marked by midnight: the enemy's heiress - Chapter 3 : Escape the night

Modesty! Honesty! Compassion! Bravery! Justice! Sacrifice! Honor! Faith!He is a lich, yet he upholds the knightly spirit!He is a lich, yet he remains steadfast in his faith of light!“With a formidable enemy at hand, fearless and unobstructed! Daring and loyal, worthy of the Holy Spirit! Loyal and upright, willing to die unyielding! Protecting the weak, never going against heaven's principles!”Standing at the top of the world, no matter how great the storm, nothing can stop him from following the steps of the Holy Spirit! Not even the Holy Spirit!...This is a romantic legendary story of a chatty cat and a lich who dedicates his body and soul to the light!Yes, “romantic,” not deceiving you! That's just how it is!

Magic finally reached planet earth, but it was not like we expected. It came in the form of mystic energy!

After the age of awakening, all living things finally entered the path of evolution.

Mystic Beasts invaded earth, destroying the world as we knew it, but we survived as we finally gained the ability to utilize the energy that the beasts came with.

Mystic Warriors were born, and humanity finally found a moment of reprieve, but the Mystic Beasts were still winning.

Rex Vector, an apparently mystic energy-deficient sword genius who lost everything to the war turned out to be the last inheritor of an Ancient Bloodline.

On fully awakening his bloodline he was granted a system and his whole life changed for the better.

Life held much more in store for him though as the contents of his first system mission revealed a reality to him that he wasn’t sure he wanted to accept.

[You are hungry!]

[You must drink human blood within 24 hours!]

[Penalty for mission failure: Death!]

Elara’s first life crashed hard. Cruel tricks ruined her name, broke her dreams, and turned the whole entertainment world against her. Friends betrayed her. Lovers sold her out. Everyone she trusted stabbed her in the back. The pain piled up until she felt trapped with no way out. One night, she couldn’t take it anymore. She walked to the river and ended it all in the cold, quiet water.Later, proof came out. Messages. Recordings. Everything showed she had been framed. People posted apologies online. But it was too late. She was already gone.The universe, though, clearly has a twisted sense of humor.Because somehow, Elara came back. She woke up in her own past, every awful memory still sharp in her head. Right then she made a promise she would never break: protect her gentle grandfather no matter what, and never let anyone push her to that dark place again.This time she steps into the entertainment world with her head high. She trains harder, sings better, fights smarter. The same people who once crushed her? Now they get to feel the pressure.Love? Not happening. Her heart is locked tight. But why is it that as she rises and shines brighter, handsome, powerful men start circling her—guys who never even glanced at her in her previous life were now hovering around her.The actor smiled at her during a press interview, leaned closer, and said softly, “We should have dinner sometime.”The footballer sent flowers so big they blocked her room door.The surgeon she met at a charity event checked her pulse and then forgot to let go of her wrist.The singer she collaborated with kept calling her name during rehearsals, as if the mic could not hear him well enough.Elara stared at the ceiling that night and sighed.She only wanted to sing. Why did everyone look like they wanted to adopt her, date her, or both?But the worst one came after the concert.The lights had just gone off. Her ears were still ringing. Sweat clung to her neck. She had barely stepped backstage when a shadow blocked her path.She looked up.The CEO of the greatest company in Aurelia stood there. The same man who once said her voice was “not worth investing in.” The same man who did not even know her name before rebirth.Now he held her wrist lightly, but firmly.“Let’s talk,” he said.Elara blinked. “About… sponsorship?”“No,” he replied calmly. “About marriage.”Her brain froze.“…What?”“I will give you everything,” he continued, as if asking for a glass of water. “Resources. Protection. Freedom to sing. Become my wife.”Elara stared at him, her mouth open, her thoughts running in circles.This was not how it was supposed to be.Why was the world now skipping steps?NB:This story takes place in a fictional world. Aurelia is a country. Solmere, Veston, and Starfall City are the three capital cities of Aurelia. Other cities, such as Lorien and Crelou, are smaller cities.

Lu Chen woke up to find himself participating in a live-streamed creative competition show!Contestants were tasked with creating works based on themes given by the show.When the theme ‘Countryside’ was announced, other participants quickly began crafting heartwarming rural stories, tales of pastoral love, and picturesque depictions of harmony and simplicity.Lu Chen decided to take the road less traveled—he wanted to blow the audience away!He chose ‘Operation Icebreaker’ as his inspiration.At first, the audience thought they were getting a story about rural development. But as the plot unfolded, something felt… off.A village of 20,000 people, every household with the same type of large pot, and a full-scale drug production operation?The internet exploded.[Countryside theme, and you’re writing about a drug-making village getting rich together?]The producers were in chaos.We said countryside! What’s this Taizhai nonsense?Lu Chen, unfazed, replied, “Director, rural anti-drug campaigns are a countryside theme. Now, are we sticking to the theme or not?”And thus, the Master of Sticking to the Theme was born.Given the theme Fishmonger, he wrote The Legend of Gao Qiqiang.