"WHAT?!" Rex gasped.
Lady Seraphine frowned at the sudden outburst, but before she could question him, Darius chimed in. "What happened, Rex?" he asked, his face filled with worry.
Ignoring everyone, Rex's focus remained locked onto Arcane. {Father?, What did you say, Arcane?} he questioned again, still processing the shock.
But instead of replying, she flickered out of the sanctuary.
The wild human, who had been ignoring them for the past few moments, jerked up, stirring awake as he snapped his eyes onto the now flickering Arcane.
Noticing a new beast before her, Seraphine pressed in firmly. "What is happening, Rex?. You better answer me now."
Everyone noticed Arcane walking toward the iron bars that had stopped her from meeting her… father—her real, biological father.
Darius stood beside Arcane to give her confidence.
Rex understood what was happening and turned toward Seraphine. "Madam Seraphine, can you please unseal that hum—beast?" he asked in an urgent tone.
Yet her reply was that of a calculative manager. "I'm sorry, Rex, but that beast is the eye-catcher for tomorrow's event. I can't just take it out like that. People have traveled far and wide because of it." She drawled, clearly seeing this as an opportunity—and an upper hand—in negotiating things further.
The less Rex takes, the more she gets. As simple as that.
Rex frowned, then with a thoughtful gaze glanced at Arcane before making his decision. "What if I agree to work for 700 gold?" Rex said, figuring out what she wanted.
"I'm not asking to release it forever, just a couple of minutes. Or me working for you is off the table," he pushed in, his expression serious.
"Alright, alright, no need to get worked up over such a small issue." She immediately said forcing a smile, and walked toward the prison bars, and glanced at Arcane and Darius. "Please wait here," she said.
Then she took out a strangely shaped key and placed it in the key holder. With a click, the cold iron bars opened.
Everyone waited outside as she walked in at a steady pace. The man being shackled had purple, glowing eyes emanating a beastly aura from within. He was shackled from top to bottom, all the chains connected to his chest, which held a strong metal plate with a hammer engraved on it.
She reached for her storage pouch and took out a hammer—albeit a smaller one, about the size of regular keys—and pressed it onto the engraved hammer. It glowed bright yellow like the sun, and with many clicks, the chains came off the man.
{Don't worry, Arcane. Everything will be alright,} Rex comforted her while she perched on Darius's shoulders.
Everyone had gotten close, as they lived and fought together like a family—Even Ash, who had slowly started to open up while growing stronger.
As soon as the chains came off, a wild aura made the air around them heavy—though it quickly receded.
The man stood up and stretched his body, lightning crackling up as the built-up, locked-away mana surged. Chiseled muscles that would shame any athlete flashed before them. Though his eyes seemed dull.
Without glancing at anyone, his sharp eyes turned somber as he gazed at Arcane in Darius's hand.
With slow, weak steps, he walked toward Arcane, purpose flashing in his dull eyes.
Rex quickly checked his status, but as expected, only question marks revealed themselves without any information he had sought.
[Name: ??]
[Entity: ??]
[Species: ??]
[Bloodline: ??]
[Rank: ??]
[Potential: ??]
Additionally, unlike the monkey beast, which at least revealed 'Beast' beside 'Entity' in his system, this time everything turned to question marks—a testament to his strength and rank.
As the wild man closed in, Rex walked toward Arcane, silently watching as he thought,
Will he take Arcane from me? If she's happy, I'm fine with that. A question lingered.
Pushing those thoughts aside, he focused as the man took Arcane carefully from Darius's hands and rumbled, "My child," his eyes reminiscent of the happy days they had spent together. But if one looked closely, there was a small tremor and a weak crack in his voice.
"Chirp," Arcane chirped with longing, looking at her biological father with sadness and relief flickering in her eyes.
He repeated, "My child... Why am I finding you when I'm..." his voice becoming hoarse. Then, as if realizing something, he looked at Seraphine with vengeful eyes—the deep hatred palpable in his purple gaze as lightning crackled around it.
Seraphine shuddered, fearing for her life. Her eyes flashed with relief after noticing the collar around the man's neck—the restraining collar. This was the sole reason she released him without any worries.
After confirming it, she quickly reached for her storage pouch, but before she could draw anything out, Rex stepped in between them. His hands wide, as if to protect… not Seraphine, but Arcane and the man himself.
"Who are you, boy?" he questioned, his tone laced with authority, yet the same hateful and vindictive gaze lingered—showing signs of a deeper issue at hand.
"Chirp… chirp," Arcane chirped again, looking into her father's eyes, saying Rex was her—father too.
The man softened, narrowing his eyes, carefully scanning and sizing Rex up. "Thank you, human, for taking care of my child." He paused and bowed slightly in acknowledgment.
Then, his gaze turned resolute as he answered Rex's worries. "I hope you will continue taking care of her," he said and placed her on the cold floor.
"She hasn't gained her full intelligence yet and doesn't understand what's happening here. Even though I can't stay with her forever, I'll transfer my willpower and soul to awaken her—true bloodline," he rumbled, determination crackling in his voice.
Rex frowned but didn't interfere. It wasn't his place. Arcane's biological father knew better than Rex. If he was doing something, it was for her betterment, and Rex could tell he didn't have any bad intentions. So he remained silent.
The success of awakening a bloodline was slim, but the biological father had to take his chances.
And, unfortunately—or fortunately—the man was already dying from a serious injury he had gotten while saving Arcane and her mother from being captured by these same hateful humans.
Though he himself couldn't escape and was eventually caught, and even if he didn't die miraculously, he was still set to be auctioned tomorrow. This was as if "Fate itself has brought you people here." Determination flashed as lightning crackled around his body.
"I shall not die in vain because of you greedy humans," he growled, glaring at Seraphine.
Understanding what was happening, Seraphine's expression shifted the moment she realized what he was about to do. "Stop! Whatever you're thinking, I won't allow it!" she shouted, stepping forward with defiance.