
by Haibane Lain
RELEASE DATE SEPTEMBER 21 The lie unravelled when Alice Valentine began seeing the dead. One night Alice was cursed to see the damned spectres of the other world. They thrive in the dark; these malformed things that were too tall, with too many limbs and eyes. They wail and hunger for fresh blood. Just one misstep, and she'd become their next meal. Yet, that was the least of her worries. Monsters parading as humans lurk outside, maddened cultists dwell in the city's underbelly, her own parents preach lies and twist her mind. Meanwhile, a detective hired by her father investigates her curse, uncovering the horrid machinations of a long forgotten deity. Will she get to the truth before she goes mad? Or will the truth drive her further to madness? Exposed to the horrors of reality, she dabbles in dark arts and consorts with monstrous creatures just to survive.She will know the truth. Even if it means losing her mind in the process.What to Expect Female Lead, going from Weak to Strong. She's not a hero, she just wants to survive, and she'll do anything it takes. Slow burn Gothic Horror, with intense action scenes. Multiple POVs, from Alice, an alcoholic detective struggling with PTSD, a priest who'd do anything to save others, and a mysterious father with an even more mysterious past. A tragic story, filled with body horror, psychological break down and death. Deep world building and story telling. Also, Alice likes girls. She's a Lesbian. It's not really the focus of the story but it's there.
Current
9/28/2026
Peak #31
3d
Current
9/26/2026
Peak #16
5d
#1
9/26/2026
Peak #48
0d
One state-enhanced oracle order, filtered by each list. Observed Royal Road ranks remain separate ground truth.
Rank updated 2 Oct 2026, 04:09 UTC
Entry forecast updated 2 Oct 2026, 04:09 UTC
Ranking model: rs-public-oracle-state-v1
Forecast model: rs-model-entry-v1
Chart history contains only this ranking model's runs; legacy points are not spliced in.
Previously appeared on Rising Stars, but no supported current projection is available.
beats 99% of similar stories
beats 1% of similar stories
beats 80% of similar stories
Firing on all cylinders
Traffic and conversion are both strong for a story this size. Readers are finding it and sticking — if Rising Stars is the goal, this is the moment to push.
Benchmarks: 8,060 active Royal Road stories, percentiles within the 20–49 chapters band, cohort of 2026-07-02. Conversion is measured as followers gained per 1,000 views over the recent window.
Promoted by