Novels by Masiur

As Ethan read his essay aloud, some people found themselves suddenly moved, eyes welling up. Maybe it wasn't about grades for them specifically, but something about it dredged up old feelings of being dismissed or overlooked, feelings hard to swallow back down once stirred.Some bit their lip, silently repeating the line about the storm and the way home, hands unconsciously curling into fists, something steadying settling into them.Others, who'd just been loudly dismissing the whole "formula essay" idea minutes earlier, went completely quiet.Someone let out a soft sigh. "I'm not exactly a bad student, but I think everyone should hear this."The vice principal leaned toward the principal. "This essay doesn't really offer any constructive direction. It's mostly just emotion."Principal Chen Qiushi shook his head. "He's a student, not a policy expert. What exactly do you expect him to propose, solutions? Would anyone even believe him if he tried? He spoke honestly, and it clearly reson

Hartwell High, a nationally recognized powerhouse school, arguably one of the best in the entire city.So these were students who'd seen everything.There's no clean "first place" in literature, but in competitive academics, there's always someone claiming the top spot. Especially at that age, when everyone's convinced they're the smartest person in the room, someone casually claiming a perfect score on an essay was bound to rub people the wrong way. Oh, you think you're that good?Plenty of genuinely talented students went to this school too, Owen, Jordan, Sarah Whitlock, Claire, all well-known names, and even their writing got picked apart by classmates constantly. So the second "perfect score" got mentioned, the discussion down in the crowd exploded."Please, what's even the point of reading it out loud? A perfect-score essay is basically just a 'formal essay,' write one of those well enough and the examiners eat it right up!"A formal essay meant argumentative. Argumentative essay

Jenna and Nora, trailing behind, had also caught sight of Mr. Whitfield rushing into the classroom.The two girls traded a look.Nora frowned slightly. "Why do you think they kept Ethan behind?""I've been wondering the exact same thing," Jenna said. "Especially with Mr. Whitfield showing up too. Aren't all three of them supposed to be out supervising us for the ceremony right now? What are they even talking to him about... unless..."Both girls landed on the same thought at the same moment, exchanging a look."No way," Jenna said. "Ha. No way.""Yeah, probably not," Nora agreed. "It's probably nothing, maybe just asking him about his English.""Then why'd Mr. Whitfield go in too?" Jenna pressed.They both went quiet for a second, then burst out laughing at the exact same time."No, no. Ha.""Ha.""It's definitely not what we're thinking.""Definitely not.""Let's just go.""Yeah, okay."..."You want me to go up there and read my own essay out loud?"Ethan stared at Mr. Whitfield, cl

Ethan?So Danny's first real question was, "How'd you cheat?""The answer key was just sitting right there on the table," Ethan said.Danny scoffed, figuring Ethan just didn't want to tell him the real method.The English exam had been part of the district assessment, proctored by teachers bused in from other schools, nothing like their usual classroom setup. Everyone sat spaced far apart, two proctors per room, with extra staff making unpredictable rounds through the hall the whole time.How exactly was anyone supposed to cheat on that?Fudging a number on a regular school final, sure, maybe. But pulling off a score like this on a district assessment? That basically meant someone had swapped papers with him.Emily felt exactly the same way Danny did.How. How was this even possible. Scoring the exact same as her?!For Emily, the whole thing felt like a slap. She'd already been thoroughly outdone by Nora, her usual standing shaken.And now Ethan had somehow wedged his way in too.This

Most of the students had already trickled in, a low buzz of noise filling the room before it settled.The two subject teachers were already waiting at the door.Mr. Hoffman's expression was unreadable. Mrs. Patterson's, on the other hand, was practically glowing.The Literature teacher would be along shortly, still stuck in a meeting. The physics and chemistry teachers belonged to other classes and wouldn't be coming by at all, someone else would handle those papers.Mr. Hoffman walked up front, clearly irritated. "Let me say a few words here... Our class's district assessment results are in, and honestly, what were you all thinking? One spot. We missed the city's top ten by one single spot! That tells me plenty of you slacked off. This break, I want real focus from every one of you. Get your act together. This was material we'd already covered, and somehow it still fell apart!"To be fair, Mr. Hoffman genuinely knew what he was doing as a teacher, so even though the occasional gift f

The four of them headed back toward Class 5. Danny and Jenna were already there, and once everyone started talking, the energy picked up fast.No classes today, just waiting on mock exam results before the awards ceremony, then heading home.Which meant the classroom was pure chaos, playful shrieking and chasing echoing from down the hall.Jenna and Nora were deep in a recap of their three days off, which farm they'd visited, what animals they'd seen, what they'd eaten. Right as they walked in, some troublemaker grabbed Jenna's braid and took off running. "You're dead!" she yelled, and took off after him.Danny peeled off toward his own desk the moment they stepped inside. Ethan and Nora lagged a step behind, and he suddenly spoke up. "So... today. Was that you trying to bail me out?"Nora's eye twitched. A wave of flustered panic hit her out of nowhere.Because moments like this called for careful handling, poke at someone's pride wrong and it could easily blow up in your face.She'd

"It's heavy, sure, but apart from its weight, I don't see anything special about it."Elena examined it carefully but couldn't see anything different about the broken sword."Young Master, you're not going to choose this sword, are you? Sister Winslow is right. Besides the weight, it's ugly and awkward to use."Wren said with disdain."Young Master, a weapon's quality isn't measured by its weight. If this broken sword were really a treasure, why would the Hargroves leave it on display here? It must be unwanted junk they stuck in this corner. I can see several other swords over there, gleaming, of decent quality, top-grade Awakened weapons."Barrett said.Gideon ignored them. Holding the heavy sword, he could feel its extraordinary nature. He poured his violent energy into it, and it immediately gave off a humming sound. The amount of energy this sword could withstand far exceeded that of his old battle sword."These mortals know nothing, kid. Congratulations, you've found a treasure."

A black wind howled, and a great fire suddenly swept through the Hargroves' pill workshop, the billowing flames lighting up the whole area.Outside the workshop, Gideon and the others gazed at the sea of fire ahead, but no joy showed on their faces. Murder and arson had never been their intentions. The dead were gone forever, and the living had to do something for them."Burn it hard."Damon gritted his teeth."Young Master, what's next?"Wren looked at Gideon."We'll sweep through the Hargroves' businesses one by one. Next, the weapon workshop."When he'd said that, Gideon turned and headed for it.That night, Jadehaven was destined for chaos, and the Hargrove family for unrest."Look, there's a fire.""My god, it looks like the Hargroves' pill workshop is burning. How could such a big fire break out so suddenly?""It really is the Hargroves' pill workshop. Strange. It's one of the Hargroves' most profitable businesses, with plenty of experts stationed there. How could it catch fire?

The fiery red sword came to rest on the old man's neck. Feeling the immense pressure coming off the blade and the soul-threatening heat, the old man's face went deathly pale, and he didn't dare move an inch."Who... who exactly are you people?"The old man's voice shook. As a late-stage Awakened expert who'd been with the Hargrove Trading Company a long time, he had some insight. He could tell these people were truly rare in strength. Their arrival tonight, ostensibly to rob, was probably an excuse. They were actually after the Hargroves."Enough nonsense. Hand over all the pills, herbs, and Yuan Crystals here."Barrett's face was full of fat and looked fierce."What's going on? Why is it so noisy?"At that moment, another elderly man, with white hair and a white beard, walked out of the pavilion.This old man was even stronger, a master at the Perfected stage. The moment he came out, he saw the corpses scattered across the ground and flew into a rage. His violent energy surged out of

Night fell.Though Jadehaven was brightly lit, the sky above it was unusually dark. Just as Gideon had said, it was a dark and windy night, a night for murder.With Gideon's arrival, Jadehaven could no longer hope to keep its former peace.A great calamity was slowly closing in on the Hargrove family's businesses.The Hargroves' business empire stretched across half of Jadehaven, and Gideon meant to bring all of it down. Since he was going to start his revenge, he'd go big and treat it like a game.Five figures approached the gate of the Hargrove Pill Workshop like ghosts. According to Barrett, the pill workshop was the most profitable of the Hargroves' businesses. Since it was profitable, they'd start with the pill workshop."Young Master, shouldn't we change into some night clothes or something? We're here to rob someone properly, not just show up out in the open like this. It's a bit disrespectful to the profession of robber."Barrett said."Fatty, why do you say such awful things?

Gideon burst into wild laughter, then turned and walked away.Elena pouted beneath her veil. "What's with the arrogance? I was just showing a little concern."But she laughed too, right away. It seemed this man really wasn't easy to mess with.Julian Hargrove had offended him, and now he was dead, stuffed into a storage bag.Jadehaven was only a small border city in Dragonspine Domain, not a prestigious place. Gideon and his group traveled fast and reached the city gates in a single day.As for the Hargrove family, they still didn't know their second son had died horribly in a secular kingdom.It was only natural. None of the people involved in the massacre at the Cole Trading Company had gotten away. Even the two elders at the Perfected stage had been killed by Gideon. There was no way anyone could have informed the Hargroves.Even King Cassian hadn't known the details of the battle at the Cole Trading Company. It was only because Gideon had moved so fast. After briefly reviving Wren

The palace was engulfed in flames, the fire spreading so fiercely that it swallowed the entire capital.That day, chaos broke out across the capital. The people in the palace scattered and fled, screams echoing through the city.King Cassian spat out a mouthful of blood, staring at the burning palace. The King could do nothing. Countless palace guards carried tools, trying to put out the fire with water.But just as Drake had said, the Vermilion Bird's divine fire couldn't be put out by ordinary water. No amount of water would help."Gideon Hale, a year from now, I'll make sure you die without a grave."King Cassian's roar, fueled by boundless rage, echoed from the palace grounds.He was probably the most pathetic king in the world. His house had burned to the ground, and he could only watch helplessly as all the Awakened masters he'd trained died.A king reduced to a figurehead would be a laughingstock for many years to come.At that moment, King Cassian could only place all his hope