I Am Scouted by Real Madrid - Chapter 77 - 2: Rival

What’s it like to fall in love with your brother’s best friend?Lilian never expected her quiet graduation season to take a sharp turn into a love story — one that had been quietly brewing for years.His name is Morrison.He’s her brother Dave’s best friend, the man who used to show up at family dinners a decade ago, the “uncle” she could never quite figure out when she was little.Now, he’s a powerful young CEO — cold, sharp, untouchable.Until one day, he suddenly says:“Why don’t we try dating?”From one late-night call, to a casual “I’ll pick you up after class.”From arranging her internship, to standing at her apartment door with a suitcase in hand —Lilian begins to realize: this relationship was never just a joke.But dating someone who’s not only her brother’s closest friend, but also her new boss and the school’s most eligible bachelor?This sweet, forbidden romance is already walking a tightrope.Will their secret love quietly blossom under pressure —Or will it be torn apart by reality, one identity at a time?*This novel is part of the same series as 《You're Just My Ex-Husband, My Lord.》

Qiao Zhenzhen spent a lifetime, only to later realise that she was the true heroine of a novel. According to the original plot, her life was supposed to be smooth sailing and blissful. But the envious transmigrated second female lead played her cards step by step, and took everything away from her!

After experiencing the divorce of her parents, and miserably failing the college entrance examination, she gets kidnapped along with her little follower of a male lead, Chi Shen. In the end, she came out as the only survivor.

Everyone believed that this was a blessing in disguise, not only was her life saved, but the pervert stalking her for the last three years was also gone! A freak like Chi Shen, who had a weird and eccentric personality, always stank of fish and grease, was better off dead. Everyone said that she ought to be grateful, but none of them knew he died protecting her.
Before he took his last breath, his dying words were-

“Don’t be afraid of me.”

That sentence, mixed with the smell of greasy fish and blood, flashed in her dreams every night for the next decade.

Reborn back into the senior year of her highschool, she walked to the youth in the corner, and in front of everyone’s eyes-

“Don’t hideaway in the dark if you don’t want me to be afraid of you.” The youth pursed his lips, his pale face steadily losing color.

Qiao Zhenzhen smiled: Be nice to me, and I shall allow you to stalk~

- Description from Novelupdates

A thousand years ago, the world shattered.Mana surged into existence, rewriting reality itself. Dungeons tore through the land, birthing monstrous horrors, while beasts mutated under the influence of Primordial Ki, evolving into unstoppable apex predators. Humanity was on the brink of annihilation—until the Awakened emerged, wielding supernatural power to defy extinction.Yet, in this brutal new world, strength reigns supreme, and weakness is a death sentence.Amidst it all, Azvoid Larkson—a nameless figure among the countless struggling to survive—awakens a power beyond reason. A power tied to ancient, forgotten dragons—beasts feared even by the strongest Awakened.With each battle, he ascends. With every dragon he tames, his legend grows.In a world where only the strong thrive, how far can one man rise?

Waking up from a nightmare several hours before dawn, Belle fetched a drink of water.

She paused in front of her kitchen’s window when she noticed a lit lantern in front of her mansion’s garden. Her butler stood there, shovel in hand. This was no hour to be gardening.

Curious, she made her way outside, but when she had gotten close enough to see a large and hollow pit next to her eternally-stoic and polite butler, she saw him pick up a rotten body.

A DEAD BODY!

Her eyes widened fearfully when she saw her handsome butler drop the rotting body into the fresh hole. She asked in horror, ”What are you doing?!“

Surprised to see his young miss awake at this hour, he stared at her with the same expression he had been keeping up for all these years. He had made sure she was asleep before coming here.

“Gardening.”

“And the body?!”she looked at him in disbelief.

“Fertilizer,” he answered her before picking up the shovel that was on the ground. Belle was now certain something had possessed her butler. Who gardened dead bodies?!

She then heard him ask her, “Want to help me in planting it, Miss Adams?” he gave her a sweet smile.

Note: If you enjoy a book of comedy with light-hearted romance and a gothic background. This book is for you~