Morning sunlight spilled through the shutters, warm and golden.
Arion sat cross-legged on the wooden floor, eyes closed, steadying his breath. Beneath the calm rhythm of his heartbeat, the Nexus pulsed faintly—an eternal reminder of the battlefield he had left behind. Its whispers were quiet for now, like a predator biding its time.
[Soul Authority: 39%.]
[Stability holding.]
He exhaled slowly. This body was young, untempered, fragile. His soul was a storm crammed into a clay vessel. If he pushed too hard, too fast, the clay would shatter.
He had learned that lesson the hardest way.
The floorboards creaked. Lyra peeked in, hair messy from sleep. She rubbed her eyes and grinned. "Training again, big brother?"
Arion smiled faintly. "Better than being lazy, don't you think?"
She wrinkled her nose. "Lazy is fun."
Her giggle was like sunlight breaking through clouds. He ruffled her hair as she scampered away, and for a fleeting heartbeat, the weight of countless deaths eased.
Later that day, he stood at the village square with other youths. Wooden weapons clattered as the instructor barked orders, his voice rough as gravel.
"Footwork first! Balance before blade!"
The children groaned, swinging carelessly. Most of them stumbled, their bodies untrained. To them, this was play.
But to Arion, every step was memory. Every swing recalled rivers of blood and broken stars. He moved with deliberate slowness, restraining the instinct to outshine them. He had no desire to draw eyes—not yet.
Even so, whispers stirred.
"Why's Arion moving like that?"
"He's never been this serious."
"Look at his stance—did he learn that from somewhere?"
He ignored them. Let them chatter.
But then—
The ground quivered. A faint ripple. Birds scattered from the treeline. The instructor froze mid-step, eyes narrowing.
"…Beast."
The word cut through the square like steel.
Children dropped their practice weapons, some trembling, others curious. Arion's pulse quickened. A beast, here? In this peaceful time? This was too soon.
From the forest's edge, shadows stirred. A low growl rumbled, carrying hunger and rage.
And then it stepped out—a wolf, larger than any natural creature, its fur streaked with dark lines that shimmered faintly like fractals.
The children screamed.
The instructor shoved them back. "Get behind me!" He drew a real blade, his knuckles white. But Arion saw the tremor in his stance. This was no ordinary wolf—it was a Fractal Beast, already resonating with the patterns of the Nexus.
Too strong for a village guard.
Arion's chest burned. The faint sigil from last night flared against his skin. The bond stirred, calling to him.
[Potential Bond Candidate detected.]
[Outcome: Fatality predicted if ignored.]
His gaze locked on the beast's silver eyes. The same eyes that had watched him the night before.
Lyra. His thoughts snapped like lightning. She was still in the crowd, frozen, staring wide-eyed at the beast.
Not again.
Before the instructor could move, Arion stepped forward. Wooden practice sword in hand, his small body trembled—but his eyes blazed with centuries of fury.
The wolf growled, lowering itself to pounce. The ground tensed like a bowstring.
Arion whispered, low enough for only the Nexus to hear:
"Give me strength… even if it breaks me."
And he moved.
The wolf lunged.
Its body blurred, fractal patterns pulsing across its fur like living lightning. The ground cracked beneath its claws as it leapt, fangs bared, eyes blazing silver.
The children screamed. The instructor raised his blade in desperation—too slow, too weak.
But Arion was already moving.
His wooden sword snapped upward with precise timing, striking the beast's snout mid-leap. Not enough to wound it—but enough to deflect its jaws from the instructor's throat.
The crowd gasped.
Arion staggered back, his small frame straining under the impact. His arms burned. His body was young, untrained. But his mind, his soul—those were weapons sharpened over centuries.
The wolf snarled, circling him. Its silver eyes locked on him now, ignoring the others.
Arion exhaled slowly. "So it begins."
[Fractal Codex: Scanning…]
[Entity: Lesser Fractal Wolf]
[Core Instability: High]
[Potential Bond Link: 67%]
The Nexus whispered, its tone unnervingly calm even as death loomed.
Lesser Fractal Wolf. Yes—he remembered. These beasts were animals once touched by the Essence Fractals, fragments of creation left behind when the gods shattered. Where ordinary wolves hunted flesh, Fractal Beasts hunted both body and soul.
If killed, their cores could be harvested—used in alchemy, weapons, or cultivation. If bonded, they could grow alongside their partner, evolving into forms limited only by will and resonance.
This was the truth of the world now: not just swords and magic, but the power of Fractals, reshaping everything.
And this wolf… in another life, he had let it pass. It had grown wild, and later, it had torn into the village before his sister's eyes.
Not this time.
Arion's grip tightened on the wooden blade.
The wolf leapt again, claws shimmering with fractal glow. Arion sidestepped, pivoting with practiced precision, and slammed the sword into its flank. The crack of impact echoed.
The wolf howled, staggering, then whipped around, fury blazing.
The villagers gasped. "How… how is he moving like that?"
"He's just a boy!"
"Those are… sword forms, aren't they?"
The instructor's eyes widened. He recognized it too. Arion's stance wasn't that of a village child. It was Swordsmanship, the foundation of a warrior's path—an art usually reserved for those trained in academies or under masters.
Arion ignored their stares. His breath was steady, his gaze locked.
"Come, then," he murmured. "Let's finish this."
The wolf lunged again—this time faster, fractal energy coursing through its claws. Arion stepped forward instead of back, his body flowing into a strike.
For a heartbeat, the wooden sword glowed faintly, as if resonating with his fractured soul. The strike landed across the wolf's head, fractal sparks scattering.
The beast crumpled, dazed, its silver eyes flickering. The bond pulsed.
[Bond Interface Active.]
[Candidate: Lesser Fractal Wolf]
[Proceed with initiation?]
Arion froze. This was the moment. In his past life, he had been too weak, too slow. But now—
The wolf whimpered, weakened but alive. Its eyes locked onto his. Silver light met his fractured soul.
And for a heartbeat, Arion saw not a monster—but a reflection. A creature clawing to survive, caught in a world broken by forces beyond it.
His chest tightened. Just like me.
"Bond," he whispered.
[Fractal Bond Initiated.]
[Stability: 42% → 37%]
[Warning: Soul strain increasing.]
Agony lanced through him, white-hot. His knees buckled. But he forced himself to endure, clutching the wooden sword like a lifeline.
The wolf snarled once, then stilled. Its silver eyes dimmed, no longer hostile. The glow faded, replaced by a faint thread of light connecting it to Arion's chest—fragile, but real.
Gasps erupted around him.
"He… he bonded it?"
"That's impossible—without a seal, without training—"
"He's just a boy!"
The instructor's jaw dropped. He had never seen such a thing. Bonds were supposed to require elaborate rituals, overseen by academies or specialists. But this child had forged one in the middle of battle.
Arion collapsed to one knee, sweat pouring down his face. The wolf limped forward, pressing its head against his hand.
A whisper escaped his lips. "…First step taken."
That night, rumors spread through the village like wildfire. Arion Valestar, the quiet boy, had faced a Fractal Beast and lived. Not only that—he had bonded with it.
Some called it luck. Others called it madness. But for Arion, it was neither.
It was destiny.
And as he lay in bed, Lyra curled against his side, the Nexus stirred once more.
[Directive Updated.]
[Survive the Academy → Conquer the Academy.]
[Observation: First divergence achieved.]
Arion's eyes narrowed in the darkness.
The game had already changed.