All the Dust that Falls - Chapter 320: Fish in a Barrel

Joanne Smith, weighed down by significant debt and humiliated by Jeffrey Winchester's cruel rejection just a day before their wedding, transformed her life into that of a multi-millionaire entrepreneur, allowing love to fade into memory.Joanne had one rule in life: money first, emotions later. She built an empire from the ground up, balancing her booming logistics company with the peace of her family farm.When a rugged stranger shows up, desperate for a place to stay, Joanne reluctantly takes him in as a paying guest. But little does she know, he’s not just any guest. He’s the man who brutally rejected her years ago, the one she’s long since forgotten.And he remembers everything differently.Now, living under her roof, he’s fueled by the sting of his own downfall and a hunger for revenge.Will the truth tear her world apart—or bring a reckoning neither of them saw coming?Join me on this incredible journey to find out!I will provide daily updates, and I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments. Please consider leaving a review and supporting me with GTs, Power Stones, and gifts.I hope you enjoy this story as much as I enjoy writing it!

Manchester United, once a dominant force in world football, finds itself struggling under Erik ten Hag despite having the financial power to rebuild.Big-money transfers fail to restore the club’s glory, forcing Ten Hag to shift his focus to homegrown talent.Among the overlooked prospects in the U18 squad is Leo Calderon, a 17-year-old central midfielder buried deep in the pecking order.Lacking physicality and dismissed by teammates as weak, Leo endures constant ridicule from those who dominate with strength and athleticism.But during one ordinary training session, everything changes—Leo suddenly sees passing lanes no one else can, angles of play invisible to even the most talented prospects.Yet, there’s a problem. His vision surpasses his ability. The passes he attempts don’t connect, his technique unable to match his newfound awareness.Coaches dismiss his efforts as sloppy, and his struggles continue. But one unexpected observer—a visiting League One assistant coach—notices something different.He watches Leo’s movements, seeing potential where others see failure.As Leo fights to prove himself in an unforgiving system, the question lingers—can he refine his raw talent before the club moves on without him?

Born into a lower middle class family, Ace Lander grew up being told there was a simple formula for success: get an education, graduate, and work hard to build a prosperous future. But that formula failed him during the final stretch of his senior year when a local gang targeted him, putting everything he had and was building towards at risk.Trapped and desperate, Ace felt his life spiraling out of control—until Ria Hart, a fellow classmate, discovering Ace's innate aptitude to become a Curse Master, a being capable of wielding curse energy and abilities but haunted by Curselings, took pity and introduced him to the secret world hidden beneath the mundane surface of their world, the World of Curses.Awakening as a Curse Master, Ace discovers he possesses an extraordinary innate curse tool: the Cursed Toybox. This tool comes with a unique class, Toymancer, granting Ace powers unlike any curse master the world has seen before. The Cursed Toybox allows him to animate and actualize toys, transforming them into powerful, living beings bound to his will.From overpowered heroes to legendary gods, any toy that falls into Ace's Cursed Toybox springs to life with powers beyond one's imagination but bound to him in eternal servitude. Armed with his Toy Summons, Ace must navigate the perilous world of curses, protect his loved ones, and reclaim control of his destiny before the gang—and the darkness of the hidden world—consume him entirely.[ — Status Screen —> Your Cursed Toybox is animating the doll 'Silicone Sailor Stella' as a toy summons…> Your Cursed Toybox has animated the doll 'Silicone Sailor Stella.'> Toy summon 'Silicone Sailor Stella' added to your toy space.> Toymancer can now summon Sailor Stella.Summoning Toy Summons...Name: StellaRace: Curse ToolClass: Toy summonTitle: Silicone SailorDurability: (100/100)Enchantment: 1-StarIndividuality: (100/100)Curse Energy Consumption: 5 units per hourSkills: Toy Actualization, Seamanship, Armed Security, Adult Gratification.Toy Actualization: Bring Toy Summons' original character design and skills to existence when they are animated based on their individuality stats.Addition Effect: Toy Physiology.Seamanship: Expertise in navigation, sailing, and ship handling alongside wilderness survival, first aid, and emergency procedures.Armed Security: Proficiency in the use of small arms and other naval weaponry with training in close quarters combat, surveillance, and counterintelligence.Adult Gratification: Creatively addressing emotional, mental, and physical needs of Toymancer till gratification.]“Cursed armies, Curselings, and Curse slaves are nothing—I've got a Toy legion of overpowered action figures and unrealistically beautiful silicone goddess.”~ToymancerJoin the saga of the Toymancer's rise to become the Strongest Curse Master.

Dressed as [fantasy world] [patriarch], portray the fantasy world as realistic as possible from the perspective of the family, grow spiritual fields, raise spiritual fish, develop various family industries in an all-round way, support salted fish elders to become ancestors to serve as umbrellas, and inspire juniors to bravely venture The Holy Land Academy has come to the fore.

It is not a fantasy of passionate combat, but is based on the promotion of various family industries, capital, facilities, domestic servants, family generals, clansmen, guest officials, in-laws and other elements. Trying to see the “old-fashioned” fantasy world from a fresh perspective.

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