Not the Hero, Not the Villain — Just the One Who Wins - Chapter 8: From Beast to Shadow

“Evil God of the Universe, You are in every space and time. Present in every dimension of reality and govern the darkness of our world.Oh, almighty Atticus! Hear our plea and grant us your presence tonight, awaken my Lord!”The rain had completely stopped and the strong gale had subsided into the fading raindrops. The night had turned eerily silent and only the sizzling and cackling of the fire entered their ears.Suddenly, they all felt like floating from their feet despite setting foot on the watery, hard ground, as if they were traversing into space. The darkness of the night gradually turned darker, enveloping them, morphing into everyone, like a void eating them slowly. Sequentially, their breathing turned oddly slower. Despite exaggeratedly inhaling air to breathe, it was to no avail, as if a higher entity was limiting them from breathing.Nolan felt his throat and tried to open his mouth to gasp more air but failed. Everyone but him was in a state of indignation and panic as they struggled to breathe to fill their lungs with air. Nolan tried to calm his heart. He closed his eyes and stopped inhaling air in pure panic, instead, he put his heartbeat and breathing into a rhythm. It was hard at first, but after a minute, he found his breathing gradually went stable.His whole being was in pure anticipation of what was going to happen next.After a couple more minutes, the storm completely subsided, the night turned to normal. Nolan remained standing, taking in his surroundings with his eyes closed. Everything turned silent. The eerie atmosphere and the crackling of the fire from the hay figure didn’t even enter his ears. Nolan waited for a couple more minutes, his breathing turning normal. He was reluctant to open his eyes, afraid he might ruin their ritual.“It’s alright now, Young Master. You can open your eyes now.”Nolan’s breathing hitched. He jolted on his feet as he fluttered his eyes open.“Atticus? W-why are you here?”The butler, standing in front of him, a raincoat hung on his arm, smiled. “I am everywhere, Young Master, in order to best serve you.”****Atticus, a demi-god from the underworld, was cast out of his parents' realm and banished to the human world. The reason? He had yet to give them any grandchildren.Disclaimer: This story is a work of fiction and is purely the product of my imagination. Any resemblance to real people, events, or beliefs is entirely coincidental. The intention is not to disrespect or diminish any faith or tradition, but rather to explore ideas within a fictional context. Reader discretion is advised.

Cain was an ordinary boy who loved creative works, especially when it involved anime and games. Suddenly, he found himself in a strange space with an extraterrestrial creature, a cosmic horror called Bishop that he couldn’t explain in words besides scary.Given the authority of a King, he was tasked to create dungeons in the multiverse in order to change his future. He had been turned into the Dungeon Maker. The more known his dungeon was, the stronger he became!Rias: What are you? A Devil?Dante: Now, now. What are you? Wow, I drank too much. Look at her, a sexy devil.Zoro: Where am I? Is that a sea monster? Good, I will bring meat for Luffy.Helldiver: For Democracy!!!All worlds became connected due to the dungeon. However, don’t worry!Everything was under his control.

[Mommy Villainess (The Lady with the Crab Mallet)]***[Original book cover. Artwork by Artist Michiro for WN Author sola_cola.]***In Tilly's past life, she was a villainess who neglected her husband and son for power. Then, the “real woman of the prophecy” came and took them away from her. When she failed to seize the throne for herself, she was executed for all the crimes she committed.Then, came her rebirth.She wants to meet her son again so she vowed to be a good person this time. Good enough to seduce Captain Kiho--- her husband in her past life.But soon, she realized that flirting with the captain is the least of her worry. After all, she discovered that her “evilness” in the past was caused by the true villain--- someone who wanted her dead to steal the special power that she didn't know she possessed.Power that has something to do with the Four Ancient Beasts of the Moonchester Empire: The Red Phoenix, the Blue Dragon, the Golden Tiger, and The Black Serpent.Apparently, she's the Beast Priestess...... and her lineage isn't supposed to exist anymore.Because of her blood, there are people who want her gone.So now, aside from having a happy life with Kiho and their son, she has a new goal: to burn down the b*tches who want to ruin her family again.***[EXCERPT]***[‘Why am I so horny tonight?’]Tilly thought to herself while sucking the crab leg suggestively. And then, she noticed that Captain Kiho gulped while staring at her mouth.[‘Ah, I’m not the only who’s hot and bothered here.’]She didn’t know if it was the alcohol in her system or her desperation to have a child…… but she suddenly felt like flirting with him.They were bound to get married and have a child together anyway.“Captain,” said Tilly as soon as she pulled the crab leg out of her mouth. “I can clearly see that we’re both attracted to each other. Shall we spend the night together?”Kiho remained pokerfaced but she saw panic cross his now glowing yellowish eyes. Ah, the captain was flustered. “My lady, you seem to be really drunk.”She walked towards him and when he didn’t move an inch, she stood in front of him and looked up at him with a grin. “Captain, are you the type of man who will only sleep with his betrothed?”“That seems to be the case, my lady.”He said that as if he was forcing the words out of his mouth. Plus, she could see in his eyes that he was conflicted– that it was hard for him to reject her.[‘Aw, I didn’t know that I have this kind of effect on my ex-husband.’]Or perhaps she just didn’t pay attention in the past.“Captain, I have a solution to your problem,” said Tilly in a playful voice. Then, she stood on her toes and whispered in Kiho’s ear. “Let’s get married.”

# ANOTHERWORLD

God’s Path was a mysterious game that appeared on the blue planet 20 years ago.

Only 1 million slots were opened every month.

Once a person became a player of the game, they would gain superpowers and become stronger than normal people.

…

Ling Yi was able to activate the Super Mutation System after becoming a player.

From consumables to divine weapons, he was able to mutate everything.

He was even able to mutate a bunch of cheat-like powers when he maxed out his potential.

When he mutated the +1 luck talent, it became a cheat-like power, Probability Reversal, where he could reverse a 10% possibility to a 90% one.

If an item only had a 0.1% chance of dropping, then it would be 99.9% for him instead.

When he mutated the True Eyes, he got the Eye of Truth, another cheat-like power that not only allowed him to see the hidden stats, but also the information of items.

Other than those two, he also had other powers like the Malevolence Manifestation where he could turn other people’s evil intentions into narration, and the Intelligence Reduction Light which reduced the intelligence of his target.

A year later, Ling Yi, who had achieved titles such as the Fastest Player to Level Up, First Maxed-level Player, and Strongest Man, was in one of his many interviews.

“Actually, I…”