The egg cracked further, the glowing shell breaking apart like shattered glass.
And then he saw it.
A face.
Kael froze.
Through the slime and jagged gaps, a feminine face pushed forward. The first thing he noticed were her lips—full, crimson, unnervingly perfect against her pale-green skin. But then his eyes caught the torn wound across her cheek, and his stomach twisted. The skin dangled as if clinging on by sheer stubbornness.
She was… beautiful, in the worst way possible. Pretty in a way that felt like a trap. An innocent face rotting in real time.
Kael's brows knitted together, unsure if he wanted to gag or swear. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me."
The creature pushed harder, her slimy body slipping free from the egg. Wet slaps echoed across the dorm floor as muck oozed off her skin. Then Kael's brain registered another detail—she was naked.
"Seriously?!" He spun around instantly, hand covering his eyes. "System, explain to me why the hell my spirit pet is streaking through my dorm room like she's about to audition for some cheap horror porno!"
Beep.
[Egg hatching complete. Spirit pet successfully bound.][Next step: please assign a name.]
Kael's mouth hung open. "NAME?! Bro, first—what the fuck is that?! Don't you dare beep at me like we're playing Pokémon—"
[Species: Zombie (Undead Variant).]
"Zombie. ZOMBIE?! Out of all the cool things—the dragons, the phoenixes, the shadow panthers—I get…" He jabbed his finger toward the slime-soaked nightmare behind him. "…a naked, rotting corpse waifu. Fuck my life."
Behind him, he heard the soft squelch of bare feet stepping out of the broken egg. His skin crawled at the sound.
At that moment, a muffled groan came from above.
Jorin stirred, blinking blearily. He tried to sit up, only to freeze as confusion overtook his expression. He gagged, eyes going wide—finally realizing there was something stuffed into his mouth. His own sock.
Kael tilted his head up at him and sneered. "Oh look, Sleeping Beauty finally woke up. I hope he is enjoying his midnight snack!" He thought to himself glaring daggers at Jorin's direction.
Jorin yanked the soggy sock from his mouth, coughing and swearing. "What the actual fuck,?!" His voice cracked, eyes watering as he gagged again. "What the hell—ugh—it tastes like swamp ass!"
Kael ignored him, still glaring at the glowing system screen hovering above his palm. "Don't talk to me about your swamp ass. Look at that!" He jerked a thumb over his shoulder without turning around. "My egg just spat out a hentai reject zombie girl, and apparently I'm supposed to name her."
Jorin frowned, still half-asleep. "…Wait. Did you just say zombie girl?"
A wet, guttural moan filled the dorm. Both their heads snapped toward the sound.
The girl—no, the zombie—stood fully free from the shattered egg now. Her body glistened with slime, pale skin torn in places, but her movements were slow, almost delicate. Her empty, glassy eyes flicked toward Kael like she was studying him.
Jorin's jaw dropped. "Holy shit . Wait....uhhh—why is she...naked?" He asked, his eyes growing wide in realization. His eyes flickered down involuntarily. "Damn" he whispered, acknowledging her round breasts, slim waist, wide hips and thick thighs. But when it met his gaze, he scrambled back so far he nearly fell off the bunk. "Bro, what the hell did you bring into our room?! She looks like she crawled out of Silent Hill!"
Kael dragged a hand down his face, exasperated. "Don't ask me! Ask the goddamn system that thought THIS was a good idea. Out of all the possible pets, I get Discount Corpse Bride!"
[Reminder: please assign a name.]
Kael snapped. "How about Fuck Off?!"
[Invalid input. Please assign a valid name.]
Jorin gagged again, pointing with trembling hands. "She's—she's drooling, dude. She's literally drooling all over the floor. That's disgusting."
Kael finally turned to look at her. Sure enough, slime mixed with saliva trailed down her chin as she tilted her head curiously at him.
He groaned loudly. "Why couldn't I get a wolf? Or a hawk? Hell, I'd take a goldfish. But no. Of course the universe gives me a zombie girlfriend with no pants. Fantastic."
The system screen pulsed brighter.
[Please assign a name.]
Kael pinched the bridge of his nose, muttering curses under his breath. Finally, he exhaled. "Fine. Whatever. Your name's… Zaida."
[Name confirmed: Zaida.]
The light dimmed. Kael slowly turned back toward his so-called spirit pet, still half-expecting her to lunge at him with those rotting claws. Instead, she just stood there—slime dripping from her pale body, greenish skin gleaming under the neon glow. The puddle she'd left on the floor spread wider by the second, filling the room with a foul, metallic stench.
He ducked into the bathroom, grabbed the nearest towel, and tossed it at her chest. "Here. Dry yourself before I slip and crack my skull on your bodily fluids."
Zaida tilted her head like a confused puppy, then slowly raised the towel. With stiff, awkward motions, she wiped herself down. Wherever the towel passed, the slime faded. Even more unnervingly, her wounds began to knit together—ragged flesh pulling tight, as if stitched by invisible hands. The cuts sealed into thin, eerie seams that almost resembled surgical sutures.
Kael blinked. "…Huh. That's both horrifying and impressive."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Reminder: 25 hours remain until the entrance exam.]
He glanced out the classroom window. Outside, some students were already training hard, sparring and testing their demon pets before the big day.
At the front, Master Deylan's voice cut through the noise. "By now, all of you should have obtained your demon pets. Summon them forth."