Living in another world as an Oni! - Chapter 23 - Squirrels of Doom

How does a half-grown mountain village boy like me end up bizarrely becoming the grandmaster out of nowhere?Source: Web...

“Block him.”“He's technically still my boss.”“Then block him with dignity.”The call ended again.And then started again.I let out a sound somewhere between a growl and a sob, then finally answered with the enthusiasm of a snail crawling through salt.“Yes, Mr. Walton?”“Have you changed your mind yet?”I collapsed onto the towel and gazed at the sky as though it might consume me entirely if I pleaded sweetly enough.“Do you ever take a break?” I asked, shielding my eyes with one hand.“You're avoiding the question.”“Because it's a dumb question.”He exhaled, the sound sharp and irritated even over phone. “It's not a dumb question. It's a business offer.”“It's a weird offer-one that I already said no to.”There was a brief pause, and I could practically hear him clenching his jaw through the speaker.“You are acting unreasonably.”“ Unreasonable?” I sat up. “I'm not the one drafting fake girlfriend contracts like it's a normal Tuesday.”“Isabella-”“Certainly not, Mr. Walton.” I mimicked his tone perfectly. “I told you I'm not doing it. You need to find someone else to play pretend with.”SYNOPSISIsabella Miller thought saying no to her boss’s fake dating offer was the end of the story.But Adrien Walton doesn’t take no—especially not when he’s convinced she’s a gold digger.Suddenly, her student loans are piling up, her father’s vet clinic is on the brink of eviction and her brother is about to be kicked out of college. Coincidence? She thinks not.Adrien Walton is calm, calculating—and he's just pulled every string to corner Isabella into the perfect position.Now she’s stuck choosing between pride and survival.So she agrees to his offer: be his fake girlfriend.No feelings attached. No drama. Just business.Or so she thought.“Conference Room B. Fifteen minutes,” he said, passing by without a glance.The folder he pushed across the table landed with a thud.I opened it. The contract. All of it.---Enemies to lovers? Check.Slow burn? Hmmnyea.Banter so sharp it might file your nails? Yes.Delicious workplace tension? Of course.Tension that could melt steel?Absolutely.Smut?? Wanna find out?Welcome to corporate romance warfare. There’s no escaping this contract.

Harry Morton was born in an age where magic and mana ruled everything.

He was unable to awaken his affinity and to make things worse he was born with a broken mana core foundation which meant he would never be able to create or develop a mana core. Since he couldn’t create a mana core, he would never be able to draw mana—not even the slightest strand.

He was the first person to be born without a mana core foundation, the only one with the inability to draw mana. Due to this, he was regarded as trash by everyone: his parents, his friends, the society and even the academy he attended.

It was until one day, during a mana beast attack when he almost lost his life.

He saw a strange white line rapidly moving downwards, towards him. Unbeknownst to him, the white streak went into his body.

When he woke up the next day, a strange message appeared in front of him.

DING!!

[Welcome Host to the Manaless mage system]

However things didn’t end there, a lot of secrets were revealed to him, things greater than he could have ever imagined.

Now that he had the power, would he save humanity?

Follow the protagonist in his journey as the Manaless mage, as he rises to the absolute top!

Nine years ago, Soo Xinyi fell in love with the heir of Han Corporations, Han Zhiyuan. He was everything she ever wanted in her life. Unfortunately, it was a one-sided love as Zhiyuan already had someone else in his heart.

But two years later, due to a series of strange circumstances, she was forced to marry Zhiyuan by his grandfather, Han Huizhong.

Thus from Soo Xinyi, she became Han Xinyi.

Xinyi had hopes that things would slowly get better one day, but she was wrong. Fate played a cruel game with her and in an instant, her heart was crushed forever.

But what will happen when Zhiyuan’s past love re-enter their lives? Will she be a threat to their marriage? And when a best friend turned enemy returns with her, every buried secret will bubble to the surface once again!

“I love you. I love you so much that I cannot bear to hurt you.

And because I cannot hurt you, I chose to bear that pain myself.” - Han Xinyi.

Sometimes, it’s not about spending your life with the one you love, but with the one who loves you…

Join their journey of discovering love as Xinyi slowly makes her place in Zhiyuan’s heart.