Scratch.
Kael didn’t move.
The sound came again.
Scratch.
It was faint, almost delicate, yet somehow far more unsettling than the roar of any beast he had heard outside Greenriver’s walls.
Kael stood beneath the impossible tree and stared at the black egg resting within the tiny world suspended before him.
Another crack spread across its surface.
His first instinct was to step closer.
His second was considerably more reasonable.
Don’t.
Kael listened to the second one.
For now.
The enormous tree towered above him, its branches disappearing into darkness.
Countless leaves covered those branches, yet only one possessed that strange inner light.
The leaf before him.
The world within it was still mostly empty.
A dark landscape stretched beneath a cloudy sky, its features blurred as though they hadn’t fully decided what they wanted to become.
And at its center sat the egg.
Scratch.
Kael swallowed.
“You’re alive.” The scratching stopped.
Kael blinked.
For several seconds, nothing happened.
Then— Scratch.
Scratch.
Scratch.
A smile almost appeared on his face.
“So you can hear me.” No response.
Kael wasn’t sure why he had expected one.
He carefully reached toward the leaf.
The moment his fingers touched its surface, the world twisted.
Kael’s stomach dropped.
The darkness disappeared.
His feet struck solid ground.
He stumbled forward and barely caught himself.
Cold air brushed his face.
Kael slowly straightened.
He wasn’t beneath the tree anymore.
He stood inside the world he had just been observing.
The enormous tree remained visible in the distance, impossibly large, as though its branches existed both inside and outside this place.
Kael turned in a slow circle.
Bare black stone covered the ground.
Jagged formations rose around him.
A thin mist crawled between them.
There were no plants.
No animals.
No sound.
Except— Scratch.
The egg was twenty steps away.
Up close, it looked considerably less harmless.
Kael had seen hundreds of beast eggs in books.
Scaled eggs.
Crystal eggs.
Soft-shelled eggs.
Eggs surrounded by flames.
One species even produced floating eggs that never touched the ground until they hatched.
This wasn’t like any of them.
The shell looked almost organic.
Not simply black.
Wet black.
Its ridges reminded Kael unpleasantly of veins.
He crouched several meters away.
“What are you?” The egg offered no answer.
Kael rubbed his chin.
His Beast Space had clearly awakened.
That much was obvious.
But this…
None of his lessons had mentioned trees growing inside Beast Spaces.
Especially trees containing entire environments inside their leaves.
Perhaps it was a mutated Beast Space.
Rare, but not impossible.
Spatial mutations were documented.
Some Beast Masters possessed unusually large Beast Spaces.
Others developed environments that accelerated the recovery of specific elemental beasts.
Maybe his mutation simply happened to be unusually dramatic.
Kael looked up at the impossible tree visible beyond the mist.
“…Very dramatic.” The egg moved.
Kael immediately returned his attention to it.
A crack widened.
Something pale flashed inside.
He leaned forward.
The top of the egg suddenly split apart.
Kael jumped backward.
Four sections of the shell peeled outward like fleshy petals.
Silence followed.
Kael’s heart hammered.
Nothing emerged.
He waited.
Five seconds.
Ten.
Twenty.
“Hello?” That was probably stupid.
Kael took one cautious step closer.
Something exploded from the egg.
Kael threw himself sideways.
A pale shape sailed through the place where his head had been.
He hit the ground hard and rolled.
Before he could stand, the creature twisted in midair and landed against a nearby rock.
Eight long finger-like limbs spread across its surface.
A segmented tail whipped behind it.
Kael froze.
The creature froze.
They stared at one another.
It was roughly the size of a large house cat, although its extended limbs made it appear larger.
Its body was pale beige rather than black, with an unsettling skeletal structure beneath thin skin.
There were no obvious eyes.
That somehow made it worse.
Kael slowly pushed himself upright.
The creature’s tail lifted.
“Easy.” Its legs flexed.
Kael stopped moving.
“I’m not going to hurt you.” A strange hiss escaped it.
Kael had never heard a newborn beast make that sound.
Most newly hatched beasts were confused.
Some cried.
Some searched instinctively for food.
A few immediately attacked anything nearby.
This one wasn’t confused.
It was assessing him.
Kael could feel it.
Every part of its body was prepared to move.
Not frightened.
Ready.
Kael’s eyes narrowed.
Interesting.
He slowly lowered himself into a crouch.
The creature adjusted its position.
Kael extended one hand.
Immediately, the tail snapped forward.
It stopped several centimeters from his fingers.
Kael’s breath caught.
The pointed end hovered there.
A warning.
“Alright.” He withdrew his hand.
“I understand.” The tail lowered slightly.
Kael smiled.
“Boundaries.” The creature remained motionless.
Then something changed.
A faint warmth appeared inside Kael’s chest.
He looked down.
A thread of silver light stretched from him toward the creature.
The newborn stiffened.
Kael felt something touch his mind.
Not words.
Instinct.
Hunger.
Confusion.
Alertness.
And beneath all of it…
Recognition.
Kael stopped breathing.
The Soul Pact.
He had studied the phenomenon for years, but knowing about it and experiencing it were entirely different things.
The creature didn’t speak.
It couldn’t.
Yet Kael suddenly understood one undeniable truth.
It knew him.
Not his name.
Not his history.
Something deeper.
Master.
Partner.
Safe.
The creature’s limbs relaxed.
Kael extended his hand again.
This time, the tail didn’t rise.
He moved slowly.
His fingers touched the creature’s head.
Its skin was warmer than expected.
For a moment, it remained rigid.
Then it leaned slightly into his palm.
Kael laughed under his breath.
“You nearly jumped on my face thirty seconds ago.” The creature tightened one limb around his wrist.
Not painfully.
Possessively.
“You’re strange.” A wave traveled through the Soul Pact.
Kael blinked.
He couldn’t translate it exactly.
But he was almost certain the response was something close to satisfaction.
“Was that an insult?” Another pulse.
Kael stared.
Then laughed.
“Great.
Finn is going to love you.” The creature abruptly turned toward the darkness.
Every limb tightened.
Kael felt the change immediately.
Aggression.
Pure, violent aggression.
There was nothing there.
At least nothing Kael could see.
The creature hissed.
Its tail rose.
Kael followed its attention.
“What is it?” Nothing moved.
Several seconds passed.
Then the aggression faded.
Kael frowned.
Perhaps it was simply instinct.
Whatever species this was, it was clearly not gentle.
That didn’t bother him.
Wild beasts were wild beasts.
A contract wasn’t supposed to erase their nature.
Kael remembered his father’s words.
Respect it.
He looked at the creature curled partially around his forearm.
“I suppose we’re going to have to understand each other.” The Facehugger—though Kael had no name for its species—shifted closer.
Kael smiled.
Then the world suddenly shook.
He staggered.
The Soul Pact tightened.
A distant voice reached him.
“Kael Ashborne!” The examiner.
His awakening wasn’t over.
Kael looked toward the enormous tree.
“How do I leave?” The answer came instinctively.
He simply wanted to.
The world vanished.
Kael opened his eyes.
The Awakening Hall crashed back into existence.
He stood at the center of the formation.
Every crystal pillar was glowing.
Dozens of people stared at him.
Finn was at the front.
His White Lightning Tiger cub sat beside his feet.
“Kael!” Kael blinked.
Finn’s expression was somewhere between relief and panic.
“You were standing there for almost ten minutes!” Ten minutes?
It had felt much longer.
The examiner approached.
“Are you alright?” “Yes.” “What happened?” Kael hesitated.
How was he supposed to explain an infinite tree growing inside his Beast Space when he didn’t understand it himself?
“My Beast Space was…
unusual.” Several examiners exchanged looks.
“Can you summon your first beast?” Kael paused.
His companion.
He could feel it.
Waiting.
Curious.
Kael concentrated.
A small black portal opened beside him.
Everyone leaned forward.
Finn grinned.
“Here we go.” Something pale shot through the portal.
Finn’s grin vanished.
The creature landed directly on Kael’s shoulder.
Eight long limbs wrapped around his upper body.
Its segmented tail curled loosely around his arm.
The hall went silent.
Completely silent.
Kael could practically hear people thinking.
Finn slowly pointed.
“Kael.” “Hm?” “What…” Finn swallowed.
“…is that?” Kael glanced at the creature perched comfortably against him.
“I don’t know.” “You don’t know?” “No.” The Facehugger turned toward Finn.
Finn froze.
Its limbs spread slightly.
A hiss escaped it.
Thunder immediately stepped forward.
Electricity crackled across the tiger cub’s fur.
The Facehugger’s entire body changed.
The tail uncoiled.
Its legs flexed.
Ferocity flooded through Kael’s Soul Pact.
Attack.
Kael immediately placed his hand against its back.
“No.” The creature stopped.
Not gradually.
Instantly.
Thunder continued growling.
Finn quickly scooped the tiger cub into his arms.
“Everyone relax!” Several students backed away.
One whispered, “That thing is newborn?” Another said, “It tried to attack a White Lightning Tiger.” “Is it stupid?” Kael ignored them.
The examiner cautiously approached.
“I’ve never seen this species.” A second examiner adjusted his glasses.
“Neither have I.” “Perhaps an insect-type?” “It doesn’t resemble any known insect beast.” “Parasite-type?” Kael’s companion hissed at the approaching scholars.
They stopped.
Kael scratched the top of its head.
The aggression immediately faded.
The contrast didn’t go unnoticed.
Finn stared.
“Wait.” He pointed again.
“You’re telling me that nightmare likes you?” Kael looked offended.
“Nightmare?” “It has fingers for legs!” “That’s rude.” “It doesn’t have a face!” The creature hissed.
Finn stepped backward.
“See?!
It knows I’m right!” Kael nearly laughed.
Across the chamber, Damian Cross was watching.
His Thunder Griffon stood beside him, feathers slightly raised.
Unlike the other students, Damian wasn’t laughing.
He was studying the creature.
“It reacted before the tiger attacked.” Finn looked over.
“What?” Damian nodded toward the Facehugger.
“Your tiger released electricity after that creature prepared to strike.” Finn frowned.
“So?” “So it sensed hostility before you did.” Kael glanced at his companion.
Damian continued.
“For something newly hatched, its instincts are exceptional.” Their eyes met.
Damian gave Kael a small nod.
“Interesting beast.” Then he walked away.
Finn watched him go.
“I can’t tell if that was a compliment.” “It was.” “How do you know?” “Because normal people don’t speak like you.” Finn stared at him.
“I don’t know whether I should be offended.” “You should.” The examiner eventually recorded the species as Unknown.
Potential grade: Undetermined.
Bloodline: Undetermined.
Affinity: Undetermined.
Finn stared at the paperwork.
“That’s impressive.” Kael raised an eyebrow.
“It says they know absolutely nothing.” “Exactly.
You’ve broken the examination.” Kael looked at the creature on his shoulder.
It had settled down completely.
One limb rested against his chest.
The tail curled lazily around his arm.
To everyone else, it looked terrifying.
Kael could still feel its wildness through their bond.
That ferocity hadn’t disappeared.
It had simply turned away from him.
Something about that realization made his chest feel warm.
He gently touched its head.
“Let’s go home.” The creature tightened around him.
Finn sighed.
“I can’t believe your beast is scarier than Damian’s Griffon.” Kael glanced at Thunder.
“And yours?” Finn looked down at his tiger.
Thunder looked back.
Finn grinned.
“Mine is obviously the most handsome.” Thunder sneezed.
“See?
He agrees.” They left the Awakening Hall together.
Neither noticed the senior examiner watching from the upper balcony.
The old man stared at Kael’s departing figure.
More specifically…
At the creature clinging to him.
He had spent sixty years cataloguing beasts.
He had entered S-rank Secret Realms.
He had personally witnessed more than ten thousand species.
But that creature…
He had never seen anything remotely like it.
The old examiner slowly opened the record Kael had left behind.
Kael Ashborne.
Beast Species: Unknown.
He stared at those words for a long time.
Then quietly added another line.
Further observation recommended.
Far away from the Awakening Hall, Kael felt none of this.
His attention had returned inward.
Toward his Beast Space.
Toward the impossible tree.
Something had changed.
The leaf containing his companion’s world had fully opened.
And beneath it…
Another tiny bud had appeared.
Kael’s steps slowed.
Finn noticed.
“What’s wrong?” “Nothing.” Kael stared ahead.
But inside his Beast Space, the bud remained tightly closed.
Waiting.
And somehow…
Kael knew.
It wasn’t ready.
Not yet.
The first leaf had given him a companion.
Before another could open…
The creature resting peacefully on his shoulder had something it needed to do.
Kael felt an unfamiliar sensation flow through their Soul Pact.
Not ordinary hunger.
Not aggression.
Something older.
Deeper.
A biological command engraved into every part of the creature.
The Facehugger suddenly lifted its body.
Its tail tightened around Kael’s arm.
Its eyeless head turned north.
Toward the wilderness.
Kael felt its desire.
For the first time, he understood exactly what his companion wanted.
Not food.
Not battle.
A host.
And whatever that meant…
The creature desperately wanted to find one.