Beers and Beards - Chapter 4: A glass half full

Some crowns are forged in blood. Others are drowned beneath it.In a city strangled by smoke and silence, where children are shackled to machines and shadows rule behind gilded masks, Keiran is just another forgotten soul—until the mark appears.Buried beneath the factory’s foundations lies a world long erased from history. Ancient oaths whisper through stone and water, and something older than memory begins to stir. As Keiran is drawn deeper into the abyss, he uncovers a legacy not meant for mortal hands—a crown shattered in defiance, a flood sealed by sacrifice, and a power that demands a price.Hunted by tyrants, haunted by echoes, and bound to secrets he never asked for, Keiran must choose: drown in the tide of what came before, or rise against the current and reclaim what the world was forced to forget.But the deeper he goes, the more the truth unravels…And beneath it all, something still breathes.

“I am a benevolent god. If you worship me well, maybe I will save you… from the calamities I send.”Zayne was just an ordinary guy, when he was picked through a random draw to become a host of the God System. Having accepted the offer - could that even be considered a choice, when his soul would have been exterminated otherwise? - he was transported to a different world, tasked with gaining believers and growing his cult, earning points from their faith. Once he gained enough believers and points, he would be able to rise to a higher position in the Pantheon…However.A ‘life’ as a deity turned out to be far less glorious than he would have thought. Centuries later, he is still stuck in his first world. Fulfilling prayers day in and day out, as a mere consciousness floating in nothingness, alone with the system. He cannot rank up, he cannot move on, and he cannot even vent his frustration well, because he’s always short on points!And his believers are not even loyal, still worshiping other gods as well!In a moment of distraction, he makes a mistake, which initiates his descent.Not wanting to waste the points he has already spent, Zayne decides to wander the world for a while, posing as his own prophet, using this opportunity to spread his faith… And more importantly, vent all his pent-up anger, and have fun along the way!Randomly doing whatever he wants, he accidentally discovers a path he could take as a god: sending calamities, and then rescuing people from them - of course as long as they pray!And so his journey to the top finally begins.

“If I don’t die… I swear I will act on all my evil thoughts..”

Not exactly everyone’s typical thought when they’re about to die. What will a cowardly young man do when reincarnated with the evil powers to redefine his destiny? Can the natural kindness of human nature triumph over evil? Will he become the cold-blooded demon king of legend, or will he forge his own path and rain down another kind of terror?

The heiress to a powerful tech company, Diane Lily Hoffman, had a tough childhood filled with lies and mistreatment.At 14, her cruel stepmother tricked her into thinking her father had sold her to his enemies. From there, the family who adopted her abused her physically and emotionally.Using her as a ploy to get rich, her adopted family forced her into what she thought was a loveless marriage with a plastic surgeon named Gabriel.Despite what she perceived as a lack of love, she found solace in her married life until her path was chosen for her again and lies were made to drive a wedge between her and Gabriel.The divorce was painful and she realised all too late that everything was not what it seemed.Unfortunately, the lies her family crafted were too much for Gabriel to ever give her a chance again.Just as she was about to die, Diane was given a second chance to fix her mistakes.Now reborn, Diane is ready to find her real father and ex-husband, seeking revenge on the family that betrayed her and taking back the life and justice she deserves.