MTL - House Witch - Chapter 525 524. Wear and tear and reincarnation

A conversation with a handsome stranger leaves Ariane chained in a cellar with a strange affliction. She soon discovers that the darkness of the nineteenth century’s Deep South hides many dangers. Mages, wolf shifters and the humans who hunt them play a risky game where to stumble is to die, all under the amused gaze of the apex predators of the supernatural world: vampires.

It is never healthy to attract the gaze of the aristocracy of the night. It takes much to survive in this merciless world, but Ariane will not let that deter her. The southern belle has a bite, and she is willing to learn and to grow in this hostile new world. She will use whatever means necessary to reclaim her freedom, be it guile, charm, or those intriguing new instincts that make blood so delectable.

This is a story of vampires as I believe they should be, with their strengths and weaknesses, with their remnants of humanity and the beast inside. Updates every Friday. Mind the tags.

Cover by Antti Hakosaari: https://www.artstation.com/haco

Special thanks to Svensonsen for getting me started, as well as Omi Nya, Hesketh, Rhaegar, Yaksher, Selkie and Raven for proofreading my stuff. Thanks to my patrons and you dear readers, for the support. I could not do it without you.

Journey is on Amazon, both in ebooks and audio. here is a link to the first one:

https://www.royalroad.com/amazon/B08DK6G8Y8

The story probably exists in your local marketplace as well of I can tempt you.

Yan Hongyin saved a man.Although he was kind-hearted, he was frail and often coughed up blood.But Yan Hongyin didn’t mind.She lacked nothing – status, martial arts, or wealth.All she required of her husband was that he be good-looking, harmless, and not one of those martial artists that cause trouble on weekdays.He didn’t need to study hard for the imperial examinations or become a high-ranking official; she’d seen enough of those stuffy civil officials in the court.Ah Yu was perfect just as he was.****Sect Leader Yu was saved by a gentle and delicate pharmacist.His rescuer was a fascinating woman: beautiful, skilled in medicine, but without martial arts prowess. The renowned heroes admired by ordinary people were, in her eyes, nothing but troublemaking hypocrites and villains.Initially, he stayed only to recover from his injuries, but later he discovered that his wife seemed to have many unusual and numerous little secrets. For example, the hidden passages in their room, the poisonous carp in the pond, and the countless hidden weapons on her person…****Later.Two groups of men in black arrived outside the thatched hut in the suburbs of the capital.Commander Yan, observing the group trying to capture the Loucha Sect leader’s weakness, pondered for a moment, then put away her hidden blade.-Maintain a gentle and virtuous demeanor.Sect Leader Yu, watching the group attempting to seize the Jinyiwei commander’s weakness, fell silent for a moment, clutching his chest and coughing.-Appear frail and refined.

Wang Bo was fed up with his job being a programmer, especially because of all of the nights he was working overtime without pay. His boss had given him a mysterious game to beta test in his free time, which had granted him possession of unclaimed territory in New Zealand with which to improve to his desires. After a certain event in his company, he ended up quitting his job. His lack of goals and curiosity eventually led him to buy a ticket to New Zealand, in order to see if the unclaimed territory given to him in the game was actually real. Watch, as he develops this beautiful, fertile stretch of land into prosperity, by building villages, farms, schools, hospitals and more.

- Description from Novelupdates

“You are offering me a marriage of convenience, but princess… there's nothing convenient about me.”

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Izabelle had underestimated the fire she thought she was going to play with tonight. But how could she ever have foreseen that the man she had happened to come across with does not play with just a small fire, but a whole inferno?

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Excerpt:

“You going through this marriage with me might as well be like you digging your own grave. Because the moment you start to want more from me, I will divorce you. And the moment you break your promise and try to fight me… I will ruin you and break you apart completely. Mercilessly. You will regret ever meeting this devil tonight.” His threat was given in the same soft but cold voice.

But Elle did not even flinch. Her gaze never faltered either. This man was ruthless, and she knew that clearly. His eyes that moment promised nightmares and darkness without any promise of respite.

But no matter what he says now, it would still not change her decision. She truly had no other choice.

“I understand now…” she said quietly, steeling herself. “Since you don't trust that I will keep my word, how about we do this? You prepare the divorce documents beforehand now and I'll sign it. That way, once you decide to divorce me in the future, the papers would already have been signed and there would be no way I can trouble you about it. You would just need to send it to the lawyers and have it notarized.”

A heavy silence reigned before his quiet disbelieving laugh broke the silence.

“I'm at a loss for words, Princess Izabelle.” He looked wickedly amused. But then he started nodding in approval. “Fine, princess. I will marry you.”