"Beep… Beep… Beep…"
The sound of an alarm echoed through the small, cozy room, shattering the peaceful environment. In the dim light, a well-built guy lay comfortably on a medium-sized bed, wrapped in white sheets.
Without bothering to open his eyes, he fumbled around for the alarm, hoping to turn it off.
After a few fumbling attempts, he finally managed to turn it off, but by that time, he was already wide awake. The sleepiness vanished, and for a moment, a bright silver light flickered in his eyes.
"Crap! It's not even 10:00!" he exclaimed, looking at his phone to check the time.
"Why on earth did I set my alarm for 6:00?" he thought, trying to get out of bed.
Then he suddenly froze.
"Oh no! It's today, the qualifier meeting for the final test!" he muttered, soon blinking furiously and running to the bathroom.
—
In the Meeting Hall
Elias and all the other 99 participants had gathered in the large, noisy Meeting Hall filled with conversation, footsteps, and a number of media personnel running about trying to get interviews from the finalists.
Dressed in his usual dark clothes and hoodie, Elias hung to the side, trying not to draw any attention to himself.
He had to stay in the shadows, hiding secrets he wasn't ready to share until he had the strength to face those who might threaten his very existence.
But little did he know, a pair of eyes in the darkness, biding their time, watched every step of his.
Elias once again turned his head through the crowd, as shivers went down his spine. He had this feeling every time when someone secretly watched him.
Of course, he couldn't forget the fearful words of Bartholomew Stark.
' You should place your loyalty on the winning side, not the other way around.'
"Quite the racket, isn't it?" A boy in bright red armor came up, flashing a friendly smile.
His body was massive, his muscles almost bursting out of his armor, making him well-nigh twice as large as Elias.
Elias lifted his head, his face expressionless and nonchalant.
"Yeah," he grumbled, looking back down at the floor, slightly irritated.
'Why won't this guy just leave me alone? What's with the huge physique? Is he some kind of human giant hybrid?'
The thoughts swirled in Elias's mind while he stared at the figure above him.
Smiling warmly, as if he had noticed nothing off in Elias's tone, Ren introduced himself, extending his right hand for a friendly handshake. "I'm Ren, nice to meet you!"
"Elias," he replied reluctantly, still sounding highly uncomfortable, and still keeping his gaze fixed on the ground, not returning the handshake.
Ren was silent for a moment, after which he burst into a merry laugh. "Getting a little nervous, huh? Haha, relax! It's just a mock! Your life is not on the line, right? I know you want to pass the finals, but you should realize, reaching even the second level was big enough already. We passed that stage, didn't we?
Elias refused to look at Ren, as if he had not heard a single word after what Ren had said.
Ren realized that Elias was a man of few words, but he did not leave. After several seconds of uncomfortable silence, the figure of Bartholomew Stark jumped onto the enormous screen.
"Hey everyone! Listen up!" His hoarse, powerful voice thundered, quieting the whole hall immediately.
After making sure that it was quiet enough, he began his speech in an indifferent voice: "I am not here to waste anyone's time with 'Congrats, you've made it through the second trial! You did great!' or whatever nonsense. All I'm here to inform you is that in three days' time, the final trials are on, and you lot ought to get your acts right, because this next round is not going to be all smiles and fun like the last two.
Instantly, at his words, nervous whispering started among the contenders.
"Did he really call the last trials fun play? No way!" Ren exclaimed.
"So they weren't even close?"
"Yup, sounds that way!"
Others echoed this opinion.
"Shut it! Did I give you permission to talk?" The voice was Sharp's now, laced with anger.
The hall fell silent instantaneously.
After a brief pause, he added, "That's it for the meeting. Now get out!"
Everyone in the hall exchanged bewildered glances, their expressions a mix of confusion and disbelief at the unexpected attitude of their national idol, the beast tamer.
—
The voices in the Meeting Hall were still faintly reverberating in his ears, but as Elias walked along the streets, it finally faded away. Only three days remained until the final trial; the announcement weighed on him. He had more to train, and the only one to teach him was Celestia.
The next morning, Elias set out early, his destination the café where Celestia often appeared. The streets bustled with morning activity, as he started his journey.
As Elias turned down a narrow alley, a sudden stillness swallowed the air, silencing the city's lively sounds. His senses sharpened as his instincts screamed danger.
"Elias Stroud," a cold, gravelly voice called from the shadows.
Elias froze mid-step, his gaze darting around the alley. From the darkness emerged two figures cloaked in flowing black robes. Their hoods obscured their faces, but the strange glowing emblem etched into their robes—a jagged circle intertwined with runes along with two golden snakes—caught his attention. He found it odd that they seemed familiar, yet he couldn't recall where he had encountered them.
"Who are you?" Elias demanded, his voice steady despite the tension building in his chest.
The taller of the two stepped forward. "That's not important. What matters is the power you possess—and how it threatens everything we stand for."
Before Elias could react, chains of dark energy erupted from the ground, lunging toward him like serpents.
Elias rolled barely in time to the side as the Void Chains slammed into the ground with a resounding crack and recoiled with a bounce, readying for another strike.
Elias extended his hand and called a beam of condensed light, firing it at the cloaked figures. The alley lit up as if a flare had gone off. The smaller one leaped back, avoiding the blast, while the taller one materialized a wall of pure darkness to absorb the attack.
[Beep…
200 Beastial Qi has been consumed.
Current Beastial Qi balance: 4800/5000]
A holographic alert of shimmering azure materialised at the corner of his vision, carefully kept from interfering with his sight.
"Void Chains!" shorter one growled, launching another wave of dark tendrils at Elias.
Elias spun on his heels, dodging one set of chains while firing another light beam to intercept the others. Sparks flew as light clashed with darkness, the alley illuminated in brief violent flashes. He pressed forward, closing the gap between himself and his attackers.
But they were faster.
The smaller figure vanished into the shadows with a shimmer, reappearing behind Elias in an instant.
"Damn it! They can teleport too?" Elias thought, barely dodging under a slicing arc of darkness aimed at his neck. He countered with a wild swing of his glowing fist, but the figure dissolved into the shadows again, evading effortlessly.
"You'll need more than brute force to survive," the voice taunted, its disembodied tone reverberating in the air.
Elias gritted his teeth in frustration. His light-based attacks were effective but much slower compared to their fluid motion within shadow. And from what he had learned from Celestia, the strength of Light was considerably weakened when pitted against the might of Dark.
Suddenly, a guttural growl echoed through the alleyway, cutting through the tension like a knife. Then, from the ground itself, a pool of churning darkness formed and then bubbled, sending forth two monstrous creatures.
One was a great wolf with jagged black fur and eyes that glowed red. Its claws scraped against the pavement, leaving deep gouges as it prowled toward Elias. The second beast was smaller but no less terrifying—a scorpion-like creature with a stinger pulsating with venom.
"Two against one? Hardly fair," Elias muttered under his breath, clenching his fists as his body surged with light energy.
The wolf sprang first, its claws outstretched for Elias's torso. He managed to sidestep it, countering with another beam of light that scorched its side. The beast howled but didn't slow, its wounds healing almost instantly as darkness swirled around it.
The scorpion beast wasn't idle. It skittered around Elias, striking with its tail. He ducked, the venomous stinger barely missing his head and embedding itself into the wall behind him.
Elias took the opening once more, firing a beam that hit its mark into the scorpion; with a shriek, part of its carapace melted away. But the wolf was relentless, pouncing on Elias before he could regain his footing.
The two tumbled on the ground, and the wolf snapped its jaws within inches of Elias's face. He grunted, shoving his arm against the beast's throat while his other hand conjured a burst of light directly into its chest.
The explosion sent the wolf flying, but Elias barely had time to breathe before the chains returned, wrapping around his legs and dragging him toward the cloaked figures.
"Your power of light is nothing here," the taller figure sneered, wrenching the Chains of the Void tighter around Elias. The energy began to forcibly enter his body, turning his limbs numb.
Elias fought hard, attempting to call forth another beam, but to his shock, he realized he couldn't tap into the light's energy, the energy of the stars!
"System, what is happening? Why can't I log in to the light?" he mumbled urgently while his brain was being inundated by a surge of pain.
[Beep…
The chains of void have cut the connection of the host with the Stellar Power.
Action required: Move away from chains!]
[Beep…
Host's health is decreasing out of control!
Take immediate action…]
He was unable to read the final part of the system notification as his vision began to blur due to the oppressive darkness closing in around him.
"Is this it?" the figure sneered, coming into the light. "I mean, this is even a threat to our master?"
Elias's fists clenched as his breathing grew ragged. He could not allow it to end here, not before he found the reason behind these attacks and reached Celestia.
"Focus… focus… You can't die yet!" he told himself. Summoning every ounce of his willpower, he reached deep into his core, forcing his way entering into the beast sigil in his hand.
At first he felt nothing! But slowly, he felt his hand getting warmer and eventually the warmth spreading through his whole body.
[ Beep…
The host has initiated the Unknown Beast Sigil's hidden power to force open the connection…
Connection successful!]
A burst of light exploded from his body, breaking the chains and forcing his attackers to back away.
"Impossible!" the taller figure spat, his hand shielding his face from the sudden brilliance.
Elias rose, his body shining with golden energy. He was stronger now, and with the leveling system he had somewhat comprehended through his duels with Celestia.
[ Beep…
Host has used the ability: Starpower infusion
Host +500% enhancement to strength and agility, lasts for 5 min.
Host has triggered the skill of Rapid Regeneration.
-1000 Beastial Qi
Balance of Beastial Qi Left: 3000/5000]
A comforting feeling of warmth coursed through his body and engulfed him within an ethereal aura stirred by the mysterious aura emitting from the Bsast Sigil.
He could literally feel his wounded body rebuilding at an incredibly fast speed. His entire body filled with enormous energy.
Once again the beasts started to attack him. The wolf lunged forward, its mouth open like a hellhound just unleashed from the underworld.
Elias stepped aside, ready this time, and lashed back with a beam so heavy that it exploded the wolf in a burst of fire. The scorpion went next, but Elias's reactions were sharper and faster by now. He ducked under the stinger at an astonishing speed and gave another point-blank blast into the creature's body.
The little figure: the shorter one attempted to melt into the shadows once more, but Elias was ready for him. He shot a wide beam of light down the alley, leaving no inch of space to hide in. The figure shrieked as the light burned through his defenses, and he stumbled backward into the arms of his taller companion.
"This isn't over," growled the taller of the two, summoning a swirling vortex of darkness to writhe around himself and the injured. " We will return"
The whirlwind collapsed in on itself, leaving the alley eerily still once more.