The Crown's Seduction - Chapter 42: Hope

Being second best is practically in my DNA. My sister got the love, the attention, the spotlight. And now, even her damn fiancé.Technically, Rhys Granger was my fiancé now—billionaire, devastatingly hot, and a walking Wall Street wet dream. My parents shoved me into the engagement after Catherine disappeared, and honestly? I didn’t mind. I’d crushed on Rhys for years. This was my chance, right? My turn to be the chosen one?Wrong.One night, he slapped me. Over a mug. A stupid, chipped, ugly mug my sister gave him years ago. That’s when it hit me—he didn’t love me. He didn’t even see me. I was just a warm-bodied placeholder for the woman he actually wanted. And apparently, I wasn’t even worth as much as a glorified coffee cup.So I slapped him right back, dumped his ass, and prepared for disaster—my parents losing their minds, Rhys throwing a billionaire tantrum, his terrifying family plotting my untimely demise.Obviously, I needed alcohol. A lot of alcohol.Enter him.Tall, dangerous, unfairly hot. The kind of man who makes you want to sin just by existing. I’d met him only once before, and that night, he just happened to be at the same bar as my drunk, self-pitying self. So I did the only logical thing: I dragged him into a hotel room and ripped off his clothes.It was reckless. It was stupid. It was completely ill-advised.But it was also: Best. Sex. Of. My. Life.And, as it turned out, the best decision I’d ever made.Because my one-night stand isn’t just some random guy. He’s richer than Rhys, more powerful than my entire family, and definitely more dangerous than I should be playing with.And now, he’s not letting me go.

The Intergalactic Bureau of Change is an organization that helps certain people start over with their own Truck-kun delivery service to transport souls across dimensions.Hiroshi Tanaka, a 28-year-old convenience store worker, meets one of their field agents. For any otaku, this would be a dream come true. There's just one problem.The agent turns out to be a scammer.Now Hiroshi is trapped in another world as an “extra” hero. His stats are garbage. His unique skill actively works against him.He wasn't chosen by fate. He was tricked by a cosmic con artist.Survival wasn't part of the contract. But Hiroshi refuses to be just another victim.What to Expect:• A protagonist who starts weak and stays realistic.• Strategic combat using knowledge over strength• Psychological exploration of being “expendable” in a hero's world• Dark humor mixed with genuine survival stakes• A broken system that wasn't designed for him to succeed• Slow, hard-earned progression where every level matters• Morally gray situations with no easy answers• Deconstruction of isekai tropes from the perspective of someone funny.---Tags:#Isekai #WeakToStrong #DarkFantasy #Survival #Hero #LitRPG #PsychologicalDrama #StrategicCombat #Underdog #SystemApocalypse #Betrayal #FantasyAdventure #CosmicHorror #NoHarem #MaleProtagonist---

Following the death of his popular online persona, seventeen-year-old Suzuki Mato decides it's time to retire from professional VR gaming. However, his plans are abruptly cut short when he's kidnapped from his high school and forced to be a guinea pig for Genaco Gaming, the world's largest esports and entertainment company. Armed with nothing but his wit and a new online persona, he's thrown headfirst into the virtual reality of “Live No Evil,” a VRMMORPG littered with overpowered bosses, secretive NPCs, and backstabbing gods. His mission? Find a way to conquer this new world and get back at the company that took over his life, all while avoiding 'Parallel' -- a condition that would make it impossible to separate his real and virtual personalities. Because in a world obsessed with VR gaming, Parallel means death, and Suzuki just doesn't have time for that...

For ten years, I supported villains with the intention of reforming them. But now, I find myself as the ultimate mastermind behind the kingdom’s darkness…