"Meow~"
In the hallway of the school building, bathed in the crimson hues of dusk, a handsome young man carrying a backpack was followed by a black cat, while Yatsuhashi Ki had already disappeared.
It was already after school, and the rest of the matter had nothing to do with him. After replying in the group and thanking Yatsuhashi Ki, Yan Huan didn't ask him to accompany him further.
When he reached the floor where the principal's office was located, the air was eerily quiet. He could faintly hear the sound of conversation coming from inside the office.
He didn't proceed immediately. Instead, he turned to the window to straighten his appearance, slung his backpack over one shoulder, and looked back at Miao Jiang, who was sitting on the floor grooming herself.
"Miao Jiang, wait here for me. Don't wander around—it'd be bad if someone spots you."
"Don't worry about me."
Miao Jiang didn't seem entirely pleased with the name Yan Huan had given her, but she wasn't the type to fuss over it.It blinked its clear green eyes and spoke within Yan Huan's mind, "If needed, I can make sure only you are aware of my presence. And don't worry about where I go—just call for me in your mind, and I'll appear before you anytime."
"That amazing? Well, that's a relief."
"Meow~"
Receiving the reply, Yan Huan nodded and, no longer concerned about the black cat behind him, headed toward the principal's office—a place he had visited countless times.
As he reached the door, the faint sound of conversation inside made him hesitate.
After all, suddenly having someone claiming to be his mother appear out of nowhere in his orphan origin story was either some urban legend or had to be related to the Modifier.
Unable to resist, he leaned closer to the door to listen. "Yes, yes, he's exceptionally talented—he's the president of the Student Council at Yuanyue Academy. Though he handles some school affairs, whether it's tuition waivers, recommendation letters, or guaranteed university admissions—"
The voice belonged to Hermes, the principal of Yuanyue Academy. His voice was somewhat high-pitched and easily recognizable.
"But if I recall, no matter how much is waived, it only covers two-thirds of the tuition. What about the remaining amount? How will he manage that?"
The voice responding to the principal was gentle and soothing, impossible to pin to a specific age, only that its tone was tender, like a breeze brushing against one's cheeks.
"Well... while the school doesn't prohibit part-time work during free time, I am considering proposing a scholarship to the board to ease financial burdens for families, especially for rare talents like him."
"I see... Actually, I came here intending to establish a Dragon Country Immigrant Student Aid Fund at Yuanyue Academy under the name of Ye International, hoping it might support Principal Hermes' proposal. As for the donation details, a representative will contact you later—"
"You're too generous, Ms. Ye... Ah, my apologies for the wait. The students are all taking exams today—he might have set his phone to airplane mode."
"It's fine."
Unable to make sense of the conversation, Yan Huan decided to face the storm head-on.
He raised his hand and lightly knocked on the door.
Knock knock.
"Principal, you wanted to see me?"
"Ah, here he is..." The principal chuckled, addressing the woman he had been speaking with before raising his voice to Yan Huan outside. "Come in, Yan Huan."
Pushing the door open, Yan Huan saw the lavishly decorated principal's office, where Hermes sat on a leather sofa facing him.
Dressed formally, his neatly combed salt-and-pepper hair matched the refined, classical look of his long, goat-like beard.
Seated across from him was a woman with her back to Yan Huan, her hair tied into a black chignon.
Yan Huan's gaze was immediately drawn to the jade hairpin nestled in her bun, which seemed as if carved by nature itself, while also catching the subtle grace radiating from her silhouette.
A strand of black hair was tucked behind one ear, leaving the other ear exposed, revealing fair skin and a dangling jade earring swaying gently beneath the lobe.
As Yan Huan entered, she turned toward him, revealing a face poised perfectly between youth and maturity—and pupils that slowly constricted in recognition.
She was a strikingly beautiful woman.She stood up, slightly parting her lips while holding the hem of her dark green floral cheongsam, her eyes carefully scrutinizing the somewhat confused Yan Huan, with particular focus on his face.
In an instant, her eyes reddened, and she quickly raised a hand to cover her mouth. "So alike... too alike, wuwu..."
What in the world could be so similar?
Yan Huan widened his eyes, staring blankly at the beautiful woman before him, then glanced at the smiling Hermes, utterly baffled by the situation.
Yet again, the same feeling he had when he first met Bai Yi resurfaced in his mind.
And who might you be? I don't think we've met before? Yan Huan looked questioningly at Principal Hermes, who had also risen to his feet beside the woman. The principal chuckled and introduced, "Student Yan, this is Ye Lan, the newly appointed head of Ye International at the Scale Gate on the sea."
The Scale Gate on the sea—an independent mega-city nation where the Totsuki Academy was located, renowned for its high modernity, prosperous economy, and diverse immigrant population. Such a place didn't exist in his previous life.
Ye International, a top hundred enterprise in the Dragon Country of this world. As for the Dragon Country, the name alone suggested similarities to the Celestial Empire of his past life.
This was enough to indicate the woman's extraordinary status.
Yan Huan understood all this, but he still hadn't grasped why she had referred to herself as his "mother."
"Uh, Ms. Ye, hello... but, have we met before?"
Ye Lan wiped the corners of her eyes with the hand covering her mouth, stepping quickly toward Yan Huan as if about to speak.
But as her throat tightened, the words she meant to say turned into sobs.
Unable to hold back any longer, she reached out and embraced Yan Huan, pulling him into her arms. Feeling the sudden warmth and softness pressed against him, Yan Huan stiffened in shock, nearly jumping out of his skin, even suspecting she might possess a Modifier that required close proximity to activate.
Just as he was about to react, Ye Lan's trembling voice reached his ears, "I'm sorry... wuwu, you look so much like your mother... wuwu..."
"...Mother?"
Yan Huan froze slightly, his body relaxing a little but still not daring to move.
After a moment, Ye Lan finally regained some composure. She held Yan Huan's shoulders and stepped back slightly, her eyes red as she gazed at him. "Yes, your parents were once very dear friends of mine in the Dragon Country, especially your mother, Wang Yulu. She was my closest friend back then... Your parents and I were classmates in university. After graduation, they moved to the Scale Gate on the sea to build their lives, while I stayed in the Dragon Country. We lost touch for so long... I never expected them to... wuwu..."
So she was a friend of his parents in this life... Hearing the name of his mother—both unfamiliar and familiar—Yan Huan finally understood, a weight lifting from his heart.
Truth be told, since transmigrating, Yan Huan had never paid much attention to his parents' connections.
The reason was simple: he had spent very little time with them in this life.
His infant brain, still underdeveloped when he arrived, left him in a daze. It wasn't until much later, when his parents never returned, that he learned they had died in a plane crash.A baby far from home, with no direct relatives, only a horde of distant relatives—ghosts and monsters—rushing to Scale Gate, all to carve up the property left behind by his deceased parents.
This practice had an unsavory name: "devouring the heirless."
By the time Yan Huan's transmigrated soul fully awakened as he grew older, those relatives had long since devoured everything and fled, leaving him with nothing but the harsh reality of an orphanage as his starting point.
For over a decade, he had grown accustomed to solitude—until today, when a true friend of his late parents finally appeared. Though he couldn't fathom why it had taken them so long to find him.
At this thought, Yan Huan immediately changed his address, "Auntie Ye."
"Ah, what a good boy."
Ye Lan withdrew her hand from Yan Huan's shoulder, wiped the tears from the corner of her eye, and said joyfully, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought up such sad things. After arriving at Scale Gate, I've been searching for news of you. I never expected you to be so strong and to have grown so outstanding. Not only can you take good care of yourself, but you've also been admitted to such a prestigious school. Your mother would surely be very comforted if she could see you now."
As she spoke, she couldn't help but mention Yan Huan's mother again.
Yan Huan had no choice but to follow her lead, "I think Mother would also be very happy to see you again, Auntie Ye."
Who would have thought that saying this would make things worse? Upon hearing Yan Huan's words, Ye Lan's eyes reddened again, and her lips even began to pout slightly, as if she couldn't hold back her tears.
Seeing that youthful crying expression once more, Yan Huan quickly waved his hands, "I'm sorry, I just said we shouldn't talk about these sad things."
"Wuwu, Xiao Huan—can Auntie call you that?"
"Of course."
He glanced at Principal Hermes standing behind Ye Lan, whose wrinkled face was grinning like a chrysanthemum. Yan Huan knew this was the principal's signature smile whenever he secured investments—this was exactly how he looked whenever someone donated money.
Noticing Yan Huan's gaze, Principal Hermes belatedly grabbed a few tissues from the desk and handed them to Ye Lan, "Ms. Ye, please."
"Thank you, Mr. Hermes."
Ye Lan wiped her tears and then blew her nose with the tissues before looking up at Yan Huan with a pout.
But the moment she saw Yan Huan's face, so reminiscent of her old friend, the corners of her lips uncontrollably turned downward again.
Fortunately, Yan Huan's newly acquired perfect expression management skills came into play.
After a moment of internal deliberation, he pursed his lips slightly, furrowed his brows a little, and let his gaze wander nervously around her reddened eyes, "Auntie Ye..."
He seemed genuinely moved by Ye Lan's emotions, yet at the same time, he felt lost due to the blankness of his memories of his deceased parents.
Though he could sense the depth of her feelings toward his parents, he struggled with the lack of strong resonance in his own heart. This mix of confusion and emotion ultimately manifested as just the right amount of helplessness.
Seeing his expression, Ye Lan's heart ached slightly. Realizing she had been too emotional and might have overwhelmed her old friend's child, she quickly composed herself and suggested to Yan Huan,
"It's alright, Auntie is already at Scale Gate now. From now on, Auntie will help you with everything. Things here are pretty much settled. Later, Auntie will take you home for dinner. Principal Hermes, thank you for your time this afternoon."
Only when Ye Lan finally calmed down did Yan Huan relax internally.
This elder seemed to have been very close to his late parents, which explained her emotional outbursts.
Though Yan Huan wasn't particularly adept at handling such elders, the good news was that Ye Lan didn't seem to have any connection to the Modifier—she had simply come to the school to find him. "No trouble at all, Ms. Ye. Far Moon Academy is the one who should be grateful for Ye International's recognition and support."Ye Lan perked up, pulling out her phone from her pocket and unlocking it as if preparing to send a message. At the same time, she smiled at Yan Huan and said, "Perfect timing. Your sister just arrived at Scale Gate not long ago and doesn't have many friends her age. Tonight, you two can get to know each other—she'll be thrilled. I'll let her know right away."
Wait, what? There's another one?
Yan Huan's heart, which had just settled slightly, leaped back into his throat. He blinked and zeroed in on a particular word in Ye Lan's statement. "Sister?"
Ye Lan nodded cheerfully, pausing to think before replying, "That's right. Auntie's daughter. She's about a year older than you, Xiao Huan. She was in her second year of high school back in Dragon Country. You'll be schoolmates soon, so I'll introduce you two later."
Seeing the eager anticipation sparkling in Ye Lan's eyes, Yan Huan couldn't find any reason to refuse such a reasonable arrangement.
Yet, perhaps because of the situation Miao Jiang had described earlier, an ominous premonition suddenly surged in Yan Huan's chest.
Outwardly, however, he maintained a polite smile.
"Alright, Auntie Ye."