going down the stairs

Sherlyn is a traditional medicine prodigy who spent years raising her son alone, coming down the mountain with nothing but her child and her medicine kit and asking no one for anything. Then she walks straight into Lucas Taylor, her son's father and the head of one of the most powerful families in the city. A rare hereditary condition surfaces, tangled identities unravel, and rival healers with hidden agendas start circling. Through every scheme and confrontation, Sherlyn fights back on her own terms, with her son beside her and her instincts sharper than any prescription. Three lifetimes of unfinished feeling, it turns out, have a way of finishing themselves.

Leonard Miller nearly dies a dozen times completing every level of a mysterious game in closed beta. The moment he returns to the real world, the game goes live.On Earth, for everyone, whether they signed up or not. Dragged back in against his will, Leonard has one edge no other player does: he's already been through all of it. Armed with maxed-out attributes and complete knowledge of every trap and pattern, he tears through the stages, protects the people he loves, builds alliances, and slowly pieces together a chilling truth that a higher civilization has been using Earth as a playground. He intends to shut it down permanently.

Colette appears to be a quiet, obedient woman. But secretly,she's Leader of the Night Phoenix, a martial arts master who punishes the wicked. When her ailing grandfather arranges a marriage before his death, she reluctantly agrees to ease his final wish. But her new husband, Marc Newton, turns out to be a cruel scoundrel. On their wedding night, he parties with his reckless friends. When Colette confronts them, they humiliate her and capture her loyal bodyguard Martin, who sacrifices himself to protect her. Enraged yet disciplined, Colette hunts them down one by one—bringing them to justice without crossing the law.

Leonard Miller nearly dies a dozen times completing every level of a mysterious game in closed beta. The moment he returns to the real world, the game goes live.On Earth, for everyone, whether they signed up or not. Dragged back in against his will, Leonard has one edge no other player does: he's already been through all of it. Armed with maxed-out attributes and complete knowledge of every trap and pattern, he tears through the stages, protects the people he loves, builds alliances, and slowly pieces together a chilling truth that a higher civilization has been using Earth as a playground. He intends to shut it down permanently.

Orphaned and utterly alone, Frank Judson has lived undercover for years on end. To perfect his alias, he's mingled in every entertainment den in the city, only to be busted, again and again, by Lila Tynan, his high school desk mate turned police detective. A reunion, but not the kind he'd imagined. Then comes the order from Captain Sam Lunn: infiltrate the inner circle of Bernice Ruth, the shadow queen of Yorick's underworld.Starting from the foot spa SpaVille,Frank begins to peel back layer after layer of deception. Yet when the fog clears, she realizes, deep down, he's still the same boy she once knew.

Mia's world turned upside down when her first love, Logan Henry, re-entered her life with his young daughter, Jade Henry. As Jade became a constant presence in the family, Mia's relationship with her own daughter, Molly Justin, grew increasingly strained. Feeling overshadowed and repeatedly pushed aside, Molly slowly closed off her heart until one day, she left with her father, Mason Justin. Only after their departure did Mia awaken to the pain she'd caused. The weight of her indifference and the void left by her daughter's love began to consume her, plunging her into a spiral of irreparable remorse.

Zoey Devro transmigrates into a novel she already knows the ending of, which is bad news, because she lands as the sidekick to the villainess. In this story, the villainess Elaine Luke ruins everything and takes everyone around her down with her, sidekick included. Zoey has absolutely no interest in that ending. Armed with a system that tasks her with correcting the villainess' worst impulses, she attaches herself firmly to her difficult employer and starts quietly steering the ship. Scheming men get exposed, bad decisions get intercepted, and the villainess slowly becomes someone worth following. Zoey, meanwhile, is building her own empire on the side. She came as a footnote. She is leaving as the whole story.

My adopted sister won the Elixir Challenge by stealing my potion. To her shock, she was informed that the event was a selection event for the future wife of the Serpentkins' future head—the same heir who was infamously impotent, barbaric, and hideous. When the Serpentkins sent over a proposal letter, demanding her hand in marriage, my fiance panicked and promptly took my adopted sister away for a quick marriage and even consummated. Once the deed was done, she returned triumphantly, showing off the mark on her lower back. "Well, what are you going to do now, Winnie?" she gloated. "Your fiance is mine now, and you'll be twenty-five in three days. If no one comes to pick you up, you'll just be dumped into the hands of some wife-beating Rogue who is ageing and unwanted…" Actually, she was wrong—I had a choice. I went to the parlor where my parents—who were busy fixing the mess my adopted sister made—were, announcing, "If she refuses to marry the future head of the Serpentkins, I will!"

Zoey Devro transmigrates into a novel she already knows the ending of, which is bad news, because she lands as the sidekick to the villainess. In this story, the villainess Elaine Luke ruins everything and takes everyone around her down with her, sidekick included. Zoey has absolutely no interest in that ending. Armed with a system that tasks her with correcting the villainess' worst impulses, she attaches herself firmly to her difficult employer and starts quietly steering the ship. Scheming men get exposed, bad decisions get intercepted, and the villainess slowly becomes someone worth following. Zoey, meanwhile, is building her own empire on the side. She came as a footnote. She is leaving as the whole story.

Reborn into a cybernetic world where "synchronization rate" determines everything, I was once a overworked office worker who died from exhaustion. Now, even as the strongest being, I choose to live as an F-rank "trash" who spends his days flirting with beautiful women and enjoying a laid-back life. But trouble keeps coming for me anyway—my ex-wife demands a share of my fortune, my family forces me into an arranged marriage, a brother dies protecting me, and even my own elder brother wants to drag me down with him. Fine. If you won't let me rest, I won't pretend anymore. One punch per problem—until everyone learns their place.

My adopted sister won the Elixir Challenge by stealing my potion. To her shock, she was informed that the event was a selection event for the future wife of the Serpentkins' future head—the same heir who was infamously impotent, barbaric, and hideous. When the Serpentkins sent over a proposal letter, demanding her hand in marriage, my fiance panicked and promptly took my adopted sister away for a quick marriage and even consummated. Once the deed was done, she returned triumphantly, showing off the mark on her lower back. "Well, what are you going to do now, Winnie?" she gloated. "Your fiance is mine now, and you'll be twenty-five in three days. If no one comes to pick you up, you'll just be dumped into the hands of some wife-beating Rogue who is ageing and unwanted…" Actually, she was wrong—I had a choice. I went to the parlor where my parents—who were busy fixing the mess my adopted sister made—were, announcing, "If she refuses to marry the future head of the Serpentkins, I will!"

Louise Jones was engaged to Kendall Patterson until Quinn Thompson lured him away with promises of godhood, ultimately destroying the entire Jones family.Consumed by vengeful fury,Louise storms the Heaven seeking justice, only to be cast down by the gods themselves. In despair, she leaps into the Styx river and awakens to her true identity—the demon god Taella. Together with her companion, she attempts to awaken Girgyn, but they're hunted by the gods and forced to flee into Girgyn's dreamscape. When Quinn and Kendall pursue them into the dream realm, their unresolved obsessions backfire and actually help awaken Girgyn. The three great demon gods—Taella,Girgyn, and Rhys—reunite at last, striking terror into the divine realm.

When Yasmin Conrad was just a kid, she watched her mom get torn apart by vicious dogs because she swept some cherry blossoms wrong. The person who ordered it was Elsie Hudson, who was about to become the Queen.Elsie wasn't satisfied with just one murder; she wanted Yasmin dead too. Right before the wolves could get her, some mystery person saved her and made a deal: learn how to seduce powerful men, get into the palace, and take down the woman who ruined everything. Now Yasmin's ready to use every trick in the book to destroy Elsie, because some things can only be settled with blood.

Louise Jones was engaged to Kendall Patterson until Quinn Thompson lured him away with promises of godhood, ultimately destroying the entire Jones family.Consumed by vengeful fury, Louise storms the Heaven seeking justice, only to be cast down by the gods themselves. In despair, she leaps into the Styx river and awakens to her true identity—the demon god Taella. Together with her companion, she attempts to awaken Girgyn, but they're hunted by the gods and forced to flee into Girgyn's dreamscape. When Quinn and Kendall pursue them into the dream realm, their unresolved obsessions backfire and actually help awaken Girgyn. The three great demon gods—Taella,Girgyn, and Rhys—reunite at last, striking terror into the divine realm.

Lycan Gray has battled a stubborn case of anorexia for years, and his last hope lies in tracking down a mysterious chef known for healing through food. During his search, he crosses paths with Wendy Sable, an outer disciple from Woodabbey. When Lycan is caught sneaking food, Wendy mistakes him for a thief and kicks him off the mountain.Fate brings them back together in town. To dodge a politically arranged marriage,Lycan offers Wendy a hefty sum to pretend to be his girlfriend. What he doesn't expect? Wendy turns out to be not only his long-lost fiancée—but also the culinary genius he's been searching for all along.

When Yasmin Conrad was just a kid, she watched her mom get torn apart by vicious dogs because she swept some cherry blossoms wrong. The person who ordered it was Elsie Hudson, who was about to become the Queen.Elsie wasn't satisfied with just one murder; she wanted Yasmin dead too. Right before the wolves could get her, some mystery person saved her and made a deal: learn how to seduce powerful men, get into the palace, and take down the woman who ruined everything. Now Yasmin's ready to use every trick in the book to destroy Elsie, because some things can only be settled with blood.

Rex Palmer was a world-class computer tech titan. Because he had once been helped by Sandy Brook, he turned down numerous offers from big companies and stayed at Brook Group, developing the Loki System for a meager salary. Lena Mona, who worked at Mona Investment Firm, knew Rex's capabilities well and strongly pushed for an investment in Brook Group.However, Rex had a fierce conflict with Brook Group's manager, Justin Dutt, over a leave-of-absence issue. Sandy chose to side with Justin and even fired Rex. With Lena's help, Rex started anew and eventually crushed Brook Group in the field of artificial intelligence. Sandy deeply regretted her decision, but it was too late.

Six years ago, Winni and Chester were a loving couple, until Chester's old friend Ruth returned to the country. Ruth disguised herself with a kind face and became friends with Winni, secretly plotting to replace Winni as Chester's wife. Not long after, Winni became pregnant, but the doctor informed Chester that the child had no blood relationship to him. Chester iced out Winni and gradually grew closer to Ruth. Six years later, Winni's son, Ron, was critically ill with leukemia. Only Chester's bone marrow could save him. In order to please Chester, Winni had to bow down to Ruth. However, during their interaction, she gradually uncovered why Chester thought Ron was an illegitimate child.