"What? A Noctifelis? Why in the name of the goddess am I a Noctifelis?!" Claire's thoughts screamed in a chaotic mix of disbelief, pure dread, and spiraling panic. She was now stuck in the body of a creature no bigger than a kitten, resembling a tiny Norwegian Forest Cat with midnight black fur and eyes that glowed with a deep, unsettling violet.
I mean, don't get me wrong, a magical beast would've been cool! she thought, trying to wrangle her spiraling mind. But this? This is literally the worst possible outcome!
Because in Arventia Online, out of the thousands of magical beast spiecies, it was ranked dead last. They were so fragile that players joked a stiff breeze could knock them out, and even a Level 1 slime was considered a superior fighter. They were so utterly pathetic that new players weren't even allowed to choose them as starter pets—that's how useless they were.
Sure, they were cute. Incredibly cute. But in terms of raw power, a regular house cat was tougher. Some players swore a real-world kitten was stronger, at least those didn't need rare, overpriced magical food to grow.
And their evolution path? It was a nightmare. Raising a Noctifelis to its first stage was a legendary feat of patience, time, resources, and sheer masochism. Almost no one bothered, and the few who did—Claire included—were left traumatized. Nobody ever dared to push it to the next stage.
There were only two types of players who ever kept a Noctifelis: hardcore cat lovers who didn't care about stats and just wanted a fluffy, mysterious companion, and obsessive collectors who needed every single beast in the game, no matter how useless.
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"What? How can this be?!" Alexander and Marco bellowed in unison.
A collective gasp swept through the room. Every eye in the hall was glued to the summoning circle, jaws slack with bewilderment. The creature that emerged was completely unexpected. Not a dragon. Not a phoenix. Not even something remotely intimidating. Just... a tiny black cat.
Small, fluffy, and utterly harmless. Its fur shimmered like smoke, and its glowing purple eyes blinked slowly, as if just waking up from a nap.
Nearby, Emilia stood frozen. It didn't even take much skill to recognize the creature, since its uselessness was just that famous. Her arms hung at her sides, trembling slightly. Her fingers twitched. Her eyes were wide, unblinking, refusing to accept what she was seeing.
She had poured weeks into preparing for this moment. She'd memorized every summoning chant. The magic circle had even flared gold at one point, a brilliant sign that a Legendary beast was coming!
And yet, all she had was a Common-Rank beast. The weakest one in the entire bestiary. It couldn't fight. It couldn't cast a proper spell. It was less of a magical familiar and more of a magical plush toy.
Lady Ariana rushed forward. "Emilia!" she called, grabbing her hands. "What happened? What's going on?"
"I… I don't know…" Emilia could only whisper in response. Below her, the Noctifelis fumbled around, wide-eyed and just as confused as she was.
Suddenly, a flame blazed. The summoning circle erupted in a violent flare of heat and fire.
And then he appeared.
Draco Silvervein—the Clan Head. He was a towering, imposing figure now wreathed in smoke and fury. He had teleported straight onto the summoning platform, the force of his arrival cracking the marble beneath his boots.
Emilia jolted. The air was blistering, the sudden heat searing her skin. Her heart hammered in her chest. She had never seen her father like this. His red hair billowed with magical wind. His coat whipped around him like a dragon's wings. And his eyes now burned with pure, explosive rage.
Step by step, he advanced. Each footfall left behind scorched, molten footprints. The elegant floor of the summoning chamber turned to glowing liquid magma beneath him, veins of fire cracking outward.
"Draco!" Ariana rushed in, throwing herself in front of Emilia, her arms spread wide to shield her daughter.
"Brother!" Elmandir leapt from the balcony, landing hard. He ran forward and grabbed Draco by the shoulder. "Stop! She's your daughter!"
But Draco didn't listen. He swatted Elmandir's hand away, and the moment their skin met, boom! A shockwave exploded outward. Elmandir was hurled backward, landing in a heap. He grunted, clutching his hand, smoke rising from his scorched skin.
Draco kept walking, unstoppable.
Ariana's fingers sparked with white light, a protective spell forming at her palm. She was ready to fight him if she had to.
But then, Draco didn't attack. He didn't even look at Emilia. He simply passed her, walked to the other edge of the summoning circle, and dropped to one knee. His hand reached out, trembling slightly, and he touched the circle's edge. His fingertips brushed the lines, and they smeared.
His eyes widened.
"Albinite Shard Dust…"
His whole body trembled with a renewed, focused fury. He turned to look his wife dead in the eyes.
"Ariana… what is the meaning of this?"
"What?" Ariana was stunned as she heard the words. "Albinite Shard? That's impossible! What are you talking about?" She hurried forward and knelt beside him.
And then, she saw it too. Amid the white chalk runes, barely visible, was a thin section drawn not in chalk at all, but in a kind of crystalline powder that looked no different than chalk at first glance.
Albinite Shard Dust.
"No…" Ariana breathed, horrified.