Lily Smith gave a faint smile and said, “Since the late Qing and Republican era, there haven’t been any monsters who could cultivate themselves into spirits from being outsiders or objects. All monsters are now born from parents. These days, even monsters can barely give birth to more monsters, let alone cultivate themselves into spirits.”

Brian Carter immediately looked embarrassed. He had never expected that the world of monsters would be so completely different from what he’d always imagined, overturning many of his long-held beliefs.

Lily Smith grinned and said, “As a native of North City, after you’ve awakened your bloodline, you need to register for citizenship as soon as possible and get tested to see what kind of monster bloodline you’ve awakened. Newborn monsters in North City can even receive all sorts of benefits when registering. I can take you to handle these procedures.”

Brian Carter asked in surprise, “Monsters have to register for citizenship? And there are benefits?”

Lily Smith said with a bit of pride, “Of course! China’s Ten Thousand Monsters Association is the world’s leading organization, and it’s the only legal political group for monsters within China. All newborn monsters must join the Ten Thousand Monsters Association. The member benefits are the best among all monster organizations in the world.”

Brian Carter suddenly felt his mind couldn’t keep up. He just said he needed to think it over and didn’t ask any more questions, silently digesting the information he’d gotten from chatting with Lily Smith. Unknowingly, the two of them had already walked outside the school gate.

As they neared the school, Lily Smith separated a bit from Brian Carter. Brian Carter also felt embarrassed to appear too close to her—after all, going to school with a girl would attract gossip. The two of them pretended not to know each other well and entered the school one after the other.

Lily Smith lagged a few steps behind, watching Brian Carter walk into the campus. She couldn’t help but smile slightly and, in a voice only she could hear, muttered to herself, “I didn’t expect he’d be my classmate. With that black light covering him yesterday, I almost didn’t recognize him. But is he really, like Granny Huai said, my opportunity? I don’t feel he suits me at all.”

Brian Carter hurried into the classroom, unable to resist glancing at Lily Carter’s seat. Lily Carter hadn’t arrived yet, leaving him with an empty feeling inside. He hesitated a little, then sat down at his own desk.

Classmates trickled into the classroom, but even when the bell rang for class, Lily Carter still hadn’t shown up. Brian Carter couldn’t help but let his imagination run wild, as if there was an electric stove in his heart with a pot full of ants on top—itchy and restless, no matter what he did.

Finally, the first period ended. Brian Carter went over to a girl who was pretty close to Lily Carter, lowered his voice, and asked, “Why didn’t Lily Carter come?”

The girl replied coolly, “She went to a performance and already asked the teacher for leave.”

Only then did Brian Carter remember that besides yesterday’s anime festival, Lily Carter also had to attend an exhibition for a sponsor. So much had happened yesterday that he’d actually forgotten about it. He’d originally planned to ask for leave and go with Lily Carter, continuing his job as her bag carrier and such.

Just as Brian Carter was considering whether to ask for leave and catch up, the girl added in a low voice, “It’s too late for you to go now. Lily Carter should have finished performing and gone with her team to shoot on location. The place they’re going is pretty far, there’s no public transport, and the team rented a car to drive there. They don’t even have a set destination—they plan to shoot as they go. Even if you went, you wouldn’t be able to find them.”

Brian Carter immediately felt very disappointed, almost as if he’d been abandoned. He could only lower his voice and say, “Thanks!” to the girl, then walked out of the classroom feeling a bit down. He hadn’t gone far when someone called his name from behind.

“Brian Carter!”

Chapter 6: Kyoto Monster Affairs Institute

“Brian Carter! Why do you look so spaced out?”

“What I look like is none of your business!”

Brian Carter glanced at Lily Smith, who had called out to him, and his tone was rather unfriendly. It wasn’t that he had anything against Lily Smith; he was just in a bad mood. At this moment, he wouldn’t have spoken nicely to anyone who tried to talk to him.

Lily Smith didn’t mind. She stuck out her tongue a little, a fawning smile appearing on her face, and said cheerfully, “Now that you’ve awakened your monster bloodline, it’s best to go to the Kyoto Monster Affairs Institute and register as soon as possible. You also need to get your bloodline species tested—it’ll be a big help for your future growth. Since we’re classmates, I can be your guide.” Lily Smith was acting completely differently from usual, and not at all like her calm self from the morning. She seemed very playful. Even though her looks were ordinary, the way her eyes sparkled gave her the charm of a lively young girl.

Brian Carter didn’t notice these changes and asked in surprise, “What the heck is the Kyoto Monster Affairs Institute? Do I really have to register? How do they test bloodlines? And what’s a guide?”

Brian Carter found these new terms—Kyoto Monster Affairs Institute, monster registration, guide—very interesting, and fired off all his questions in a row.