TurtleMe TurtleMe

I often caught myself pushing away the old memories of my past life. More and more, my past self’s hold on me lessened, allowing me to become the person I wanted to be in this world. But at this moment, I found myself wishing to turn back to the old me - to the cold, rational me that had suppressed his emotions in exchange for having no vulnerability that could be used against him. Arthur Leywin knew well the cold terror of war. Yet, in his past life as King Grey, he had never lost a friend, mentor, or loved one; he had none to lose. Now, though, Arthur must accept that even those closest to him must take up arms to defend their homes as the enemy force seeks new methods to strike at the heart of Dicathen. In his quest to stop the approaching army, Arthur must travel to the dwarven kingdom of Darv, gain mastery of the four elements, battle some of the Vritra’s mightiest champions, and overcome a grievous betrayal. Meanwhile, visions of his past life are surfacing with startling frequency, forcing Arthur to contend with the decisions of his past as he struggles to retain a vision of his future.

I never had any memories of family in my old world. Growing up in an environment where no one truly loved me—and, in turn, being callous and distant to everyone—made me an unrivaled fighter, but a crappy person. When I came to this world, my new parents taught me something I’d never known. I may not be the strongest fighter or mage in this world, but I’m a hell of a lot better person now than I ever would’ve been in my previous life. In order to protect his loved ones, the mage Arthur Leywin must reveal the truth of his identity. If he is to fulfill his role in the war between the godlike asuras and the demonic Vritra, he must leave those he hopes to protect and travel to the land of deities and dragons. First, however, he must escape. Arthur stands before the kings and queens of Dicathen, accused of a crime he did not commit. It will take an act of the gods to save him from having his magic stripped away, leaving him powerless in the war to come. Fortunately for Arthur, he can count the gods among his friends.

King Grey has unrivaled strength, wealth, and prestige in world governed through martial ability. However, solitude lingers closely behind those with great power. Beneath the glamorous exterior of a powerful king lurks the shell of man, devoid of purpose and will. Reincarnated into a new world filled with magic and monsters, the king has a second chance to relive his life. Correcting the mistakes of his past will not be his only challenge, however. Underneath the peace and prosperity of the new world is an undercurrent threatening to destroy everything he has worked for, questioning his role and reason for being born again.

Was I taking this life for granted? Having this amount of power at my age had made me lose some of the sense of rationality I’d had in my former life. No longer a king, no longer tied down by rules and politics, I’d become careless. In this world, my potential was boundless. Though Arthur Leywin would like nothing more than to pursue his studies at the esteemed Xyrus Academy, where he hopes to push his already potent magical abilities to new plateaus and perhaps discover something more about his reincarnation into this world, he finds the politics of the school’s halls even more challenging to navigate than those of the council chambers he once inhabited as King Grey. Arthur faces inept professors, jealous classmates, and an overeager director while fending off the affection of an old friend and the aggression of an old enemy. Then a routine class trip into a low-level dungeon turns out to be anything but, and Arthur discovers something that will change his life forever.

In my past life I hadn’t had anyone I would have given my life to protect. I had that now, but I didn’t have the strength to protect them—not against what was about to come. In another life, Arthur Leywin was a king and no stranger to war. He was not ready, however, to find himself at the heart of a conflict that will reshape his entire new world. Despite his abilities, it seems as if the danger only increases with every discovery he makes. His oldest friend succumbs to a power that may destroy her, a power Arthur gave her. His most constant foe accepts a dark gift to challenge Arthur’s strength, an act that threatens all of Xyrus Academy. How can he keep his family safe if his very presence is the thing that draws danger to them? Can he dispel the specters of war before it is too late?

I had a family now, I had people who loved me. It was a feeling I never wanted to give up. I’d treasure it, fight for it if I had to… and for that, I needed to better myself. More so even than when I had been a king. Given a second chance at life, Arthur Leywin wishes above all to grow strong enough to protect his family, as the memory of his cold and disconnected past life as King Grey still haunts him. To this end, Arthur adopts the persona of the masked adventurer, Note, and delves into the dungeons under the forbidding Beast Glades. On his adventures, Arthur discovers a strange magical blade that responds to the dragon’s will inside him, befriends a powerful young conjurer whose past is shrouded in mystery, and battles the deadly Elderwood Guardian. Yet all his efforts might prove for naught when Arthur makes an enemy of a talented conjurer from a very powerful family, putting his very future at risk.

No matter how powerful you become, it’s hard to let go of the fear that grows in you when you’re weak. It grows along with you. Arthur Leywin may have survived the Relictombs, but he immediately finds himself embroiled in something far more complex and dangerous: Alacryan politics. Accused of crimes he didn’t commit, Arthur is forced to defend himself without drawing the attention of his most powerful enemies. He quickly discovers that the best place to hide may be in plain sight as he continues his quest for the power to control Fate itself. It is a race against time, however, as the greatest threat of the war so far closes in on Arthur’s loved ones in Dicathen. Without him, they are defenseless, but if he returns too soon, hope is lost for all of them.

Volume 8 of The Beginning After The End I had to accept that I wasn’t just Arthur Leywin anymore, and that I could no longer be limited by the circumstances of my birth. If I was going to escape, if I was going to go toe-to-toe with the most powerful beings in this world, I needed to push myself to my utmost limit...and then I needed to push even further. After nearly dying as a victim of his own strength, Arthur Leywin wakes to find himself far from the continent where he was born for the second time. Alone, broken, and with no way to tell his family he’s alive, Arthur must rebuild his strength to survive. As he ascends through an ancient dungeon filled with hostile beasts and devious trials, he discovers an ancient, absolute power - a power that will either ruin him or take him to new heights. But the dungeon won’t give up its knowledge easily. Before he can plunder its depths, Arthur must learn to untangle the threads of fate. He must band together with the unlikeliest of allies if he hopes to escape with his life.

Volume 7 of The Beginning After The End Not every human, elf, or dwarf could be equally important to me, and that's a fact that I had accepted long ago. I was here to serve my role, to help end this war, but it wasn’t for world peace or to save mankind—it was so, one day, I could lead a comfortable and happy life with the people I loved and cared for. Arthur Leywin has experienced two lifetimes of challenge and adventure. He has lived as a swordsman, a mage, an adventurer, and a king. Now his two lives, old and new, will collide, revealing the connection between King Grey and Arthur Leywin, but at what cost? And how will this affect the ongoing war between the nations of Alacrya and Dicathen? Enemy forces threaten the coastal cities, the elven forests, and the fortified mountain passes; Dicathen’s most powerful allies have vanished; and the military alliance between men, elves, and dwarves threatens collapse. Arthur may be the last hope for his people, but when forced to choose between family and country, where will his loyalty lie?

The war between Dicathen and Alacrya is over and Arthur Leywin has vanished. In the uncertain aftermath of this decisive loss, a few familiar faces navigate peril–both political and moral–as they are now forced to make a difficult choice: accept life under Vritra rule or keep fighting despite impossible odds? As Dicathen falls, Mica Earthborn, Lilia Helstea, Emily Watsken, and Jasmine Flamesworth must each answer this question for themselves. To get the best listening experience, Amongst the Fallen should be listened to after book eight of The Beginning After the End series.

I didn’t want to be worshiped like some deity, an instant replacement for the asuras who kept trying to kill these people despite having for so long been looked up to as gods. “I’m not your savior.” Arthur Leywin has finally returned to the continent of Dicathen, but his home is still firmly in the hands of the enemy. His display of unprecedented power brings hope to his allies and fear to his enemies, but it also more deeply embroils him in a conflict between the godlike asuras, with Agrona Vritra on one side and Kezess Indrath on the other. With the crimes of his past life haunting him in the form of the Legacy, Arthur can no longer afford to hone only his own strength, but he must also empower those closest to him or risk losing them all.