A Time Traveller's Guide To Feudal Japan - Chapter 295 - Retreat

A few hundred years ago, Earth was affected by a mysterious force from the depths of the universe, triggering the revival of spiritual energy. However, things didn’t turn out as wonderful as humanity had imagined. The spiritual energy carried a strange power that caused the corpses of all living things to rise again, transforming into ghouls. And above these ghouls, even more terrifying beings existed…There were no ancient methods of cultivating immortality, nor any legendary awakenings of supernatural powers. But within the spiritual energy, there was also a presence of ghostly energy. This led to the emergence of Runes.Some people bore mountain runes, enabling them to move mountains and overturn seas, suppressing chaos. Others carried river runes, allowing them to reverse the flow of mighty rivers with a mere gesture. However, this process required a special profession to assist these rune cultivators—to constantly modify and engrave their runes, making them more refined and perfect.This profession came to be known as Rune Engraving.

Renji Takeda didn’t expect to die from drinking too much sake. He also didn’t expect to wake up as Leif Thorenvald, the second male lead in a romance novel.But wait—shouldn’t he have transmigrated as a villainess? Or maybe an omega in some steamy Omegaverse? Nope. Fate clearly enjoys a joke.Now he’s trapped in a story where the heroine wields divine powers, the villainess plots in silk gowns, and the dashing Grand Duke is destined to win the girl. And Renji? He’s the poor sap who gets rejected with a smile.There’s just one tiny issue.Renji is gay.So instead of sulking and chasing after a woman he has zero interest in, he tosses the author’s script into the chamber fireplace, packs his bags, and flees to the cold, quiet North to enjoy his second life in peace.Everything’s going perfectly... Until the Grand Duke, Alvar Ragnulfsson, shows up. The supposedly straight male lead is suddenly far too close—lingering stares, casual touches, and an interest that’s definitely crossing the “just friends” line.Suddenly, the overlooked second lead might be headlining a very different story.Between politics, divine powers, and a dangerously attentive Grand Duke, Renji has only one question:Is he rewriting the script... or is the script rewriting him?

[Slow Burn]

Kalea Orlin Lovaata is a poor girl who just lives with her mother, who is an alcoholic and has a mental illness. Her life is tormented just because her face is so similar to that of her mother’s ex-husband, who cheated on her 11 years ago and left them both. No matter how much work she does, she still can’t cover all her current needs. Because she was desperate, it occurred to Kalea to ask her college friend who was famous for a myriad of rumors following her.

“The job is really easy, you just need to accompany someone shopping or something. Quickly, a large amount of money will enter your bank account.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I’ll arrange a meeting with him if you agree.”

Without thinking, Kalea agreed. But, she does not know, that the job that awaits her is being a sugar baby for CEO, Arthur Jefferson. She must satisfy the man’s desires, including sacrificing his honor just for the sake of money.

Will she still accept the dirty job? Follow Kalea’s life journey in Sugar Dating with CEO!

…Ring! [ The Unique Skill ‘Grand Devourer’ has been acquired! ]

That’s how it first started.
And then… it didn’t stop:

[ The Unique Skill ‘Evolve’ has been acquired! —
[ The Passive Skill ‘Jelly-like Shapelessness’ has been acquired! —
[ The Passive Skill ‘Resistant Body’ has been acquired! —
[ The Unique Skill ‘Dwell’ has been acquired! —
[ The Unique Skill ‘Skill Copy’ has been acquired! —
[ The Passive Skill ‘Mana Perception’ has been acquired! ]

Up until…

[ The Passive Skill ‘Consciousness’ has been acquired! ]

And then I was through—

Normally, monster-type creatures don’t just pop up in some random place—let alone a human place—out of the blue, and without notice.
Yes, if we’re talking ‘normally’, monsters belong more to places like remote, hostile grounds: they ought to be from dark, nasty forests, old caves, or abandoned, ancient ruins.
As I said, it was only so long as we spoke of the usual deal, however. For better or worse, I wasn’t your regular mob.
So, forget about all the remote, uneasy places humans hardly go to—all the abandoned forests, caves, or dungeons I, a monster, should have been from—and picture a bright, lively family restaurant, in an oh-so-peaceful human village. A restaurant where people ate, chatted, and jested together, all having a good time, blissfully oblivious to the fact that, very soon, I would be cutting them all down.

By magic, a monster-type creature spawned in such a place. It was me.
So far, for the few seconds I had been living, it was quite the good life… I got to listen to a fantastic story being told and shared a cool moment with people.
However! Following an uncertain course of events, I happened to be put up against a wall, with a sword aimed at my chest, before I was mercilessly killed.

I, a unique monster, just spawned in that restaurant, with no clue regarding what was going on.
All I knew was that I wanted to live and survive.
Also, I knew I wasn’t your regular kind of monster.
Thankfully, I’d been granted unique abilities before I showed up.
That is how I managed to survive.