The Demon Among The Knights - Chapter 5:The Tournament Turning point

[COMPLETE] Can a royal Romeo and Juliet find their happy ending?

Ayleth, Princess of Zenithra, is secretly trained in hand-to-hand combat, and collects swear words she doesn't know how to use. During the Festival of Peace, in which every royal son on the continent will be at the castle for a month, she is instructed by her parents to find a husband. Yet, Ayleth has never even been kissed—until the very first ball, when she meets the man in the Lion mask.

Etan is a seasoned warrior, and the Prince of Summitras. He attends the Festival hoping to find a powerful wife who will help him conquer the dark sorcery of their bloodsworn enemies, the Kingdom of Zenithra. But at the very first ball, he discovers the masked woman who captures his heart is the Heir to the evil empire.

Ayleth and Etan face an impossible battle. Will their love survive? Or will their parents' dark dealings keep them apart forever?

[Mature content. No sexual violence.]

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“You…” She stepped back. Then back again, her mouth dropped open. “You… You cannot be…”

“I am,” Etan said, and his hair raked back as he pushed his mask off his handsome face. So handsome her heart raced.

His hair was ebony black, his skin a warm brown that threatened to fade in in the winter months. He stared at her with glittering green eyes, over high cheekbones and a noble nose, his jaw tight and shadowed this late in the day. His chin was high over the pillar of his neck that she’d just touched with its hard lines and steel strength, so different to her own. And his chest... She gasped and covered her eyes. She’d humiliated herself revealing her stupid, childish curiosity.

“No, Ayleth. This changes nothing.”

“How can you say that? It changes everything!” She was horrified to realize she was crying.

“Ayleth, please.” His voice cracked on the plea and she stared at him, shoving her mask up and off, despite how it would pull her hair out of the beautiful twist the maid had managed for her.

His eyes locked on hers and she couldn’t think. She couldn’t breathe.

She had met her One. And he was the son of her bloodsworn enemy.

She stared at him as he stepped forward again, offering both hands, palm up. “Touch me,” he whispered. “Hold my hands. This is real, Ayleth. I don’t know how it happened, but this is real. Please don’t deny it.”

She couldn’t resist. She raised a trembling hand to his cheek, letting her palm catch on the scruff of his jaw. He blew out a breath and put his hand over hers, and that jolt that happened whenever they touched shivered through her again.

“Please, Ayleth.”

“I cannot deny it,” she whispered.

You feel your strength is insufficient, Strength +1.You have practiced the Golden Bell Shield, Martial Arts Level +1.You have picked up a volume of Taoist scripture, Understanding +1.Your opponent is extraordinarily strong. The Golden Bell Shield has reached Great Perfection. You combined the Golden Bell Shield, Iron Cloth Shirt, and Thirteen Cross Training, all +1, and mastered the Vajra Indestructible Divine Skill. Your opponent's knife cannot harm you and is utterly devastated. ...

Yan Wushi had walked a path full of blood and corpses.

He did not believe in the good nature of humanity. Even more so, he did not believe that there could be someone with great kindness and sense of justice, who would be so considerate of others without asking anything in return.

One day, Shen Qiao, who was the sect leader of Mount Xuandu, the number one Daoist sect under the heavens, was challenged to a duel but somehow fell off the cliff.

Yan Wushi happened to pass by down there.

Seeing Shen Qiao who was seriously injured to the point of dying, he suddenly came up with a perfect idea…

After thousands of autumns, who could stay eternal?

- Description from Novelupdates

In a world without gods, where the laws of magic are written by the mages themselves, balance is fragile, and darkness reigns. Multiple dimensions surround it, watched by beings with dark and greedy intentions. This is a magical universe, unstable, marked by constant changes, betrayals, and bloodshed. At the center of it all, an ordinary man emerges, carrying a biochip capable of deep analysis and data recording. With it, he embarks on a relentless journey of genetic enhancement, seeking to ascend beyond the limits of existence. Without divine protection, without charms to shield him or overwhelming powers, he must survive in a world where threats are ever-present, and the fight for survival is relentless. Here, the only rule is to conquer or be consumed. A dark fantasy filled with dangers, evolution, and the relentless pursuit of supremacy.