Chapter 7: Beasthold Duel – Unleashing the Bond
Morning arrived like a blade to the throat.
Cold. Sharp. Swift.
A new arena had been prepared in the central colosseum of Aflety Magic Academy—oval in shape, with shifting terrain powered by enchantments. Its floor morphed between rocky ridges, forest patches, marsh zones, and elevation platforms, designed to test a tamer's adaptation during combat.
Floating above the field, massive translucent screens projected the matchups. The audience stands buzzed with nobles, academy professors, and powerful beast tamers, some hidden beneath cloaks of illusion.
The entrance exam had become a spectacle.
A proving ground.
A hunt.
Match One: Gareth Ironfang vs. Arlen Vette
The opening battle was a thunderstorm of brute force.
Gareth Ironfang entered the field shirtless, muscles coiled, veins lit with fire-elemental mana. His Ember Fang—a crimson sabertooth beast—growled beside him, flames licking from its mane.
Across from him, Arlen Vette summoned a wind lizard with bladed wings.
The match began, and Gareth didn't hold back. He roared, merging his beast's aura with his own, and charged.
Three minutes.
That's all it took for Gareth to claim victory.
But what shocked the crowd wasn't his strength—it was his ruthlessness. Arlen's beast was left unconscious, nearly scorched. Gareth gave a grin like a wolf scenting blood.
"I'm not here to make friends," he muttered.
Match Two: Cassia Belvane vs. Nel Duran
Cassia's fight was… elegant.
Dressed in flowing black-and-gold robes, she summoned her beast—a pale, translucent fox with spectral tails. Nel's stone lion lunged, heavy and armored, but Cassia never flinched.
With a whisper, illusion magic warped the arena.
Mirrors. Shadows. Reflections.
One tail swipe, and Nel's beast fell to its knees—paralyzed by a psychic spike.
Cassia didn't even look back as she left the field.
The judges murmured. She had potential—but carried herself like she'd already won.
Match Three: Silva Elowen vs. Nyla Crest
Silva stood quietly, hand on the wooden staff carved from spiritwood. Her nature beast—Thornborn, a green-furred panther with roots twisting from its limbs—crouched at her side.
Nyla, a thunder mage, brought a twin-horned raptor.
The terrain shifted into a forest zone.
Silva whispered. Vines erupted.
Thornborn leapt like a shadow, silent and brutal.
The battle ended in two strikes. Silva's calm masked lethal precision.
But when she stepped off the field, her eyes flicked to Evan.
She was watching him.
Judging him.
Match Four: Evan Rochel vs. Veyon Draxis
The crowd stirred.
Two highbloods. Two potential titans.
Evan stepped onto the field, calm and unreadable. Nex slithered onto his arm, his sapphire-black scales glowing faintly with a rune mark—a symbol of awakening.
Veyon entered in silence. His white cloak drifted like mist, and behind him stood his beast—Halcyros, a dragonling with mirrored wings and voidlight eyes.
Dean Gawain himself sat up straighter in the stands.
This would be a clash of beasts—but also of heirs.
"Begin!"
Veyon moved first.
No words. Just a flicker of light—and Halcyros split into two mirrored forms, dashing left and right with terrifying speed.
Evan's eyes narrowed. "Nex."
The Basilisk's body shimmered—and vanished.
Shadowstep.
The audience gasped.
The two mirror-beasts flanked Evan from both sides—but before they struck, Nex coiled up from below one of them, fangs bared. He didn't strike the beast.
He struck the connection between Veyon and his summon.
The mirror flickered—then cracked. One form disappeared entirely.
Veyon's brow furrowed. "He sees the threads?"
Evan took a step forward, his eyes glowing faintly blue.
"I see too much."
He snapped his fingers. Nex surged again, spiraling into a dark spiral of energy. Halcyros roared, launching a light burst.
But it never connected.
A ring of water and shadow rose, swallowing the light.
Then Nex appeared behind Halcyros—and bit down.
Sparks flew.
But Evan stopped the next command.
He raised his hand—offering Veyon a draw.
The crowd murmured.
Veyon considered it. Then nodded once.
"Your beast's mind is too awake. Dangerous."
Evan simply turned away, silent.
Draw or not—he had shown what Nex could do.
And more importantly, what he hadn't yet revealed.
Aftermath – The Chosen Few
By dusk, the winners and ranked elite initiates were chosen.
A list was posted on a floating stone in front of the central tower:
Cassia Belvane
Gareth Ironfang
Silva Elowen
Evan Rochel (Draw)
Veyon Draxis (Draw)
Lilith Laistrygones
Yorin Wex
Naya Vardem
The top 10 would be given special chambers, early access to elemental labs, and their own combat instructors.
The rest? They would be grouped into general classes.
Lilith walked beside Evan afterward, her crimson eyes narrowed.
"They're watching you more closely now. Your beast scared even Veyon. That means you're marked."
Evan looked to the distant tower.
"I was already marked the day I hatched Nex."
From above, Dean Gawain watched with folded arms.
Beside him, a man in scholar's robes spoke in a whisper.
"Rochel's beast… it's not just Divine. That aura—it's too ancient. Something older than classification."
Gawain gave a rare smile. "Good. Let the old world tremble."
In the Shadows
That night, in a sealed underground chamber beneath the Academy, a circle of masked figures knelt before a flickering portal.
"The boy performed as expected," one whispered. "The Basilisk is awakening. But the pact is still forming."
Another nodded. "Let them grow. We only need to take one piece—his core."
Shade Cardinal's voice echoed through the darkness.
"And when that day comes… we offer him to Sepntis."
The portal flared—revealing the outline of an inhuman, slithering form.
Eyes. Teeth. Scales. Crowned in godlight.
The Beast God watched. And smiled.
[End of Chapter 7]