Romance

I opened my eyes in a novel I once read — as Emilia Evelisse Valmont, the villainess destined to be abandoned, accused, and condemned. They called her the Ice Queen: flawless, untouchable, and unloved. Her engagement shattered, her reputation ruined, her end inevitable… unless I chose to live differently.

But this is not my story.

From the Crown Prince’s eyes, she was only ever cold — until the day he saw her laugh. To the world, she was a villainess. To him, she became something else entirely. His curiosity turned into fascination, his mask began to crack, and the ‘Ice Queen’ who was meant to fall became the woman he could no longer look away from.

A reincarnated villainess. A perfect noble mask. And a romance told from the man who never expected to find his heroine in her.

The time that will bring them together.

Guided by the hand of fate, a random letter written under an alias, could its words lead two strangers, unaware of each other’s existence, toward an eternal union?

Life is ironic. Love and hatred are but two sides of the same coin. Emotions change quickly.

Sometimes she was too slow, maybe that was why she didn’t see it coming.

***

To the one she thought she knew, the wounded her ended up saying,

“You were my one and only real friend, I thought I was yours too.”
“… You are right. And because you are, I need you to die,” he had answered.

***

To the one she thought would never understand her, the suffering her requested,

“A lie. Just a last one, before my death… Lie to me again.” Despite the pain, the smile on her face was sweet, a genuine one as she made that plea.

“I love you,” he had whispered.

Sang Mu is a freelance exorcist with decent skills and a master from Longhu Mountain.

One day, she accepts a simple haunting job, only to find a faceless child calling her “Mom”.

Just as she’s nearly strangled to death, a mysterious man crashes in with more secrets than answers. Now, Sang Mu finds herself caught in the whirlwind.

Rayan Lancel, the famous detective of Ruhi Empire, suddenly went missing one day. No, he wasn’t kidnapped. He just stopped showing up to his workplace. The reason?

He realized he isn’t him anymore.

Ann Mackenzie, now possessing the body of Rayan Lancel, thought it was too much of a headache to become a detective. So she, now he, decides to quit and go look for other jobs.

Until one day, a criminal breaks into her house and starts claiming what she thought was hers. Her new life, with a new identity, wasn’t as peaceful as she thought. As a whirlpool of conspiracy into the world of unknown drags her inside the mud she was desperately trying to escape, she must find out who she was, and has become, before more people keep dying.

“And what do you know about harmonizing?” Xiao Yue looked at him as if he had just spit on her ancestor’s grave.

“Me? I’m the CEO of the Inner Dao. I have a Master’s in Spiritual Synergy and a triple Ph.D. in Multitasking Cultivation, with honors in ‘Qi Optimization Under Pressure.’ Should I show you my resume, or would you prefer a PowerPoint presentation on my celestial achievements?”

Kenji Tanaka was a Japanese CEO with the soul of a spreadsheet: cold, analytical, and completely allergic to improvisation. He died like any good executive: from an excess of meetings.

Now, he’s Lian, a nobody in a world of cultivators, dragons, absurd sects, and spiritual manuals that take ten lifetimes to read.

Martial talent? Zero. Ability to shatter mountains with a single blow? Nil. A master plan to turn chaos into a celestial startup, KPIs and all? Absolutely.

They are the unstoppable force.

He is the guy with the plan, the tea, and the to-do list.

While his harem of martial geniuses smashes armies as if they were piñatas, Lian optimizes formations, improves techniques, manages internal conflicts, and turns alchemy into a production line.

He doesn’t fight, he doesn’t scream, he doesn’t cultivate like a madman. He outsources the violence.

Because cultivating like crazy is optional, but leading with efficiency is mandatory.

“What does duty mean to you?”
Shackled by the Empire’s last flickering breath, the Princess is smitten by a hotshot rookie commander. Duty-bound, both of them learn to lead . . . together, or apart.

✧

Lay down the humble crown,
fight the war and kill the dove.
The Old Golems only frown
upon the ones who cannot love.

✧

Princess May thought the crown never fit her – she was too clumsy, too frail, too immature. But when a traitor kidnaps her only sister, she must leave the polished palace and chase a spy through the Empire’s darkest shadows.

Yjennka forged the start of his legendary military career, catching royal attention like a crack of thunder. Rising through the ranks, the Princess took him in as a top-tier bodyguard. But behind the accolades and Guard status, he must carry the weight of every soul lost under his command.

With secrets, scars, and the spy hunt unravelled, the duo’s paths intertwine. Together, they’ll learn how leadership binds them together – or tears them apart . . .

—

A low fantasy story set in an alternative medieval-gunpowder mix era. Slow burn romance, court thriller mystery, existential philosophy, military strategy, and just good ol’ fantasy action/slice of life.

Trigger warnings of violence, warfare, moral ambiguity, heavy romance.