The Mirage Serpent habitat was a small desert enclosed within a larger desert-like dome. It was no larger than a small warehouse, yet it felt massive now that there were no more Mirage Serpents.

  Yes, the habitat was empty. Almost.

  Only two beasts and a small group of half a dozen caregivers remained, their agitated voices reaching my ears as I entered.

  “Why won’t you come here, Resh? Eat a little and have some fun with Oshira.” One of the caregivers half-hissed, half-pleaded, forcing a smile that never reached his eyes.

  “We shouldn’t have sold Seron. Who the fuck was stupid enough to approve that? Resh doesn’t give a shit.” The man next to them groaned, patting the serpent coiled around his arm. “You’re a good girl, Oshira. That oldie doesn’t deserve you. If only–”

  “Shut it, dude. Or help us for all I care. Just… do something!” A third frustrated voice joined the conversation as I stepped up to the man holding the young Mirage Serpent on his arm. It was an Awakened beast, a Soulkin to be precise.

  “What’s going on here?” I asked when the Blessed caregiver of Oshira noticed me.

  “Who are you? Please don’t tell me you’re here for a Mirage Serpent as well.” The Blessed caregiver grimaced. “Sorry, dude, but you’re a little late to the fun.”

  I raised an eyebrow at him, which he took as a sign to explain.

  “We’re in a little bit of a pickle. You see, this is the first year of the Grand Camp. Usually, it’s easier to calculate how many cadets come to the Beast Temple to bind new Soulkins, but with more than 10,000 cadets… let’s just say we miscalculated. It’s a mess, really.” He shook his head. “All Mirage Serpents have been sold, including Seron. Right, yeah, you don’t know who Seron is. Seron was the strongest Mirage Serpent in the habitat. He inherited old Resh’s superior racial ability, Mirage, and unlocked all three dormant traits without any serums. He’s highly virile as well and bred like there was no tomorrow, unlike his father.”

  He waved dismissively. “Anyway, some stupid fuck sold Seron alongside the other Mirage Serpents. So here we are, trying to bring old Resh back into the game.”

  I nodded thoughtfully, my gaze drifting from the caregiver to the others. They seemed distressed, though that barely caught my attention. I did not recognize any of the caregivers, my eyes shifting to old Resh. The serpent was barely visible as it disappeared into the desert sand, seeking nothing more than to be left alone.

  “Looks like someone made a killing,” I mused quietly. “Or do you believe anyone in here is too stupid to understand the value of a beast like Seron?”

  Beasts capable of unlocking three traits, coupled with a superior racial ability, would not be restrained by something as simple as a racial limit. As long as they consumed enough resources, they’d evolve. That being said, it wouldn’t surprise me if someone sold Seron to someone with a deep wallet. A wallet deep enough for a caregiver to risk it all.

  “That could be true too.” The Blessed cocked his head to the side, his eyes shifting to me, regarding me for the first time. “Wait a sec. How did you get in here? Nobody is allowed to enter the habitats without a caregiver.”

  “I worked here for a while. A few months ago, Ruler Kazriel trained me. Anyway, the higher-ups never revoked my access. Probably didn’t think it was necessary.” I offered a faint smile, hand stretched out for a shake. “I’m Adam. Adam Savier.”

  “Paul.” He took my hand, eyes narrowed.

  “Back to the earlier topic: why am I here?” I did feel a little sorry for the caregivers, but I was not at fault for their mistakes. “I am going to take the old Mirage Serpent with me.”

  As dismissive as the official records made it seem, the old Mirage Serpent’s upgraded ability was highly sought-after. That much was apparent.

  “Resh!” I shouted, infusing a shimmering wave of golden soul energy into the words. “My name is Adam Savier, and I want you to join me. I won’t bother you, and I will make sure you can feast like a king. Even better, I won’t force you to pounce on anyone. You can just sleep and eat in my World for all I care.”

  My voice thundered through the habitat. All heads flicked to me, faces distorting first in confusion, only to shift to a mixture of anger and frustration.

  “Who are you? Get the fuck out of the habitat!” one of the elder caregivers snapped.

  “I have no idea who you are, but I hope you can leave us alone. The Beast Temple won’t part with Resh. He is the only male Mirage Serpent we have,” a second voice rang out, only for a middle-aged woman to call someone with her watch.

  “An unauthorized person has entered the Mirage Serpent habitat. He is here to steal. We need backup!”

  I ignored all but the last, my lips cracking just a little.

  Calling security? Really now? What’s wrong with you? Getting involved with security was definitely not what I wanted. It was far from the low profile I pursued.

  “Steal? I am not here to steal anything. I am going to pay for Resh,” I conjured a screen of my own, displaying the information on my ID to everyone. “The official records mention that the old Mirage Serpent is no longer used for breeding and that it can be purchased. One Token is probably too much, but I am willing to invest that much.”

  Incomprehensible voices rang out from the woman’s watch. Her eyes narrowed as she studied the information I’d displayed. “A Token…”

  Silence followed the statement, until some cursed.

  “Can you please reconsider?” one of the younger caregivers asked.

  “Why should I?” There was no reason for me to reconsider anything. If anything, I needed the old Mirage Serpent more than they did.

  “Why are you doing this to us? Can’t you see that we’re in trouble? We need Resh!” he blurted out, brows creased.

  “As that may be, Resh won’t breed with anyone. He’s old and wants to be left alone,” I reasoned with them.

  Standing in the Mirage Serpent habitat, I recalled the few days I spent here–days in which I’d never seen Resh. The old Mirage Serpent did not want anyone to see him because he wanted to be left alone.

  “You don’t know that!” he shouted back.

  Now that was unreasonable. The old Mirage Serpent wouldn’t jump back into the breeding grounds just because the caregivers wanted him to–not after he stopped fathering younglings four years ago.

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  But even then, it was impossible to be certain. Maybe I was wrong, although I highly doubted that.

  I could see the Mirage Serpent, and it certainly did not look pleased about the prospects. Precisely, I felt Resh as his head pressed against my boots, slithering upward and coiling around my leg to climb higher.

  Even though I knew Resh was there, I couldn’t see him. His presence was concealed as well. Unable to sense or see him, I could only rely on the weight pressed against my leg as I lowered my arm.

  Resh didn’t lunge at me. Instead, he coiled around my palm, touching naked skin for the first time. The World responded at once. It vibrated violently, resonating with the Mirage Serpent, all too eager to bind it.

  It would have been odd if my World hadn’t resonated with the Mirage Serpent, but it was pleasant to feel anyway. For all I knew, my World could have been less appreciative of old, ambitionless beasts. Since that wasn’t the case, I could rest assured.

  As the resonance shimmered between us, Resh’s form unraveled, revealing a one-meter-long serpent with scales that shone in all colors. Some were odd, others were beautiful, and a select few I couldn’t see. Resh disappeared whenever the colors returned, and his weight was all that remained, telling me I wasn’t dreaming.

  “You can’t take him with you!” The caregivers approached me, eyes shifting from me to Resh.

  I sighed deeply, trying to rein the frustration bubbling to the surface. “How about you stop bothering an old Mirage Serpent who’s not going to help you no matter how desperately you wish for a miracle? Instead, you could look for whoever was stupid enough to sell Seron. The Pagoda’s logs should show all the information you need to get Seron back. Or, if the buyer already bound it, you can always pay him to breed with your female Mirage Serpent one last time.”

  “If there’s no log entry, you have much bigger problems to solve than selling old Resh for a Token.” Pointing out the truth didn’t seem to please the caregivers, but I liked them as much as they liked me–not a lot. Not at all. How did they pass the interview? Madam Bulouis would never hire people like them. Forcing an old and unwilling beast to breed, acting like their mistakes were someone else’s fault.

  “Maybe you’re lucky and they won’t be too mad. Earning a Token for Resh should help a little with the punishment and all.”

  The situation was a lot messier than I’d been hoping for, but it wasn’t something I could fix at a moment’s notice. However, I knew how valuable Tokens were. An Evolved beast with extensive potential such as Seron’s could be purchased for a Token, let alone an old Mirage Serpent with no future prospects.

  Unfortunately, the caregivers didn’t think logically. Their minds were filled with distress, the fear of punishment for losing Seron. They grumbled among each other, some closing the distance to me, their intentions as clear as day and night.

  One of the female caregivers mentioned something about calling Madam Bulouis, which I was grateful for even if that smug smile was annoying. I wanted to wipe that smile from her face.

  Luckily enough, I didn’t have to wait too long for the opportunity.

  Madam Bulouis accepted the call.

  “What do you want?” Her voice cut through the air, the madam’s displeasure palpable.

  “We have a situation here, madam,” the smugly smiling caregiver said before digging into the situation.

  She threw deadly glares in my direction, but I only smiled as she continued to dig her own grave.

  You’re trying to throw me under the skytrain, huh? And you haven’t mentioned selling Seron yet. Fool, you’ll only look stupider if you keep rambling.

  “You said Adam’s here? And he wants an old Mirage Serpent, and pay a Token for… wait a second. Let me see the records. Ah, right, Resh, that old glutton.” Madam Bulouis’ voice did not cut as deeply.

  She sounded more thoughtful as she added, “Does he know that the old Mirage Serpent has been doing nothing but sleeping and eating ether stones? And he’s willing to pay a Token for him?”

  Her tone shifted, becoming happier. “What a sweet boy! Such a pleasant soul. So helpful, and he always worked long hours without complaints! You know, you guys could learn a lot from him!”

  The caregiver on the call with Madame Bulouis frowned, her plan faltering way too quickly.

  She panicked and blurted out, “We can’t give Resh away. He’s the only one left!”

  “Only one left? What are you talking about?”

  Happiness was replaced with coldness, her voice cutting deeper than a sword. “What happened?!”

  Nobody uttered a sound as the caregivers looked at each other, their faces as pale as paper.

  “Speak up. NOW!” she snapped, and the woman on the call rattled off what happened. This time she did not leave out anything.

  “You fucking morons! How could you let that happen–”

  My ears rang as Madame Bulouis ripped the caregivers a new one.

  It felt like hours passed before Madame regained a semblance of composure, yet her voice still dripped with venom. “I will find out who’s responsible for this. Whoever it was can be happy if they only lose their job, because I will tear them apart.”

  From Madame Bulouis that did not sound like empty words. It was a promise–a fact that would come true sooner rather than later.

  “Anyway…” The sound of deep breaths came from the caregiver’s watch. “I’ll approve the transaction. The old Mirage Serpent is not going to father any more children. Resh’s already been added to the purple list. Earning a Token is a lot more than we could have asked for.”

  A notification flashed on my watch, and a projection displaying a signed certificate appeared before my eyes. The transaction had been finalized.

  The caregiver closest to me glared at me, but I just smiled at him.

  Things–just about everything–could have turned out differently, but… well. Truthfully, I was sorry for the innocent caregivers. They didn’t deserve to be punished. Then again, they could have handled the situation differently. Following protocol, for example.

  I, too, could have handled this whole ordeal a little better… probably. I chided myself.

  “Thank you for everything, Madame. I hope you find Seron without much trouble,” I called out, turning away to depart. “Goodbye.”

  “No problem, dear. It was my honor to teach you,” she said, sounding more pleasant than before. “We may not see each other again, but that’s life. And I do hope you have a fortuitous life.”

  Her words resonated with me. My time in the Grand Camp was about to end. I was not particularly sad about that. Not really, yet I knew parts of me would miss the hectic life here. Most of me was happy, though.

  I reached out to my World and released soul energy through its borders to bind the Mirage Serpent. Resh did not resist the soul energy as it flowed through my arm and into the beast. He stared me deep in the eyes, seemingly accepted what he saw, and reached out to the soul energy with his will.

  The bond formed shortly after I stepped out of the habitat, and it clicked into place once we were back at the surface. As I left the Beast Temple, the earlier incident was already forgotten. My mind drifted to Resh, his hunger oozing from the fragile bond in waves.

  “You’re hungry, eh?” A smile played on my lips. “Do you want a slab of Guardian meat, or some ether stones?”

  Resh’s slits met my eyes as his little head moved up and down.

  “You want both?” One eyebrow raised, I retrieved several small slices of Guardian meat. Resh lunged at them voraciously and swallowed everything in one go. Curiosity came over me, and I infused ether and soul energy into the Mirage Serpent, only to watch him digest the meat of a Guardian beast in seconds. He left not a crumb.

  Unable to see nutrients, I focused on ether instead. The ether of the Guardian beast’s meat, perfectly extracted and infused into the Mirage Serpent’s body–its core, to be precise.

  All this while, the Evolved beast’s hunger never dispersed. It only grew dimmer.

  “You… are still hungry?” I chuckled, retrieving a few smaller ether stones next.

  Once more, the Mirage Serpent swallowed them whole, and the stones were sucked into the darkness in the center of the beast’s core. And this time, the Evolved beast’s hunger was stilled. Temporarily.

  “Madame Bulouis wasn’t lying when she said you were a glutton, was she?” I let out a chuckle, happier than ever to be the owner of a considerable fortune.

  In the worst case, Resh would be fed with a portion of my jerky. Small pieces at a time.

  But all that energy disappearing in Resh’s core did make me wonder: where was all the ether going? There had to be an outlet of some sort.

  That was something to study in the future. First, I had to nurture the bond–filling Resh’s stomach did so very well–and then I had to gain access to Resh’s ability, as soon as possible.