Ruinous Return - Chapter 21B2 –

There exists eight hardships of human life- living, aging, being sick, dying, resenting, parting with loved ones, being unable to let go, and being unable obtain something.

In each life, each person will experience their own hardship. Once they obtain happiness, they are furthermore unable to let go. Whether it would be heartfelt love or resenting someone down to the bone, would it matter? As long as that person’s bone has my name, it would be good.

- Description from Novelupdates

My wife betrayed me, but little did she know that I awakened the Immortal Emperor's inheritance, and from then on, I embarked on an extraordinary life against the heavens, embracing a top-tier beauty in my arms...

This novel is also known as The Demons Beside Me

Chen Zhao can summon demons and see Death.

“Beelzebub, use your Gluttony ability to treat this patient’s anorexia.”

“Raymond, this old man wants to regain his manly function. You know what I mean.”

- Description from Novelupdates

When the enigmatic and overpowered Kieran Drayke awakens in a foreign magical world after a sudden transmigration, he brings along a system unlike any this realm has ever known. The “Sovereign Architect System” doesn’t just make him invincible—it gives him the tools to build something far greater.But Kieran isn’t interested in world domination. At least, not in the usual way.Disillusioned by the world's surface-level glimmer and the rot beneath it, Kieran sets his sights on the forsaken—those discarded by society, lost in the shadows of nobility and corruption. From slums, war zones, and forgotten ruins, he gathers orphan girls of various races—elves, beastkin, humans, and more—each with untapped potential and pain behind their eyes.He trains them in secret. Guides them. Empowers them. Not as soldiers, but as a family. A hidden organization that operates behind the curtains, shaping the world while appearing as ordinary students at the prestigious Aetherion Magic Academy.Kieran himself? Just a carefree, slightly lazy transfer student with a penchant for sweets, sarcasm, and sneaking naps between classes—on the surface, at least.With a slow-burning plot that weaves magical worldbuilding, deep friendships, training arcs, casual comedy, and a cast of unforgettable girls who grow into queens of the unseen, Chronicles of the Hidden Crown explores what happens when an OP MC doesn’t conquer the world with brute force…But builds a legacy from its forgotten pieces.No betrayal. No forced drama. Just the steady rise of a secret kingdom in the shadows of a crumbling empire.