Unsheathed - Chapter 21: The Eagle Hunting the Snake

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.

Ezekiel recognized early in life that he didn't want to follow in his parent's footsteps and spend the rest of his days as a mere farmer. No, his eyes are set on a grander stage, a place where tales of monster hunters, mighty generals, and benevolent heroes hold court — A world of Magic and mysteries.One day, the opportunity he had been waiting for arrives. Without a second thought, Ezekiel throws himself headfirst into the adventure. However, not everything turns out to be as magical as he had dreamt it to be...THIS IS A SLOW BURN FANTASY PROGRESSION LITRPG STORY:Even though you are not going to see blue boxes from chapter one, I guarantee you that this IS a LitRPG story. This is, however, NOT a pure “game world”! Instead, I have tried to integrate the interface elements of a LitRPG into a world with a very thought-out magic & power system, which will be explored over the course of the first book.This world doesn't work like a game, where you can put '5 points in strength' and the body somehow changes magically into a stronger version of itself. It might take a couple of chapters for the world and magic to start to make sense, but I feel like a power system built on solid principles is a lot more rewarding in the long run (...and more IMMERSIVE!).

While watching an action movie, Ye Xuan suddenly died and came to the mutated Blue Star.However, he became a person with the lowest awakened attribute, a total loser in the eyes of others...“Ding! Congratulations to the host for successfully binding the invincible beast control system. The novice gift package has been automatically delivered!”“Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining the SSS-level spiritual attribute, with an affinity for all beasts!”Ye Xuan's body trembled suddenly.Did he just receive some powerful cheats?It was awesome!The genius campus belle said, “Is this the loser you guys were talking about? His beast is so big!”The mature mentor said, “Ye Xuan, controlling beasts starts with controlling people. Come to my room tonight and I'll teach you hands-on!”The ice-cold empress said, “God, he's too strong. He's the man I've been looking for!”A beautiful witch brought chaos to the Blue Star with evil magical creatures.Ye Xuan said, “Don't worry. I'll take care of it!”

“Release faster! Why aren’t today’s chapters out yet?”“… Senior Sister, it’s only six in the morning.”“Then what about yesterday? There was only one chapter!”“… Romance slice-of-life stories rely heavily on the details. Inspiration is needed when writing.”“Then, where does your inspiration come from? You’re clearly single.”“… My imagination.”“In that case, why don’t you date someone? You can get some material too.”“… I need to write. I don’t have time.”“How about I help you?”“… Help me write?”“Of course not! I mean dating!”“… Senior Sister, stop joking around.”***This is a slice-of-life university love story between a struggling web novel author and a beautiful illustrator, in which they mutually suffer social death.Single female lead, no melodrama, no angst.