Hello hello,

  I hope all is well and you're enjoying the story so far. Thank you for being interested, and it truly means a lot to me.

  Spirit Bound: Scarlet Seal is no longer available on Royal Road because it has been released on Kindle.

  Due to Amazon's rules, I have to take down the majority of the novel, but you can read it from here:

  Here is the blurb:

  In a kingdom at war, power is drawn from the soul, and impossible choices turn survival into sacrifice.

  Tucker, a recent graduate of the kingdom’s academy, is quickly noticed by a renowned military order for his affinity with wind elements. When he forms a contract with a mid-tier wind spirit, he takes his first steps toward his dream—becoming one of the kingdom’s most elite watchmen, the Nightfall Rangers.

  But his path is far from easy. With the Everheart Kingdom embroiled in strife, the Order calls upon its finest operatives, including the young upstart Tucker. Little does he know the dark secrets of their organization and the burden that would soon fall on his shoulders.

  With each mission, Tucker must balance his duties as a watchman with his own moral compass. As new challenges arise, he’ll have to prove whether he has what it takes to be a true ranger, or if the responsibilities of being a watchman are too heavy to bear.

  That being said, despite how long it's been since I started the story, I actually had a chance to re-read my old announcement at the end of book one and found it interesting how much has changed.

  I'll throw it in a spoiler so you guys can read it as well.

  Hello!

  Wow, it's been an adventure, to say the least.

  This chapter is the longest one I've written, with 5.2k words! It's actually a lot longer, but it would have taken another 2-3 chapters.

  Now I'll be honest there were only two times I've written a story. My first story, Into The Moonlight, which was written during last year's writathon and this one. Spiritbound!

  Truth be told, after my first story, I didn't plan to write anymore because it bombed.

  But thankfully, I had an amazingly supportive group of individuals who helped me get started, and you, the readers, for keeping me going.

  I would say I have less than a year of writing under my belt, but I feel like I learned a lot so far. It'll be a bumpy ride for all of us, but I'll get us there with my amateur driving skills.

  If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

  Funny enough, Spiritbound has done a tremendous job compared to my previous story, but it still has many flaws.

  I had the power scaling dilemma, Tucker not being the most unlikeable fella by design at the start, Alex being too lenient (which was answered in chapter 52 after what happened with his previous partner), my dreaded enemy story pacing, making people care about characters, and so on.

  I wouldn't have realized all these problems I faced without you, the readers, and I'm grateful for all the comments, follows, favorites, and support.

  That being said, I'll be honest: I wanted to make Spiritbound my forever story, but after getting some professional opinions from established authors. I realized Spiritbound won't be able to do that.

  It was a hard pill for me to swallow, but they told me it based on facts, and after looking at all the 0.5, 1, and 2-star ratings on the earlier chapters. Most people dropped the story around chapter 5.

  Does that mean it's the end of the story? No, I'll be writing two more books for the story, aiming to improve as an author as much as I can. Maybe by the third book, I'll end up writing a fourth by accident. Only time will tell for that.

  Will the schedule for Spiritbound change where I release on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays? Probably not. I don't see why it should I guess.

  It's not like I'm cooking up a secret story for you guys to indulge in... or am I?

  *checks notes* Nope, there are still too many things to learn, like how to write a flashback or something.

  Will my Patreon ever see the light of day? I still don't have a backlog LOL.

  Anyway, I hope the first book was enjoyable for you guys!

  Tucker got his much-needed break, and hopefully, he's a more likable guy now compared to before.

  Next book, he's going to have a... not so good time, but at least we'll establish some more fun things!

  I haven't decided if I want to include interludes with Alex and Blaire searching for the Sword Saint's disciple yet. It won't add anything to the story until later, I think, so maybe I'll hold off.

  As always, thanks for reading, and let me know if you see any mistakes! My editor (which is me) doesn't do the greatest of jobs!

  See ya in the next chapter.

  All the best,

  SimplyLeo

  Now, if you've read the spoiler I just want to say... I stayed true to my word, didn't I? I stuck with Spiritbound till the end and wrote three books like I said I would.

  There's still a fair bit of things I gotta work on, but that'll come with time (probably).

  It's a tad bit sad not seeing many of the names I once saw when I was writing it on a day-to-day basis, but that's just part of the journey. I just wish I could see them at the end.

  That being said, I also have a Patreon now which is... here

  And there's also a discord server which is... here .

  Well, that's enough yapping from me.

  As always, thanks for reading this far.

  All the best,

  SimplyLeo