Wise men say, time heals all wounds. Whether that applied to the ones left on the face of a ghost or not was, until recently, little more than a question of purely academical relevance. For the record, the answer was yes.
"No, no, no! Appre...
2023-12-07 19:49:41 +0000 UTC View Post"Aw, man! This is going to be much harder than I thought…"
While the unusually lethargic Celestial girl at the other end of the cafeteria's table made it sound like she was talking to herself, she was obviously angling for someone to address her. That someone was my draconic girlfriend. 2023-12-04 19:04:50 +0000 UTC View Post
Life had a way to dissipate tension. Just the other day, I was freaking out over being bitten by a space-whatever, and yet once the initial shock passed, I quickly found myself drowning in other issues demanding my attention. Yet, even with all of that going on, I would occasionally find myself s...
2023-12-01 19:03:24 +0000 UTC View Post(Author's Note: For context, check my comment under the extra chapter posted before this one. TL;DR: The Hot Springs Arc is now it's own volume, and this epilogue slots in between Chapter 110 and Chapter 111)
At the same time, in a familiar not-da...
2023-11-30 13:13:25 +0000 UTC View PostAs it was already established in the past, despite its ominous name, being inhabited by definitely-not-demons, and ostensibly being a prison island of sorts, the Abyss was considerably less weird than its Celestial counterpart. While the architecture was admittedly more gothic than the E...
2023-11-30 12:46:33 +0000 UTC View PostGetting out of my girlfriends' post-coital embrace was a little tricky, as usual. In the past, I tried just Phasing out of the bed, but my weight suddenly disappearing from the mattress made it bounce the girls up and wake them anyway, which completely defeated the point. As such, I had to do it ...
2023-11-27 17:55:55 +0000 UTC View Post"I tell you, boss, there's nothing wrong with you."
I levelled a skeptical stare at Fred and flatly uttered, "Check again."
"We already checked three times!" he exclaimed and waved a clipboard holding a whole bunch of graphs and data tables in front of my nose. "Look! Everything's nor...
2023-11-24 14:18:05 +0000 UTC View PostHello, dear readers.
As I mentioned in the comment under the latest update, thanks to a friend of mine, we finally hammered together that Discord server that I floated... I don't even know how long ago.
I've never ran a Discord server before, so we're going to roll this out experimen...
"Seriously… Why does everyone have to be related to someone?"
There was a short beat hanging in the air at the dinner table, and after Judy finished swallowing, she nonchalantly answered, "It's a trope."
"I know that, but it's still so contrived!" I continued to grumb...
2023-11-20 16:41:20 +0000 UTC View PostJust a single day spent in school, and somehow my life started to feel normal again. Going to school with my friends, attending classes, eating unreasonably scrumptious meals at the cafeteria, and beating Josh in basketball. Everything was exactly how it's always been. Just the normal life of a n...
2023-11-17 17:38:55 +0000 UTC View Post"Pardon the intrusion."
I spoke on auto-pilot as I entered the nurse's office on the ground floor, without even bothering to knock beforehand.
"Oh. It's you, Lord… I mean, Leonard Dunning," our new school nurse snapped to attention, only to belatedly greet the rest of my company. "W...
2023-11-13 15:43:11 +0000 UTC View PostStepping into the gymnasium, we were hit by a wall of noise, like a wave at the seashore washing over a sandcastle. In front of our eyes, hundreds of placeholder students were idling on the basketball court taking up the majority of the gym floor. Nobody was organizing them, yet even at a glance,...
2023-11-10 16:55:50 +0000 UTC View PostHello, dear readers.
Just a small heads-up: I alluded to the whole family being sick, except me. I said it was only a question of time until it was my turn, but then everyone recovered, and I thought I somehow dodged it. Nope. Last night, I came down with a fever and didn't sleep a wink, an...
2023-11-05 16:33:42 +0000 UTC View PostIt was time for that feeling again.
I have encountered this situation a couple of times before, when, after a particularly tumultuous period, returning to mundane, everyday life suddenly felt uncanny.
"Brother! Hurry up! We'll be late!"
"What are you talking about?" I a...
2023-11-03 17:52:34 +0000 UTC View PostNights were, for the longest time, struck fear in the hearts of the people of Eksilva. The darkness was the home of many a creature best not encountered, be they common wolves howling at the moon, or the more esoteric and oftentimes regional beasts inhabiting the mu...
2023-11-02 18:11:35 +0000 UTC View PostThe ground floor turned rather lively by the time I walked down the stairs.
"Brother!" a lively voice greeted me the moment I arrived, and Penny beamed at me from the entrance-way, only for her expression to cloud over a second later. "Aw shucks! I thought we got home before you… There go...
2023-10-30 15:21:18 +0000 UTC View Post"This is sooo exciting!"
Elkayla's enthusiastic voice was carried far and wide in the eerily silent night forest, though there was not a single soul listening in. The sun went down what felt like ages ago, and the skeleton an...
2023-10-28 15:49:30 +0000 UTC View Post"No. You do not need to stay at my house."
I spoke on no uncertain terms, yet Jaakobah remained annoyingly insistent. We were currently standing at the crossroad leading to my neighbourhood, or rather, one of the inconspicuous buildings right next to it. It apparently 'just happened' to be ...
2023-10-27 13:11:03 +0000 UTC View Post"Come on, man! Can't we do this tomorrow?"
I turned a sideways glance at my moaning friend and sharply shook my head.
"This takes priority, so sit tight, and wait for your turn."
For a second, it looked like he would continue to argue, but then his girlfriend let out a giggle, a...
2023-10-23 16:30:13 +0000 UTC View PostI might have been just a touch too cheeky back there.
I said I would lead the way, but it's been a while since I've been in this ballroom, and only once at that, so tried as I might, I couldn't recall where the door to the tucked-away parlour room was. Luckily for me, my lovely draconic gir...
2023-10-20 16:59:21 +0000 UTC View PostAs far as fancy dinner parties were concerned, this was…
Wait. It was still in the morning, so was it more of a 'breakfast party'? Was that even a thing? It didn't really matter either way, but now it was bothering me, and…
"Chief? What are you thinking about?"
"Oh, you know...
2023-10-19 13:52:33 +0000 UTC View PostInsomnia is annoying. Couldn't sleep. The night was long. So I made some stuff. Enjoy.
First off, while not 100% perfect, this was the best Celestial outfit Jaakobah I managed to generate. 2023-10-17 06:06:53 +0000 UTC View Post
"Sir! With all due respect, sir, as your guards, we should be the ones to lead the charge and secure the perimeter before you return to the—"
"For the last time: there won't be any charge," I hissed at the unusually obstinate armour-guy. "I'm heading through the portal first, and that's f...
2023-10-16 20:22:23 +0000 UTC View Post"No, Leo. No. Arson is bad."
Suppressing the urge to roll my eyes, I forced a smile onto my face.
"It's just a joke, princess. A joke."
For emphasis, I tried to hug her, but she held me back and continued to frown at me.
"I'm serious! I know she got you this time, but that...
2023-10-13 15:36:52 +0000 UTC View PostI promised some AI generated character portraits, but damn, I didn't expect that it would be such a pain in the neck.
In short, the problem is that, since the algoritm of NovelAI is trained on Gelbooru images, it has a strong predilection towards certain themes. I have already complained ab...
2023-10-12 15:59:30 +0000 UTC View Post"Mister Raol! Over here!"
Following the young hermitess's voice, the skeleton morosely climbed to the top of the wooded hill. While they weren't expecting to meet any travelers on their way, he chose to wear a disguise all the same. Due to some purchase...
2023-10-12 15:06:02 +0000 UTC View PostWhat I originally intended to be little more than a quick status check ended up being way more of a pain in the neck than planned. As it turned out, putting together a big science project wasn't simple, especially if it was the 'mad' variety, with some magitech sprinkled on top. Nor was it cheap,...
2023-10-06 18:05:12 +0000 UTC View PostHello, dear readers.
So, my PC died this morning. So much for ramping things up, eh?
By the looks of it, the PSU shed its mortal coils, and hopefully it didn't take any of the other components with it. I ordered a replacement, but it will only arrive on Friday, which means I'm out of ...
2023-10-04 07:52:28 +0000 UTC View PostThe human mind is such a curious thing. It's been less than a month since I've been home the last time. Much less so if we count the times when I only flung my disembodied point of view here. Yet, the moment I sank into my old padded chair, I could feel the stiffness actively draining out of my s...
2023-10-03 15:37:35 +0000 UTC View PostHello, dear readers.
Just a small heads-up. After a pretty hectic weekend (long story, don't ask), I have crashed hard, and woke up two in the afternoon today. I'm still groggy and out of it though, so today's chapter part is postponed until tomorrow. Hopefully I'll be able to get my wits g...
2023-10-02 14:26:19 +0000 UTC View Post