"My head hurts..."
This was Fang Ming's first impression after regaining consciousness. It felt like a hole had been punched through his skull, the pain so intense his head was about to split open.
The scene before him appeared to be the inside of a carriage. His body swayed with every bump, tugging at the wound and making him gasp through clenched teeth.
He opened his eyes and took in his surroundings.
What greeted him were bare wooden plank walls, and scattered around were several blond, blue-eyed Western-looking youths, each sitting with their eyes closed in quiet rest. Not one of them glanced his way.
He seemed to be lying on the floor. Fang Ming felt the cold wood pressing against his back and knew that if he stayed down any longer, his body wouldn't hold up — he'd catch a cold on top of everything else. He struggled to sit up.
Just then, a searing pain shot through his head again.
It came without warning, accompanied by a flood of unfamiliar memory images. Fang Ming's eyes rolled back and he passed out once more.
"Hey! Leilin! Wake up..."
Through the haze, Fang Ming heard a voice and forced his eyes open.
'Is this transmigration?' Fang Ming remembered clearly — the last thing he had seen was the dazzling flames from the explosion of a Negative Energy reactor.
An explosion of that magnitude, with absolutely no protective measures, meant survival was impossible.
Besides, back on his home planet, carriages and wooden planks of this style were relics from God knows how many centuries ago.
Sorting through the new memories flooding his mind, Fang Ming began to understand this body and this world.
It was a place resembling a Western medieval setting, but one where mysterious powers also existed.
The body he now occupied had originally belonged to Leilin Farell, the son of a minor nobleman. Because he had been identified as having Wizard aptitude, John Farell — Viscount and the body's father — had pulled strings to secure him a spot as a Wizard Apprentice. Right now, he was on a carriage headed to the Wizard Academy.
He turned to look at the person who had woken him. Before him stood a big, older boy.
Thick brows, bright eyes, a high-bridged nose, and a head of dazzling golden hair. Though his features were still somewhat youthful, his body was packed with solid muscle, giving him a rather masculine air.
Seeing Fang Ming awake, the big boy grinned happily. "Ha ha... Leilin, you're finally up! If you'd slept a few more minutes, you'd have missed dinner. I bet you don't want to go hungry!"
Fang Ming's gaze dropped. A brief mental search told him who this person was.
"George, thanks for waking me!"
Every young man and woman heading to the Wizard Academy together had been detected as possessing Wizard potential. This George was the legitimate son of a count — and from what he'd heard, a very favored one at that. The count had gone to great lengths in terms of connections and resources to get George admitted.
"A count, huh?" Fang Ming mused inwardly.
He thought of his current body's father, John Farell — a viscount who controlled territory roughly the size of a city back in his previous world, commanding over a thousand soldiers. A local tyrant, in other words. In this world, status was tied directly to strength. If George's father was a count, his domain must be at least several cities large, generating thousands of gold coins in annual revenue. With that kind of power, it was said he had spent a great deal. So how had his own father — a viscount — managed to get him in here?
Lost in thought, another wave of pain lanced through his mind, and an image surfaced.
It was a dark, secret chamber. Yellowed wooden shelves exuded an air of ancient age, surrounded by the acrid smell of dust. Under the lamplight, John Farell solemnly handed a ring to Leilin.
"My dear Leilin, this is the greatest treasure of our Farell family — a pact with a Wizard. My grandfather once aided a wounded Wizard Lord. In gratitude, the Wizard gave Grandfather this ring and made a promise: if any of his descendants possessed the talent, they could use this ring to become a Wizard Apprentice and enter the Wizard Academy, with all tuition fees waived. Now, I pass it to you. May you carry on the honor of the Farell family..."
A ring!!!
Fang Ming's pupils contracted. His right hand instinctively moved to his chest.
Beneath the silk garment, he felt something hard — as though an iron band had been tucked underneath.
Fang Ming let out a long internal sigh. 'Thank goodness! Either those people had bad eyesight or there were some restrictions — they never confiscated it!'
As for mysterious powers, Fang Ming — a scientist in his previous life — was deeply curious about them, burning with the desire to investigate firsthand.
More importantly, he didn't want to be sent back to the family for losing his critical admission token.
'Even though I've taken over this body and absorbed the memories, I'm still different from the original Leilin Farell. The family members who've been around him for over a decade would definitely notice the difference! If they suspect demonic possession and call in a mysterious Wizard to examine me, I'm not confident I could hide it...'
'But if I enter the Wizard Academy, I'll have at least a few years before I need to go back. By then, any changes in me would be considered normal. And besides, once someone becomes a Wizard, their personality is supposed to become cold and eccentric. Acting the same as before would actually be the weird thing!'
While he was lost in thought, a pair of powerful hands reached over and helped him sit up.
"What are you thinking about?" George asked.
"Nothing... nothing!" Fang Ming shook his head quickly, then rubbed his head, which still throbbed painfully.
He suddenly turned to stare at George. George's heart clenched, as though he were being watched by a venomous snake.