Chapter Summaries

After transmigrating into the disgraced Champion Marquis Qin Hu, a modern special forces soldier, Qin Hu realized that powerful enemies had framed him and were trying to kill him in the vanguard battalion. He resolved to survive the brutal winter camp and seek help from Centurion Li Xiaokun.

• Qin Hu woke in a military tent, recovered his predecessor’s memories, and learned he had been exiled after Chen Ruoli accused him of misconduct and wrongdoing.
• Qin Hu concluded that Duke Chen, Princess Chang'an, and other forces had conspired against him to seize his family’s power and estate.
• Qin Hu and Qin An went out to patrol in a snowstorm, where two sentries extinguished their warming fire and left them exposed to the cold.
• Qin Hu recognized that he and the frail Qin An were being tormented in the vanguard battalion and vowed to survive and return to the capital for revenge.
• Qin Hu asked for the silver Qin An had left and decided to seek help by bribing Centurion Li Xiaokun.

After awakening in the body of the disgraced Champion Marquis Qin Hu, a modern special forces soldier realized that powerful enemies had framed him and sent him to the front to die. Struggling through a freezing night patrol with his frail servant Qin An, he decided to seek help from the centurion Li Xiaokun.

• Qin Hu recovered the memories of his predecessor and learned that Chen Ruoli had impeached him, leading to his exile to the front lines.
• Qin Hu and Qin An went out to patrol in a blizzard after the off-duty sentries extinguished their warming fire.
• Qin Hu recognized that the soldiers' mistreatment was part of an effort to kill him and resolved to survive and return to the capital for revenge.
• Qin Hu learned that Qin An had only twenty taels of silver and decided to use it to secure their safety.
• Qin Hu chose centurion Li Xiaokun, who commanded the vanguard battalion, as the person to approach.

Luigi and Angel learned that Sypolov had gone to a Butler House to handle a major commission, while Ksenia pursued him. After the staff refused to help them contact the Hound Butler, Gleipnir suggested they find the Hound Butler’s direct investigators instead.

• Uncle Ku explained that Ksenia secretly loved Sypolov and that Sypolov had come to the All Things House to escape her and handle a major commission at one of its Butler Houses.
• Luigi speculated that Sypolov’s commission might be connected to a new war, but Angel said their priority was finding Sypolov before the gathering.
• Angel, Luigi, and Laplace went to the Affairs Hall and asked the staff to help them meet the Hound Butler, but the staff lacked the authority and refused to discuss butlers.
• Angel proposed using the Calamity Puppet as a major commission, but Gleipnir warned that the All Things House would likely reject it and that disclosing the threat could cause trouble.
• Gleipnir learned from Guta Lace that every butler had direct investigators who could contact them, and she advised the group to find the Hound Butler’s investigators.

Angel, Luigi, and Laplace searched the All Things House for direct investigators of the Hound Butler and learned that they were most likely to take small commissions from self-service mirrors. Their search turned up no obvious candidates until a masked little girl accepted a mysterious commission to analyze a hollow corpse.

• Angel and Luigi spotted a man with an unclear patterned briefcase, but Gleipnir judged that he was unlikely to be a direct investigator of the Hound Butler because he entered the commission room.
• Gleipnir explained that Hound Butler investigators usually handled small commissions, and Luigi led Angel and Laplace to the self-service pickup mirrors.
• Angel read the commission listings while Luigi questioned five investigators, but none showed signs of being direct investigators of the Hound Butler.
• A masked little girl opened the details for the “Analysis of a Hollow Corpse” commission and accepted it.
• Angel called out to stop the girl as she turned to leave.

Angel and his companions met Little Red, who recognized the Hound Butler as her Dog Brother and agreed to lead them to him. They reached the Hound House, where the Hound Butler noticed the outsiders and approached the entrance.

• Angel stopped Little Red and learned that she called him Cat Brother and that she wanted cake.
• Little Red identified the Hound Butler as Dog Brother and agreed to take Angel and his companions to meet him.
• Little Red explained that she trusted them because she sensed they were good, prompting Luigi and Gleipnir to suspect she had an ability to detect hidden qualities or origins.
• Little Red led the group through a long spatial tunnel to the Hound House.
• Little Red called for Dog Brother, and the Hound Butler heard the outsiders and approached the entrance.

Laplace reunited with the Hound Butler and asked it to help Angel find Sypolov and learn about Yingji Heartfire. After Laplace called Angel her most important partner, the Hound Butler agreed to help and explained Little Red’s unusual information-gathering ability.

• The Hound Butler welcomed Laplace, Luigi, Angel, and Little Red into the Butler House, shrinking into a small white dog so its wagging tail would not block the doorway.
• Angel explained that he was seeking Sypolov and hoped to learn about Yingji Heartfire, while the Hound Butler withheld its mind-reading talent at Laplace’s prompting.
• The Hound Butler asked Laplace why she was helping Angel, and Laplace said Angel was her most important partner.
• The Hound Butler gave Little Red its authority bell and sent her to investigate Sypolov’s whereabouts.
• The Hound Butler told Luigi that Little Red could smell and interpret unusual information, including clues about Hollow Men and corpses.

After awakening as the disgraced young Marquis Qin Hu, a modern soldier realized that powerful enemies had framed him and sent him to die on the northern frontier. Stranded in a freezing camp with his page Qin An, he planned to use his remaining silver to seek help from centurion Li Xiaokun.

• Qin Hu recovered memories of his former life and learned that Chen Ruoli had impeached him after he was accused of molesting Princess Chang'an, leading to his exile at the front.
• Qin Hu recognized that Duke Chen, Princess Chang'an, and others had conspired to get rid of him and seize his family's fortune.
• Qin Hu and Qin An were sent into a blizzard to stand watch while the sentries extinguished their bonfire and retreated into a tent.
• Qin Hu saw that the vanguard camp's soldiers were mistreating them and feared Qin An would freeze to death.
• Qin Hu learned that Qin An had twenty taels of silver and decided to seek help from vanguard battalion leader Li Xiaokun.

Gleipnir and the others learned how the Ghost Butler’s consciousness cloud gathered intelligence and analyzed it, then questioned Hound Butler about Human Butler, the other Butlers, and the All Things House’s founder, Kross. Sypolov arrived to sign a commission contract, and Angel’s Dragon Scale resonated with the custom-made transformable lance Sypolov had obtained from Lord De.

• Gleipnir compared Ghost Butler’s intelligence-gathering consciousness cloud with the Dream Crystal Plain and explained why the two systems differed.
• Hound Butler said Human Butler was a bloodline-side wizard and speculated that his bloodline was exceptionally powerful, then revealed that Goose Butler, Vine Butler, and Blood Butler operated outside the Day Mirror Domain.
• Hound Butler refused to discuss Kross because of a binding contract, but confirmed that the founder was not at the All Things House and might not even be in the Mirror Realm.
• Little Red brought Sypolov to Hound Butler to arrange a commission contract, and Hound Butler clarified that Angel, Luigi, and Laplace were his guests who had come for Sypolov.
• Angel showed Sypolov a Dragon Scale, which resonated with the transformable lance in Sypolov’s black Heartfire; Sypolov recognized it as the scale connected to the favor he had exchanged with Lord De.

Angel used the favor he redeemed from Lord De to ask Sypolov for help gaining access to Heartfire Hall or, at minimum, studying an Yingji Race member’s Heartfire. Sypolov agreed to introduce him to General Oleg and delayed signing their contract until after the meeting.

• Sypolov confirmed Angel’s Dragon Scale was Lord De’s and learned that Angel had sought him through the Hound Butler.
• Angel explained that he wanted access to Heartfire Hall or an opportunity to study Heartfire, and Sypolov said his military position could not directly influence Heartfire Hall.
• Sypolov realized he could introduce Angel to General Oleg, the only person in Crystal City authorized to decide whether outsiders could enter Heartfire Hall.
• Sypolov agreed to contact General Oleg but asked to wait on their contract until after Angel met the general, unwilling to exploit the favor for an easy exchange.

Angel and his companions learned that Sypolov’s commission might concern the Ice Country war, which could prove Guta Lace’s usually inaccurate prediction correct. They stayed at the Hound House to watch the exhibition through mirror projections, and Angel transformed the empty house into a cozy viewing room.

• Luigi told Angel he was curious whether Guta Lace’s prediction about Sypolov’s commission would finally prove accurate, and Angel judged the commission was likely connected to the Ice Country war.
• Laplace identified Little Red’s partial hollow corpse as a mind beast from the Hante World that had been swept through an Empty Mirror Vortex, and Little Red confirmed her deduction.
• Little Red demonstrated the exhibition’s mirror projections, including stage selection, real-time presenter communication, and popularity rankings, which Angel recognized as features of Pirus’s interactive technology.
• Angel, Laplace, and Luigi chose to watch the exhibition at the Hound House so they could benefit from the Hound Butler’s information.
• Angel used illusion to furnish the empty Hound House with a colorful, fairy-tale-style viewing space that delighted Little Red.

Angel and his companions shared food with Little Red while waiting for the presentation, and Little Red analyzed a corpse as a Psychic Beast that had likely been tamed. Angel realized its owner might be a recent Four Stars psychic master and decided to warn Lord Rhein and spread the information through the Wilderness Traveler Gazette.

• Little Red hugged the cushions, thanked Angel, and prepared lollipops and wine for the group.
• Luigi teased Angel about his kindness to Little Red, and Angel gave up on making Magic Bread after Laplace warned him against using the Mystic Ritual Box there.
• Angel served Demon Nourishing Meat of different ages, and Little Red, Luigi, Laplace, and Angel sampled and praised its varied textures.
• Little Red told Angel that the corpse was likely a tamed Psychic Beast with traits associated with getting lost, darkness, and exceptional toughness.
• Angel inferred that the Psychic Beast's owner might be a recent Four Stars psychic master and planned to warn Lord Rhein and publish the intelligence in the Wilderness Traveler Gazette.

After awakening as the disgraced Young Marquis Qin Hu, a former special forces soldier realized that powerful enemies had framed him and arranged his exile to the front lines. As a bitter winter night threatened his and Qin An’s lives, he decided to seek help from Centurion Li Xiaokun.

• Qin Hu remembered that Chen Ruoli had impeached him after he was accused of molesting Princess Chang'an, leading to his exile to Youzhou.
• Qin Hu and Qin An went out to patrol in the freezing wind, and two sentries put out their warming fire before returning to their tent.
• Qin Hu realized that people in the vanguard camp were trying to torment him and Qin An to death.
• After learning that Qin An had only twenty taels of silver, Qin Hu decided to approach Centurion Li Xiaokun for help.

The Hound Butler, Angel, and their companions watched Madam Roseleaf promote the Life Feather Seed, while Luigi hinted that it was a slow poison despite its genuine benefits. Sypolov asked whether the Yingji Race should buy one, and Angel told him they could.

• The Hound Butler invited Sypolov to stay and watch the presentation, assuring him he would not read his mind again.
• The Hound Butler and Luigi explained that the Featherwood Clan had taken Pirus's first presentation slot in a last-minute change.
• Madam Roseleaf praised the Life Feather Seed's ability to improve its surroundings and extend lifespans, drawing widespread interest.
• Luigi called the seed a slow poison but refused to explain why, leaving the Hound Butler and Sypolov puzzled.
• Angel noticed Sypolov's agitation, and Sypolov asked whether the Yingji Race should buy a Life Feather Seed.
• Angel told Sypolov that the Yingji Race could buy one.

Angel told Sypolov that the Life Feather Seed’s danger would pass once the Featherwood Clan lost interest in the Day Mirror Domain. As Magic Flute spoke for the Singers, Luigi learned that Sage Pika had secured the group five minutes to appear on the main display stage.

• Angel explained that waiting would dispel the Life Feather Seed’s threat, and Sypolov decided to leave the details to General Oleg.
• Lady Roseleaf finished presenting Winged Forest’s seeds and left the main display stage as the heat reached 80%.
• Magic Flute, a Singer who looked like a living statue, took the stage and promoted Cantor’s Stele without presenting research on Aggregation Energy.
• Luigi, Hound Butler, and Sypolov discussed whether Sage Pika had voluntarily yielded Pirus’s display slots and how he might make up for the loss.
• Luigi received word from Gleipnir that Sage Pika had secured the group five minutes of buffer time to appear on the main display stage.

Angel and Laplace prepared for Dream Mirror’s brief appearance on the main display stage, assigning Gleipnir to present the Login Device while Angel stayed behind the scenes. As Pirus took the third slot after the Magic Flute Singer, Sypolov privately wondered whether Luigi and Gleipnir were powerful Time Doppelgängers.

• Angel concluded that Sage Pika had traded away Pirus’s first and second slots in exchange for a chance for Dream Mirror to take the stage.
• Luigi imagined performing before the crowd, but Laplace ruled him out and said Gleipnir would present the Login Device instead.
• Angel explained why he wanted Laplace to represent Dream Crystal Plain while he remained out of the spotlight, and Little Red confirmed that investigators were discussing Dream Mirror.
• Hound Butler learned that the Login Device let users enter Dream Crystal Plain from anywhere in the Day Mirror Domain, while Sypolov privately speculated about Luigi and Gleipnir’s connection to Time Doppelgängers.
• The Magic Flute Singer promoted the Cantor’s Stele and Song Tower, and Luigi warned that their hidden dangers could fade over time.
• Pirus appeared in the third slot after the Singers and the Featherwood Clan, gaining a high level of attention despite losing its original position.

Sage Pika and the Pirus presented a Wave-Energy Amplifier that disguised users as Mirror Ghosts, while Hound Butler revealed they had chosen it over a more valuable method for processing stagnant Aggregation Energy. Sage Pika then promoted Pirus exhibits and a new encrypted group chat page for race leaders, which Lady Mollyan had already agreed to join.

• Sage Pika led the Pirus scholars in presenting their Wave-Energy Amplifier, which simulated Mirror Ghost Aggregation Energy to avoid detection by some physical Mirror Ghosts.
• Angel learned that the amplifier had limited uses, though the Pirus had freely shared its principles and construction method.
• Hound Butler revealed that the Pirus had also prepared a method for rapidly loosening stagnant Aggregation Energy in the Dark Mirror Domain, and Angel connected the Pirus research to their cooperation with Grudge Woman Town.
• Sage Pika introduced Pirus exhibits and then helped promote specialty goods from Grudge Woman Town.
• Sage Pika announced an encrypted group chat page for leaders attending the gathering and said Lady Mollyan had agreed to join.

The Hound Butler wondered whether the Sage Pika’s gathering of the race leaders signaled a crisis affecting the entire Day Mirror Domain, while Angel and the others discussed the Tini Mirror Domain. Laplace revealed that Tini was named for a revered Princess Tini and suspected that a powerful being had sealed or controlled its Empty Mirror Sea.

• The Hound Butler suspected the Sage Pika’s meeting might concern a major event and discussed possible signs with Little Red and Sypolov, including recent unrest and the arrival of the Winged Forest and the Singers.
• Angel, Luigi, and Laplace discussed the Arc and Tini Mirror Domains, and Laplace asked the Hound Butler about intelligence the All Things House held on Tini.
• The Hound Butler transferred the All Things House’s information about the Tini Mirror Domain to Laplace while a Crystal-Eyed Race elder began displaying Crystal Shells.
• Laplace explained that Tini referred to Princess Tini, whom the domain’s races regarded as a supreme deity, though it was unclear whether she truly existed.
• Laplace reasoned that the Tini Mirror Domain’s Empty Mirror Sea must be completely controlled or sealed, possibly by Princess Tini, because no information from it had ever escaped.

Laplace and Angel considered whether Princess Tini existed in the Empty Mirror Sea and could control its Sea Eyes. Laplace said her own birth had been a unique accident, so Princess Tini was not her kind.

• Laplace wondered how Kross had obtained such detailed intelligence on the Tini Mirror Domain and planned to learn more through Luigi and Gleipnir.
• Hound Butler asked Luigi whether Sage Pika’s new-page function signaled an approaching event, and Luigi said Little Red’s guess about Winged Forest and the Singers might be closer to the truth.
• Hound Butler agreed to answer Luigi’s questions about Kross after Angel concealed their conversation inside a pumpkin house.
• Angel proposed that Princess Tini might be beyond the Psychological Boundary in the Empty Mirror Sea, and Laplace agreed that this could explain why the Gosen Mirror Domain’s envoys had not found her.
• Laplace said Princess Tini might control the Sea Eyes and be a terrifying existence, but explained that she herself had been formed by a unique accident and had no kind.

Angel reflected on the vastness of the Mirror World and considered how the Glorystone Clan might create rare gems from custom-made mirrored spaces. Laplace became interested in the Head-Mirror Race’s woven dreams because her abandoned Time Doppelgänger, a dream chaser, might have been projected into the Dream Crystal Plain.

• Angel silently concluded that Laplace and Princess Tini might share similar fates because the Mirror Realm seemed to favor them.
• Angel told Laplace that news of the Tini Mirror Domain had made him feel how vast the world was, and Laplace urged him to value the wonders close at hand.
• Angel watched the Glorystone Clan present custom-made gems and considered supplying mirrored spaces to produce rare alchemical materials.
• The Head-Mirror Race presented its woven dreams, “Light Swan” and “Evil Abyss,” but Angel dismissed them as unlike real dreams.
• Laplace said the two dreams might be worth buying because her abandoned Time Doppelgänger was a dream chaser who should have been projected into the Dream Crystal Plain.

Angel discovered that Dream Chaser A Lan could appear in the Dream Crystal Plain after a settlement’s resident experienced a nightmare and a beautiful dream on consecutive days, but A Lan’s Dreamland Zoo contained free-range beasts of evil and could not support immigration. Laplace explained why she wanted A Lan to arrive early, and Angel began checking the zoo’s rules before deciding whether to summon him.

• Angel learned A Lan’s true name and used the Dreamwalking Wonderland authority to find the conditions for his appearance.
• Angel discovered that A Lan required a settlement, a nightmare, and a beautiful dream, but Dreamland Zoo’s free-range beasts of evil made it unsuitable for immigration.
• Laplace revealed that A Lan had once been intended to carry her past before Rabbit Girl was created through self-condensation, and said she hoped his more approachable personality would benefit the Dream Crystal Plain.
• Angel worried that Dreamland Zoo might impose dangerous rules like Sunshine Circus, so he entered the authority’s information ocean to investigate its rules.