unwitting pawns

Crestwood used to be peaceful. Now people lock their doors before sunset. The town has become consumed by a string of brutal murders, each victim connected in ways the police fail to understand. To everyone else, the deaths seem random. But Aubrey knows better. There’s a pattern hidden beneath the bloodshed—something watching, choosing, waiting. And when the pattern begins circling her, she realizes she was never outside of it. Desperate for answers, Aubrey gathers the friends she trusts most, only to uncover a terrifying truth: all of them are connected by something far deeper than coincidence. Their lives, their encounters, even the tragedies that shaped them feel orchestrated, as though they had been guided toward one another long before they were born. But the deeper they dig, the more reality itself begins to unravel. Because behind Crestwood lies something far worse than a murderer. There are forces moving beyond human sight—silent influences shaping lives, steering choices, and bending fate toward an outcome only they understand. To them, people are nothing more than expendable positions in a larger design, living entire lives unaware they were never truly in control. Everything was proceeding exactly as intended. Until one of them changed. Among Aubrey’s group, one fate begins drifting beyond what was planned, triggering a chain reaction no one foresaw. What should have remained controllable becomes unpredictable. Dangerous. For the first time, something within the system is no longer obeying the role it was given. And if even one pawn can move on its own… Then the ones controlling the board may finally learn what fear feels like.

Where does the future of humanity lie? To become the perfect life form? To become the perfect human? To live under the hand of God, or be a pawn of the Devil? All of which should be decided by whom? A Hero blessed by the Gods themselves? Or a man who has even conquered the light? It all starts at Aethermoor Academy, where Prince Agni S.K. arrives looking like a beggar rather than royalty. He is the last person expected to shake the magical world Having lived as a ghost in his comfortable and lazy royal life, a single near death is what it takes for him to feel what it truly means to be human "the burning passion of winning and the sickening frustration of losing".

Gaining a piece of land is hard. Building something on it is harder still. But what if you could take control of a world? What if the fate of humanity hinged on that one world, one key to survival? A world of endless possibilities. An open canvas, where nothing is set, and everything is up for grabs. Welcome to Solva—where nothing is as it seems. A place of mysteries, of opportunities, and of dangers that could tear apart the very fabric of reality. But in the silence of this world, one truth echoes: This is the only chance you’ve got. Will you rise, or will you fall into the darkness? The answer lies in the heart of Solva, and no one knows what awaits.

Damon An ambitious person who dreams of becoming a warrior, but in reality, he is merely a pawn—and when I say pawn, I mean it in the literal sense. In this magical world, wicked thoughts turn into reality. In this story, there are dozens of characters, but there is no main character—not even Damon—because we all love to think of ourselves as protagonists. Yet in truth, we are just pawns advancing toward a greater truth.

Akira wakes up inside a majestic castle, believing he has finally stepped into the typical isekai dream — magic, adventure, and a destined quest as the chosen hero. But reality shatters fast. There are no warm welcomes. No prophecies praising his arrival. Only chains disguised as royal hospitality. The king calls him “Hero,” but to the people closest to the throne, he is nothing more than a weapon — a tool forged to obey.

"He wanted a battle," She laughed, "I'll give him war." It was chaos that brought them together and chaos that led them apart. She was beauty, elegance and agony synthesized. He was chaos, mayhem and decorum in human form. Can love outlive their chaotic agony combined? Or will the pain of betrayal reign, clouding over everything?

"Congratulations! You have unlocked the Villain System! Now laugh maniacally or face a penalty." Leonel was just an average gamer obsessed with MMORPGs… until he woke up inside one, reincarnated as a minor villain destined to die in 30 days! To make things worse, he gets a Villain System that forces him to complete ridiculous evil tasks to gain power: "Give a dramatic monologue in the middle of battle!" (+20% Strength while talking!) "Steal a cookie from a child!" (+5 to Sneakiness!) "Build a villain lair!" (But you can only afford popsicle sticks!) The problem? He doesn’t WANT to be a villain! Yet, the more he tries to avoid it, the more the world sees him as an evil genius. Now, he must: Survive the cliché hero who wants him dead! Escape even stronger villains who see him as a rival! Deal with a chaotic harem where every girl loves him for increasingly ridiculous reasons! Outsmart the system itself, because even destiny is messing with him! If you love comedy, action, and villains who don’t want to be villains, then join this wild ride and find out: Just how hard is it to be a villain… when you don’t want to be one?!

Sophie Wexler transmigrated into a novel about The Galaxy, becoming the vicious, F-rank Healer-class cannon fodder. The original owner constantly caused trouble and made things difficult for the female lead, earning her the hatred of the entire internet. Upon transmigrating and seeing that everything had been ruined by the original owner, Sophie's only thought was: "What kind of nightmare start is this?!" To escape the original owner's fate, Sophie Wexler worked diligently, conducted herself conscientiously, stayed away from the male and female leads, compensated the soldiers harmed by the original owner, and strove to be a model citizen of The Galaxy, absolutely refusing to be the cannon fodder 'offed' by the Imperial Marshal! Broke and powerless, Sophie also had to support a man who'd been innocently dragged into the original owner's mess. She had no choice but to hustle. She started live streaming, became a masked singer, and held concerts. At first, netizens were scornful: 【Tsk, how good can she possibly sound?】 Later, the netizens were forced to eat their words. 【Damn, that's so good I'm on my knees!】 【What the hell, the violent episode of my Disorder Period has actually been soothed?!】 【The toxins in my Spiritual Sea have actually been eliminated!】 Her live streams went viral, the masked singer became a huge sensation, and tickets for her concerts were snapped up across The Galaxy. Sophie was content, thinking, "This time, I must have finally escaped the original owner's fate, right?" But what do you know, the man I've been doting on and supporting is actually the Imperial Marshal?! --- One day, Yancey Forrest came home to find that the boisterous person who was always claiming to be good to him was gone. His eyes darkened. Provoke me and then think you can leave? After catching her, Yancey traced his fingertips along Sophie's neck, smiling gently. "Why run?" Sophie trembled. "You... you're the Imperial Marshal?" His identity exposed, Yancey Forrest took her hand and slowly placed it on his own neck ring. "You know I won't kill you, don't you?"

Amelia Lockhart has one mission: make the top idol Ethan Quinn fall in love with her, then break his heart, so that Ethan Quinn can successfully pass his tribulation and return to his position as a High God. There's just one problem: as the most hated woman on the internet, Amelia is the last person anyone would pair with the nation's golden boy. But when she lands a spot on a dating show alongside Ethan, she sees her chance. She does all the heavy lifting and is dependable enough to make him see her differently. As a result, Ethan starts pretending to be weak. The fans are confused. Their untouchable idol is... blushing? Getting clingy? Calling her "jiejie" in that voice? "Sis, I surrender." "Sis, you can only spoil me like this." Amelia is losing control of the plan. She was supposed to seduce him and walk away. So why is he the one coaxing her to stay, and why is it getting harder to say no?

In her past life, Su Yaoguang bought Xiao Yanci, supported his education, and helped him rise to great heights. She became his wife. Everyone praised him for never abandoning the farm girl who funded his rise. Su Yaoguang also believed she had found a good man. Unexpectedly, when she was seriously ill, she saw Xiao Yanci bring his first love and a child who resembled them both to her bedside. "Dad, mom, when will this person die?" the child asked, holding Xiao Yanci's hand. Xiao Yanci responded, "Soon, just wait a bit longer." That was the moment she realized: she had wasted her entire life on the wrong man. Returning to the age of fifteen, Su Yaoguang pointed at the bloody young boy: "I want him." In her past life, no matter what she gave Xiao Yanci, she only received a cold expression. This time, the young boy, like a wolf cub, dropped his guard; everything Sister gifted was the best. Sweet as milk. Devoted beyond reason. He melted her completely. Until one day, the young boy took a high position. Not wanting history to repeat itself, Su Yaoguang packed her things and slipped away at night, only to run into a man as noble and unattainable as a deity. "I've heard you call us siblings everywhere. Good sister, shouldn't we change what we call each other?"