Bellosh

“.....Huh.” Sunset Shimmer absent-mindendly nodded in understanding, not having a comment ready at that present time. If she understood things correctly, Prince Lián and the Empress did not share the same pair of parents as the other royal heirs. It also sounded like jealousy ran rampant in the Imperial Family. Heh, and Sunset believed her family situation was messed up! At the very least however, Empress Yuè could count her sibling as a loyal wingman. Sunset would have killed to known somepony like Lián during her Hope Hollow days. But alas, the past was in the past, and all this thinking about childhood pasts and siblings gave Miss Shimmer the uncomfortable remembrance that she herself had left behind a sibling who had not yet been born when the then-filly abandoned everyone and everything she once knew. Sunset wondered how that kid was holding up, what sort of pony he or she was... and whether that kiddo would have been better off with a faithful older sister by her side....? Sunset Shimmer quickly dismissed that thought. She herself had been a horrible filly back then; factoring in the corruptive influence of Hopelessness Magic, in all likelihood, Sunset would have been nothing more than a resentful tormentor to her younger sibling. No... the unicorn mare’s family was clearly better off without her. Lost to her rueful thoughts, Miss Shimmer appeared to develop a thousand-yard stare as she appeared to disconnect from her surroundings.....

“My attendant will show you to the Respected Sir’s chambers once our meeting is concluded,” the Empress informed Medo. Just as there was an official taboo against referring to the Imperial Sovereign by her name, it was tradition to always address the Chamberlain by his title or appropriate honorifics... and the current Chamberlain was a huge stickler for the Old, Venerable ways. With nothing else important that needed to be addressed, Empress Yuè sat up from her luxurious chair and gracefully walked over to Medo, stopping mere inches away from the unicorn. “...My meager expression of gratitude today cannot fully repay the debt I owe you,” the qilin mare placed a hoof over her heart as she stared deep into Medo’s green eyes; “If you have any request to make of me, then as long as I have the power to grant it, it shall be yours.....”

47. I never really planned on writing a lore writeup devoted to King Faba. Basically, the important guidelines to follow are that Faba is of the Lawful Evil persuasion, REALLY hates chaos, and is a dragonified take on the "First Emperor" Shi Huangdi. King Faba was active around the same time Grogar was running amok in Equestria, during the Hyponian Age. Although I haven't made it official, I've played with the idea that the Imperial Watch was essentially founded by Faba to serve as his spies and elite agents during the Tyrant King's reign of terror, and that they switched their loyalty to the Two Champions and their dynastic successors upon Faba's imprisonment. Sorry I don't have much more to provide for King Faba at this time. PS: Long Kong is not an actual colonial possession of Equestria's, but Princess Celestia was heavily involved in developing that land roughly a couple centuries ago into the modern metropolis it is today.

“Ahhh,” Sunset Shimmer nodded in understanding; “Yeah, I’m down for that. We didn’t really get into practical down-to-earth applications of the Path during Magic School. It was mainly just going over its history and yada-yada-yada... basically dry academic stuff that can be taught in classrooms.” With cat-like curiosity, Sunset asked the diamond dog; “So, how’d you become a monk, anyway?”

.................................................. .............................................................................................. If Cadence had this straight..... Mama didn’t even remember Papa‘s name! How. Very. Lovely..... if it weren’t for the fact that Flurry Heart and Shining Armor were around, the pink alicorn would be giving her mother the biggest earful that Canterlot has ever heard. As it was, it took every inch of Cadence’s willpower to prevent herself from exploding into a ball of frustration. But it was all fine. Really. It was. For everypony’s sake, Cadence would wait until she and Mama were behind closed doors before venting out her aggravation over the simple fact that the daughter may never get to know a fact so minor and trivial as the identity of her very father. So no, although the princess’s thousand-yard stare looked on the verge of erupting into a furious gaze, Cadence was okay. Nothing is wrong. Nothing wrong whatsoever. Let’s just all finish watching the projector show and carry on like a normal, healthy family. Because everything was fine right now.....

A noblepony having to WORK??? Such a thing is unheard of!

Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh............... I'm going to be really honest; even if Sunset sometimes brings her Journal with her, I'd personally rather not have a meeting between her and Swift come about due to hired "crazy ass ninjas" being sneaks. Leave those sorts of shenanigans to bad guys like Hou. I'd vastly prefer if Swift learned about Human World from somebody who's in a position to know about it (which would also include Sunny's closest friends, I'll add). If one of them lets some info slip, that'll be fine by me.

Still though, all that surveillance would suggest to a sane person is that Sunset Shimmer holes up in the Castle of Friendship (or wherever the Mirror is) for up to several days at a time. And I wouldn't expect random creatures to be allowed to snoop around those buildings at will. Most likely, the truth about Sunset's extra-dimensional activities won't be apparent unless somebody REALLY thinks that discovering the truth about Sunny's "reclusiveness" is worth committing burglary over. And I'm just not sure if that threshold can be met, IC-wise.....

I see this thread is becoming a hot spot again. 🔥 Anywho, I wonder just how much information about the Mirror World has spread through Equestria. Has the existence of humanity become common knowledge yet? What would a Gamesmaster like @SteelEagle suggest? PS: Count WHO? No offense, but Sunny doesn't know jack about Equestria's nobility, lolz. Pfft, that's what they all say at first.....

All at once, the puzzle pieces had come all together. The reason behind Tempest Shadow’s panic attacks, the reason she attempts to project absolute aloofness and aggression in nearly all situations, the reason why she lost much of her ability to cast the spells that unicorns took for granted... Sunset Shimmer found it painful to read her friend’s memories, and it was an even greater pain knowing that these were memories that Tempest never intended to share (as far as Sunset knew, anyway). Regardless of the invasion of privacy though... what’s done was done. Sunset made a snap call, and she chose to trust her instincts. Reading thoughts was not an ability to be used lightly, but it HAD helped Sunset and her friends before on numerous instances. Considering she and Tempest were in the middle of a potentially risky dungeon-crawl, the amber unicorn ultimately believed that the need to deal with this phantasmal ursa — which Miss Shimmer could now confidently theorize was a direct manifestation of Temy’s deepest and darkest fear — outweighed considerations for maintaining emotional privacy. Of course, knowing specifically WHY they were facing down a growling ursa illusion was allowing the Wielder of Empathy to understand what actually needed to be done. “You can do this, Temy,” Sunset gently placed a comforting hoof on Tempest; “What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger..... and you’re the strongest pony I know.” For all its malicious snarling, the supposed ursa minor behaved in a rather sporting manner by not simply going in the kill. Sunset was most thankful for that as she continued consoling Tempest with increased resoluteness; “You ARE courageous, Tempest Shadow... and right now, I’m going to prove it!!!” In what could only be described by an average pony as an act of suicidal impotence, Sunset Shimmer..... cantered forward towards the ferocious ursa, shooting off a tiny bolt of fire into its eye! Naturally, all that did was make the seemingly indestructible creature ANGRY. Filled with hate, the ursa raised its dreadful paw high into the air ready to end the offending unicorn’s existence with a simple gesture. And all that pony did was stand there...

Sunset Shimmer would have responded to her friend had it not been for the commotion she heard coming from the other side of the door. Several seconds later came a voice bidding them to enter. The amber unicorn sighed; “.....We can talk about this later.” And with that, Sunset stepped forward and opened the dressing room down. “Hello there miss, we just wanted to-” What Miss Shimmer saw... was quite disconcerting. There was Tempest’s favorite dancer, looking like she had just taken a beating! Sunset gasped; “All you alright!? You need any help?”

Ignoring the comment about the quote-on-quote “financial advisor”, the Empress addressed Medo; “All inquiries on regional herbalist practices can be addressed to the Imperial Wood Synergist. Nobody in this palace knows more about the healing arts of Long Guo than she. My chamberlain meanwhile will provide you with additional details pertaining to your responsibilities while in the Imperial Household’s employ, and as a member of the Household Staff, you will be reporting to him on day-to-day matters.” After a brief lull, the royal qilin asked; “Do you have any additional questions, Medo?”

“...Oh!” Sunset Shimmer had been caught off-guard by the revelation that the diamond dog was Liviel the instructor; “Umm, yes... yes I’m here for the class.” The flushed unicorn offered an apologetic smile; “My name’s Sunset Shimmer, and it’s a pleasure to meet you too!” Not really familiar with bowing, Sunset imitated Liviel’s gesture of greeting as best she could. “Well, I learned about the Harmonious Path a little bit in my World Studies class at Celestia’s School. Basically, it’s all about the Five Aspects, channeling them through attunement, going with the flow....... you know, those sorts of things. But, I was also led to believe that only draconic creatures could enjoy the full benefits of following the Path.....”

Sunset gulped; it did not seem that Star Swirl’s initial impression of her was a favorable one. The unicorn mare knew that outcome had been a likely possibility, but it hurt seeing it come true before her eyes... .....Yet the elderly stallion’s show of coldness turned out to just be a fake-out, allowing Miss Shimmer to exhale in relief. By this point, Sunset was out of blushes to give, having correctly assumed that Twilight told the Bearded Wizard about her too. Star Swirl’s mention of displacement collapses prompted the smarty-pants side of the Equestrian girl to emerge. “Well at one point, the mirror portal was only activating once every 30 moons, and for only 3 days at a time. I thought that strange (and frustrating) too, since I know more there are more practical ways to ensure a planar gateway can’t be used by the wrong creatures. But after discovering I could write messages to Twilight across dimensions even with the portal closed, she was able to do some jury-rigging, so now we can cross over between worlds at any time!” An intriguing question popped into Sunset’s mind. “If you don’t mind me asking; since you were the one who created the mirror portals and made trips to each mirror destination... I’m assuming you’ve had the experience of turning into... ahem,” she stood on her two hind legs for emphasis; “.....A human?”

A couple minutes later, and Sunset Shimmer found herself in Sunburst’s office. On the walk there, she idly wondered to herself that the stallion’s extreme nervousness issues could be coming from. He clearly wasn’t the sort of person who preferred being alone, but you had to figure that an accomplished Vice Headstallion and arcane scholar would be more adjusted to social interaction by now. A curious mystery, to be sure..... While levitating a chair closer to Sunburst’s desk, Sunset gave the air a sniff, noticing it wasn’t the same aroma as the allium flower from her last visit. She cheerfully remarked; “Hmmm, is that a new fragrance I smell today, Sunburst? It smells nice!”

With an affirmative “Mmm-hmm”, Sunset Shimmer indicated that yes, she was in fact a friendship professor. As for the younger girl... she was a second year? .....Right on!!! Sunset grinned; it wasn’t all that hard for her to establish automatic kinship with a pony attending the same magic school as she once did. The kid’s next comment made the mare chuckle. “Heh,” Sunny stretched her foreleg towards the other, more recognizable friendship professors up in front; “There’s a whole bunch of them right there in case you like, want to get their autographs or something. Nearly the entire Harmony Gang’s on this train... aside from Princess Twilight, of course.” Sunset had to hand it to the kid; she had a large appetite! As for what the mare wanted; “Hmmm, I think a sunflower sandwich and an iced tea will be enough for me.” When the vending pony came back with their food, Miss Shimmer proceeded to munch on her meal. Ah; this felt much better than sulking around. Quite eager to avoid falling back into a gloomy mood, Sunny more than happily indulged the kid’s desire for chit-chat. “Luster Dawn, huh?" The amber unicorn silently pondered for a couple seconds before flashing a warm smile; “...I may be a little biased, but that’s a lovely name.” The mare winked as she reached out towards Luster with a hoof; “I’m Sunset Shimmer. Nice to meet you too, Luster!” Once that pleasantry was exchanged, Sunset finished answering the question. “I teach Defense Against Dark Hearts. It’s sorta like the Self-Defense Magic classes you take at the School of Magic, except instead of learning spells, you learn to manifest the Magic of Friendship. The neat thing with Defense Against Dark Hearts is that literally any creature can harness this power. Other than that, I teach students about what sort of darkened hearts that may be potentially encountered in this world, how to avoid becoming corrupted by harmful emotions inside you, and to show empathy for others. I’ve been teaching Defense Against Dark Hearts for about a year now, and it’s been a blast both passing down what I know and making new discoveries in the process!” After a momentary lull in the conversation, Sunset turned the tables on Luster and resumed her questioning; “A second year student, huh? What’s been your favorite subject so far? Field Magic’s useful if you wanna become an adventurer someday; Creative Magic’s fun for conjuration, enchantment, and transmutation stuff... that’s Princess Twilight’s speciality actually; there’s Chemistry if you like brewing potions; and my fav of course was always Self-Defense, since we learned about monsters and how to take them on. Heh heh, sorry for rambling on like that,” Sunset softly sighed; “I guess I sorta miss the old days.....”

Aiya... Empress Yuè grimaced at the memory of those fighting celestial birds. One of them, a rainbow phoenix, had been a gift from Long Guo to Equestria. At the time, the Empress regarded the incident as a black mark on her ability to be taken seriously by others. Time had faded most of the humiliation the botched Gala caused... but mostly, it was the news of how horribly conducted Princess Twilight’s ascension ceremony went that finally allowed the Heavenly Daughter of Dragons to get over her minor shame. The Empress nodded contemplatively for a brief moment before speaking up again; “Yes... there is no duty in life which is greater than that to one’s family. Rest assured, all who serve the Imperial Household are granted sufficient time off throughout the year to attend to their filial responsibilities... or otherwise spend time with loved ones. Additional time is granted based on how far a journey it will be to reach your family, of course.” When you had a Dragon Kingdom as vast and rugged as Long Guo, the journey between the Imperial Capital and a far-away village could sometimes take as much as a week to undertake.....

Something smelled a bit wishy-washy about how the filly answered Sunset Shimmer’s question. It almost made the older mare think that the kid may have had reasons to avoid the wedding. The mention of Mayor Skies and Petunia Petals as old friends also sounded strange coming from a little girl; that was, until she mentioned growing up in that dreadful, crummy old town of Hope Hollow. Going by what Twilight mentioned before about how low that place sunk, and based on Sunset’s recollections of life right before the town lost all color, it didn’t seem far-fetched at all if those two adults had been the only two friendly souls around. Without the kindness and support of those two, Sunset wouldn’t have had a sponsor sign off on her attending the School of Magic against the will of her parents. “Ehh, yes and no... Sunset answered the next question in a rather confusing way; “I’m a part-time professor at the School of Friendship, but I live outside Ponyville... outside Equestria, actually. If I explained to you how it all works, you’d probably think I’m just pulling your leg... it’s that crazy.” The Equestrian girl left out the rather important detail of being a Hope Hollow filly herself, sensing that neither unicorn was in a real rush to talk about that locale. Knowing for sure that she’s never seen the kid around campus before, Sunset could only think of one other reason that a Hope Hollow unicorn was on a train BACK to her hometown instead of being already there. “So, I’m guessing you go to Celestia’s Schoo-” the mare blushed and chuckled as she caught her anachronism; “I mean... Twilight’s School for Gifted Unicorns?”

Sunset Shimmer possessed a basic understanding behind the Harmonious Path’s tenets. It was a subject she learned about while studying the spiritual traditions of other creatures back at Magic School. As Celestia’s ex-apprentice had understood it back then, the Harmonious Path existed mainly to help draconic beings unlock their full range of powers, and thus she largely glossed over the more philosophical aspects of that eastern tradition. It may have been because Sunset lately had taken a renewed interest in learning more about the world she originated from, or maybe it was due to the friendship she forged relatively recently with Empress Yuè’s personal retainer. In any case, when the Equestrian girl saw a notice advertising that a Fenghuang monk was setting up a workshop in Ponyville, her curiosity was piqued. It’d be neat to finally get to meet a real-life Anointed Follower of the Path rather than just merely reading about them! When Sunset arrived at the time and place specified in the advertisement, she found a diamond dog meditating. The diamond dog had a peculiar appearance, being far more of a refined breed than the sort of stereotype most Equestrians were accustomed too. “Excuse me,” Miss Shimmer asked as she approached; “Are you here for Liviel’s class today?”

...It wasn’t quite the answer that Empress Yuè expected, but nonetheless, it was insightful. Medo carried herself as the sort of pony who was dedicated to mastering her trade, regardless of hurdles such as cultural barriers. As for the documentation, while everything looked more than satisfactory as far as grades were concerned, there was some information excluded from the transcripts. The royal qilin looked up from the papers; “Please excuse my curiosity... but while attending Canterlot University, I imagine you would have been significantly incentivised to engage in activities outside of your herbology studies.....” The Empress left that sentence hanging for Medo to respond...

The voice of a filly talking to her startled Sunset Shimmer out of her stupor. “Ohh uh, wha-?” Getting her mental bearings adjusted, Sunset glanced around and saw that across the aisle, a reddish-pink unicorn child with a streaked, shimmering mane of amber was staring at her. The older mare couldn’t exactly pinpoint why, but the kid felt like something that came out of a half-remembered dream of Sunset’s. Kinda odd, really. After a moment, Miss Shimmer shook off her sense of deja vu and gave the young filly a polite half smile of her own. “Oh yeah,” Sunset replied; “I know. I’ll be attending, actually!” The adult betrayed no hint that she didn't want to be in Hope Hollow; she wasn’t about to go vent her frustrations at a bystander kid she didn’t know. Pretending to take an interest in the subject to make the little gal feel her attempt at friendliness wasn't a waste of time, Sunset asked; “I take it you’re going too?”

SICKNESS STRIKES!!! Princess Cadence has caught a nasty case of the flu, leaving her unable to perform her duties as Princess of Love! In her stead, Cadence’s husband — Prince Shining Armor — has volunteered to fill his wife’s horseshoes until she recovers. As the Prince of Love, it is Shining’s mission is to use all means necessary to help ponies kindle the supportive relationships which enable Equestria’s prosperity... including filling in as this week’s guest writer for Dear Cady..... ---------- This year's Hearts & Hooves day was particularly grating for Sunset Shimmer. All throughout the day, she was bombarded by a storm of mental fantasies involving herself and a certain somepony she knew. In the past, they'd only come up about once and day, and the Equestrian girl easily dismissed the daydreams as mere idle fantasies in the vein of winning a million bits or becoming the apprentice of Star Swirl the Bearded. But today, things got so bad that Sunset finally decided that enough was enough: she clearly needed relationship guidance for help. And what better way was there to anonymously solicit advice than the Equestria-renowned Dear Cady column? Dear Cady, I’m not sure how to put this in writing, but here goes. You will hate me for writing this, but I think romance is way overrated. Sure, it worked out for you and your husband and maybe some other ponies, but in my experience, being ‘in love’ is just a phase that teenagers go through. To put things in perspective, I was once in a relationship with a popular guy who I’ll call Brad (sorry, couldn’t think of a better pseudonym), who practically all the other girls I knew wanted to date. At the time, I remember wanting badly to be Brad’s girlfriend too. Yet once the two of us decided to exclusively date one another, all interest I had in him dropped to nothing. For almost a year, I went through the motions of being Brad’s girlfriend only because I wanted the popularity that came with that position. When Brad finally broke up with me, I was furious with him over it, but it wasn’t because I had genuine feelings for him. I didn’t care for him whatsoever. .....I should probably mention that back then, I was a manipulative and vindictive blowhard who made all her decisions out of ambition and spite. I’m a better person now thankfully, but it doesn’t change what I did in the past. Though I’m no longer the mean girl I used to be, my perspective on romantic relationships has not changed one bit. It may just be me, but I find the whole experience of flirting and dating to be nothing more than a chore. In order for a couple to stay together, you have to blow money on expensive outings and then have to constantly go through the whole routine of giving your partner hugs and kisses, and if you don’t do those chores, then the two of you aren’t in a relationship. Never mind that even if you do all the right things, there’s no guarantee that your boyfriend will be able to pick up the slack, take the lead, or otherwise endure hardships with you when the going gets tough. So then why did I waste several paragraphs ranting about relationships? Well, this is where my best friend enters the picture, who I’ll call Rising Star. Rising... she’s absolutely the greatest friend a girl can ask for, and probably one I don’t really deserve. She was the girl who stood up to me at my worst, only to turn around and offer me her friendship once my entire life of lies and deceit came crashing down. The fulfilling life I live today? I owe it all to Rising Star. The thing with me and Rising however is that while we each have our own separate circle of friends, she and I share many commonalities. We are both skilled in the same talent, we each attended the same school and learned under the same mentor, neither of us made any friends when we were young, and both of us know the pressures of great expectations and being depended upon by a lot of people. For these reasons, I relate to Rising Star more than I do with anybody else. If that isn’t enough for someone like me to love a friend like Rising Star, she’ll pretty much drop whatever she’s doing to help a creature in need. There’s this dorkish charm about Rising, and somehow she’s able to look pretty without having to try. I could go on and on about her, but that would make all you readers feel awkward. I know I always find it embarrassing whenever I hear from other people I meet about how much Rising has sung my praises. Basically, my friendship with Rising Star is the best thing that’s ever happened to me, but I don’t know how long it will continue to last. For one thing, I keep catching myself fantasizing about doing stereotypical romantic things with Rising; stuff like cuddling, spooning, holding hooves; anything that’d make her blush. I keep trying to tell myself to get a grip, but nothing seems to work. Now, I’m very good at reading people, so I would have known long ago if Rising shared reciprocal feelings; nothing I’ve seen indicates that this is true. Even if somehow Rising agrees to be my special somebody, I can’t help but think back on all the messy relationships that myself and other girls have been in. I always get the sinking feeling that if we become a romantic couple, things will get strange between us because of all the chores we’ll each have to do to convince other people and ourselves how strong our romance is. Frankly, my friend already has a ton of things to worry about in her day-to-day life; she doesn’t need to worry about making a romantic relationship work on top of that. One last thing to point out is that throughout the time we’ve been friends, Rising Star’s star has only kept on rising. Maybe I’m being selfish (wouldn’t be the first time), but I can’t bear the thought of other people regarding me as nothing more than the pretty face who stands by Rising’s side. I want to be remembered on my own merits, but being realistic, nothing I accomplish will ever surpass all the good deeds Rising has ever done, let alone pay the immerse debt I owe her. I just know that given time, old patterns of mine will repeat as I let my resentment boil over and burn the bridges between myself and somebody I hold dear (again, wouldn’t be the first time) To make a long story short, the affection I feel for my Pony Friend Forever has grown complicated, and I have no idea how to resolve the situation without causing a total mess. Sincerely, A Turbulent Sunflower

Sunset Shimmer loved her dear friend Twilight Sparkle, truly she did... but never since Sunset’s brief transformation into a fiendish monstrosity at the Fall Formal had she felt the overwhelming urge to end Twilight. What could generate such strong emotions from Miss Shimmer? Why, the impending marriage of Petunia Petals and Mayor Skies of Hope Hollow, of course. Granted, from what little Sunset remembered of the childhood hometown she deserted, those two ponies were actually among the few ponies who did her no wrong. The fact that the engaged couple didn’t send Sunset an wedding invitation didn’t upset the Equestrian girl one bit either; she was still rather glad to avoid Hope Hollow at all costs. No... the problem was that Princess Twilight got sent an invitation, and using her granted right as a wedding attendee, she chose Sunset Shimmer as her “plus one” guest. Sunset tried making a huge stink, reminding her supposed friend of all the bad blood between Sunset and her folks, but it was to no avail. For reasons the unicorn couldn’t fathom, Twilight refused to budge, countering Sunset’s every excuse with a well-reasoned counterargument or an ingenious workaround. Like it or not, Sunset Shimmer would be forced to return to the scene of her first ever betrayal..... ---------- Up in front of the train car, Twilight’s Ponyville friends (plus a few guests of their own) were excitedly yammering amongst themselves, for they too were invited to the Hope Hollow Wedding. But Miss Shimmer, despite being a fellow Friendship professor, stuck to the very back. The amber unicorn clearly appeared to others as pensive as she fixed her gaze upon the landscape moving past the window. All these years gone by, and yet Sunset Shimmer remained unprepared to face the most terrifying specters that remained from her past. Would she have the strength to confront her parents, if it came to it? Did they still hate her? Did they miss her? Or had Sunset been entirely forgotten about? And of course, there was also the unnamed sibling to consider, who had not yet been born when Sunset left Hope Hollow forever. How did that kid turn out? .....How did he or she cope with a world without color? Sunset sighed as she forlornly shook her head; nothing good could come out of a family reunion. The best she could hope for was to either hope she was forgotten, or succeed in avoiding her folks until it was time to return home. Goodness knows how that could be done in such a small town as Hope Hollow, but Celestia-willing, Sunset will make a good damned try out of it.....

Indeed, Empress Yuè was most glad that everything about Medo learned of those herbs worked out the way it did. Although the act of looking through the unicorn’s transcripts would be nothing but a formality, the Empress didn’t see the need to make the unicorn look foolish by overpreparing for this interview. So with a nod of encouragement, the royal qilin prompted Medo to open up her briefcase and hoof over the academic transcripts. As she looked over Medo’s academic documentation, Empress Yuè mused; “.....It is not every day that a Canterlot University graduate seeks employment on the opposite end of the world. I am told that advanced scholarly training is conducted much differently across the sea than here... or even in your very own home country.” Reforms notwithstanding, Long Guo’s post-secondary institutions were still very much geared towards pumping out civil servants to fill the ranks of the wide-ranging Imperial Bureaucracy, while Neighpon was famously known for its multitude of elite specialist academies.