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Return of the Runebound Professor #6
Return of the Runebound Professor 6: A Progression Fantasy Epic
The Demon Realm isn’t ready for Spider.
Dragged into the homeland of the demons by Wizen, Noah, Moxie, and Lee have decided to take an entirely unforeseen path to their solving problems: take control of Treadon’s underworld and overthrow its Demon Lord.
When facing demons leagues more powerful than any mage in Arbitage, the only way forward is through sheer strength or an impressive amount of confident bluffing. Fortunately for Noah… he’s not half bad at either of those.
Never before has he been able to use the full might of his magic completely without restraint. Now, he doesn’t have any other choice.
With a small but growing army of demons at his back, Noah sets out to conquer the Damned Plains and bring Wizen’s plans to a halt so he can return to the students waiting for him back in the mortal realm…
And may the gods have mercy for anyone that stands in his way.
Book 6 of the next hit Progression Fantasy series from Actus, bestselling author of My Best Friend is an Eldritch Horror. Featuring a strong, intelligent protagonist, a detailed runic magic system, loads of power progression, and so much more.
With over 10 million views as a webserial, you can experience the definitive version of this smash-hit series on Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, and Audible!
Dragged into the homeland of the demons by Wizen, Noah, Moxie, and Lee have decided to take an entirely unforeseen path to their solving problems: take control of Treadon’s underworld and overthrow its Demon Lord.
When facing demons leagues more powerful than any mage in Arbitage, the only way forward is through sheer strength or an impressive amount of confident bluffing. Fortunately for Noah… he’s not half bad at either of those.
Never before has he been able to use the full might of his magic completely without restraint. Now, he doesn’t have any other choice.
With a small but growing army of demons at his back, Noah sets out to conquer the Damned Plains and bring Wizen’s plans to a halt so he can return to the students waiting for him back in the mortal realm…
And may the gods have mercy for anyone that stands in his way.
Book 6 of the next hit Progression Fantasy series from Actus, bestselling author of My Best Friend is an Eldritch Horror. Featuring a strong, intelligent protagonist, a detailed runic magic system, loads of power progression, and so much more.
With over 10 million views as a webserial, you can experience the definitive version of this smash-hit series on Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, and Audible!
556 pages, Paperback
First published February 26, 2025
About the author
Actus
64 books272 followersActus has been writing fantasy stories since the age of twelve, and he's been telling them since he could talk. He's currently working on three main series - Morcster Chef, Steamforged Sorcery, and My Best Friend is an Eldritch Horror. You can find his works on RoyalRoad & Patreon as well as on Amazon.
In addition to his passion for writing, Actus is capable of clearing a two story building with a single jump. That isn't true, but writing about himself in third person gives Actus delusions of grandeur.
In addition to his passion for writing, Actus is capable of clearing a two story building with a single jump. That isn't true, but writing about himself in third person gives Actus delusions of grandeur.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
March 14, 2025
Continues the story and sadly not much else
A solid continuation of the prior plot. But unfortunately that is basically the only thing this book has going for it.
New conflicts feel overplayed and insignificant. Continued conflicts feel stretched out. The pacing is lacking with significant time spent in areas that don't advance the plot, inform us about the characters, or develop the setting. Honestly the cast had expanded far too much, as new characters never have enough time to be anything more impactful than bumps in the road or Ubers.
The plot points of this and the prior book (at minimum) could have probably been merged for a better experience. On a minor note there were also a few notable of discontinuities.
To close I will say there were many scenes and plot points that I loved. And a few of the new characters. But I would have rather read a summary of this book.
A solid continuation of the prior plot. But unfortunately that is basically the only thing this book has going for it.
New conflicts feel overplayed and insignificant. Continued conflicts feel stretched out. The pacing is lacking with significant time spent in areas that don't advance the plot, inform us about the characters, or develop the setting. Honestly the cast had expanded far too much, as new characters never have enough time to be anything more impactful than bumps in the road or Ubers.
The plot points of this and the prior book (at minimum) could have probably been merged for a better experience. On a minor note there were also a few notable of discontinuities.
To close I will say there were many scenes and plot points that I loved. And a few of the new characters. But I would have rather read a summary of this book.
March 5, 2025
I just love this book. There's so many tropes that Actus put into this litRPG adventure that you'd think it was written specifically for me! A second chance professor/warrior, a classroom setting. Beast companion (think Mascot), along with a bunch of gods betting on the outcome of their players! This story is about Noah and Moxie and Lee trapped in the Damned Plains and chasing Wizen the evil Mage who stole something from Arbitage Academy. And they're not gonna let him get away with it... but even though the book wasn't quite cliffhangery it had an ending of sorts, it really left me hanging. But Fu----- I need mooor'.
Here's some quotes that amused me:
“No,” Lee murmured in her sleep, turning over. “Don’t eat Moxie yet, Noah. I—I want to taste her hair first.”
“Could you possibly wait to do that until the cat is no longer on my head?” Brayden asked tersely. He reached up and tugged on the white-furred monstrosity, but it clung to his head like a hat with attachment issues."
“On second thought, the man-eating bed is lovely. It’s very well behaved. It would be rude of me to try and sleep elsewhere after the bond we’ve formed.”
“Next week. Tomorrow. Same thing, give or take a few hundred hours.”
Here's some quotes that amused me:
“No,” Lee murmured in her sleep, turning over. “Don’t eat Moxie yet, Noah. I—I want to taste her hair first.”
“Could you possibly wait to do that until the cat is no longer on my head?” Brayden asked tersely. He reached up and tugged on the white-furred monstrosity, but it clung to his head like a hat with attachment issues."
“On second thought, the man-eating bed is lovely. It’s very well behaved. It would be rude of me to try and sleep elsewhere after the bond we’ve formed.”
“Next week. Tomorrow. Same thing, give or take a few hundred hours.”
April 27, 2026
Our protagonists are still in Hell, trying to organize a way back to home, which means that again, the professor isn't doing much professing.
This book focuses almost entirely on Noah, with only occasional glimpses of the students and some minor scenes with significant actions by Lee and Moxie. We do get some interesting character background for Noah, and there's good mechanical progression, but this book is more plot driven than character driven.
The Damned Planes provide a fun backdrop to the story. Unlike the home plane of the characters, this gets some solid and creative development In particular, we find out much more about what demons actually are and why they are the way they are.
The book ends on a major cliffhanger, which is a definite negative, but at least it looks like the story will progress in interesting ways.
The series has been very entertaining, and I would recommend it to most readers of LitRPG. But it does suffer from the "endless story" syndrome common to serials.
This book focuses almost entirely on Noah, with only occasional glimpses of the students and some minor scenes with significant actions by Lee and Moxie. We do get some interesting character background for Noah, and there's good mechanical progression, but this book is more plot driven than character driven.
The Damned Planes provide a fun backdrop to the story. Unlike the home plane of the characters, this gets some solid and creative development In particular, we find out much more about what demons actually are and why they are the way they are.
The book ends on a major cliffhanger, which is a definite negative, but at least it looks like the story will progress in interesting ways.
The series has been very entertaining, and I would recommend it to most readers of LitRPG. But it does suffer from the "endless story" syndrome common to serials.
March 3, 2025
A good addition to the series, but not my favorite.
Maybe it's unfair for me to say this, but there was too much intrigue in this volume. I like the new characters, but I missed Noah interacting with his students. I also feel like the author should have either fixed Lee or dealt with Wizen. Progress was made on both stories, but not enough. Also (spoilers)
I think this volume ending is very "Empire Strikes Back " and i don't like it. I want a certain emotional payoff for spending my time and attention reading a while book, and I was unfulfilled. Maybe I get double in the next volume, but I got none here, so my confidence is shaken.
I will look forward to the next book. If I don't enjoy that one, I'm done.
Maybe it's unfair for me to say this, but there was too much intrigue in this volume. I like the new characters, but I missed Noah interacting with his students. I also feel like the author should have either fixed Lee or dealt with Wizen. Progress was made on both stories, but not enough. Also (spoilers)
I think this volume ending is very "Empire Strikes Back " and i don't like it. I want a certain emotional payoff for spending my time and attention reading a while book, and I was unfulfilled. Maybe I get double in the next volume, but I got none here, so my confidence is shaken.
I will look forward to the next book. If I don't enjoy that one, I'm done.
June 12, 2025
Enough with Cliffhangers
Disappointed on where the direction and style of this book is going. A lot of things and POV moving at the same pace and in the end nothing really progressed by much in the grand scheme of things. Did Noah level up? Nope. Students? Nope. This whole demon plains trip was a waste of time imo. Shouldve been done on a later book and just focussed more on the students development and some resolution there. I felt that the whole story is just being stretched without really good or exciting context. It started as a fun read then turned into boring page skipping. Im dropping it.
Disappointed on where the direction and style of this book is going. A lot of things and POV moving at the same pace and in the end nothing really progressed by much in the grand scheme of things. Did Noah level up? Nope. Students? Nope. This whole demon plains trip was a waste of time imo. Shouldve been done on a later book and just focussed more on the students development and some resolution there. I felt that the whole story is just being stretched without really good or exciting context. It started as a fun read then turned into boring page skipping. Im dropping it.
February 28, 2025
The power of fake it till you make it
Well its here and it's just as interesting.
This took the concept of bullshitting your way to success and dialed it up to 100. Even the violence at times was crazy. When Noah throws hands...he THROWS HANDS that are rate E for everyone.
Unfortunately , i do miss the political intrigue though and the ending reminded me way too much of Thor Love and Thunder.
Well its here and it's just as interesting.
This took the concept of bullshitting your way to success and dialed it up to 100. Even the violence at times was crazy. When Noah throws hands...he THROWS HANDS that are rate E for everyone.
Unfortunately , i do miss the political intrigue though and the ending reminded me way too much of Thor Love and Thunder.
March 29, 2025
Book was slow ended in a cliffhanger.
The only thing that really happened in this book was the MC and his party were transported into the demon lands, no real power progression for the MC, no growth, a rather bland and boring story. At the top that off the book ended in a cliffhanger, which I always take stars away because of that fact. Read this one or I suggest you skip it and find something better to read.
The only thing that really happened in this book was the MC and his party were transported into the demon lands, no real power progression for the MC, no growth, a rather bland and boring story. At the top that off the book ended in a cliffhanger, which I always take stars away because of that fact. Read this one or I suggest you skip it and find something better to read.
March 12, 2025
Tons of fun!
I really love this series. Noah continues to win through a combination of luck, determination, intelligence and heart. Even though he finds plenty of characters that he can’t beat, he manages to push forward!
I really love this series. Noah continues to win through a combination of luck, determination, intelligence and heart. Even though he finds plenty of characters that he can’t beat, he manages to push forward!
May 29, 2025
Fun Read
This a fun read. I would rate it higher, but the plot doesn’t make much sense. The authors seem to just be making things up as they go along. Also the MC alternates between a brilliant mastermind and an idiot.
This a fun read. I would rate it higher, but the plot doesn’t make much sense. The authors seem to just be making things up as they go along. Also the MC alternates between a brilliant mastermind and an idiot.
January 3, 2026
Twists you don't see coming
The plot twists in the book are crazy; I couldn't put it down because I had no idea what was going to happen next. And, I can't ever recall laughing so hard at a book.
The plot twists in the book are crazy; I couldn't put it down because I had no idea what was going to happen next. And, I can't ever recall laughing so hard at a book.
March 9, 2026
Okay, so this book was sooooo goooood~ 10/10 recommend, I'd say it was my favorite out of the series so far, and the ending was divine!
Realistic age rating: 10+
Spice: 0/5
My rating: 10/10
Realistic age rating: 10+
Spice: 0/5
My rating: 10/10
March 13, 2026
Adding insult.....
Not only did the silly author detour the story into the demon lands in the last book, but he adds and entire book. Again, the fool author continues to get in the way of a decent story, all in name of adding length to the series.
Not only did the silly author detour the story into the demon lands in the last book, but he adds and entire book. Again, the fool author continues to get in the way of a decent story, all in name of adding length to the series.
July 5, 2026
hate cliff hangers.
No need for a cliff hanger here. Very annoying that the author chose to do that. Again too much time spent on weird side characters. Too much rumination on theory crafting
No need for a cliff hanger here. Very annoying that the author chose to do that. Again too much time spent on weird side characters. Too much rumination on theory crafting
March 1, 2025
Great story with no resolution
I enjoyed the book, but enough with the cliff-hangers with no real resolution. Of course I'll read the next one.
I enjoyed the book, but enough with the cliff-hangers with no real resolution. Of course I'll read the next one.
March 2, 2025
A transition book with a lot of filler. The ending is very fast and just set up. This is very light on the story, so just the stars.
March 3, 2025
Always enjoyable
The combination of a good story, interesting characters, great humor and just plain great writing. I highly recommend reading this series.
The combination of a good story, interesting characters, great humor and just plain great writing. I highly recommend reading this series.
March 14, 2025
I like it
The Unexpected twist at the end is a great hook and almost a cliffhanger. I have enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the next.
The Unexpected twist at the end is a great hook and almost a cliffhanger. I have enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the next.
July 15, 2025
Very good read
I enjoyed reading this book very much and I recommend this book to anyone who likes LitRPG and progression types of books with lots of action .
I enjoyed reading this book very much and I recommend this book to anyone who likes LitRPG and progression types of books with lots of action .
July 18, 2025
Outstanding series so far, the author does a superb job of marrying changes in pace to the natural flow of progression. Each arc flows nicely and the pacing feels just right.
August 9, 2025
Noah continues to work on demon runes and build his demon army so he can face off with Wizen. He encounters some pretty powerful players in the game including Lord Sievan who apparently wants to die and thinks the MC can help with that. Of course the story ends on a cliffhanger as both Wizen and Noah find themselves at the line.
Overall, quite a bit of action and adventure, a fair bit of humor mixed in as well. I will continue to read the series and see what happens.
Overall, quite a bit of action and adventure, a fair bit of humor mixed in as well. I will continue to read the series and see what happens.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 8, 2025
Ughh NOAH 😩😩😩
December 11, 2025
I thought the excursion to the Damned Plains would be a boring detour. At the end, I didn't want the excursion to end. Demonic society is super interesting
December 17, 2025
Enjoyable story but it practically feels like it ends in the middle of a sentence. Make sure you can read book 7 right after.
January 24, 2026
Truly Epic Progression Story
This series is pure opium to the mind. It's witty, gritty, captivating, and difficult to put down. Can't believe I got completed book 6.
This series is pure opium to the mind. It's witty, gritty, captivating, and difficult to put down. Can't believe I got completed book 6.
March 30, 2026
While one story comes to a close, the book ends with another beginning. unfortunately, I read them faster than Actus can write them
April 28, 2026
Great we are stuck in hell for how long? Ends on another stupid cliffhanger...I want to like this but it's making it hard at this point.
June 14, 2026
This book is really the epitome of what this series is going for. It's certainly not literary genius of any kind, but it's clever and fun and goofy and I love it.
July 23, 2026
Book 6 sends Noah, Moxie, and Lee into the Demon Realm with a plan that has no business working: conquer Treadon’s underworld and topple its Demon Lord through a mix of raw power and confident bluffing. Letting Noah cut loose with his full magic for the first time gives the book its clearest sense of escalation yet, without the payoff feeling unmoored from what came before. The demon society Actus builds around the growing army has enough internal logic to make the political maneuvering interesting rather than incidental. It is one of the stronger entries in a series that has generally trusted its progression to double as plot.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews