All eyes were on him as Wild pushed through the crowd from the very back. His gaze stayed locked on the egg, refusing to meet the mocking gazes fixed on him from every side. I can do it. Focus... He let out a heavy breath and stepped onto the golden platform without fear.
Immediately, a strange pressure descended from above, crashing down on his body and making each step heavier than the last. It felt as though the platform itself was testing him, trying to force his head down. By the time he reached the egg, Wild could already feel the weight of the entire chamber pressing against his back.
"Be careful not to break it. How will you pay for it if you do?" Somebody from the crowd shouted, drawing a wave of laughter. Even the Vice Dean let a faint smirk slip across her face before hiding it behind her hand.
"Silence! Respect the ritual!" She called out loudly, but Wild could still tell she looked down on him just like the rest. He was used to it by now. In this world, those without a family name were looked down on no matter where they went. That was exactly why he wanted to prove them wrong.
His hand trembled with excitement as he gently placed it against the egg towering over him. The scaly surface felt warm beneath his palm, almost alive, but not enough to burn him.
A faint pulse echoed from deep within the shell, and for one brief moment, Wild felt as if something inside had answered him, as though the egg itself had recognized his touch.
But to everyone watching, nothing happened.
The whole chamber fell silent. No burst of light. No violent cry. No glorious display of a beast being summoned.
Vice Dean Golden Touch narrowed her eyes, unease creeping into her chest. Something was wrong. Never in history had a summoner failed to make a connection.
Only when the Vice Dean placed her hand on his shoulder did Wild snap back to reality. His eyes rose and met a sea of snickering faces, mocking gazes, and barely hidden grins. Then laughter burst from somewhere in the middle of the crowd, spreading through the chamber in a cruel wave so biting it felt as though it were tearing into his flesh. It burned. It burned like flames crawling over his skin, and for the first time in his life, Wild panicked.
"Vice Dean... where... where is my beast?" His voice came out trembling. This was supposed to be the moment that changed everything. His chance to tear himself free from fate, to prove to the world he was not a nobody, not some orphan to be trampled beneath noble feet. And yet, something even worse had happened. Wild had not summoned a beast at all.
Celestria's face went pale. The way the nobles laughed, the way their voices drowned Wild where he stood, she had seen it before. She had seen someone close to her crushed beneath that same mockery until they chose death over living with it. She could not bear to watch it happen again.
Not again. I won't let the same fate swallow somebody else... Her fists tightened until her nails bit into her skin.
"Try again, Wild! Try again!" Her cry ripped through the chamber, slicing across the laughter and reaching him at the very edge of the darkness closing around his mind. The dead look in his eyes trembled, then cracked. A faint light returned as he slowly turned back toward the egg, his hand rising again, uncertain and desperate.
But a soft hand caught his wrist.
"You've already tried, Wild. I'm sorry, but you can only try once." She shook her head, and for the first time, her eyes held real sadness. Deep in her heart, she already knew the fate waiting for him. He would not only be thrown out of the academy. He would become a stain on history, the first person ever to stand before the egg and fail to receive even the weakest beast.
"That's right, get off already and let others have their turn, you trash!"
"They should never have allowed a lowborn like him into our prestigious academy. Now look at him, staining its name with his lack of talent."
"Orphans belong in the slums, not among the gods."
"I pity him, but at least he made history, didn't he?"
Every word only fed the fire inside Wild. He looked back at Celestria, and her burning eyes told him everything. Break free. Try again. Refuse to fall here.
Wild turned back toward the egg, his head lowering for a single breath.
"Sorry," he muttered, making the Vice Dean lean in closer.
"What was that?" she asked in a hushed voice, her grip around him loosening for just a moment.
"I must try again, no matter what..." he whispered.
Then the entire chamber went deathly silent. Countless eyes widened as Wild shoved the Vice Dean away and threw both hands toward the egg.
His heart pounded faster than it ever had before, each violent beat pushing him further past reason, filling him with a desire so fierce it felt stronger than fate itself.
The Vice Dean snapped out of her shock and lunged for him, fury twisting across her face. Never in her life had she seen a student as reckless and defiant as Wild. "Don't you even dare!" she roared, but she was already too late.
This time, however, the light spilled across the crowd. It was brilliant and blinding, almost ethereal. Waves of gold, blue, and crimson pulsed outward, gently forcing everyone back, as if Wild were the only one allowed to remain on the stage.
His hands trembled, a wide smile spreading across his face, yet there was still no cry of a beast, no roar, no shriek like the ones he had heard from every other summon. It made him waver for a brief second, but only for that long. The desire in his heart only burned hotter.
"Come! Come forth! Let me summon something powerful! I can't live like this!" he roared, and the light answered by shining even brighter.
Then suddenly, the sound of something glitching into reality pulled his eyes upward. Space itself twisted above him, manifesting into something black yet translucent, as though it had been carved from dark glass. Golden serpents crawled across its surface, coiling and twisting until they formed what looked like letters.
Wild stared at it, confusion and hope crashing together inside his chest.
[Do you desire power?]
The letters shifted into clear words, each one tugging at his heart.
"Yes... anything to escape this fate, to hold my destiny in my own hands," Wild said, his voice thick with emotion.
[Are you willing to follow my instructions for the power you desire? Great power never comes for free. It always comes with responsibility and tasks.]
"I'm willing, as long as it does not go against my heart." His words came out proud and firm, his eyes burning with desire.
[Then allow me to bless you with my system... From today on, Wild, you are the connection between two worlds. Your every decision will determine whether you can help me or not. So be careful. They will be watching...]
All of a sudden, Wild felt thousands of needles tear through his veins. The pain was so unbearable it nearly made him black out, his whole body collapsing against the egg as an even stronger pulse surged into his palms.
Then a robotic voice filled his mind. It came from nowhere, yet at the same time seemed to come from everywhere.
[Hello, user Wild. I'm your Beast Soul Transformation System.]
He could not even answer. The pain locked his lips shut so tightly that not even a sound could escape.
[Please prepare for your first summon and transformation...]
The moment the voice fell silent, heat exploded through his body. It was far too hot, as if his flesh had been thrown into living fire. His lips parted into a helpless O, and then a howl ripped from his throat, loud and feral enough to shake every soul in the chamber. The light turned blue, burning so fiercely it looked like the hottest flame in existence had taken shape around him.
[Congratulations on your first summon... You have received a mythical beast soul — Netherflame Fenrir.]
Celestria stared with her eyes wide open despite the blue light searing her pupils. Something about this felt ominous. This was nothing like the others.
"That's... no... it can't be that beast..." She muttered to herself, trembling as she stumbled backward until her back struck the wall.
Wild felt his body twist violently. His skin prickled open as blue flames burst from him, licking across his face and shoulders. The blue in his eyes was devoured by crimson, leaving behind something far more beastly than human. His fingers lengthened, sharpening into claws that glowed as though they had been forged from solid flame.
When the light finally vanished, everybody saw someone new standing on the platform. Someone who should not exist in this world...