The feather in Raen's hand still pulsed with residual energy—warm, radiant, and ancient.
It wasn't just a trophy. It was a key.
[Item Acquired: Feather of the Ruinwatcher][Function: Fusion Catalyst | Signature of Recognition][Beast King Trait Activated: Throneblood][Warning: Your presence will now echo across multiple layers of the Abyss.]
Raen stood in the middle of the cracked throne courtyard, the ruins around him glowing faintly, as if reacting to his soul.
He didn't feel different… but the way the air bent around him, the way his beasts looked at him now—it was as if something had shifted.
Permanently.
The throne, half-collapsed, no longer felt like a relic.
It felt like a memory.
A mirror.
"You're glowing," Jester Wyrm sang, floating in a lazy spiral. "Not metaphorically. Literally. That feather's leaking light. You planning to ascend or combust?"
Hollowfang stayed close, more alert than usual. Despair Maw crouched low near the monument, sniffing the ground anxiously.
Raen ignored the commentary and looked at his palm. The chain sigil had changed—its core now glowed silver instead of red, with violet marks spreading outward like runes.
He clenched his fist.
"System. What exactly is Throneblood?"
[Processing...][Confirmed: You possess a dormant bloodline fragment belonging to the First Beast King—Tiberis the Founder. A being not born, but created, to unite beasts and men.][Effect: Beasts of certain ranks will instinctively sense submission or aggression depending on your will.][Side Effect: You are now trackable by Abyssal Sovereigns.]
Raen's jaw tensed. "So I've painted a target on my back."
[In glowing silver paint, yes.]
He exhaled. "Good. Let them come."
A rumble echoed from beneath the throne ruins.
The ground shook slightly—subtle, but unnatural.
Raen's instincts kicked in. "Something's moving underneath us."
Despair Maw hissed. Hollowfang snarled. Even the Wyrm stopped spinning.
The throne's base—where his name had been carved—cracked.
Then, the earth beneath it collapsed.
A staircase revealed itself, spiraling into darkness, lined with torches that lit one by one.
[New Area Unlocked: The Chain Vault][Restricted to Throneblood Holders.][Note: First Entry Bonus Available.]
Raen glanced once at his beasts. "Let's find out what the last me left behind."
The stairs spiraled deep, far below the surface ruins.
At the bottom lay a vast chamber. Cold. Silent. Vault-like.
Dozens of pedestals circled a central altar. Each pedestal held a stone tablet, broken or incomplete, each glowing faintly.
Raen approached one.
The System flared.
[Memory Imprint Detected.][Would you like to access: Beast Fusion Protocol — Prototype Alpha?]
Raen froze.
"…Fusion?"
[Explanation: Certain bonded beasts may be fused—temporarily or permanently—through trauma-aligned compatibility. Each fusion consumes one Fusion Catalyst.]
He blinked.
That meant this place wasn't just a throne room—it was a research chamber. A testing ground.
He looked up.
There, engraved in massive lettering above the altar:
"They called me tyrant. But I was only a man… trying to save monsters."
Raen's hand clenched.
"I want to see it. The fusion."
The room darkened.
The tablet in front of him shimmered—then projected a vision.
Two beasts—one a flaming bird, the other a lion with stone wings—were locked in combat. Then, a man stepped forward. He extended both hands. Chains emerged—twisted together—and bound the beasts at once.
They screamed.
Then fused.
The result? A massive winged creature with flame-born feathers and stone-fused muscle—powerful, unstable, glorious.
The fusion collapsed seconds later, but the energy released was enough to level mountains.
Raen inhaled.
"So this is what the First Beast King experimented with."
[System Update: Fusion Catalyst Ready. You may attempt one fusion.]
Raen turned toward his three beasts.
Each of them now glowed faintly.
But only two pulsed in sync.
Hollowfang.Despair Maw.
[Compatible Fusion Detected: Hollowfang + Despair Maw][Prototype Codename: Griefhound][Estimated Duration: 60 seconds. Cooldown: 3 hours.]
Raen raised a brow. "You can do temporary fusions?"
[For now, yes. Permanent fusion requires further relics and bonding levels.]
He looked at the two beasts.
Hollowfang stared at Despair Maw, and the bigger beast actually lowered its head in silent agreement.
Pain recognized pain.
Fear recognized sorrow.
"Let's do it," Raen said.
[Confirm Fusion?][Y/N]
✅ Y
Chains erupted from the ground—silver and black—binding both beasts in a glowing circle.
Their bodies were pulled inward, not torn apart, but melded.
One howl. One scream.
The light burst outward.
When it cleared…
Standing before Raen was a new beast.
Tall as two men, with Hollowfang's wolf shape, but wrapped in Despair Maw's plated sorrow-flesh. Its eyes were silver mist, and from its back erupted tendrils of mist that wailed with every breath.
[New Beast Form: Griefhound – Rank A- (Fusion)][Abilities:– Silent Step (Phase through walls for 3 seconds)– Wail of the Lost (AOE Fear + Defense Down)– Shared Trauma (Reflects 20% damage taken back to attacker)]
Raen stared in stunned silence.
Even the Wyrm gasped. "I want a turn!"
Raen smirked. "Eventually."
He stepped forward and touched the Griefhound's head. It trembled slightly… but leaned into his palm.
"You're not monsters," he whispered. "You're just survivors."
[Fusion Timer: 56 seconds remaining…]
Raen turned back toward the staircase.
Voices stirred above.
[Alert: Hostile signatures detected approaching from Layer Six. Estimated Arrival: 3 minutes.]
Raen's eyes narrowed.
He looked back once at the chamber, then at his beasts—especially the new fusion form, still steaming from its creation.
"Then let's give them something to remember."
He drew his chainblade and ascended the stairs.
The Beast King's blood had stirred.
The Abyss was listening.