Realms In The Firmament - Chapter 1918 - Finish my regards

The Empire's forces retreated in desperation—trampled by faceless horrors bringing darkness and death to these once beautiful lands.Only the most courageous stood in defiance, forming a last defence to buy the people time to flee—fighting until the final embers of hope burned out.A man stands with a silver sword, like a beacon of hope to those around him. He roared with all his might drawing his blade against the overwhelming enemy!“You face Lancelot, Sword of the Empire! ”These horrors tested the Lord's grit and loyalty in the final moments.“Should my blade break, I will use my body!”The knights had fallen, broken swords for their tombstones, and lords fled, betraying the Empire to survive.“If my body breaks, I'll use my Soul!”Lancelot, the sword of the Empire, fought alone.All hope seemed lost.“And if my Soul fails...”What could a single man and his army do?He fights against the dark tide, blade in hand, heart on sleeve.“I will sell myself to the devil for revenge!”But he was too weak, too fragile.The last Lord of humanity stood against the enemy.Lancelot was a master of the sword, a mortal, neither a God nor a Saint.Miracles were beyond his reach.Now only a broken man impaled on his own destroyed throne.His blade shattered—now, like rose petals, it was scattered across the charred ground.Lancelot's soul was fated for the abyss as the light faded from his eyes.His last ounce of resistance used staring at the man who betrayed the Empire.Now with only the desire to kill, crush and seek revenge smouldering inside him.Now unwilling to die and desperate to fight once again.He desired to fight for the people who supported him.Lancelot refused to surrender, to fall like this.As quietly in the abyss, a voice whispered to him.It tried to entice the Lord, ignite his desire to win and fight again.“If given a second chance, to relive your life with a different choice... Would you Accept?”Blood gathered in his throat, forcing him to reply in his mind.A frail and broken voice'There is no reason to ask, of course!'“No matter the cost?”'Even if I were to lose everything...''If my people can live on. I would sacrifice everything I have!'“You will no longer be the same, a monster, twisted and vicious.”“Will you still accept?”The Lord's heart ached, taking great pride in his humanity.To lose that caused his mind to falter.Finally, out of power, unable to speak or reply with a trembling arm.Lancelot reached out.Towards the raspy voice.Towards the abyss.Towards a new future.[So you would accept after all...]'I must accept.''I must stand tall.''I must not break.''Because...''I am the Lord of humanity![Nay, you are the king of demons]

They say marriage is one of the greatest joys you’ll experience in life, but what does it say about your marriage when you can’t remember a single moment with the man you married?Veronica experiences the strangest thing one day when she wakes up in a hospital room without any memory of how she got there. She is introduced to her family who appear warm and loving at first but she soon gets a glimpse of how they want to use her for her money.Veronica is then surprised when a man enters the room and it is revealed he is not only her husband but a big hotshot businessman whose face is all over the news. She doesn’t understand how she got herself tangled up with such a man and later questions the accident which led to her losing her memories.What happens when her once perfect marriage isn’t as it was portrayed to be or when she realises family doesn’t always care about you?

I am currently re-writing the first chapters of this story. They are quite rough and bounce around a lot and I can do better. At some point, I will replace these with the better chapters.Sometime in 2024 Aethon Books will publish the first volume of this story on Amazon, KU, and audible. This will mean the story will be stubbed. I will notify people far in advance of that.In the dystopian world of the future, life is rough when you live at the bottom. Jobs are non-existent. Far too many people live in poverty, crammed into huge buildings called Habitats. With no jobs in the real world, many people can only find work online in VR worlds as servants to the very rich. And it's getting worse. The old internet is unusable and hacked to pieces. The new system needs AI to run things, but all but one of them were destroyed. The last sentient AI is ordered to create a new game world so the rich can have a playground, and the corporations that rule the world can have a new global market place. Everyone wants a piece of the new game. The guilds are competing to be the first to find the dungeons and kill the biggest monster. The corporations are claiming land and putting in their online market places. Ozzy and his friends just want a paycheck.Four friends sign five year contracts as virtual serfs in a small village, and can't go adventuring at all to gain money. They don't have many choices. They can work as a blacksmith, barmaid and shepherd for all those years....or they can cheat and find ways to take advantage of the system and carve out a section of the game world for themselves, and earn a fortune in the real world.When they give you a mop and not a sword, you have to find the loopholes and change the rules.

Ye Xuan transmigrated back to when he was an infant cuddling in the embraces of his nine older sisters. He activated the God-tier Sign-in System.

[You are hugged by your eldest sister, who is the COO of a financial conglomerate. You signed in and obtained RMB100000000.]

[You are fed medicine by your second sister, who is crowned the God Hand. You signed in and acquired god-tier acupuncture skills.]

[You trained along with your third sister, who is a Martial Arts Grandmaster. You signed in and your overall physique improved.]

[You live-streamed with your fourth sister, who is the top news anchor in the country. You signed in and acquired extraordinary good looks.]

……

Ye Xuan could sign in daily!

After staying in the city and signing in for eight years, Ye Xuan had accumulated an astronomical amount of wealth and become a billionaire.

On his eighth birthday, his nine sisters were forced by the grand elder of their clan to get married. Just when everyone had lost hope of turning things around, Ye Xuan hopped down from his eldest sister’s embrace and said, “You’re marrying my sisters off against their wills. Have you consulted me about this?”