To Be a Power in the Shadows! - Chapter 15

In 1919, Donnie's soul traversed into the United States.To start off, Donnie, just a soldier who had recently stepped down from the battlefields of World War I, was framed by his superior. Before the Prohibition era began, he took over a bar in Atlantic City. With the perspective of a transmigrator and ruthless tactics, he gradually became the largest bootlegger in America.In the roaring twenties, Donnie delved into bootlegging, ran beauty pageants, built his career, and stormed Wall Street.Decades later, when people studied modern American history, they found that the name 'Donnie Block' was one they simply could not ignore!!!Additional Tags: ACTION, TRANSMIGRATION, GENIUS, KINGDOMBUILDING, URBAN, SHOWBIZ, POORTORICH

His lips hovered near her ear, his voice a dark whisper against her skin. “You may fear me, little bride, but I will teach your body to crave me… to need me, until I am all you ever want.”---Belle was never meant to be the bride. But when her parents cried to her about how her beautiful sister could not be married to such a man, she was forced to take her sister’s place. To prevent war between the two worlds of humans and vampires, the kings decided to sign a peace treaty with a marriage, but the only man they could offer for this marriage was a vampire said to be mad and completely heartless. When they said heartless, they meant really heartless, but Belle, being a naive girl her whole life, had no idea what she was stepping into by agreeing to this marriage.At first, he appeared innocent, a man completely opposite to all the rumors around him, until she slowly began to realize every single thing said about the mad vampire was true, or perhaps even worse! He was a man who walked in the path of darkness. He knew no light and showed no mercy, even to those who were not his enemies. He had no heart to love, no emotions but dark ones to feel for anything or anyone. But all of a sudden, when he set his eyes on her, he decided he wanted to keep her, and Belle's naive world began to take a different turn because the mad vampire was hellbent on tainting her innocent soul.Expect“Now, can we forget this happened and enjoy the night?” He arched an amused brow at her, making Belle's heart drop to her stomach as she recalled the so-called wedding night.She hurriedly pulled away from him, her face flaming with embarrassment. From everything she had heard about this night, she was not ready to experience it with this man. The women whispering about it in Mr. Marchant's shop had said one would hate their husband's presence after it and be disgusted by the act. It was not an act meant for pleasure for any woman but torture.Now that she realized her husband would do the same with her, she swallowed hard and nervously clutched her dress. “I...I am not feeling well, My Lord, I—”“Rohan,” he cut her off with a tone of amusement. “Use my name when you address me, sweetheart. You looked quite energetic when you tried to go after the ring for someone who isn't feeling well, but,” he sighed softly, “I've always been a generous man. I won't let you stress yourself tonight.”Belle began to sigh in relief and smile in her mind that he wouldn't push her for the wedding night ceremony. She was even about to part her lips and agree that he was indeed generous and even offer him a thank you when he continued to speak, causing the momentary relief to be replaced by dread.“I will pamper you tonight, and you won’t have to lift a hand. I will give you all the pleasure since you are feeling unwell. Take it as the first lesson in my plan to make you forget love and welcome lust.”“...!”“Lie on the bed for me, Isa.”Belle felt her throat go dry at that strict command.“I...I...” She began but could not find any words to say to make him spare her tonight. What had she got herself into? Belle thought as a pit seemed to form in her stomach, a deep, gnawing dread.“Do you need me to carry you to the bed, or would you rather walk there yourself?” Rohan questioned with dark mirth in his voice and eyes as he watched her like a hawk. He could tell she was nervous, but what to do? She had brought herself into his world.Belle began to walk slowly to the bed at a snail’s pace, as if delaying it would help prevent the dreadful act from happening tonight. She could feel him following closely behind her. When she reached the bed, she used her shaky hands to move the drapes aside and carefully sat at the edge of it, her hands folded nervously on her lap. She felt his piercing gaze on her, but she dared not look up at him.“Lie down,” he ordered softly.MATURE CONTENT, NO RAPE!!

Warning- [Contains Mature content and themes such as BULLYING, GORE, REVENGE, RUTHLESS AND MERCILESS MC] [Contains lemons as well as onions!]By the end of 2025, humanity made first contact with extraterrestrial beings. A century later, in 2125, the world had transformed beyond recognition. With the aid of alien technologies and interactions with various space-faring species, humans expanded their reach to other planets and galaxies. Advanced sciences, indistinguishable from magic, genetic mutations, and cybernetic enhancements propelled humanity to new heights. Humans were no longer the weak, powerless beings they once were; they had evolved into one of the dominant species in the cosmos.Xavier, a young nomad from a small village, had received a scholarship to attend the prestigious Astraeus Academy on Earth. Although he was reluctant to leave his family behind, he enrolled in the academy upon his father's insistence. His ancestors had made a significant investment in Astraeus City—when it wasn’t even planned and constructed—which was the most powerful and luxurious metropolis that many dreamed of living in but few could even visit.However, things didn’t go as planned. Those with power and blinded by greed had taken over everything, and there was no sign of his ancestors' investment.In this new world, money was everything. It could buy anything and everything. Morals held no value against the almighty dollar. A father would sell his son for money, and a mother would kill her daughter for it. Oh, you can’t pay the 1 million dollar loan? No worries! Just rent your wife for a week and the loan is paid! What, you killed someone? No problem! Just pay 10 million dollars and walk free!Determined to reclaim what was his, Xavier decided to enroll in Astraeus Academy and claim the throne of power that rightfully belonged to him. But most humans had undergone genetic enhancements and cybernetic modifications, making them far stronger than ordinary humans. Xavier, however, was just a normal human, and due to his innate disorder, his body couldn’t support cybernetic enhancements.Xavier was bullied and thrashed every day, called names, framed and accused, and even worse, there were attempts on his life. Just when he thought his life was over, a voice called out to him—a voice that some might presume belonged to a goddess. The goddess gave him a system… an unlimited money system.In a world where money was everything, how would Xavier survive? But with an unlimited money system, who could stop him?“I need a house.”[Just buy it.]“I want a car.”[Steal it.]“I am looking for something ancient that’s not available anywhere on the planet.”[Unlock the Dimensional Store and get it.]“I am bleeding.”[Get the divine grade healing potion.]“I… want a girlfriend…”[Starting a quest to seduce your bully’s girlfriend! Step 1: Gift her flowers!]Follow Xavier in his journey to not only become the universe's richest, but also the most strongest.Spoiler/Tags- Genius MC, Smart MC, Ruthless MC, Merciless MC, Anti-Hero, Handsome MC, Gore, Bullying, Rich MC, Harem, R-18, smut, echhi, Student-teacher relationship, Senior-junior relationship, cousin relationship, milfs,poor to rich, weak to strong, System, Super rich, beautiful female leads, alien waifus, monster (vampire/dragon etc etc) waifus, Dimensional Store, Mafia, gangs, guns, cars, cyberpunk, futuristic, space, interstellar, aliens, action, Conquor, Domination, VR, spaceships, NO YURI. NO NTR.Note- For those who are here for anti-hero, ruthless mc, it starts after chapter 16. Xavier is kind and naive at start because he lived in a village where everyone treated him kindly, and he wasn't influenced by the outside world.

The Baron’s daughter, Alessandra Barrett, has worn a mask from a young age due to an injury. Many say if you were to see the face behind the mask, you would be cursed and die soon afterward. She is seen as a ghost, avoided by all who visit the baron’s home until she becomes the Duke’s wife.

No one could understand why the Duke would pick such a wife. Did he wish to die?

What would become of the girl who once hid in the shadows but now had the spotlight on her as the Duke’s masked wife?

What would everyone say if they were to learn the truth that she was in a contracted marriage with the Duke?