Silence was the primary language spoken within the highest-level research laboratory of the Nightcrow Guild. This was the hub of the most advanced magical technology in the country. The walls, made of a special metal alloy, could easily withstand an internal explosion equivalent to that of an A-Rank Gate. The air was filtered to a pristine state, free of even the smallest dust particles. And at the center of the room, floating serenely on an anti-gravity energy analysis platform, was the onyx-colored egg.
Lucian stood with his arms crossed on the other side of the arcane safety glass, his obsidian eyes reflecting the image of the mysterious egg and the elite researchers bustling around the 3D holographic control panels.
Nearly three hours had passed since their return from the Gate, yet the progress in analyzing this mysterious object was zero.
"What's the status, Dr. Eva?" Lucian asked through the communication system. His voice was unsettlingly flat, but everyone present knew that beneath that icy calm was a storm ready to break at any moment.
Dr. Eva, a middle-aged woman and the head of the research team, took off her high-tech glasses and gently massaged her temples.
"Guild Leader... I've never seen anything like this in my life," she said, her voice a mixture of awe and utter bewilderment. "We've tried every type of scanner—matter composition analyzers, multi-frequency magic wave detectors, even dimensional resonance machines... but the results are all blank."
A giant holographic screen beside her displayed the results in stark red letters.
[ERROR: UNABLE TO IDENTIFY]
[ERROR: DATA CORRUPTED]
"Its external structure... it's stronger than an Orichalcum-Adamantite alloy. We fired our highest-energy laser at it, and it didn't even leave a scratch," Eva took a deep breath. "But that's not even the strangest part. The strange part is its internal structure. Our scans detect that there is indeed 'something' alive inside, with a steady pulse of energy. But... we can't penetrate the shell to see what it is. It's as if the shell isn't just a physical object, but a 'dimensional barrier' that distorts everything we send through it."
Lucian remained silent, letting his head researcher continue.
"And the biggest problem right now is... we can't put it into 'storage' or any dimensional inventory," she said. "Every time we try to send it into a pocket dimension, it gets 'ejected' immediately. It's as if it has its own will and refuses to go inside."
This was a major issue. Being unable to store an item meant they had to transport the object physically, which massively increased the risk of it being attacked or stolen—especially a mysterious item freshly retrieved from an S-Rank Gate.
Lucian recalled the first time he had touched the egg. That feeling of 'longing' that only he had sensed. What was it?
"Take it to the 'Serum Vault'," he finally commanded.
The 'Serum Vault' was the nickname for the guild's 'Highest-Level Biomechatronic Vault'. It wasn't just an ordinary treasure room; it was a facility designed to contain the most dangerous and unstable objects recovered from high-level Gates, specifically those with biological properties or life-like energy signatures.
Dr. Eva's eyes widened.
"Guild Leader... but that's the vault where we keep the guild's core energy sources! It has the highest level of security..."
"That's precisely why," Lucian cut her off. "Deploy maximum-level security around it and keep it under twenty-four-hour surveillance. Until you find out what it is... there can be no mistakes."
"Y-Yes, sir!"
Lucian turned and walked out of the observation room, leaving the research team to deal with the enigmatic object. He returned to his office on the top floor of the skyscraper, a room that overlooked the entire capital city. The city lights twinkled like stars on the ground, but his mind was consumed by the absolute darkness of the egg... and the 'light' it cried out for.
…
Silla hummed softly as he used a watering can on the tiny cactus sitting on his bedroom windowsill. "Little Spiky" was his only friend in this square room. He'd bought it from an ordinary plant shop because he felt a kinship with its small and unremarkable nature... just like himself.
"Drink up today, too," he said to it, as he did every day. "So you can grow up big and strong."
After speaking, he raised his palm over the cactus. A faint light began to form in the center of his hand. It wasn't a bright glare, but a soft, warm cluster of milky-white light. A gentle warmth radiated from it, caressing Little Spiky's skin tenderly.
This was the full extent of his power as a Rank F Awakened... a light element that could only provide warmth.
He thought back to his last evaluation. The assessor had looked at him with pity after he had failed to heal even a tiny wound on a test doll. He could still remember the man's words.
"It's a shame, having a light-element talent but being unable to use it for anything... Alright, Rank F."
Those words had been like a brand, reinforcing his worthlessness for years.
He dispelled the power in his hand and sighed softly. At least Little Spiky seemed to like the warmth from his power.
Silla glanced at the digital clock on the wall. Time for a shower. He stood up and checked the room out of habit, closing the windows and firmly locking the balcony door for safety, before grabbing a towel and disappearing into the bathroom.
The sound of the shower signaled the end of another perfectly ordinary day... or so he thought.
…
Meanwhile.
"Maximum level alert! Maximum level alert! Breach detected in the 'Serum Vault'!"
Sirens blared as emergency red lights flashed throughout the Nightcrow Guild headquarters. Awakened who had been resting shot to their feet in alarm. All doors went into automatic lockdown, and the high-level security team sprinted toward the building's deepest basement level at top speed.
Lucian materialized in front of the vault in less than thirty seconds, his face now colder than polar ice.
"Report!"
"Guild Leader! We've found no signs of external intrusion! The vault door is intact, all security layers are still active, but... but..."
"But what!"
"But... the mysterious object... it's gone!"
Lucian's eyes widened for the first time in years. He rushed into the vault, whose meters-thick steel doors were now open. On the pedestal in the center of the room... was nothing.
It was gone... from what was supposed to be the most secure room in the country. Vanished without a trace of a fight or a system hack. It was just... gone, as if it had never been there at all.
"Lock down the city," Lucian hissed through his teeth. "Search every square inch... Find that energy signature!!!"
An atmosphere of chaos and tension quickly descended upon the strongest guild in the nation.
…
At that exact moment...
Silla walked out of the bathroom with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. Droplets of water clung to his light brown hair and trailed down his slender shoulders. The warm steam wafting from the bathroom door created a faint mist in the bedroom.
But then he frowned... he felt a cool breeze against his skin.
A breeze? Where would that be coming from?
His eyes fell upon the glass balcony door, which he distinctly remembered locking... but it was now slightly ajar.
Did I forget to lock it? Silla shook his head at his own forgetfulness. He needed to be more careful.
He sighed and turned to get dressed, but then... his body froze solid.
On his bed... on the light blue duvet he had just put on that morning, sat a smooth, ovular, pitch-black object.
It was a large egg, the likes of which he had never seen before. Its black shell seemed to absorb the room's light, creating a deep shadow around itself. The silver patterns on its surface moved slowly, as if it were breathing.
Silla stood as if petrified. A drop of water fell from the tip of his hair, hitting the floor with a loud...
plink... in the dead silence.
His heart hammered against his ribs as if trying to break free. A cold chill ran down his spine.
What is this? How did it get into his room?
A thousand questions flooded his mind, but none were more important than the one that echoed loudest in his thoughts right now...
What on earth was happening?