A Reaper's Philosophy - Chapter 22: A Stormy Day

For as long as he could remember, life had always been cruel.A young man in his early twenties—his name now lost to the past—was dealt a life filled with misfortunes.A cold, empty apartment, a soul-crushing job, and, finally, a terminal diagnosis.With nothing left to live for, his only comfort had been escaping into the fictional world of Path of the Elemental Sage, a story of heroes, magic, and survival.But fate had other plans.When death finally came for him, he didn’t fade into nothingness.Instead, he awoke in the world he had only read about—a world of chaos and danger where death lurked around every corner.The air smelled of magic, the sky was filled with possibilities.{«[Status Window]»}[Name: Lyrium Blackwood][Age: 16][Rank: D-][Skills: None][Elements: None}At first, confusion filled his mind.Who was Lyrium Blackwood?Why was he here?And why did this body feel so different?But as his memories returned, so did the realization: this wasn’t some blessing or second chance.He wasn’t reincarnated as the protagonist.No destined savior.No cheat abilities.No grand fate.He was just another mob, a face in the crowd meant to exist and die without leaving a mark.But this young man—the one who had left his old name and life behind—wasn’t the kind of person to roll over and accept his fate.“This world is dangerous. The protagonist isn’t the only one fighting for survival here,”he muttered, his red eyes deep and sharp.Unlike the naïve characters in the story, he knew the stakes.He’d read the web novel.He’d seen the carnage, the betrayals, the disasters that wiped out entire cities.And if there was one thing he refused to be, it was a pawn in someone else’s game.“I don’t care about glory. I don’t care about saving the world. All I care about is surviving—no matter what it takes.”Lyrium Blackwood wasn’t planning to live quietly or avoid danger.The only way to survive in this brutal world was to rise to the top.To be strong enough to stand above both heroes and villains.Using his knowledge of the story’s events and his iron will, Lyrium sets out on a relentless path to surpass the protagonist.Whether through clever manipulation, brutal training, or sheer desperation, he’ll climb higher and higher, leaving nothing to chance.But the deeper he gets, the more he realizes that this isn’t just the story he once read.As fate pushes him closer to the heart of the narrative, Lyrium begins to suspect that his reincarnation wasn’t an accident—and the world itself might be watching him.“I don’t care who or what stands in my way. If the story wants to kill me, I’ll rewrite the ending myself.”----------------------------------I apologize for any mistakes in this story, as it’s my first attempt at writing a novel.

【Explosive New Book】 At Thunder Sound Hall, the Great Saint fell! With the Life and Death God Talisman, he reversed time and space; the Monkey King, unyielding, returned against the heavens! All gods and Buddhas lost their colors, my fate is determined by me, not by the heavens! In this life, I, Old Sun, will make all the gods and Buddhas remember this name— I am, the Great Sage Equalling Heaven, Sun Wu Kong

The Devil’s Den was Cosette’s favorite webnovel that she had followed for three whole years. She waited for updates, wallow in those empty days during the author’s constant hiatuses, cry and laugh with the characters; it was already a part of her short life.

Cosette really wished that the novel would never end despite that she was terminally ill.

But after three years, The Devil’s Den finally came to an end. With a reader as invested as Cosette, she had mixed emotions about the ending. Not that the ending was disappointing, but what disheartened her was the ending of her favorite character; the villain Maxen Devilsin.

One year later, Cosette took her last breath only to wake up in the body of the stunning Cosette Blac; the villainess of the novel The Devil’s Den, her second favorite character after the villain.

Granted with the opportunity to live in the world of her favorite novel before the main story starts, Cosette had a plan.

That was to simp over the characters and save her favorite characters whilst hoping that the female and male lead still have their happy ending.

In a world that was already written and events that were expected to happen whether or not they wanted to, can Cosette change the course of their lives? Was overwriting the characters' fate could save them? Or would it just give them a much worse ending than what the author had given them?

Watch Cosette as she tried to become the superfan and give the dark-themed story some light.

Due to being reincarnated into a financially struggling noble family, I had to find a way to make money.“Just wait one more day, and the next volume will be out!”“Next week is a hiatus? Are you out of your mind?”“Hurry up and give me the next volume!”“Quickly!”Before I knew it, I was overwhelmed with deadlines instead of romance.