Against All Odds: Legacy Of A Football King - Chapter 2: Coach Jansen

In regards to the MMORPG Cross Reverie, Sakamoto Takuma boasted an overwhelming strength that was enough for him to be called the Demon King by the other players. One day, he gets summoned to another world with his appearance in the game. There, there are two people that insist “I am the real summon master.” Takuma gets slave-turning magic used for summoned beasts cast on him by the girls –

Rhian Locke only wanted strength.To face the monster that slaughtered his parents while he watched, helpless.“I never asked to be your savior. So why should I care?”All he hoped for was to reach a decent rank, hunt that beast down, maybe become a monster hunter, and retire in peace.“I’m not a slave to the gods. I don’t exist to do their bidding.”But the world had made its decision long before he was born.“Patterns are meant to be broken.”------“Boy, I’ve bathed in the blood of your kind. I’ve crushed those stronger than you.”Lightning cracked across the sky. A hammer flew to the hand of a god.“I won’t let a deceiver’s spawn and a whore’s bastard son, stand before me and declare my end.”Rhian stepped forward, blood trailing from his mouth, eyes locked.“I’m not here to declare your end,” he said coldly. “I’m here to fulfill it.”....

Deep below the earth's surface, a mystifying subterranean seascape lurks, an archipelago bathed in inky blackness where suspense and horror hold court. Here lie strange islands and even stranger monsters, far beyond the realms of human imagination. In this domain, mankind is far from dominant; instead, madness and death rule supreme.

Pleading for mercy from the unknown creatures of the deep only leads to a slow, tortured existence. The trapped survivors gradually distort, losing what made them human, both physically and mentally, to the gloom as they remain trapped in this eternal obscurity. Their only hope? A perilous expedition into uncharted sea territories.

Fueled by determination, Charles embark on this daunting voyage aboard his steamship, aiming to reclaim humanity's past glory. Together with his crew, they sought a way out of this hidden sea world, a path back to the sunlit world above, where humans once stood tall.

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I read a few comments from Chinese readers that compared this novel with Lord of Mysteries because of similar elements: Lovecraftian, western fantasy, first industrial revolution, and steampunk. However, I have yet to finish reading Lord of Mysteries to do any actual comparison, but I do think those who have enjoyed that novel would enjoy this as well. Also, the author of LotM, Cuttlefish That Loves Diving, also did a shout-out for this novel, so I guess he approves of it too?

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“Take me in, I’ll do anything you want me to!”

In her previous life, Lu Man is sent to prison after being framed by her step-sister and an asshole. After being released from prison, the only thing that greets her is her mother’s tombstone. Seeing the as*hole and bit*h getting happily along together like one big family with her birth father and step-mother, she sets out to die together with the as*hole and her step-sister in fiery flames.

The moment she opens her eyes again, she finds herself back on the very day she was framed. Resolutely jumping out the window and climbing next door, she seeks refuge from the man occupying the room there. But who would have guessed that the man is the brilliant hunk she has always admired from afar in her past life?

She vows to rub her eyes clean and be more discerning of people. She wants to make everyone who owed her in the past to pay her back!

“Young Master Han, can you let me hug your other arm too?”
“Actually, I have one more, do you want it?”
“…”

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