I Love You, Monster: The Blindfolded Wife x The Masked Husband - Chapter 125: A kind of pain she never knew

Zephyr Ashbourne has been a mage for two months. Following one eventful night where he accidentally made a pact with a werewolf deity, he's left with the ability to use magic - much to the dismay of his vampire ex-girlfriend who'd been seeking magic for herself. Now Zephyr is attending a small and selective university for mages half way across the world, the Midnight Court. Though quickly, he learns this new power comes with new problems. His ex-girlfriend, for one, wasn't thrilled when he skipped town without a word. And too, his new dueling partner, Aries de la Fel, seems to find new ways to push his buttons on the daily.A novelization of a playthrough of Covens of Midnight - a slice-of-life, magic school, enemies-to-lovers RPG.

Eons have passed since the prophesied godslayer met his demise. Yet, in a world reborn, whispers stir of his return, of a new man born from the remnants of an ancient prophecy.Kallen, destined to master the delicate balance between chaos and order, light and darkness, emerges to defy the very fabric of fate.Existence is a tapestry, one whole, connected, and indivisible. It is woven by the fabric of fate, spun with the strings of karma, and stitched with the threads of causality.Yet, within this unity lies individuality, and this individuality is the essence of existence. The manifestation of essence is Will.But what is a sparked Will against one akin to a raging inferno? What is a child before a mammoth? The conviction of a mortal before the boundless Will of cosmic beings?The answer is defiance!.A defiant Will, is what Kallen needs to liberate himself from the suppression every mortal endures from apex lifeforms. To live his life free, unhinged and on his own terms.But it takes a bit of crazy to be brave, and Insanity to be defiant.This is the story of a mortal breaking limits to achieve Apexification, to walk with his head held high and free in every corner of the universe.It is the irony of a slave who holds the reins, even as their chains bite deep. It is the cry of a heart bound in servitude, yet refusing to surrender its essence.

In the year 2090, technology has advanced to the point where Simulation Boxes, (Sim Box for short) are common place, allowing for the user to link up their brain's neural network to a full dive Simulation. While initially used for educational purposes, recently a large gaming company, Averon, released a fully fledged immersive MMORPG simulation where users can become anyone they desire, level up, choose their class, and become a hero or a villain. The name of this simulation is The Shattered World Online.

Eli Winters had no interest in playing it. His father, a jobless bum who spent his entire life playing games in the hope of becoming a famous player or streamer, was able to use the release of The Shattered World Online to gain wealth and fame, quickly becoming the number one player and a household name as the game took the world by storm. He immediately abandoned Eli and his mother in favor of being with someone from his guild, despite his mother having worked two jobs to support them and raise Eli by herself. Eli had nothing but spite for his father and the game.

When Eli's best friend convinces him to try out the game, his father's fame begins to interfere, culminating in him being singled out and shunned by his peers, and his father offering to pay for his university tuition in return for Eli hiding their relationship and quitting the game. Instead of complying with his father's wishes, Eli decides to prove to everyone how useless a guy his father is by challenging him that if Eli is able to surpass him in the game world he must delete his account and quit his streaming career. His father accepts the challenge believing his son to be useless at games - but Eli will soon show him just how ambitious a spiteful person can be.

“Doc, it’s like the game I made is becoming a reality.”“Isn’t that nice? People are under so much pressure at work these days, but you can get away from it all, play the game, and live the life of your dreams.”“But I’m a famous ghost story game designer, I’ve conceived one hundred and twenty-six mu*der cases, portrayed dozens of mu*derers with different personalities, and to find material I’ve watched ninety-five thriller movies, more than four hundred horror comics, and collected more than two thousand urban weird tales. Now they all seem to be true!”“So …… do I look familiar to you?”