The morning bells tolled like iron hearts striking the dawn.Lyn stood in the Binding Arena, a circular pit lined with shimmering runes. The scent of incense and burnt mana filled the air as a hundred students gathered along the balcony, eyes gleaming with excitement and doubt.
"Next up—Lyn Ashveil, Beast Taming Division, Class E!"
Murmurs rippled. Class E. The lowest of the low.
Lyn exhaled. Umbra's faint essence flickered beside him, still incomplete—just a misty shape, waiting.
The instructor, Master Voren, a tall man with silver hair and eyes like stormlight, gestured toward the sigil circle."Your task: summon and bind the beast within the seal. Fail, and you're expelled."
The crowd whispered. Expelled. No pressure.
Lyn stepped forward, gripping his pendant. He could feel Umbra stirring, its voice brushing faintly against his mind.
"Are you ready?""You think I'm not?" Lyn murmured."I think you're scared.""You're not wrong."
Mana flared. The seal ignited—blue fire, swirling mist.From it rose a creature of shadow and bone: a Spectral Direhound, eyes glowing crimson, growl vibrating through the runes.
Students gasped. An Intermediate-rank beast? For a Class E?!
Master Voren frowned. "This isn't right—someone tampered with the summoning."
But Lyn didn't move. His heart pounded, but a strange calm washed over him. He raised his hand, golden light tracing his veins. Umbra's mist spiraled outward, merging with the shadows of the Direhound.
"We share the same darkness," he whispered. "So listen to me."
A shockwave burst from the circle—gold and violet light intertwined.When the brilliance faded, the Direhound knelt.Its crimson eyes now burned amber.
Umbra stood beside it, fully manifested for the first time, a sleek wolf of smoke and runes.
The arena fell silent.
Master Voren's voice trembled slightly. "Impossible… Dual Resonance Binding."
Lyn smiled faintly, his amber eyes glinting with quiet defiance.
"Guess Class E isn't so weak after all."