On the Central Continent, in a garden smothered in cherry bloom, petals drifted like pink snow.

“Sigh. Little Sumeragi’s been away from the Mizumi Clan for almost a year, and life’s no fun without him. I can’t hug his soft body, rub my cheek against his milky-white face, or eat the meals he cooks… ugh.”

Under a cherry tree, Yugong Jingyue nibbled maid-made sweets and watched petals fall, boredom pooling like still water. With Yumigawa Sumeragi gone, half her joy had vanished; every day felt hollow.

She found herself envying Yumigawa Senki and Yumigawa Nozomi, who’d left the Central Continent like birds chasing the sun, searching for Yumigawa Sumeragi.

“Jingyue, you really adore Young Master Sumeragi. You say his name every day,” the maid beside her said, laughter light as wind through blossoms.

“Can’t help it. I’m a hopeless big sister who super-loves Little Sumeragi. If he’s not here, of course I’m bored,” Jingyue said, stretching lazily, like a cat in warm shade. In the Mizumi Clan, unless you’re a training maniac like Yumigawa Senki, there’s not much to do. The Central Continent brims with resources like an overflowing granary, so there’s no need to worry. Here at the Mizumi Clan, you live to enjoy yourself, day after day, like sipping sweet tea.

If boredom bites, you can be a maid—tidy rooms, wash clothes, cook—letting hours pass like clouds. Or you can be like Xinuo, losing yourself in books, novels, or comics as if drifting down a quiet stream.

The Mizumi Clan lacks nothing—except new thrills. Entertainment is everywhere, like lanterns lighting a festival street.

“By the way, Xiao Yue, how long have we been viewing blossoms here?” Jingyue asked, rising when the bench felt too long, dusting her skirt like shaking off flower dust.

“Mm, about four hours. It’s noon now,” said the maid, Yugong Yue, after a moment’s thought.

“That long? Then let’s head back.”

She stepped out of the garden, walking toward the Mizumi Clan’s main courtyard, footsteps soft as petals on stone.

“Alright,” Yugong Yue answered, packing up with quick, deft hands, then hurrying after her like a shadow at noon.

…

Mizumi Clan courtyard, afternoon.

In a room drenched in girlish aura—pink and white wallpaper blooming with pretty patterns, cute dolls and figures set like stars around the room, a floor spotless as a mirror, air sweet as spun sugar, a broad, soft bed hung with a few fine ornaments, and a towering bookshelf opposite the bed crammed with books—Yugong Jingyue lay reading manga, her face a mask of ennui, like rain waiting to fall.

“The story’s fun, but too much candy gets cloying. I’m bored,” she murmured.

She finished the volume and tossed it aside, not reaching for the next. It wasn’t surprising; she’d devoured more than ten volumes in a row, reading from after lunch till now, saturation heavy as fog.

Still, she couldn’t think of anything to do. Housework didn’t interest her; training even less. Books were read to the last drop.

“Alright. Let’s go fishing.”

Boredom pricked, then the corner’s fishing rod caught her eye like a silver glint. An idea bloomed. She slipped off the bed, took the rod, grabbed a bucket in the washroom, and left the Mizumi Clan, movement light as a breeze.

“Fishing, huh. Let’s go to the sea. I want fish for dinner,” she said. Her figure vanished in a blink, like a swallow through mist, and reappeared on a sandy beach.

The stretch of sand was vast and blank as parchment. Only her. Loneliness hung like a thin mist.

“Ah, the Central Continent really is deserted.”

She scanned the horizon; not a single creature stirred. Jingyue sighed, emptiness echoing like a hollow shell. Even going fishing alone felt like a cup without tea.

“Forget it. No need to overthink. The Central Continent has only us of the Mizumi Clan anyway.” She shook her head and rose slowly, her body floating like a dandelion seed, gliding straight to the sea’s heart.

“White clouds, heed my command. Become a boat.”

Whoosh. The surrounding clouds surged like milk drawn to a whirlpool, racing in, fusing, and shaping themselves into a small wooden boat.

“Mm. Let’s start.” Satisfied, Jingyue sat on the cloud-woven craft. She set the bait, then flicked the line into the water, the hook slipping in like a silver needle into silk.

“Come on, come on, my cute little fish. Hurry and bite…”

She adjusted the line’s length, eyes half-closed, humming softly, letting time ripple like gentle waves.

A dozen minutes slid by…

The rod dipped suddenly, weight pulling downward like a stone into a well.

“Oh? A bite. Let’s see what you are.”

She layered an auxiliary strength spell on herself—a warm surge like fire in winter—gripped the rod, and snapped it upward.

Water exploded in a towering splash. A colossal fish burst forth—a leviathan born of storm and shadow. No, fish wasn’t quite right; it was a fish-type magic beast: its body stretched twenty to thirty meters, scales a bizarre dark purple like bruised night, two face-sized eyes burning with dangerous red light, a blood-red maw yawning wide, teeth so sharp they looked ready to crush anything. Power rolled off it in waves, stirring the sea into restless surf.

It looked furious, a tempest in flesh. It saw Jingyue and lunged with its mouth agape, madness blazing, heedless of who she was.

“My, my. I really did hook a big one. A Sacred Realm high-tier beast—the Moling Fish. And it’s in berserk mode. How troublesome.”

Her voice stayed light, her beautiful face calm as a moonlit pond. She smiled. “But you don’t look tasty at all. Please return to the sea.”

Her half-lidded eyes snapped open. In her pale-gold irises, a thin light flickered like a blade’s glint.

“Rrraa…” The Moling Fish felt its body slip from its own control. With a low, reluctant growl, it sank back into the depths, vanishing like a dark thought. The frenzy ebbed; its mind cleared.

“Then let’s keep fishing… Oh? Rare guests.”

Just as Jingyue prepared to cast again, the space behind her rippled gently like heat over sand. Two figures stepped out.

“We’re not guests, Second Sister.”

“Yeah. The whole Central Continent is our home—what guests? By the way, when did your Control Mystic Eye get this strong, Second Sister? You can control a Sacred Realm high-tier beast now?”

The two sat down beside Yugong Jingyue, settling like birds on a branch.

…

(Control Mystic Eye: also called “Absolute Command.” As the name implies, it forces the target to obey any command unconditionally. Targets are not limited; as long as their power isn’t far above yours, you can command the living, the dead, spirits, or pure energy. Unless the target’s strength and mental force both exceed yours, or they carry a top-tier defensive artifact, they cannot resist.)