This Japanese Monogatari Isn't Lame - Chapter 116 - 115. Dongzi, forgive me

Thea Lynch was seventeen when she injured her ear and temporarily lost her speech. Her parents passed away in a car accident, leaving her and her brother to rely on each other. Later, her brother was transferred for work and left, and she was taken to live at her grandmother's house in Westmere. During this period, her brother entrusted friends to check on her, and the one who visited most frequently was the “Third Brother”—Ian Preston, who was five years older than her.Coronet is over a hundred kilometers away from Westmere, yet he insisted on accompanying her to see doctors, patiently teaching her how to speak, and even appearing at her school gate every evening. He saved all of his gentle caring for her, but everything stopped abruptly before she could muster the courage to confess. Her secret crush was unsuccessful, and a sudden change at home caused her to leave, cutting off all contact with him.When they met again, it was seven years later when she returned home for a matchmaking date and was cornered by him in the restaurant corridor, “That guy downstairs, is he your date? How come after spending several years abroad, your taste has gotten so much worse? With better options around, how can you choose him?”“Who is the better option?” she instinctively asked.Ian Preston: “Me.”[Childhood sweethearts, getting back together, mutual unrequited love]

This stands at the forefront of strategy guides to Life (a shitty video game)!

In the year 2000, the System arrived on Gaia and changed the world of mankind. The environment became volatile and organisms evolved. To the humans, the System offered a class-base progression with a myriad of skills just like in old RPG games. From magic to bloodlines, as long as people immersed themselves in their passions, the System would incorporate their interests into classes and skills. And with the rise of new powerhouses, old nations were brought down and new ones rose from the ashes, stabilizing and governing their evolved populace.Around 500 years later since the dawn of the System, the story of our MC began. Drai was a musclehead, and his days were mostly spent for two purposes: becoming stronger and tougher! With his single-mindedness and crazy trainings he was finally offered a special class on the Revelation Day. From there on, his journey began. Starting from a prestigious academy and meeting his mentor and new friends, each with their own peculiarities, Drai steadily walked the path of power and invincibility. Party adventures, dark schemes, and veiled threats would accompany Drai throughout his journey.

Deep below the earth's surface, a mystifying subterranean seascape lurks, an archipelago bathed in inky blackness where suspense and horror hold court. Here lie strange islands and even stranger monsters, far beyond the realms of human imagination. In this domain, mankind is far from dominant; instead, madness and death rule supreme.

Pleading for mercy from the unknown creatures of the deep only leads to a slow, tortured existence. The trapped survivors gradually distort, losing what made them human, both physically and mentally, to the gloom as they remain trapped in this eternal obscurity. Their only hope? A perilous expedition into uncharted sea territories.

Fueled by determination, Charles embark on this daunting voyage aboard his steamship, aiming to reclaim humanity's past glory. Together with his crew, they sought a way out of this hidden sea world, a path back to the sunlit world above, where humans once stood tall.

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I read a few comments from Chinese readers that compared this novel with Lord of Mysteries because of similar elements: Lovecraftian, western fantasy, first industrial revolution, and steampunk. However, I have yet to finish reading Lord of Mysteries to do any actual comparison, but I do think those who have enjoyed that novel would enjoy this as well. Also, the author of LotM, Cuttlefish That Loves Diving, also did a shout-out for this novel, so I guess he approves of it too?

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