Brayden brought the flat side of his sword down on a man’s skull with a ringing clang. There was a thunk that carried more than a little bit of a satisfactory element to it, not that Brayden had any plans of admitting such to anyone he knew. He didn’t need them to start thinking he’d gone insane or bloodthirsty.
The struck man crumpl...
2026-02-10 16:00:36 +0000 UTC View PostScreams and yells rose into the air, squeezing out between the thunderous crack of lightning and crackling flames. The roar of magic filled the arena all around Lee. A rock hurtled past her head, smoldering with some odd black magic, only to get blasted to smithereens by a hammer formed of brilliant golden light.
The ground bucked beneath ...
2026-02-09 16:00:25 +0000 UTC View Post“We have a problem,” Koyu said.
Wallace grunted in response.
The two of them sat in obsidian chairs on either side of the anvil in the center of the Infernal Armory. Materials scattered the ground around them in what would have seemed to be a mess to anyone other than the two of them and the Armory itself.
They’d run thro...
2026-02-09 16:00:25 +0000 UTC View PostAlex’s domain exploded out around him, hazy Riftwarped Qi warping the air in a wide ring. He wasted absolutely no time in calling Spark to the field as well. Glint was still dead, but he wanted to save Encore for if one of his other monsters fell. There was no point overextending now and getting punished for it later.
He wasn’t the onl...
2026-02-09 16:00:19 +0000 UTC View Post“Dude,” Alex said. “You’re kidding me, right?”
Maybe that wasn’t quite the best thing to say when faced with a twelve-foot-tall amalgamation of melted man and metal holding a sword easily twice as wide as a grown adult. It certainly wasn’t going to win him any favor. But he couldn’t help himself.
The idea that Vaxon h...
2026-02-08 16:00:19 +0000 UTC View Post“What?” Aaron exclaimed, his gaze snapping up to follow Claire’s gaze. “They can do that? But our last fight just ended! That’s not fair! We haven’t even had time to loot!”
“I don’t know if the Cracked Steps cares too much for the concept of fair or not.” Alex’s lips pressed thin. There was no way he was going to just...
2026-02-06 16:00:19 +0000 UTC View PostThe round ended.
That really shouldn’t have been too much of a surprise. It was, after all, what rounds tended to do. There wouldn’t have been much point in having a giant melee if it went on until everyone was dead. Not much of the tournament would have been left at that point.
Noah found himself pulled back through a twisting g...
2026-02-05 16:00:18 +0000 UTC View PostThe first few rooms of the dungeon had nothing within them of note. They were populated entirely by kobolds which, as Kien had noted, had taken to using weapons and tools to fight with. The monsters had been armed with an assortment of mismatched equipment. A fair bit of it had actually been somewhat decent, with a few slightly magical swords an...
2026-02-04 16:00:16 +0000 UTC View PostMordred’s senses drifted through the arenas. There were no shortage of interesting mages in the second round of the melees, but there was one in particular he was interested in.
Fist had informed him that Spider was participating in this round.
Mordred still did a sweep of all the arenas to take note of anyone that might have been ...
2026-02-04 16:00:16 +0000 UTC View PostThe Baveroth’s skull made a wet, squelching crunch as Alex’s anchor drove down on it. The top of the huge bear’s head caved in like a piece of wet cardboard. Its eyes bulged as its jaw was driven down into the ground. No matter how tough its hide may have been, slash resistance did precious little to stop blunt impact.
There was a mo...
2026-02-04 16:00:16 +0000 UTC View PostHey all! Forge Book 5 is out on amazon!! It should be coming to Audible fairly soon as well, though I don't know the exact date yet. This one was a really fun one to write. Amazon's new review system really sucks as far fewer reviews/ratings make it through than before, so if you've been enjoying the series, please consider popping over and leav...
2026-02-04 14:34:05 +0000 UTC View PostGetting cooked as I write this. Got a pretty nasty flu. Going to doctor tomorrow morning to get it looked at and hopefully locking back in soon.
Could not write today. Sorry guys. Watch discord or Patreon chat for updates.
2026-02-02 09:53:02 +0000 UTC View PostShadow bubbled before Alex. A large, ceramic-clawed hand burst up from within the darkness. It slammed down onto the platform with a heavy thud. The claws dug into the earth, slicing clean through it as Princess pulled herself free from the depths.
Her three-headed body bubbled and hissed as she emerged in her full glory. The huge monster ...
2026-02-01 15:59:33 +0000 UTC View Post“So… what now?” Aaron asked, glancing from Alex to Claire.
Alex grinned. He rolled the Cracked Coin across his knuckles. It slipped. He cursed, fumbling with the metal disk for a second and barely keeping himself from dropping it. Alex ignored the look Claire sent him and cleared his throat as he held the coin out.
Whoops. ...
2026-01-30 16:00:19 +0000 UTC View PostNoah was doing his best to keep track of things, but it was really getting to be quite the hassle. The world was stubbornly insisting on shifting in and out of… well, everything. He was starting to wonder if everyone had suddenly learned spatial magic out of nowhere.
One moment, people would be fighting right in front of him. The next th...
2026-01-29 16:00:24 +0000 UTC View Post“What?” Ida asked, blinking.
“A better workspace,” Madiv repeated. He gestured vaguely to the incredibly uninspiring surroundings. “All the rubble and drafty walls… not what I would consider a worthy workshop. It’s demeaning. A member of the Menagerie should not be working in such conditions. Unless you prefer them?”
...
2026-01-29 04:45:03 +0000 UTC View PostAlex kept his magic at the ready. Even though the fight was over, he had absolutely no idea if Tael planned to actually honor the deal. He wasn’t about to bet their lives on a stranger’s honor. And, to be entirely fair, it wasn’t like they’d exactly played entirely by the rules.
Claire had cheated. It hadn’t been by much. They pr...
2026-01-28 16:00:49 +0000 UTC View PostGot absolutely cooked by a headache today. Not missing the 2nd chapter, but going to be doing it tomorrow morning as I couldn't write anything readable today.
Cheers!
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Jake laughed.
That lasted about a second. Then he realized that Lillia was completely serious. The Merchant’s guildsman swallowed. He seemed...
2026-01-28 16:00:48 +0000 UTC View PostVincent Lionsheart was born for victory.
His parents had even gone so far as to choose him a name they felt closest to the very word. They did both start with a V and ran for exactly 7 letters. But his parents had done everything in their power to ensure the similarities didn’t end there.
They found him the greatest tutors. Ensured...
2026-01-28 16:00:47 +0000 UTC View PostNoah glanced up from his badge and over to Brayden. The other man held his badge up. It was still pitch black. He hadn’t been chosen. Lee’s badge was similarly dark. Noah was going into this round alone. In some ways, that was probably for the best.
It was a lot easier to make an impact when he didn’t have to worry about anyone aroun...
2026-01-27 16:00:31 +0000 UTC View PostLost a fight to scheduling...
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A wave of molten heat rolled past Mordred’s senses. The intensity of the fire was enough to make his skin prickle all the way back where he sat safely in his room. White flame slammed down into a dome of glistening ice. A crackling roar and the scream of angry steam filled the air.
Thick clo...
2026-01-27 00:01:04 +0000 UTC View PostDue to me accidentally uploading an extra 2 chapters instead of an extra chapter on Friday, I only have 1 chapter today (as this chapter should have come out with ch590, which was released early on Friday).
Cheers!
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The vast majority of the Menagerie gathered in the dining room the following morning. More of them were the...
2026-01-26 16:00:22 +0000 UTC View PostNo further attacks had a chance to occur at the Auction. Anyone who might have been sitting around in wait for the VIP section members to emerge from the Mausoleum likely found themselves sorely disappointed as the huge doors of the building ground shut behind the departed members of the lower levels.
Nobody else emerged from the building....
2026-01-26 16:00:22 +0000 UTC View PostAaron scrambled back to his feet, but no followup attack came. Even Tael had paused to stare in the direction of where the coin had plummeted over the edge of their platform. He almost looked sad, as if he felt bad for his opponent. A very significant portion of Aaron desperately wanted to throw himself over the edge of the platform and join his...
2026-01-26 16:00:22 +0000 UTC View Post