Grand Ascension - Chapter 10: First Steps

“After we get married, we'll sleep in separate rooms and have our own fun.”Ethan Lancaster readily agreed. “Okay.”But before he could even unleash his playboy nature, rumors started flying in one after another.“The Young Madam is partying with a crowd at a club...”“The Young Madam's secret night meeting with her ex-boyfriend has been exposed...”The man gritted his teeth and pinned her against the wall, “'Having our own fun' means you play with me, and I play with you!”

Chu Qianze turned the pen in his hand in a circle and smashed it against the drum next to him, the loud drum sound resounding around him.

Facing the two people who looked over at him together, he pulled out a polite smile, which was very dazzling under the neon light.

“I’m sorry, you are ruining my eyes.”

Later:

Feeling the gazes of the people around him, the flashing lights that flared from time to time, and a few gasps, Chu Qianze’s mouth twitched: “Is this a new way to surprise people?”

***

Chu Qianze, who had just arrived in the world and was getting acquainted with his surroundings, was inexplicably pulled by a man and was held in his arms.

“I already have someone I like; it’s him!”

Chu Qianze looked at the person blankly, but saw that the other person turned his eyes away, his breath a little disordered.

“..?”

- Description from Novelupdates

I’m a high school student who became an author after debuting at Dengeki Bunko. After taking a year of hiatus from school to write my work, I transferred out to another high school to study, and met a girl called Eri Nitadori in school, a rookie voice actress cast as a character in the anime adaptation of my work.

In school, we treat our professions as a secret. However, Nitadori’s very popular in class, and I’m a loner…the only chance we get to talk to each other is when we take the Limited Express train together every Thursday, seated side by side as we head off for an anime, After Recording.

To improve her skills, she asked me questions regarding the profession. While I was answering the questions regarding the process–how did it end up like this.

This is what I last remembered before I lost consciousness, and the story of my near-death experience.

Noel Cross. A model student. A kind brother. The man every girl once dreamed of.With his handsome looks and flawless manners, he seemed perfect—at least to most.But beneath the smile… beneath the pristine facade… lies a bottomless void.And one fine day, when his smile could’ve finally turned genuine, a message appears—one only he can see.[Binding with Codex Null: Complete.][You have one free simulation available.]Now, an impossible system lies within his grasp—one that simulates his life, reveals hidden truths, and grants power unimaginable to the former him.With it, his fragile sense of control finally slips away.Love that was, in truth, obsession. Possession, teetering on madness.And a world that feels even more fragile than these women’s insecurities.Faced with it all, Noel must make a choice:Keep pretending.Or embrace the chaos…And become something far worse than anyone ever imagined.