"Great, just what i fucking needed. Another sermon on beast contracts." Auron slumped in his seat, tapping his pen against the desk in a slow, deliberate rhythm—anything to drown out the headache forming behind his eyes.


    Instructor Harwin was at it again—preaching about beast contracts like it was the fucking meaning of life.


    His eyes—brilliant violet, sharp yet distant—looked around the room where students eagerly soaked up every word spilling from Instructor Harwin''s mouth.


    Harwin adjusted his spectacles for the hundredth time, his lips curling like he was savoring his own words. His voice—thin, creepy, and endlessly self-important—scraped against Auron''s patience like nails on glass. And yet, he spoke like every sentence was pure gold.


    Here we go again. Harwin adjusted his cuffs, his voice swelling with the self-importance of a man delivering the secrets of the universe. "Power, wealth, influence—beasts determine it all."


    The class nodded like brain washed sheep, eyes shining with near-religious reverence, eating it up.


    Auron? He''d rather choke on his own spit.


    He stared at the ceiling, eyes half-closed, posture lazy. Whatever nonsense Harwin was preaching today wasn''t for him. The world had already made it pretty damn clear where he stood.


    ***


    Harwin kept yapping. "As is common knowledge, beasts are ranked by their strength, each realm divided into nine levels. And those ranks are as follows!" His tone rose dramatically, as if he were delivering some epic grand revelation instead of the same speech he''d given a thousand times before.


    While tapping on the board, where glowing inscriptions detailed the beast ranking system. Auron had seen it a thousand times before. Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum—blah, blah, blah.


    Harwin basked in the admiration of his audience. "Most of you, if you''re lucky, will reach the Silver Realm in your lifetime. A fortunate few may ascend to Gold. As for Platinum? Perhaps one in a hundred thousand no....one a million achieves such a feat."


    His gaze shifted to Auron, eyes glittering with condescension. ""And of course, some students—despite every advantage, every lesson—still fail to form a contract. A tragic waste, really."


    The class erupted into smug snickers and not-so-subtle glances. All which Auron had long grown accustomed to. Yet.


    Auron''s lips twitched, amusement flickering across his face. ""Damn, Instructor, if I didn''t know any better, I''d think you were personally offended by my existence.".


    A few chuckles rippled through the class, but most were nervous attempts to stay on Harwin''s good side.


    Young Master Raventor," Harwin sighed, shaking his head like he was disappointed on a cosmic level. "Even the laziest students form a contract eventually. Yet here you are, still empty-handed. Perhaps… some people simply aren''t meant for greatness."."


    "greatness, huh?" Auron leaned back, lacing his fingers behind his head with a lazy grin. "I prefer to think of it as avoiding disappointment. At least I don''t have to grovel at the feet of some oversized chicken just to feel powerful."


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    More laughter followed, though the mockery was split with genuine amusement this time. Auron had learned long ago that people loved to see authority put in its place. Even if only for a moment.


    The instructor''s face twitched with irritation, but he forced himself to continue. "Now, for those who actually wish to learn something of value—Contracts."


    He tapped the board, displaying another glowing diagram of a ritual circle shimmering with radiant inscriptions. "The process of taming. A ritual that binds a beast''s essence to your soul. A true partnership, if successful. A violent death, if not."


    Auron closed his eyes, feigning sleep. He''d heard it all before. The lectures, the pitying looks, the endless prattle about how his failure to contract a beast would leave him rotting in mediocrity.


    Whatever. Let them keep their illusions of grandeur. The world had already labeled him a failure, a waste of potential. And maybe that was true. Maybe he really was just a walking disappointment waiting for his inevitable fade into obscurity.


    But a part of him—the part that refused to stay down, even after every humiliating lecture and sneer—still held on.....He just had to find his path, which was apparently not linked to the dazzling world of beast contracts.


    Speaking of which.


    "The dazzling world of contracts," Auron muttered under his breath, rolling his eyes as Harwin continued to spew his well-rehearsed sermon. "Bind a beast''s soul to your own and hope you don''t get fried in the process. Fascinating stuff."


    "Careful, man. Harwin''s gonna burst a vein if he hears you slandering his precious art of ''groveling before beasts,''" snickered Dante Crestfall, his voice a lazy drawl that somehow carried weight. The broad-shouldered guy, seated next to him had the build of a brawler, wild dark hair, and bronze eyes that always seemed half-asleep. His laid-back attitude was a massive middle finger to the academy''s obsession with discipline and excellence.


    "You already poked the old bear once today. Twice, and he''ll slap you with detention. Again."


    "Let him try. I think he likes me too much for that." Auron shot his friend a grin, his violet eyes glinting with mock arrogance. "After all, I''m the academy''s most dedicated failure. Can''t let down my fanbase."


    "And yet, here I am, still allowing myself to be seen with the likes of you two," Lyra Ashford''s voice was cool, but the playful lilt betrayed her amusement. She was seated on Auron''s other side, her chestnut hair pulled into a neat high ponytail, and her vivid green eyes focused yet somehow never missing a word of their ridiculous conversation.


    "Oh, right. Miss ''Top-of-the-Class-and-Future-Legend'' Ashford." Auron groaned, pretending to shield his eyes. "Your brilliance is blinding, Lyra. Some of us mere mortals have weak constitutions, you know."


    "quit joking around ," Lyra replied with a smirk. "Though I''m not sure if that''s resilience or sheer stupidity."


    "Maybe both," Dante chimed in with a shrug. "Probably both."


    Their chat was a welcome distraction from the frustration burning in Auron''s chest. The academy was brutal to anyone who dared to fall behind. Even the smallest success was celebrated, while failure was treated like a disease.


    Unlike Dante, who had already formed a contract with a Bronze-level Steelback Boar, and Lyra, whose Frost wolf boasted low-tier Silver strength, Auron was the academy''s legendary flop. The Raventor who couldn''t even bond with an Iron-ranked beast.


    And as if to rub salt in the wound, Instructor Harwin''s voice thundered through the classroom, his gaze zeroing in on Auron.


    "Alright, settle down." Harwin''s sharp tone silenced the room. His eyes practically dripped with disdain. "Today, we''ll be performing practice contracts with the Iron-ranked creatures provided by the academy. For those of you who haven''t managed to forge a bond yet..." His gaze locked on Auron, lips twitching with false pity. "This is your last chance before the end-of-term assessments."


    The words hit like a bucket of ice water, but Auron kept his indifferent mask intact. It wasn''t like he hadn''t heard worse before.


    Dante leaned over, voice low. "You good, man? Don''t let that fossil get under your skin."


    "As if I''d give him the satisfaction." Auron forced a smirk. "Though if I fail again, I might actually have to think of something else.''"


    "Don''t joke about it," Lyra snapped, but her eyes were laced with concern. "If you can''t form a contract soon, they might force you to leave the academy. You know that, right?"


    "Good thing I''ve never been a fan of following the rules." Auron''s grin widened, but the humor didn''t reach his eyes. "If the academy kicks me out, I''ll just have to find another way to make the world grovel at my feet."


    Lyra didn''t seem convinced, but she let the subject drop. Dante, on the other hand, patted Auron''s shoulder with the sympathy of someone who had no clue how to actually be sympathetic.


    The class shuffled into the Contracting Hall, a grand chamber buzzing with energy. Runes glowed on the polished stone floor, forming intricate circles meant to guide the bonding process. Iron-ranked beasts paced inside their cages, eyes glinting with a mix of fear and aggression. The air was thick with tension, like a storm waiting to break.


    "Step forward when your name is called." Harwin''s voice echoed against the marble walls, broken up by the occasional growl or snarl from the beasts. "If you fail, move aside. We have no time to waste on incompetence."


    Dante went first, solidifying his bond with his Steelback Boar like it was as easy as breathing. Harwin gave him a satisfied nod. Lyra followed, her Frost wolf''s icy aura flaring with a dazzling glow under her command.


    And then...


    "Auron Raventor," Harwin''s voice oozed with contempt. "Let''s see if you can finally prove you''re not just a waste of space."


    "Oh, don''t worry. I''ve been practicing." Auron stepped forward, eyes gleaming with fake confidence. "Practicing the art of disappointing you, that is."


    The instructor''s glare was an added bonus.


    The cage creaked open, releasing an Iron Wolf. Its silver fur bristled.


    Auron drew a deep breath, his fingers tracing the contracting ritual circle''s patterns with desperate precision. Energy swirled around him, ethereal tendrils stretching from his soul toward the beast''s wild essence.


    Power surged between them—sharp, electric, alive. The wolf''s gaze locked onto his, something ancient shifting beneath its amber eyes. Auron reached for it, heart pounding—


    Then, like snapping a fragile thread, it was gone.


    The beast recoiled, snarling. The contract collapsed. And in its place, Auron felt nothing. No power. No connection. Just the cold sting of failure.


    Harwin''s laugh cut through the silence like a knife. "Once again, the Raventor name fails to live up to its reputation."


    Auron let his smirk linger, even as failure burned under his skin. "Well. That was fun. Let''s do it again sometime—maybe next year."