Cami hesitated as her blue eyes were fixated on the crystal in Samael's palm; she reached her hand out slowly before pulling it back, lifting her head as she stared into his own blue eyes.
"Is it safe..??" She asked, prompting him to nod before she asked another question, "Are you sure..??"
"Yes." Sam answered, holding the Beast Core between his thumb and index finger and raising it toward the moon, "This is from the monster guarding the Dungeon inside the portal. It's more potent than the rest of the Cores we received."
"Shouldn't you keep it then?" She asked, entranced by the luminous sheen given off by the crystal from the moonlight.
"Probably..." He replied as if lost in thought before he palmed the Beast Core and held out his hand, offering it to the young woman, "Then again, it should help you get a strong Ability, and if I'm being honest... You will need one in the event we come across more of the monsters on our way."
Cami bit her lower lip, staring at the crystal in Sam's hand for a moment before she sighed heavily, reaching out and taking the B Rank Beast Core. A burst of energy exploded within the young woman, forcing Sam and the twins to step back.
The crystal unleashed a brilliant light, brighter than any the three had seen up to this moment, causing the twins to cover their eyes. Samael gritted his teeth, inwardly lamenting his choice to hand over the powerful Beast Core as he stared at the blinding light.
He had been struggling with the options before him, but in the end, he felt this was the correct choice. The stronger she became, the more powerful he would grow.
A large glyph appeared underneath Cami as the light grew brighter. Angelic wings of pure divine energy appeared behind the young woman before exploding with the Beast Core into thousands of tiny sparkling lights.
The sparkles transformed into pure white feathers as they fell around Cami, vanishing into dust as they touched the glyph below her feet, as it began to spin.
The blonde woman looked around bewildered, holding her hand out as one of the feathers landed on her palm, vanishing into the dust, and was carried away by the wind.
Her eyes locked onto Samael's, noticing his massive grin before they started glowing, emitting a brilliant golden aura. Slowly, the glyph stopped spinning and began to vanish.
Overwhelmed by the immense power surging within her, Cami stumbled forward and was caught by Samael as she smiled up at him softly. The familiar notifications appeared before him, creating mixed feelings within him, and he clicked his tongue in frustration upon reading them.
╔══The Target's Ability [Blessed by the Heavens] is immune to the effects of Soul Thief.══╝
╔══Soul Tie Target is available! Would the User like to create a bond with Camille? [Yes/No]══╝
"Shit..." He muttered under his breath, annoyed he couldn't copy her Ability before he selected 'Yes.'
╔══Initiating Soul Tie bond with Target: Camille. Please wait...══╝
Samael fell to his knees, gripping his chest as he winced in pain. Kaitlyn and Nathan knelt beside him, grabbing his shoulders and shouting frantically, but he couldn't hear a word.
Within his body, a purple thread wrapped around his heart, squeezing tightly, sending a powerful pain reverberating throughout his entire body. The thread continued to grow as it coiled tighter, causing the young man to scream out in pain.
Cami held Samael tightly, closing her eyes as Kaitlyn stood behind him, holding her hands to his back and pouring all of her power into trying to heal him.
Suddenly, the thread's grip on his heart loosened and traveled through his chest, penetrating Cami's heart and connecting the two. The pain subsided, and Sam regained his vision, breaking away from the embrace and staring at the young woman, shocked.
Suddenly, a series of windows appeared before him. Providing him with all the information available to him about Cami.
╔══The Target has been bound to the User. Soul Ties: [1/1]══╝
╔══Name: Camille══╝
╔══Age: 20══╝
╔══Intimacy: Acquaintance 0/100══╝
╔══Likes: Unknown══╝
╔══Dislikes: Unknown══╝
"Are you okay?" Cami asked, standing up as she approached him.
"Yeah..." He replied, nodding and smiling softly at the twins who were tugging at the bottom of his shirt.
"We should-" Samael said as he turned, stopping in his tracks as a loud beastly roar was heard; he turned, looking around as he furrowed his brow, a sense of dread washing over him.
***
"CLINK!"
Ichiko turned around, hearing a sudden sound behind her as she pressed her thumb against the brim of her katana's hilt, releasing it from its sheath and looking around the empty street.
"CLINK!"
She turned around again, seeing nothing yet again, and gritted her teeth before shouting, "Quit hiding and come out!"
"Heh... Heh... Heh..." A voice rang out behind her as she spun on her heels, anger flashing across her eyes as she saw the thug boss standing in the middle of the street with his baseball bat resting on his shoulder.
"You!!" She hissed, pulling her uchigatana from its resting place and pointing it at the man, her eyes widening in shock as he knelt down and reached for the Beast Core between his feet.
"No!" She shouted, dashing forward and swinging her blade, unleashing numerous wind slashes, but it was too late.
The wind blades collided with the sudden burst of power from the Beast Core, creating powerful explosions and obscuring her view. The shockwaves forced her to cover her eyes and halt her advance as she glared at him through her fingers.
The man started laughing maniacally as he threw both of his arms out and laughed to the heavens. His pupils vanished from his eyes as his muscles began to contract.
His body started bulging and shrinking rapidly as he underwent a transformation. Bones could be heard breaking, and the sound of tearing rang through the air as his body broke apart and rebuilt itself due to the power of the Beast Core.
Ichiko stared at the man who continued his unnerving laughter, bewildered at the scene unfolding in front of her. His skin started to bruise and change colors, going through a myriad of different options before landing on a deep purple.
The thug boss covered half of his face with one hand before grinning wildly at the young woman; his skin looked like melted wax, his eyes a bright yellow, and his mouth was filled with jagged teeth, his tongue becoming long and slippery.
His body grew threefold, becoming as large as an elephant. His muscles bulged, revealing hundreds of thick veins, and his clothes shredded, revealing his muscled and grotesque body.
His metallic baseball bat merged with his hand, sprouting dozens of spikes and growing to match the size of his massive arm. Spikes began to sprout from his shoulders, elbows, and knees. The fingertips of his hand and both of his feet grew large talons.
The thug boss's transformation ended as he threw his arms out and unleashed a bloodthirsty roar reverberating throughout the city. The immense power from the scream caused Ichiko to fall to her knees, covering her ears.
"Heh..." The monstrous thug boss chuckled in a demonic voice, approaching slowly, each step crushing the street below him as he asked, "How do you like me now, my darling?"