Stray Cat Strut [Stubbing Never - lol] - Chapter Three - Post Coital Interruptions

As part of the imperial family, every move by Chu Yuan in this game of chess is made with apprehension, fearing that with a moment of inattentiveness, the whole match will be lost in a single move.

Ascending to the throne at eighteen, not half a year passes before civil strife erupts in Yun Nan. Though the thoughts of the old guard at the imperial court are not exactly identical, they are all waiting to see how the new emperor will put an end to this.

Unexpectedly, before this side could make a move, a few thousand miles away, the King of Xi Nan, Duan Bai Yue, had already personally commanded troops to attack in all directions; not half a year had passed when peace was restored.

Sparse moonlight shines into the palace; Chu Yuan stamped the wax seal himself, and had a secret letter sent urgently to Yun Nan 800 miles away — this time, what must we(1) give in exchange?

Brush marks passed through the back of the paper; it almost can be seen, when writing this line, how angry the young emperor was.

Duan Bai Yue spread out a piece of paper unhurriedly, replying with only one word.

You.

Notes:
(1): Chu Yuan is using the royal ‘we’ here.

- Description from Novelupdates

Feng Yun thought his story ended the moment he took revenge for his family’s slaughter. But death was just the beginning. Awakening in the void, he is offered a second chance by an unknown entity—at a price.Reincarnated into a ruthless world where the deadly game “The Path to Godhood” has begun, Feng Yun must carve his way through deception, bloodshed, and power struggles. With the memories and skills of his past life intact, he has one goal: to survive, rise, and uncover the true purpose of this treacherous world.In a realm where only the strong dictate fate, will he seize power—or be consumed by it?

“You dragged me into this world. Now you kneel in it.” — Tim SlokovBy day, Tim Slokov was a quiet office drone. By night, a ruthless online critic of fantasy novels. But when a mysterious force transmigrates him into the dying body of an elven outcast—doomed and powerless—Tim realizes he’s become the tragic background character of someone else’s story.Only he refuses to die quietly.Denied justice, Tim is granted a single gift: the Shattered Necromancy System, a broken power fueled by death itself.[Seek Me, O Death — Passive]: Every kill becomes a servant. Every soul feeds his army.[Death Embrace — Active]: He becomes what he commands—gaining the power of his dead.[Arise — Active]: The battlefield becomes his stage, where his fallen rise again.Armed with cursed power, Tim must evolve himself—and his ever-growing legion of the dead—to claw his way up a world that wants him erased. But vengeance is only the beginning. As his strength grows, so does the truth behind his forced arrival... and the god-like force that wants him broken.Tim isn’t here to play the hero.He’s here to rewrite fate—one death at a time.

A genius schemer, creating an emperor!

“Only when your brother is happy can you be happy.”

She committed all kinds of evil deeds to make him Emperor. However, Artezia’s devotion was repaid with betrayal. It was the Grand Duke Cedric, a righteous enemy, that gave her a hand of salvation at the threshold of death.

“Devise a plan.”
“…”
“I can’t think of anyone but you who can reverse this situation. Marquess Rosan.”
“…”
“Lend me your strength.”

There is no plan that can reverse the already declining power and save the fallen empire. However, there is a method. To turn back time before everything went wrong.

With tears of blood she sacrificed her body to an ancient magic. This time, she will not fall.

Artezia, who returned to the age of 18 before death, resolved to become a villainess for the Grand Duke Cedric.

“Please give me your hand in marriage. I’ll make you emperor.”

In exchange for kneeling to the devil, the devil shall dirty her hands for you.