The Demonic World I designed - Chapter 5 - Family

For three years, Finn Taylor is utterly humiliated. He has endured everything from physical beatings to verbal abuse. For three long years, he has gone by only one identity—the useless matrilocal son-in-law of the Larson family. But this life as he knows it is about to be turned upside-down as he reclaims his position as the head of Peregrine Hall.

Five years ago, humanity’s strongest Tower Climber was betrayed at the peak of his conquest.Rael Arden, known only by his codename Phantom, was the silent genius who cleared impossible floors, crushed monsters with forbidden magic, and shaped the rules of Tower exploration. No one had ever seen his real face—yet his legend was feared across the world.But at the Tower’s summit, the teammates he carried to glory stabbed him in the back. For power. For godhood. For fear of what he might become.They thought he died.They were wrong.Reincarnated in secret, Rael awakens in a modern world that’s on the edge of collapse. Dungeons bleed into cities. Monsters evolve. The Tower is no longer just a gate—it’s infecting the world. And the very ones who betrayed him now rule from the shadows, hiding behind titles, guilds, and lies.But Rael isn’t alone. His soul split across hidden clone bodies, each designed to infiltrate, gather information, and prepare for war. As each clone reawakens, his power grows—and so does his rage.With him are three women tied to his fate:Selene, the shadow rogue who never betrayed him.Lyra, a curious researcher drawn to the legend of the Phantom.Aeris, the sword saint who still mourns his death… and may not be as loyal to the enemy as she seems.Now, Rael hunts the seven betrayers who destroyed his past.One by one, they will fall.But revenge is just the beginning.Because deep within the Tower, something else is waking—an ancient force that even Rael feared. And this time, the world may not survive unless the Phantom reigns again.

A river song, triggered a legend of the rivers and lakes.
Tian Zun’s life motto: “My sword is the truth.”
Shen Lang’s life motto: “To serve people with morality, those who are dissatisfied are dead.”

- Description from uukanshu (translated)

My mother is the sweet, silly, and innocent protagonist of an angsty novel.

My mother was the substitute for the overbearing CEO’s unrequited love interest who ran off when she found out she was pregnant.

As for me, I’m nothing special. I’m just the child prodigy who became a hacker at the age of five.

…

Genius hacker Gu Chu found herself reborn in the pages of a tear-jerker book.

She had been transformed into a cute little five year-old. Her mother was the tragic female protagonist while her father was the uncultured, boorish male protagonist. There were also a gaggle of hostile, opportunistic relatives and a pretentious, seemingly-virtuous but vile-hearted aunt...

Gu Chu straightened her small little frame and began waging war secretly to help her mother.

What bad intentions could a five-year-old have?

She just wanted to protect Mama.

…

Until one day...

The man who had hunted her across half the globe in her previous life suddenly appeared.

As he stared at the weeping little doll-like child in her princess dress, the man fell silent for a long while.