Captive Mate BL - Chapter 20: ++

Illustration for the characters and location are in my Patreon.=================Dying from a heart attack when playing Minecraft was definitely not the way I thought I would die.Being reincarnated afterward was also not what I thought would happen.But I guess having another chance at life is a great thing!Now, how am I going to live in this world of Swords and Spells?

Selene Valor, a pureblood vampire, entered a marriage of convenience with her husband Gabriel Valor to protect herself from relatives eyeing what was left of her family's wealth. Six months into their marriage, Gabriel is sent away to war to fight for the kingdom. As time went on, news of his victories spread across the kingdom and he was labelled a hero.Nearly six months later, Selene eagerly awaits the return of her heroic husband. Upon his arrival, Selene is faced with betrayal as he brings home a woman named Cassandra Avery, a human who he introduces as his lover. Selene is heartbroken and tries to save what was left of her marriage but soon there is news of Gabriel wanting to take Cassandra as his second wife.Selene is left with the choice of accepting Gabriel’s wishes and staying protected or seeking a divorce. After a heated argument, Selene turns to someone she never expected to be her saviour. She finds refuge with Lord Xavier Blackthorn, another pureblood who seeks her hand in marriage.Will she forgive her first love or move on to accept Lord Blackthorn’s love?

Five hundred years ago, the world was awakened, bringing dungeons, mythological beasts, new races, and lost continents to the surface. It also brought the opportunity to awaken and become strong, but not everyone had that opportunity.Elliot is one of those young people who yearns to become an Awakened One but has not yet succeeded.Despite that, he is different.His desire for power is so strong that he never becomes discouraged despite being mocked and despised by the world for belonging to the group of those Rejected by the System.He still longs to become an Awakened One.His desire for power is so intense that when the long-awaited day arrives, he shakes the foundations of the world, allowing him to become one of those acclaimed Awakened, receiving an amazing and unique class.Although powerful enemies surround him, his intense desire for power will allow him to look beyond what his eyes can see as he rises above the world and achieves Glory.

I am currently re-writing the first chapters of this story. They are quite rough and bounce around a lot and I can do better. At some point, I will replace these with the better chapters.Sometime in 2024 Aethon Books will publish the first volume of this story on Amazon, KU, and audible. This will mean the story will be stubbed. I will notify people far in advance of that.In the dystopian world of the future, life is rough when you live at the bottom. Jobs are non-existent. Far too many people live in poverty, crammed into huge buildings called Habitats. With no jobs in the real world, many people can only find work online in VR worlds as servants to the very rich. And it's getting worse. The old internet is unusable and hacked to pieces. The new system needs AI to run things, but all but one of them were destroyed. The last sentient AI is ordered to create a new game world so the rich can have a playground, and the corporations that rule the world can have a new global market place. Everyone wants a piece of the new game. The guilds are competing to be the first to find the dungeons and kill the biggest monster. The corporations are claiming land and putting in their online market places. Ozzy and his friends just want a paycheck.Four friends sign five year contracts as virtual serfs in a small village, and can't go adventuring at all to gain money. They don't have many choices. They can work as a blacksmith, barmaid and shepherd for all those years....or they can cheat and find ways to take advantage of the system and carve out a section of the game world for themselves, and earn a fortune in the real world.When they give you a mop and not a sword, you have to find the loopholes and change the rules.