Harbinger of Nyxus

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

It is a moral question to consider, that perhaps every villain was once an anti-hero pushed too far, or even retrospectively, that every anti-villain once walked the path of a hero before their faith and expectations were utterly betrayed.

Tetheredto an imprisoned Primordial of Malevolent Darkness, Mercedes struggles to earn her place among the Mystics of the 13 Realms. After escaping a Mundane world on the brink of destruction, a Sparrow witha mission to sacrifice worlds to free her Masterfinds her way inside the Arcanum Mystic Academy. There she must learn to accept her hybrid nature as both a Monster and a Mystic while attempting to avoid the discerning gaze of each realm’s governing Titans, their fanatical Mystic disciples, and the unfathomable Primordials who rule the Mystic Realms.

The Desolation of the Void cannot be filled, andHisHarbingerisalwayshungry…

What to expect:

Single MC. Strong Female Non-human Anti-Hero (though she does attempt to fit in, in the beginning).

Slow-burn world-building with a short introduction/worldbuilding arc (first 3 chapters).

Followed by an Academy/Training/more worldbuilding arc.

Lots of game mechanics, stats, skills, gear, rewards, quests, etc. (They’ll start appearing in CH 4. Stats later in the training arc).

A fully fleshed-out world/game system.

Lots of world buildings that focus mainly on Mystics (spellcaster classes), Titans, Monsters, and Primordials.

World Destruction. At least one for the first book. More to come later.

Chapter length average is about 2.6k.

Daily uploads until chapter 30.

Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2024
Author: Vera Anne Wolfe

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.5/ 5.0
Followers: 464
Views: 65,295

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!

Community Reviews(7)

Samantha NelsonRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Like other stories in the genre, this one’s got a lot of blue,
tables with some quests and stats will appear to you.
For the readers who dislike them, it may give a bit of pause.
Still the writing and the story are lacking other flaws.
Our protag’s on a mission; Gods are playing here.
The villains have a lock on her; she isn’t in the clear.
The story’s a discovery; we learn with Mercedes,
the setting and the tone of book fitting in with ease.
The style is amazing; it’s very clear to read.
The prose is like a lilting song, something rarely seen.
So, five stars on the style. I wouldn’t change a thing.
Even the new system is embedded sans a seam.
The story holds much promise. The villains are at work.
The protag’s on a mission, her God’s duties she can’t shirk.
Lacking any infodumps, we discover as we need.
In short, the work captivates, growing as we read.
The grammar is near flawless. Even I don’t have complaint.
Like a perfect artist, the grammar is all great.
The characters are all growing. I hope to spend more time.
For we need more chapters to see each then brightly shine.
So to all the readers who have read this long review.
This story is a great one; I’d advise you to pursue.
HeronLRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Harbinger of Nyxus follows Mercedes, an orphan who grew up in pretty much a literal hell and made a pact with a Primordial God named Nyxus whom has sworn dark vengeance upon their Primordial "kindred" Gods and the worlds they rule. The first quest given to Mercedes, that she has been working on for the last 5 years, is the infiltration of the Mystic Realm. A mostly politically neutral realm/world drenched in magic and the fantastic. The rest of the introduction you get from the synopsis. ;)
Harbinger of Nyxus is through and through a litRPG with an in-depth system to sink your teeth into. The way the stats matter not just to the character, but their relationship to the gods and the world around them is interesting.
- To adress the review calling the story greedy said; The way some information regarding the stats are introduced can be a bit disruptive, but equally it is interesting to read about. Some will like it, some will not. If you don't; you can skip it without larger harm to your reading experience, and I'm confident that as the story grows with more and more chapters, skipping them will feel like it matters less and less - but it is a smaller initial hurdle if it's not your cup of tea. I can see where the critique comes from, but frankly I don't know a much better solution to doing it in this web-novel format /w the information that needs to be delivered, and the way by which to do it given how the plot is structured. If it was a traditional physical book you could make it a bit more untraditional, but nontheless immerssive and add an encyclopedia to which you'd refer the reader, but seeing as that's less of an option here.. idunno. Was a minor annoyance at best for me, the story had me wanting more enough to make up for it.
Style:
It's great. Sucked me right in and still hasn't let go. I really liked how what I knew about Mercedes' goals was and is being paced.
Grammar:
I haven't noticed any issues in the way that I never thought about any such mistakes whil
sumdumbguyRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This is an absolute gem. I've been blessed with beta reading this masterpiece(31 chapters at the time of this review). There's a lot of promise in this story and the author never fails to deliver.
Style: The prose is engaging and fun to read. Anything and everything that happens or we learn about has a greater purpose. The "devil is in the details" and there are a lot of details that might seem minor but are just a small piece of so much more. Even the stats which seem simple by nature have a much deeper meaning and it's a pleasure to learn all about them.
Story: There is so much planning and effort behind this it really shines. Whether discussing the world lore, the characters, the main or sub plots, the whole is much more than the sum of the parts and it all comes together masterfully.
Grammar: Striving for perfection is a goal we all have, and this story comes remarkably close.
Characters: The characters behave as a character should. The characters have multiple roles, whether they are monster or human, and what their jobs are. You encounter a teacher in the story and you might find yourself remembering a teacher you had. The kind of expectations, and patience that a teacher would have with the upcoming generation.
I have no cons to share as this story has scratched every itch my inner reader craves. Be it mystery, intrigue, struggle, or just to see where the plot takes me next I'm onboard this amazing train.
Geomancer17Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Interesting piece. I want to see where it's going so the hook is pretty good. I'm hoping the MC will turn out to be more than her origins. She was dealt a pretty shit hand and her redraws kept coming up short too. I hope she acts as a wild card and not a monster
Try showingRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Harbinger of Nyxus emerges as a compelling narrative where the anti-hero takes center stage, captivating readers with its beautiful prose and a gripping storyline led by a formidable female protagonist.In a literary landscape filled with conventional heroes and literal gods, Harbinger of Nyxus dares to tread a different path, introducing readers to a complex anti-hero whose journey is as fascinating as it is unpredictable. The protagonist's moral ambiguity adds layers of depth to the narrative, challenging readers to question traditional notions of heroism and villainy.What truly sets it apart is its masterful storytelling and the presence of a strong female lead. Against the backdrop of a richly imagined world, the protagonist commands attention with her resilience, intelligence, and unwavering determination
Vowron PrimeRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This is honestly one of the most polished stories on RR, from a writer with a track record of putting out stories of similar quality. For me, it was the incredible worldbuilding that sucked me in. The first couple of chapters start a bit slow and slice-of-life, but the worldbuilding is obvious from the get-go. Then things just board a rocket ship and never stop.
The grammar is perfect, and I didn't spot a single error myself.
The characters are all well-fleshed out, and you get that sense right off the bat after even just a few interactions. There's so much mystery here that you can almost feel it.
Style is impeccable. Sentences flow with a rhythm you only get with an experienced author, and this feels closer to a trad pubbed story than something you'd find on RR. That said, the prose is easy to read and doesn't get in the way of enjoying the story. Rather, it supports it.
The story is just getting started, but as of chapter 5, the universe really explodes in breadth and depth, and there's a LOT more going on here than a zombie apocalypse. Unraveling the mysteries piece by piece is immensely satisfying.
In short, this is worth everyone's time, whether you're a litrpg reader or not. It's got something for everyone, so go read it!
PlatiusmanRoyal Road
★★★ 3.0
Overall:
The opening 3 chapters make a great impression, and the rest after that is kind of a wreck. The novel is a bit greedy wanting all kinds of things without making them fit together. It wants an incredibly in-depth system, unique races, unique worlds, a redefinition of the common stats seen in LitRPG, character development, a wide caste, mystery and intrigue, etc. If these elements were introduced in a smooth manner to the story I'm sure it would have been great but instead it's like there's so much the novel wants to tell you that most of it is lost in translation. It's like someone made a delicious buffet of amazing food, but didn't take the time to serve it into the appropriate courses and decided to started mashing the food into compact balls for serving. The food might be high quality but its presented fast and dense enough to choke you.
Style/Grammar:
The novel reads well most of the time. There were a few sentences that are a bit wonky and I had to re-read a few time because of how much of a run-on they were, but otherwise it's smooth sailing. One thing that stuck was the author's way of addressing characters however. They us "The [Title] did something" type sentences all the time and quite a few times I'd have to look around for context in who they were actually referring to.
Story:
The story itself is fine, but I do have grievances with the decisions taken on the direction of the story design however. For example:
It's an academy story and the MC has some kind of reading disability.
The MC is apparently some kind of vampire for years and was unaffected till now.
The opening chapters painted the MC as a stoic, competent infiltrator who used blood magic. This character us nowhere to be found in the MC after the opening chapters.
She has zero apparent game plan or preparation on staying undetected in an academy run by godlike beings, but was prepared enough to pull off an assassination on a world's last line of defense.
All of the examples come across as