The forest was quiet. Too quiet.
They had wandered off the main path while tracking a mutated direboar, only to stumble upon a hidden trail—ancient stone steps swallowed by moss and time. Lyra moved ahead with a strange look in her eyes, half-distant, like her body remembered something her mind didn't.
And then they found it.
A shrine built into the hollowed-out trunk of a giant fallen worldtree. Roots as thick as towers wrapped around shattered stone pillars, and in the center: a brazier that hadn't burned in centuries—yet still radiated heat.
"I've… been here before," Lyra whispered. Her fingers brushed a carving on the stone. A sigil shaped like a curled flame inside a wolf's fang.
Emberfang.
A low pulse of mana stirred the air. The shrine responded to her presence.
And to his.
The protagonist stepped forward. The moment his foot touched the cracked platform, a bright flame exploded from the brazier—ghostly and ash-colored, dancing without consuming anything.
The System activated.
SYSTEM NOTIFICATION:
Ancient Taming Shrine Recognized.
Matching resonance detected with: Lyra Everen (Beastcaller)
Secondary resonance detected with: [Host]
Initiating Ancestral Bond Transfer Protocol...
Suddenly, the protagonist's vision went white.
Vision Sequence (Shared Memory)He stood not in the forest, but in a field of blackened grass beneath a blood-red sky. Firestorms raged in the distance.
And there he was.
Emberfang.
Majestic. Towering. The same smoldering fur and lava-glow eyes. But not twisted—pure. Ancient. A spirit rendered in memory.
The beast approached slowly, massive paws silent on the scorched earth. Then he spoke, not with words, but through emotion.
A rush of memory hit: Lyra's childhood, her pain, her strength. The fire she carried forward. The bond she had shared.
You are not her, the voice said, calm and deep. But she walks beside you.
That is enough.
The beast lowered its head, and a spiral of ash and flame wrapped around the protagonist's body like a second skin.
Carry my fire.
Protect her when she cannot protect herself.
Burn only what must never rise again.
Back to RealityHe collapsed to one knee as the fire faded.
Lyra rushed to his side. "What happened?!"
He looked up, eyes glowing faintly red.
"Emberfang… chose me," he said, voice shaken but sure. "Not instead of you. Because of you."
The shrine flared one final time, and then crumbled to ash.
SYSTEM UPDATE:
Beast Spirit: Emberfang (Passive Bond)
• Ash Rebirth (One-Time Use per Arc)
• +30% fire resistance
• +15% success rate on taming corrupted-class beasts
• Emotional Link: Lyra (Stabilized)