Designated Love Interest [Isekai LitRPG]

Jacob Williams has only one rule: Stay out of trouble. When he breaks this rule just once to save Ben, the bullied school nerd, from drowning, it costs them both their life. Game over. Or maybe not. Jacob awakens in a strange underground mushroom metropolis. Not as a shining hero though, but as Shaelith, the violet-skinned, pointy-eared, and absurdly beautiful daughter of a ruthless elf matriarch who rules a noble house full of assassins, intrigue, and deadly mushroom sorcery. And instead of an overpowered RPG system with skills and level-ups, she only has a bizarre interface with a short and useless list of traits. For twenty years, Shaelith learns to survive in this strange world full of alien customs and brutal matriarchal scheming. She masters sorcery, survives assassination attempts, and becomes one of the most powerful diplomats and sorceresses of her generation. Until one day she is kidnapped by goblins and rescued by an extremely loud and muscular "hero" who won't shut up about quests, loot, and XP and thinks her rescue is a "romance quest." Shaelith now not only has to hide her true identity from the clueless hero but also needs to work with him and his party to put a stop to a mysterious evil warlock who is plunging the world into a cruel war. That is, if she doesn't strangle the obnoxious hero with her own bare hands first.   What can you expect? An asymmetrical LitRPG system: The protagonist does not have an overpowered system with endless stats, skills, and level-ups, but must fend for herself with her wits, magic, and politics. The overpowered system does exist, but it favors the unsuspecting “hero” and has only designated Shaelith as his love interest. And she has absolutely no interest in that. The joy of worldbuilding: A fascinating underground mushroom metropolis, a cut-throat matriarchal elven society, murderous hairstyle politics (yes, really), talking sentient war standards, and grasshopper cavalry. Serious character development: A pragmatic, clever protagonist who has to adapt to a completely foreign moral and social concept. Growth, friendships, and victories are earned. Dark humor meets serious themes: A mix of satirical tongue-in-cheek moments and truly dark, emotional moments that take themselves seriously. There's plenty of humor, but the stakes are real. Self-contained story arcs within a larger narrative: Each arc has a satisfying conclusion, while the overarching story continues to grow. A fair warning: There will be mature content like depictions of violence, creative swearing and sexual themes in this series. If any of these make you uncomfortable, this series might not be for you.