Death... And Me

"Name's Andrew Lapis, bud. Just your run-of-the-mill guy coasting through a mundane existence. My family? As average as they come, all huddled under the drab roof of a cookie-cutter house. University? Yep, I'm there too, pulling down grades that'd make any 'ordinary' student proud. Except for Logic Reasoning. Turns out, I've got a knack for that—extraordinarily good, if you ask me. My nightly routine? Well, it's a real nail-biter. Me and my buddy, we hit up the same old coffee shop, play the same old card games. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm no slouch when it comes to those cards. You could say I've got some pretty extraordinary skills up my sleeve. But here's the kicker—life was as dull as dishwater, or at least it used to be. That was until I stumbled upon certain people that turned my world from yawn-inducing ordinary to a whirlwind of the extraordinary. My reality? It flipped like a pancake on a hot griddle. Gone were the days of ordinary, replaced by a high-stakes world of dirty dealings and opulent casinos. So yeah, you could say my life went from poker nights to playing dirty, but in the swankiest casinos you ever did see."

"Who do you want to go with? Mommy or Daddy?" Weston watches his girlfriend ask their four year old daughter. "I want to live with the two of you," the kid answers. "You can't, girl, you have to choose between coming with me or staying with daddy." "But..." The little girl's voice chokes with tears, "my teacher says family is to live together." "Not all families live together; we are one of those families who would never live together." "I'll stay with daddy." "Daddy is poor and won't be able to take care of you, just come with me, I will find you a better and wealthy Daddy who will buy you whatever you want, take you on vacation to Paris and Dubai..." *** It all started ten years back... Weston fled from his family like the prodigal son, started dating Ivy, got a child and squandered all his money. Now that he is poor, his girlfriend doesn't want to have anything to do with him because...who the hell wants to remain stuck with a man who can't even afford three square meals for his family? But then...what Weston's girlfriend didn't know was that her boyfriend was a multibillionaire...  

Alex Verlaine was a walking, talking blood-bag who only existed to donate plasma to his ailing brother-in-law. His selfless love for his wife is repaid by betrayal and his sacrifices mocked and ridiculed by his mother-in-law. But when Alex discovers his wife never loved him and is already in the arms of another man, he casts his veil aside and reveals his true identity as the Legendary Miracle Maker. They treated him like a servant, now he is back to make them kneel like slaves. They called him a penniless loser, only to discover that he was the wealthiest man in Alexandria. "Just who are you really?" Felicia asked in a trembling voice, her face rapidly losing color. Alex looked into her hazel eyes and breathed like a man possessed, "I am the God you will kneel to from tonight, or watch your whole world burn to ash. I am Alexandria's beating heart, and the only one who can save your dying brother." Felicia clasped her hands, falling to her knees in submission. "Please forgive me. I was wrong to insult you. My family needs you. Please give me another chance!" Alex grabbed her face, squeezing her flushed cheeks, and whispered in a husky voice, "Then beg me like you mean it!"

Introvert!? Me!? The hell am I an introvert? I stay indoors all day because I am afraid of getting my butt kicked. Until I contract my beast, I won’t be walking freely. This is a promise I made to myself. My name is Ryder, and I am black-marked. The planet where I live is dominated by summoners. If you guessed it, then you are right—we contract beasts from the Astral Shadow Plain and summon them at will after successfully forming a contract. A mark appears on the left shoulder of every human after a period of maturity, a mark given by the beast that chooses you. There are five different types of marks—the brown, the orange, the red, the black, and lastly, the white. Of all the markings, I was marked black. I was chosen by a supreme demon monarch of the Astral Shadow Plain—the Dracogon. There was only a 0.5 percent chance for me to survive the contraction process. However, with a slight twist in the original outcome, contracting a creature from the black-marked plain was nothing compared to the catastrophe I caused shortly after—I opened a link between the beasts of the Astral Shadow Plain and the planet of humans, Terra. Everyone on my planet has been endangered because of me. The fact that no one knows when the link will trigger and cause a breach that pours mindless creatures into my world makes it all the more unsettling. Now, with no other choice, I have to find a way to resolve the mistake I made—alone, just like I caused it.

"You said money is God in this world? Then prepare to bow before mine." Sean Alexander was nothing but an ant, a loser forever trampled under the boots of the city's elite. As a struggling courier, he slaved away eighteen hours a day just to fund the lavish lifestyle of his fiancée, Sophia. But his loyalty was met with the foulest betrayal. With his own eyes, he watched Sophia moan in the arms of his own boss, Viktor Vane. Framed as a criminal, fired, and left to die in a dark alleyway, Sean should have taken his last breath that night. Instead, his blood spilled over a mysterious heirloom coin, triggering an impossible evolution. Suddenly gifted with eyes that can see the true price of everything, from ancient artifacts and stock market fluctuations to the darkest secrets of the human soul, Sean begins his crawl out of the hell that once shackled him. He is no longer the victim; he is an economic predator, capable of collapsing global markets with a single flick of his finger. But boundless wealth carries a curse. Sean soon realizes the world is built on more than just currency, secret organizations and supernatural power-users are lurking in the shadows, hungry for the System he possesses. As the world falls to its knees, Sean lives by one rule, "To those who belittle me, I will buy your dignity. To those who oppose me, I will pay the price for your life!"

I have worked hard for my wife and her family. I ignored the bad treatment from my in-laws. For me, my wife's happiness came first. However, she betrayed me. She had an affair with my boss! That was the reason why I was often assigned out of town. Apparently, her family found out about the affair, and even encouraged them to be together. My wife asked for a divorce, and I was unceremoniously kicked out. However, a miracle happened. A new life as a tycoon was about to begin!

"Maybe you should go earn some real money, Eddie. After all, that's how the world operates.” Eddie stared at Eunice, his face a mix of pain and betrayal. "You’ve betrayed me, Eunice. All for what? For someone with more money?" His voice wavered. "I thought you had changed.” "You're right, maybe it only happens in books and movies, but believe me, my success will outshine any grass-to-grace tale ever written or depicted on screen.” Eddie, a hardworking orphan at Aveston University, is used to being overlooked and mocked, especially by his girlfriend Eunice’s best friend, Tasha. Despite his struggles, Eddie gives everything for Eunice, only to discover she’s cheating on him with Nathan, a wealthy and influential student. After a confrontation turns into a fight, Eddie is wrongfully arrested, his pleas ignored due to Nathan’s powerful father. But fate takes a turn when Eddie is saved by Damien Aviatux, the richest man in Aveston, who reveals himself as Eddie's long-lost father. Inheriting Damien’s immense fortune, Eddie’s world changes overnight. Armed with wealth and power, Eddie sets out to take revenge on Nathan and his father, who once served his family. As Eddie rises to the top, he navigates betrayal, tragedy, and love, ultimately finding happiness with who loved him for who he is, not his money. “From San Roman, down to his son. They will go on their knees!”

"I hate you. Because of you, I have become a laughing stock! You are better off dead, and you have always been nothing to me!" These words drove Lucian Drake to the edge, right after his wife cheated on him. He was ridiculed and insulted for being a cripple. Now he was no longer to play according to their rules. He would forge his own path, claiming his right as the supreme Urban Grandmaster. He would leave them in the dust and they would beg for his forgiveness!

My name is Alanna, I believe. I have lost myself in the depths of an island. I don't know where I'm from, or what my real name is, I just know that a pack of wolves has rescued me. I will have to fight against the Alpha and the Beta of the pack, but something dark blooms in me, something I did not know, a mythological being that lived inside me. A mermaid, yes, I am one of the most beautiful mermaids in the world.

“Why, Leticia?” “Because you are a water boy and a lowly janitor. You can never give me what George can.” Those are the words that played over and over in Jake’s head, crushing his heart and soul. Ridiculed, trampled and scoffed upon, none as devastating as the betrayal of the woman he planned on spending the rest of his life with. With his head low and a thick skin, Jake’s rise from ashes is a spectacular sight that puts him on top of the food chain. What will he do when those who tormented him are now at his mercy?