City of Schemes

Hero of the Reverse World – Book Three

James Kim and Vivian Nightshade have done the unthinkable in the Reverse World: they chose each other—exclusively—and made it official in Aegis, even if the rest of the continent refuses to understand it.
Now an alliance between city-states is gambling everything on a new defense: a distributed Beast-Lure Network designed to pull monsters away from human settlements. If it works, entire regions could finally breathe. If it’s sabotaged, the result could be continent-wide catastrophe.
Their “goodwill tour” becomes a gauntlet. In the incense-sweet City of Masks, devotion turns into a velvet trap as holy law treats men like sacred property and a High Priestess tests the limits of James’s freedom—and Vivian’s restraint. In the neon-soaked City of Chaos, power belongs to gangs, kidnapping is currency, and a charismatic champion sets her sights on James just as conspiracy-fueled violence erupts across the streets.
With rival women circling, hidden factions moving in the dark, and beasts growing unnervingly coordinated, James is forced to evolve from a reactive survivor into the architect of a system that can’t be controlled by anyone—not a cult, not a gang, not a conspiracy. And Vivian, fighting smarter enemies than she’s ever faced, discovers that keeping the man she loves safe may require more than manipulation and charm—it may require sacrifice.
Victory is possible. But as the network hums to life and cities begin to unite, one terrifying truth emerges: the monsters may be learning.