During the Fengyuan era, demons and monsters ran rampant. A divine painting appeared out of nowhere, depicting a black dragon roaming thousands of miles of wilderness, blotting out the clouds and sun as it coiled around Mount Buzhou.
Looking closer, one could see a delicate jade-like beauty bound tightly by the tail, with the dragon's head pressed against theirs in an intimate embrace.
An old man studied the beauty's red brow mark in the painting for a long while, then suddenly realized: it was the person in that spring painting from Jinling fifty years ago...!
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The records say that when the Dragon God Zhuyin appeared, the young prefect of Jinling became famous throughout the land for a lewd erotic painting of Zhuyin. He protected the peace of the region, but his actions openly challenged and desecrated the divine. From then on, he vanished without a trace, giving rise to the local tale that "the prefect was punished by the gods."
Another night, the lovesick young magistrate sneaked into the bedroom. Beneath the bed curtains, he could just make out a thick black dragon coiled up and resting.
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The young magistrate dipped his Hu brush in ink and secretly painted on the scales of the dragon's tail. Every so often, he even heard the dragon snoring.
Once he finished the tail, he moved on to the dragon's claws, painting them in every color. Several toes were now bright, glittering, and multicolored.
He was laughing so hard that his belly hurt when the dragon's tail suddenly curled around him, and the magistrate fell into the black dragon's arms.
["Master, I... I was... wrong..."]
★ ★ Next nonhuman story ★ ★
[The Octopus in the Ukiyo-e Is a Manservant]
[Fallen noblewoman x devoted manservant]
In the Victorian era, Margaret, a fallen noblewoman, received an unexpected "gift."
Before disappearing, her uncle, the Duke of Mountbatten Stuart, who lived far away in Scotland, had drawn up a "will" and bequeathed it to Margaret in London.
Margaret inherited her uncle's title and became the lady of the manor.
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The will also included a special requirement: a certain manservant at the manor was to be assigned to her.
He had to become Margaret's personal manservant.
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On one wall of Margaret's bedroom hung a Japanese ukiyo-e painting that covered the entire wall.
It showed a giant octopus roaring amid the waves of the Japanese sea, all its tentacles tightly binding a beautiful, helpless human girl.
-
Whenever Margaret became absorbed in this extraordinary painting, she failed to notice...
Her personal manservant was watching her with a gaze that was fervent, mad, and dangerous.
[Reading Guide]
1. European-style translation prose.
2. A decadent, romantic fantasy romance set in Victorian Britain.
3. The male lead is definitely an unimaginable, deeply obsessive octopus who hides his true nature.
4. The octopus loves sleeping with Margaret.
5. Those who care about historical accuracy should avoid this. The setting is alternate history and Western fantasy.
★ ★ Second upcoming nonhuman story ★ ★
[The Unnameable Duchess [Cthulhu]]
During the Edwardian era in Britain, Elizabeth, daughter of the Prince of Cornwall and Duchess in her own right, became the most sought-after match of the entire courtship season.
Helena accompanied her father, the Marquess of Worcester, to a banquet at the Duchess's residence. Her father had two aims:
To propose to the Duchess and to marry off his daughter.
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To Helena's surprise, the Duchess accepted her father's proposal but made an utterly baffling condition.
The Duchess demanded that Helena move into her residence beforehand. They needed time to get to know each other and develop their feelings.
-
The Duchess's private castle was extravagantly luxurious, and countless dazzling jewels and lavish dresses had been prepared for Helena's arrival.
But even stranger, the Duchess hadn't prepared a separate bedroom for her. Before long, the maid had moved all her luggage into the Duchess's master bedroom...
-
On her first night there, the Duchess slept beside Helena and gently sucked on her lips. It was a goodnight kiss.
Looking at the Duchess's beautiful, delicate sleeping face, Helena decided that getting along with her stepmother wouldn't be so difficult after all.
So she fell asleep peacefully. At that very moment, the "Duchess" opened her fervent, infatuated eyes.
-
On the second night, Helena awoke to the eerie sound of seawater coming from the bathroom. She opened the bathroom door, and salty, damp sea mist rushed toward her. Her "stepmother" was floating in the bathtub with her eyes closed.
But... all these tentacles...
Helena: ??????
-
On the third morning, Helena hurriedly packed her luggage and politely prepared to say goodbye to the "Duchess."
When she reached the front door, countless sticky, wet things, like the appendages of monsters from the deep sea, wrapped around her and dragged her back to the Duchess's side.
The Duchess gently smiled at her, waving a feather fan, as the slick, dripping things slowly retreated beneath her gown.
[Reading Guide]
1. A strange and enchanting story about a very lovestruck "Duchess."
2. The male lead is nonhuman. It is an extremely ancient being.
3. The plot is very sweet, with no angst. The female lead must be doted on, in an unconventional way.
4. A decadent, lavish Cthulhu setting inspired by Britain's vintage era.
5. Those who care about historical accuracy should avoid this. It's alternate history, set in a period with the same name, but the people, stories, and background have no connection to real life.
Theme: When a great responsibility falls on your shoulders, you must ride the wind and waves, stride across the breakers, and dive beneath them!
