes with Aegon.

Aegon's smile shifted from smooth to uncomfortable, Nightwalker clearly had a plan here.

"I mean haven't you all noticed that the filth of fake heroes has greatly diminished, all thanks to our—"

"Our amazing police force," A man added smoothly, almost as if completing Nightwalker's sentence.

The crowd's gaze shifted from Nightwalker to him.

He walked up the stairs with grace, ignoring the stares all around him and Nightwalker's glare.

No blazer, his a crisp shirt that hung right, with his signature rolled up sleeves and hair that had never been combed.

"Ian Anderson, everyone." Mr Collins said as he slung his arm over Nightwalker's shoulders like they had been long friends.

Nightwalker continued to fake a smile. He turned to Collins with a forced smile, through his clenched teeth. "I'm gonna fucking kill you."

"You're gonna have to be a lot louder than that if you want me hear you."

Collins faced the crowd again as they began to pay closer attention to their words. "Been a while since I've seen this guy...

Not since he was getting his heart broken by every girl in the academy."

"Anyway," Collins added just as quickly, deterring anyone from realizing if it was a joke or not.

"It hasn't just been Aegon that has been amazing, our entire academy is in the process of creating some of the greatest awakened heroes known to this nation."

Collins gaze dropped to Aegon. In that moment, he was so glad he told him the truth.