MTL - Thrive in Catastrophe - Chapter 2 Come back alive

“The masterminds are cooler than heroes,” I mutter as I stare at the chess pieces before me. It is easier to be the one who sits in the shadows and moves the pieces, likewise deciding the flow of the game.Heroes will foolishly sacrifice their lives for the good cause and villains will sacrifice the world for their own gain, but masterminds will use both the heroes and villains to their own benefit.Why, you ask? Well, that's because I've lost my life once while trying to be a hero so, I don't want that anymore. I'd rather be a mastermind who molds the world as per my convenience and live peacefully. Because, why not?***[Defender of Divine Glory says you are the hope of this world.]What?[Goddess of Wisdom believes that you will be the one to save the world.]Wait, what?![Propose the Grand Duke the idea of a fake marriage.]And, why would I do that?![Stop the assassination of Prince Eric.]Why would I save him?![The candidates for the throne are:... Who will you choose?]Ah! I give up...It seems like a curse that anyone who wishes for a slacker life in Isekai will have to go through the most troublesome things.In my past life, I died because of one rookie mistake but after being transmigrated in the world of fantasy I've gotten an opportunity to start afresh, but unlike the protagonists who look for their love and glory, I'd rather make money and live a life of a slacker.I have magic, I have power and I have money, what else do I need?Well, that was the plan but this damn system is getting on my nerves. I mean who in their sane mind would want to mess with the complicated royal family and political affairs? But that's not all though.I've also become the saviour of this world. Things just can't be anymore worse!Besides, the penalty of failing this quest is...[Failure: Destruction of the World.]It seems like if I screw up in selecting the right person then the destruction that is going to befall the world won't be stopped.If I speak of my reward then it's this vague thing.[Reward: Fulfillment of any wish.]“If that's the case then, I'd rather choose the person who would be the best fit for the throne.”And that's how I decided that I would become the Kingmaker.

At the press conference, reporters bombarded Chen Xing with questions. “Can you explain how someone as young as you clinched the championship? We heard accusations from other contestants that you've been cheating? Is that true?”Chen Xing shoved the microphone that was pushed up to his nose away, his face filled with annoyance, “I want to state again very seriously that I haven't cheated!”As his words ended, Chen Xing waved his hand and summoned a behemoth that blotted out the sky, then jumped onto its back. “Damn it, I can't stand this anymore. Just because I raised them well, they say I cheated? My crocodile accidentally ate a demon, and that's cheating?”

Oliver West never expected his quiet life to turn into a nightmare. The boy who once shared secrets and summer adventures with him has become someone he doesn’t recognize. Keiran Morrison - tall, dangerous, and devastatingly handsome - now uses that same intensity that once made Oliver’s heart flutter to terrorize him instead.Every day at Riverside High is a battle for survival. Every corner could hide a new humiliation. Every moment of peace is just the calm before Keiran’s next storm.But why does Keiran’s hatred burn so bright? What happened to turn childhood love into adult cruelty? And why, despite everything, does Oliver’s heart still race when Keiran gets close - even when he’s terrified?Some mistakes can’t be forgiven. Some wounds run too deep to heal.But sometimes the line between love and hate is thinner than you think.

The Heavenly Dao is fickle. A phrase that he had heard all through his life. Only after that incident did Adrian truly understand the meaning behind those words.From someone who had it all, wealth, power, prestige, to one without anything. Heck, even his fiancée abandoned him.One of the Twelve Great Houses on the Floating Cloud Continent, the House of Thorne was reduced to a pile of rubble and dead bodies after a mysterious attack by the Demonic Faction.All that remained was a blood-soaked pendant and a broken future.That is, until his blood awakens the pendant, unleashing a dazzling light. When he regains consciousness, his pursuers are gone, but so is the life he once knew.Now with only his younger brother and a loyal servant girl, Adrian sets out into the night.Armed with only the mysterious pendant and the inheritance it contains, he must walk the path of cultivation.Can he rebuild the House of Thorne from the ashes? Will he uncover the traitor who aided the demonic faction?He won't stop until even the heavens know his name and fear it.