Debauchery of a Soul-Eating Wraith - Chapter 166: A Part Of A Bigger Problem

One day, I – a high schooler – found a paperback in the hospital. The “Disease Coexistence Journal” was its title. It was a diary that my classmate, Sakura Yamauchi, had written in secret. Inside, it was written that due to her pancreatic disease, her days were numbered. And thus, I coincidentally went from Just-a-Classmate to a Secret-Knowing-Classmate. It was as if I were being drawn to her, who was my polar opposite. However, the world presented the girl that was already suffering from an illness with an equally cruel reality…

The best-selling, award-winning debut work by Yoru Sumino:

“Bestsellers 2016 (Overall) by NIPPAN” – 4th Place

“Bestsellers 2016 (Paperback Fiction) by NIPPAN” – 1st Place

“Bestsellers 2016 (Overall) by TOHAN” – 5th Place

“Bestsellers 2016 (Literary Books) by TOHAN” – 1st Place

“Bookstore Grand Prix 2016” – 2nd Place

“DA VINCI BOOK OF THE YEAR 2015” – 2nd Place

“Bestsellers 2015 (Literary Books) by TOHAN” – 6th Place

As of May 2017, this book has sold over 1.2 million copies.

[Webnovel Spirity Awards 2025 Entry]In a world of magic and machines, Blaine Lionheart had been proclaimed a once-in-a-lifetime genius since he was still just a child.Born to the Legendary Warrior who had earned himself the moniker of 'Supreme Sword', Blaine was seemingly destined for greatness from the moment he first opened his eyes.He awakened to his unique Mana Art at the age of eight and entered the Kingdom's Royal Guard at the age of twelve.However, despite all of this... There was one thing that the boy genius could never do.Protect the people he cared about.No matter how hard he tried... Everyone he cared about would slowly slip through his hands, with him powerless to save them.And now that he's being reassigned to be the princess's bodyguard... Blaine can only hope that history doesn't repeat itself.No... He wouldn't let it!

In the year 2090, technology has advanced to the point where Simulation Boxes, (Sim Box for short) are common place, allowing for the user to link up their brain's neural network to a full dive Simulation. While initially used for educational purposes, recently a large gaming company, Averon, released a fully fledged immersive MMORPG simulation where users can become anyone they desire, level up, choose their class, and become a hero or a villain. The name of this simulation is The Shattered World Online.

Eli Winters had no interest in playing it. His father, a jobless bum who spent his entire life playing games in the hope of becoming a famous player or streamer, was able to use the release of The Shattered World Online to gain wealth and fame, quickly becoming the number one player and a household name as the game took the world by storm. He immediately abandoned Eli and his mother in favor of being with someone from his guild, despite his mother having worked two jobs to support them and raise Eli by herself. Eli had nothing but spite for his father and the game.

When Eli's best friend convinces him to try out the game, his father's fame begins to interfere, culminating in him being singled out and shunned by his peers, and his father offering to pay for his university tuition in return for Eli hiding their relationship and quitting the game. Instead of complying with his father's wishes, Eli decides to prove to everyone how useless a guy his father is by challenging him that if Eli is able to surpass him in the game world he must delete his account and quit his streaming career. His father accepts the challenge believing his son to be useless at games - but Eli will soon show him just how ambitious a spiteful person can be.

A hundred years ago, he was a genius of the Emperor's Domain who made even the God of War wary. He was unparalleled in both alchemy and martial arts. However, his friend betrayed him, leading to his untimely demise.A hundred years later, he rose from being a dandy young master, starting everything anew. From then on, the world witnessed the emergence of an extraordinary genius.“Boss is even more ferocious than a wild beast!”“Boss values friendship above all else. He is forever my best friend!”“Kevin, no matter how long it takes, I'll wait for you. I won't marry anyone else!”“Don't ever provoke that man of calamity. That guy is a beast!”“I am Kevin Anderson, who dares to defy me?!”