The Devil's Betrothed - Chapter 24: Holding Hand

We were a peaceful people living in harmony with nature in the vast lands of Lyréanor, but this peace was short-lived when our people were defeated by the dark elves, an ancient people even older than this world. It is said that they arrived in Lyréanor by boat and since their arrival, chaos has been unleashed. Proud of their obscure power, derived from dark rituals, they have raised gigantic armies of monsters whose name is synonymous with terror: ‘Obscurus’.They went on the rampage, and everywhere they went the grass didn't grow back, life died and disintegrated. Seven, there were seven. The seven dark elves known as the Lords of the Apocalypse. A single gesture from them was enough to strike us all down, a single gesture from one of them was enough to decimate us in blood and terror.And as I, Foster, contemplate the macabre scene before me, the bloodied and deformed bodies of my fellow elfes beings, and as death grips my soul, a strange sign appeared before me.[Ding... Activation of the world tree system]

*Slow Burn Historical Fantasy Novel*

Elise had about to change into the dress that was lying on the corner of her bed when she heard a knock lightly calling from her door. Curious, she turned the door knob only to have a tall man towering in front of her.

“Master Ian!” She called.

Ian smiled with the usual mischievous smirk that he always used. His crimson eyes trailing a little over her room and spotted the black dress over her bed and shifted his eyes over to the woman in front of him. He stepped forward and spoke. “Where did you acquire that dress?”

“Mr. Harland gave it to me.” Elise replied and strained her neck to see Ian’s brows knitted in its elegance.

“Do you know why a man would love to give a woman a dress?” He gave the riddle that she always had to think twice before replying. But this time, she found no answer and instead shook her head. “I don’t know.”

His grin grew bewitching as though something had stirred deep inside the scarlet eyes that he had. He slowly slid his hand over the collar of her dress, sending a cold shiver that startled her for a moment due to its freezing temperature. After unbuttoning the first two buttons on her collar, he tilted his head down, whispering to her ears. “Because they want to be the one to undress the cloth.”

He paused and kissed her neck, turning the pale skin to red before retracting his move to fix his eyes on her and leisurely replied. “Unfortunately, you can’t wear the dress over there with this.” He chuckled and passed a box over to her hand. “And the fortunate news is I prepared a dress for you.”

Elise was a cursed little girl who could see ghosts. Her family hated her and threw her from one adoptive family to another. However, misfortune didn't act alone. When she was brought up by her aunt, she was sold as a slave. When she had thought she would become nothing but a sacrifice to the sorcerer, she was saved by a man whose identity was far different than a normal mythical being.

In an era of global awakening of supernatural abilities, Lin Tianming awakens his SSS-level talent. He thought he was about to reach the pinnacle of his life, only to overhear the heartfelt thoughts of his school beauty girlfriend who hates him to the core.[Lin Tianming, you didn't expect me to be reborn, did you? In my previous life, you let me down. In this life, I will not be fooled by your sweet words again!]Having a reborn girlfriend who is merely putting on a show is already troublesome enough, but little does he know, there's more than one person he has wronged. At this moment, each of them is on their way to find him!--------------------------Features elements of Lovecraftian horror, with themes of inner demons, corruption, genetic ascension, mechanical ascension, and psionic ascension emerging in the later stages.

Betrayed by those he empowered. Slain at the peak of his reign. Reborn into a world unworthy of him.Tian Mo was once a supreme cultivator, a dark sovereign who ruled with absolute might and terrifying intellect. After a million years of conquest, his closest allies turned on him, stripping him of everything. But fate offered no rest. Reincarnated into modern-day Earth, he awakens in a weak mortal body—yet his memories, ambition, and ruthlessness remain untouched.In this strange new world of technology and fragile peace, Tian Mo finds new prey. With the Primordial Chaos Demonic Evil Physique and the forbidden Divine Sins Emperor Technique, he begins building his empire from the shadows. He manipulates the system, devours the corrupt, and topples the powerful—not out of justice, but vengeance... and the endless hunger for power.There are no heroes in this tale. Only a monster reborn—and the world that will burn beneath his feet.