...
The afternoon sun slipped through the pale curtains of Grace's bedroom, painting faint golden shapes across the floorboards. Dust motes drifted lazily in the warm air. A quiet calm filled the room, broken only by the slow, sleepy breathing of two girls.
Grace lay curled on her side, silver hair a tangled spread across her pillow. Her eyes twitched beneath their lids, as if even in sleep her mind couldn't quite rest. A few feet away, Emily was sprawled half on, half off a cushioned chair, her legs hooked awkwardly over one armrest. Her golden hair was a complete mess, sticking up in little tufts. Drool had dried on her chin.
Emily stirred first. She made a small groaning sound, rubbed at her face, then cracked open one bleary eye. For a moment she just stared at the ceiling in dull confusion. Then she lifted her head too fast and winced.
"Ah, my neck! Gracie, why didn't you wake me? I'm going to be shaped like a bent twig."
Grace blinked awake at the sound of her voice. Her own body felt heavy, stiff. Her throat was dry. She sat up slowly, pushing her hair back behind her pointed ears.
"I could barely keep myself awake," she said in a small voice. "I don't even know how we made it back to the room last night"
Emily let out a tired laugh and dragged herself fully upright. She massaged her shoulders, making a face. Then she gave Grace a playful nudge with her foot. "You look worse than me. And that's saying something."
Grace only gave her a wobbly smile. Her eyes were still shadowed, her face pale. But there was a small spark of relief too, now that the long night was over.
Emily finally stood, stretched until her back popped, then went to splash water from a porcelain basin over her face. She scrubbed hard, came up pink-cheeked, and let out a loud sigh.
"There. Almost elf again."
Grace pulled her knees up, wrapping her arms around them. "Thank you for staying with me through all of it, Emmy."
Emily rolled her eyes but her grin was soft. "As if I'd let you face that warehouse of monsters alone. Besides, it's your little snake who's doing all the heavy work."
All the while, Aurelian lay curled on a folded cushion near the window. Sunlight poured over his white scales, making them gleam almost too bright to look at. From a distance he seemed utterly relaxed, a harmless pet basking in the warmth.
But inside, his mind was thinking.
He kept his eyes half-lidded, his breathing slow and even. From Grace's point of view he was simply resting after the ordeal of yesterday. In truth, he was turning over everything he had learned, piece by careful piece.
This world's Paths that I've learned are many. They're not just about beasts or magic. I've learned enough now to understand that there aremultiple of possible directions a being can grow.
He thought of the rumors Grace and Emily had shared and he had seen in the library.
There are Paths tied to beasts, like my own current form. Then there is path of shadow, assassins who call on darkness. There are people who chase after luck or fate itself. Those who devote themselves to soul and spirit realm. Others walk the path of death, commanding bones and ghosts. Or elemental paths such as sun which is mainly fire, light or sea and then there are stranger ones. Paths tied to professions like craftsmen, painters, reader or even some like warrior, mages, hunters, thieves, even servents who borrow power from gods.
His tongue flicked out lightly. He could almost taste the mix of opportunity and danger in the air.
But with gods comes trouble. Every god has followers, and followers are jealous. If I take a Path too close to a god's domain, I might gain power faster but one day I could also earn their hatred if i want to step higher on their Path.
Aurelian's body tightened a little on the cushion.
What I need is a Main Path that can survive the strain of merging. It has to be strong enough to become the trunk of the tree, holding up all the branches.
He ruled out most elemental laws at once.
If I choose sun as my core, how could it hold moon, or sea? They'd clash, tear me apart. Same with purely abstract ones like shadow trying to hold light. Too unstable. But i might be able to use moon or death path to hold yin elements like like I've seen in novels from my first life, but there's this Moon goddess as well, might rule it out too.
His mind settled on the obvious, if risky, answer that he concluded after intense thinking.
Beast. It's what I already am. My body and soul are both rooted as a beast now with only my consciousness as human. Even the Beast Path Elixir Grace have is aligned for that. It's a gamble, but probably the safest for building something adaptable.
Then come the sub-laws. The first is easy.
Fate. I've never heard of a god of fate, and it seems to run through everything in most novels. If I bind Fate into my path, maybe I'll finally understand why I ended up in this world at all and my group chat is also some destiny related concept, there could be some unknown benefits.
Luck is the next. Close to fate, almost like two sides of the same coin. Luck is survival, opportunity, sudden gifts that no strength could have forced. With luck, even disasters can flip into blessings. And from what I've seen… luck is powerful enough to sometimes defy every natural laws.
Last… my only weakness left.. Spirit, the inner force of mind and soul. I'll have the strength of Beast Law, the means of Fate Law, the fortune with Luck Law and Spirit will guard against that corruption of power aand unlock deeper mysteries of will and consciousness.
He drew in a long, slow breath. His eyes closed. Inside his head, he pictured it like a living diagram. A tree, its thick trunk shining with beastly vitality. Three strong branches twined from it: one wrapped in silver threads of fate, one glittering with the tiny sparks of luck, one pulsing with deep blue lights of spirit.
It may not be perfect. But it's mine to walk. I've reached level 10. I'm right at the edge. Now it's time. But advancement isn't as simple as leveling anymore.
His mind drifted back to his system panel, the line that burned itself into his brain.
[Select one main path and three branch paths (of same Fundamental Law). Consume aligned elixirs to solidify your sequence.]
So first… the Beast Path. It's the obvious trunk for my evolution. My body is beast, my talents are beast, even Grace's elixir is designed for that.
The headache is the other three sub-paths. I'll need to find elixirs for Fate, Luck and Spirit.
His coils tightened faintly.
I might find something at the Academy. A vast institution like that surely attracts rare resources… but it's still a gamble.
He imagined for a moment asking Grace to find him elixirs of fate, luck and spirit outright. She'd try, he didn't doubt it, but the very request might spark dangerous attention. He was still just a snake in their eyes, albeit a clever one.
Maybe… I can use the Snake persona of group chat. He let out a small dry hiss that might almost have been a laugh.
That's for later. First step: drink the Beast Path elixir. I'll put on a little show. Better to distract them with my new eye than let them wonder why there was no change.
The next morning dawned bright and mild, the 25th. Aurelian found himself carried out into the expansive manor gardens. They gathered near a marble fountain that caught the sunlight in gleaming arcs.
Emily was there too, eyes slightly bloodshot but smiling. Nearby stood Grace's parents Lady Seraphiel and Lord Aegnor both graceful and striking, their presence cool but attentive.
Beside them was her uncle Caelith, a tall elf with an amused, vaguely predatory air. His sharp silver eyes watched everything with faint calculation.
Aurelian kept perfectly still in Grace's hands, only his forked tongue tasting the air. His mind was calm, cold, prepared.
Grace exhaled softly, looking down at him. Her silver eyes were tender.
"It's finally time, Haze. This will make you a true transcendant beast. No more fragile worries."
She gave a small, almost embarrassed laugh.
"Though you've never seemed fragile to me."
Then she pulled out a delicate crystal bottle. It looked like it held only pure water. But even from where Emily stood, her breath hitched. An almost magnetic draw radiated from the fluid.
Emily muttered, "That stuff's dangerous. Makes your spirit itch to swallow it."
Grace's hand was steady though. She popped the delicate stopper. A faint, almost intoxicating aroma of savagery and raw vitality spread out.
Then she knelt, tilting the bottle carefully toward Aurelian's slightly open mouth.
Play along, Aurelian told himself, though tension coiled tight inside him. I don't actually feel anything yet… His jaws parted. The liquid slipped down his throat, icy then burning.
A moment later, his status panel flickered in bright letters.
[Consumed Beast Path Sequence One Elixir]
[Chosen Main Path: BEAST]
[Mix sub-path elixirs and consume them within 1 month to advance Rank 1 Transcendant]
He nearly sagged in relief. It was working exactly as needed. But another tight knot formed inside him.
Just One month. Or I lose the chance to build my perfect Path. I need those three elixirs Fate, Luck, Spirit.
Grace was still watching him anxiously, her parents standing by with mild, aristocratic interest, and Caelith's gaze sharp as a blade.
Time to give them a show.
Aurelian let the power stir. His scales along the top of his head shifted and then split open slightly. From the center of his brow, a pale lid drew back to reveal his third eye.
It was eerily blank, white sclera, with only a black abyssal iris like a void pulling light inward.
Simultaneously, his left eye glanced at Grace, his right at Emily, and his third eye as if looked down on everything.
A sudden oppressive chill containing his previous life's strong being aura fell over the garden. Emily staggered back a step, hand clutching her chest as if she couldn't breathe. Grace's pupils contracted to tiny points, her skin paling almost deathly.
"H-Haze…" she whispered, voice cracking. Emily half-screamed, "Grace, back up! That's not normal, it's..
In that instant, Aurelian snapped his eye closed, scales hiding it once more. Then with shocking speed, he lunged straight at Grace's legs.
Grace flinched, but before Emily could shout again, Aurelian merely bumped his head gently against Grace's foot, rubbing back and forth in a snakelike imitation of affection. His tongue flicked out, brushing her skin.
Grace let out a shaky laugh, then dropped to her knees, scooping him up.
"See, Emmy? I told you… he'll never harm me. Never."
Emily looked rattled, but finally exhaled in a shuddery breath.
"I swear, Grace, one day he's going to give me a heart attack."
Grace only hugged Aurelian close, rubbing her cheek against his cool scales.
"Congratulations, Haze. You're finally a transcendant."
Aegnor stepped forward, eyes narrowed, scanning Aurelian from nose to tail.
"Strange," he murmured. Seraphiel tilted her head, delicate features frowning slightly. "Yes. He's clearly stronger than that day, and that third eye is… unusual as if I can't see its ability. But his size hasn't changed, nor do I sense the usual mutations of a beast reaching Rank 1. And it was very fast, it should have needed more time. Unless he has some hidden bloodline that tempered the transition."
Grace only hugged him tighter, smiling brightly.
"It doesn't matter. He's my Haze, no matter what blood flows in him. And now I don't have to worry anymore."
Inside, Aurelian released a long, silent exhale. That was close. But so far… still safe.
Grace turned with sudden excitement to Caelith.
"Uncle, when are we going to travel to the Academy? It's across the sea in , isn't it? Months by ship… will we really get there in days?"
Caelith's eyes had been half-lidded, deep in some private calculation, but he snapped back and gave a low chuckle.
"Days? Oh dear niece, I said nothing about days. By my method, we'll be there in mere hours."
Grace blinked. "Hours?"
"We'll use a Spirit Ship. It sails through the space nodes of the spirit realm. Much faster and much more dangerously interesting, I promise you. So pack whatever you want. We leave tomorrow, the 26th."
Grace's eyes lit up with childlike wonder. Emily groaned.
"Just don't let me fall out into the spirit realm. I like having my life."