Chapter 393 The Beast Without a Path

Principal Steven stared at Arthur without saying anything.

The office had been quiet before, but now even the faint ticking of the clock seemed unusually loud. The old fragment rested on Steven’s desk, its dull surface giving no indication that it had just shown Arthur something impossible.

Arthur shifted in his chair. "Principal, you’re making that expression again. Is what I saw really that strange?"

Steven finally looked away from him. "Arthur, you’re telling me that your Evolution Path Vision encountered a Beast it couldn’t identify. Not merely an unfamiliar species, but something that gave you no information whatsoever."

"That’s right." Arthur leaned forward. "I couldn’t see its name, its evolution, or even whether it had an evolutionary path."

Vedas stood beside Arthur’s chair, studying the principal. "Is that dangerous?"

Steven considered the question. "I don’t know."

Arthur blinked.

Hearing those words from Steven was unusual. The principal had always seemed to possess an answer for almost everything involving Beast Tamers.

Arthur scratched his cheek. "Maybe it’s just a species nobody has discovered yet."

"That would explain why you couldn’t recognize it," Steven replied. "But your Talent has identified creatures beyond ordinary academic records before. An unknown species doesn’t explain why it returned absolutely nothing."

Arthur looked toward the fragment.

Rather than frightening him, the explanation made his curiosity grow.

"Then I really want to know what it was."

Vedas folded his arms. "Naturally. We encounter something completely unknown, and your first instinct is to investigate it."

Arthur grinned. "Wouldn’t you want to know?"

"I would prefer knowing whether it can harm you first."

Steven nodded. "On that point, I agree with Vedas."

He moved the fragment farther across his desk.

"Arthur, before we do anything else, I want you to describe exactly what you saw. Don’t try to explain it. Just tell me what you remember."

Arthur straightened.

"Alright. First, everything around me disappeared. I was standing somewhere unfamiliar, beneath a violet sky. There was a huge stone passage, and beyond it were five enormous structures."

Steven retrieved a blank sheet of paper.

"Five structures?"

"Yes. They were arranged around a doorway. At least, I think it was a doorway. It was enormous."

"What about the Beast?"

Arthur hesitated.

"That’s the strange part. I remember seeing it, but whenever I try to picture its body, the shape keeps changing."

Steven placed a pencil in front of him. "Try drawing it."

Arthur accepted the pencil immediately.

For several minutes, he worked in silence.

His first drawing resembled a four-legged creature with an elongated neck. He stared at it, frowned, and crossed it out.

The second had something resembling wings.

Arthur shook his head. "No, that’s wrong too."

He tried a third time.

This time, he stopped halfway through.

Vedas examined the sketches. "Those are three entirely different creatures."

"I know. None of them looks right." Arthur tapped the pencil against the paper. "I can remember that it was there, but I can’t remember what it actually looked like."

Steven studied the drawings without interrupting.

Arthur pushed them aside.

"Maybe I should draw the place instead."

He began again.

This time, the pencil moved much more confidently.

A broad stone passage appeared first, followed by a towering doorway. Arthur drew five structures around it, carefully positioning each one.

When he finished, he examined the result.

"That’s much closer."

Steven leaned over the desk.

"You’re certain about their arrangement?"

Arthur nodded. "I’m pretty sure."

"Draw it again. Don’t look at the first one."

Arthur turned to a fresh sheet.

He reproduced the arrangement.

Then Steven asked him to repeat it a third time.

Vedas compared the three drawings and raised his eyebrows.

"Arthur, look."

Arthur leaned closer.

Although the details varied, the five structures occupied nearly identical positions in every drawing.

"Oh! You’re right!"

Steven placed the sheets beside one another.

"The arrangement appears to have left a much stronger impression on you than the creature."

Arthur pointed toward the center. "And that doorway was definitely there. I remember looking straight at it."

Steven studied the sketch for another moment.

"Earlier, you mentioned the five Mirrors."

Arthur nodded enthusiastically. "Fire, Water, Earth, Darkness, and Light. There were five structures, so I wondered whether they were connected."

"But did you see the Mirrors themselves?"

Arthur paused.

"No. I didn’t."

"Did you see their symbols or anything identifying their elements?"

Arthur considered his memories carefully.

"Not that I can remember."

Steven nodded. "Then we’ll keep the possibility in mind without treating it as a fact."

Arthur accepted that immediately.

He had encountered enough unusual things during the Everglades expedition to know that appearances could be misleading.

Still, the drawing gave him something useful.

He looked at the five structures again.

"At least we have somewhere to start."

Steven’s expression softened. "Exactly."

...

Steven unlocked a cabinet behind his desk and retrieved a thick folder.

Arthur watched with interest as the principal opened it.

"Is that the fragment’s record?"

"Yes. This object was recovered during an Academy-supported expedition to an ancient site. Researchers examined it for years, but they couldn’t establish its original purpose."

Steven turned several pages toward Arthur.

The records contained measurements, sketches, and descriptions of the fragment’s unusual composition.

Arthur leaned forward eagerly.

"Did anyone else see something when they touched it?"

"No reported visions. Several researchers tested its response to Mana, and others examined its physical structure. None recorded an experience resembling yours."

Arthur scanned a page showing the fragment’s outline.

"So it just sat there?"

"Essentially. It showed no consistent reaction to the examinations."

Vedas stepped closer to the desk. "Then why did you keep it here?"

Steven glanced at the object.

"Because unanswered questions don’t become less important simply because we’ve failed to solve them."

Arthur liked that answer.

He looked at the fragment again, wondering whether the strange Beast had been waiting inside it somehow.

Then Vedas asked, "If Arthur touches it again, could he experience the same vision?"

"Possibly," Steven answered.

"And could something worse happen?"

Steven closed the folder.

"That’s also possible."

Arthur opened his mouth.

Steven raised one hand before he could speak.

"No, Arthur. We’re not testing it again today."

Arthur looked disappointed. "I wasn’t going to suggest that."

Vedas stared at him.

Arthur sighed. "Alright, I was considering it."

"Of course you were."

Steven placed the fragment inside a small protective case.

"We’ll investigate the records first. Whatever happened, I don’t intend to expose you to an unknown effect simply to satisfy our curiosity."

Arthur nodded.

He wanted answers, but he trusted Steven’s judgment.

Besides, there were other ways to investigate.

"Then can I read the expedition reports?"

Steven considered him for a moment.

"Not all of them are available through the student library."

Arthur’s shoulders dropped slightly.

"However," Steven continued, "I believe we can make an exception."

Arthur immediately straightened.

"Really?"

Steven opened a drawer and retrieved a small authorization card bearing the Academy’s emblem.

"I’m granting you supervised access to the restricted research archive. You’ll be able to consult records concerning ancient structures, recovered relics, and selected evolutionary studies."

Arthur stared at the card.

"Wait. The restricted archive?"

"Yes."

"The one students aren’t normally allowed to enter?"

"That one."

Arthur practically jumped out of his chair.

"That’s amazing!"

Vedas caught the edge of the desk as Arthur stood too quickly.

"Arthur, please remember that we’re still in the principal’s office."

Arthur accepted the card with both hands.

"Thank you, Principal! I’ll make good use of it!"

Steven chuckled. "I suspected you’d appreciate this reward more than most students."

"Are there records about rare Beast evolutions too?"

"Some. Access depends on the material, but you can request relevant documents through the archivists."

Arthur’s excitement grew.

His thoughts immediately turned toward Eden.

She had reached Level 30 and remained unable to advance until her next evolution. He had promised to help her find a way forward.

Perhaps the Academy’s research could help him fulfill that promise.

Vedas noticed his expression.

"You’re already thinking about Eden, aren’t you?"

Arthur nodded. "Of course. If there’s anything useful in those records, I want to find it."

Steven seemed pleased.

"Then this opportunity may benefit more than our investigation."

Arthur carefully tucked the authorization card away.

Steven watched him for a moment before speaking again.

"Most students would be nervous after experiencing something they couldn’t explain."

Arthur considered that.

"I am nervous," he admitted. "But I also really want to know what that Beast was."

Vedas sighed. "Those two feelings are apparently compatible."

Steven laughed.

...

Before Arthur left, Steven brought out an index of the original expedition materials.

"If you’re going to investigate, you should begin with the collection records. They’re less exciting than the field reports, but they tell us what was actually recovered."

Arthur accepted the index.

Several pages listed damaged stone objects, unidentified materials, and fragments preserved for later examination.

He scanned the entries.

Then he stopped.

"Principal, this fragment wasn’t the only thing they found?"

Steven looked at the page Arthur was holding.

"No. The expedition recovered several objects from the same site."

Arthur examined the list more closely.

Some entries had detailed descriptions. Others contained only catalog numbers and references to separate reports.

He pointed toward one of them.

"Why isn’t there a description here?"

"That object’s examination records were transferred to another department. The original collection was divided between research groups."

Arthur turned another page.

More references appeared.

He frowned. "So nobody has all the information in one place?"

"Not in this folder. The expedition’s findings were distributed according to the researchers’ specialties."

Vedas studied the index. "Then the fragment may have been examined without considering everything discovered around it."

Steven nodded slowly. "That’s worth checking."

Arthur’s eyes brightened.

It wasn’t proof that the other objects were connected to his vision.

But it was something they could investigate.

He looked from the index to his drawing of the five structures.

"What if one of the other objects has something that matches what I saw?"

Steven reached for the list.

"Then we’ll need the original records to determine whether that possibility has any merit."

Arthur leaned forward eagerly.

"Can we request them?"

"I’ll contact the departments holding the remaining documentation. Some records may take time to retrieve."

Arthur nodded, already imagining the possibilities.

Steven gathered the drawings and placed them inside the folder.

"For now, I’ll preserve these with the fragment’s records. Tomorrow, we’ll begin your personal training. I expect you to arrive rested."

Arthur smiled. "I’ll be there!"

Vedas looked relieved that the conversation had finally returned to something familiar.

Then Arthur glanced toward the index one last time.

"Principal, when those other records arrive, can I help examine them?"

Steven regarded the young Beast Tamer for a moment.

Arthur had arrived expecting an ordinary discussion about his tournament reward.

Now he was leaving with access to the restricted archive, a mystery no researcher had previously reported, and a possible lead hidden among an old expedition’s discoveries.

Steven gave a small nod.

"Yes, Arthur. I think you’ve earned the right to help."

Arthur’s grin widened.

He had come to the principal’s office expecting training.

Instead, he had discovered that an ancient fragment might hold the answer to a question his own Talent couldn’t solve.

And somewhere in the Academy’s scattered records, there might already be another piece of that answer.