Duke, Please Stop Because it Hurts - Chapter 31

What happens when, in the midst of struggling to keep up with life, you suddenly discover that you were a princess in a past life? Now, you're just a waitress with a drunken mother and a pile of bills to pay. But deep down, you know one thing: you’ll find the stupid jerk responsible for ending your royal life, no matter what it takes.Alexia POV:Then there are the spoiled, narcissistic rich jerks who think their daddy's car gives them a free pass to treat women like objects. Not today, Satan. These guys are like walking perfume ads with egos bigger than their bank accounts. I swear, they should just marry themselves—they're clearly their own type.When one of those jerks lands at my table, I can smell the entitlement from a mile away. I don't even wait for the inevitable sleazy pickup line or the “accidental” brush of their hand against mine. Nope. I pawn them off on one of the other waiters faster than you can say “unpaid rent.”

*NonRape-General langauge*Liora’s life takes an unexpected and cruel turn when she’s sent to the royal court as a concubine for the disgraced Prince Lucien, a man whose past is shadowed by betrayal and loss. Stripped of his royal title, Lucien has long distanced himself from love and loyalty, existing in a cold, indifferent world.Thrown into this world of palace internal battles, power struggles, and betrayal, Liora must face not only Lucien’s frosty demeanor but also the dangerous secrets that lurk within the court. Every move she makes is watched, every word is questioned. Yet, despite his distant nature, she can’t shake the feeling that beneath the hardened prince lies a man struggling with the ghosts of his past.As Liora tries to find her place in this hostile environment, she faces a constant dilemma: Can she warm the prince’s cold heart and heal his wounds, or will she fall victim to the very same forces that tore him apart?'Can she thaw lucien’s frozen heart, or will his haunted past consume them both?'Arranged marriage,Disgraced prince,Court intrigue,Royal concubine,Forbidden love, Political drama, Palace secrets, Unwanted bride, Betrayal. Haunted memories, redemption,Royal court drama, second chances

She, a genius abandoned by her clan. He, a proud, pampered, two-faced imperial crown prince, a developing supreme ruler of the world. She, tricking him, disguised as a pig to eat a tiger, suppressing him, provoking him. Every time, after playing with him and stirring him up, she’d escape.

Anton is a great-grandfather. He is living quite a happy life, despite his advanced age and declining health… until a group of cultivator bandits moves into the area. The nearby guardians of the area, the Order of Ninety-Nine Stars, are unable to track them down as they continue to ravage nearby towns. During one desperate winter Anton is out on a hunt when his family- his entire village- is killed or taken as slaves by the bandits. He lacks the strength to fight them, and he wasn’t even present for their arrival to die with his loved ones. At the pit of his despair, he wonders if he ever had any chance to change things. What could he even do? He cannot even pull his best bow, and his eyesight is failing. If he had been a cultivator… perhaps there might have been a chance, but he was decades- perhaps even most of his life- too late.Participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge (2022)Notes on cultivation levels:There are five general stages of cultivation, though the fifth is extremely rare. Each cultivation style might have their own name for the stages.1. Body Tempering2. Spirit Building/ occasionally System Creation (Ninety-Nine Stars)3. Constellation Formation (Ninety-Nine Stars)4. Life Transformation/Galaxy Construction (Ninety-Nine Stars)5. Ascension