Short, Light, Free - Chapter 17: Mountain, Sea II: Tao Tie

The Strongest Magic meets the Mightiest Mecha.

I have stolen Golden Mechas from the deepest vaults of the most tightly guarded fortresses in the world.

I have personally destroyed more armies than the top three superpowers have in the span of the Absolute War - combined.

I burned down the terrorist megacity of Habon.

I was expelled from the Union of Heroes at a younger age than people are allowed in.

I have talked to Ancient Gods, loved women, and devoured mechas that would make superpowers cringe in fear.

I have faced demons head on in moonless nights others fear to speak of during the day.

I am deified in a thousand cultures, and labelled as the devil incarnate in the rest.

I am the Mecha Emperor.

You may have heard of me.

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Excerpt from Chapter 1

This is where it all began.

A junkyard.

Oh no, this isn't your clean, mechas-only junkyard that was the 'starting point' of many mecha geniuses out there.

I have seen and heard my share of rags-to-riches stories, and many of them claimed that they had started from 'junkyards' and slowly grew to be where they were right now.

From Zero to Hero, they declared.

You can do it too, they said.

As long as you work hard, everything is possible, they claimed.

I call bullshit.

Life doesn't work like that.

A conversation with a handsome stranger leaves Ariane chained in a cellar with a strange affliction. She soon discovers that the darkness of the nineteenth century’s Deep South hides many dangers. Mages, wolf shifters and the humans who hunt them play a risky game where to stumble is to die, all under the amused gaze of the apex predators of the supernatural world: vampires.

It is never healthy to attract the gaze of the aristocracy of the night. It takes much to survive in this merciless world, but Ariane will not let that deter her. The southern belle has a bite, and she is willing to learn and to grow in this hostile new world. She will use whatever means necessary to reclaim her freedom, be it guile, charm, or those intriguing new instincts that make blood so delectable.

This is a story of vampires as I believe they should be, with their strengths and weaknesses, with their remnants of humanity and the beast inside. Updates every Friday. Mind the tags.

Cover by Antti Hakosaari: https://www.artstation.com/haco

Special thanks to Svensonsen for getting me started, as well as Omi Nya, Hesketh, Rhaegar, Yaksher, Selkie and Raven for proofreading my stuff. Thanks to my patrons and you dear readers, for the support. I could not do it without you.

Journey is on Amazon, both in ebooks and audio. here is a link to the first one:

https://www.royalroad.com/amazon/B08DK6G8Y8

The story probably exists in your local marketplace as well of I can tempt you.

Never touched a girl for five years, living in isolation, and having no skills or idea to talk to a girl.

Tim never thought he would reincarnate in the game he was working on. Now, he had to go through a life that almost seemed impossible for him.

With the Lust System that he created, Tim was forced into a Murim World where strength was everything. And, the only way he could level up was by getting a new girl by his side.

The skills that he could only buy from real currency can only be accessed through quests now.

Can he survive in this world? Can he live with this new life where he has to touch a woman every day of his life? Can he reach the top of the world with his harem?

A bloodsucking mosquito with the soul of a student, seeking revenge, rose from being weak to powerful, step by step from this unassuming life planet 'Earth', becoming a powerful force in the entire universe!Literary version: Reborn as a larva, striving for self-improvement, and ultimately transforming into a terrifying giant mosquito. From then on, I roamed freely across the universe, traveling the vast universe's starry sky!Passionate version: You weak cosmic creatures! I'm using my mouthparts to consume the core nutrients of your mother star. What can you do about it?Funny version: You think I'm disgusting? You hate me because I suck blood? Want to swat me dead with one slap? Just wait, one day I'll stomp your house down!