Martial Arts Ain't Anything Special - Chapter 89: Soft (2)

It was in the middle of the night that the woman who would be the Duchess came to see me.

She said my father and mother died, and my kind uncle became king.

She said it’s not worth it for me, the crown prince, to be living in hiding, too.

“A while ago, Your Highness had been hiding from me. With all due respect, is that for the sake of survival? Just because your parents died doesn’t mean you have no reason to survive. Actually, that fact alone made it all the more reason why you should live. If you die now…”

If I died now?

When I asked her while looking at her eyes, the woman eventually brought out the harsh truth with empathetic eyes.

“It’s like a dog’s death.”

“That’s rude….”

It’s been a long time since I said that. In a short while, he has been treated as a madman and beaten to death just by saying similar things. She loosened her arms that held me and I suddenly stiffened up due to it. Because I thought she might have loosened her arm to hit me. But she didn’t.

She knelt down with one knee in front of me, just like a knight.

“Hastred’s Sarian raised her salutations. May you accept it gladly.”

My first knight is beautiful and kind.

“Are you on my side?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

It was all a lie.

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.

=========================================

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?

……………………………………………………………

Dear readers! Without any ads, maybe you will prefer .

Shao Xuan joins a friend in his expedition to a recently discovered archaeological cave. After he picks up an ordinary looking stone he is teleported to a different world and wakes up in the body of a small orphan child. The world he is in now is still in its stone age with primitive tools made of stone and the ways of the people are savage. Savage isn’t the only thing special about the people though, because they have superhuman strength, jump higher than trees and punch stones. In short, they are able to cultivate their bodies. Despite all this, it is a real struggle to survive because of the scarcity of food. Together with Caesar, his pet wolf, he tries to survive in this cruel world.

- Description from novelupdates

After Chu Zheng was inexplicably judged to be dead, the only trouble was – spending money.

Since the binding of this system, her waist has not been sore, her legs have not hurt, and she is not even breathing. She lives in fear of spending money every day.

System: Let’s set a small goal and defeat it by 100 million… Miss, stop! Don’t just turn on the invincible mode! (▼ dish▼#)

Chuzheng: Can you first explain what this thing holding my thigh is?

Something: Baby, you can do whatever you want.

Chuzheng: (touching the knife) Well, then I’m welcome.

System: Miss, please put down the butcher knife! ! (▼へ▼メ)

#Miss, you can really do whatever you want, find out#

- Description from novelbuddy