Kai lay still, blood and rain mingling on his face, his breath shallow. The ache in his chest had dulled, not because the pain was gone, but because it had become part of him. He stared blankly at the grey sky, watching the clouds shift and the raindrops fall like silent tears from the heavens.
Then he heard it.
A soft hum.
His eyes flicked toward the source. Behind him, where the strange blood-drawn star had once glowed, the egg still lay.
A black egg, perfectly smooth, its surface faintly pulsing like a heartbeat.
"Summoning ritual," he murmured.
The memories of his mother's voice stirred in his mind.
"Spirit animals, Kai. They're rare and precious. A familiar summoned through the spirit ritual reflects the soul, the essence, what material are used and even the bloodline of the summoner in some cases. You can only bond with one in a lifetime. Treat them well if you summon one. If they die their master will face very big backlash."
Kai's lips trembled.
His mother had known what was coming. With her dying breath using her life force, she had given him a familiar her last gift.
He knelt and picked up the egg. It was surprisingly warm, and the moment his fingers touched its surface, it began to vibrate.
Crack.
Thin fractures began to web across the shell. A soft glow seeped out from within. Kai held his breath.
Then the egg split open.
From within, a sleek, black snake slowly uncoiled. It was about the length of a child's arm, its scales glimmering with a dark sheen, almost liquid in texture. Two black eyes looked up at Kai with unblinking affection. There was no fear in those eyes only recognition.
Kai stared in awe.
"Female," he whispered.
He didn't know how he knew. He just did. As though some invisible thread now tied them together.
His mother's voice echoed again in his thoughts. "Female snake familiars are loyal. Affectionate. Protective. They'll die before letting harm come to their bonded."
A name.
He needed to give her a name. That was how the bond was sealed by word and will.
He thought for a moment, then spoke softly.
"Nyx."
The snake's eyes sparkled. She let out a gentle hiss and wrapped herself around his forearm. Her body was light and warm. Then, as if obeying some silent command, she began to dissolve into wisps of black mist.
The mist coiled into his skin and settled into the back of his palm. A small, black snake tattoo appeared there, curled in the same position Nyx had taken.
Bond had sealed.
BOOM
Suddenly he felt something it was the ability of Nyx. She was a rank 1 familliar which can make appropriate essence circuit in their master body, according to their master bloodline.
Kai's body began to change.
Kai held his hand up and stared at the mark.
"Thank you... Mother," he whispered.
The wind had slowed. The rain was gentler now, more like a cleansing shower than a storm.
For a moment, silence.
Then he felt it.
Death.
It wasn't a smell or a sound it was a feeling, like pressure in the air. All around him. Thick. Heavy and Dense.
Life Essence?
No Death essence..
His bloodline pulsed in response. The circuit made by NYX in his body, the storm of change that had erupted inside him when grief broke him apart, began to stir again.
He could sense it now.
Every broken body. Every fallen soul. Their fading essence lingered.
He hesitated. These were his people. His clan. His friends. Even the servants who had served him in silence.
Was it right?
But the answer was already inside him. If he didn't become stronger, their deaths would mean nothing. He couldn't protect the memory of their lives if he remained weak.
He gritted his teeth and stood.
"I'll carry you with me. All of you."
He closed his eyes.
He opened his circuit and started circling the death essence in his body.
A wave of heat spread through his body, and the death essence flooded in.
The warmth concentrated in his navel first, swirling there like a whirlpool. It spun faster and faster until something clicked. A knot in his body untied itself.
His magic core was formed. He was very happy first step is the biggest in every path.
But then
Boom.
An explosion of light within him. Silent but blinding.
His body started healing. He stared at his broke nails which started growing back.
What!!!
What is this.
His skin become slightly smoother.
He was now a novice apprentice in both cultivation and magic.
He was magus as well as a cultivator.
He gasped, he remember what such people are called they are called WARLOCK. He staggered back a step, but then smiled.
It had begun. His path to revenge had began.
Yet something else nagged at him. Power was one thing but he needed knowledge.
Magic wasn't instinctive. It required structure, formulas, and theory. His father had told him that to truly grow as a magus, he needed to learn spells, incantations, and channeling techniques.
Channeling technique was somewhat sloved becaue of Nyx but other two were difficult for him.
He needed a library. An academy. He remembered the process.
Magus academies weren't hard to enter if you had the aptitude. Which he did.
But most academies were tied to clans. The price of learning was loyalty. If he joined one of them, he would be forced to bend the knee. Be claimed.
He didn't want it for now.
He clenched his fists.
There were private academies. Neutral, unaffiliated, but expensive.
And he had no money.
He frowned.
But then he remembered.
His father had always been cautious. A warrior first, but also a provider. He had once told Kai, "If ever things go south and I'm not there, dig under the rose bush in the garden."
Kai's heart skipped a beat.
He ran toward the back of what remained of their garden. The flowers were gone, the ground scorched, but he could still make out where the rose bush had stood.
He dropped to his knees and began digging with his hands.
The soil was wet and clung to his skin, but he didn't stop. He clawed through mud, gravel, and roots. His nails bled, his fingers screamed, but he didn't stop.
Then his fingers hit something hard.
Wood.
A box.
He dragged it out, heart pounding, and opened the latch.
Inside, wrapped in oilcloth, were rows of gold coins. Dozens of them. Enough to pay for entry and living expenses at a private academy for at least a year, maybe more if he was careful.
There was also a folded note.
With trembling fingers, he opened it.
"For my son. If you're reading this, then I've failed you. I'm sorry. Use this to survive. Use this to rise. And never let the world bend you . Do not make any trouble for your mother . - Thaleic Drakkor."
Kai pressed the note to his chest. He didn't cry. Now was not the time. There were no tears left.
He looked toward the distant horizon.
"Next... an academy," he whispered.
He stood, still dirty and wounded, but his steps were steadier.
Nyx stirred within his palm, the tattoo glowing faintly.
He walked towards his horse and jumped on it. He took a last glace at his clan and left without looking back.
.
.
Soon he arrived in a small town without a name and booked an inn for at least three days he paid one gold coin and went to his room.
A gold was many family's monthly income.The room was not spacious but was good enough to rest.
It was almost midnight when he get there, so he slept, slightly clenching his chest.