Iron Dynasty - Chapter 14: Coal Briquette Stove

Isabella was supposed to be sipping champagne at a luxury spa, not waking up in the middle of a forest. Worse, a SYSTEM had attached itself to her like some clingy ex, spouting nonsense about survival, quests, and—oh, hell no—manual labor.“System, I was NOT built for the wilderness! My ideal ‘roughing it’ experience involves a five-star hotel with bad WiFi!”Now, instead of lounging in silk robes, she’s being ordered to farm? To hunt?“A farming quest? You want me—a city girl—to grow food? System, I once killed a cactus by overwatering it. This is NOT my calling!”And don’t even get her started on the hygiene situation.“You want me to bathe in a cold river? Darling, I require warm water, scented oils, and an ambience! What do I look like—some barbarian?!”Unfortunately, the locals—big, muscular beastmen—don’t seem to understand the concept of self-care. The women? Neglecting their skin like it’s a crime to be radiant. The men? Walking hygiene disasters.“Ladies, if your man can smell you before he sees you, we have a problem.”“You see this? This is lotion. It exists so you don’t look like a dried-up leaf. Use it.”“A beard should be majestic, not tragic. Let me fix it.”And the beastmen? They don’t just stare at her like she’s an oddity. No, they hover. They smirk. They lean in too close, fangs flashing with amusement.“Why do you keep looking at me like that?” she huffed, crossing her arms.The panther grinned, his tail flicking. “Because you’re fascinating when you’re annoyed.”No, absolutely not. She was not here for this nonsense.“If you have time to stare, you have time to moisturize.”She didn’t ask to be here. She didn’t ask to be their savior. But if she has to suffer through this world, she’s making everyone around her suffer less—through skincare, style, and some serious attitude.“If I hear one more ‘We don’t season our food here,’ I’m launching a war.”“If you have time to gossip, you have time to do squats.”“You want to impress a woman? Start with not smelling like the battlefield.”Survival isn’t just about fighting monsters; it’s about looking good while doing it. So what if the System keeps throwing impossible quests her way?“What do you mean ‘you can’t skip quests’?! Since when?! Where is the skip button?! I demand a skip button!”But somewhere between dodging ridiculous quests and fixing these people’s tragic grooming habits, Isabella found herself in situations. Uncomfortable, heart-racing situations.Like being trapped against a tree by the red python, his red eyes half-lidded as he murmured, “You talk too much, little star. Should I silence you?”Like waking up with the lion lord’s fur-lined cloak draped over her shoulders, his deep voice gruff, “You shiver in your sleep. I’ll fix that.”Like the phoenix watching her every move, his burning gaze searing into her skin as he mused,“You cause chaos wherever you go, but I find that I don’t mind.”Oh, hell. No. She was not about to fall for four beastmen. She was too pretty for this much stress.“If you insult me again, I’ll make sure your soul needs a beauty upgrade.”“I refuse to be disrespected by anyone who dresses like an unwashed tree branch.”And yet, when a rival tribe came to challenge her, when danger lurked too close, those same beastmen stood beside her—smirking, taunting, fighting for her.“A beastman growled at me today. I growled back. He ran. I am the alpha now.”Isabella isn’t just surviving. She’s thriving. And this world better keep up.

[Beast Mastery][Summoning][Pets][Evolution][Development]Demon, Savage, Nether, Damnation, Mechanism, Soldier, Medicine, Abnormal, Witch, Immortal, Ferocious...This world is a world of monsters, filled with countless diverse “Fond Spirits”.But in this world, humans also wield the power of “occupation classes”. Once awakened, they can have Contract Imprints, allowing them to form contracts with the monsters, creating entirely new bonds.[For Instance]♦F-level Occupation Class “Manicurist”- helps the Fond Spirits trim their claws, making them beautiful, or sharper.♦E-level Occupation Class “Hunter”- marks and chases, closely collaborating with the Fond Spirits, the most classic hunting occupation class.♦C-level Occupation Class “Puppeteer”- manipulates Fond Spirits at crucial moments, making their strikes more precise and powerful.♦B-level Occupation Class “Midwife”- assists pregnant Fond Spirits with health checkups, giving random blessing effects to the newborns.♦B-level Occupation Class “Mechanic”- under the right conditions, modifies the Fond Spirits, turning them into semi-mechanical beings.♦A-level Occupation Class “Dragon Knight”- rides dragon-type Fond Spirits into battle. Man and dragon unite, becoming invincible.♦S-level Occupation Class “Arch Warlock”- intensifies the elemental properties of Contracted Fond Spirits and seals their skills in advance to execute forbidden spells for the second time....♦C-level Occupation Class “Fitness Trainer”...♦D-level Occupation Class “Flame Thief”...♦A-level Occupation Class “Mysterious Merchant”...♦B-level Occupation Class “Gourmet”...♦Special Occupation Class “Brave”......(I already have a completed work of 3 million characters titled “Master of Pets”. “The Rising of the Fond Spirits” is my second work, a Beast Mastery tale with entirely original settings, you're welcome to try it out!)

I don’t know why I die, I don’t know why I live.

Divided hunters die of loyalty,

The witch who plays with emotions dies of love,

Cautious fortune-tellers die of trust.

The thief who steals everything has nothing,

The visionary who created everything never existed.

The traveler fell on his way home,

The twilight giants rest before dawn.

Lawyers sacrifice for order,

Judges forget the law.

The sleepless sleeps in the dark,

The corpse collector lay in the coffin.

We are guardians, and a bunch of poor creatures who are constantly fighting against danger and madness.

This journey is life and death.

While drowning was inevitable, they had struggled.

This is the worst of times, this is the best of times.

- Description from novelbuddy

“I’m alive... again?”Adam died and was brought into a fantasy world. Then he died again, and has been reborn into a new (?) fantasy world. His life, as before, is in the hands of the dice. Come and join Adam as he rolls his way in and out of trouble. The story has a very slow pace, and has elements of really light hearted, wholesome stuff, and really dark, gruesome stuff. Sequel/Reboot of Beyond Average. You don't need to read Beyond Average, but it will explain a lot about Adam.Also, you can start at the beginning of each year (301, 501, 701, 901, 1001, etc), because most of the systems and relationships will be partly explained when they come up, and most others are easy to pick up after a few interactions. Finally, I am also currently in the middle of editing and rewriting the first year, and perhaps other years. A lot of my early chapters are a rough read, and even I cringe reading them.