The night wind over Ashvale City carried a faint chill, but Aether barely noticed it. He sat on the rooftop of the orphan shelter long after the city had gone quiet. Most of the lights below had faded, leaving only a few lanterns flickering along the streets.
Beside him, the Fire Pup rested comfortably, its small body glowing faintly like a living ember.
At first glance, nothing about it seemed special. Anyone who saw it would think the same thing the crowd had earlier—a weak beast, barely worth mentioning among tamers. Yet Aether couldn't shake the feeling that something unusual had happened during the contract.
That strange voice still echoed faintly in his mind.
Perfect Evolution Talent Activated.
He frowned slightly as he looked at the Fire Pup. The creature noticed his gaze and wagged its tail happily.
"You look too normal," Aether said quietly.
The pup responded with a small bark.
For a while, neither of them moved. The city was peaceful, and the sky above was clear enough to reveal faint stars. In the distance, one of the Ascension Rifts shimmered briefly before fading again.
Aether leaned back against the wall, thinking about everything that had happened during the ceremony. The reaction of the crystal had been strange, and the sudden activation of that mysterious talent was even stranger.
Most tamers awakened their talents slowly over time. Some never awakened one at all.
But his had appeared instantly.
Without warning.
Without explanation.
He closed his eyes for a moment and focused inward.
Almost immediately, a faint reddish golden glow appeared in his mind again. It wasn't as strong as before, but it was definitely there.
Then, something new happened.
A panel of information seemed to form in his thoughts.
Beast: Fire Pup
Rank: Basic Beast
Evolution Potential: Unknown
Special Trait: Perfect Evolution Affinity
Aether opened his eyes quickly.
"That's not normal," he muttered.
He had read many books about tamers growing up in the shelter's small library. None of them mentioned anything like this.
The Fire Pup tilted its head again and slowly walked closer, resting beside him. As it did, its flames flickered brighter for a moment.
Aether noticed immediately.
"You're changing already."
Normally, beasts required resources, training, and time to evolve. Some tamers spent years gathering rare materials just to push their beasts to the next stage.
But something about the connection between him and this Fire Pup felt different.
Almost… effortless.
Curious, Aether placed his hand gently on the pup's head.
The moment he did, the reddish golden light in his mind flared slightly.
Aether felt a surge of energy pass through the connection between them.
Then the Fire Pup's flames suddenly grew brighter.
For a brief second, the small creature's form seemed to shift, as if something powerful was trying to awaken within it. But just as quickly, the change stopped and the pup returned to normal.
Aether stared at it.
"That was almost an evolution…"
The Fire Pup yipped proudly, as if it had accomplished something great.
Aether couldn't help but smile faintly.
"Let's not do that in public yet."
---
Meanwhile, in a distant part of Ashvale City, a group of people were gathered inside a large hall belonging to one of the ruling factions of the region.
The hall was quiet except for the soft hum of a glowing device placed at the center of the room. The device displayed faint readings taken from the academy's ceremony earlier that day.
One of the elders standing nearby frowned as he studied the information.
"That fluctuation during the ceremony… are we certain it wasn't a malfunction?"
Another man shook his head slowly.
"No. The crystal reacted to someone."
"Do we know who?"
The man adjusted the device, bringing up a list of names from the ceremony. For a moment, his eyes paused on one entry.
Then he looked confused.
"This candidate… there's almost no record of him."
The elder stepped closer.
"What's the name?"
"Aether."
The elder's expression darkened slightly.
"Find out more about him."
---
Back at the shelter, Aether was still sitting on the rooftop, unaware that someone had already begun investigating him.
The Fire Pup suddenly stood up and looked toward the city, its ears twitching slightly.
Aether noticed.
"What is it?"
The pup growled softly—not in fear, but in awareness.
Somewhere far away, a faint pressure moved across the night air. It was subtle enough that ordinary people wouldn't notice it, but beasts were more sensitive.
After a few seconds, the feeling disappeared.
The Fire Pup relaxed again and sat down.
Aether looked at the distant buildings thoughtfully. "Looks like being a tamer isn't going to be as quiet as I hoped."
He then focused on the strange information panel that had appeared earlier. The words Perfect Evolution Affinity stood out in his mind.
If it meant what he thought it meant…
Then his beasts might evolve much faster than normal.
That possibility was dangerous.
If people discovered something like that, powerful factions might try to control him.
Aether had grown up in the shelter, but he wasn't naïve. The world of tamers was full of politics, rivalries, and hidden dangers.
He needed to be careful.
"From now on," he said softly, looking at the Fire Pup, "we keep things quiet."
The pup barked in agreement.
---
The next morning, Ashvale City was buzzing with news from the ceremony. Many people were discussing the talents displayed by the heirs of powerful families, predicting who might become the next elite tamer.
Almost no one mentioned the boy who had contracted a Fire Pup.
But inside the academy records room, someone was looking at his file again.
A young woman wearing the uniform of a high-ranking faction stood beside a desk, scanning through the information.
"Orphan," she murmured. "No known family. No background."
Yet something about the report didn't sit right with her.
Especially the note about the crystal fluctuation.
She closed the file slowly.
"Interesting."
---
Meanwhile, Aether walked through the streets of the city with the Fire Pup quietly following him. The creature was small enough that most people ignored it completely.
Which was exactly what Aether wanted.
He stopped near the entrance of the academy, where new tamers were required to register for training and faction evaluation.
As he looked at the tall gates of the academy, he felt a strange sense of anticipation.
Yesterday, he had been just another orphan.
Today, he had taken the first step toward becoming a tamer.
And something deep inside him told him that his path would not be ordinary.
The Fire Pup looked up at him.
Aether smiled faintly.
"Let's see where this goes."
Neither of them realized yet that powerful eyes were already watching from the shadows—and that the small evolution that had almost happened the night before was only the beginning.
Soon, the world of tamers would begin to notice.
And when they did, the rise of the Beast Monarch would accelerate.