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Language:
English
Series:
Part 1 of Studies of Love, Fate, and Other Such Misfortunes
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Published:
2026-06-07
Completed:
2026-06-13
Words:
12,926
Chapters:
17/17
Comments:
10
Kudos:
7
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145

The Theory of Unfortunate Affection

Summary:

Once upon a time, in a nation marked with the original sin, there lived a young boy who committed an unforgivable crime.
To punish the boy, a curse was bestowed upon him. He was destined to become a beast, as that's what he was inside. With every soul who feared him, every tongue that called him a monster, the monster inside him grew. Until he was sent to the dark depths below the waves.
There, he built an empire of smoke and steam, brick by brick. The beast ruled over an empire of people who worked themselves away, where he never had to show this ugly face again.
There was no way to reverse or break the curse that had been set upon him, unless he could learn how to love another and earn their love in return, then the curse would be broken and his sins would be atoned for.

Chapter 1: Prologue

Chapter Text

“Once upon a time, in a nation marked with the original sin, there lived a young boy who committed an unforgivable crime. 

To punish the boy, a curse was bestowed upon him. He was destined to become a beast, as that's what he was inside. With every soul who feared him, every tongue that called him a monster, the monster inside him grew. Until he was sent to the dark depths below the waves. 

There, he built an empire of smoke and steam, brick by brick. The beast ruled over an empire of people who worked themselves away, where he never had to show this ugly face again. 

There was no way to reverse or break the curse that had been set upon him, unless he could learn how to love another and earn their love in return, then the curse would be broken and his sins would be atoned for.”