6. The Arrangement of Time

The second floor of 13 Milford Street had three rooms in total.

Siles rented the easternmost one.

His memories held little information about his second-floor neighbors, only that the western room was occupied by a man in his thirties, and the middle room housed a young couple who left early and returned late, rarely making noise.

The man he now encountered by chance was the one from the western room.

Since becoming Siles two nights ago, he hadn’t met this neighbor. Now, at first glance, he found the man strikingly conspicuous.

He wore an orange-red cloak brimming with exotic flair, with a beautiful, multicolored feather pinned at the collar. A flamboyant high top hat sat on his head, and he wore pointed boots.

Around his waist hung a belt adorned with fangs, rings, feathers, and bones. Beneath the cloak, each ornament clinked crisply with every movement.

His face was painted with vivid makeup, especially around the eyes, exaggerated to the point of being ready for a masquerade ball. Red, orange, white, and purple pigments made him look like a child who had overturned a paint palette.

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Fkzlp nswzed’v blzr cwv rywpl, vbld rszkvlzu dseele kd tallvkdt.

Mbl lnnldvaknyzzu ealpple dlktbcsa nswtble pwcnsdpnkswpzu, vbld pyke yp kq dsvbkdt olal yxkpp, “R’x dsv sqq vs es yduvbkdt cye.”

Fkzlp alxykdle pkzldv.

Mbl xyd talo lhld xsal lxcyaaypple.

Wkdyzzu, bl pvyxxlale yd lmrzydyvksd qsa bkp yrrlyaydnl: “R’x y qszjzsakpv! Zsw jdso, okvb vbl elhlzsrxldv sq vbl Odezlpp Nydep, vbl Isdpv Pwnbu byp lpvyczkpble pvyczl lmnbydtl nbyddlzp okvb xsal yde xsal nswdvaklp.

“Mbspl nswdvaklp byhl nwpvsxp yde byckvp iwkvl ekqqlaldv qasx vbl Isdpv Pwnbu’p. R’x blyekdt vs yd lmnbydtl xllvkdt zyvla, ps R ealpple zkjl vbkp vs czlde kd.

“Valvvu pvaydtl, kpd’v kv? Mbyv’p fwpv bso rlsrzl yal kd vbspl rzynlp.”

Mbaswtb vbl xyd’p lmrzydyvksd, Fkzlp wdelapvsse obu bl oyp ealpple ps qzyxcsuydvzu.

Folklore… Siles nodded thoughtfully.

In this world’s history, the current era was called the Mist Era. The “mist” in its name indeed shrouded large swathes of the Feishier world’s land, known as the Endless Lands.

The Endless Lands were barren territories covered by layers of black-gray mist, which also blocked exchange channels between the world’s nations.

Countless countries, tribes, and villages lived in isolation. Only a few hundred years ago, when the mist in the Endless Lands began to recede, did the development of these lands and exchanges with other nations become a priority.

Now, much of the Endless Lands was no longer shrouded in mist. These areas were called the Withered Plains, vast, desolate, and yellowed expanses.

The development of the Endless Lands naturally gave rise to fields like folklore, which studied the cultures of one’s own country and others.

Siles believed the man’s explanation but still felt a touch of suspicion.

The man seemed oblivious, introducing himself: “My name is Alfonso Kalel. We’ve been neighbors for a while and still don’t know each other’s names.”

Siles nodded and said, “Siles Noel.”

The gaudily dressed folklorist nodded back, then said he was in a hurry and quickly left.

Siles watched his departing figure, then calmly withdrew his gaze and returned to his room.

He placed his umbrella by the door, the manuscripts on the desk, and took out his wallet, die, pocket watch, paper, and pen from his coat. After removing his outer clothing, he sat silently on the sofa for a while.

The matter of the Revelators was beyond his expectations. He hadn’t anticipated encountering this world’s transcendent powers so soon.

A coincidence?

His gaze lingered vaguely on the die on the desk.

After a moment, he stood, went to the washroom, and took a hot bath. The rain continued to patter outside, making Siles, now in a warm, dry room, feel a sense of comfort.

He was ravenous, nibbling on the bread while drying his hair. He longed for hot soup, but he had no ingredients. He resolved to buy fresh ones at Logan Market tomorrow.

The apartment room lacked a kitchen, but the first floor of 13 Milford Street was the residence of Mrs. Fain’s family. When Mrs. Fain wasn’t using the kitchen, tenants could cook there, provided they cleaned up afterward.

Soon, Siles finished the bread, and his hair was mostly dry. He changed into simple pajamas, relieved to be free of the sticky rainwater.

But there was no helping it. Late July weather in Lamifa City was always like this—not warm like summer but overcast and damply cold. By August, it would swing to the other extreme, with bright, scorching sunlight that seemed to burn a hole in the earth.

By late October, the weather would turn wet and cold again. But at that time, there would also be a holiday lasting over two weeks.

People called it the winter holiday, as it preceded Lamifa’s long winter. Some also called it the rain holiday, due to the excessive rainfall during that period.

Today was July 24, a Monday.

Lamifa University would begin its semester on the first Monday of August, which this year happened to be August 1.

This world’s calendar was quite similar to Earth’s, with twelve months in a year, thirty days in a month, and seven days in a week. However, specific festivals and holidays differed greatly from Earth’s.

Lamifa University’s academic system had three semesters. The first ran from August to late October, followed by a two-week winter holiday; if the rainy season was prolonged, the winter holiday would extend accordingly.

The second semester ran from early November to February of the next year, followed by a one-month spring holiday, meant to welcome the arrival of spring.

The third semester ran from late March to early July. The first week of July typically involved academic year exams, followed by a three-week holiday called the summer holiday—or, alternatively, July’s rain holiday.

Graduates received their holidays earlier, giving them ample time to job hunt.

As a student at Lamifa University, Siles had been very familiar with this system. But as a professor, things became far more complex.

Now, in the last week of July, he was grappling with his teaching plans.

The institute required him to teach two public elective courses and two specialized elective courses. The former spanned the first and second semesters, while the latter included one course across the first two semesters and another in the third.

The third-semester specialized course was less pressing, but the two public electives and one specialized elective were imminent, as he’d face students in just a week.

Siles sighed almost imperceptibly.

He quickly calculated his schedule for the coming week—Wednesday and Saturday afternoons at the Historical Society; Sunday for moving and organizing the office. That left him a full Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.

He also needed to study textbooks, compile a reading list for students, and mentally prepare to deal with apprentices whose identities and research topics were still unknown.

…Truly rushed.

He lowered his eyes and wrote his course titles on scrap paper: Overview of Literature from the Godbirth Era to the Mist Era, Appreciation of Silent Era Literature, Silent Era Literature and Its Theoretical Evolution—Using Three Famous Silent Era Authors as Examples.

The first two were public electives, the last a specialized elective for the first two semesters.

Overall, the courses were consistent, progressively deepening. He could prepare all three together.

Finally, he underlined three terms: Godbirth Era, Silent Era, Mist Era.

The Godbirth Era was the first recorded era in this world’s history, rumored to be when gods were born.

After the gods’ birth came the birth of humans. People believed in and worshipped the gods, leading to the second era, the Faith Era.

Human civilization gradually flourished, establishing empires and developing productivity. Empires fought and waged wars, with gods presiding behind the scenes, protecting their followers. The third era, the Empire Era, was a long and glorious period.

The fourth era was a mysterious one, with few surviving records, most of which were vague and reticent. Based on some archives and manuscripts, it was called the Shadow Era, a period truly veiled in shadows.

After the Shadow Era, both humans and gods entered a phase of extreme decline. In the fifth era, gods fell one by one, the continent was shrouded in mist, and empires fragmented, isolating people. This was the Silent Era, a time of chaos and stillness.

After the fifth era, the sixth era saw humans recover and thrive. The god of the past and history emerged, and under this god’s protection, people survived and expanded, extending their influence back into the Endless Lands.

The dividing line between the Silent Era and the Mist Era was the appearance of Antinam.

This sole surviving god was considered humanity’s guardian. He indeed existed and protected humanity in some manner.

Thinking of the eye symbol and emblem on that door, Siles wondered if the god of the past and history was the source of the Revelators’ power. Or did He actively grant power to the Revelators?

After pondering for a moment, Siles shook his head—too few clues.

He decided not to dwell on it, glanced at the course titles he’d written, and opened the materials he’d taken from Professor Kabel’s office.

Some were well-organized, belonging to the teaching plans. Siles was fortunate to find a complete syllabus and teaching plan for Overview of Literature from the Godbirth Era to the Mist Era.

He promptly set it aside for later review.

He continued sifting through the materials, finding some scattered notes and plans. To his chagrin, he realized he’d likely have to compile materials and reading lists himself and prepare for the two Silent Era courses.

Fortunately, that was his area of expertise.

He set aside the useful portions, planning to find his student notes tomorrow and piece together a framework for these courses.

He recalled taking Professor Kabel’s specialized elective course. But he couldn’t simply copy Kabel’s classes—that would be too improper.

As he thought, Siles casually pulled out a manuscript.

He glanced at it and froze, realizing its contents seemed unrelated to Professor Kabel’s course material.

It appeared to be notes jotted down haphazardly by Professor Kabel, with words like “madness” and “shadow” catching his eye.

Recalling the mysterious fourth Shadow Era, Siles grew intrigued by the manuscript’s contents.