Serenade - Chapter 2: Surprise Not Surprise

There are a lot of things wrong with Liv Brodbeck. She’s too small, for one thing. When she works in the castle kitchens with her mother, she can’t carry a sack of flour or roll a keg of ale. Baron Summerset’s chirurgeon says that she has brittle bones, so she isn’t allowed to wrestle or sword fight with the other children. Even sledding downhill in the winter brings the risk of breaking an arm or a leg if she falls. Everyone says that she ruined her mother’s life when she was born. Not when they think Liv is in the room, of course, but she overhears all the same. In the kitchen of a less kind lord, a cook bearing a bastard child would have been more than cause enough for both of them to be out on the street. No, a child like Liv doesn’t have much hope. But when she accidentally unleashes a surge of wild magic, she takes her first step on a journey which will lead her from the kitchens of Castle Whitehill, to the cold palaces of the Eld, and beyond, to the graves of gods... What to Expect: - MC starts off very weak, with a lot disadvantages - not just physically weak, but also vulnerable in a socio-economic sense. She has talents, but it is going to take time to develop them. I want to give this process room to breathe, so I hope you enjoy long-term progression. - The MC begins the story as a child. As she grows up, she will have relationships that I intend to be appropriate for her stages of life, BUT THERE WILL BE NO SEXUAL RELATIONSHIPS UNTIL SHE IS AN ADULT. Expect eventual teenage drama progressing into more adult relationships. - There is action, but it is not constant action, and it will again be appropriate for the MCs development. As a child, she will be challenged by child things, and as she grows into power the scale of threats will increase.

In the age of the Great Liang Dynasty, the lives of the people were made convenient with steam-powered machines that run on a fuel named Violetstream Gold. Chang Geng, who lived in a small countryside village, shared a distant relationship with his mother while his stepfather was away most of the year round, and the only people he was close to were two little kids, the village teacher, and his yi fu – adoptive father. But his life was flipped upside down one day following the barbaric Man tribes’ invasion, and it turned out that his entire identity had been an illusion – not only was Chang Geng himself not the country boy he thought he was, but also his mother, his teacher, and even his beloved yi fu…

Shen Yaowei was an idiot her entire life, and was finally sent to death by the person she trusted the most. After being reborn, Shen Yaowei was no longer silly. She just wanted to cling to the future tyrant and live a life of luxury. Possessing almighty skills and being known as a foolish girl, Shen Yaowei pretended to be an idiot and went on a killing spree, abusing the scumbag until he cried for his mommy and daddy. Anyone who stopped her from clinging onto the tyrant would have to die. Soon, everyone discovered that the frightening Prince Li, who had always been a loner, had changed. There was always a small shadow following behind him. “Ninth Uncle… I don’t have the strength to walk. I want you to carry me…”

the little shadow spread her arms towards His Highness, looking pitiful. “Yaoyao, I’m strong so I’ll carry you!” her elder brother, leader of the martial arts alliance, arrived at the battlefield instantly. “No, I’m stronger! I’ll do it!” her second brother, a miracle doctor, came forward. Then her third brother, fourth brother, fifth brother… All the bigshots had arrived, asking for hugs and to let them carry her. “All of you, get lost! That’s my darling daughter, so I’ll carry her!” Her father, a great general protecting the country, rushed as fast as possible to Shao Yaowei’s front, only to find that the aloof, noble and peerless prince had already knelt with his back facing Shao Yaowei. “Come on, Yaoyao. I’ll carry you.”

A modern university graduate, traversing the window between two worlds, steals a celestial cultivation opportunity that originally did not belong to him. And this celestial technique, quite unorthodox...My credibility should be assured. In order to be responsible to the readers, I must earnestly remind you: my book is easy to linger on in your thoughts, so proceed with caution.