Kain stepped onto the platform last, just behind Malzahir. And while out of sight of the others, he gave a signal to the already released Bea, who released her newly acquired mental field to only envelop Malzahir.
Thanks to Serena's reminder, Kain had finally realized he and Malzahir were very ill-prepared for the questioning.
Not only did they not vet backstories against one another, but he also made no countermeasures against mental-attribute skills. And most Dawnbringers, as the counter-intelligence division of the Order, possess mental-attribute abilities. Meaning that rather than torturing him for answers, Malzahir would likely be controlled or hypnotized for them.
Kain is already resistant to mental control—especially since Bea got stronger. However, Malzahir as an ordinary person now, would be extremely easy to get talking.
Fortunately, since Malzahir is an ordinary person, they likely won't assign a Dawnbringer stronger than 6-stars. Therefore, whoever questions him likely won't be able to detect Bea.
"Hold tight," Zareth said. "This version's smoother than the older public models, but it still feels a little uncomfortable."
The light swelled.
The world warped.
And the world snapped back into place with a jolt that left Kain's stomach doing a lazy spin. He blinked and staggered once—but quickly found his balance. Not bad. He barely felt sick anymore.
Then came the sound.
"BLAAAAGHHHHH!!"
Kain turned.
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Malzahir was hunched over on all fours, gagging violently into the polished white floor. His hair stuck to his face, his entire body trembling.
*"Holy, merciful Gods. Ugh… please make it stop,"* Malzahir groaned, eyes glassy. *"Death would be preferable…take me away"*
Kain blinked.
And then—much to his own dismay—he found himself smiling. Just a little.
"…Yeah," he murmured. "Been there."
———————
The walls of the debriefing center were white. Stark, clean, clinical. The kind of white that erased warmth, personality, and doubt all at once.
Kain sat on one of the obsidian-backed chairs, legs spread, fingers loosely laced in front of him while a nondescript Dawnbringer moved about with a specialized artifact scanning his space ring.
"Please don't move," the man said, not looking up.
Kain didn't. Not because he trusted the man, but because he'd prepared for this exact moment. The space ring only had what he wanted them to see: a few potion vials, some objects from the relic, and survival supplies. Everything else—anything he wanted to keep for himself—had been stored in the System.
A few meters away, Pete was undergoing the same procedure. He grumbled under his breath, looking half-asleep. Lina looked way too used to this procedure by now. Zareth stood patiently, already finished and simply waiting for them all to be cleared. Serena was last to arrive, walking in with the grace of someone who didn't care how long they'd been waiting.
When the scanner finally let out a soft chime and the artifact's glow dimmed, the Dawnbringer gave a short nod.
"You're clear," he said, dismissing Kain with a wave.
Kain stood, rolling his shoulder as he stepped away. Not long after, a familiar pulse tickled the edge of his consciousness. It was Bea, linking back up through the faint mental tether between them.
'It's done,' she reported. 'Malzahir has been released.'
Kain didn't move. Didn't even blink. But the knot of tension he'd been carrying for the last couple of hours during his debriefing and then this final inspection, slowly began to loosen.
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'The details?' And soon enough Bea provided a detailed play-by-play of everything experienced.
As expected. They didn't waste energy interrogating him properly. The Dawnbringer in charge of him used a contract with low to mid-tier hypnotic influence. Likely because Malzahir was an ordinary person now and so they assumed he'd be helpless against even that. Therefore, the opponent was too weak to sense Bea's presence in Malzahir, or that she was manipulating his memories so that he could say nothing about the 'more unique actions of Kain in the relic. Like absorbing energy from the crystals, or the abominations targeting him mostly, or about how he thought about 'eating' his allies…
A slow breath slid from Kain's nose. Good.
'They believed everything,' Bea added smugly. 'Sloppy work. How can that kind of creature even be considered to be suitable for interrogation? It is incomparable to me.'
'Their complacency worked in our favour,' Kain replied. 'Don't get cocky.'
He didn't add that her pride and personality developed from when he'd first contracted her, was starting to mirror his own…just a little. It felt dangerous—but oddly reassuring too. At the very least, he could rely on her to go rogue and make split-second decisions he'd agree with if they were in a situation they couldn't communicate.
He looked up just in time to see Serena step through the doorway, her cloak fluttering slightly behind her. Her gaze swept the room, unhurried, and landed on him. Just for a second.
Then she nodded.
Tiny. Almost imperceptible. But Kain caught it.
A quiet acknowledgment. A silent confirmation.
She wasn't going to say anything either.
The three of them—Kain, Serena, Malzahir—held a thread of knowledge in their hands, and not one of them seemed inclined to unravel it. The others hadn't noticed anything about Kain's 'eccentricities'. Or if they had, they hadn't said a word or questioned him in depth about anything.
Kain glanced toward the far hall where Malzahir had been led earlier. He hadn't reappeared yet, but Bea's confirmation was enough for now. When he did return, no one would look at him any differently. No alarms. No surveillance.
No secrets spilled.
He thought about how easily it could have gone wrong. If Serena hadn't warned him. If Bea hadn't been fast or discrete enough. If the Dawnbringer had been more powerful. The whole illusion would have crumbled. But it didn't. Because all three of them chose silence. Out of loyalty, out of self-preservation… or maybe just out of fear for Kain of what would happen if the truth got out.
But so long as the three of them stayed silent… the truth stayed buried.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you sSoon enough all of their team members, including Malzahir had regrouped in a private room. Not only to say their goodbyes but also to exchange information.
After all, when they had left the Empire, the Abyss was a real threat to everyday life. Not to mention that even before the Abyss there were terrorist attacks and a secret organization kidnapping civilians to experiment on.
With the turmoil and unrest in the Empire seeming to grow daily, one could only imagine how many major events had occurred since they were gone.
After all, they had been stuck in that relic for several months, right?
"Actually no," Zareth said upon questioning from Lina about how the Empire has changed since they were gone for months. "According to the staff I spoke with, It took us between 5-7 days to travel each way due to variables in our travel time, and we had been away for only 20 days in total."
…?
'20 days…that makes absolutely no sense.'
Everyone else must have also looked equally confused because Zareth elaborated. "It can be easily confirmed once you go back so there's no reason to lie. But it seems that despite all of the time we experienced inside of the relic, only about a—maybe not even that long—has passed in reality. Which in a sense is reasonable, thousands of years had passed since those ruins were built and yet we were still able to find relatively intact objects that only lacked a charge. Considering that the ultimate goal of the ruins seems to be the preservation of various species and their heritage, it seems like a large amount of energy in that relic was used to slow down the passing of time. However, due to the weakening of various sigils, the effect is likely not as good as when they were first made, but it has still slowed down the passage of time by seemingly around 15 to 20 times."
Silence. Likely to fill the awkwardness and perk everyone up, Zareth tried to alleviate the atmosphere, "The Order is considering opening it up as a new training ground. The time difference would accelerate the supply of high-level forces to the Empire. Not to mention, since only three weeks had passed in reality, you all can more easily get back to your normal lives."
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Kain exchanged a glance with Serena and said under his breath to her, "I guess this means we've lost any hope of breaking the record for the biggest ranking drop in school history."
When they'd first begun the mission, they'd still had around 2 and a half months until the next Re-ranking.
Now they were finding out that only 20 days had passed. Meaning that they still had more than a month—1 month and 3 weeks specifically—to prepare for the re-ranking they'd thought was already a done deal.
A look of schadenfreude appeared on Kain's face, "My apologies in advance for having to be downgraded to the rank 2 position" He said while giving Serena an obnoxious pat on the shoulder in faux comfort. After all, he was now a full level higher than her and, by the time of the re-ranking, aimed to have most, if not all, of his contracts breakthrough. For the first time ever, he was the stronger party if one only looked at the cultivation level.
Serena merely rolled her eyes while slapping away the hand trying to 'comfort' her.
However, despite Kain's wishes she didn't look worried at all.
"Since 3 weeks had passed, there have been a couple of major events but not too much has changed. You can find out what interests you when you all head back home."
Zareth's summary seemed to mark the end of the conversation, and one by one, people began shifting, stretching, mentally preparing to return to their own paths.
"Well…" Pete said, standing up and stretching his large body. They'd only been back a day and his form was already much chubbier than when they'd first arrived. "It was a nightmare. But thanks for not letting me die, I guess."
"Same," Lina added, arms crossed but lips twitching into a sad smile, likely thinking about Jamie. "It was awful, but… not the worst crew I've run with."
Zareth gave a slight bow. "I'll be submitting a full report to the Order. Hopefully, we can work together again—"
"Ahem," Kain cut in. "I think it's a little soon to be discussing going on another mission." Not to mention they were in separate divisions. A mission requiring both the Pathfinders and Starchasers again can't be easy…Kain naturally had little desire to work with him again.
Sensing this, Zareth smirked faintly, unoffended.
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As the farewells began in earnest, Malzahir gave everyone a crooked, tired smile. "Don't take this the wrong way…but I hope I never have to see any of you again." He said in stuttering but relatively fluent Imperial tongue.
Pete gave him a mock salute. "None taken. I don't particularly enjoy being thrown up on."
Now that Kain thought about it, Malzahir had been right behind Pete when they'd first teleported, and Pete's shirt did seem to have been changed…
Malzahir muttered. *"Teleportation should be illegal."*
Eventually, the trio peeled off from the rest. Malzahir was soon led away by an assistant from the teleportation bureau to wait for them at the departure area since he wasn't permitted to wander around. Meanwhile, Kain and Serena made use of their newly acquired credits to purchase what they needed.
They moved efficiently.
Materials were sorted into categories. Bea, having evolved, no longer required anything. Aegis and Queen, however, did.
Thankfully, as a red dragon, Vauleth was likely not yet close to a bottleneck, although much of his profile had been weirdly censored, so Kain couldn't be 100% sure.
They met Malzahir again in the same waiting chamber they'd used after their first arrival. He looked a little less uneasy at being alone in an unfamiliar place—less pale, slightly less twitchy—than when they'd first arrived. When he saw them, he perked up.
Soon enough, the final clearances were given. The runes activated, the silver circle lit beneath their feet, and a familiar sense of warping displacement overtook them all.
And when it cleared—they were back. Back in Dark Moon City
They were home.
"blarrrrrggghhhhhh!"
Unfortunately, the happy moment was ruined by the sensation of something smelly, warm and wet suddenly hitting his back.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!Exhausted from the long mission and not having a good night's rest in what felt like months, Kain and Serena immediately wanted to head back to the College dorms.
However, first, Kain brought Malzahir to the building he'd previously gotten as a temporary HQ for his meetings with Darius and any others he chooses to help awaken. Thankfully he had the foresight to add sleeping quarters to the building.
After sending off messages to his family, friends, and his business associates like Collin, he fell asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow.
His soft, high thread count, pillow.
'Ahhh… this is the life…'
Kain had no desire to pick up any more missions for a long time, he couldn't help thinking before everything faded to black.
——————-
When Kain woke, it was now bright out.
Sunlight poured in through the dorm windows, casting gentle streaks across the floor. For a brief, blissful second, he considered turning over and going back to sleep. But the dryness in his throat and the vague sense that he was forgetting something finally pushed him upright.
He blinked blearily and reached for his phone, which lay face down on the nightstand.
It was still powered off.
Kain frowned. He could've sworn he'd left it on. Maybe it died at some point during the night. He held the power button for a few seconds until the screen lit up, and leaned back against the headboard with a yawn while it booted.
Then—
BZZT. BZZT. BZZT. BZZZZZ. BZZZZZ. BZZZZZ.
The phone vibrated so violently it nearly leapt out of his hands.
247 new messages.
15 missed calls.
3 voicemails.
Unread inboxes: Family, Collin, Darius plus god knows how many.
"…What the hell."
He swiped through the notification bar, eyebrows lifting higher and higher.
Messages from his family came first. The director and Bridge first, followed by the rest of his siblings. All filled with relief.
———
Director: "I knew you'd be fine, but please check in more often!"
Bridge: "About time you came back."
Cherry: "Kainnnn!! Did you bring back any souvenirs for me???"
Jasper: "We were taking bets on how long it'd take you. I said 20 days. I won."
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Melody: "Come visit, please. I miss you."
Milo: "Welcome back."
….
——–
Kain smiled faintly. He typed out a quick message to all of them, promising to visit soon and reassuring them that everything was fine.
Then came Collin's messages. Dozens of them, organized in bullet-point summaries. Straight to business like always:
——–
Collin: "Quarterly report finalized. Numbers up 37% from last month."
Collin: "Three new knockoff spiritual beer brands popped up in the Capital. Sent cease-and-desist."
Collin: Surprisingly all knockoff suppliers in the Eastern region and even the Southern regions seem to be gone.
Collin: "Meeting request from Lord Alaric Veylen. You mentioned no longer wishing to socialize with him. Meeting declined."
Collin: "Your share of last month's sales profits deposited. Check ledger."
Collin: "A certified issuer certificate has been issued to almost 8000 bars and restaurants across the Empire."
Collin: "Updated storage security. We had a breach attempt. No losses."
Collin: "Spiritual beer demand exceeded projections. We'll need a new brewing facility within the month."
Collin: "Warehouse 3 is ready. Staff already rotated in."
Collin: "When you're back, we need 30 minutes minimum. A few things require your decision."
——–
Kain groaned softly, already feeling a headache coming on. But then he reached the largest stack of messages by far:
Darius.
Dozens upon dozens of them.
Kain scrolled. Then scrolled more. And scrolled again.
And with each message, his brows crept lower into a deepening furrow.
They hadn't contacted him while he was away, respecting the blackout, but now that he was back…
The threads were increasingly unhinged.
——
Darius: "Mission done. Sort of. You… might want to call us."
Darius: "We got rid of the knockoff vendors like you asked. All of them. Permanently. I think."
Darius: "We didn't technically break any laws. But if anyone comes to talk to you, you don't know us."
Darius: "Okay but like, hypothetically, if a building explodes but no one reports it…"
Darius: "Can someone explain why there's a goat in our van? It bit me"
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Darius: "Sorry. Wrong group chat."
——
"…What?"
Kain stared blankly at the screen for a long moment.
He rubbed at his temple, slowly lowering the phone. "It was just supposed to be a basic clean-up job…"
So much for a vacation.
He swung his legs out of bed and stood with a groan, muttering under his breath as he reached for a clean shirt.
"Alright. Let's go see what disaster they caused…"
But just as he turned to toss the phone aside and get ready to leave another flood of vibrations buzzed through his hand.
A fresh batch of notifications. Except this time, they weren't from anyone he recognized.
Names not saved in his phone. People he definitely didn't remembered giving his number to. And people that definitely shouldn't know that he was back yet since he didn't tell them…
——
[UNKNOWN]: "is it true ur back?! omggggg 🙈🙏 welcome home legend 😭💖💖"
[UNKNOWN]: "he came back alive from the wilderness… our planner prince fr 💍"
[UNKNOWN]: "pls come to my store grand opening?? i named it 'Kainspiration'. It mainly sells merchandise for the 'Kain Fan Club'🥹💕"
[UNKNOWN]: "how do I get my contract to evolve like yours 😭 it's a Vespirae Queen too, like yours was, but it's so weak in comparison"
——
Kain blinked.
He scrolled again. The sheer volume was absurd—hundreds of texts, mostly compliments, a few mildly creepy, and a shocking number asking for consultations.
"…I have a fan club?"
He frowned, opening one particularly persistent thread at the top. The contact name had hearts on either side (he had absolutely zero knowledge of adding this contact himself…), and the chat was… long.
——
💘Alaina Ashenclaw💘
[11:23 PM] "Hi Kain!!! I know you're super busy being amazing and mysterious and powerful but I FELT that you were back… we must have such a deep connection 💕"
[12:01 AM] "I passed by your dorm building last night (just coincidentally!! haha don't be weird 🙈) and I SWEAR I saw the lights flicker. You're back, right? You're back."
[2:45 AM] "I tried to deliver you breakfast but the security around the top 5 dorms is so tight. I will try again in the morning. 🥰"
[3:10 AM] "I am so happy I got into the same College as you! Isn't that fate??? I decided to take some elective Evolutionary Planning courses this semester, we have so much in common ☺️."
[5:17 AM] "The security wouldn't let me in again. They're so annoying! Please tell them when you wake up about how close we are!"
[7:02 AM] "Anyway text me when you're free!! Or I'll find you first teehee 💖"
——–
Kain slowly locked his phone after reading that last (threatening?) message.
Stared at the wall.
And let out a long, hollow sigh.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!Three weeks ago…
After confirming that the behind-the-scenes backer of the Golden Brew Syndicate, who was responsible for making the majority of the low-quality knockoff spiritual beers in the eastern region, was the much larger Black Vine Consortium, Darius and his team were determined to tackle not only the Golden Brew Syndicate but the Black Vine Consortium.
First things first, Miya—under the cover name Mary—got jobs for Jax, Garret and Lira. They posed as skilled labourers to help with their move to the south. And since they had no spiritual power, and Reginald was a 2-star beast-tamer, he had no guard against them…Especially not after having a 'one-on-one chat' with both men and confirming neither of the two had any ideas about 'Mary'—she was his! Although he readily welcomed the addition of the female Lira.
"Blegh! Like either of us would be interested in her—ouch!" Jax let out a screech of pain as the sharp point of a heel came stabbing down onto his foot.
"I told you to stop running your mouth," Miya said sweetly, not looking up from where she was writing something down on her clipboard.
Then Miya kicked Garret in the shin, where he was sneaking sips of the beer. She couldn't help grimacing in disgust knowing that the hygiene of this facility was less than ideal.
"Get to work. The sooner we get to the south the sooner we can put this whole mission behind us."
——–
The Golden Brew Syndicate's new Southern Region facility was, in a word, disgusting.
The Golden Brew Syndicate had packed up and shifted to the outskirts of a smaller trade town nestled just outside of Black Vine territory—close enough to coordinate shipments, far enough from the most populated areas to avoid getting scrutinized too closely. The perfect setup… for now.
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Jax wrinkled his nose as he stepped inside, the stench of mildew, stale beer, and something suspiciously rotten hitting him like a brick. "You know, I've been in sewers that smelled better than this."
Miya, still in her Mary persona, batted her eyelashes at Reginald. "Oh, Mr. Reginald, I just know someone as brilliant as you will turn this place into something wonderful!"
Reginald puffed out his chest, oblivious to her sarcasm. "Of course, my dear! With my expertise and your charm, we'll dominate the Southern market in no time!"
Garret leaned over to Jax and muttered, "I give it a month before this place collapses on itself."
Jax snorted. "Generous."
They continued undercover for a couple more days before it was finally time to make a move. In a dusty storage room filled with barrels and at least three kinds of rodents, Miya started the meeting.
"Alright," Miya began one night, unfolding a rough map on a crate between them, "I found out that Reginald has a secret meeting in the next town over tomorrow."
"We're tailing him," Darius, the leader who was snuck into the facility by them, said firmly. "Tomorrow. We will take the usual formation, except this time Garret, you'll take the rear."
Garret blinked. "Wait. Why am I in the rear?"
"Because the last time we put you in front," Lira answered instead with a smirk, "you sneezed on the lookout and blew our whole cover."
"It was allergy season!"
Unfortunately, the tailing group was disappointed to discover that this 'secret meeting' was simply a collapse into depravity.
The establishment, if one could even call it that, was an underground den bathed in lurid red light and thick with the stench of sweat, alcohol, and an unidentifiable sweetness.
Reginald stormed in like a conquering hero, throwing bills by the handful at scantily clad female attendants who squealed and scrambled to catch them. On a sagging velvet couch, he lounged like a king of rot, his belly exposed and glistening with spilled alcohol as he beckoned women with slurred promises of being with a man who would be the future owner of a spiritual beer empire.
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More disturbing than the groping or the incoherent toasts was the sickly yellow substance he kept chugging and passing around from a sealed, rune-marked flask—something that shimmered unnaturally and caused the veins under his skin to briefly darken to an off-putting black after drinking it.
At one point, he dunked a woman's head into a bowl filled with the same glowing fluid while screaming that it would "bless her to become one of the chosen ones."
'He's insane…'
From their hidden perch behind a broken partition, the group watched in a unified stunned silence.
Miya couldn't help but lower her head in embarrassment that the urgent information she'd brought back to the group had only amounted to this.
——–
After a couple more days of tailing Reginald amounting to nothing, Darius chose to take a drastic measure that would hopefully expedite the process of obtaining information.
It all began one day when Darius, as the only one not undercover under Reginald, was tailing the rotund owner.
He followed him to an isolated area of the town that was filled with the horrible smell of sewage—likely close to a sewage treatment plant.
'That explains why nobody is around…ugh' Darius couldn't resist gagging as he covered his nose but then the thick scent in the air seemed to stick to the roof of his mouth and leave a slight indescribable…flavour.
He gagged again.
Composing himself, he managed to pick up snippets of conversation between Reginald and some of his most trusted staff members that moved with him and also spotted an unfamiliar man from, Darius assumed, the Black Vine Consortium.
"Enough time has passed for you to settle down. The Consortium wants you to begin the next stage of operation and begin adding the…extra ingredients." Said one of the men from the Black Vine Consortium.
Reginald and the other men then began to converse in a lower voice that Darrius couldn't quite hear. Darius, fed up with his vantage point being too far away, decided to take a rather reckless action…he jumped in and entered the conversation himself.
Darius had advanced to the equivalent of a 2-star beast-tamer, his spiritual power now a bright crimson. Moreover, his contract, an extremely talented jellyfish, had already reached orange-grade—one level higher than himself and should be enough to handle the crew with nobody stronger than 2-stars, poor talent and weak contracts. Thankfully, all of the other individuals present were limited to being unawakened or 1 and 2-star beast-tamers, so he wasn't too worried about his safety.
Not to mention there were 3 unique skills of his contract that he'd always wanted to test…
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Heavy footsteps approached. A voice clicked its tongue nearby.
"Is this the guy? The one who jumped in like a madman?"
"Yes, sir."
Though Darius planned to 'faint' after being hit with a club, the flimsy club broke instead, but he still managed to feign weakness and get tied to an old metal chair inside the abandoned building.
Reginald and his accomplices, thinking he must be a pretty powerful beast-tamer to dive in so bravely, tied each of his limbs with about ten cable ties.
"Connected to the government?"
"Doesn't seem like it." Replied one henchman after handing over everything they'd found from frisking Darius to Reginald and his accomplice from the Black Vine Consortium.
"Why are you uncertain? Didn't you check properly?"
"No government ID, just a driver's license in his jacket pocket. From what I can sense of his energy though, he should be a 2-star tamer" Said the member of the Black Vine Consortium Reginald was meeting with—who also happened to be a 2-star beast-tamer.
"How does a guy who's only a 2-star tamer have the guts?…He looks too clean to be a drug addict who sniffed something and crawled here."
"He doesn't show any signs of mutating from the drug either."
"Well, we'll find out by asking him."
Reginald, who had been muttering to himself, lit a cigarette.
"Hey, wake him up. We don't have time."
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"Yes, boss!"
There was a flurry of movement. Someone grabbed Darius' hair roughly and pulled him up into a sitting position. Unable to see, he used his other senses and heard the sound of sloshing water. Darius twitched his closed eyes. Surely they wouldn't do something as barbaric as pouring sewage water on him…
Splash! A cold, disturbingly thick, water hit him forcefully.
'Dammit, they really did it!'
Judging by the salty-bitter and disgusting smell and taste, it seemed they had scooped water directly from a source nearby—it definitely wasn't clean though. His head and upper body were completely soaked.
'Damn it, I'm not even asleep.' Darius gritted his teeth discreetly.
'Maybe I should have just beaten them all up from the start…'
Someone approached Darius, who was soaking wet from the dirty water, both in body and mind. A man cracked his knuckles, making bone-cracking sounds, and barked at him.
"Hey, you bastard, I can see you rolling your eyes under your eyelids. If you're awake, get up quickly…"
Something flew toward his face this time. Judging by the speed and the flow of the air, it seemed to be a fist. Darius remained seated, eyes closed, only wiggling his toes.
"Open your eyes!"
Thwack! A feather-light punch landed on his cheek.
One second, two seconds, three seconds…
"Ahhh!"
The scream erupted from somewhere other than Darius's mouth. Darius finally opened his eyes slightly. The henchman of Reginald who had thrown the punch was hopping in place, clutching his reddened, swollen fist. The dim lighting reflected off his closely shaved head, flickering like a chaotic strobe light.
"My, my hand!"
As he hopped around as if his feet were on fire, the other thugs surrounding him jeered.
"Hey, stop whining, you idiot!"
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"What's with the fuss after hitting his face with your fist?"
"It's not fussing, I'm telling you!"
The henchman (Darius will call henchman number 1), clutched his fist and explained with tears in his eyes, while one of the men in the group laughed loudly.
"If it's fussing, you're dead. Let's see."
"I'm serious! Ah…"
"…Huh?"
The face of henchman number 2 who was checking the fist of henchman 1, stiffened a bit. He scratched his head in disbelief as he turned the hand back and forth.
"This guy's hand really seems broken."
"What?"
"No, did he coat his face in metal? Why is his fist shattered after hitting his face?"
"Now that you mention it, I did hit that guy's head with a wooden plank earlier, and the plank broke."
"What the hell? Is he a stone head? Is that his gift?"
The thugs around him gathered and murmured in confusion. This situation was troubling. Darius had been hoping to use the guise of being at their mercy to instead extract information from them. After all, even just the questions they choose to ask will be telling…
Unfortunately, the kidnappers were much weaker than Darius had expected, making it difficult for him to even feign weakness. Admittedly, although he knew the skills of his contract that he was relying on were quite strong, he had still underestimated its strength. His contract wasn't only the most beautiful (in his opinion), resembling an iridescent glowing cross between a jellyfish and squid. The description of his contract and its skills provided to him by Kain had been quite impressive. According to Kain, his contract was called the Reflescera Jelly:
Supposedly it is a rare, exclusively non-combative support-type spiritual creature, prized for its unparalleled ability to bond with and protect physically powerful partners. Therefore, in nature, it will be taken as an underling by the most powerful spiritual creatures in a region. It lacks traditional means of offence, having no muscles, bones, or long-range attacks. However, its symbiotic barrier system makes it one of the best defensive and support partners.
This support-like nature was also reflected in its skills:
A- Jelly Recoil Membrane: While bonded to a partner, any physical attacks equal to or weaker than the Jelly's strength are reflected at 100% power back to the attacker. When struck by an enemy one grade higher, reflection power is reduced to 50% effectiveness, and the partner sustains half the amount of damage.
A-Jelly Absorption Veil: Can absorb any incoming magical or elemental attack of an equal or lesser grade than itself. A portion of the absorbed energy is converted into spiritual energy to restore the Jelly's reserves. Over time, repeated absorption of a specific element may allow the Jelly to become more efficient at nullifying it.
A-Jelly Symbiotic Armour: The Jelly can completely wrap itself around its partner, merging seamlessly with their body. While merged, it is undetectable to normal senses and detection skills of those equal to it in strength. All its defensive properties are applied automatically to the wrapped partner. This symbiosis does not hinder the host's movements and even greatly enhances flexibility and reaction times.
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Darius' thoughts about his contract's abilities were interrupted when the tickle-like 'attacks' of the henchmen came to a grinding halt.
At that moment, a large man—Reginald—grabbed Darius's wet hair and tilted his head back. Although wet, his face was unbelievably clean for someone who had been punched. After scrutinizing his face carefully, the man smirked evilly, fat in his cheeks, trembling with anticipation.
"Hah, this bastard. He came in here so confidently. He must be relying on something, huh?"
"…"
"Hey, hey. It's nothing to mess up your pretty face. Even if we're busy, we can still throw you into a drain and drown you in feces, you trash."
'…You think I'm pretty?' Darius had to admit he felt a little bashful, although the compliment came from another man, and a rather unattractive one at that. Likely due to his overbearing aura and serious demeanour, Darius had never really received compliments on his appearance.
"Fine, let's make you want to talk. Hey, bring the tools. This guy seems to have some strange gift, so beat him with tools."
"Yes, boss!"
Burly men wielding crowbars, baseball bats, and planks approached, cracking their necks and arms. Reginald stepped back and smirked.
"It's gonna hurt a bit."
The big guy at the front twisted his lips as he got closer. And then—
Crack!
The sound of bones breaking was clearer and more resonant than expected. The man who had kicked Darius froze, eyes wide open, before collapsing and clutching his shin, rolling around in pain.
"Ah! Ahhh!"
"Shit, what the hell?"
"That idiot bastard, why kick with his own leg instead of using the tool?"
"This guy's weird! Use the tools to beat him!"
"That's what I said, you moron!"
"Dammit!"
A big guy, henchman 3 (or was it 4? Darius lost track), squeezed his eyes shut and swung the nailed bat at Darius's small head.
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Thwack!! The dull sound was quite loud, but it wasn't the head that broke. The bat hung loosely, broken in the middle! Darius, apart from his slightly tilted head, was unscathed.
'Is this guy really made of stone?'
Kicking broke the kicker's toes, punching broke the puncher's knuckles. Crowbars, hammers, baseball bats, and planks— all tools broke. After gathering the injured in one spot, there was enough for a basketball team. The kidnappers finally noticed something was off. They clung to the wall, whispering among themselves in low voices.
"Dammit, does this make sense? Why does it seem like the attacker is in more pain than the guy getting hit?"
"Yeah, what's this? We don't have any healing contracts and healing elixirs are damn expensive these days due to the greater number of Abyssal attacks, and we're gonna use them all up."
"Boss, this really hurts."
"Dammit, just hold on a bit."
"Even with a dislocated bone?"
"My bone is broken, boss."
"Ah, go lie down over there!"
"But wasn't he supposed to be only 2-stars? Can the gift of a low-level beast-tamer be so overpowered? Is this according to the laws of physics? Does it make sense for one person to be so strong?"
Of course, Darius heard it all. Hearing his kidnappers beginning to doubt their reality was also not what he wanted, according to his original plan.
'Why are these guys so weak?'
Trying to extract information by playing along was futile, as they kept not fulfilling their roles as 'interrogators'. How did such weaklings have the nerve to mess with his new employer, Kain? Was there no point in Darius getting captured and soaked in this disgusting water?
Reginald, standing back, yelled angrily.
"Hey, you bastards, this won't do! Finish up quickly and move before dawn! Why the hell can't you handle a single 2-star beast-tamer?"
Although Darius hated to admit it, he also had to agree with Reginald. Having wasted precious time getting captured, these guys failed at both threatening him and allowing him to extract information. He was hoping that their tongues would loosen around the 'prisoner' they'd already sentenced to death. After all, dead men couldn't talk. But…
'What's with these weaklings?'
Getting annoyed at the lack of valuable information and watching them tap dance around with broken legs was frustrating. Finally, Darius muttered with a sigh.
"Guys, this won't do."
It was clear to everyone that the words that should be spoken by the kidnapping gang's leader, Reginald, were now coming from the kidnapped victim. The injured kidnappers, clinging to the wall, whispered in confusion.
"Why is he saying that?"
"I thought the boss said that."
"I don't know, I'm scared now."
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"…I wanted to play along, but you guys are too low-level." Darrius finished like a teacher disappointed in the lacklustre performance of a student.
Ignoring the increasing distress of those watching him, Darius' limbs became flexible with a jelly-like quality and slipped free from the layers of chains.
The kidnappers' faces turned to shock as they watched dozens of cable ties get slipped out of and fall to the ground within a second.
Darius stood up from the metal chair, pushed back his wet hair, and then grabbed the chair…
And threw it at the biggest target—Reginald!
Crash!
"Ugh."
The unprepared Reginald was hit squarely in the face with the metal chair before he could even summon a contract. He rolled his eyes and collapsed, blood streaming from his flaring nostrils.
Pushing his dishevelled, wet hair back again,
Darius strode toward the remaining henchmen and the Black Vine Consortium underling. Sharp murderous intent poured toward the kidnappers. His dark eyes gleamed menacingly.
"Come at me all at once, enough of my time has been wasted already."
————
"Are you stupid or are you dumb?" Lira said while looking at Darius with an unimpressed expression upon hearing his story.
After Darius had beaten and tied up his opponents in a 'kidnapping reversal,' he'd called Lira, Miya, Jax and Garret.
Never would they have imagined that their normally stoic and dependable leader would have such a ridiculous 'plan.'
Lira: "Let me get this straight… you chose to get captured on purpose—"
Garret: "—marinated in sewer soup—"
Miya: "—and then waited for them to monologue like villains in a cheap play?"
Lira: "—and when they didn't say anything useful, you decided the plan was stupid?"
Jax: "—which it was. From the start. Obviously."
All four stare at him in a judgmental silence.
Darius avoided eye-contact awkwardly; he also had to admit that this 'plan' was completely out of his normal character.
"Ahem… Honestly, I think the idea of finally getting to test my contract's abilities made me lose my head a bit. But once you all have your own contracts, you will probably be no different!"
The other four looked unconvinced by his explanation.
"Let's hope not…"
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Alright, let's separate 'em," Jax muttered, dragging a whimpering underling down the dim corridor of the Golden Brew Syndicate's abandoned factory. "One idiot per room. No need for group therapy."
"Got it," Miya said, cracking her knuckles. "Been needing to let off some steam. I will definitely be taking this one." She said, pointing with glee to a wide-eyed, burly underling who had once pinched her butt as he passed her. Back then, she'd had to repress her emotions, but now she'd be able to release her rage—all of it.
Garret opened one of the rusted office doors with a screech and shoved a dazed goon inside. "You may stay here. Someone will be with you shortly." His large and burly demeanour, and the bleak surroundings at odds with his calm and professional tone, reminiscent of a hotel staff member.
Inside the factory, the silence of the night was broken only by the occasional groan or muffled curse from the tied-up captives. The Golden Brew Syndicate's home base—normally bustling—was eerily empty, its workforce either unconscious, tied up, or at home, blissfully unaware that management was experiencing a hostile takeover.
"Room check," Lira announced, hands on her hips. "Seven rooms. Seven captives. Reginald, that Black Vine member, and the five staff members. Should we each take a staff member and then work on Reginald and the Black Vine member together?"
Darius didn't answer immediately. He was still towelling off the sewer water from earlier, dignity freshly laundered but not fully restored.
Eventually, he nodded, "But I will be taking the lead." If Reginald wasn't forthcoming, he'd take the opportunity to get revenge for having sewage dumped on him.
———–
In Reginald's office, which now had its owner usurped…
Reginald was tied to a metal chair, his face still flushed and his nose crooked from where Darius had smashed him with a chair earlier. The bruising had begun to bloom in various purples, but it was his trembling that stood out the most.
For the past hour, he'd been subjected to hearing the horrifying screams of his underlings as they were subjected to god knows what.
Darius and the others stepped in silently, their gazes cold—especially Miya, who had had to put up with him the most.
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Reginald took one look and immediately started sweating.
"L-look! You have no idea who you're dealing with." He said stutteringly, but still trying to intimidate the others. "I-if you just let me go, I could forget this ever happened."
Darius sat down across from him and said nothing while the others stood slightly behind against a wall of the room.
Reginald's eyes scanned them in a panic. His gaze flicked over to Lira, then Jax, then Garret—who cracked his massive, gloved knuckles with a slow, deliberate rhythm—and then landed on Miya.
His bruised face twisted into an expression that he clearly thought was oozing with charm.
"Mary… sweetheart," he said, forcing a smile through his swollen lip. "You're not really with them, right? I always knew there was something special between us. You—You laughed at my jokes. You always made sure my coffee was hot."
Miya didn't respond. She only stared at him, arms crossed.
Reginald's voice wavered. "You used to look at me like—like you wanted to marry me."
"I was imagining you choking on your own tongue," she replied coolly. "And for the record, my name's Miya. Not Mary."
Reginald blinked. "Wh-what?"
"The loyal secretary act was fake," she said, stepping forward. "Every smile, every compliment—fake. Every time you 'accidentally' brushed up against me, I wanted to break your fingers."
The smile died completely on Reginald's face.
Jax leaned forward. "You've got about thirty seconds before I start playing 'Guess What Bone I'm Breaking Next.' Wanna talk, or should I warm up?"
Garret, standing silent until now, made a show of adjusting the gloves on his massive hands.
Reginald's mouth flapped, but no sound came out.
Miya stepped forward, her heeled boots clicking softly against the floor. "We'll start with fingers," she said, almost bored. "Work our way down to kneecaps if he's slow."
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Reginald cracked.
"I—I'll talk! I'll talk!" he yelped, the chair rattling beneath him, and focusing on Darius in front of him solely. "You don't need to do anything, okay? I'll tell you everything, just don't let them near me!"
Reginald talked. Oh, he talked. Within three minutes since they'd entered the room, he'd spilled every detail of the operation like someone eager to confess all of their sins before a priest for salvation. The other team members, watching from the side, blinked in disbelief.
"…He's worse than a leaky faucet," Miya whispered.
"No," Lira said. "The faucet at least tries to hold it in."
"It's the spiritual beer!" Reginald wailed. "That kid's spiritual beer! That stuff—stabilized the compound! They supposedly tried everything, but that spiritual beer was the only thing that worked!"
"What compound and who is 'they'?" Darius asked.
"I don't know! Just that it has some flower in it called Somnum's Lament. But it's not like the pure plant. This drug is terrible stuff! It makes people feel amazing like the flower —strong, powerful—but the other stuff added actually does change you! People get addicted, and then…" He swallowed hard. "Then they stop being… human."
Darius's expression didn't change, but his hand curled slightly into a fist.
"Mutations. That's what they called it. The addicts don't stay human. They change, get all twisted. But I don't know too much! There is another group—the real bosses behind Black Vine—and they track the addicts. They take them before the changes get too obvious."
"And do what?" Darius asked.
Reginald shook his head violently. "I don't know! I swear I don't know! They take 'em and they don't come back! I—I think they're doing experiments! All I know is, the beer was supposed to be the delivery method. If they take over the spiritual beer market, they'd have Empire-wide delivery and be able to create tens of millions of new test subject in a way where no one would suspect anything…"
He was shaking so hard the chair rattled. "Please. I told you everything. I didn't even want to be in this business! My parents wanted me to become a pastry chef!"
"He really was just a glorified errand boy," Miya muttered.
Darius rose to his feet.
"I—I'm allergic to pain! Please!" Reginald cried.
Darius looked down at him.
"…That was extremely easy," he muttered with disappointment.
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The Black Vine member sat slouched in his chair, bound and bloodied from the fight that had led to his capture, but otherwise intact. His face was thinner than Reginald's, sharper, the kind that gave off the impression of sly intelligence. But now, he looked more like a rat caught in a trap.
Jax leaned against the wall, spinning a knife idly between his fingers. "Name?"
"D-Donis," the man stammered. "I'm just a handler. Low-level logistics. I just move stuff, I swear." His current humble demeanour was very different from the prideful and superior manner with which he'd always spoken to Reginald.
"Stuff," Miya said dryly, arms crossed again. "You mean the drugs you're adding to this knockoff beer, and even trying to add to another company's beer?"
"I don't even know how it works!" Donis burst out. "They don't tell me things! I didn't even know that spiritual beer was involved in the plan until I was assigned to communicate with Reginald!" He nodded wildly toward the room they'd just come from. "I just get crates. I move them. That's it!"
Darius stepped forward. "The compound. It's real?"
Donis nodded frantically. "Yes. Yes! 'Series A Drug Variant #32.' The guys above me called it the breakthrough batch. They were hyped. I—I saw what it did to a guy who tried it directly. His eyes went all black, and he started laughing while his spine twisted like—like—" He shuddered. "I don't know what happened after that. They took him away."
"You didn't ask questions?"
"You think people in my position live long when they start asking questions?"
Darius studied him for a long moment. Then he turned to the others. "He's not lying."
Garret grunted in agreement. "He's practically shaking in fear. Nothing else to rely on. Low-level, like he said."
Lira glanced back toward Reginald's office. "Let's get the keys."
They returned to the office without a word. Reginald, still tied to the chair, looked up as they entered, his eyes darting like a cornered animal.
Darius didn't speak. He just walked around the desk, opened the bottom drawer, as directed by Miya, and pulled out the ring of keys.
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"You're not going to leave me here, right?" Reginald croaked. "We—we had a deal!"
Miya gave him a flat look. "No, we didn't."
With that, they left him there, slamming the office door shut behind them.
"Stupid," Jax muttered, "You always secure the deal before you start talking…"
They moved fast, checking door after door in the deeper, restricted sections of the factory. Most rooms were storage or documentation—rusty shelves, stacks of files, spiritual brew ingredients that had long since spoiled—but then Jax turned a key and let out a low whistle.
"Bingo."
Crates. Dozens of them. Stacked along the walls like they were preparing to supply an army. Each one had thick black straps sealing the top and a faint chemical scent that stung the nose.
Miya pried one open with her knife. Inside were dozens of black vials cushioned in straw, each marked with a golden label, an unusual geometric emblem they'd never seen before—and the initials "SA32."
"Series A Drug Variant 32," Lira said under her breath. "These match what the Black Vine guy said."
"No wonder they were eager to expand," Garret muttered.
"We can't carry it all," Darius said. "One crate. That's it. Evidence. The rest gets destroyed."
Garret grabbed the lightest-looking box, hoisting it onto his shoulder with a grunt. "Let's torch it."
They moved quickly, spreading alcohol barrels and liquids across the main chambers and storage areas (thank god they were in an alcohol factory since they didn't exactly carry around gasoline with them).
Reginald screamed when he smelled the smoke from behind his closed door.
Miya didn't even glance back.
They exited as fire began to curl up the walls, tongues of orange licking at old wood and alcohol soaked crates. Within minutes, the building had become an inferno, the smoke trailing high into the night sky.
They stood in the shadows of a nearby tree line, the fire's glow casting long shadows behind them. Darius kept watch silently, arms crossed, while the others fanned out around the perimeter to make sure no one in the building managed to escape and make a run for it. After all, a few of them were beast-tamers—one never knew what contracts or gifts they might have.
Flames crackled and spat, illuminating the twisted metal and crumbling stone as the structure began to collapse.
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Rustle Snap
Gasp
All of them turned sharply toward the source—somewhere behind them, just past the edge of the clearing.
A faint rustle came from the underbrush. Quick, like someone stepping back too fast and stepping on a branch.
Jax's blade was out in a flash. Garret tensed, the crate still on his shoulder.
Darius raised a hand to signal silence and took a slow step toward the sound.
"Who's there?" he called into the dark.
Silence.
Then, another rustle. This one further away.
Miya took off in a sprint, weaving through the trees with practiced ease.
"Wait—!" Lira hissed, but Miya was already gone.
Jax and Garret followed a second later. Lira lingered only long enough to glance at the burning factory once more—then vanished into the forest after them.
"Sigh… I guess I will stay to make sure nobody escapes." Darius muttered to nobody around him. After all, compared to the unknown person running away, there were confirmed beast-tamers in the burning building that he needed to make sure actually died. As the only one that was now also a beast-tamer and could fight against them, should they escape, it was only natural that he stay behind.
———-
Not far away…
"Oomf! Argh!"
Baaa-a-a-a-a
A small figure tripped and rolled over a branch as he fled, letting out a small noise as his body crashed to the ground. Behind the rolling figure, the sound of a goat's bleating rang out.
The chasing Miya slowed down after seeing the figure fall and the surprising visual of a goat…and a kid?
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Miya slowed her pace, heeled boots sinking into the mossy soil as she stepped around some branches and spotted the source of the rustling.
It was a boy. No older than nine, maybe ten. Scrawny. Dirt on his cheeks. One pant leg torn. And standing behind him, just as shaken, was a small goat with golden horns—staring back with eerie yellow eyes. A Fleecehorn Goat.
Although Miya didn't know too much about spiritual creatures, she knew about this one—it was a common spiritual creature raised across rural parts of the Empire for its unique, shimmering coat known as Spindlefleece. This magical fibre is lightweight and fire-resistant, making it sought after by low-level beast-tamers and artisans. The fleece is often spun into garments or accessories that subtly offer fire resistance, and the goats themselves are known for their hardy nature and calm disposition, making them ideal for beginner contract-bonding and farm labour assistance.
Most farming villages have at least a few, and considering they were in a quite desolate town, Miya concluded that this boy was likely from a nearby farm.
The boy scrambled backward until his back hit the gnarled base of a tree, arms curling around the goat protectively. "P-please don't kill me," he whispered, trembling.
Miya didn't say anything at first.
She didn't draw her weapon. Didn't step closer. She just stood there, moonlight filtering through the branches and catching on the dark fabric of her clothes. Her expression remained unreadable.
But inside, her mind raced.
A kid. A literal kid.
Why was a child watching them? More importantly—how much had he seen?
"Why would you think I'd kill you?" she asked, voice low, almost emotionless.
The boy froze. His eyes darted to the burning building in the distance, then back to Miya. He said nothing.
Miya's gaze sharpened, and her eyes narrowed.
That hesitation. That look toward the fire.
He had seen something.
She crouched, not too close, but low enough to speak on his level. "Did you hear anything? See anything?"
The boy's lower lip trembled.
Miya didn't soften.
She couldn't afford to. Not yet.
She wasn't a beast-tamer with a mental-attribute contract or gift. Nor could Darius, the only beast-tamer in their group, tamper with memories.
And even if she wanted to let the kid go—if he'd seen or heard too much, she couldn't comfortably do so, not if it could come back to hurt one of her teammates.
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But she also couldn't bring herself to torture a little kid for answers.
So she waited.
And waited.
And then—
Sniffle.
A tear rolled down the boy's cheek. Then another.
The goat let out a soft bleat beside him, as if trying to comfort him.
His small shoulders started shaking. "I didn't mean to! I was just—just following Gogo—he ran off! I didn't know anyone was there! Please don't kill me…"
His words tumbled out, breath hitching between them.
Miya exhaled softly through her nose and looked up at the sky for a moment, contemplating what to do.
A crunch of leaves behind her made her glance back.
Jax emerged first, muttering under his breath, "Damn, Miya. Did your ugly face scare the poor kid?"
Miya just glared at him in response, already used to Jax's less-than-pleasant 'jokes' (insults).
Lira and Garret followed. Their eyes landed on the crying boy, and Garret blinked in surprise.
"Oh," he said flatly. "A kid."
"Well, don't just stand there," Jax muttered, stepping forward. "Let me take a look."
Miya didn't stop him.
The boy's eyes widened as the tall man with a half-shadowed face knelt in front of him. Jax's casual posture didn't hide the latent violence in his movements, or the smear of dried blood still visible along his knuckles as he lifted one hand to wave casually in front of the kid's face.
"Hey, what's your name?" Jax asked, voice low and almost too calm.
To the kid, it was like the devil asking if he had any last words.
He flinched hard, his whole body curling tighter against the goat.
Then he saw the blood.
His eyes locked onto Jax's hand, the reddish-brown stain gleaming in the moonlight. His mouth opened. Closed. Then opened again.
"…Ren," he whispered, barely audible.
"Hm?" Jax leaned in slightly.
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"R-Ren!" the boy cried louder, as if saying it quickly would spare him.
Jax tilted his head, then looked up at Miya. "Ren," he repeated with a shrug. "That sound like a snitch name to you?"
Miya finally rolled her eyes. "You're not helping."
"Wasn't trying to."
Jax turned back to Ren. "Soo…Ren."
"Yes? Yes!"
"Are you a smart kid?"
"What?"
"I'll take that as a no…" If he were truly quick-witted, he wouldn't be responding with a 'What?' But at least Ren's responses were prompt, which was a good quality. Jax chuckled.
"Well… It's okay even if you're not."
Then, Jax suddenly put his face very close to Ren's. It was a move designed for intimidation.
"You see, there were some bad guys that once worked in that factory…they even ate little kids."
Ren's innocent eyes widened at that statement in horror.
"So, I disciplined them a bit."
"…I see."
The 'bad guys' were now nothing more than ashes. If that was 'a bit' of discipline, what would be considered proper discipline?
But the 'quick-witted' Ren didn't voice any doubts aloud. He nodded mechanically and spoke sincerely, "You did a good job…"
"Yes. So, Ren."
"Yes!"
"Could you please shut up?" Jax's face had already twisted into a chilling smile, colder than a frozen Siberian lake.
As Ren stared blankly, while his teammates muttered from behind about never letting him talk to children again, Jax sighed briefly and began to educate him.
"I don't have the ability to erase memories cleanly."
"…"
"To erase them, I'd have to use physical means…" Then Jax mimed hammering on the little boy's head long enough to 'erase memories physically.' He could hear what sounded like one of his teammates smacking their foreheads in exasperation behind him.
With blood-stained hands, Jax gently formed a fist and smiled softly. But that smile made Ren's face turn as pale as it had when he witnessed the scene of arson earlier.
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!Jax may not have been convinced of Ren's quick-wittedness, but what happened next was a clear indication that Ren was a little genius.
After glancing briefly at the blood-stained knuckles, Ren answered confidently, like a quiz show contestant certain of the correct answer:
"Where am I? How did I get here?! I CAN'T REMEMBER ANYTHING!"
The little boy said, glancing around in feigned amnesiac confusion.
In response, Jax nodded approvingly, his face beaming. A perfect answer.
Jax felt like a proud teacher that had turned a flunking student into the top of the class.
Jax clapped his hands once, like a man satisfied with a job well done. "See? We're already making progress."
Ren gave another exaggerated glance around. "Am I… in the woods? Wow! I must've fallen really hard earlier—and erased my memory!" He clutched his forehead dramatically.
Behind him, Gogo bleated, concerned, possibly even buying his act. The small goat nuzzled Ren's side, as if trying to help him restore his memories.
Lira coughed, trying to stifle a laugh.
Garret just stared. "…This kid's kind of funny."
Miya, arms crossed, sighed softly. "I guess this is all we can do. We can't kill him."
"Obviously," Lira muttered.
"But we do need to make sure he doesn't remember anything later," Miya continued, glancing at the goat. "We need insurance."
Ren stiffened. "W-what do you mean?"
But Jax was already on the same page as Miya. He stepped forward again and crouched in front of him, voice light. "We're gonna let you go, kid. We believe that you 'lost your memory'."
Relief flashed through Ren's eyes, just for a second.
Then—
"But we're taking Gogo," Jax added.
Ren's breath hitched.
His arms wrapped instinctively around the goat, who let out a confused bleat. "N-No! Please—he didn't do anything wrong! He's just a baby! You can't—!"
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"We can and we are," Jax said, standing. "Just in case that miraculous amnesia wears off and you start remembering what you saw back there. Remember Gogo."
Ren's lip quivered. "B-but Gogo's my best friend! He's gonna be my contract someday—I'm waiting to awaken a goat affinity just like my dad did, and Gogo's been with me since he was born and—and—!"
"You can write him letters," Jax said flatly.
"Nooo!" Ren wailed. Tears were starting again. "Please—anything else!"
Jax, apparently unmoved, casually plucked the goat from Ren's arms.
Ren clung tighter.
The tug-of-war was brief but passionate—and pitiful.
Eventually, Garret stepped in. With a single gentle scoop, he lifted the goat and Ren's arms clean off the ground. Ren's grip slipped, and Gogo ended up cradled in Garret's massive arms like a goat plushie. The goat looked comically small against Garret's massive chest, golden horns glinting in the moonlight.
Ren dropped to his knees in the dirt, face streaked with tears. "Gogo…!"
Garret blinked down at the goat. "…He's really warm. And soft…it's nice." He trailed off while slightly rubbing his cheek against the baby goat's neck.
Jax leaned in slightly toward Ren, voice dropping an octave, almost a whisper.
"Now. Ren. Just to be extra clear—"
Ren's chin trembled.
Jax grinned, all teeth. "You don't remember anything. Right?"
Ren nodded rapidly, hands clenched into trembling fists. "Right! Nothing! I don't even remember who you are!"
"Perfect." Jax gave a thumbs up and stepped back.
Lira sighed. "You're horrible."
"Did you have any better alternatives?" Jax corrected.
"…"
Garret turned to Miya. "So what do we do with the goat?"
"Keep it for now," Miya said. "We'll decide later. Once we're out of this area."
She turned to Ren. Her voice softened—just slightly.
"You can go home now. We will return Gogo to you at a later date. But until then, don't wander around so late anymore."
Ren didn't move.
He just stared at the small Gogo in Garret's arms like he'd been shot and left bleeding on the battlefield.
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"Gogo…" he whispered again.
The goat bleated mournfully in response, the sound eerily matching the boy's heartbreak.
————
Back to present day…
"And that's what happened." Darius and the others finished detailing all that had happened during the time that Kain had been gone. There had been a few minor misadventures along the way as they travelled from the Southern Region back to Dark Moon City in the East with a goat—after all, they couldn't exactly take a teleportation array, and the trip back alone took at least a week.
But, for the most part, Kain had been fully caught up.
Kain sat in silence, arms loosely crossed, one brow faintly raised. The room was dim but not dark—sunlight filtered lazily through a slit in the blinds of his office in the building he'd designated as his new HQ for the 'private force' he was building centered around those he Awakened using Pangea.
The baby goat, Gogo, lay curled pitifully in a corner, watching him with wet, glistening eyes.
Darius cleared his throat. "And… yeah. That's all of it."
"Mostly," Miya added, glancing away.
Kain didn't answer immediately.
He simply looked at them—each of them. Slowly. One by one.
There was something oddly unreadable about his expression. His usual quiet judgment hadn't sharpened into visible disapproval, nor had it softened into praise. Just a thoughtful, slightly distant gaze, as though calculating something more than their words.
'Did we do enough to become beast-tamers like Darius?' Everyone became tense at the lack of response from Kain.
Eventually, Kain exhaled and leaned back in his chair.
For a long moment, nobody spoke. Even the goat looked like it was holding its breath.
Then Kain's mouth twitched.
Just barely.
Not quite a smile, but not entirely neutral either.
"Well…" He rose from his seat, dusting off the sleeve of his shirt. His tone was dry, but not cold. "I guess you all pass."
Silence. Not seeing them respond, Kain continued.
"You did what I asked. You returned with results. You risked your lives, made hard calls, and came back alive." He glanced at each of them again. "Not perfect. But you were successful. And it was especially impressive considering most of you are not Awakened."
Another beat of stunned silence.
Then Jax, almost immediately: "Wait—really?! We're actually becoming b-beast-tamers?!" It was almost hard for him to believe, even after the real-life example of Darius. It was still public knowledge that those without an affinity could never become tamers. And he was about to defy that common knowledge.
"Well," Kain said again, turning to leave his office and heading to the room he'd performed the 'ritual' for Darius in previously. "Let's get it over with before I change my mind."
The group scrambled after him like a pack of wild dogs chasing a squirrel, the baby goat trotting after them on excited hooves, sensing the suddenly good mood of its captors.
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