Part I — The King Who Chose a Successor Darkness.
Then warmth.
Then pain.
Drake’s consciousness drifted slowly back toward reality.
It felt as though every bone in his body had been broken apart and rebuilt countless times.
His muscles refused to answer him.
His breathing came in shallow, uneven gasps, while an unbearable heat spread beneath his skin, flowing through every vein like molten metal.
He didn’t know how long he had remained unconscious.
Minutes.
Hours.
Perhaps an entire day.
Time no longer existed inside the Dead Ruins.
Only silence.
— His eyelids slowly opened.
The pale blue glow of the mana crystals illuminated the shattered Bonefang colony.
For several moments, Drake simply stared upward.
His thoughts were sluggish.
His memories scattered.
Then…
The Hollow Antler Tyrant.
The Alpha.
The cubs.
Everything returned at once.
Drake shot upright.
“No!” Pain exploded through his body.
He collapsed back onto one knee, breathing heavily.
The evolution wasn’t finished.
He could feel it.
Something inside him had changed.
Not dramatically.
Not violently.
But fundamentally.
His mana flowed differently now.
The Bonefang instincts no longer felt like an invading force clawing at his thoughts.
Instead…
They felt calmer.
Disciplined.
As though someone had finally taught a raging beast how to kneel.
The relic spoke.
Host consciousness restored.
Evolution completed successfully.
Drake ignored it.
His eyes searched desperately across the ruined colony.
The battlefield had become almost unrecognizable.
The ancient Alpha’s throne had completely collapsed.
Entire sections of the colony ceiling had caved in.
Broken pillars lay scattered everywhere.
The mana crystals embedded within the walls had dimmed considerably, many of them cracked after enduring the Hollow Antler Tyrant’s Rot Domain.
But there was no sign…
Of the Tyrant.
Only silence remained.
— “…Where is it?” The relic answered.
Hostile organism retreated.
Drake exhaled slowly.
It was gone.
For now.
His relief lasted only a heartbeat.
Because his eyes finally found…
The Alpha.
The great guardian still lay exactly where it had fallen.
Its massive body had not moved.
Its crimson eyes, once filled with authority and unwavering determination, had become dull and lifeless.
The blood covering its pale armor had already begun drying.
The king of the Bonefang colony…
Would never rise again.
Drake slowly stood.
Every step felt heavier than the last.
He crossed the broken battlefield without speaking.
When he finally reached the Alpha, he quietly knelt beside it.
For several long moments…
He simply looked.
The wounds were even worse than he remembered.
Deep punctures covered its chest where the Hollow Antler Tyrant’s claws had pierced its armor.
Several ribs had collapsed inward.
One foreleg had been shattered completely.
It was a miracle the Alpha had remained standing as long as it did.
Drake gently placed a hand upon the beast’s shoulder.
The armor felt cold.
“…You didn’t have to.” His voice barely rose above a whisper.
“You could’ve left.” “You could’ve survived.” No answer came.
Only silence.
The Alpha had made its choice long before Drake arrived.
A guardian never abandoned those under its protection.
Not while it still breathed.
— Drake lowered his head.
His thoughts drifted toward Luna.
He remembered the countless nights she had pretended to be asleep whenever he returned late from work.
She always knew when he came home.
She always waited.
Even if she never admitted it.
Whenever Drake was injured, she quietly treated his wounds despite being the younger sibling.
Whenever he skipped meals, she somehow divided her own portion in half without letting him notice.
She had always protected him.
Not with strength.
With love.
The Alpha…
Had done exactly the same.
Different species.
Different worlds.
The same heart.
Drake smiled sadly.
“…Maybe humans aren’t the only ones capable of being heroes.” — The relic remained unusually quiet.
Eventually…
It spoke.
Biological activity has ceased.
Drake frowned.
“I know.” Recommendation…
A brief pause followed.
Consume Alpha remains.
Silence filled the colony.
Drake slowly looked down at the crimson mark hidden beneath his right hand.
“No.” The relic continued.
Alpha bloodline possesses exceptional genetic quality.
Consumption would greatly improve future evolution.
“No.” Host efficiency would— “I said no.” For the first time…
Drake’s voice carried genuine anger.
“He trusted me.” “He chose me.” “He died protecting his family.” “I’m not going to erase his body just because it benefits me.” Silence.
The relic offered no argument.
No calculation.
Nothing.
Several heartbeats passed.
Then— Host decision recorded.
Alpha remains excluded from automatic consumption.
Drake blinked.
“…You can do that?” Host authority confirmed.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
“So you actually listen.” The relic remained silent.
Yet somehow…
That silence felt different than before.
Almost…
Respectful.
— Drake slowly rose.
The battlefield deserved better than becoming a grave.
The Alpha deserved better than becoming another forgotten skeleton beneath the Dead Ruins.
He looked around the colony.
Near the rear wall, beneath the remains of an enormous crystal formation, stood a quiet hill of smooth stone overlooking the entire settlement.
From there…
The Alpha would forever watch over its home.
Drake nodded.
“…You’ll rest there.” — The work took hours.
Even with his strengthened body, moving the Alpha was nearly impossible.
He transformed into his Bonefang form several times, using its strength to carefully drag the guardian across the colony.
Not once did he rush.
Not once did he complain.
Every movement carried respect.
The cubs deserved to remember their father with dignity.
The king deserved no less.
After reaching the stone hill, Drake began digging.
The ground was harder than steel in some places.
Ancient mana had strengthened the rock over centuries.
His claws cracked.
His muscles burned.
Blood seeped from reopened wounds.
Still…
He continued.
As the grave slowly took shape, the relic finally spoke again.
Host energy reserves critically low.
Drake wiped sweat from his forehead.
“…Later.” Continued exertion may delay recovery.
“I know.” The relic fell silent.
— By the time the grave was finished…
Drake could barely stand.
His arms trembled from exhaustion.
His breathing had become ragged once more.
Yet…
When he carefully lowered the Alpha into its final resting place…
Every bit of that exhaustion became worthwhile.
The guardian looked peaceful.
No longer wounded.
No longer fighting.
Simply sleeping beneath the pale light of the mana crystals.
Drake stood quietly at the edge of the grave.
He wasn’t religious.
He didn’t know any prayers.
So he simply spoke honestly.
“When I first saw you…” “I thought you were just another monster.” He smiled weakly.
“I was wrong.” “You taught me more in one day than most humans ever have.” He looked toward the collapsed nursery.
“I’ll protect them.” “I don’t know how.” “I don’t know if they’ll even trust me.” “But…” “You have my word.” A soft breeze drifted through the colony.
Several loose feathers from ancient cave birds floated gently across the grave before settling upon the Alpha’s pale armor.
For just a heartbeat…
Drake could have sworn the entire colony had grown quieter.
As though every ancient Bonefang spirit resting beneath the ruins had heard his promise.
— Then…
A tiny sound echoed from the collapsed nursery.
A frightened chirp.
Another answered.
Then another.
The cubs.
They were still trapped beneath the fallen stone.
Drake’s eyes widened.
He immediately turned toward the collapsed tunnel.
“They’re alive.” Without another word…
He ran.
To Be Continued…