DIIIIING!
It was the sound of the elevator opening up as Ryuk stepped in and collapsed onto the sofa.
Turning his head behind, he could see through the window, and it was currently nighttime, with the lights from the various structures emanating from them, giving the place just as nice a view as the morning itself.
"Damn, I’m so tired..." Ryuk cursed under his breath, exhaling loudly.
His head was currently buzzing uncontrollably, and looking at his watch, he could see it was already 11:31 PM.
He ought to go to sleep to avoid coming late again tomorrow.
’And speaking of tomorrow, their classes for the next day still haven’t been sent yet,’ Ryuk muttered as he rose from his bed and headed into the bedroom, but then—
DROP!
Something fell from his pocket as he looked at the floor and saw the vial resting by the sofa.
It was strange vial, given to him by MadWhite to open the portal.
"That... that is useless," Ryuk pointed out before ignoring the vial and heading to his door. But then, he stopped at the last second, his hand clutched against the knob yet refusing to open it.
The words began echoing loudly in his head.
---
"If you never go into that portal, you’ll never be as strong as those guys. You never will, nor will you even be close, and you’ll have no choice but to endure the fact that there are kids out there stronger than you even after you spend 100 years cultivating."
---
"I don’t need to go and get myself killed! I have everything I need—the system, Isha, new unpenetrated spots. All I need is time, not to venture into a Lord-Ranked Portal meant only for those at the Cataclysm Grade while being at the Ascension Plane."
"Even the weakest thing in there would probably have no problem killing me off. So, might as well steer clear away..." he muttered as he exerted force on the knob, trying to twist it open.
But then—
A system notification suddenly flashed, and on it were written words:
---
[Main Quest Activated!]
[Accept MadWhite’s First Training And Enter Into The Portal!]
[Rewards:]
➤ All Possessed Skills Leveled Up to Level 10
➤ +7 Level-Up Cards!
➤ +15,000 Purchase Points
---
The system interface suddenly flashed as Ryuk paused in his steps, his hand unconsciously slipping off from the knob, and his jaw dropped.
His veins coated his eyes in crimson, and he unconsciously began heaving like an exhausted beast.
’So... so many rewards!’ Ryuk muttered, feeling something gnawing at his head like a ravaging beast, making it impossible for him to focus.
’Tch, my damn greed,’ Ryuk said while clicking his tongue, resisting the force but failing continuously.
"Shut down system!" Ryuk roared in anger.
Instantly, the system interface disappeared, and the greed monumentally stopped, giving Ryuk a breather as he collapsed on his back.
’First day... First day of being an intern!’
’And... and he asks me to venture into a devil-forsaken Lord Rank Portal!’
"Who the fuck does that, huh!?"
Ryuk roared in anger, thinking back to MadWhite’s face, which he felt a dire urge to punch straight in. But then, his head cooled after a few seconds.
’I don’t want to enter that portal. I’m not ready. I’m far from being ready. And Isha is still in slumber right now...’ Ryuk muttered, but then—
A new notification flashed.
---
[Congratulations. Isha has successfully finished her evolution.]
---
"Why is everyone fucking with me so much today, for fuck’s sake!?" Ryuk roared out loud.
But then—
BAAAAAM
Something landed onto the ground. Its rebounding weight was enough to send Ryuk flying up off his butt.
"...What... what the hell?" Ryuk mused as he looked up—
And found a creature towering above him.
One whose aura made his spine tingle.
’Is... Isha?’
The creature before Ryuk was unlike anything he had ever known.
Her body was now longer and more refined, obviously much taller too, as she cast her dark shadow over him.
Her once-soft scales had hardened into jagged, crystalline plates of pure white, some flaring up and revealing edges that were razor-sharp. These scales seemed to shimmer with an eerie cold glow, as if they were absorbing and reflecting the surrounding light, making her appear like a spectral entity born from a raging blizzard.
Her head had elongated into a vicious draconic shape, adorned with a crown of backward-curving ice horns.
Her once cute-looking maw had changed into a snout, forming an asymmetrically yet predatory shape, lined with jagged ice fangs.
Her nostrils exhaled no air but a visible cold mist, slamming head-on against Ryuk below, covering him in ice.
Looking a little behind her thick, muscular shoulders, Ryuk saw the massive white wings that had transformed into razor-sharp ice-forged weapons, lined with blade-like frozen protrusions along the edges.
At the forearm joints of her wings, curved, hooked claws had grown—twisted and serrated—their sharpness making it seem like they would have no problem tearing through cold, hard steel with ease.
---
BOOOOOOOOM!
BOOOOOOOOM!
The floor beneath Ryuk shattered to pieces as claws slammed into the ground, now longer, sharper, and more jagged—resembling pure ice daggers attached to her limbs.
A few meters away were her back legs, now thicker and more muscular. Each foot bore three massive, curved talons, coated in freezing energy.
With each step, the ground beneath her fractured and froze from the sheer heaviness.
Gone was the warmth of a familiar companion—Isha was now a true Frost Wyvern, a monster of ice and destruction.
---
GROOOOOOOWWWWL!
An inhumane growl escaped her lips, sounding like a howling winter storm with a chilling resonance that would send fear to the bones of even the bravest warriors.
’Hey, system, what’s wrong?’ Ryuk asked as he felt Isha’s draconic head closing in on his body, making his instincts instantly back off.
---
[After Isha’s evolution, she has undergone a significant change, and her bloodline seems to be reverting to her former Primordial One.]
[Her instincts toward Host seem to have changed, making her more predatory than friendly.]
[This happens with every beast’s evolution when they become stronger—a feeling that they have no need to listen to their Tamers, and in doing so, they try to subdue them instead.]
[This arises from their belief that they are stronger than their master and, therefore, that the master is unworthy of them. This belief is further fueled by their new predatory instincts.]
[I hadn’t thought this would happen with Isha, due to Host’s close bond with her, but I guess I was wrong.]
[In this case, Host’s only hope to regain back Isha is to Retame her]
"Re...Retame her?"