The first thing Cian Archdemon felt… was silence.
No pain. No fear. Only… data.
His thoughts clicked into place like cold machinery booting to life.
"Heartbeat… steady. Neural pathways… unfamiliar. Muscle density… reduced. Genetic structure… altered."
His eyes snapped open.
A vaulted ceiling loomed above — carved stone, ancient murals of roaring beasts, and flickering torchlight casting shadows across the marble floor. His body felt… strange. Smaller, lighter. Blood no longer dripped from his wounds, but faint warmth still pulsed beneath his skin.
He wasn't in Blackthorn Academy anymore.
The memories of his death— the blood, the shattered ribs, the cold floor — flickered like static at the edge of his mind. But this place… this wasn't Earth.
His grey eyes drifted downward.
He sat within a glowing, circular array etched into the marble — runes pulsing softly beneath him. Around the edges stood figures in long robes, armored beastmasters clutching weapons, and nobles whispering with uneasy eyes.
"Ritual structure… summoning circle… energy type: unknown… hypothesis: extra-dimensional transfer confirmed."
A faint window blinked to life in his vision — sleek, blue, foreign to this world.
[ Curiosity System: Reboot Successful ]
[ Soul Fusion: 98% ]
[ Beastmaster Kingdom Genetic Integration: Active ]
[ Advanced Evolution Framework: Pending Activation ]
Welcome, Master Cian. Your death was inefficient. This… is far more interesting.
Cian's expression didn't change — that same unnerving, detached calm on his young face.
But his mind spiraled — a thousand calculations, questions, and dangerous possibilities unraveling with clinical precision.
The robed figures stepped back as a towering man approached — golden eyes sharp as blades, his aura radiating authority and beast-like pressure.
The King.
"You awaken at last," the King declared, voice rough with hidden emotion. "Prince Kael… or whoever you are now."
Cian tilted his head faintly.
Prince? His eyes scanned his own hands — smaller, unfamiliar. His reflection shimmered faintly in the polished marble.
A child's face. Not his. But… his now.
"Soul displacement… vessel inheritance… fascinating."
The King continued. "We know your soul is not my son's. But fate, it seems, made its choice. You bear his blood… his mark… his future."
Cian's gaze shifted — to his exposed collarbone, where a faint, glowing sigil pulsed with life.
Proof.
The King's voice dropped lower, dangerous, unreadable.
"You are the heir of the Beastmaster Kingdom now. You may not be Kael… but you are ours."
Around them, nobles whispered.
"Is this… truly fate?"
"His eyes… they're so… cold…"
"He looks like a prince… but… something's wrong…"
Cian stood slowly, his body weak, but his mind razor-sharp.
He smiled faintly — cold, calculating, bloodless.
"A world of beasts. Magic beyond logic. Fools blinded by fate. And me… their greatest mistake."
Inside his head, the System hummed with anticipation.
[ Curiosity Database: Initializing World Scan… ]
[ Experiment 1: Dissect Kingdom Politics — Underway. ]
Cian's grey eyes locked onto the King.
"Then let fate… play its little game," he whispered. "But I… will run the experiment."
The hall fell eerily silent.
The Beastmaster Kingdom thought they'd gained a prince.
What they summoned… was a calculating beast… wearing a genius' smile.