Morning light spilled through the high-arched windows, casting golden shafts across the stone lecture hall. Dust motes drifted lazily in the beams, like tiny spirits summoned by the dawn.
Western border of the Kingdom of Arancia.
Third Academy of Magic and Contracts — Beginner Beast-Binding Class.
At the podium stood Rowan Grant, a middle-aged instructor with thinning hair and a beard streaked in white. His steel-gray eyes swept over the thirty young apprentices before him, his voice deep and solemn as he declared:
"The Contract Awakening… begins now!
Those whose names are called, step forward immediately!"
The words fell like sparks into dry tinder.
Twenty-nine students stirred at once, whispers and muffled excitement rippling through the room.
"Finally… the day has come!"
"If I succeed, I'll be a full-fledged Beastbinder!"
"May the Holy Light grant me a high-tier affinity…"
"Ugh, just please not snakes. I'm not spending my life with something cold and scaly."
In the shadowed corner sat a young man who didn't share the feverish energy — Levi.
His brows were furrowed, his gaze distant, as if the moment had nothing to do with him.
One moment ago, he had been in his own home.
The next, he was here — in this strange stone-walled classroom.
Unfamiliar surroundings.
Unfamiliar faces.
Unfamiliar air.
Even the language, though recognizable, was laced with archaic words and cadences he'd never heard before.
Did I… transmigrate?
Before he could gather his thoughts, a surge of alien memories crashed into his mind, merging violently with his own.
At the same time, Rowan began calling names.
"Willard Thorn."
A determined-looking young woman stepped forward. Under the instructor's guidance, she swallowed a thumb-sized "Awakening Stone," its pale surface etched with ancient contract runes.
Three seconds later, a faint violet glow spread across her body. Above her head, the air shimmered — the phantom of a purple beetle emerged, its chitinous form gleaming with an otherworldly sheen.
Rowan's gaze lingered on the apparition. His voice was steady, almost ceremonial.
"Venomous Insect Affinity."
A murmur swept through the audience.
"Sounds dangerous…"
"That's a solid talent — she could command Crimsonflame Scorpions, Hundred-Eyed Demon Spiders, Explosive Ants…"
"All of them are nightmare hunters on the battlefield!"
The Awakening Ceremony pressed on.
"Drake Mason — Crab Affinity!"
"Harris Blake — Small Avian Affinity!"
"Elmer Green — Ant Affinity!"
By now, the torrent of foreign memories in Levi's mind had fully merged with his own.
He finally understood where — and what — this world was.
This was a continent of Beastbinders.
Every person was born with an Affinity Mark tied to some living creature. Only upon reaching the age of eighteen, and undergoing the Awakening Ceremony, could that mark be truly invoked.
Affinities numbered in the hundreds, but they fell into three broad tiers:
Single Affinity — e.g., Ant Affinity, binding the user to only one species.
Kin Affinity — e.g., Venomous Insect Affinity, granting control over an entire kin group such as scorpions, venom ants, and demon wasps.
Dominion Affinity — e.g., Insect Swarm Affinity, commanding every species in a broad category, venomous or not.
The higher the tier, the stronger the beasts that could be tamed, and the greater the Beastbinder's status and power.
The weak sank to the bottom. The strong stood above all.
This was the continent's cruelest truth.
…
At last, his name was called.
"Levi Kahn — step forward."
Step… step…
Levi ascended the podium. From Rowan's palm, he received an Awakening Stone — its surface warm, its scent carrying the faint aroma of ancient wood. Without hesitation, he swallowed it whole.
These stones were forged from the spiritual plant Starlight Vine mixed with powdered Dragonblood Ore, refined into a crystalline core. Centuries of trials had proven them harmless, their only purpose to draw forth the Affinity Mark slumbering in one's bloodline.
The next instant—
BOOM!
A searing burst of seven-colored flames exploded from deep within Levi's body, so blinding it was like a sun had fallen into the room.
Light flooded every corner of the classroom, scorching the air itself.
Cries of alarm erupted as students flinched and shielded their eyes.
"It's—too bright!"
"What kind of Affinity is this?!"
"Impossible! That glow… it has to be a high-tier talent!"
Ten seconds later, the radiance began to fade.
One by one, the crowd dared to open their eyes—only to snap their gazes to Levi.
Rowan's expression froze the moment he saw the phantom above Levi's head.
It wasn't a single creature.
It was an endless host of dragons soaring through the skies—
A golden-scaled Sky Dragon.
A silver-winged Yinglong.
An obsidian Abyss Dragon.
An emerald Sea Dragon…
Each one radiated a pressure that crushed the soul, a dominance above all living things.
Rowan's voice trembled.
"…Dragon Affinity."
The room erupted.
"The legendary strongest Affinity!"
"It means he can bond with any dragon in existence!"
But not every face held awe—some were shadowed with doubt.
"Strong or not, dragons are rare beyond belief…"
"Bonding with an adult dragon? Easier to hit a falling star with your eyes closed."
"Without power and resources, this 'talent' might end up just an empty title."
The chatter slowly dwindled, the air thick with a strange tension.
And then—
A cold, mechanical chime rang directly in Levi's mind.
[Ding—]
[Basic conditions met.]
[Infinite Dragon Fusion System — activated.]
[Activation gift pack delivered.]