MTL - The Divine Martial Stars - ~ 184, the month of the bend, according to Kyushu

BOOK TWO OF THE HAMILTON SERIESWARNING: A Regency Era novel. Adult content with detailed smut…Read at you own risk⚠️⛔️Genre: Historical Romance / Smut / Enemies-to-Lovers / Mystery / Comedy[Book Two of the Hamilton Series. Can be read as a standalone, but better enjoyed after Lady Ines’ Scandalous Hobby.]To the world, Duke Rowan Hamilton is the perfect gentleman. But in the bedroom, he is a man possessed.Rowan Hamilton has it all: a Ducal title, the face of a fallen angel, and a smile that makes debutantes faint. He is the “Golden Duke”—charming, responsible, and utterly adored by society.But it’s all a lie.Beneath the coats and polite manners, Rowan is a man haunted by a ghost. For three years, he has remained faithful to the memory of a masked woman who stole a kiss, bested him at a game of chance, and vanished into the night. He doesn't want any one as his wife; he wants her.When his domineering aunt tires of his bachelorhood, she hires London’s most notorious underground matchmaker to force the issue.Enter Miss Delaney Kingsley.She is sharp-tongued, infuriatingly competent, and entirely unimpressed by his title. Her mission? To drag Rowan to the altar with the season’s “Diamond,” Lady Celine, within three months to collect the juicy payment Rowan’s aunt had to offer.Rowan intends to fire the meddlesome woman. But when Delaney looks at him with those hazel, intelligent eyes and orders him around like a young lad, he feels the first spark of life he’s felt in years.He decides to play her game. He will let her “coach” him on how to woo a lady. He will let her teach him how to dance, how to flirt, and how to seduce.But he has no intention of using those lessons on Lady Celine.“You were hired to find me a Duchess, Miss Kingsley. But the only person I want in my duchy and in my bed... is you.”As the lessons turn into forbidden nights and the bickering turns into scorching passion, Rowan begins to suspect that his matchmaker is hiding a secret of her own.She moves like a shadow, handles a rifle like a soldier, and tastes exactly like the ghost he’s been hunting for three years.What to Expect:* The Golden Retriever Duke: Who turns into a possessive Alpha behind closed doors.* The Matchmaker Trope: She’s trying to marry him off; he’s trying to take her clothes off.* High Heat: Slow burn that explodes into intense smut.* Competence Kink: He falls harder every time she bosses him around.* Cameos: Featuring the chaotic domestic life of Duchess Ines and Duke Carcel (and their baby Harry!).Excerpt:“Your Grace, please focus,” Delaney snapped, adjusting his cravat with efficient, gloved hands. “Lady Celine is waiting in the ballroom. You must look at her as if she is the only woman in the world.”Rowan caught her wrist, stopping her movements. He stepped into her space, backing her against the heavy oak door of the study, his “Golden Boy” mask slipping to reveal the hunger beneath.“And how, exactly, does one do that, Miss Kingsley?” he whispered, his voice rough. “Show me.”“I—I cannot show you, I am merely the coach—”“Then teach me,” he growled, lowering his head until his lips brushed the sensitive skin of her neck. “Teach me how to pretend I am not burning alive every time you walk into a room.”

Jiang Chen had unexpectedly found himself thrust into a world of cultivation, stepping into the role of a core disciple within a famed sect. Fated to be the villain, his future loomed with calamity. He had plotted against the protagonist, crippling his dantian and leaving him a disgraced outcast teetering on the edge of expulsion. Were it not for an unexpected twist, Jiang Chen’s part might have ended as a mere footnote in the protagonist’s glorious tale. Fully aware of his precarious position, Jiang Chen’s lips curled into a sly grin. Alone, he mused: ’Is the protagonist powerful? Without a doubt.’ ’But will I tremble in fear? Absolutely not.’ ’Why? Because I have the Immortal Great Villain System!’ ’Wait... there’s more than one protagonist?’ ’Well, isn’t that just perfect?’ With a determined glint in his eyes, Jiang Chen declared to himself, ’As the ultimate Great Villain, I will defy the will of Heaven and seize my place at the summit!’

I seem to have reincarnated in the world of an r-rated romance fantasy novel. And not just as an ordinary character, but as the witch who loses her life to the crazy male lead!

Luckily there is a long 200 years until the main characters are born and grow into their roles.

Now that my life is not in imminent danger, shall we leisurely think of ways to avoid death?

However, I had not taken notice of a very important detail about the time I’d be spending ‘safe from imminent danger’. 200 years was by no means a short waiting period and by the time the younger version of the male lead appeared in front of me , I had completely forgotten the original novel’s plot!

Oh, whatever, now that it’s come to this, the only way to survive is to raise the male lead into a sane and stable adult! The first step to avoiding death by the hands of the tyrant male lead is changing this extremely frightened child’s life.

“It must be very inconvenient for you to have me suddenly show up on your doorstep, I’m sorry. You can tell me to go away, I’ll be fine.”

“Nonsense. Do I look like someone who could be inconvenienced by a little boy like you? Also, what do you mean by you’ll be fine even if told to go away? It’s not like you have anywhere to go back to, kid.”

The little boy burst into tears.

‘Oh, this is so not it.’ Was what the witch thought to herself as the little boy sobbed

After successfully graduating with a master's degree and passing the civil service exam, Chen Ying returns to his hometown's Forestry Bureau to become a wildlife rescuer.He thought his daily work would just involve saving animals and petting all sorts of furry creatures, but ever since he saved a leopard and her two cubs, his life has become incredibly busy.No one told him that the leopard's best friend was a giant panda!And that giant panda was pregnant with twins and couldn't eat bamboo because of inflamed gums.Chen Ying had to call a dentist in the middle of the night to help the pregnant panda with dental fillings and cleaning, also providing a prenatal examination.After that day, word spread among the animals in the mountains that a bipedal vet had arrived who could solve all kinds of ailments!Hold on, being single isn't a sickness and can't be cured!What's that, you wish to arrange a meeting with domesticated animals to fix your single status? Well, that might be worth considering.Unbeknownst to Chen Ying, the animal community throughout the country came to know that the bipedal vet from the Apmu Township rescue station could help solve the problem of being single.Seriously, can't we keep this on the down-low? He's a vet, not a matchmaker!