HP: The Arcane Thief - Chapter 29: The Beginning

A conversation with a handsome stranger leaves Ariane chained in a cellar with a strange affliction. She soon discovers that the darkness of the nineteenth century’s Deep South hides many dangers. Mages, wolf shifters and the humans who hunt them play a risky game where to stumble is to die, all under the amused gaze of the apex predators of the supernatural world: vampires.

It is never healthy to attract the gaze of the aristocracy of the night. It takes much to survive in this merciless world, but Ariane will not let that deter her. The southern belle has a bite, and she is willing to learn and to grow in this hostile new world. She will use whatever means necessary to reclaim her freedom, be it guile, charm, or those intriguing new instincts that make blood so delectable.

This is a story of vampires as I believe they should be, with their strengths and weaknesses, with their remnants of humanity and the beast inside. Updates every Friday. Mind the tags.

Cover by Antti Hakosaari: https://www.artstation.com/haco

Special thanks to Svensonsen for getting me started, as well as Omi Nya, Hesketh, Rhaegar, Yaksher, Selkie and Raven for proofreading my stuff. Thanks to my patrons and you dear readers, for the support. I could not do it without you.

Journey is on Amazon, both in ebooks and audio. here is a link to the first one:

https://www.royalroad.com/amazon/B08DK6G8Y8

The story probably exists in your local marketplace as well of I can tempt you.

After years of exhausting work as an editor, constantly meeting impossible deadlines and dealing with frustrating clients, he finally reached the finish line—his long-awaited vacation. No more emails, no more last-minute revisions, just pure, uninterrupted laziness.His perfect plan? Lock himself inside his house, watch his favorite shows, playing video games, sleep to his heart’s content, and embrace a life of pure relaxation.But just as he was about to enjoy the bliss of doing absolutely nothing… he woke up somewhere else.Not just anywhere—but in another world, inside the body of a young noble boy. And not just any noble boy—the second son of a Marquis, notorious for his laziness and bad reputation.Great. Just great.Yet, instead of questioning the absurdity of his situation, he did what he did best—ignored everything and went back to sleep.Unfortunately, the world refused to let him be.---[System installed...][Congratulations, Host! You have been chosen as the new candidate of this world.][Please complete the following task to finish the quest and receive a reward.][Warning: Failure to complete the quest within the time limit will result in consequences.][...][...][...Host?][Didn’t you hear what I said?][WAKE UP!]Zzzzz…And so, his peaceful days were over before they even began.Now, with an annoying system breathing down his neck, a family that already expects nothing from him, and a world filled with power struggles and danger, all he wants is to laze around.But will the world really let him?

He called me his ruin. Then he made me one.Alpha Shiloh's rejection wasn’t just a scar—it was a betrayal. He left me shattered. Broken. And I had to rebuild myself in silence.I almost forgot the way his touch once burned like salvation.Now he’s back.Not to beg forgiveness. To bargain. A deadly mission, he says. He promises freedom.But then presence ignites my wolf into a frenzy. She thrashes, desperate to claim him again. But I remember the coldness in his eyes when he exiled me. The way the pack turned their backs as I crawled into the wilderness, half-dead and wholly broken. Hate simmers hotter than desire.Yet here I am, bargaining with the devil who shattered me. Every moment we share is a lie. He doesn’t know about the shadows I’ve fed, the truth I’ve buried.Or the child.One whisper of its existence, and the pack will paint the forest with my blood.But the closer we get to completing his mission, the harder it is to hide… from him, or from the part of me that still craves him.Freedom has a price.So does vengeance.And I’m not sure which will destroy me first.

Chase C. Miller is an actor with chillingly glowing purple eyes that could violently take one’s heart and a beauty that draws everyone’s eyes. After spending a heated night with him, Josh was imprinted behind his ear and he now had a secret that must never be found. It was none other than the fact that he was pregnant with Chase’s child!A few years later, Josh, who had been hired once again as his bodyguard, is astonished by his appalling character. Despite this, every time they meet eyes and stand close together, Josh cannot seem to be able to stop his heart from beating faster.“Oops, are you all right?”“You f*cking bastard, how dare you—”“Yes, I somehow dared to touch my client’s dick. I sincerely apologize.”