Blake Elliott has been abused since he's had memories.
his only release was the freedom he felt when talking to his only friend about comic books, he loved reading about the superpowers heroes running unobstructed through life doing what they were born to do.

until one day when he and his friend are crossing the street talking reading a Spiderman comic when he hears a loud honk and instinctually shoves his friend backwards.

Yi Tian tried to look super pitiful, and she made sure everyone saw her grievances. In contrast, Ling Tianya seemed rather aggressive and cold.
In order to properly play one of Ling Tianya's fans, Yi Tian must have flipped through all of her books and learned the important plots and dialogues. She did everything she possibly could, given the time limit.
"I only ever have 2,000 hardcover copies of each of my books. Since I was still abroad when they came out, all the hardcover books are in English and they never made it to China."
Having said that, Ling Tianya smiled. "I think Miss Yi still underestimated the popularity of my books overseas. There were only 2,000 hardcovers. I wouldn't say they were sold within seconds, but it was close." Ling Tianya slowly sipped on some hot water. "I saw you carrying my books around recently. At first, I thought you were really a fan. Then, I accidentally discovered that all those hardcover books you had were in Chinese."
Yi Tian's face went stiff,and she started to look around with a guilty conscience. She was afraid that Ling Tianya's words were heard by others.
Ling Tianya chuckled. "The contract on hardcover Chinese editions has just been signed. It is estimated that it will take at least a month before the books are printed, packaged, and put on sale. You, Miss Yi, already have your hands on them. That is really amazing."
"Miss Ling, there's nothing amazing about it. It is called piracy!" Zhang Ke said sarcastically.
Yi Tian's expression completely froze. The way she looked at Ling Tianya was no longer pitiful like before. Yi Tian couldn't remain calm regardless of how strong she was inside. Being publicly debunked by the book author as a fake fan like that was a shock.
Li Fei couldn't even handle such an easy task! She got her pirated books and she was exposed by Ling Tianya herself!
Yi Tian's mind was racing rapidly, as she tried to salvage her image.
"Miss Yi Tian is a fake fan?" The small bodyguard looked at Yi Tian in disbelief. The admiration and concern she showed toward Ling Tianya didn't seem fake. It must be that Miss Yi's was poor and couldn't afford the genuine books, or that she was cheated.
"Miss Ling, it's a misunderstanding. The books I brought with me were indeed pirated. That's because my English is not very good, and I can't read the English books entirely. I really have your genuine books, and I have them all at home, never opened. I valued each one of your books very much, and it took me a lot of effort to get them in the first place!" Yi Tian's face looked sincere and honest, and her eyes sparkled as she looked at Ling Tian with great devotion.
Hearing Yi Tian's explanation, the small bodyguard relaxed his brows. He knew that Miss Yi was not the kind of woman that would lie.
The big bodyguard noticed the change in his brother's expression and quietly sighed. His prejudice against Miss Ling was so deep that it would become problematic sooner or later.
"You must believe me, I really admire your work. I can even recite the passages. Would you like to hear…?"
"No need." Ling Tianya coldly interrupted Yi Tian's enthusiasm.
Suddenly, Yi Tian stood up from the chair, and without any notice, dropped down to her knees in front of Ling Tianya.
The series of actions happened too fast. The people there all stared at Yi Tian in astonishment. What was she doing?
Even Zhang Heng stopped filming and looked over there. Earlier on, he already sensed that Ling Tianya seemed to have a prejudice against Yi Tian. He had no clue what happened to make Yi Tian kneel in front of Ling Tianya.


He's the dream guy of women world wide, the CEO of a formidable mega-corporation. But, he's absolutely powerless against her, resorting to all kinds of methods to force her into a marriage, tying her to his side with a certficiate. 

"Remember, from now on, you're not allowed to enter unclean entertainment venues, not allowed to accept drinks from other men, not allowed to have physical contact with men other than me. If not, bear the consenquences."

Ling Tianya felt that she was just like a girl undergoing puberty, under strict supervision of her parents, shackling her down with restrictions upon restrictions.

"Your requests are ridiculous, I have meetings and obligations, I... ..."

The man held tightly onto her, as though wanting nothing more than to absorb her into himself. "Ling Tianya, this is not a discussion." Therefore, the CEO had became a complete slave to his wife.

"My love for you is your perogative. Use me to your heart's wishes, I am more than willing!" 

But all he got in exchange was an eye roll, "Keep it for yourself, I don't need it!"

This was his trick; he used the simplest way to sell them. All the books were classified into multiple packages and then they started to sell them to libraries

He called to all the schools and universities in Flagstaff, including elementary schools, high schools, and colleges. He also gave a call to the schools and universities located near Flagstaff.

They only spent a morning selling all the books. Compared to the time they spent classifying the books, it took a much shorter time.

Starting from the afternoon, they drove separately to send out these books and collect the money. They spent the whole afternoon and the second day to clear all the books. Finally, their house and trucks were empty.

Hans counted the money. They invested 10,000 dollars and they earned 49,000 dollars. The net profit was nearly 40,000; indeed, it was a lot.

Li Du patted his shoulder and said happily, "You did a good job. Big Fox, you’ve earned my respect this time."

"I wonder how you view me in your heart," Hans said sourly. "Why did I only get your respect just now?" 

Hannah said, "Don’t you feel ashamed for saying this? Li, you don’t have to praise him. In fact, the biggest contributor is you. The books would have been unable to sell if it weren’t because you chose the hardcover books."

This was the real reason the libraries were willing to take the books; mainly because they were hardcovers and limited edition.

Hardcover books were expensive, and Hans had sold them at a fifth of the market price. That was why libraries were happy to accept the deal. 

Hans felt dissatisfied and said, "My sister, why don’t you say God helped us? Without God’s blessing, we could not have sold them at all."

"Thank God." Hannah took a silver cross from her clothes and kissed it.

Hans was angry and rolled his eyes. "Get out of the way. I'm going to drink a beer."

Li Du said, "Don’t get angry—no matter who is the biggest contributor, you did a good job this time. We should bid for more books."

He scared Hans. "No, never do that unless they are all hardcover books. Otherwise, we will screw things up."

Even if there were hardcover books, he was not willing to do this again. He had worked from the night before last until now. He was exhausted. 

Hans’s cell phone rang after he took a sip of beer.

He answered the call lazily and asked, "Hello, Hans Fox speaking. Who is it?"

Soon, he sat up on the sofa and said, "Yes, yes, I am the one who published the photos online. The original copies are with me. Yes, there are a lot… 

"Yes, there is Egyptian architectures and patterns on the photos. I remember there are some patterns above. Please wait a moment, I’ll check it for you... "

Li Du knew what he meant and immediately took the album over.

Hans described the photos. After he hung up the phone, he looked pleased. "I am the biggest contributor. Guys, I am the biggest contributor!

Li Du asked in surprise, "Someone is interested in the photos? How much are they willing to pay?"

Hans hurried to change clothes and said, "Yes, I think he is really interested. He is willing to pay 4,000 for a photo if they were original copies. However, it seemed like they only interested in the architectural photographs! "

4,000 for a photo. They could earn a total of 160,000!

They were ready to depart after they packed the album. Hans took out the landscape photos and winked at Li Du. "Perhaps we can be profiteers without against the rules!

During the journey, Li Du found out that the man who interested in the photos was a professor from the history department at the University of Arizona. His students saw the pictures which published by Hans on the internet, so they told the professor.

Hans said, "I like dealing with well-educated people. They are easy to talk to."

They were going to the city of Tucson, the second largest city in Arizona; also the most important city in the southern Arizona desert. It was also the place where the University of Arizona was located.

There were several schools that enjoyed great reputation in Arizona. These schools had similar names, such as the University of Arizona, Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University, and so on.

Hans was very familiar with this area. They first passed through Phoenix, and eventually, they traveled the same distance to reach Tucson in the afternoon.

Li Du sighed. "This is really a long journey."

Ah Meow smoothed its whiskers with its paws and nodded as if it agreed with this. "Meow!"

Hans did not notice the movements of the ocelot. He reclined on the passenger seat and said, "Although there are a lot of storage units in Tucson, I will not come because we can’t travel so far."

He called the professor and then they planned to meet up in a coffee shop.

When Li Du and the others arrived at the coffee shop, a brawny, middle-aged African American man was drinking coffee with two macho, young African Americans.

Seeing the three people, Li Du asked, "Perhaps we went to the wrong place?"

He thought the three men looked like gangsters, a big boss with two sidekicks.

The middle-aged man stood up and took the initiative to reach out to him. "Lewis, Matt Lewis, a passionate learner of ancient Egyptian history and the civilization of the Euphrates River from the History department of the University of Arizona. Are you Mr. Hans Fox?"

Hans nodded. "Nice to meet you, Professor Lewis. You look very brawny."

The African American laughed, "History needs to be explored. We need to keep our bodies strong to work in archeology. If you think that the scholars are old or weak, then you are wrong."

"You must have made a lot of achievements in archeology." Hans took out the photo album and asked, "Are these things necessary for archeology as well?"

Seeing the album, Lewis’s eyes lit up. He said, "I must look carefully."

Hans took out two photos and passed them to him. He said, "If I am not mistaken, the pictures are worthless. However, some of the words on the pictures are worth a fortune."

There were many buildings on the photo. The buildings appeared damaged and engraved with hieroglyphs.

One of the pictures he took out was of a sphinx without text and another one was of a building. There were some hieroglyphs engraved on the building.

Lewis took the photos and looked at the back side of the them. He held a small lamp with his hand. With the light, two lines of words appeared behind the photo. Li Du had a look at the words and believed that they were written in French.

"Maxime Du Camp and Gustave Flaubert. These are their photos." The black felt satisfied after he had a look at the photos. 

Li Du asked curiously, "Who are they? Are they explorers?"

Lewis shook his head. "No, they are a photographer and a writer. The photographer and writer who first explored ancient Egypt and captured the photos by using photography techniques." 

"According to the history books, Maxime’s father was a wealthy surgeon in France. He came into contact with the camera since youth. It was possible he was one of the first people to come into contact with the camera, as photography techniques had just been invented."

"Between 1849 and 1851, Maxime was funded by the French government to present an in-depth exploration of ancient Egypt with his friend, Flaubert, who was a writer."
　
"They finally reached the desert after they went through all the hardships. Maxime captured a series of legendary photos with his camera and tripod, including the ancient Egyptian pyramids, the Sphinx, and Aswan statue.

"However, one of the most legendary incidents was..."


They love gold, and they love silver. Even more so, they love gems that dazzle, like stars across the skies. 
Firearms, jewelleries, and precious metals; A collector’s world will not be complete without antiques.  
Storage auctions, old goods trade, re-estate sales and gold-digging. But the truth is, if one wants to make money, then the supreme way is through searching for the legendary treasures. 
Holding the fort, there’s an ocelot, a wolf, and an Andes condor. At the side, there’s a loyal hound, an irascible ape, and an African honey badger. Who said that you can only rely on humans when treasure hunting?! 

Back on earth, Anna was surrounded by large piles of books and scientific journals. After procrastinating for more than a week she had to get herself back on track and recuperate the time lost or she won't be able to present her new scientific discovery to the meeting tomorrow. However here she was, drooling on her own laptop while dreaming of a vacation she so much deserved. A phone call disturbed the silence of the room. Lazily Anna opened her eyes and wiped her mouth while passing a glance at her mobile phone. It was her boss.

"Fucking great...my laptops dead." she picked up the phone and answered.

"Good morning An!" a stern woman's voice could be heard at the end of the line, obviously not happy. "I am still waiting for your email. I didn't even have a chance to look at the paper. How are we supposed to discuss the proposition you have when none of the people attending know what you wrote inside!" she started yelling as she lost the last string of control.

"I'm sorry Mag. My laptop died so I lost all progress. Can't we just cancel this meeting? You know I don't do well in front of people." Anna quickly made excuses for herself while she was plugging her laptop and smashing its keyboard.

"Don't you dare give me that excuse again. We cancelled the other 2 because you're a lazy ass. Scientists from all corners of the world came here for this meeting. Do you think I can just cancel this? What should I say!? That there's a moron who can't get her life together?! And I gave you enough time and excuses. Friends, friends yes but you can't keep doing this."

"Ok ok sorry! I'll get it done by tonight."

"No-" Anna hung up on Mag and tossed the phone on a green satin couch.

"Bitch! I need sleep too!" exasperated she started typing on the laptop while her mind wandered off somewhere else.
"Yes, this font! Comic Sans to annoy everyone. Perfect." satisfied she looked at the clock.
The mohogany Tambour clock stood proudly on top of a rustic fireplace who never even entertained a fire. Besides her passion for science, Anna had always enjoyed being surrounded by aesthetic pieces especially ones dated before the French Revolution.

Living in Marseille has probably had a big impact on her tastes for old pieces. She wasn't a cat lady but she was definitely a collector of old books, which is why her study looked more like a royal library than a place to work.

"Sometimes I really wish that I lived in a fantasy world." she never wished to become a princess waiting for her Prince Charming, because after living for 35 years and also being a divorcee she learned that no man could stand her for that long. Her husband left her more than 6 years ago, when he got fed up with the lack of interest she put on him. Anne was a dedicated scientist and would have rather spend time in her lab or library than on a dinner with her husband.
"I can't really blame him." She remembered the last photo he posted with his wife who recently gave birth to their second child. 'What an ugly child.' she thought at that time, but she couldn't really comment on the post in that way so she just unfriended Carl.

"Oh well let's get this over with. I'll have to treat myself with a nice cake after this." happy that she found her motivation, Anna looked at her presentation deciding what colour background to use. Suddenly her head felt dizzy, and she started losing her senses. Panicking she started looking around for her medicine thinking that it is just one of her usual panic attacks, but could not see as everything around her turned white. She finally lost the battle and closed her eyes slowly.
This time, the generic phone tune wasn't going to wake her up nor the urgent knocking at the door. Sadly what used to be one of the most renounced scientists on earth, has died under suspicious circumstances that would probably never be known.

~

After what felt like forever, Anna woke up in a room full of books, but it didn't make her happy as this wasn't her lovely study but an eery looking library. There were thousands of old and new looking books all in hardcover with gold-threaded runes that were indecipherable. The books were packed together on bookshelves that didn't seem to end no matter what direction you were looking. They formed never-ending columns hidden in a bleu marine mist. There she sat in the middle of it all, on a sofa in front of a desk with no-one attending. The mosaic floor reminded her of Greek stone flooring, and it looked like a battle between Gods, different looking creatures of all shapes and sizes fought in a chaotic manner that didn't tell her what they fought for. The coloured stones were uniformly set in a circle, after which the columns of bookshelves appeared. No matter what direction she looked at there was the beginning of the book aisle. Curiously she walked in the direction of one but when she was about to step out of the circle she was pushed back by an invisible barrier.

"Ouch!" said Anne while rubbing her butt.
"What the fuck-"

"Such foul words" hissed a voice behind her.
Suddenly she turned around and looked at the creature before her. A relative small snake stood on top of the desk, his dark eyes fixated on her. His skin, the colour of midnight somehow shined like a piece of diamond and yet looked fragile as glass.

"Wh-what? You ca-can speak?" as a chemist she knew relatively little about other fields of science but she was sure that snakes never spoke. Bewildered she didn't know how to react so she couldn't get her thoughts together, her mind was racing trying to make sense of the situation.

"Oh, but what an insult!" the snake narrowed his eyes in disgust still looking down towards Anna.
"Of course I can speak! What do you take me for? An animal?" his smug face turned to utter disgust while turning away.

"Duh...don't you look like one?" her words seemed to insult the snake even more as he started coughing and ignoring her sentence. 

"Well, well...what do we have here. Only a bitch like you could survive to be able to see me a God." it annoyed Anne.

"Since when do Gods look ratty like you snake?" patronised Anne. She observed his smug face. 'Hmpf...he must be proud to look down on me.' Anne gave him the same looking face. He can't do anything to me since he hasn't touched me at all. 

"Outrageous!" hissed the snake. "No wonder not even hell wanted you." smirked the snake. 
"Heaven didn't even look twice while throwing your soul here." 

"So what? It's not like I will miss much either. They can sing acapella songs for themselves. I never had a talent for music anyway."

"How du-...never mind. That's not how heaven works." hissed him. 

"Oh yeah? What do they do then huh?" said Anne while crossing her arms and raising one eyebrow. 

"They enjoy themselves, ripped men or gorgeous women and drink or pleasure themselves. That's why you don't go there." laughed the snake while looking up and down at her. 

"Oh my...so I take that you didn't meet the criteria either" Anna patronised him. 

"Outrageous! How can- what a disgusting woman you are! How dare you say that to me?" the snake's eyes emitted a blue mist that soon covered the entire room. 
"Let's end this quick since I can't stand you any longer, foul human. I'll let you 'enjoy' the life of another person...have fun dying!"

"You're coming with me you bastard!" Anne ran towards the snake and caught him before the light overcome them.

Afterwards, the surroundings became black again, before she opened her eyes finding herself in a red space. It looked like blood but it didn't touch her, it stayed about 9 feet away from her. In front of her, a very good looking woman stood looking worried towards her. She had black hair that reached her thighs, purple eyes similar to amethyst and a slender built. She looked perfect from top to bottom, her olive skin complimenting her very well. She was a work of art! Anna looked at her boobs and saw two big mountains. She then looked at herself and they seemed more like a plateau so she felt depressed again. Anna never really cared for how she looked until now when she felt inferior both physically and mentally.

"Aham!" awkwardly Anna diverted her eyes and coughed lightly.

"Wh-who are you?" an angelic voice asked Anna. She couldn't believe there would be a person that can speak so beautifully and yet still look mature.

"Anna? Why are you here? Aren't I supposed to be dead?"

"What? D-dead? I-I was supposed to start a new life?!? Ricky!" the woman started crying pitifully. She would make any person's heart melt. Even Anna felt a bit sad for her but she quickly regained her composure.

"I don't know what happened or who Ricky is but I'm pretty sure I died. The snake told me so...."

"The snake? He-he..." amazed Selda looked behind Anna.
"You lied!" she yelled.

"I never told you what the deal was, princess." snickered Angus. Anna looked suspiciously at the snake and went to snatch the snake when she noticed a black tattoo on her right hand. It was a snake eating its own tail!

"What's this!" she yelled at Angus. Only then did he notice her tattoo. He looked scared.

"Oh no-" suddenly everything turned black again something Anna grew accustomed to by now.

~

When she finally woke up, she found herself in a soft bed compared to clouds. Her room decorated richly with expensive furniture, floor to ceiling windows that oversaw a massive garden. Her room alone could be compared to the lab she used to work in, looked spacious enough to dance Walz and not hit any furniture. The massive bed, in which she lay, was surrounded by sheer curtains that at the moment were tucked by two women.
Confused, Anna raised her hands towards the ginger-haired woman dressed as a maid.

"Oh my!! Princess! Mielda go fetch the Royal butler let him know!" the amazed maid hurriedly took Anna's hands and squeezed them to make sure she was alive. The woman called Mielda ran towards the beautifully decorated door and out the corridor.
"It's alright Princess! Everything will be alright! Do you feel any pain?" probed the maid worriedly.

Anna looked hazily towards the maid, her head was spinning and she didn't know what was going on. She remembered the PowerPoint she was working on, the snake and the beautiful girl. The tattoo was still on her arm, but the hands were those of a child. Hurriedly got off the bed and ran towards the massive oval mirror. A small 5 to 6-year-old, cute girl came to view, she looked somewhat similar to someone but Anna couldn't pinpoint exactly who.

"Princess Tinselda?? Is everything alright?!"

"Get out my room!" yelled Anna.

"Princess!... I will excuse myself then!" the maid ran backwards while keeping her head down.

"What the fuck happened with me?!?" Anna felt like crying when she looked at Selda in the mirror.

"Do you have any last words?" said the soldier while getting ready to kill him.

"..."

"Very well. Atone for your sins in hell!" the sword detached the head from his body earing a loud cheer from the crowd.

"No no...Ricky!" inside the tower prison Tinselda watched how her best friend died.
"He...he loved me." with this he decided to follow him even to hell. 

~
Tinselda Rila Angercy
She who up until yesterday was the princess of a the country Viadora knew no end to jealousy. Having no magical power but being royalty, she was often ignored and let to run rampant. Having a crush on the neighbouring Prince, she used the people around her and committed horrendous crimes. Having killed the woman the Prince loved, she was sentenced to death herself along with her accomplice Derick.

Back on earth, Anne Thomas a lab assistant known for being a bitch died at the same time due to overwork.

"Well, well...what do we have here. Only a bitch like you could survive to be able to see me a God." it annoyed Anne.

"Since when do Gods look ratty like you snake?" patronised Anne.

"Outrageous!" hissed the snake. "No wonder not even hell wanted you." smirked the snake "I'll let you 'enjoy' the life of another person...have fun dying!"

"You're coming with me you bastard!" Anne ran towards the snake and caught him before the light overcome them.

~

Here starts the adventure of a useless princess with no motivation to live according to the Gods.

Due to being asked to show a preview of the 2nd book that's come out TODAY (Literally, the paperback/hardcover isn't even being printed yet!) I've decided I might as well since the people at webnovel are the first fans of my work ever!

Though the webnovel company as a whole can go screw themselves, the people who use their website are different.

Amazon did warn me not to post more than 5 chapters of a these books (its 10% of whats being sold) or else I'll get blackballed from their website, so this is all I can post legally.

If you enjoy the book then buy the kindle and leave a good review! I've made it $2.99 (cheapest option normally) and when 4 books are out I'm planning on a bundle set which saves you more money if you haven't bought it by then.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07M7173D8

Anyway, thanks for reading!

Pegaz.

There's a single ambition no man can reject: Immortality.

For John, death was merely the beginning. Transmigrating into a new world granted him an opportunity to change his view on life.

With power and immortality as new goals, he is willing to pay any price. Unfortunately, there are those willing to take advantage of him and his unfamiliarity with a new world. Shadows behind the curtains, unwilling to reveal themselves, will trick him into doing their bidding.

Now, John faces an entire kingdom on his own. Deceived? Conned? They don't care. His actions carry a sin none of them are willing to forgive.

With the world as an enemy, John will fight to accomplish his goals. His path will be stopped by no one.

Read this novel to enjoy a journey of self-discovery, ambition and revenge. Inspired by classical LitRPG, Xianxia and Fantasy, Idle System is a new take on these genres. If you've enjoyed novels like Ready Player One, Main Character Hides his Strength or Dodge Tank, then you're bound to love this book

The Idle System is available as an ebook. (Professionally edited + new plot twist)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HNKPKZ3

I will be posting the same amount of chapters on RoyalRoad.com

The quiet place that Edward found ended up to be a small and quaint bookstore that also sold aromatic drip coffee. While he did plan to bring Scarlet out for a shopping trip after playing at the arcade, he wasn't quite expecting the girl to choose such a place. They ventured the less crowded areas of the city and stumbled upon this old gem that Scarlet immediately fell in love with.
The lady of the bookstore had cataracts and seeing difficulties. However, she still welcomed the couple, more than happy to have customers.
"How can I help you?" she asked and ushered them to a seat.
The bookstore was rather tiny because of how many books there were cluttered in the small shop. There wasn't even a menu to offer, just an option of coffee with milk or sugar or tea. Edward wondered how such a place was able to sustain until now and the old lady hobbled back with the order of two black coffees.
"Scarlet, are you feeling better now?" he asked.
The writer nodded with a small smile. Normally, she would feel claustrophobic in small enclosed spaces but now, the tiny shop cluttered with books made her feel at home. As a writer, this was like a dream come true to be surrounded by books and coffee. However, she couldn't tell Edward that yet. 
"I'm fine," she smiled to reassure him but Edward wasn't thoroughly convinced. It wasn't because Elfie told him not to trust a girl when they say that they're alright but because he was still genuinely worried about her.
Even though she wasn't able to see clearly, the old lady brewed the drip coffee with practised ease, her body remembering just where everything was. Edward and Scarlet glanced back when the air was filled with a delicious aroma. As coffee addicts and appreciated, they knew that this old lady's skills were top-notch. No fancy machines, no fancy beans. Just pure skills and a touch of motherly love.
When the two steaming cups came, Scarlet offered her gratitude and told the old lady that she loved her shop. Edward could see the true joy and enthusiasm as Scarlet talked about the books that the old lady collected. Her collections were a little out of taste for the younger generation so she was pleasantly surprised when the bookish lady started talking about them.
"You must be a true lover of the old kind of literature. Most young people prefer to glue their eyes onto phone screens. Back in my days, getting our hands on any one of these would have been considered a luxury. I used to flip through the same book until the pages were worn simply because I couldn't afford new ones. We traded books with friends so that there was a healthy variety to go about. Young people nowadays are too privileged but they don't treasure it."
Edward sipped his coffee and didn't know how to ease himself into the conversation between the ladies. He knew that Scarlet was a little bookish. According to Elfie who studied with her for a brief period of time, the girl was not only smart but also hard working. He knew that Scarlet liked reading because she had a bookshelf in his guest room. The books on her bookshelf were very diverse so Edward didn't know what Scarlet liked. She didn't seem to be collecting anything in particular but after hearing her talk about books with the old bookshop owner, he now understood her better.
She wasn't simply collecting them. She was a true master when it came to books. Those books that she kept must have been special. Scarlet's memory was incredible. Edward knew that he had better memory abilities than most people because he was trained as a spy. He had a photographic memory but Scarlet's abilities surpassed his own. She didn't just remember things quickly. She was able to analyse them quickly as well.
For every book that Scarlet read, she remembered the names of every character, every scene and could even quote their dialogues to the old bookshop owner. Her analysis was very different and her opinions about each masterpiece were very detailed almost as if she was giving it a critique. If Scarlet could remember everything from just glancing through a book once, why would she need to keep any physical copies of books with her? Now, that made him curious. Learning new sides to Scarlet was always something that excited him. For everything new he found out about her, Edward couldn't help but fall for her more and more.
"You have not read it? What a shame," the old lady sighed when she brought up a book that Scarlet never had the chance to read before.
Hobbling over to one of the tall but overly tall bookshelves, she started to climb a wobbly stepladder and Edward quickly stood up and offered his assistance. Scarlet watched as her boyfriend played the role of a gentleman and blushed. How was it possible that she was able to get such a thoughtful boyfriend like Edward? She still found it hard to believe that they were dating and just the thought of calling him her boyfriend made her heart seize up so fully that she found it impossible to breathe.
Impressed by the courtesy of this young man, the old lady nodded in approval. The young lady was delightful and this young man was kind. They made a good couple and even though they were strangers, the old lady was starting to treat them like her grandbabies. She had taken a liking to them and decided that she would gift this book to Scarlet as part of their fated meeting.
"Is this the one?" Edward asked from the top of the stepladder.
The old lady nodded. "It is. Thank you, child."
The teen climbed down carefully with the book in his hand and Scarlet watched as her boyfriend suavely delivered the book into the shop owner's waiting hands.
"This is the book," she said and pushed it into Scarlet's hands. "You should have it."
Scarlet took a look at the dusty hardcover and dusted it lightly. "How much is this?" she asked.
When Edward heard that, he quickly reached for his wallet but the old lady chuckled and shook her head. She saw what the young man was about to do and she couldn't let him do that. University students should save their money for more important things. Books like this hardcover would be very lucky to have an owner like this young lady. Finding a well-read youngster nowadays with an old-fashioned sense of manners and respect for the elderly didn't come by every day. She liked them very much and thought that this would be a lovely gift to commemorate their meeting.
"It's not for sale, it is a gift," she smiled. "A gift with a prayer that someday you'll come by again to keep this lonely old lady company. I used to be able to talk to my husband about books but ever since he passed away, I talk to walls. My children aren't interested in good literature, what can I do? My grandchildren prefer playing Boxcraft over picking up a good read."
With a sigh, the old lady grabbed Scarlet's hands tightly with a strength that one wouldn't expect from a frail woman like her. Her eyes might have been covered with cataract but they reflected clarity and wisdom.
"Take care of it. Someday you will come to understand it the way I do. I know that you are a very intelligent lady but don't let your heart be clouded by logic. Listen to it sometimes, love can save you when everything else fails."
Scarlet looked at the romance novel and blinked. It wasn't the kind of genre that she usually read simply because she preferred to read about a character going on an adventure to accomplish something. It didn't matter if they were doing it to fight noble battles or if they were doing it for revenge. Scarlet liked to read stories that inspired her to be stronger, smarter and better. There was an insurmountable wall by the name of Anastasia and Scarlet had always felt weak and small whenever she was reminded of reality. It was only in books that she could find the courage and borrowed the bravado of heroes to face her fears.
If there was anything being an actress taught her, it was to fake it till she made it. With her talent, Scarlet knew that it wasn't easy for other people to read her. Yet, this old lady who she had only met for less than an hour could see right through her, all her vulnerabilities, flaws and insecurities. The fear that she suppressed like a monster locked in a vault was threatening to break the chains of control and Scarlet's heart trembled upon hearing the words.
Edward didn't know what it was that caused such a reaction but he knew it when he saw that flash of fear in her eyes. It was there for only a brief moment and anyone would have thought that it was their imagination because Scarlet reigned it in very quickly and thanked the old lady politely before making payment for the drinks and leaving. However, Edward knew better. He has been watching Scarlet for a while now and that smile wasn't fooling him. It was the fake one that Scarlet gave to the camera. Still waters run deep and what he saw might only be the tip of an iceberg, waiting to be discovered.


At age 10, Scarlet Liu Xiu Wen was tested with a Mensa IQ of 156.

By age 12, she was publishing books with the pen name Permanent Frost. By age 14, she was a successful vocalist-composer in the band called Britannia. By age 16 Scarlet had a successful career as a model and actress going by the stage name of Liu Xiu Wen.

However, there was a secret that the world didn't know. Away from the limelight, Scarlet took on yet another persona online as Pirate S - the eccentric half-genius. Everyone who lurked in the forums knew her name. Known for her unusual takes on life and mostly popularly for her "Human Observation Diary" blog, Scarlet enjoys the nerd life in secret.

Human Observation Diary has always kept to a very standard format but one day, a reader pointed out that the blog has recently been differing from its usual format. Intrigued by the trigger, Scarlet investigates her latest human observation - an online NEET by the name of Jedd77.

From further interactions, Scarlet finds herself helplessly drawn to him. As their friendship develops into something more, Scarlet has to make a choice.

To give up her secrecy and allow Jedd77 to be a part of her life? Or continue the game of cat and mouse even after the face reveal.

***

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"Annie! Is nice to see you. You look even better than the last time we met" A middle aged guy greeted my mother once we entered his office.  

"Oh Clark stop with your lies" My mother replied playfully. It was clear that the both of them were friends, or in really good terms at the very least. 

"And you must be the young genius I been hearing about... Mister Sam Bane" He said amicably, and then he offered me his hand to shake "I'm Clarke Cook, it's a pleasure to meet you" 

"Good day to you sir" I shook his hand firmly. Or with the most strength my seven year old self could muster. 

After the short interaction, I finally could relax a bit. For some reason, ever since yesterday night I was really nervous about this reunion. I guess that I really wanted for it to work out. 

"Take a sit please" He said after a while, with a never ending smile on his face. 

His office was a mess. I could tell that he worked hard, if the multiple papers all over his desk, and the big bags under his eyes were any indication. Still, it didn't gave much confidence on his organizational skills. 

"Thanks Clark" My mother replied. And before I could notice the mood changed. It was like the both of them went from normal mode to business mode, in just second. 

Before coming here, my mother just told me to let her negotiate in my behalf. And I planned to do exactly that, especially now with the professional aura she inspires. 

"Well, let's start with the book composition first" said Clark, "Annie, like you already know, I like the three stories you've sent me last week. They appeal to a younger demographic, which is  a group that is gaining traction lately. Although I have to say that these stories are too short to be released as books on their own. So, I propose to compile them. I think five stories could make a good sized book" 

It was reasonable. My stories were a little too short. I could've done them longer, but I wanted to keep them simple, considering that the target readers would be mostly kids. 

"That's a good idea. Although I think that the stories should have a common theme between them. For example, a book collection could be about princesses. Sam here has written about ten stories about princesses, so it shouldn't be a problem, right Sam?" My mother said, and tactfully helped me to get into the conversation. 

"Yes, there's no problem with that" I said calmly. Mr. Clark finally looked at me after that. He looked interested with that bit of news. 

"That sounds good to me. I'll need to read the five stories you plan to publish, so we can progress any further... But in an act of good faith of Sam's work, we can talk about the details of the deal we will be making" 

"What do you propose then?" Mother asked. 

He looked at me for a second before concentrating on my mother once again. Then, he brought up a paper he had at the only clear zone of his desktop, and passed it out to my mom. 

The contract I assume. I planned to read it on my own when my mother finishes it, but I couldn't help to look at her to see if I could get any information from her face expressions. Which ended up being a pointless endeavor. 

"Ha!" She exclaimed "I see your intentions Clark. If this is how it will be, let's stop here. We'll take our leave" My mother finally said. And then stood up from her seat and walked to the exit. 

I could only guess what unreasonable things were written on there. So for now I just followed her up. Although for some reason I felt that this wasn't the end of the discussion. 

"Wait!" Clark finally said, "I admit the contract may be a little unfair, but we can discuss it, no need to go away just like that" 

My mother turned back with a smirk on her face, "I'm surprised, I've heard a little about your situation Clark. But now with you flinching so quick, I'm wondering of how bad it really is" 

To my surprise it seems that we were not in the losing end of the negotiations to begin with. My mother really played him hard. Clark's face said all I wanted to know. He was mad, but he still stayed quiet about it. 

"Yeah, it's true. We are in need of a success, and that's the principal reason to even consider to publish a kid's book, besides the publicity within itself that it could generate" He admitted. 

"I've heard that all the upcoming writers choose to go with other companies, after all you've had a bad record in the last five years" My mother added while the both of us took a seat once again. 

"You really did your research, huh?" he said with a defeated look. "... I wanted to start my own comic book company, but at the end all the good artists preferred to go with either 'power comics' or 'marvelous', and before I realized, the book company I had spent so many years to build up, was on his way to bankruptcy" 

It was kind of a sad story, but also an amazing opportunity. If I played my cards right, maybe making my own comics wasn't impossible for me in the near future. 

"So, in your times of need you thought on cheating your good friend of so many years" Mother said while making 'tsk' noises, pointing the bad deed Clark has made, "Sam is young, so there will be no problem if he waits a couple of years to get published... So now I wonder, what deal could you offer us, so we can even consider making a deal with you" 

Clark clenched his jaw at that, and had a serious expression on his face. He kept quiet though, it seemed that he was seriously considering the matter. 

"What do you want?" He finally asked. 

"Twenty percent, and the rights will belong to him completely" Mother demanded. 

That was a extremely good deal, especially for a newcomer like me, asking for that much was out of my expectations.

"That's... acceptable. But Sam will have to publish at least four books with us" He countered. 

"Are you joking? Two is the most we are going to concede" Mother said with displeasure. 

That was something we had talked about before. If I was successful enough, I could go with a bigger publishing company in the future. And my mother had a high faith on my success for some reason. 

Now there was a clear disagreement between them. I honestly couldn't care less if I had to write four books for this company, with the new deal offered I would have no complaints. But I knew what I wanted. 

"How about I do publish four books, but you'll have to publish a comicbook of mine... With the same conditions as the one with the books" I interrupted them. 

The both of them stared at me with surprised faces. "What do you mean?" Clark asked after a while. 

"Well... I have this idea for a comic, and I felt compelled to do it after I heard that you own a comic company" I explained. 

"Are you talking about the one you've made with Hanna?" Mother asked me with a worried face. It was clear that she thought that it wasn't that great. 

It wasn't a bad comic per se, but I do agree that it isn't the kind of comic that sells well with the masses, nor profesional enough to be a comic on his own. But I'm aware which comics are the best sellers at this era, compared to my old reality.   

"No" I said, before Clark could have asked about it, "I have an idea for a superhero comic, but I don't have the talent to draw. So I thought it was a good compromise that if my books are successful enough, Mister Clark will hire an artist to draw my comic, and then he'll publish it" 

"That's interesting. What do you think Clark?" Mother asked with a simple smile on her face.  

This wasn't something we had discussed before, so I was relieved that she just went along with the idea. 

Clark just sighed and nodded with a smile of his own. Even if he tried to hide it, I could see that he was happy about the deal. In the end, he wanted both of his companies to succeed, and now there was a chance for it to be possible.

Samuel Bane, a guy who was just a normal 23 year old in another life, was living in a new world with his memory intact. 

The new world is almost exactly the same as the one he lived before, except that the period of time was similar to the mid 80's that he knew by the movies and tv shows he watched.

This story will focus on how Sam enters the entertainment business. Getting his works published and meeting new people on his way towards an unheard level of success. 

The concept of the story has inspiration in "I'm really a super star", but it's nothing alike.


> Currently I'm posting a chapter every Tuesday.

Lu Zhaoyang pinched her forehead as she stumbled upon the rack twice her height, filled with books both paperback and hardcover as thick like an encyclopedia. What a task, she thought as she remembered Huo Yunting explicitly requesting her to arrange the books according to the first letter of the authors' last name. 
"Great, now I have to take the book out, look for the author's name and figure out which one's the last name," she muttered as she tossed one of the books back. Some names of Asian origin like Kazuo Ishiguro, Harper Lee, Ruth Ozeki were easy to tell, but it looked like Huo Yunting read books by almost every nationality in the world. "Francois Marie Arouet de Voltaire?" She frowned, "Okay—is Voltaire the last name?" 
"Yes!" She made an eyeroll upon hearing her man replying from the back. 
"Okay, that's a 'V' then." 
There were a few books by George Eliot, that would be an 'E'.
It was weird because Huo's collection only involved these few authors. Bewildered, she heaved the little stack of books by Barry Unsworth up the rack. 
Zhaoyang's gasp lifted her fringe as she started to arrange the books according to height. She noticed how a handful of books did not even have their wrappings removed. A few books were thoroughly read judging from the loose bindings holding the pages though.
Huo Yunting sighed while he observed his woman doing the chores for him as he sipped his coffee. 
I thought she was the smart one. Why can't she tell anything? Letters of the author's last name. She even arranged it in the order I expected.
Ishiguro
Lee
Ozeki
Voltaire 
Eliot
Unsworth 
I-L-O-V-E-U
I love you.
　　——
It was a much heavier workout than she imagined to haul books around. It was even more tiring for Lu Zhaoyang when she thought about the fact that she was no longer associated with Thunderbolt Corp. 
Huo Yunting was working as usual—leaning against the back of his throne, checking out films of an unknown language without subtitles, assigning tasks to secretaries over the landline, signing documents when her ex-colleagues came in. It was awkward when that happened. It was no doubt these ex-colleagues of hers would pass her a glance in disbelief whenever they came in as if she had just returned from another dimension. 
It was the work of a morning maid when Lu Zhaoyang wiped the rack. She then took a brief lunch with Huo Yunting, silently of course, not sure if she was too tired to speak or her eyeroll convinced Huo Yunting to not talk to her. In the afternoon she plunged into the resting room and started cleaning like an outsourced janitor. 
Few hours later she walked to the spacious desk in the room, "My dear president," sarcastically she initiated, "Is everything okay?" She tried her best.
"Kinda," murmured Huo Yunting, his back leaning against the throne as he turned the monitor to her.
It was a scene of…
"GOLDEN CITY?" She bent down to have a closer look. 
It was a video and a terrifying sound rang the moment Huo Yunting hit the spacebar.
BANG!
The gunshot stirred up a commotion inside the hall. The bullet was aimed right at a stranger, while Chen? He was just a side-character which did not stay on the screen for more than 2 seconds. He seemed to be after a woman. 
The video ended. 
"That's it?" She looked at Huo Yunting.
So Chen is alright? He's not hurt? 
"Yes. Your little prince is fine. That's all." He turned the monitor back to him and smiled wryly. 
She stood back up and patted the dust off her body, "Well, all done. I still have work to do. I'll be home tonight to cook you dinner. Got to go." She caught onto her husband's message however that he was angry.
"Alright," he responded briefly. At least his woman knew he was mad and needed some attention.
"Thank you for your information." She bowed and took her purse before storming her way to Ge Yu Corp. She believed she was in luck, considering how the president of Ge Yu Corp. was nearly invisible in her office life, although she got to admit that the big man had been visiting the company quite frequently recently. 
"It can't be that bad right?" Mumbled Zhaoyang as she exited the elevator. 
It could be that bad, unfortunately. 
"Special Assistant Lu," the voice rang coldly at the door right after she placed her bag at the seat. It was Yuan Li, her interviewer during recruitment. Her usual smile was nowhere to be found, "The president has been looking for you."
"Okay, thank you." She then hurried her way to the President's Office, where Xiang Jinyan was reviewing the contract in his hands. The sunlight was gentle as it showered upon his majesty, giving his face finally a bit of friendliness it deserved. 
"Sir." 
President Xiang tossed the document to the table upon hearing her voice, he lifted his eyes, "What's your basic responsibility as my special assistant?"
"Standing by your command at all times. My apologies for that. It won't happen next time." Her phone was already dead after that whole night without charging. She could not imagine the influx of mails when her phone resuscitated.


She was the little chief secretary at Huo Yunting’s office, who carried out jobs both on the table and "under" the table. 
She was also his obedient wife at night, fulfilling his needs.
It was a repentance, a redemption to her sin, Lu Zhaoyang was swallowing all these humiliations as heaven forbade, her mother was the other woman in this ugly affair with the wealthy Huo family, and eventually shattered the entire family, droving Huo’s mother insane.
It was probably the fairest, also the most horrible bargain of Lu’s life as Huo Yunting raided their house one day.
“You would compensate with your body. On daily basis.” The offer was made and she could not say no. 
“If you think you aren’t having enough fun… Well, perhaps we could play the divorce game, then we could have another marriage, making the same vow with you always as my bride. I can do this, again and again. Again, and again. Isn’t that sweet, honey?”
 
Was it heart-moving, or simply tear-moving?
ISN’T IT OBVIOUS?
Huo Yunting, he’s a devil, both body and soul a devil!
Join the Fifty Thunders of Huo Yunting! 
As you see dominance occurs in the classic office romance taken place in modern world with a hint of quirky comedy and heart-wrenching episodes!

As Austen had predicted, Seyla awoke a little over five hours following their conversation in The Cortex, by which time night was fast approaching. She moved gingerly upstairs and into the Dining Hall and found everyone sitting at the laden table, helping themselves to a feast of roast chicken, mashed potatoes, fat sausages, bacon, fries and pudding, each with a different drink in their hands — Austen was a wonderful chef, though he often said that he was nowhere near his mother's level. Malik pulled out the empty chair beside him and Seyla sat down.

"How are you feeling?" Austen asked.

"Fine." Seyla said, though she looked rather pale.

Austen looked unconvinced, but before he could voice his uncertainty, Malik said, "Choice drink? We have lemonade, pumpkin juice, coconut water or you can have a glass of what Austen's having."

"Watch it." Austen said, pulling his glass of red wine away and casting Malik a dark look.

"Don't be stupid." Claire said sharply. She needs something hot, not cold." She disappeared into the kitchen and returned a few minutes later with a steaming mug of chocolate milk. "Here, take this." Seyla drank; heat flushed through her body. She could feel the stiffness of her limbs caused by the cold burning away as she swallowed.

"Better?" Claire asked.

"A lot better." Seyla said, colour returning to her face. "So what did I miss?"

Raul explained briefly; Austen's orders, how he and Malik teamed up to defeat Stronghold and the white rhino, how he took her home and returned for Malik, how they knocked down Ryu and the pale skinned girl, how Metal Maniac and several other heroes showed up, their conversation in the Cortex about Sinistra and finally, Metal Maniac's message — he left out Malik's strange behaviour.

For a moment Seyla said nothing, then she spoke rather softly. "Sinistra, huh?"

"Yeah," Malik said, taking a swig of his carrot juice. She fell silent again. Raul thought that she was now thinking over what he said about Austen.

A few more moments passed, then, when he was sure that she was going to explode on Austen about his ridiculous decision to choose Malik over her, she simply stated that she was feeling chilly again. After several seconds of staring at Seyla in utter disbelief, Raul sped off, knocking over Malik's glass of carrot juice, and returned, clutching a thick fur coat that he threw to Seyla.

"Where did you get that?" Austen asked, his eyebrows raised.

"From a store in the city called 'The Wool-E Mammoth.'" Raul said coldly, refusing to look at Austen. He watched as Seyla, somewhat flustered, put on the coat. Surely she would deal with Austen once she was feeling a bit warmer? To his surprise she simply tucked into the meal, not saying another word or looking even slightly troubled. He gaped, open-mouthed, at Seyla, oblivious to the fact that Malik was staring at him, trying to resist the urge to rip him apart for spilling his drink.

After dinner that evening, Raul went to bed swearing loudly and muttering that girls were the strangest creatures he'd ever seen, while Austen, looking quite unbothered, recommended Seyla stay under dimmed thermopanels that night.

Three days passed and he had still not forgiven Austen for what he had done. He didn't utter a single word to him when he could help it, and when he couldn't, he spoke with venom in his tongue. Austen however, remained quite cheerful and Seyla, to Raul's surprise and annoyance, was still not bursting with fury.

On the fourth day after, Austen had left to collect material he would be acquiring from a mysterious source for the repair of Malik's suit, and Raul began to rant — for the seventh time so far — about what a horrible decision he made and how he didn't care to apologize even once.

"Who does he think he is, honestly? No, better question, who does he think we are? His expendable playthings that he can just toss away whenever it suits him?"

"I'm sure that's not what happened, Raul." Seyla said in a bored voice.

Raul was so furious he couldn't string the words he needed together. How could she, of all people, take his side?

"Right you are, Seyla." Austen said, pushing open the front door and swinging a small black bag. "Though I'm willing to leave him be and let him vent his frustration for as long as he wishes."

"Yeah, only because you're not the one who has to listen to him!" Malik spat.

"Exactly!" He strode over to Malik, pulled a small, flimsy book from the bag and threw it onto Malik's lap.

"What's this?" Malik asked, bewildered.

"Your comic book." Austen said.

"What?" Everyone yelled simultaneously.

Malik grabbed up the book. "'Fist of Providence'?" He repeated incredulously.

Seyla, Raul, Claire, Vernon and Jayden all scrambled up and gathered around him.

Malik skipped through the pages, flipping them so hard he tore one. There on the pages before him, were detailed drawings of his fight with Stronghold, almost exactly as it had happened. Malik punching his face with no effect, him grabbing Malik and throwing him onto the ground, Malik escaping one of Stronghold's next blows narrowly, clutching his chest —

"What is this?" Malik asked.

"I'll get to that," he said, pulling out two more books and throwing them to Seyla and Raul. "There are some for you as well."

The stories depicted in their books ("Queen of The Dark Arts" and "Dash") showed their battles with 0-Zone and the white rhino almost exactly as they happened, as Malik's had done with him and Stronghold.

"What are these?" Seyla asked, repeating Malik's earlier question.

"Comic books, depicting very near perfectly — as I'm sure you've noticed — your various fights at the museum the other day. The authors, rightfully so, seeing as though they don't know much about you, have dubbed you "The Unknowns." The greatest mystery case in Phoenix City's most recent news."

"But —" Malik began, but Austen cut across him.

"Apparently, the author obtained a video of your respective fights between members of The Council and Sinistra, and were so deeply interested by what they saw that they decided to create their own original comic line, "The Unknowns." Quite popular in fact."

"Where did you get these?" Vernon asked, looking at Austen.

"From a comic book store in Tavern City called Rumbanks."

"You went to a comic book store?" Raul asked, so surprised he forgot to be cold and fierce.

"Yes. But not for the comics though." He added quickly, at the shocked looks he was getting. "The owners are relatives. It so happens, that they are the writers."

"You never told us that you had family near here." Malik said curtly.

"Yes. There are indeed a lot of things that we don't tell others, Malik." He gave Malik a significant look; he must have understood what it meant, because he fell silent immediately.

No one said anything, they were all looking at Austen with expressions of confusion and anger.

"Of course, you don't like this idea. I don't either — this type of attention is something that may prove very irksome to us. Unfortunately, I have no current fixes. I cannot go to my cousins in Tavern City and ask them to stop publishing these books, as I'm sure you can understand why. The only solution I can think of right now is simply to try to take off some of the pressure, "lay low" if you will."

"So that means no more going out to save people then?" Malik asked, with a hint of hopefulness.

"No." Austen replied. "It simply means you will be more subtle with your future missions. And look, you can start practicing right now! I have an assignment for you."

"Finally." Claire said, cutting across Malik and Raul's groans of protest. "I've been bored silly sitting here doing nothing. So, where are we going?"

Austen smiled broadly and strode towards the door leading to The Cortex, gesturing to them to follow.

The days of Heroes and Villains are over; Corruption runs where virtue once thrived, and empathy now resides in the minds of the unjust. In a world threatened by otherworldly danger, only 6 unlikely teenagers rise to the occasion. Under the wing of a rogue superhero, they must band together to face an oncoming apocalypse.

With the rising of the morning sun, Trent knew he was screwed. Putting down the game controller, he quickly grabbed his phone to check the time. Thank God, it's only 6:30. He has to be ready in thirty minutes to make for his bus. He's made it to the bus at later times. Just some things need to be sacrificed. Trent rushed to clean up his room. There were chip bags and sodas all over the floor. There was also an unidentified young man lying on the floor.

"Micah! Come on man wake up. We'll be late if we don't get up," Trent said as he kicked his little brother awake. Startled, Micah shot up from his spot on the floor. Looking around, he also realized what time it was as he sped back to his own room.

The Davis family is made up of four members. There is Trent, the oldest son at seventeen, Micah the youngest son at sixteen, Arielle, the only daughter at fourteen, and Debra, their mother at thirty-four. Their father died when Trent was four but their mother raised them well on her own. After his father died, Trent turned to comic books to keep his spirits up. He didn't care about the franchise feud that went on. He just cared about the stories and what the heroes would do with their powers and abilities. Growing up as the oldest, the other siblings began to take on his love for comic books as well, causing the house to be a den of comic books, action figures, and various comic paraphernalia.

Their mother Debra, was out of state on a business trip, so Trent and Micah decided they'd play the new Spiderman game and didn't realize how late it got.

Hurrying to get themselves ready, there was a knock on the door.

"Trent, Micah, I finished making breakfast so hurry up or you'll miss the bus." Their sister Arielle said through the door before leaving. Knowing he didn't want to skip breakfast, Trent kicked himself into overdrive, hopping out of the room with half his clothes on. As he stumbled out of the room, Trent tripped down the steps leading down to the first floor.

"Fuck! Fuck! Shit! Fuck!" Screaming swears on the way down, Trent finally reached the ground.

"Man that hurt a bit." Trent got off the floor and rubbed his sore ankle. On the way down it banged on the steps a couple of times so he would probably have to put more pressure on the other foot. Quickly finishing readjusting his clothes, he limped into the kitchen.

"Are you alright? That sounded painful." Arielle said in a teasing tone, but not completely able to hide the hint of concern in her voice.

"Nah I'm good. I've dealt with a whole lot worse than that." Trent slid onto a chair and began to eat his breakfast. Despite her age, Arielle was the best cook in the house. Trent was well enough to cook for himself, but it wouldn't taste more than average. Not to mention his culinarily inept brother.

As he finished up his breakfast in less than two minutes, not even breaking his record, Micah came down the stairs, ready to leave.

"Bruh you good? Cause it sounded like a cartoon. I thought I was gonna have to call somebody." Micah looked at his brother with a smile on the corner of his lips, barely keeping in his laughter.

"You're just mad cause I only died once on my play-through." Trent retorted back to Micah with a satisfied smile on his face.

"It was all just luck. It'll never happen again in a million years." Micah walked in and sat down to eat his own breakfast.

"Don't need it to Micah, don't need it to."

Finishing up their food, Trent and Micah moved to wash the dishes. They followed a set of unspoken rules. Whoever cooks is exempt from washing the dishes. They looked at the clock. They had two minutes left before their bus got to their street.

"Alright let's head out, I'll lock up behind us." Trent grabbed his bag and the keys from beside the entrance and waited for his siblings. As a high school senior, Trent didn't have much work he had in his bag so he would leave at the door so he wouldn't have to pack it everyday. Thankfully, they made it to their bus. Other than Trent falling, there was no accidents throughout their ride.

As their bus pulled into the high school, Trent made sure to step off first. He had the habit of sitting at the front of every bus he got on so he was always first off. Although he had a license himself, he wasn't allowed to drive his mother's car when she wasn't there. 

Standing a little ways from the bus, Trent waited for his siblings to get off. As they got close to the entrance of the bus, shouting was heard from the side of the school. Suddenly, a car drove on the sidewalk of the school, scattering some students and bulldozing over others.

Realizing that he was in the pathway of the car, Trent tried to run to the safest area near him, his bus. Taking a step, ready to sprint to the bus, a shock ran up his leg and he fell. His ankle was still hurt from the fall! Looking up and seeing the horrified face of his brother and sister, Trent rushed to stand back up but, he was too late. The car's bumper smashed directly into Trent's head and darkness engulfed his surroundings.

[System integration 50%...75%...100%]

[System Integration complete]

Before completely losing consciousness, Trent heard a mechanical voice echoing in his head before he embraced the darkness.

After a freak accident, Trent wakes up in a new world of magic. Along with a system that gives him the powers of heroes and villains from comic books, Trent fights monsters, bandits, and nobles to find a way back home and to prove that powers are better than magic. (Note: Uses strong language throughout the book so if any are offended, just know that this is the way the character's personalities are made.)

hardcover comic books

marvel: i desire freedom

Sweet Love 1V1: Spoiled by The Executive

Treasure Hunt Tycoon

How to spend a second life

The Idle System

Love Journal - As Told By An Emotionally Constipated Half-Genius

The road to success from a familiar past

WARNING! Tsundere President

Inverzion

Metas vs Magic (A System Story)//DROPPED//

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