Re:zero Assassin 소설 & 이야기

I was halfway through a sad cafeteria lunch when a livestream popped up: [Ring toss—whoever lands it gets the dog.] Onscreen, Alverton University's rich-boy squad cracked up, betting on who'd "own" me. Adrian Locke, the student council golden boy, flicked his ring. It landed dead center on my nameplate. "One month. Let's see which owner the little bitch wags her tail for." I closed the stream. Right then, a text from my dad lit up my phone: [Sweetheart, have you chosen your fiancé candidate?] I smirked, snapped a screenshot of the stream, and sent it. [Evaluation complete. All four disqualified.]

Two years ago, Emma's life was destroyed by the man she loved. He was her first love, until one horrific night left her broken, traumatized, and fighting for her life. After waking from a coma, Emma left New York and spent two years in Canada rebuilding herself before returning to pursue her dream career. She lands a job as the personal assistant to billionaire CEO Alexander Walton. Powerful. Possessive. Protective. A man who fell in love with her at first sight two years ago and has been searching for her ever since. When Alexander offers Emma ten million dollars to be his fake girlfriend, she believes it's nothing more than a business arrangement. But for Alexander, it was never fake. Every promise, every touch, and every moment he spent with her was real. Living under the same roof changes everything. Emma falls deeply in love with Alexander and discovers a kind of love she never experienced before. But Alexander is hiding dangerous secrets. A deadly heart condition runs through the men in his family. Even darker is the secret surrounding his grandfather's criminal empire. The title of Mafia Lord was meant for Alexander, but after refusing it, the position was passed to his cousin, Maxwell, turning two cousins who once loved each other like brothers into bitter enemies. Just when Emma begins to believe in love again, her ex returns. Not only is he the man who destroyed her, he is also Alexander Walton's cousin. As buried truths begin to surface, Emma discovers she wasn't the only victim that night. Caught between two powerful cousins, dangerous family secrets, and a past someone is desperate to hide, Emma must decide whether love is worth risking everything... or if the truth will destroy the future she fought so hard to build.

My husband, Luca, had a childhood sweetheart named Sophia. Years ago, during a brutal gang shootout, Sophia shielded him from the worst of the bloodshed, and since then, she had suffered from severe PTSD. Because of that, Luca would push aside family business every year and fly to our estate on a secluded island off the coast of Sicily to spend three months “helping her recover.” “Victoria, she lost her mind because of me,” he told me. “I’m responsible for her. I hope you can be magnanimous.” So, I nodded. And eventually, I got used to the fact that every year, my husband would disappear for three months to fulfill what he called a moral obligation. That was until the day I flew in without warning to inspect the family’s money-laundering network on that island and saw him. In the town square, under the bright Mediterranean sun, Luca was standing there with a five-year-old boy by his side. “Papa, how long do we have to hide on this island?” the child asked. “I want to go to New York. I want to see the Empire State Building.” Luca laughed gently and scooped him up in his arms. With his other hand, he held Sophia’s. “Antonio, be good,” he said affectionately. “Papa’s position is… complicated. When you turn eighteen and pass the family’s initiation ceremony, I’ll kill that woman and her dead old man. Then, I’ll take you back to New York to inherit the entire Corleone family.” I stood in the shadows, unseen. Slowly, I lit a cigarette. The smoke curled around me as their voices drifted over, the conversation getting more vicious as it went. Sophia leaned into his chest, her tone sweet and coy. “Luca, I’ve been with you for seven years without a name or a title. How much longer are our son and I supposed to live like ghosts?” Luca sighed. “I don’t have a choice. The old man in the Corleone family is still alive. I married Victoria just to get her territory. Don’t worry. I’ve been adding something to her milk every day. She’ll never get pregnant in this lifetime. My family bloodline will only continue through you.” The last thread of reason in my mind snapped. In the six years of marriage we shared, I had been infertile. I’d taken countless hormone injections to stimulate ovulation. I’d knelt in church and prayed more times than I could count. Yet, all along, the devil poisoning me was my own husband. The initial shock faded quickly into rage. I crushed out my cigarette and pulled out my phone. Then, I dialed my uncle, the family’s clean-up man. “Uncle Rocco,” I said calmly, “Luca betrayed me. He betrayed the family. Order a coffin in the finest black walnut for me, and make it large, large enough to fit a family of three.”

SECRETS. Too many secrets! Naiah is a girl who grew up with hardly any guidance from her parents. She, however, grew up fine. Really fine! She had been traveling for so many years and finally settled in a place she wants to call home. Naiah went into a school, called Coded University, where she meets or better say, someone, introduced her, to an odd male cousin. From then on she meets many vibrant people along the way. She felt out of place upon meeting these people, they all seemed much too familiar with each other. That's when she learned, they all had a secret that can shatter you down the core. Those secrets, how deep did they go? How sharp can those secrets be? Time goes by and everything begins to become unleashed from their secretive tight grip. No one knows what will be the consequences once they are exposed. How deep will their scars be? Secrets! A simple word that can make your life a living hell. A sharp word that can hurt you more than you could ever think. A dangerous word that will be your greatest enemy.

Since battling over a spade in kindergarten, Dior and Patricia have been life sworn enemies. Despite Dior being the future alpha, Patricia never respected or feared him. She was always a daring omega, not afraid of stating her opinion. With age, the venom runs thicker in their veins. While Dior becomes popular and sought-after, Patricia finds herself bullied by the entire pack. Sick of the treatment she receives, Patricia decides to go rogue, only for fate to laugh her in the face—it turns out the alpha she left is her mate.

Tracie Conner has saved my mom's life before, so I've given her ten chances to make mistakes. On the day of our engagement, Tracie fled the venue with her first love, Elton Stafford. I chose to forgive her. On the day my mom gets discharged from the hospital, Tracie and Elton can be seen making out passionately with each other at the main entrance. I merely ignore them. In the year after that, Tracie keeps making all sorts of mistakes because of Elton. But I treat her like the same and never take her behavior to heart. That's why Tracie begins acting out of hand, thinking that I will always love her. The tenth chance is used up when Tracie brings Elton to our marital home on our wedding day. When her best friend, Erica Frey, accidentally stumbles upon them during their deed, Tracie doesn't give a damn at all. "Elton is my first love. What's wrong with us using this bedroom to get closure? Besides, Jonas loves me so much. Even if he sees me cheating on him, he'll forgive me." I chuckle softly as I watch everything unfold from a corner. Tracie has used up her tenth chance. Now, I no longer owe her anything.

It's my wedding day. However, Julian Lancaster shoves me aside when he receives a call from Vivienne Hayes. "I'm sorry, honey. Vivi has an upset stomach—I need to bring her some medication for that."

How could you forgive the one who shattered you and still makes your heart burn? Seth was a broke scholarship student by day, and a forbidden secret by night. Caught between survival and desire, he sold pieces of himself until one man changed everything. Then came a night of passion that ended in tragedy… and turned his world upside down. When the truth explodes, Seth is branded as a liar, a gold-digger, and worst of all…August’s ultimate betrayal. But love this raw doesn’t die so easily. Every kiss burns like revenge, every touch blurs into need, and the line between hatred and obsession vanishes between them. He’s the boy August can’t forgive… and the man he can’t let go of.

The prettiest girl in our class, Mandy Smith, died unexpectedly in our dorm. When the police took statements, my two other roommates and I pleaded guilty. I took out Mandy’s love letter to my boyfriend. “I killed her because she was seducing my boyfriend.” Anna Anderson took out a purchase history for cyanide. “I killed her because she snatched my overseas studies spot from me.” Fiona Lee took out an expulsion letter. “I killed her because she reported me for cheating.” All three of us hated Mandy. However, the police found that all of us had alibis during Mandy’s time of death. The counselor also asked us to stop lying. However, the three of us sneered. “Whether you believe it or not, one of us is the murderer.”

After Roman Archer and I broke up, he devoted himself to academic research. He had finally become successful. During a television interview, he looked just as confident and high-spirited as he had been back then. The host asked whom he most wanted to share this news with. After a brief silence, he called me. “Celeste, thank you for leaving me. My career is thriving now.” I smiled. “Congratulations, Mr. Roman.” He would never know that if I had not left, he would have died.