I Can Give Talents

Chapter 521 - Thirteen Months

While Layla was quietly enjoying Leyvi’s wandering hand, a thought suddenly surfaced in her mind.

"Husband, look at this. This will be the calendar the entire world will be using from now on. I received it yesterday." A calendar appeared in her hand.

"Oh? Let me see." Leyvi lifted his head and took the calendar, his hand slipping out of her blouse with visible reluctance.

"I see... we have an extra month now. They shortened each month to thirty days." Leyvi muttered, catching the most obvious change at a glance.

In this world, a year consisted of exactly 390 days, measured using the vernal equinox and the planet’s position around the sun relative to the stars.

The vernal equinox was the moment when day and night were equal in length, marking the beginning of a new cycle of seasons. Each time this point returned, a full year had passed.

Because of this, even though each continent had its own calendar system, the length of a year was always consistent.

Previously, the Cloud Continent used a twelve-month system, alternating between thirty-three and thirty-two days per month.

The new Archipela Calendar, however, adopted a completely different structure. Thirteen months per year, each with exactly thirty days.

"I wonder why they decided on thirteen months. Wait... why did we even have twelve months in the first place? And why exactly do we have three hundred ninety days in a year?" Leyvi voiced his thoughts out loud, proudly displaying his usual lack of common knowledge.

Layla chuckled softly. She had expected nothing less.

"Our Cloud Continent chose twelve months because of the lunar cycle," she explained. "But the Archipela Calendar uses an entirely different reasoning for its thirteen months."

"What reason?" Leyvi turned to face her.

"Look at the months. Each of them has its own name now." Layla pointed at the calendar.

"Ohh... you’re right. I didn’t even notice. We never named our months before." Leyvi leaned in and read them one by one. "Proto, Draco, Chrono, Diamond, Aqua, Beast, Crimson, Green, Mother, Dream, Hollow, Cloud, Makai..."

As he reached the last few names, something clicked in his mind.

He might not know all the continents of this world, but three of them were very familiar.

Protogaea Continent. Cloud Continent. Makai Continent.

"Wait a minute... are these based on the continents?" Leyvi asked, his eyes lighting up.

"That’s right. Our world has a total of thirteen continents," Layla explained. "Since the name Archipela represents a world of scattered lands, they decided to use each continent’s name as a month. It fits the theme, and now every month has exactly thirty days."

"I see..." Leyvi nodded slowly, then suddenly laughed. "So this is what the other continents are called. I finally get to learn their names."

He glanced back at the calendar, curiosity rising again.

"Then how did they arrange the order? Is it random, or is there some kind of rule?"

At first, he thought it might be based on strength. Protogaea was listed first, which made sense. But if that were the case, Cloud Continent should have been at the very end, given its reputation as the so called backward continent.

Yet here it was, placed as the twelfth month.

So that theory didn’t quite add up.

"Yes, there is a criterion. It’s based on power," Layla said.

Leyvi blinked.

"They evaluated all thirteen continents?" he asked.

Layla nodded. "That is what they told us. It seems the group of Dao Manifestation Realm powerhouses visited each continent and evaluated every continent’s strength. That’s how the order was decided."

Leyvi stared at the calendar again, then pointed at it.

"So... we’re not the weakest?"

Based on how the people of the Protogaea Continent always spoke about the Cloud Continent, he had always assumed his continent was at the very bottom.

"Yes. According to them, we are the second weakest. But I’m not sure how accurate that is since we don’t know what parameters they used for the evaluation," Layla replied.

Leyvi laughed. "Hahaha! Our continent was supposed to be far behind because the population was mysteriously wiped out in the past. But now we’re not even last among the continents. Either we’re catching up very quickly, or Makai Continent is declining."

"I think it’s a combination of both," Layla said. "Our continent’s Protectors have done a great job promoting growth over the past thousand years. Meanwhile, Makai Continent is ruled by a massive cult that practices death Qi. Their decline is only natural."

"A cult?" Leyvi raised his brows, clearly surprised. He had not expected an entire continent to be ruled by one.

"Yes. It’s called the Dark Hand Cult," Layla added.

Leyvi paused for a moment, then his eyes widened slightly as something clicked.

"Wait... don’t tell me those people causing trouble back then were from the Dark Hand Cult?"

He still remembered the old man who attacked the Holy Cat City. The dark hands he used now felt far less random.

Layla nodded. "That’s right."

"So it really was their signature..." Leyvi muttered.

"They once had another major power opposing them," Layla continued, "but it was eventually defeated. With a cult that practices death Qi ruling the entire continent, its decline is inevitable."

Leyvi looked at her curiously. "How do you know all this?"

Layla smiled, a hint of warmth in her expression. "Sister Caterina told me. She knows a lot of things."

Back then, after Leyvi and the others left for the Mystic Realm, the City Lord of Holy Cat City, Caterina, suddenly paid a visit to Bara City. During that visit, she made a shocking declaration. She claimed that she would become a member of the Leyan Family in the future due to her engagement with Leyvi.

The news struck Layla like a bolt out of nowhere.

How could she not be shocked? Caterina was a peak Soul Formation Realm cultivator who had lived for over a thousand years. For someone of her status and experience to suddenly decide to marry Leyvi made no sense at all.

At first, Layla refused to believe it.

But as the news spread throughout the entire South Region, her doubts were gradually erased. It was real.

Faced with something so unbelievable, Layla could only attribute it to one person.

Her Big Madam.

Only Anda could possibly make something like this happen.

Layla had already expected that her Big Madam might bring another woman into the family after returning from the expedition. But someone of Caterina’s caliber was far beyond anything she had imagined.

After that, Caterina stayed with the Leyan Family for several months, taking the time to get to know everyone.

Like the others, she quickly fell under the irresistible charm of Tasya’s cooking.

Layla, in particular, benefited greatly from her stay. As fellow city lords, the two exchanged knowledge and experience, allowing Layla to grow even more capable in managing Bara City.

Since then, Caterina made it a habit to visit the Leyan Family once every year. On the surface, it was to check on the family’s well-being. In reality, it was also to replenish her yearly supply of heavenly dishes.

Leyvi was already aware of all this. Layla had told him the story shortly after he returned from the Mystic Realm expedition.

"Oh. Makes sense." Leyvi nodded.

But as the thought of his upcoming wedding with Caterina surfaced in his mind, he could not help but sigh inwardly.

A week after returning home from the expedition, Leyvi received a message from Caterina. She gave him four months to rest. After that, he was to head to Holy Cat City and marry her without delay.

Now, only a month and a half remained.

And it wasn’t just Caterina.

He also had a promise to fulfill with Barbara, who resided in the Central Region. With Senior Lapin’s celestial cloud in her possession, staying in contact with her was effortless.

Barbara had already informed him that her brother, Barcas, would be marrying Livana in two years. Leyvi planned to travel there, attend the wedding, and take the opportunity to formally propose to her family as well.

Hopefully, Anda wouldn’t bring home any more women in the meantime.

He really couldn’t handle more right now.

Pushing that troubling thought aside, Leyvi turned back to the matter at hand.

"If the months are arranged based on each continent’s power, wouldn’t it become unfair if the rankings change in the future? Who knows, maybe our continent could become the strongest one day."

Layla smiled slightly. "Good question, husband. Actually, this arrangement isn’t permanent."

Leyvi blinked. "Not permanent? What do you mean?"

"It means the order of the months can change," Layla explained. "They plan to hold a massive competition involving all continents every hundred years. Various aspects will be tested, and the results will determine the rankings. For the next century, the calendar will reflect that order. Of course, it’s not just for prestige. There will be generous rewards as well."

Leyvi was stunned.

A competition between continents? He had not expected this development at all.

What could be the reason for them to come up with something like this? This could not have been decided on a whim, could it?