Kael sighed, throwing an arm over his face. His eyes darted toward the clock on the wall.
3:00 a.m.
BEEP.
The system flared awake in the darkness, hovering above his palm like a smug little ghost.
[Reminder]: Candidate Kael Ardyn. This is your final day to sign a contract before the Academy Trials. Failure to sign will result in automatic disqualification.
Kael groaned. "You're worse than student loans. Fine. Let's just get this over with. What kinds of contracts are there?"
The system pulsed, text streaming like light across the air.
[Answer]: Two types of contracts.1. Legacy Contract – reserved exclusively for heirs or members of prestigious families. Grants access to rare demon eggs and allows candidate to choose their spirit pet.2. Basic Contract – available to all. Grants a standard demon egg. Spirit pet is random.
Kael sat up slowly, running a hand through his messy hair. His brows furrowed.
"Figures. Rich brats get to cherry-pick their monsters while the rest of us pray to the gacha gods." He clicked his tongue, muttering curses at himself—or rather, the original Kael. "Thanks a lot, weak-ass original Kael. Couldn't even be born into a halfway decent family. Way to screw me twice."
The system stayed quiet.
Kael jabbed a finger at the glowing panel. "Alright, then. What's behind door number two? This basic contract—totally random egg, right?"
[Affirmative].
"Hah. So all I need is luck." He chuckled under his breath, dark and humorless. "Good thing I've got none."
Still, there was no turning back.
"Fine. Give me the basic. I mean its not like i have a choice so..."
The system chimed:
[Acknowledged. Basic Contract initiated.]
The air around him rippled, light weaving together above his mattress. A faint hum filled the dorm as an object began to materialize.
A glowing egg—about the size of a football—appeared on his bunk bed, its surface etched with faint runes that pulsed with golden light.
Kael stared.
Above him, Jorin's snores suddenly grew louder, disturbing even the bats.
Kael's jaw twitched and he climbed up the ladder to the top bunk, glaring down at the sleeping bastard sprawled across the mattress.
"Snoring like a dying cow while I'm over here sealing pacts with cosmic eggs. Show some respect you fool."
He reached for Jorin's foot, tugged off a sock, and stuffed it straight into his roommate's open mouth.
Jorin gagged mid-snore, body twitching. Then, miraculously, silence.
Kael climbed back down, brushing his hands against his shirt. He could feel his hands go sticky from where he had touched Jorin's socks.
He was about to climb onto the bed when he noticed something.
The egg pulsed.
At first Kael thought it was just glowing brighter. But no—his eyes widened as he realized it was growing. The thing swelled like bread rising in an oven, stretching taller, fatter, until it loomed on the bed, nearly reaching his chest in height.
A neon green glow throbbed out of it in steady rhythm. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. A heartbeat. The light painted the whole dorm in sickly hues, shadows crawling across the walls.
Kael staggered back a step. "...That's not normal."
He jabbed at his palm, where the system interface usually shimmered to life. Nothing. He tapped harder. Still nothing.
"Come on, don't do this to me now!" His voice rose, panic tightening his throat. He smacked his palm frantically, then shouted: "System—activate, you useless piece of garbage!"
Silence.
The egg cracked.
The sound echoed like shattering bones through the quiet dorm room. Kael's chest tightened. His lips moved almost automatically: "Please be something cute. A fox. A bird. Hell, I'll take a frog. Just not…"
Crack!
A hand shot out.
No, not a hand. A warped, green claw, its skin slimy and half-rotten, oozing foul liquid that dripped down the egg's shell. Its nails were long and black, curved like blades.
Kael's stomach turned. "Oh, hell no—"
Another hand tore free from the other side, slamming against the shell. It scraped downward, peeling chunks of glowing shell with it. The dorm reeked of copper and rot.
The cuts on the hands glistened, fresh wounds opening and closing as if the skin itself was alive and writhing.
Kael gagged, pressing a fist to his mouth. For a moment, he swore he saw the wounds smiling.
He stumbled backward, anger overtaking his nausea. "SYSTEM! Get your ass out here right now!" His voice cracked, filling the room.
Nothing.
The shell split down the middle. The sound was deafening, like ribs snapping apart. The thing inside was pushing, forcing itself free.
"Oh for fuck's sake…" Kael muttered, his pulse racing.