Blossoming Path - Chapter 144: The Mask and the Mantle

I had finally done it—achieved the ultimate Paladin build. Maxed stats, impenetrable armor, and so many resistances that death itself had given up on me. I was an unkillable tank, an indomitable force. Nothing could stop me.And then my PC exploded.I died.Irony, thou art a cruel mistress.But instead of the afterlife, I woke up as my Paladin character… in the wrong freaking genre. Instead of castles and dungeons, there were people flying around on swords, shooting qi beams like fantasy laser guns.“This is definitely the wrong genre,” I muttered, watching a pompous young master sneer at me.“Kowtow, kiss my foot, and beg for forgiveness!” he declared.I looked at my imaginary maxed-out health bar, then at his flimsy silk robes.Oh, this was going to be fun.

Jin-Ho Kang was just another B-rank Hunter—one of countless warriors struggling to rise in a world dominated by monsters and guild politics. When an A-rank dungeon scouting mission goes horribly wrong, he and his team are slaughtered. He should have died.But instead of death, he awakens in an abyss beyond mortal comprehension. A voice older than time itself speaks to him, a decree is made, and the truth is revealed—he is no longer human. He has inherited a power that was never meant to be his.The world forgot him.But he has returned.As a Sovereign.As the Monarch of Shadows.And as the boundaries between life and death begin to blur, the world will soon realize…The true King has awakened.

William was but an ordinary man—until fate saw fit to thrust him fifteen years into the past. Yet, this was no mere journey through time; he awoke not in his own flesh, but in that of the third son of Duke Herne, the most formidable noble in the realm.Now, amidst the glittering halls of power, where smiles conceal daggers and honour is but a well-spoken lie, William must navigate a world where commoners are naught but dust beneath the boots of the aristocracy. In this treacherous game of deception and ambition, he must learn quickly—for in the world of the nobility, ignorance is a death sentence----------------------------Hear ye, my loyal readers… From this day onward, updates shall be limited to three chapters per day—no more!Alas, my quill grows weary, and my stockpile of chapters runs thin. The weight of silence presses upon this tale, and my passion falters…I ask but a simple boon—Golden Tickets and a flood of reviews! Shall this humble plea go unanswered?.