A Dog Father Cannot Beget a Dragon Son

World 54: Heir and a Spare

Between one blink and the next, Fei Chuan's surroundings rippled. The Eternal Sands fell away, almost as if they were melting, revealing asphalt and dewy grass. The sky flipped from the vibrant darkness of space into a solemn, weepy grey. All around were people dressed in black. Some wailed, others kept their heads lowered, while still others took photos with the flash on.

Fei Chuan realized he was sitting in the front row of the ceremony, hands placed stiffly in his lap...on a long and loose black skirt.

....no, come on.

He could feel the fabric brush against his ankles when the wind softly blew, and felt like cursing. He shifted slightly, and felt relieved that he wasn't wearing heels, at least. Then he froze.

...on the contrary, he was actually barefoot. What the heck?

Fei Chuan attempted to get in touch with the system, and tried to take in more details about his surroundings. There was an important-looking man in a suit, droning on about one thing or another. Standing next to him were three others, a tall, broad shouldered man and two children, a boy and a girl. Both of them bore a striking resemblance to the smiling portraits of a blonde-haired, dark-eyed couple that hung over the coffins.

"Andrey Konnikov," the system informed him, picking up a gentle whirr. "Astroman, number two male hero. Miriam Konnikova. Blast Lady, number two female hero. Current status: both deceased."

No shit. Fei Chuan lowered his head, long bangs falling to cover his face. From what he could tell, the body he transmigrated into was a quiet one. Despite not openly breaking down like some other people sitting in the front row with him, no one gave him odd looks. Or her. Fuck, he thought these days were behind him.

"On stage: governor of HelioCity, name unimportant; Triton Lannister, Trident, number one male hero; Juniper Konnikova, [Protagonist]; Julian Konnikov, [Villain]."

Fei Chuan tried not to stiffen up. He hadn't expected to meet all the major players so early. Even back in the last world, he never had any true, direct contact with the [Protagonist], and instead mostly orbited the plot. There was also no way someone like the number one male hero wasn't important to the story; he wasn't born yesterday.

The system seemed sympathetic to his sudden tension, but didn't acknowledge it. Instead, it pulled up the world description:

[Task 54: Raise the Biological Child]

[Task 54a. Assume guardianship over the biological child.]

[Task Description: The gruesome deaths of two top-tier heroes, Astroman and Blast Lady, during an international incident has left the nation shaken and in mourning. But though hero morale has taken a hit, the position of heroes in the public sphere has never been stronger.

The Konnikovs, upon their untimely demise, left behind their two children, one of whom was adopted. They entrusted their biological child to their sidekick, Earth Lass, and their adopted child was readopted by the number one hero, Trident Lannister. Both grew up in their care of their new guardians, and met again in the Hero Academy. Julian Konnikov, envious of the status of his adoptive sister's guardianship, sought out trouble for her repeatedly and turned much of the class against her. His actions grew more cruel and unhinged as his adoptive sister's achievements stirred his envy. Later, he would drop out of Hero Academy and become the worst villain the world has ever seen.

Luckily, despite her unfriendly circumstances, Juniper was able to make a few close friends that supported and protected her. After turning away a meteor and saving several cities using her psychic powers, Juniper reached national acclaim, her adoptive status long forgotten. It was later revealed that she was the true biological child of the deceased Astroman and Burst Lady.