What is life?
A very simple yet profound question.
This…..
This is a question that many people have pondered, yet they have never found the answer to.
For so, life is just a routine. Living the life according to their routines. You can see such people on the Internet, in offices, in the fields, and on your way to your ho.
Even now, I can see them.
People who are lost in this struggle of life.
Their eyes are sohow dead.
And to , it feels oddly weird.
Aren't there a lot of things that we can enjoy in life?
Like video gas, books, music, sports, novels, manga, ani…..
In this age of the internet, how co people look this dead?
'Or, maybe they are just tired?'
At the end of the day, I am not a philosopher or anything. I am not a grand thinker, either. Just a young high-schooler who likes to read web novels.
"Hey, are you listening to ?"
At that mont, a voice woke up from my thoughts. The sa voice I had been hearing for a while now.
"Shut up. Your voice is ugly."
"Tsk. It must be genetically, then."
A bitchy voice.
She was not like that in her youth, but sohow, she beca that way at the age of fourteen.
Her once innocent deanor had morphed into sothing more sarcastic and biting over the past couple of years.
I rolled my eyes, not bothering to hide my exasperation. "Seriously, can't you find sothing better to do than annoy ?"
"Better than annoying, my dear brother? I doubt it," she said with a smirk, leaning against on the bus. Right now, it is already hard to hold my balance, and with her leaning on , it was even harder to do so.
'Should I just let her go down?'
I pondered for a second but then discarded the idea. After all, imagining what would happen if I were to do so made imdiately drop the idea. It is not like I am so sort of idiot who acts without thinking.
"Why are you even here? Don't you have friends or sothing?" I asked, trying to get back to my phone.
I had already stacked a lot of chapters for the novel I was reading, and it was a good mont to pass the ti.
Though reading while standing still can be annoying, at one point, you get used to it.
"Oh, don't worry about my social life. It's thriving, unlike soone else's," she retorted, emphasizing the 'soone' with a mocking tone.
"Yeah, yeah. Keep telling yourself that," I muttered, trying to focus on my novel.
She looked at from the side. I could feel her gaze, looking at my phone screen. After spending this much ti on public transportation, at so point, you would beco soone who was sensitive to such gazes.
People sohow love peeping on other people's private lives, especially elderly people. And, sohow, it is creepy.
"Tsk. n and their harem fantasies."
She clicked her tongue with a blatant criticism. Her words made sense.
I an, they would at least make sense.
If she was not an Oto ga addict.
"Coming from a reverse-harem lover like you. It is not like you are that different." I simply shrugged.
People had every right to fantasize about things they liked, and nobody had any right to judge them just for their likes and preferences.
That is just my opinion, but those who judge people about the things they like are generally the ones who need to be careful about it.
I recently saw so keyboard activists on social dia who tried to cancel a show just because a certain character looked underage, stating it was a PDF file situation, even though it was officially stated that was not the case.
Yet, after their whole account was investigated, it was revealed that those were the ones who liked the real PDF file things.
But, well. That is just an opinion.
But that opinion certainly depicts this girl.
"I'll have you know, reverse-harem books are a lot better executed. At least they have more than one-dinsional characters, unlike those shallow harem stories you read."
People like her.....they always try to justify themselves. That is why I hate the hypocrisy that they show all the ti. It is just annoying.
And most of the ti, their claims are baseless. Once you ask for an example or proof, you can find holes in their argunt.
Just to do that, I raised an eyebrow. "Oh, really? How co? Show proof."
She was about to answer , but she couldn't as right at that mont, two people left their seats, and we imdiately had to take them without even considering the elderly or others.
Comfort was a rare commodity on a crowded bus, especially if you would be traveling for at least more than an hour.
If you stand on your feet all the ti, once you reach ho….
You will feel the real pain, at least.
Not on your feet as you might think, but on your back.
But well, that is not my problem.
Even now, I could feel the piercing gazes of so old people around us.
'Hey, old hag. Don't look at like that, you know? You are already riding this bus free.'
For so reason, the governnt lets old people use public transport for free.
They also have all day as most of them are retired, yet they choose to board the busses when it is ti for students to leave their schools.
For , they just deserve to stand on their feet if they can't even manage their ti well.
Anyway, let's not ramble too much. It will trigger your ADHD.
As soon as we sat down, my dear sister(!) pulled out her phone and opened up a romance fantasy novel. "Here, read this. It's called Shattered Innocence. You'll see what I an."
'Wow…..What a dramatic na…..'
I couldn't help but roll my eyes imdiately. Sohow, when books had such nas, they tended to beco disappointing. That was from my own experience.
Shattered Innocence began with a young noblewoman nad Elara, who was an innocent young girl.
'A classic female lead, huh?'
It was just your typical female lead.
A naïve, childish, but sohow good-natured noblewoman. Of course, she has a beautiful face adorned with elegance.
"A cruel fate awaits you.'
From the title of the book, it was not that hard to understand what was going to happen either way.
But the prologue was well executed. The writer was pretty skilled in terms of constructing the main character.
In just one chapter, we would have a grasp of her character and the family dynamics between her and her family.
Of course, this also included her fiancée, the prince of the country.
As I continued reading, I could feel my sister's eyes on , waiting for my reaction.
Elara's world was turned upside down on the eve of her fifteenth birthday and blessing ceremony. Betrayed by her beloved sister and her unfaithful fiancé, Elara was stripped of her dignity and cast out. The scene was intense, filled with vivid emotions and heart-wrenching betrayal.
"See, I told you it's good," my sister chid in, her voice triumphant.
"Yeah, yeah," I mumbled, focused on the story.
The reason for that was not because the book was good or anything, don't get wrong.
There are many places where it could be executed a lot better, and many plot points felt rushed as well.
The reason for my focus was simple. Since I had started sothing, I would need to see the end of it.
Regardless of how stupid a decision is, I am soone who sees the end of it.
Yes, you are right.
I am stupid.
But that is who I am.
In any case, let us return to the topic.
Throughout the book, Elara faced nurous challenges. Each character she encountered, whether friend or foe, was richly developed and added layers to the story.
Of course, there was also an academy life; if not for that, how could the writer add the reverse-harem details anyway?
The academy novels have already beco cliché, haven't they?
But well, at least the academy life was depicted in great detail, showcasing Elara's growth and the complexity of her relationships with other students, including her sister and forr fiancé who also attended the academy.
Of course, with it being a romance-fantasy book, there were many supernatural events alongside the history of the book.
And eventually, I reached the end of the published chapters.
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Please wait for the writer to publish more chapters.
You can send gifts to the writer if you want.
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Seeing as it read like this, I couldn't help but feel a little bit disappointed.
Sohow, in just one hour, I finished all fifty chapters that could be read. But well, that is my specialty as well as my curse.
"She really grows on you, doesn't she?" my sister said, breaking the silence.
"I guess," I mumbled. "The character developnt is impressive."
"You….Don't lie…." She said. "Just tell your honest feelings."
I looked at her, considering. "Do you really want my opinion?"
She nodded her head eagerly.
"Alright, don't say I didn't warn you." I decided not to hold back. "Firstly, the writing style is too shallow. Even though the character developnt is good for so characters, that's not applicable to all. Many of them have their motives left out, and from the reader's perspective, this makes them one-dinsional. That's especially the case for the male characters.
They all seem to be operating solely according to their emotions, which doesn't make sense. Almost every one of them is a person with a higher standing, and their positions require logical thinking and ruthlessness as traits. But, those traits do seem to completely evaporate when they sohow interact with the protagonist."
She listened, her expression turning more thoughtful. "Go on."
"Take the prince, for example," I continued. "He's supposed to be this cunning, strategic figure, yet his actions are driven by whims and shallow emotions. It's inconsistent. And the way the academy life is portrayed, while detailed, falls into too many clichés. The supernatural events are interesting, but they feel tacked on rather than integral to the plot."
She sighed. "I guess I see your point. But don't you think you're being a bit harsh? It's a romance fantasy, after all. It's supposed to be a bit... exaggerated."
I get that," I replied. "But exaggeration doesn't excuse poor character motivations. Especially at the first turning point of the novel. The ti when the protagonist, Elara, gets caught by the prince. That part... It was supposed to be the most important part of the novel, yet I don't get it.
Who in the world cheats on their fiancée on their second most important birthday when everyone was attending the banquet?"
"Ah.....That part.....I can see what you are trying to say...It is like shouting I am dumb while you are taking the SAT exam...."
She sohow seed to agree with in this part.
"Exactly!" I continued, getting more animated. "And the scene where Elara was frad—it's so contrived. How can people be so stupid as to believe such an event? Can't they use their brains to speculate more? The whole thing feels forced. It's like the author just wanted to create drama without thinking it through logically."
My sister suddenly smiled, a knowing look in her eyes. "In this world, people find it way easier to believe what they see rather than think."
I blinked, taken aback by her response. "What do you an?"
Sohow, her smile looked a bit pained. Just as she leaned back and started to talk, suddenly, my world began to spin as if the very fabric of reality was warping around . Her voice grew more and more distant with each passing second.
An imnse headache struck down, a piercing pain that felt like my skull was being split open. I clutched my head, trying to steady myself, but the sensation was overwhelming. My vision blurred, and the familiar surroundings of the bus faded into an indistinct whirl of colors and shapes.
After what felt like an eternity, the pain began to subside. I slowly opened my eyes, my vision clearing.
Only to find myself in a peculiar situation.
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