THIS BEAST-TAMER IS A LITTLE STRANGE

Kain couldn’t resist empathizing with Malzahir.

Weak. That was what he had been when he watched his family die, powerless to stop it.

Weak. That was what he had felt when he had taken his final breath in a foreign land.

It wasn’t until recently, until this life, that Kain had truly felt as though he had some measure of control over his own destiny—and he was desperate to never lose that feeling again. Which is also why he was so determined to establish his own power.

Then, even if the entire country—the entire world, even—turned against him, he would never feel helpless—never feel weak.

Weak was the word Malzahir had used for himself, yet Kain saw something different. He saw someone who had been strong before, someone who had fallen but still had the embers of something left.

Someone that could potentially be an asset.

Kain couldn’t help recalling when he’d first met Malzahir and activated the Threads of Destiny. The information Kain could get from the threads was limited—giving only colour, thickness, opaqueness, and length.

Therefore, it’s difficult to get any specific information just from the threads’ appearance. At the time of questioning, Kain had assumed that the thickness and bold colour of the thread connecting himself to Malzahir was due to him having essential knowledge for their mission—that’s why Kain so reluctant to just let him leave.

However, now Kain was re-examining his past assumptions. Perhaps the coercion coming from his skill to save Malzahir back then wasn’t because of any knowledge he may have, but rather due to his future actions that may be of benefit to Kain and the others…like bringing Idrias’ ring to them.

Or maybe becoming someone that may be a close ally for Kain…or subordinate.

*”Then get stronger.”*

Malzahir blinked at him, eyes narrowed in confusion. *”And how exactly do you expect me to do that when my totem space is crippled? It is impossible for me to form another contract.”*

Totem space was the name often used by southern tribespeople to describe the pocket of space their new contracts would dwell in—similar in concept to the star space. However, considering that they have only one, and it is supposedly tied to their bloodlines, the boost provided to their contracts is greater than the star space.

Kain didn’t address Malzahir’s concerns about his totem space right away. Pangea was still damaged, and even if it weren’t, he’d never attempted to use its ability on someone who had once been a beast tamer. Theoretically, it should work, but if there was one thing Kain had learned, it was that theories didn’t always hold up in reality.

Moreover, it wouldn’t be the exact same as his totem space, and Kain was unable to compare them since he’d naturally never seen a totem space before.

So he decided against getting his hopes up by describing it as a means of ‘healing’ or ‘giving him a second one.’

Unsure if it would truly work and not wanting to set unrealistic expectations, Kain kept his words vague. *”Stay a little longer. Just long enough to see if there’s a way to solve your inability to form another contract.”*

Malzahir’s lips pressed into a thin line. *”You’re saying that as if you actually believe there is a solution out there.”*

Kain shrugged. *”I can’t say for sure. But what I can be sure of is that you’ll just be throwing away your grandmother’s memory if you die here.”* He held Malzahir’s gaze, waiting to see how he would react.

For a long moment, Malzahir said nothing. His fingers twitched slightly at his sides, as if resisting the urge to clench into fists. His jaw tightened, and Kain could see the war waging behind his eyes—the desperation of a man who had lost everything, the bitterness of someone who didn’t want to hope, yet couldn’t quite let go of the possibility.

*”Fine,”* Malzahir finally exhaled, his voice rough. *”I’ll stay. But not because I believe in your bullshit.”* His gaze flicked to the cavern walls, to the dark, jagged shadows stretching beyond the dim firelight. *”I just want to make sure you two leave this hellhole alive. That’s all.”*

Kain smirked faintly. Liar.

Serena’s sharp gaze flicked to him knowingly, but she said nothing. She had likely guessed that Kain was considering using Pangea to help Malzahir.

She didn’t say anything, though. Instead, she turned away, clearly done with the conversation. “Let’s go through the things from the space ring. We need to know if there’s anything useful.”

Kain nodded, and Malzahir, after a brief hesitation, followed. The three of them sat around a dimly lit portion of the cavern, Idrias’ space ring before them. They began sifting through its contents, pulling out relics, documents, and other objects of interest.

And then they found it. A violet crystal about the length of Kain’s forearm that glowed faintly.

Kain’s breath hitched. The moment his fingers closed around the fragment, something inside him coiled—tightened—lurched forward like a beast catching the scent of fresh blood.

Hunger. But not his hunger.

The fragment’s glow reflected in his eyes, casting eerie violet streaks across his vision. The energy inside it pulsed in time with his heartbeat, and for a split second, he swore he could feel it coursing through his veins, whispering, beckoning like a snake charmer…only he was the snake.

His grip tightened involuntarily, knuckles whitening.

‘More. Just take it. Absorb it. You need it. You know you do.’

He swallowed, muscles stiff as he forced himself to steady his breathing.

“Is that what I think it is?”

Serena’s voice cut through the haze like a blade.

Kain blinked, exhaling slowly before nodding. “Another fragment.”

Malzahir frowned, watching the two of them. “And what exactly is that?”

Kain debated how much to say. He still wasn’t sure how much he wanted Malzahir to know—not yet. “It’s useful,” he settled on. “I’ll hold onto it.” He said before putting it into his own storage ring with trembling fingers.

Serena didn’t press him, but Kain could feel her lingering scrutiny. She likely could sense something…off, with his behaviour but didn’t press further.

Instead, she returned to sifting through the items, as if nothing had changed. But Kain could feel her attention lingering.

His fingers that wer just folding the fragment twitched at the emptiness, like they weren’t entirely his anymore. His pulse pounded in his ears, a rhythm that didn’t belong to him.

‘Is this what addiction feels like?’

He had convinced himself before that absorbing fragments was harmless, that it was only a means to recover Pangea.

But this hunger… it was stronger this time. A little harder to ignore.

And for the first time, a quiet, insidious thought crept into his mind: If I keep doing this… will there ever be a point where I can’t stop?

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