Wingless [Modern Fantasy x Slice of Life x Romance x Action]

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

Raku, a battle-hardened mercenary, never expected a rescue mission to save someone from a sinister cult to lead them to a succubus—wingless, broken, and starving.Bound together by fate, the two must navigate a volatile connection built on trust, desire, and vulnerability.

As their mutual hunger—both physical and emotional—pulls them closer, Raku and the succubus explore the transformative power of intimacy while battling the scars of their pasts.Winglessis a sensual tale of love, healing, and rediscovering yourself in the arms of someone just as broken as the world goes to shit around you.

Always remember: This is a love story.

THIS IS THE ROYALROAD RECUT. THE UNCENSORED VERSION CAN BE FOUND ONAO3ANDNOVELIZING. (every chapter where this matters is also linked to the respective chapters on other platforms)

What to expect

— This story contains some sensitive topics and events, and will feature the occasional trigger warning where I deem it necessary— A mix of action, romance, slice of life and occasional (now censored) spice— A story about healing from trauma, learning to trust again and learning to live with your scars— A variety of both low-sci-fi and fantasy elements packed into a mostly modern-day world— A very queer cast. Gay people everywhere wooooo

Current Schedule: Nonexistent during Hiatus

Cover art by the author

Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2024
Author: NootRecruit

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.5/ 5.0
Followers: 184
Views: 36,996

Chapters(50 total)

Reviews

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

Community Reviews(6)

BeetleEnjoyerRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Here’s a charming story about a remarkable person named Raku. Raku works for an organization and has taken on the role reminiscent of the "Helltaker." Instead of gathering demons for some grand scheme, they’re just looking after one special demon who needs care.
The girl named Tragedy, is filled with fears (and injuries) that trap her from soaring freely in the world. She finds refuge under Raku's protection after being assigned to them. It frustrates me that they don’t receive any financial support, especially since Raku, unlike some of their teammates who often complain about the unfairness around them, remains quiet and resilient.
So far, it’s a delightful tale, and I can’t wait to hear more. I’m eager to dive deeper into the unique world created by the Noot, especially its magical elements. Even though Raku may seem more muscular than clever, there’s something intriguing about this universe. It features a mix of magical bureaucracies clashing with what might be a government-like cult while also trying to help a wild succubus. It truly is a fascinating story!
Here's to hoping that the author will be able to keep up with the demand for the “hot mess” archetype, I can truly say I’m eating well.
Erebus EspritRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This is a really interesting story that sucked me in until I came up for air to write this review. There's some immediate world building with both magic & technology, a lot of it is drip fed but I don't even mind because the character interactions take center stage. The action is smooth and immersive, the bits of magic we've seen are interesting and cool, and the characters feel dimensional. It may seem expected of a Slice of Life, but I'm so glad we're not rushing through scenes, it gives weight to everything that happens.
Style: A really engaging style focused on action & interaction with limited, straight forward prose.
Story: The story sets up a premise via the title, tags, and first couple chapters, and I can easily see where it's going, but there's plenty of room for it to take me by surprise.
Grammar: Remarkably well done. I didn't catch a single error, which is rare because I can't turn that side of my brain off.
Character: This is the crown jewel on the shining diadem that is this story. From the first interaction, these characters breathe life. It's *chef's kiss* and I'm looking forward to learning more about them and their personalities.
FauxPraetorRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I disclose that I did follow the development of this, so I'm reading it for the second time now that it's posted here.
STYLE
I'd go as far as to call some parts of the narrative exquisite in terms of execution. Even when scenes turn to sensitive topics, the author delivers content that has you not only understanding what's happening, but getting the point across.
It really makes you feel like you have some kind of personal stake in how events go and what happens to the characters. Even before we get to know anyone, the style itself is gripping enough to plant that seed of engagement right off.
The worldbuilding is also great. That blend between sci-fi elements and a looser low fantasy approach settles well on the urban environment, and the delivery is good. We slowly get to learn more about the world and what it's like without anything feeling forced.
STORY
This is a story with a focus on romance, and the plot appears more focused on recovery and interpersonal relations than a more direct conflict-resolution pattern. There is conflict, and things don't always go smoothly, but you can tell the characters are the core of the narrative.
GRAMMAR
No mistakes that I could notice. Breaks are separated by a gap in the text rather than by dividers, however.
CHARACTERS
Both the titular MC and Raku are incredibly easy to care about. In the case of the former, you get to see why she acts the way she does on the very first scene. There is depth to them and you can see how trust and understanding is slowly built between them.
The other characters are also far from flat. Raku's buddies are recognizable and have personalities, while other characters that show up have varying degrees of likeability. Not everyone is a supportive or amicable character, but you can tell where they fit in the story and why their views or actions may impact relationships down the line.
———————
Overall: I'll say this is a great story, and I'm normally quite picky about reading books with romantic elements
KateSpellRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
I’m still pretty early in this, but I was absolutely hooked from the prologue. It’s so well written. The author has seriously beautiful prose that paints a descriptive picture without being clunky. I really like the world building with a mashup of modern and fantasy elements. The characters already seem three-dimensional and I care about them and am excited to see what happens to them. I’m really looking forward to getting into the meat of the story!
SRadioactiveRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Overall - I will be updating this as I go because I fully intend to stick around until the end. Where we are at now is chefs kiss, though. The author clearly knows a lot about, how do I put it, I guess, military things? I do not, so its very interesting to read about.
Style - Right off the bat I absolutely love the style. The imagery is vivid and creative without repeating "favored" words that can dry out the prose. Gorgeous! Especially in Raid which comes early enough to give you a taste of how the author builds their scenes.
Story - We are just getting started, but the setup of the world is already very unique. A modern day story with demons is intriguing, and especially because they are treated as such a normal part of life, even if its less than savory that they approach the succubus as such a lesser being. But it speaks for the intricate worldbuilding that is to come.
Grammar - Better than mine
Characters - Loving the diversity of the characters. We get a lot right off and you can kind of guess which ones are going to be sticking around (besides the two main MCs) what is better is that they have their own voices and their backgrounds are revealed slowly. The drama of it starts right off and immediately creates this atmosphere of slow healing with the succubus and I can't wait to see the development of her character.
EDIT: this shows up as a review swap, but this is accidental. A swap was not arranged. It just so happens that I enjoyed the author's story and felt that I wanted to do it justice after the author was previously one of my readers.
tagamantraRoyal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
"The quiet between us felt different now—warmer, less fragile."
Despite the high action opening, this story is an intensely tender experience, as far as I've read. It really is a testament to this fic's Story and Character work when I'm hooked even after 11 chapters of just Raku (or Tats), the main character, speaking to the Succubus and the Succubus replying in mannerisms and gestures. It's an even greater testament to the Style that I didn't feel like I had read 11 chapters! I might be a bit biased because this story just feels so up my alley, as someone who's fond of Asian Dramas that have this kind of slow-burn vibe.
The world is so compelling as well--laid out without lore dumps or long expositions, you have to read the book to really absorb the worldbuilding. A modern fantasy world where having (para?)military forces taking care of supernatural things such as demons. Magic being almost everyday--it's one of my favorite settings. And this one does it so well that it's believable, it reads almost like magical realism!
I highly recommend Wingless if you're into slow burn romance and compelling modern urban fantasy worlds. It's uniqueness is completely to its benefit: telling a story with such an intense subject-matter (post-abuse?) speaks to the confidence and skill of Noot in both their world and their prose. Top notch, no notes.