MTL - Iron Armored City - Chapter 222 Insect King Crystal and Empress Corpse Emperor

Talent.As a demon born into a prestigious family like the Tenebris, Cale lacked nothing, except talent.Talent, to surpass his twin sister, who was better than him in every way.Talent to earn the approval of their mother, the cold and ruthless Matriarch.It wasn’t mere rivalry; his very life depended on it.But, no matter how hard he trained or how low he stooped, using forbidden methods to grow stronger, he never succeeded. He couldn’t awaken his bloodline, nor defeat his sister in a single duel.“Just give up already. You’re only making it more painful for yourself,” she would say every time.He was pathetic, and he knew it.But giving up on life was never an option.“One more time... I’ll try it one more time.” That was how he always responded to her scorn.Was it ego? Or a desperate desire to prove everyone who waited eagerly for his downfall wrong?Cale didn’t know. But he always stood up again.No matter what they said, he refused to surrender.Not to his mother.Not to the world.Not even to his sister.If the world stood against him, then he would crush the world.-------------------------“Wow. That’s an incredible backstory for a villain.”I flipped through the worn pages of an old book, my only functional eye open wide.“But where did this come from? It wasn’t here before.”I’d read this romance fantasy novel back in my childhood, and as far as I remembered, Cale Tenebris never had a backstory.“Did I grab the wrong book?” I tilted the cover to check the title.[Curse of the Crown]It was the same one.“Did I skip this chapter before?... Whatever.” I shrugged, turning the page again as I slowly lost consciousness.And then I died.

Jack Smith’s life ended rather abruptly. Spinning out on ice while driving a truck was not the most magnificent method to depart this earth. A mediocre man he had led an ordinary life until his death. Now with a second chance at life, he decided that this time he would be exceptional. This time he would finally live up to his name. After all, a jack of all trades is a master of none but ultimately better than one.Armed with a system and determination to do his best he sets out like any other reincarnated soul in another world to find his place and achieve great things. There is just one small problem with getting started in this endeavour . . . he is yet to be born!Welcome to a progression fantasy with a twist. What might you be able to achieve if your race to the top began before your body had even been born?Join our hero as he masters the language, magics and skills of the Compass Kingdoms but his first great challenge will be learning to walk once more. . . . .Warning 1: Be prepared for the MC to spend an entire book's worth of words and time as an infant but hopefully you will enjoy it nevertheless.Warning 2: Grandfather is legally abusive to MC for a couple of chapters but he is removed from that situation around chapter 30. To be edited out some time in the future.

A tree of 10,000 flowers, the world is the door.
The spells change a lot, but the hearts of the people are unchanged.

- Description from Uukanshu translation

In the grimy Black Hound Tavern, disgraced hunter Kael Veymar drowns his failures in ale, his father’s shattered crest a noose around his neck. When a Fallen beast attacks him—spewing acid and cryptic threats about the Harbinger—he’s saved by Lyria, a rogue huntress with a deadly smile and a glowing amulet: the Fractalis, stolen by Kael’s father.Their reunion is cut short by Dren, Kael’s former brother-in-arms, who slit Garrik’s throat for the Guild. After a vicious alley fight, Lyria helps Kael escape, but not before a Fallen’s ooze sears his flesh, leaving veins of corruption that **pulse with the Harbinger’s voice.Seeking answers, they flee to Ms. Miller, an old ally who gifts Kael a sword and a warning: “Find Torin. The skulls will whistle your name.” But the Guild is closing in. At Celestis Rise Dren is humiliated for his failure, while the Dozen Vanguards receive a bone-chilling letter—its author dead, its ink fresh.The stakes sharpen:- The Fractalis is not what it seems.- And Garrik Veymar’s shadow stretches long from the grave.Now, Kael and Lyria ride toward Godsgrave, where Hunter blades go to die—and where the Harbinger’s eclipse waits to rise.