Vale Bryce is a hunter because her dad wants her to be one. She is a loner because all hunters are. She is a drifter because that is how hunters find their jobs. ... more>>

Those are lies. Vale is none of those things, the lies the only thing keeping her alive. Until one day she slips up. A single moment of truth ruins it all, awakening a longing for a life not built on things she isn’t.

Vale has to go back to lying. She has to. The Inquisition will kill her if she doesn’t. But the truth is too addictive. Vale is not a vampire. That is a lie. That is how she will die.

Yet maybe... dying happy is better than dying a lie?

---

New chapter every 4 weeks
Story also available on Royal Road
Discord: https://discord.gg/kF9ErFYrnX <<less

Fifteen-year-old Tawny Matthews is a poor student who receives a scholarship to attend Ivoree Gates, an elite private school attended only by the children of the wealthiest in the nation.... more>>

Tawny runs afoul of Dylan, the hot, arrogant, most popular rich boy in the high school and also the most feared, and he makes her life on campus a living hell.

Will Tawny rise above the cliques and class structure of her new environment, and prove to the other students that money isn't everything? <<less

High school friends Mark and Joel have their lives uprooted when Joel discovers that his late mother was a princess who fled from another world. With the King old and infirm, Joel is asked to return to that world and take his place as the rightful heir. ... more>>

Before that, he must graduate high school. How will Joel be able to live in a new world and claim his throne?

Mark, a nerdy and isolated young man, follows his one close friend to a new high school in a new world. It can’t be worse than NYC in the early 1990s, can it...?

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Notes:
* The story is cross-posted on Royal Road under the same username
* We're finally getting into some of the harem/romantic subplot. More romcom, fewer mysteries, for the next several chapters.
* Character portraits for some of the main characters are linked in the glossary

Any/all feedback appreciated, including negative/critical feedback. :)

Any questions about the world or things I can add to the glossary is also appreciated. <<less

That feeling that you've lost something. You had so much but you just let it slip away... Katsumi Murakami is in university and has been... more>> on a downward spiral the last year. Horrible lifestyle choices and a delinquent girl that encourages this has led him to the brink. When one day, a beautiful, yet quiet, girl moves in next door, completely changing his current course in life. How far will she go to help set him straight? Or does it end before she can even really try... <<less

After being freed from a lamp, a genie named Jiji must grant her lamp owner, Dante Barrett, 100 wishes. Except, archeology Professor Barrett is mostly... more>> content with her life. Only using her wishes in emergencies. So the good news is that Jiji is allowed to explore the southern California town between wishes. The bad news is, Jiji has been trapped in the lamp for 1000 years. Thus, she has little experience with the modern world and even less impulse control.
Join Jiji as she navigates Professor Barrett's college. Stumbles to understand technology. And falls in love with everyone she meets. <<less

Issa’s shadow powers are a curse, and they are going to kill her. While the potent magic helps her and her sister Kyrae get by on the muddy streets of Ess’Sylantziis, the cost will drive them both to the brink. Will the Temple of Jaezotl that rules over the jungles of the Empire of Jii’Kalaga from its great stone ziggurats actually help them? Or will the pair of sisters—one a lamia, and one an elf—be driven from the shadows of insignificance into the light of the Empire’s power games?
And just what kind of entity is Issa linked to that is neither god nor mortal?... more>>

Scales & Shadows is a fantasy novel with a character-driven plot, elements of drama and political intrigue, and a dash of late romance set in a misty-jungled land of elves and snake people.
-Expect mistakes to be made, tears to be shed, and motes of light to always pierce the shadows.
-Do not expect a focus on progression of power or heavy action.

New Chapters on Fridays.
Cover art is by the amazing and wonderful Cutetanuki-chan. Links to her tumblr and twitter are after the Prologue. <<less

In a new world and in a new body, Jean will have to deal with his issues and his burning anger. Will he give in to his destructive impulses or will he try to hold back in order to protect all that he has achieved?... more>>

Warning!
- English is not my mother tongue. If you find any translation errors, let me know.
- There are several triggers, physical and emotional violence throughout the series. Be warned.
- Although it doesn't look like, this is a BL. Be warned.

This series is on Tapas too.

Cover image created with Canvas - https://www.canva.com/ <<less

Hermes is known as the God of speed and travel. But like all the other Olympians, his origin was rocky. Riddled with trial and strife... more>> as he learned his way. Guided and taught by his new family. Some more helpful than others.
This is a loose retelling of Hermes' origin. From a young teen in a cave to the newest god on Olympus. Being taught and trained by his extremely dysfunctional family. <<less

Fukaze Honzo is a 16-year-old student that frequently struggles with... well existing. Set in the rather 'boring' suburbs of Takabata, in Nagoya, Honzo has a hard time trying to come to terms with himself, despite his clear privileged status in society and a friendship group. He suffers from episodes of depersonalization, with him feeling like an outsider within his own body. As he starts the second year, he finally recognizes that this gloomy and negative personality might need to change, or at least improve his outlook. Just as fortune may have it, there's an idealist, maybe even naive, senpai who invites him, and his friends to a brand new school club. ... more>>

It's called the Culture & Travel Club. A club all about making the community a better place and learning all about the world. And that all starts here, in Nagoya. Despite this, Honzo still needs to navigate the absurdities of living. One day, he might start appreciating himself. Perhaps, even someone else, too.

---------------
Warning: There are some topics that might be a bit upsetting. The characters talk about murder/manslaughter and crime as well as a vehicular accident.

There is no pattern to dropping anymore but I try on Tuesdays. This is also the first web-novel I've written, so I really have no idea if it's even adequate. I literally only started writing for fun and a month later, I have now written enough for at least someone else to read. I'm really just talking about genuine social issues that apply to both my home nation and, not trying to be patronizing, Japan too within the confines of a romcom that's wholesome enough for someone to probably ignore the issues raised.

Thanks, if you're reading this and I hope you at least had a modicum of enjoyment, if you do read the story.

Also, I know Fukaze Honzo's name makes literally no sense <<less

Dennis is days away from turning sixteen and picking his class, but it's not the joyful time it should be as his father used his contacts to limit the selection to those classes he considers safe, in an attempt to protect his son.... more>>

Grounded after rushing off to help during a monster wave attack on the town, Dennis gets an offer to sneak out to enjoy his last day before being shackled to a boring class. unable to resist, He finds himself thrust into an adventure that might end up changing everything about is life, his place in his town, and how he views the world.

This is the world which is, a world change by the System thirty years prior. a world filled with wonders, terrors, and people after something Dennis got his hands on.

All Dennis wanted to do with his life was be a guard in his town; keep it and its people safe. Now, he may have to think larger.

Much, much larger. <<less

After a grave mistake, a group of young adults must learn to survive in a world where they're supposed to be exterminated. With a long... more>> journey ahead of them, they set out to find where they belong and who is truly an enemy and who is truly a friend.
(A lot of graphic violence and mass murder themes including genocide adjacent concepts and active war zone violence. Reader discretion advised.)
Cover art by TheSundaesundae <<less

When an unknown series of airships begins to threaten the skyspace, a continent made up of grand airships housing ancient weapons with unknown power, three... more>> young adults must go on a journey of self-discovery while trying to prevent the weapons falling into the wrong hands. <<less

Celia, who had been a puppet playing to the tune of the government, had spent her life fighting creatures called "Visitors", who had been invading earth for centuries, for as long as she could remember. Together with Pan, her partner in crime and a Visitor of Special Grade himself, all she wanted was to survive.... more>>

Yet, after dying unexpectedly of a heart attack one day, she woke up and found herself as an inconsequential short lived villainess from "The Saintess' Unbreakable Shield" - a novel she had read before. Rowena Dynari van Varnhagen, the daughter of the only Grand Duke of the Arlen Empire.
Said villainess, equipped with a few minor... personality quirks, offended the female lead at the beginning, and was promptly cut right out of the story.

But this won't happen to her! Determined not to let people trample on, and use her again, Celia - no, Rowena - decides to fight for a future worth having.

*Synopsis partially written by HelloHound and Kalliel.
**UPDATES every Monday (temporarily minimized schedule), 12:00 PM (CET). <<less

Zaina Quin is an ordinary young woman working her father's farm when her life is turned upside down by the impending end of her world.

In the vast and volatile lands of Tepr, the Jabliu and Alinkar tribes, long-standing enemies, have forged an uneasy alliance. The price of peace? A union through matrimony between Naci, the fiery and ambitious daughter of Jabliu's chieftain, and the elusive heir of Alinkar.... more>>

From the windswept steppes to the towering peaks of the Tengr Mountains, Tepr is a realm of contrasts, a mosaic of tribes, each fiercely guarding its identity and territory. While the alliance is a political move, for Naci, it's an opportunity. She doesn't just see a marriage; she sees a stepping stone, a path that might lead her to the ultimate prize: the unification of all the tribes under one banner.

But the path to power is fraught with challenges, and the distant Moukopl empire, perched high in the Tengr mountains, has long held an iron grip over the region. <<less

If you could fundamentally understand people and the meaning behind their words, how would that change you?... more>>

As a child, Marou Miyashita had a unique ability—he could see deep into people's souls. By focusing his gaze onto the stars that seemingly filled people's eyes, he would be able to discern who individuals were, what they were thinking and what their words truly meant, among other things. With this, he quickly garnered the attention and praise of those around him.

When you understand an individual's fundamental being, it's easy to get along.

However, following an incident in his senior year of junior high, Marou began to notice something odd. When he looked into people's eyes, the bright light from them that never bothered him before, started to burn, and as time went on, it became unbearable.

...Until his second year in high school.

Marou stumbles upon the hot topic of his school, the exchange student, Reiko Chitose! Whether her flamboyant, unpretentious attitude or dazzling yet gentle beauty, everyone had something to say about her. But what no one else saw—and what Marou took notice of the most—were her starless blue eyes. Without stars, there was nothing but her bright personality that was blinding.

With her now in the picture, how would Marou's life change? Could she hold the answers to the origins of his power? Would she be able to fix his ability? Or will Marou learn to live without it? <<less

In Dreamlight, you win or you die. ... more>>

Trapped in the latest VR fantasy MMO, 16 year old Karlee must fight for survival along with the other 14,000 trapped players. Their only way home is to beat the game, but Karlee is not all that she seems. <<less

A boy saves a princess one time, and no one can ever let it go. Lyle of Ene was living a perfectly normal life in... more>> his valley working as a guide for bear-hunters when he runs into two lost children, who turn out to be the children of the Queen of his neighboring country. Lyle, who never intended to leave his home, soon finds himself thrown into a wide world of danger, adventure, and drama as the group stow away with a circus caravan, are chased by the Queen's enemies, and held prisoner by strangers.
This is the first of a six-part series that spans ten years and follows Lyle of Ene and Princess Iris as they go on adventures, navigate politics, figure out how love works, fight in a war or two, and eventually find their places in the world.
This story is also posted on Royal Road. <<less

As far back as I can remember, I’ve always hated being touched. It was the one parting gift she left me before walking out of... more>> my life forever. Nothing had changed in my final semester of high school, and I figured nothing really would until I found myself in a predicament: join a club or face repeating the year due to my procrastination. Fortunately, my English teacher had started a new club, and I took my place as its sole member. That quickly fell apart as girl after girl from Luke’s former harem ended up in the club. Despite that setback, I came to realize that we may share more in common than I had thought. Maybe–just maybe–things would be different, after all.
____
Updates: Wednesday and Saturday <<less

Lior Sova often wishes she could be normal. It would be one thing if she could fly or turn invisible, but seeing the future comes with all sorts of complications, especially when her body is still in the present. Unfortunately, in a world where such special abilities are rare, no one believes she is anything more than clumsy and inattentive, until she receives an invitation to the mysterious boarding school down the road. As Lior finally begins to understand her abilities, she must learn to navigate a changing present and uncertain future. Luckily, she just might make some friends along the way.... more>>

Updates are going to be a bit all over the place for now.

Without further ado, I hope you enjoy! <<less

"Aether Nexus: Curse of Hatred" follows the story of a fateful encounter between a young boy named Dama, orphaned from a devasting plague, with the ability to imbue life energy into inanimate objects, and a mysterious girl named Giona, who is found one morning unconscious on a riverbank, covered in numerous bruises, with one peculiar mark on her collarbone and the ability to raise the dead, a manifestation or "curse" of her witch heritage.... more>>

Helping her back to his cabin, Dama spends years caring for and nurturing Giona while also introducing her to the residents of Enohay Village within Enohay Valley. Slowly, as Dama teaches Giona how to read, write, and speak properly, she reveals more and more of her abused and secluded childhood at the hands of black hooded figures, all due to her being a witch. Resolving to protect her, Dama reassures Giona that she doesn't need to worry about her past anymore, that she's safe with him, and that he'll never leave her side.

However, those who so callously experimented and subjected her to their cruel tests were not pleased with losing their prized test subject, their shadow loomed large over Enohay Valley, ultimately setting the stage for an event the Continent of Eranovum would ever forget, even two hundred years from now... <<less

Fii's life in the slums was always about survival. But a fateful encounter with the enigmatic Dr. Edith reveals her true potential. As the only successful product of a forbidden experiment, Fii finds herself wielding powers she never imagined. Navigating the treacherous landscape of the slums, she grapples with the weight of her newfound abilities. With every choice she makes, she teeters on the edge of becoming the hero the slums need or the vigilante they fear.... more>>

What to expect:
- MC's steady progression of superpower and skills
- Somewhat of a hard Sci-Fi approach to the MC's superpower at the beginning
- Immersive world-building (dystopian)
- Theme: Heroism vs Vigilantism
- Cinematic action scenes! (after MC's training arc). Moments of visceral violence
- Interesting cast of characters
- Multiple POV (not too many, just within a few important characters)
- Minor political intrigues and mysteries

Do not expect:
- LitRPG

Explicit Language: A few instances, here and there...
Graphic Violence: Some, particularly from one character... <<less

Before the busy life took over, Agnes and Athy reunited after years apart, reconnecting from their shared past. Athy always focused on Agnes, she gradually... more>> developed feelings for the older woman. However, she is either waiting for a change or taking proactive steps to move on, while Agnes gradually realized the depth of her affection, drawn together by the intangible bond. Eventually, they decide to pursue a relationship, finding comfort in following their instincts and placing their trust in the natural progression of their connection, fueled by the unbreakable tie of Heartstrings, signifying one's deepest feelings of love and compassion. <<less

“Welcome to the Hollow Night.”... more>>

Plucked suddenly from the monotony of their daily lives, an unlikely assembly of students find themselves thrust into a nightly battle for survival.

Trapped in this lethal game where the shadows come to life, alliances are fragile, and the key to their existence lies in supernatural powers called EXS, these teenagers must navigate a treacherous, tenebrous landscape for seven nights if they wish to return to their normal lives.

Join them on an unforgettable journey where danger is always constant, death is always near, and the path to salvation is shrouded in darkness.

Just be sure to watch your back.

(NOTE TO NEW READERS: The first ~4 or so chapters are relatively slow for the sake of establishing details about the world. After this introduction, the pacing picks up significantly, so please read up until that point before making the choice to continue.) <<less

The new Frontier. ... more>>

A supposed land mass far beyond the coast of Mundus that supposedly holds all sorts of treasures and wonderous beasts. During the age of discovery, many embarked on the perilous journey to lay claim to the land, with none returning. Some say it was because of the dangers of the unknown seas, while others say they struck it rich and decided to stay. Whatever the truth may be, all agree that the actual state of this ‘imaginary’ land remains ambiguous.

Nally Stenner, the daughter of a mighty Lord who resides in the western region, grew up hearing stories about this wonderous realm. Now profoundly intrigued by its mysteries, she sets out to see the world.

Notes:
If ur a fan of long fantasy progressions then this is for you! <<less