Married For Now - Chapter 124: BITTER

The year was 2026, and the world wasn't what it used to be. Ever since the Abyss Gates cracked open three years ago, spilling monsters and dungeons across the planet, life had turned into a chaotic mess. Cities were half-ruined, half-rebuilt, and people clung to whatever normalcy they could find. Hunters—those brave or crazy enough to fight the monsters—became the new heroes. Everyone else? Well, they just tried to survive.Fin wasn't a Hunter. He wasn't a hero either.He was just… Fin. A lanky 19-year-old with messy brown hair, a chipped front tooth from a dumb skateboard accident, and a power that everyone called useless. Absorption. Sounds cool, right? Like he could suck up energy or steal someone's strength. Nope. All it did was let him “feel” things he touched a little more than normal. He could tell you the exact texture of a brick wall or how warm a coffee mug was—big whoop. No fireballs, no super strength, no flashy moves. Just a glorified touchy-feely trick.“Fin, you gonna eat that sandwich or just stare at it like it's gonna confess its life story?” Meg's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.He blinked and looked across the rickety table at his best friend. Meg was short, loud, and had a wild mop of dyed purple hair that she swore made her look “intimidating.” It didn't.

Elia is a poor university student until the night she’s taken to the world of the Anima—ruled by humans whose ancient hearts pulse with the blood of animals. There she’s forced into a battle to the death. But when Elia survives, and refuses to kill her final opponent, the King must either kill Elia himself, or take her as his mate.

Reth, the brutal King of the Beasts with the blood of lions, shocks everyone when he chooses the weak, human Elia to become his Queen. He promises her every comfort of his wealth and position—but he is clear: She will not warm his bed. He chose her to defeat those that were trying to corner him into blending his Leonine line with the Wolves.

Elia needs the help of the Anima to become stronger and rule them well. But the vengeful Wolves see only a weak human that brought them shame. As Elia and Reth grow closer, the wolves are determined to destroy her. Will Reth and Elia admit their feelings for each in time to fight for the Kingdom—and their lives—against the villainous wolf-tribe? Or will the wolves kill Elia and steal the throne?

[Mature content - no sexual violence]

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He stalked towards her, chin low so the shadow cast by his hard jaw cut across the thick fur collar of his vest. His hair had fallen over his eyes in the scuffle, so he peered at her through it like a lion in the grass. With each step, his graceful, rolling gait reminded her of a predator stalking its prey. Despite the forest floor littered in twigs and leaves, he didn’t make a sound.

“Wh-who are you?” Elia stammered, backing away, her hands up. He met her step for step until she came up hard against the tree behind her—and didn’t stop until he loomed over her, so broad his shoulders and chest made a wall in front of her. She could feel the heat rising off his skin in the cool, night air.

“I am the Leonine King.” His voice was a dark, husky gravel. Behind him a chorus of wheezes, howls, and chirps of agreement rose from the people watching. “And you are?”

“Elia,” she breathed.

“Elia,” he growled, leaning in closer, bringing with him the scent of pine and rain and the musk of something distinctly male. “I am Reth.” He said the name with a strange, guttural roll in his throat. “I am King of Beasts. I am Clan Leader, and I am Alpha of WildWood.” Several snarls rose from the crowds behind him then, but he ignored them.

Elia swallowed as he leaned in until the scruff on his jaw rasped her cheek. “I am the King,” he said, “And you will be my mate.”

The forest behind him erupted.

A lonely soul, which was placed under the care of the Lord Protector’s Manor, ended up having her lover stolen by the family’s eldest daughter and dying tragically the day before her wedding.

This hilarious fantasy story mixes mythological figures, cosmic entities, and a wolf babysitter with just too much contracts on his hands.It revolves around a Monstrous—though, gullible—wolf, reduced to a babysitter and a magnet for bad contracts.Ruben—formerly Ravenswood—is a classic “grumpy but good-hearted” reluctant hero. He is powerful and fearsome, but his terrible decision-making and misfortune always puts him in some kind of inconvenient pact.He got captured by a Human, who later tricked him into a lifelong contract of protecting his daughter, Alicia—whose identity is shrouded in mystery—who also turned out to be a psychotic Yandere!In an attempt to flee the suddenly-catastrophic Gihon—which is earth—with the Human’s daughter, Ruben was obstructed by Pluto, who also tricked him into an absurd pact to slay THE Cthulhu, as the ticket to let him through the other world.Ruben urgently sought to escape Gihon, so he unwisely agreed, only to recall who the all-powerful Cthulhu was. It was too late, though.Successfully crossing worlds to Pison—another type of earth—our Fenrir was met with the “Queen of the coast,” also known as Leviathan—a severe pervert.She attacked and defeated him, but when he woke up, she had apparently made a Master-servant pact with him, in his sleep.As they traveled seeking human cities in Pison, our misfortunate wolfie encountered a godman; Jobina, the daughter of Job, the second of the seven mortal powers.Jobina—a masochist with a vendetta against Leviathan, and a tendency to turn everything into a competition—attacked him for being associated with the evil Leviathan, only to be soundly defeated.Shocked by reality, Jobina protested that she also wanted a pact with Ruben, so he’ll coach her to be powerful. And when the time is right, she’ll slay Leviathan!Our easy-to-fool protagonist, and his terrible life choices, agreed, recruiting yet another troublemaker he’d have to babysit.He only wants an easy going life without problems and crisis!The story has a larger plot, where Ruben—and his babies—constantly, “accidentally,” ruin Sarvest—the antagonist—plans.Sarvest is used to dealing with gods and cosmic entities, not an unworthy—yet effective—opponent in a bubbling wolf-turned-human.Ruben later meets what we would call God—a dumb teenager who only cares about entertainment—who also duped Ruben, using his kind-heartedness, into some kind of horrible pact.“The Silent Pact of a Wolf Babysitter” is a story filled with laughs, chaos, and unexpected twists. It follows Ruben’s misadventures as he navigates a world of cosmic powers, absurd pacts, and the challenges of babysitting a group of eccentric and overpowered individuals. With a larger plot involving Satanas’s grand schemes and Ruben’s accidental heroism, this tale promises both humor and a compelling narrative.