Chapter 11: The vault and resonating relics
The final day of Phase Two training didn't begin with a whistle or a shout; it began with the heavy, electric silence of a predator waiting in the tall grass. The North Grounds had been stripped of its mid-tier simulations, replaced by a high-intensity "Boss Circuit" designed to push the top performers to their absolute breaking point.
Roman Dawson stood at the edge of the pit, his white cane planted firmly in the scorched earth. He didn't need eyes to feel the atmosphere. The Overlord Soul acted like a sonar, mapping the rapid heartbeats of the students in the stands, the hum of the energy shields, and the low, gutteral breathing of the beast behind the heavy iron gates.
"Match 10: Roman Dawson vs. Shadow-Stalking Panther!"
This wasn't a standard training drone or a captured herbivore. The Panther was a Grade-C creature, Rank 1, Level 9—a lethal assassin of the wild known for its "Phase-Shift" ability, which allowed it to turn into a literal shadow for seconds at a time.
The crowd went silent. Roman had swept nine matches with a "trash" snake, but this was the "Gatekeeper."
"Zuzu. Phase One," Roman whispered.
The emerald streak didn't wait. Zuzu blurred from his shoulder, hitting the sand with a soft hiss. Immediately, she spat a concentrated globule of Water-affinity moisture into the air. Simultaneously, her Wood-affinity scales began to vibrate at a high frequency, generating a localized heat spike that turned the moisture into a thick, suffocating fog.
Mist Charge,Roman commanded.
The Panther lunged, a blur of obsidian fur and liquid movement. It struck where Roman's heart should have been, but its claws passed through nothing but vapor. Roman stood perfectly still in the center of the chaos, his mind acting as the central processor for Zuzu's movements. Through his Ovelord his Overlord soul, he could track every displacement of air the Panther made.
"Now. Static Bind."
Every time the Panther landed, a localized burst of Wood-affinity vines erupted from the damp sand, infused with the conductive moisture of the mist. The Panther roared, its joints locking as the electricity channeled through the fog, bypassing its thick fur and striking its nerves directly.
When the mist finally cleared, the high-rank beast was slumped in the center of the arena, its body twitching in a rhythmic, helpless tremor. Zuzu was coiled atop its head, her golden eyes glowing with a faint, predatory triumph that made the onlookers shiver.
[BATTLE CONCLUDED: 10/10 WINS]
[TOTAL MERIT POINTS: 100]
Instructor Kael stepped onto the central podium, his massive, scarred arms crossed over his chest. He looked down at the four students who stood apart from the rest—the elite who had managed to hit the 100-point ceiling.
"Attention!" Kael's voice boomed. "Phase Two is officially closed. To the four of you who have reached the milestone—Roman, Ellen, John, and Brent—the Academy has recognized your potential. As you are all in your final year of high school, the stakes couldn't be higher. Therefore, the school will officially shoulder the full evolution cost for your transition to Rank 3.
A collective gasp of envy rippled through the stands. An evolution, especially a high-grade one, required rare catalysts and professional supervision that could cost a middle-class family their entire life savings.
"Furthermore," Kael continued, "we have invited a Junior Beast Creator from the City Council to arrive tomorrow. They will review your performance data and formulate personalized evolution plans to ensure you reach peak efficiency before the Admissions Exam next week. Now, follow me. It's time to redeem your hard-earned treasures."
The High-Resource Vault was a place of legend within the school. Behind twelve feet of reinforced titanium and Flux-shields lay the spoils of the Federation's frontier wars.
Ellen Thorne was called forward first. As the top-ranked student, she walked with a natural grace to the jewelry display. With her 100 points, she selected a D-grade Mana-Heart Necklace. The pendant was a crystalline blue teardrop that pulsed with a soft light. "It passively recharges my Flux energy," she whispered to Roman as she walked back. "It will increase my fighting duration by at least forty percent."
Brent Miller was next. He ignored the tactical gear and went straight for the elemental ores. He grabbed a Grade-C Wind-Turbine Gem, a stone that looked like a trapped hurricane. "This is the final piece," he boasted, his voice echoing in the vault. "I'll use this to push my wolf to Rank 2, Level 9 Peak. I'll be the only true powerhouse in the exams."
John Wickes took his time, eventually settling on a Light-Body Vest Shield. It was a shimmering mesh of silver wire, incredibly light but capable of manifesting a physical barrier the moment it sensed a high-velocity impact. "Now I don't have to worry about getting blindsided while I'm charging my sword," he grinned, slapping Roman on the shoulder.
Finally, it was Roman's turn. The vault guards looked at the blind boy with newfound respect as he walked directly to the botanical section. He didn't hesitate. He pointed his cane toward a refrigerated glass case.
"The Thunder-Struck Ironwood Sap," Roman said.
Kael raised an eyebrow. "The sap is a Tier-3 stabilizer, Dawson. It's incredibly dense Wood energy. Without anexperiencedbeast Creator to refine it, it could turn your snake into a wooden statue. You're sure?"
"I'm sure, Instructor."
Roman took the vacuum-sealed vial, the golden liquid pulsing against his palm like a living heart. But as he turned to leave, the Ancient Heirloom Bracelet on his wrist—the one he had kept hidden under his sleeve—suddenly let out a violent, searing heat.
It wasn't a warning of an attack. It was a magnetic pull so strong it nearly jerked Roman's arm to the side. He stopped dead in his tracks in front of a rusted metal bin at the very back of the vault. It was a "junk" container, filled with shattered artifacts, depleted stones, and items whose auras had long since flickered out.
His internal "sight" locked onto a piece of blackened, twisted metal. It was a necklace, or what was left of one. The chain was snapped, and the central gem was cracked and hollow, devoid of even a spark of Flux.
"That?" Kael walked over, looking at the bin with a frown. "That's a relic from a salvaged ruin. It was once an Eye of Insight. In its prime, it allowed a tamer to observe basic level and attribute information of wild beasts. But it's been degraded for fifty years. It's not even considered an F-grade anymore; it's literally scrap metal. We were going to toss it into the incinerator tonight."
The bracelet throbbed again, the heat now so intense it felt like it was branding Roman's skin. The bracelet in his mind was screaming, a high-pitched frequency that demanded he take the object. in his mind was screaming, a high-pitched frequency that demanded he take the object.
"Instructor," Roman said, keeping his voice steady despite the adrenaline. "Can I have this? As a... memento of my first visit to the vault?"
Kael looked at the broken piece of junk, then at the boy who had just dismantled a Shadow Lynx with a Level 7 snake. He let out a short, dry laugh and waved a hand.
"It has zero value, Dawson. If you want to carry around a piece of garbage, be my guest. Consider it a bonus for the ten clean wins. Just don't let it distract you from the evolution tomorrow."
Roman picked up the cold, dead metal. The moment his fingers closed around the broken necklace, the bracelet on his wrist went silent, its heat replaced by a deep, satisfied hum of recognition.
"Thank you, Instructor," Roman said, bowing slightly.
He walked out of the vault with the Ironwood Sap in his pocket and the broken Eye of Insight clutched in his hand. John and Ellen were busy discussing their new gear, and Brent was already bragging to a group of followers about his Wind Gem.
None of them noticed the faint, azure spark that jumped from the broken necklace into Roman's skin.
The Junior Beast Creator was coming tomorrow. The evolution to Rank 3 was less than twenty-four hours away. But as Roman walked back toward the orphanage, he knew that with the sap and this "broken" relic, the evolution plan the Academy provided wouldn't even come close to what Zuzu was about to become.
The Admissions Exam wasn't a test anymore. It was a countdown. And the timer was about to hit zero.