Chapter 1: A Cat With a Past, The Last Lesson

On the Myriad Beast Continent, in the Kingdom of Draconis, in the city of Lumenhold, there was a school called Westbrook Beast-Taming Academy.

Sunlight poured through the windows of Grade 10, Class 9, hot enough to bleach half the blackboard. But the students’ eyes burned hotter.

Every gaze was fixed on the creature standing on the podium: a Shadow Witch Cat.

Its body was ghostlike and sleek. Its fur shimmered. Its amber eyes glowed. On its head sat a purple, flowing witch’s hat, and violet gems glittered on its brow and chest. The purple light around it was almost brighter than the sun outside.

In the back row, Adrian Vale watched with the same excitement as everyone else.

Except he saw more.

Much more.

[Shadow Witch Cat]

[Attribute: Darkness]

[Quality: Exceptional—Upper]

[Sex: Male]

[Level: Exceptional 7]

[Traits: Dark Claw, Shadowmeld]

[Personality: Flirtatious, loves excitement]

[Status: Bored. Thinking about Bella, Lily, Ruby, and Sable next door.]

[Evolution Path] (Gray)

Adrian’s eyebrow twitched.

Mr. Caldwell’s beast companion was, without question, a cat with a past.

“Today is my last lesson with Grade 10, Class 9,” Mr. Caldwell said. “After tomorrow’s Awakening Ceremony, you’ll move up to Grade 11. You’ve begged me all year to see my beast companion, so today I’ll satisfy you. I’ll show you one.”

“But this is still class. Questions still matter. Who can tell me the Shadow Witch Cat’s traits, quality, and what form it evolved from?”

For most of the Grade 10 students, this was beyond the syllabus. Shadow Witch Cats were not low-tier beasts. Most students were still learning to identify common-quality companions.

Only one hand went up: Julian Hart, the class president.

“Julian, go ahead.”

Julian stood and adjusted his glasses.

“Shadow Witch Cat has two traits. Dark Claw: its claw attacks are powerful and can carry corrosive darkness energy, weakening an opponent’s mobility. Shadowmeld: in darkness, its movement improves drastically, and it can briefly merge with shadows to strike without warning.”

“Its quality is usually Exceptional—Mid. Exceptional—Upper is rare. Judging by the fur quality, Mr. Caldwell’s is Exceptional—Upper.”

“And Shadow Witch Cat evolves from the common Gloomcat.”

“Very good,” Mr. Caldwell said. “Three questions, three solid answers. And your eye is sharp.”

Whispers spread through the class.

“Of course. Julian’s family owns the biggest shop in Lumenhold, but he’s not lazy at all. He studies like he’s chasing a scholarship.”

“Tomorrow’s Awakening Ceremony—he’s definitely going to awaken a strong talent.”

Mr. Caldwell continued, “Let me push you a little further. Besides evolving into Shadow Witch Cat, Gloomcat has another evolution path in Draconis. Do you know it?”

Julian froze. He shook his head. “No, sir. I don’t.”

“That’s already very good.” Mr. Caldwell’s smile remained, but he turned toward the back of the room. “Adrian. You answer this one.”

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Every head turned.

If Julian was the model student other students could maybe reach with enough effort, Adrian Vale was in a different category entirely.

Questions that stumped the class? Adrian answered them. Teachers called on him so often that it had become normal, even though he rarely raised his hand.

Adrian stood slowly. He glanced once more at the Shadow Witch Cat, then met Mr. Caldwell’s eyes.

“Sir, Gloomcat has a much rarer evolution path, but the conditions are far harder. The first recorded case happened in the island city in the far south of Draconis.”

“A black cat that loved sunbathing from the time it was born underwent an environmental mutation and evolved into a Sunshadow Spirit Cat. Its attribute changed from Darkness to Light. Its quality is Commander—Mid, a full tier above Exceptional.”

He didn’t hesitate. The answer came out clean, as if he were reading from an open page.

Two years ago, Adrian had gained the ability to see beast panels.

But the evolution path line was always gray. Always empty.

So he had spent every spare moment studying, collecting records, comparing cases, trying to understand why.

“Excellent!” Mr. Caldwell applauded. “Environmental mutation evolution. That’s Grade 12 material. You’ve been working hard after class, Adrian.”

The class clapped with him, but the whispers grew louder.

“Adrian Vale is unreal. You know his parents died two years ago, right? He still runs their old shop, Vale’s Beast Feed, after school. Everyone gets twenty-four hours a day. How does his twenty-four look like forty-eight?”

“I heard he has rare household beasts that help with chores and the shop?”

“Please. Household beasts can do laundry, not pour knowledge into your brain. That’s all him.”

The applause faded.

“Adrian,” Mr. Caldwell said, “I have one more interesting question. What are the usual personality traits of Shadow Witch Cats, and what special preferences do they have?”

Someone in the class whispered immediately, “Here it comes. This is the part where Mr. Caldwell asks Adrian a question, but really he’s fishing for an answer or inspiration.”

Adrian looked at the bored Shadow Witch Cat again. He smiled.

“Ordinary Shadow Witch Cats are usually quiet, solitary, and fond of moonlight and loneliness.”

“But every species produces anomalies.”

“I’ve read in some records that certain Shadow Witch Cats love noise. Put them in a lively environment, and they may actually grow better.”

“There are even individuals with especially strong mating instincts. Their special needs have to be watched carefully. If they’re bred the wrong way, they can lose their best growth window entirely.”

“Sir, yours is willing to be summoned in front of so many people and doesn’t seem upset. It looks like it enjoys being watched. Maybe it’s one of those rare individuals?”

Adrian said it casually, but the whole class listened as if he were delivering a lecture.

No one thought he was making things up.

Mr. Caldwell suddenly remembered all the strange things his Shadow Witch Cat had done. Every detail seemed to line up.

‘What records? I’m a teacher. How has a Grade 10 student read records I haven’t?’

Then the second thought hit him.

‘Did this kid just announce to my entire class that my cat has mating problems?’

He immediately recalled the beast companion.

“Cough. Well. You wanted to see it, and you’ve seen it. Now I’ll go over some basics.”

“Also, starting next term, I’ll be teaching the Grade 11 Ember Class.”

“I hope that after tomorrow’s Awakening Ceremony, some of you will still be my students.”

His eyes moved first to Julian, then rested on Adrian for a full three or four seconds.

Then he began the lesson.

When the last general beast-taming class of Grade 10, Class 9 ended, no one had much time to feel sentimental. Tomorrow was the Awakening Ceremony. They needed to be ready.

Soon, only Adrian and Mr. Caldwell remained in the empty classroom.

“Adrian,” Mr. Caldwell said, “the other teachers and I looked at your performance and grades this year. Together, we secured a permission for you.”

“Normally, to enter the Ember Class, a student’s awakened talent has to be at least A-rank, and among the stronger A-ranks at that.”

“But if your talent reaches B-rank tomorrow, you can enter.”

“Of course, knowing how you’ve performed this year, I believe you’ll awaken an A-rank talent. There’s even a good chance of S-rank.”

“Thank you, sir,” Adrian said sincerely. Light sparked in his eyes.

Tamer talents on the Myriad Beast Continent were divided into five ranks, from D to S.

Adrian had heard there were talents beyond S-rank, but they were incredibly rare.

What he had always wondered was whether his ability to see beast panels was connected to tamer talent.

If it wasn’t a talent, and his actual talent was low, then his path as a tamer would never be smooth.

“Take this,” Mr. Caldwell said, holding out a Soulcalm Fruit. “Eat it before you sleep tonight. It will calm your mind. It may help with tomorrow’s Awakening Ceremony. Don’t refuse. Your answer about the Shadow Witch Cat today helped me a great deal.”

“And I truly want you in the Ember Class. A student like you—I’d like to teach for two more years.”

Adrian didn’t refuse.

He accepted the Soulcalm Fruit.

This was the pattern between him and Mr. Caldwell over the past year. Adrian occasionally gave him help or inspiration, and Mr. Caldwell gave him small gifts in return.

But this fruit was the most valuable thank-you gift he had received all year. Its market price was around one thousand crowns.

With Adrian’s finances, he would never have bought it just for the Awakening Ceremony.

The ceremony was too important, and everything about it was unknown. If there was extra help available, he wasn’t going to pretend to be too proud to take it.

“Mr. Caldwell, I also hope I can be taught by you for two more years,” Adrian said sincerely.

Then he left the classroom.

Mr. Caldwell stood alone.

‘I should leave early today. I’ll go to the pet market and buy a few females. If Shadow runs around all night, I’ll know whether the kid was right.’

He turned off the fan and locked the classroom door.

In the empty Grade 10, Class 9 room, only four heavy words remained on the blackboard:

AWAKENING CEREMONY.