Hai Zhou Academy, Class 2.
The mid-May breeze gently brushed against Lu Chen's face, and every time it did, his gaze would drift out the window.
Thanks to the coastal city being surrounded by the sea on three sides, the weather remained pleasantly mild even as summer approached. The ocean was nature's perfect regulator.
Watching the scenery helped spark inspiration...
He wasn't slacking off in secret—he was doing it in broad daylight.
Tucked inside his chemistry textbook was a draft. Lu Chen scribbled and sketched across the pages, plotting a novel with Zhongli as the protagonist.
A martial god saving the people of Liyue from disaster—was that too hard to relate to?
Don't online readers prefer protagonists who grow stronger gradually, suffer early setbacks, then make a glorious comeback?
Well, not necessarily. Lately, there's been a rising trend of "invincible protagonists"—characters who start off at max level and just brute-force their way through everything...
Hmm... That would still fit the character. Ever since Lu Chen met Morax, he'd never seen him back down or compromise. That archon was always known for his strength and composure. Better not write him in such a cliché way...
Even the invincible trope has its own style. Zhongli might debut fully powered and godlike, looking down upon all beings—but his struggles could be shown through other lenses.
During the early days of the Archon War, Liyue wasn't as prosperous or stable as it is now. Zhongli had to lead his people through the wilderness, building their future step by step while facing hostile environments and covetous rival Archons.
Hmm... this could work as one of those popular post-apocalyptic infrastructure-building stories...
With the idea settled, Lu Chen was still stuck in frustration.
He had the concept, but lacked the writing skill. He could handle short bits, but writing a full novel? That was torture.
How should he better express this plot? Was this paragraph too clunky? Was that line too cringe...? Problems kept piling up.
God, someone please teach me how to write a novel!
Frustrated, Lu Chen felt the urge to crumple the page and toss it in the trash.
Good thing Yae Miko wasn't here—otherwise she'd be grinning like crazy again...
Since Lu Chen's face had been tense all day, practically screaming "Don't mess with me," Kenshin Zhou, who sat behind him, didn't dare bother him after class for once.
The gossip duo behind him was busy chatting about Gu Cheng's new album.
"Gu Cheng's new song is so good! He really is the complete package—talented and good-looking!"
Kenshin Zhou leaned on his desk and glanced at his deskmate's starry-eyed expression. "Is it really that good?"
"It is! Really!" She quietly handed him one side of her earphones.
Kenshin Zhou put them in and listened silently for a few seconds.
"Hmm..."
His deskmate leaned in, eyes full of anticipation.
"Well?"
She was so focused on his response that she ended up leaning a bit too close, and Kenshin Zhou caught a faint, sweet scent.
"Yeah... it's good, it's good..."
Kenshin Zhou stiffened, frozen in place.
His cheeks turned red.
...
Lu Chen folded the draft that only grew more embarrassing the longer he looked at it. He decided to step out and clear his mind.
Zen Zhang suddenly approached like a gust of wind, wearing a bootlicking smile.
If Lu Chen had seen that face while stuck in writer's block earlier, he might've gotten a nosebleed again. But since he was trying to unwind, he let it slide.
One walked ahead, one closely followed behind. Zen Zhang clung to Lu Chen's heels.
"Boss, boss! Wait up..."
"Can you not call me boss?" Lu Chen gave him a helpless glance. The looks from nearby students were getting weirder.
Zen Zhang had a notorious reputation—always fighting and bullying people. He'd been behaving better recently, but his "legacy" lingered.
If Lu Chen became his "boss," wouldn't that make him the school's gang leader?
"Got it, boss!" Zen Zhang nodded like a lackey.
Lu Chen shot him another glare.
"Okay, boss—uh, I mean, Chen!"
"What is it?"
Zen Zhang chuckled, then looked genuinely earnest. "Chen, can you take me to fight Slimes again? I hired someone to train me, and now I'm way stronger than before. Trust me, I won't get launched by a Slime this time!"
Lu Chen didn't expect him to still be hung up on this...
He'd finally quieted down after a few days in the hospital. Now he was back at it, raring to go.
"You can go on your own." Lu Chen pulled out his phone and marked a rough location. That spot had odd elemental activity. If he wanted to fight, he could take his electric scooter and head to the coast himself.
"Go alone...?" Zen Zhang hesitated. "Will that be okay...?"
"You want me to babysit you?" Lu Chen shot back.
If you want to seize this opportunity and grow, you need resolve. Just look at that bespectacled guy, Wang Qi—he was born to be an adventurer.
"But I'm scared..."
"Cowards never achieve greatness." With that, Lu Chen walked off.
Zen Zhang stood there, mulling over the words, hesitating for a long time.
...
After school, back at home, Raiden Ei placed the groceries she'd bought into the fridge. Lu Chen dragged Yae Miko out of her room and stuffed the draft he'd revised during class into her arms.
"What the heck... I wasn't even done reading. The couple was about to kiss... Seriously..."
Yae Miko looked annoyed—she hated being interrupted while reading a novel.
"Can you take our mission seriously? Every day it's either the sofa or the bed—you're always buried in a book!" Lu Chen complained.
"Wrong!" Her eyes grew serious.
"Huh?" Lu Chen looked at her.
"You missed one. Sometimes I read on the balcony."
Lu Chen rolled his eyes. "Still reading. Can't you focus on work? I'm losing hair just thinking about the plot..."
"I am working!" Yae Miko pouted. "As an editor at Yae Publishing House, it makes sense for me to read more novels to keep up with trends."
"So that's why you're reading kissing scenes?"
When Lu Chen gave her a deadpan stare, Yae Miko giggled and finally opened the draft.
"Alright, let's see what kind of 'fun' our darling Yae Publishing House novelist has written..."
Seeing her examine the manuscript seriously, Lu Chen suddenly felt a bit nervous.
A strange mix of anticipation and embarrassment...
Silence stretched for a long while. Yae Miko read his handwritten pages without a word.
"Hmm..." The editor-in-chief of Yae Publishing House nodded slightly.
"How is it?" Lu Chen asked, hopeful.
"Your handwriting is solid—very steady and mature. You've clearly practiced."
"?" Lu Chen blinked.
"The paragraphing's good. Punctuation's decent too."
Lu Chen was speechless.
Surprisingly, Yae Miko didn't mock his amateur writing. She simply set the pages down with a faint smile.
"This novel's fine—except for the part where it's not interesting."
Lu Chen flopped onto the sofa, defeated. Honestly, she might as well have said it was terrible... Maybe he really wasn't cut out for this.
"My dream of being a writer," he cried to the ceiling, "is shattered!"
Raiden Ei came over with two apples and handed them one each.
She looked at the slumped Lu Chen, then turned to Yae Miko. "What's up with him?"
Yae Miko took a bite of her apple and laughed, unable to hold it in.
"Looks like it's time for some 'special' training for our up-and-coming novelist at Yae Publishing House."