21st century Goguryeo - Chapter 116

A universe of elemental magic and beasts.

Toz is born with the power to acquire the same element as a cat he establishes a bond with.

On a journey to explore the universe, Toz picks up cats and enemies while treading on the path to becoming a peerless elemental mage. Who also happens to use a sword.

The story begins with Toz setting out for adventure and exploration with his first two cats, Nil and Lucy. And then stuff happens.

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I am currently re-writing the first chapters of this story. They are quite rough and bounce around a lot and I can do better. At some point, I will replace these with the better chapters.Sometime in 2024 Aethon Books will publish the first volume of this story on Amazon, KU, and audible. This will mean the story will be stubbed. I will notify people far in advance of that.In the dystopian world of the future, life is rough when you live at the bottom. Jobs are non-existent. Far too many people live in poverty, crammed into huge buildings called Habitats. With no jobs in the real world, many people can only find work online in VR worlds as servants to the very rich. And it's getting worse. The old internet is unusable and hacked to pieces. The new system needs AI to run things, but all but one of them were destroyed. The last sentient AI is ordered to create a new game world so the rich can have a playground, and the corporations that rule the world can have a new global market place. Everyone wants a piece of the new game. The guilds are competing to be the first to find the dungeons and kill the biggest monster. The corporations are claiming land and putting in their online market places. Ozzy and his friends just want a paycheck.Four friends sign five year contracts as virtual serfs in a small village, and can't go adventuring at all to gain money. They don't have many choices. They can work as a blacksmith, barmaid and shepherd for all those years....or they can cheat and find ways to take advantage of the system and carve out a section of the game world for themselves, and earn a fortune in the real world.When they give you a mop and not a sword, you have to find the loopholes and change the rules.

Changqing has always felt that she’s incomparable to Guan Ying in every aspect. Even though she is pretty and has a good family background, this world is nothing more than a world where Princes are more attracted to Cinderellas.

“What are you doing, Logan?”Jean’s voice was sharp, but her body betrayed her leaning into the warmth of his breath as his lips traced a sinful path down her neck.“You promised me a kiss every day, remember?” Logan murmured, his smirk curling against her skin.“Or should I read the contract to you again?”She should pull away. She knows this is wrong.But resisting Logan Kingsley?That was never in the plan.------------------------------------------------------Jean Adams has spent her entire life under the suffocating control of her powerful family, molded into the perfect daughter, the flawless businesswoman, and the untouchable heiress. But when her parents cross the final line, demanding she marry the very man who once shattered her, she refuses to be their pawn any longer. If they want a marriage, she’ll give them one. But on her terms.Logan Kingsley, her sworn enemy. A self-made billionaire with a reputation for winning, Logan has spent years battling Jean in boardrooms and beyond. They have never seen eye to eye, their hatred simmering since childhood. But when Jean offers him a deal, a contract marriage that benefits them both, he doesn’t hesitate.For Logan, marrying Jean is a strategic move. For Jean, it’s her ultimate revenge. Tying herself to Logan is the perfect way to break free from her family’s grip, humiliate them, and destroy the future they tried to force upon her. But as their fake marriage plays out under the public eye, their carefully crafted plan starts to unravel.Old wounds resurface. The line between pretense and reality blurs. And the one thing Jean swore she’d never risk, her heart, may become the biggest casualty of all.In a game of power, betrayal, and unexpected passion, Jean and Logan must decide: Is their marriage just a weapon for revenge, or has it become something far more dangerous?