Twilight of the Vast Expanses - Chapter 20: It is Time

The prince of Maldonia, Prince Artemis of House Arteides, the bear killer, the slayer of the elves is crowned King when his father King Arteides dies. The whole kingdom of Maldonia depends on him now, but he puts the throne in jeopardy after he refuses to marry Princess Thelma of House Taelin from the kingdom of Prophis and opt to marry Aurora Kholin, the love of his life.

Aurora is a seer and a powerful witch who has yet to aknowledge her powers, only Artemis knows of it. Lucian Mithandir is in exile recruiting an army to fight Prince Castellan of house Taelin for the throne of Prophis. Artemis wants no parts of this war, but he is very aware whoever wins the war will later turn to Maldonia.

Artemis has no clue that a bigger war is coming which will set kingdoms on fire, Aurora has seen it in her dreams and it’s for the Sweet Waters Throne in Maldonia. The end is uncertain but the ways are clearer, who will sit on the throne after the war between Lord Gandalf of House Old City who owns mighty huge lions and King Artemis of Maldonia who has Aurora and dragons breathing fire.

~ Excerpt Scene ~

The men of the secret council remained behind after the king walked away to further discuss the situation at the borders of the kingdom. The battlefield was named Stonedance and that’s because of its stony surface and this part of the place was usually abandoned and without inhabitants. Some people claimed Stonedance was cursed, that’s because it laid in the middle of two powerful kingdoms.

Stonedance was neither cold nor humid as it stood between the hot and shining Maldonia, and the freezing and gothic Prophis. It was the perfect place to fight and camp, the two battalions had all the space to themselves to prepare for war. Three hundred thousand men loyal to King Castellan Taelin of Prophis laid on the East, and two hundred thousand men keen to keep Lucian Mithandir.

Whatever was going on in Stonedance was of no Artemis’s concern as he focused more on sharpening his swordsmanship skills. He trained from morning to noon, with the lord commander of his kingsguard, Sir Dante Lucan who he befriended and these two became inseparable in a span of just a week.

“Come to me! Hard” Artemis urged his lord commander to not be easy on him.

“If I go hard on you Your Grace, we shall be left without a king to rule” replied Sir Dante Lucan with a smile. “You are getting better day by day; may I ask why the sudden interest in swordsmanship?”

.....

“I am a celebrated knight Sir Dante. I have fought in wars ever since I was nine”

“Exactly my point Your Grace. You are good with your sword, and have been for some time” Sir Dante smiled softly “Is it the war in Stonedance which makes His Grace nervous?”

“Some say I am ought to join my uncle, support the house my mother called it home. While others say my uncle betrayed me the very first day he took Mithandir inside his walls”

“And what do you say, Your Grace?”

Aurora joined them and Sir Dante excused himself. It had been a week and four days since they were last seeing at court.

“I am a warlock Artemis” For the first time ever since Artemis knew Aurora, this was the first she’s declared and accepted her true nature. “I am a seer, spaewife, or any other words you may want to use but I am not normal”

“We have talked about this Aurora, when the time is right…”

Aurora interrupted “The time is now!” she said. “I can feel the flames in my dreams getting hotter. If I don’t seek the help I need now, I fear for my own existence. I saw myself riding a ─” she paused softly.

Artemis leaned on to her “Riding a what?” he asked suspiciously.

“It may sound crazy, I mean I have never heard of such creatures and even if they exist…”

“What were you riding Aurora?”

After a few seconds of not being sure how will Artemis react or take it, Aurora finally exhaled softly and brought herself to speak “A dragon” and then she paused waiting to see how will Artemis take all of it.

“Ugh…enough with the threats, sourpuss.” I huffed. He wasn’t the only one that was good at giving people funny nicknames. “And in case you don’t know…having to be in a fake relationship with you is already making life a living hell for me.” I dropped my voice to a small whisper just in case anyone was eavesdropping.We were in an open place after all.“Speaking of our relationship, I’m not sure if you know who Naomi is but she’s already suspecting that something’s off so you better do something about it. If you would have listened to me when I told you how ridiculous this idea was then maybe we wouldn’t have to be dealing with all of this.” My eyes drooped.“What are you talking about?” His brows dipped as he took a step back.Oh wow, he couldn’t even understand a few words. Who would’ve thought that he’d be so dumb?“Naomi thinks it’s unusual for us to be in a relationship.” I drawled with air quotes. “You better do something about it if you don’t want people to doubt you.” I said sizing him up and I was just leaving when I had barely even taken a few steps and something yanked me back.My back hit the wall, and before I could even process what just happened, a warm hand landed on my waist, fingers pressing just enough to make my breath hitch. My eyes snapped up…only to find Liam’s face hovering way too close to mine, his blue eyes sharp and calculating.“What…” My voice came out weak. Embarrassingly weak.“Where do you think you’re going, four eyes?” His voice was low, his breath tickling my cheek.My stomach flipped and I swallowed hard. “Liam, what the hell are you doing?”He didn’t answer.Instead, he leaned in…his lips nearly grazing my ear.Panic surged through me. He was too close. Way too close.“Didn’t you just say I should do something about this girl’s suspicions?” he murmured, his voice dropping into something almost dangerous.I blinked, confused. “What?”He ignored me completely, his fingers tightening slightly against my waist. “And what better way is there to clear someone’s doubt than not giving them room for it?”My heart stuttered and I suddenly became hyper aware of the way we looked…his body caging me in, my hands pressed flat against the wall, his head dipped low, his mouth close enough that if I moved even an inch…Oh, crap.~~~~~~Eleanor is a 23-year old woman who was involved in a car accident on her way to her interview. Unfortunately she doesn't make it and assumes she's going to find herself in the afterlife but instead finds herself in the body of a college student named Theodora. And this college student happens to be a side character in one of the books she read in her past life.Having found herself in this body, she decides to find out why she's there and try to return to her old world. On her quest for answers she realizes she has to play her part as Theodora in this world which however lands her in a lot of problems.

Warning: 17++++This story involves Bdsm, a sadistic pervert Alpha boss and his cute pouty step brother omega who loves him just as he comes.***Ambitious young designer Kang Ye Jun joins Choi Advertising brimming with dreams, only to run headfirst into a tyrannical superior, Choi Si woo.No weekends off, constant availability around the clock, endless overtime that drains every ounce of energy no social life whatsoever, that's already brutal;the absolute worst part is that no matter how hard he tries, in the eyes of this hyper-critical director, everything he creates is flawed and unacceptable!After swallowing endless humiliation, Ye jun finally snaps: “Just because I stay quiet doesn't mean I'm some harmless pushover!I’m done! I quit!”What?! Quitting triggers a massive penalty clause worth millions?! That's insane! Can't we just separate on good terms?Since resignation isn't an option, Kang Ye jun decides to gamble everything and pull off the one move no subordinate would ever dare, seduce and sleep with the devil himself!Choi Si woo, creative director at Seohan Advertising, is a legendary figure in the industry and an untouchable elite bachelor.His professional brilliance is unmatched, but his personality is pure poison, earning him the infamous moniker “The Ice-Cold Devil in a Tailored Suit.”Yet beneath that aloof, ruthless exterior lies a deeply buried, unspeakable kink he guards fiercely.When this explosive secret gets uncovered by his sharp-eyed subordinate Kang, what fate awaits the once-impenetrable Choi?

Sage was just an ordinary guy on Earth, living a life that many would call boring. But for him it was perfect — no drama, no chaos, just a peaceful ordinary boring life. He enjoy the simplicity of his daily routine, content with his place in this world.That was, until everything changed in an instant. Out of nowhere, he was shot in the head by a complete stranger. But instead of falling into oblivion, Sage found himself waking up in a completely new fantasy realm. Before he could wrap his head around this bizarre twist of fate, he was bound to a system that had a mission for him : build the first adventurer guild in this strange new world.In this world known as Eldoria, dungeons were the sacred properties, exclusive only to the powerful. Anyone found entering these dungeons without any permission are executed on the spot.As for Adventurers? They don't exist in this world.------[ Guild Creation System Online....][ Main Objective : Build the first Adventurer Guild in the world of Eldoria ]-----Looking at the glowing interface hovering before him, Sage couldn't help but break into a wide grin.Fueled by a newfound purpose and to make his life in this world worthwhile, Sage set out from a small city, determined to build the first adventurer guild in this unfamiliar land, expanding branch by branch, continent by continent.--------https://discord.gg/8E5vyy3PAF