Raihana Monib

Querencia Lynn was always the disappointment-the black sheep of her family. Scorned, unloved, and cast aside, her tragic life ends in an accident... only for her to wake up inside the very pages of a novel she was reading moments before death. Now reborn as a side character destined to become a villainess and political pawn, Querencia knows exactly how her story ends-betrayed by her fiancé, the crown prince, and discarded once she's served her purpose. But this time, she's not playing by the book. Armed with foresight, cunning, and a fortune of her own making, she's determined to break free from her chains-starting with her doomed engagement. But escaping the prince's grip means finding someone powerful enough to shield her from royal retaliation. Enter the Archduke of Wolreign: the prince's cold, formidable cousin and the only man strong enough to oppose him. Dangerous, untouchable, and infamously indifferent, the Archduke is no easy mark. Undeterred, Querencia approaches him with boldness and charm-but her first attempt ends in public humiliation. The nobles mock her. The Archduke calls her crazy. She only laughs. After all, villainesses never beg. They take. With everything on the line, Querencia offers the one thing no one saw coming: a marriage proposal. And for the first time, the unshakable Archduke is left without words. A woman scorned. A man who cannot be tamed. And a future rewritten by the very villainess meant to be destroyed.

One relationship was ruined because of a one-night mistake. "You are my wish to the Father, I pray that He grants you to me." That was my only prayer, but this is not the situation I wanted. I never intended to ruin a relationship, nor did I want to hurt another person. What happened in the past was unexpected, and now, here I am, facing the consequences of my actions. I'm married to a man who does not love me, and who never will, because he only sees me as a friend. "Wait for the love you deserve," as people often say. That's why all I can do is pray and dream that someday, the love I give him will be returned. Actually, I am his legal wife, but I let him do whatever he wants with his life. I also allow him to continue his relationship with the woman he loves, the one he's cared for from the very beginning. I'm not a martyr-I just want everything to be okay, and I don't want any conflict because I've accepted that this is the fate that's been given to me. We are not bound by love, and I've come to terms with that. I accept our situation, and I understand that we are married only on paper, even though we live under the same roof. I do my duties as a wife, like serving him. I learned to cook because of him, though I can tell he doesn't really eat what I prepare. Life is bitter, but this is who I am. I keep trying, trying to make things work between us, to make everything okay, just like when we were young, because we used to be friends. "Have you eaten?" I asked, seeing him drinking coffee in the dining area, focused on his laptop. I gave a bitter smile, already expecting no answer from him because who am I to deserve his attention? I took a deep breath; he didn't even glance at me. I don't have a contagious disease, yet he treats me as if I have leprosy. "Have you spoken to your father?" he asked emotionlessly, closing his laptop with a thud. "I-I told him," I stammered, bowing my head. "Good," he said and stood up. I watched him walk away without saying anything, then started cleaning the dining area. I noticed him stop, so I also paused, and he turned to face me. "Don't expect me to come home during the weekdays. Don't wait for me on the weekends either," he said seriously. All I could do was nod in agreement to avoid further conflict in our family. I endure this life even though it hurts because I'm the one to blame, and I'm the one who understands, so I carry the burden. "When we're at the camp, Psalm, just ignore me because they don't know we're married on paper," he said irritably and turned away. "I'm sorry," I called out, trying to apologize. My hands trembled as I held his hands with both of mine. "I-I'm sorry," I repeated. He sighed deeply and pulled his hands away from mine. "Your sorry won't change the situation, Psalm!" he replied angrily. "I-I love... you," I said bravely, though my voice was shaky. "But you don't own me," he replied coldly. I took a step forward to face him, but when our eyes met, I quickly looked away, playing with my wedding ring. "What do I have to do for you to forgive me?" I asked. "My freedom!" he answered shortly. "And please, stop wearing that ring because we're not lovers." "As you wish." "Do everything you can to earn my forgiveness!" were his last words before he left without saying goodbye. I exhaled deeply and cried. His request may be unclear, but I promise to find a way to give him the freedom he asks for. Even though I love him deeply, I'm willing to sacrifice for his happiness. "Being in love with someone who no longer loves you is the most painful feeling in the world," I whispered, wiping my tears before running to my room, where I cried my heart out. I let out all the pain through my tears. I released all my frustrations. I screamed and threw whatever I could get my hands on because, no matter how much I break down here, no one would hear me. "A-Ah... it hurts!" I cried out in frustration, burying my face in a pillow to calm myself down because there was no one else to comfort me but me. I got up and looked at the picture of us on our wedding day. I stared at Llishan's face, where you could see the forced smile on his lips. I stood and walked towards the picture, gently caressing his face. "I hope that one day I'll wake up, and the pain I carry will be gone." "I hope that one day this pretending will end. It's hard, but I hope that one day you'll have your freedom, baby, and I hope I'll be able to give you what you're asking for when I'm finally tired." This is the truth I'm standing on! I am Princess Psalm Jaxeen De-Gracia, and he is Mc Llishan Sanchez.

Averay tightly embraced Haze, unwilling to let go of him at the airport. "Please... Haze. I don't want to go, p-please let me stay here. Haze..." she pleaded, her voice trembling with tears. Her tears flowed uncontrollably. Her chest tightened as if her heart was being painfully squeezed. "Please, Ave. Just go. This is for your own good. It will only hurt me more if you stay by my side. I don't want to see you crying, Averay. Just go inside," Haze said, his voice devoid of emotion. Haze didn't want to see a woman cry because it reminded him of his mother. "H-Haze... please, don't push me away... I want to stay with you, please... I love you." He gently removed her arms from his waist, turned his back on her, and started to walk away. But Averay hugged him from behind. "H-Haze, I love you! P-Please, choose me... love me instead. N-Not Kreza. Didn't she leave you? Please, choose me, Haze, I won't leave you. I love you... Hajinn." She sobbed, but his heart remained unmoved, showing no emotion. "I love her. I waited for her for so long, and now she's back. We can finally continue the love we lost, Ave," he said firmly. "W-What about me, Haze? What about me?" she asked, her sobs growing louder, attracting the attention of the people around them. Almost everyone at the airport was watching. "Ave, before Kreza, you didn't exist in my life. From the start, there was no Averay who loved me, and I can't love you back. Just go, Averay. It will hurt you more if you see me with the woman I truly love." "D-Do you really love her? D-Did you ever love me, even once, Haze?" Averay asked, her voice filled with emotion. She didn't want to leave; she wanted to stay. But now, the man she loved so deeply was the one sending her away at the airport. It hurt, but he was pushing her away. "I... don't and never did." With those words, her arms dropped to her sides, and she let him go. She closed her eyes tightly and cried. "Haze..." she called out. "Haze..." But he didn't respond. "Haze!" she screamed, but he continued walking out of the airport, ignoring her. "Haze! Haze! Come back here, please! Haze, I love you! D-Don't forget how much I love you!" She collapsed onto the floor, sobbing uncontrollably, letting her tears fall freely down her cheeks. It felt like a knife was stabbing her heart. She had no choice but to let go and leave behind the man she loved. She had done everything-begged and cried in front of him-but nothing changed. His desire for her to leave won out. She stood up, wiped her tears, took a deep breath, and looked at the airport doors where she could no longer see him. A bitter smile crossed her face, and once again, her tears fell uncontrollably. "Haze, I love you so much..." she whispered before turning away and starting to walk. This was it; she had to do this. She had decided to let him go. She could only wish him a happy life.

Emberly, an esteemed scientist of the Imperial Federation, took her own life after completing important research. She was reborn, and just like in her first life, she was born into a wealthy family. She could’ve lived a carefree and prosperous life. However, the babies got mixed up in the hospital and she was taken home by another family from the countryside. Her foster parents later found out the truth and brought her to her real family, but they didn’t like her. Her evil adopted sister even loathed her. She was framed and ultimately, she died in prison. But in her next life, she refused to stay a coward and swore she would take revenge on all who wronged her. She would only care about those who were truly good to her and turn a blind eye to her heartless family. In one life, she had once experienced darkness and been trampled upon like an ant. In another, she had stood on top of the world. This time, she only wished to live for herself. As if a switch had gone on inside of her, she suddenly became the best at everything she put her mind to. He won the math contest, topped the college entrance exams, and solved an age old question... Later, she garnered countless scientific research achievements. People who had once slandered her and looked down on her cried bitterly and begged her for a patent authorization. She just sneered at them. No way! This was a world without faith, but the world put their faith in her. Austin, the heir to a powerful aristocratic family in the imperial capital, was cold-hearted and decisive. He scared anyone who laid eyes on him. Unbeknownst to everyone, he doted on one woman: Emberly. Nobody knew that his desire for her grew stronger with every passing day. She brought light to his originally dull and gloomy life.

Betrayed by the two people she trusted most - her husband and her foster sister-turned-best friend - Lilith dies with regrets. But fate has other plans. Granted a second chance by a mysterious system, she wakes up in the past. This time... She won't be naive. This time, she'll rewrite her destiny. On the first day of her rebirth, she crosses paths with Dean: a disarmingly gorgeous, silver-haired man who proposes a fake engagement to help her. But the more time they spend together, the harder it becomes to draw the line between real and pretend. With the past betrayal still fresh in her mind, Lilith must decide- Will she risk her heart again... or keep her eyes on the prize?

"I will not let you take me alive" was the last thing she said before it all went dark. Watching both her parents murdered and their kingdom torn to ruins, it seems Leiya's life cannot get any worse, but it does. She is forcefully torn away from her sister and sent as a gift to appease Helion, ruler of the Kaltain Kingdom, the most powerful demon to ever exist, the "Prince of Hell", but Leiya is determined to keep her fathers dying wish. She will find her sister, Nayla at all cost, and not even Helion can stand in her way.

What did you say, little omega? I didn’t quite hear you.” Grayson rushed after me and growled; he yanked me roughly by the hair and pulled me back to face him. Then grabbing me by the scruff of the neck. I didn’t whimper or make a sound. I looked down at the ground, careful not to meet his glare. I knew that would make him more furious and I had learnt not to do that a long time ago. I could feel the eyes of the cafeteria on me, waiting for my response. My heart raced in my chest as Grayson's grip tightened on my neck. But I refused to show any weakness. That is what he wanted—weakness to show how powerful he was. But he would never be as powerful as his brothers or the Alpha and he knew it. "I said you don't have the right to treat others like dirt, Grayson," I repeated, my voice loud and clear for everyone around us to hear. Eliza is nothing more than an omega at the Creek Pack. All her life she has been treated badly by everyone especially the Alpha quadruplets and the Beta’s daughter. Determined to leave as soon as she turns eighteen, she soon realises that the moon goddess has other plans for her. How will Eliza react when she finds out that she is mated to the alpha quadruplets who made it their mission to destroy her life from day one. Will they regret their actions and claim Eliza as theirs? Or will Eliza stick to her plans and leave her mates and Creek pack for good?

I had loved my fiancé, Dominic Watts, since we were children. Our marriage was supposed to be the perfect seal on a merger between our two family empires. In my last life, he stood outside my burning art studio with my stepsister, Julia, and watched me die. I screamed for him, the smoke choking me, my skin searing from the heat. "Dominic, please! Help me!" Julia clung to his arm, her face a picture of false terror. "It's too dangerous! You'll get hurt! We have to go!" And he listened. He looked at me one last time, his eyes filled with a pity that cut deeper than any flame, and then he turned and ran, leaving me to burn. Until I died, I didn't understand. The boy who promised to always protect me had just watched me burn to death. My unconditional love was the price I paid so he could be with my sister. When I opened my eyes again, I was back in my bedroom. In one hour, I was due at the family board meeting. This time, I walked straight to the head of the table and said, "I am breaking the engagement."

The champagne tasted like ash. My daughter, Lily, beamed beside my beaming husband, David, celebrating her university graduation-a picture-perfect moment I' d relived before. In my previous life, it was on this very day that she had shattered me, screaming, "You're not my real parents!" after draining my retirement, all to fund the biological family who' d thrown her away. That betrayal, that sickening realization of my life's savings gone, had led to my death in a car crash, a distraction of overwhelming grief. I didn' t understand how the sweet girl we had doted on for twenty-two years could be so cruel, so utterly devoid of gratitude, bleeding us dry for people who saw her as nothing but a walking ATM. But then, I woke up, back in my own bed, on the morning of this exact party. This time, there would be no selfless mother, no victim. This time, I was a survivor, and I was ready for war.

My mother' s voice, thick with religious fervor, announced her latest decree for SAT season: 100 days of no secular music, no TV, no internet. This wasn't the first time. I remembered falling down the stairs, Molly's raging accusations still ringing in my ears, right before the darkness consumed me. Now, I was 16 again, trapped in the same suffocating reality, but with the chilling knowledge of how it all ended for me. My twin sister, Molly, quickly embraced Mama's extreme rules, her 'pious' facade masking pure laziness, while I quietly perfected my escape plan. As Molly spiraled into isolation at school, earning the nickname "Amish Girl," my mother, Debra, only tightened her grip, even forbidding basic hygiene. The SAT scores revealed my 1580 against Molly's dismal 850, shattering Mama's carefully crafted image, especially on live stream. Instead of facing reality, Mama demanded I sacrifice my Duke acceptance, "for Molly's sake," a sister who had literally killed me in my past life. How could my own mother expect me to give up my entire future, again, for the one who destroyed me? Why was I back? This time, I wouldn't argue, I wouldn't compromise, and I certainly wouldn't die for their delusions. This time, I was getting out, even if it meant watching them burn their own lives to the ground.

For nearly a decade, I walked through life as Mrs. Hamilton, wife to the charming and successful Ethan. Our perfect marriage was more than a facade; it was my very existence, bound by a secret Soul Pact that determined whether I lived or died. Then, seven days before my designated survival deadline, Ethan casually dropped a bombshell: he needed a temporary divorce for his latest fling, a demanding young intern named Chloe. He offered me designer bags and an unlimited credit card, oblivious that he was asking me to sign my own death warrant, effectively sealing my fate. Chloe, triumphant and venomous, reveled in my humiliation from my very own penthouse, mocking me as "old news" while lounging in my favorite spots. Ethan, valuing his mistress's fleeting whims over my life, eagerly discarded our shared history and sent me away. The chilling countdown from the Soul Pact System inside me confirmed my imminent end-a meticulously "staged accident" awaited. How could someone mistake my life for a casual game, oblivious that his "temporary break" was my permanent end? My heart ached with the profound loneliness of carrying this fatal secret alone, a cruel irony after years of quiet endurance. I died in a fiery crash, right on schedule. But then, a cold, digital voice whispered, "System error. Collect 100 Regret Points from Ethan to be reborn." Now, an unseen spectator, my very existence hinges on the depth of his sorrow.

Ava Chen, adopted into the Hamilton dynasty, lived a life of polished perfection, her cool-girl facade masking a vibrant inner world obsessed with cheeseburgers and artisanal donuts. Tonight, at the annual Children' s Literacy Gala, everything changed. Skyler, the newly discovered "true" heiress, fueled by jealousy, wished on an antique locket for everyone to see the "real" Ava. Suddenly, Ava' s every internal thought, from her deep-fried cravings to her scathing social commentary, became audibly broadcast to everyone nearby. Her meticulously crafted mask shattered, public embarrassment her constant companion. This bizarre "superpower" sabotaged her family's prestigious arranged marriage with the powerful Julian Astor, who rejected her publicly, sparking her adoptive parents' outrage. Branded a "liability" and a "public glutton," Ava was banished from their opulent mansion, deemed an utter disgrace. Humiliated and perplexed, Ava couldn't understand why her mind had betrayed her with such mundane, food-focused secrets. Why was she cursed with this bizarre ability? What was the true source of this unpredictable chaos that had cost her everything? Yet, even amidst the chaos, a strange sense of liberation stirred within her. Cast out but unburdened, Ava found refuge in an unexpected place: her childhood friend Rhys' s cozy bookstore cafe. Now, with nothing left to lose, she must navigate a world where her inner voice is a public spectacle, and somehow, find her true self amidst the delicious chaos.

My hands, once horrifically scarred, were healed by a cosmic bargain: save one struggling soul, Ethan Hayes, in another reality. For eight years, I poured my life into his, turning a broken man with crushing debt into a tech titan. We built an empire, married, and for a time, I truly loved him, believing our future was forged in shared dreams. But then, the architect of his redemption became the victim of his betrayal. His intern, Chloe Vance, slid into our lives and straight into his bed. Three years of his gaslighting, hidden affairs that became blatant, and the grinding neglect slowly extinguished the vibrant woman I once was. The final, brutal blow came when Chloe, smugly pregnant, revealed Ethan had "gifted" her our vineyard estate-my home. My heart, once shattered, had simply turned to ash. I meticulously liquidated a fortune I' d fought to earn, preparing for an escape he' d facilitated with every lie and condescending guilt-gift. He bought me diamond necklaces while Chloe flaunted her presence in our penthouse. On my birthday, he cornered me, enraged, accusing me of threatening his new family, blind to the fact that his actions had already killed everything between us. He was a stranger, a ghost clinging to a broken past. I was long past anger, past pain-only a chilling resolve remained. How could he not see? How could he not understand that the woman who healed him had been destroyed by him? So, as he lunged forward, his face contorted with a fury born of his own making, I didn't resist. Instead, I calmly whispered, "Happy birthday to me." And then, with a resolute step onto nothingness, I embraced my "death," not as an end, but as a long-overdue return to the life and self I was always meant to be.