Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon - Volume 2, Chapter 17: Recluses around the Corner

Drowned, betrayed, and humiliated—Brandon’s life ended in the most pathetic way possible. But when he opened his eyes again, he was no longer Brandon.Reborn as Noah Weaverheart—in a novel he had read—the spoiled yet talentless son of a duchess, he quickly realizes a cruel truth: he’s nothing more than a stepping stone, fated to die in the first 30 chapters of this world’s story.But fate isn’t set in stone.Because he now has the Sovereign Bond System, a power that allows him to share everything from the women he bonds with—but at 10,000 times the quality.—[Ding! You have bonded with Neko Neko.][Ding! You have shared the affinity and talent of Neko Neko.][Ding! You have obtained the affinity: Ice (SSS rank) and the talent: Sovereign of Ice (SSS rank).]Noah’s lips curled into a knowing smirk.If this world wanted him to be a stepping stone, then he’d crush the so-called protagonist, steal his harem, and rewrite destiny itself.

“Is Fate the excuse of the forsaken, is Free Will the delusion of the chosen?”Such was a question that Xavier, the Demon King, never had the chance to ask himself. As he lay defeated, awaiting his death, he wondered about the wretched life he lived.'The hero who killed me, the one who held the same ambitions as me. We both wanted good for the people, for the world. We are both two sides of the same coin, yet, fate decided that he will be the one the light will shine on.Perhaps it was me too, perhaps it was my karma for flowing the rivers of blood with my sword. But still... It was fate that squashed the humanity in me first!Damn fate, if I had one more chance, I would've lived for myself more, I wouldn't have taken this arbitrary role of being a necessary evil... This world, this game of destiny... It can burn to ashes for all I care.'As he sunk into the cold embrace of death, a certain [REDACTED] heard his dying wish with amusement and cast their die, reversing the wheel of time one last time and going all in on him on a risky gamble with the stakes of their world.

[Infinite Regression Genre] In any fantasy novel, regression is a guaranteed cheat key!What if it’s the ability of [Infinite Regression]?There’d be no need to worry about any bad endings. After all, the protagonist would eventually reach a happy ending.“Cheat key, my foot.”I tried it myself just to find out otherwise.The myths of regressors’ success depicted in all those novels are actually fake…It was all just vile propaganda!“This run is doomed too.”This is not a story of success; it’s a tale on the aftermath of failures.Thus begins the heartfelt documentary of a man with 1183 runs of experience!

In a world where talent is everything—what happens when someone dares to cheat the heavens?Xuan Wu awakened in the brutal Fire Haven World where the strong eat the weak, where practitioners cultivate techniques to live longer and grow stronger. But just as despair crept in...[Ding! Awakened the Supreme Cheat System][Anything you desire, reality will obey...]Cultivation? Piece of cake.Upper worlds? He can ascend and descend with a thought.Enemies? A single word is all that is needed for obliteration.As Xuan Wu overlooks the world in his grasp, he asks himself—should he dominate, conquer worlds, create planets?Or should he play along just like an ordinary disciple?