Kael, still blissfully unaware of the storm he was about to walk into, straightened up.
"Alright," he said, rubbing his temple in a half-hearted attempt to chase away the lingering ache. "Have you two finally decided which beast you're going to form a contract with?"
He looked over.
Sarah and Mara were still standing beside Wilson, clustered around the Horn Rabbit's cradle like it held the secrets of the universe.
Mara shook her head slowly and let out a long, defeated sigh."No… they're all too cute. I can't choose."
Sarah immediately jumped in, words spilling out before Kael could even process the first sentence.
"Exactly! I mean, look at the Horn Rabbit—it's adorable. But that Fiery Chicken is also super cute. And the Long-Tail Saber Wolf pups—did you see how fluffy they are?!"
She didn't stop there.
"And the Spark Mouse! Oh, and the Shellback Turtle baby—did you notice how it tucked its head in when someone walked past?"
Mara nodded along, adding her own comments, counterpoints, and sudden changes of heart as if they were debating matters of national importance.
Kael watched.
In silence.
Then, very slowly, he lifted a hand and pressed his palm to his forehead.
"…Hahh," he exhaled.
When the two finally paused to breathe, Kael took the opportunity.
"Can you try," he said carefully, choosing each word with the precision of someone defusing a bomb, "to think about something practical… instead of just picking whatever looks the cutest?"
Both girls turned toward him at the exact same time.
"You can have all the cute things you want later," Kael continued, already sensing danger. "But right now, you should be choosing a beast that actually suits your role. This contract isn't a toy."
Silence.
Not the peaceful kind.
The dangerous kind.
Wilson, standing off to the side, didn't intervene.
He simply observed.
Because this—making a choice and owning the consequences—was part of the lesson.
Life works that way, he thought quietly. Sometimes you don't just carry your own choices… but the weight of others' as well.
Bram and Jack, for their part, had the good sense to stay out of it.
They weren't close enough to Sarah or Mara to get involved, and they certainly weren't brave enough to insert themselves between two offended girls and a bluntly honest boy. Instead, they drifted away, pretending to examine other enclosures with sudden, intense interest.
Back with Kael—
"You're saying cute things aren't practical?" Sarah asked, eyes narrowing.
"Yeah," Mara added, crossing her arms. "How dare you?"
"That's not what I said—" Kael began.
"So you just don't like cute things?" Sarah pressed.
"That's not—"
"You're heartless," Mara declared.
"That's not—!"
At some point, the accusations had snowballed far beyond anything he could reasonably argue against.
Standing there—branded an enemy of all things cute—Kael accepted one undeniable truth:
Choosing a beast might be difficult.
But arguing with girls about cute things?
That was far more dangerous than any monster in the dome.
----
After what felt like an eternity, the girls finally stopped accusing Kael of crimes he was fairly certain he hadn't committed in any lifetime.
By that point, Wilson had already made a graceful retreat, joining Jack and Bram near another section of the hall. He clearly had no interest in listening to young people argue over the philosophical importance of cuteness.
Sarah drew in a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and declared,"Okay. I'm done."
She jabbed a finger toward Kael."You choose a beast for me. I can't decide—unlike a certain someone who's apparently immune to cuteness."
Mara nodded immediately."Yeah. Mine too."
Kael stared at them.
For a long second.
"…You could've just said you wanted my help," he muttered.
He sighed inwardly.
Why does everything have to be dragged out like this?
Kael had never understood women in his previous life. And judging by recent events, this life didn't seem particularly interested in changing that.
"Fine," he said at last. "I'll choose your beasts."
The moment the words left his mouth, he felt it.
His mana reserves—full.
Completely restored.
Kael twitched.
So that's how long you two spent lecturing me…
He shook his head slightly.
I'm not doing this kind of nonsense again, he vowed silently.
Still, he closed his eyes.
[Soul Compatibility].
This time, the activation felt different.
Controlled.
The pull was still there, but weaker—measured. Like opening a valve instead of tearing something loose.
The world shifted.
Color drained away, replaced by luminous outlines and layered structures. People became silhouettes once more—but Kael didn't linger on them this time.
He knew what he was looking for now.
Connections.
Threads.
He glanced at Sarah first.
Her soul flared into view—deep sky-blue, fluid and energetic. From it extended faint, translucent lines, spreading outward like roots searching for something to anchor to.
Kael turned his attention outward.
The Egg and Infant House unfolded before him in a way he hadn't seen before.
Egg incubators glowed softly, each egg radiating its own subtle signature. Nearby, newly hatched chicks rested in pods, their soul-threads short and barely formed.
He moved past them.
Mammals next.
Fire-breathing kittens. Horn Rabbits. Monkey cubs. Each carried a distinct density and hue—some light and skittish, others heavier, more grounded.
Then reptiles—scaled lizards basking under heat lamps, serpentine hatchlings coiled in warmth. Their soul signatures were cooler, steadier.
Amphibians followed—frogs and salamander-like creatures, their pulses slow and rhythmic, almost meditative.
Kael scanned them all.
He watched how Sarah's soul threads reacted—how some recoiled, some dimmed, others trembled faintly… and a few—
Pulled.
After a quick sweep—never lingering on any single presence for more than a heartbeat—Kael finally felt it.
A pull.
Clear. Distinct.
That one.
He couldn't actually see the creature itself. The soul-thread connected, yes—but the enclosure lay just beyond his immediate focus. Even so, Kael memorized the location instantly, fixing it in his mind like a point on a map.
That was enough.
He shut the skill down immediately.
The soul-vision collapsed, and Kael winced as normal sight rushed back in all at once. He blinked several times, letting colors and shapes settle into place while deliberately ignoring the faint, lingering drain tugging at his mana.
Way too fast, he thought grimly. This thing drinks mana like water.
Without taking his eyes off the direction he'd chosen, he said simply,"Let's go."
Sarah's eyes lit up like someone had just told her a secret.
"Really?!" she exclaimed.
Mara didn't wait for confirmation. She grabbed Sarah's arm and tugged her forward."Come on, come on!"
The two hurried after Kael, excitement bubbling over now that a decision had finally been made.
A short distance away, Wilson watched the scene with an amused, knowing smile.
Jack glanced sideways at Bram."…Should we go too?"
Bram shook his head so hard it was almost violent."Are you insane? Did you see how long Kael got lectured earlier? I'm not stepping anywhere near that battlefield."
Jack opened his mouth to argue—
Then closed it.
He couldn't refute that.
Wilson chuckled softly as he followed after them."Alright," he said, hands clasped behind his back. "Let's see what our young ones have chosen for their contract."
They stopped in front of a low, reinforced enclosure.
Sarah took one look—
And froze.
"…Are you serious?" she blurted out, pointing.
Kael stared as well.
For a moment, even he didn't know what to say.
Inside the enclosure sat a creature about the size of a hen. It perched awkwardly on its haunches, posture oddly upright, tail stretched straight behind it for balance.
It sat like a hen.
But it was absolutely not a hen.
Its skin was scaled, not feathered.Its snout blunt and ridged.Small clawed forelimbs tucked close to its body.And its eyes—sharp, alert, intelligent—tracked movement with unsettling focus.
Wilson stepped closer, his interest unmistakable.
"Oh?" he said, eyebrows lifting. "You chose this one, huh?"
He nodded appreciatively."That's a very interesting choice."
Kael stared at the creature, his mind blank for several seconds.
Is this…
He swallowed.
Can I really tell my future grandkids that I saw a real dinosaur with my own eyes?
The creature let out a low, chirping sound.
Not aggressive.
Not afraid.
Just… curious.
And somehow, that made it even stranger.
----
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