Shin gazed serenely at his surroundings. He found himself in a magnificently decorated room, adorned with statues of men and women, furniture of exceptional design, and large paintings.
Before him, a table displayed a variety of eggs of all sizes and kinds. Some were made of stone, small in dimension, while others, red and black-like molten rocks, measured twenty centimeters high.
Ding! [The military strength trial begins!]
Ding! [Egg selected: 0/1]
With calm and almost eerie composure, Shin observed each invitation, and when his gaze settled on an egg, a translucent screen appeared.
[Egg of horned lizard - high potential]
He carefully examined each egg. Three ranks were distinguishable: low potential, medium potential, and high potential.
As he traversed the room, lost in thought, his attention was drawn to a shelf where dusty books were stored. He decided to read to uncover the contents of these volumes.
- Encyclopedia of Armies Volume 1 -
Pleasantly surprised, he settled onto a sofa and immersed himself passionately in his reading. He made some discoveries. Firstly, each egg contained a military type. For example, horned lizards were unique, but there was an exception. The majority of eggs with low potential were of insect type, the weakest of them being "swarm" type, almost no one chose them as they lacked intelligence and were moved by instinct or by clear orders from the army leader who had hatched them.
Shin pondered carefully.
"On one side, there's the army of the individual, a single person, but endowed with its own will, incredible determination. Its strength lies in its ability to act according to its convictions, to follow its instinct and vision," he thought as he observed some high-potential eggs.
Then, averting his gaze, he examined eggs that were noticeably smaller and stranger, some with holes, others surrounded by silk.
"On the other side, there's the numerous army, the strength of the mass. An ocean of weak soldiers ready to obey any order and follow without hesitation. Their weakness is compensated by their numbers."
He closed the book, a cloud of dust rising as he did so. He shook his hand to disperse the dust and attempted to grasp Volume 2.
[- Encyclopedia of Armies Volume 2 (Sealed) -]
He hesitated for a moment, then offered a helpless smile. Turning around, he headed towards the table.
"My grandfather, even my father, would undoubtedly choose an indomitable force, for everything must yield before absolute strength," he murmured, fixing his gaze on a tiny, pale green egg with magnificent luminous streaks.
[Egg of Wandering Butterfly - Low potential]
"But I believe that the beauty of military strategy lies in achieving wonders with individuals who are not meant to fight as soldiers. Even the smallest butterflies can bring down a dragon under perfect command."
Ding! [Egg selected: 1/1]
Ding! [Egg of Wandering Butterfly selected!]
The delicate egg in his hands finally cracked, revealing a burst of green butterflies with wings edged in luminous lines. As brilliant stars escaped from an enchanted sky, the winged creatures began to gracefully flutter around Shin, creating an aerial ballet of transcendent beauty. Their delicate movements seemed to paint arabesques in the room, illuminating the atmosphere with vibrant colors. The butterflies' wings caught the light, creating a magical glow that filled Shin's heart with profound emotion. It was as if nature itself was celebrating the birth of these fragile and wondrous beings.
With a wide, innocent smile on his lips, Shin disappeared, leaving behind a window.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Name: Shin Genryu
Stigma:
Name - Army of Wind Butterflies
Type - Elemental
Rank - White
- Materialization (Butterfly Infantryman) (White) -
He can create wind butterflies with his mana, who obey him at his beck and call. Each butterfly created costs him energy upon activation, and the more mana he inserts, the longer it will last. He can communicate with them simply.
Statistic - lvl1
- Spiritual Strength: 4
- Physical Strength: 2
Mana Exercise -
[Promotion Condition to Bronze: Level 10 + ???]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
***
The colossal labyrinth loomed before Yuuki, its entrances carved in stone, adorned with marble plaques bearing numbers and the names of animals. The corridors were engulfed in darkness, blending with the oppressive atmosphere of the distant castle that pierced the sky at the end of the maze.
Ding! [The evolution trial has begun! Step 1!]
Ding! [Please choose your starting path!]
Ding! [1. The Flexibility of the Cat]
Ding! [2. The Cruelty of the Spider]
Ding! [3. The Brutality of the Bear]
Ding! [4. The Cunning of the Monkey]
Ding! [5. The Wisdom of the Deer]
Ding! [6. The Forethought of the Frog]
Ding! [7. The Patience of the Stork]
Ding! [8. The Swiftness of the Dolphin]
Ding! [9. The Malice of the Hyena]
Ding! [10. The Lethality of the Snake]
Yuuki examined the options with a calm calculation. The choices seemed to reflect hidden dangers but more importantly, opportunities. "The cat, the dolphin, the monkey, the deer, the frog, and the stork," she murmured, dismissing these paths as less menacing.
For her, only total domination mattered, a lesson engraved in her soul since childhood, in the icy shadow of her sister's loss.
Yuuki's thoughts turned to her father, a legend in the bastion, adored as the strongest man, although he achieved his rank with an auxiliary stigma, not focused on power. But Yuuki's cold and methodical spirit dictated a different path. "The hyena can go elsewhere compared to the other three," she declared inwardly.
"The bear, though the strongest, is not suited to my fighting style, which relies entirely on agility."
Her gaze then fell on the two remaining choices: the spider or the snake. She weighed each option, evaluating the virtues of the snake's cunning and adaptability against the deadly web and patience of the spider. Her cold and ruthless instinct guided her towards the snake, a symbol of power, subtlety, and lethality.
Thus, Yuuki embarked on the path of the snake.
An electric thrill ran down her spine as the stone wall rose behind her, sealing her fate in the darkness of the labyrinth.
She found herself in a corridor 5 meters wide, tightly closed off.
Ding! [Choice made! Number 10!]
Ding! [The evolution trial of the snake queen mother is about to begin!]
Before Yuuki, a stone tablet emerged from the floor, at the center of the corridor. It looked incredibly ancient, with snakes of all sizes engraved on it.
She approached and observed the tablet, discovering a phrase among the snakes.
"To become an Accomplished Queen, you must have an ally to help you access the throne! Go to the corridor of the forgotten and choose your lifelong comrade. But I warn you, you cannot turn back. Once done, you will fail."
Yuuki didn't immediately understand what this text meant by ally or comrade, but she felt the ground tremble, and to her right, the wall collapsed, revealing an extremely long corridor. On each side were drawn snakes of all sizes and shapes, emitting a macabre aura for some, domination for others.
She ventured forth and stopped several times to carefully observe the paintings. It lasted for several hours, the path sometimes turning right, sometimes left.
Lost in her thoughts, she stopped once more. But this time, it wasn't intrigued by the snake drawn on the wall. It was neither large like some, nor impressive like others. In fact, it was entirely ordinary, except for the pale violet color of its scales and its gaze, which seemed wiser than average.
Yuuki teared up as she looked at this snake. She recalled the story her mother used to tell to soothe her and her sister.
"Mama! They teased me again! Why is my name so weird?" A girl with beautiful violet eyes, swollen with tears, returned home sobbing and went straight to her mother's lap.
"Mama, Murasakibi got bullied again because of her name." A slightly older girl explained the situation after entering the house a few seconds after the first.
"Well, I beat them up for picking on her." She continued softly, immediately less confident and assured.
She lowered her eyes, fearing reprimand, but nothing happened. So, she dared to open her eyes and saw her mother looking at her with love, caressing her little sister's head, who seemed to calm down.
She spoke in such a sweet tone: "That's good, my daughter, defending your sister is your role. But remember, the other children may also be someone else's little brothers and sisters."
She lifted Murasakibi in front of her, arms outstretched: "And so, because of that, are we ashamed to have a name inspired by a beast of GOLD rank killed by your father when I started giving birth to you?
The little one laughed and replied, still struggling to speak: "But...but...that's not nice."
"And so, they have the name of a magnificent violet snake that had the potential to be of Platinum rank? I don't think so. So now...let's have a scratching session!" Laughter could be heard from the house.
"It may not be the best, but it reminds me of the color of her eyes." In the labyrinth, Yuuki gently caressed the snake on the wall.
Ding! [Ally choice made!]
All the paintings disappeared before Yuuki's eyes, even the one of the violet snake, and the corridor trembled for a few seconds exactly like after reading the tablet.
After the tremors, with no other choice, she decided to continue the path and eventually arrived at a place identical to the first one she had reached. When she stepped in, everything turned white before her, and a window appeared out of nowhere.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Name - Yuuki Shenzhen
Stigma:
Name - Queen Mother Snake
Type - Special
Rank - White
- Queen's Ally (White) -
Allows signing a contract with the corpse of a White rank snake. A new life will be born. This snake will share Yuuki's statistics and Mana Exercises, but it will be a separate life, so its death is final.
Statistics - lvl1
- Spiritual Strength: 3
- Physical Strength: 3
Mana Exercises:-
[Promotion Condition to Bronze: Level 10 + ???]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------