Lord Of Beasts

Moments after questioning Ethan about the blackout and the aura of the Lightning Dragonfly he had evolved, Kaela suddenly burst forward.

The floor exploded beneath her feet.

Boom!

She crossed the room in an instant, but her target reacted through pure instinct.

’Partial Assimilation: Wolfy.’

Mana surged through Ethan’s body.

Black fur raced across parts of his body as dense muscle swelled beneath his hoodie. His pupils narrowed into predatory slits, and in the blink of an eye, the transformation was complete.

Kaela’s hand met his.

BOOM!

The collision sent a violent gust of wind blasting through the bar.

Tables rattled, glasses clinked, and several bottles behind the counter trembled violently. Mark instinctively ducked, praying his bar didn’t get blown up after just being repaired. He also couldn’t help but be annoyed about the damage to his floors already.

Not that he dared to voice it.

For a brief second, neither of them moved.

Then Ethan’s boots slowly began sliding backwards across the polished floor.

He laughed.

"You’re like a fucking gorilla."

Even partially assimilated with Wolfy, Kaela remained physically stronger than him. The gap wasn’t nearly as overwhelming as it had been during their first meeting, when she’d thrown him around as if he weighed nothing, but it was still enough to steadily overpower him.

And that was before her power ramped up through combat.

Kaela’s grin widened.

"You’ve gotten stronger too."

With one final shove, she knocked his arm aside before casually grabbing the sleeve of his hoodie. She pulled it upwards, knowing what she was looking for, and her playful expression quickly faded.

"The tattoo... it changed? And that aura, it wasn’t as strong as the one I faced, but it was at least B Rank."

The markings winding across Ethan’s arm had become noticeably more vibrant than before, spreading further across his skin with greater detail. It looked alive and was now filled with power, as though the beast within was glaring back at her.

"How does that even work?"

Ethan simply smiled before tugging his sleeve back down.

"No comment."

Kaela wasn’t exactly pleased with that answer.

"You’re picking up bad habits from that asshole detective."

Ethan laughed.

"Can’t even deny that one."

Sighing and sure that she wasn’t getting any more information, Kaela wandered behind the bar as though she owned the place. She grabbed a bottle from the shelf without asking, popped the cap off with her thumb, then took several long swigs straight from the bottle.

"Keep it on my tab."

Mark stood up quickly before answering.

"It’s on the house."

Kaela looked over, mildly surprised.

"Really?"

He nodded calmly.

Despite the obvious tension in his shoulders, Mark never once broke eye contact with her intimidating violet gaze. Most ordinary people would’ve looked away almost instantly, but whether through stubbornness or simple honesty, he held his ground.

Kaela noticed.

A small, approving smile crossed her lips.

"Your friend’s interesting."

Ethan chuckled.

"You have no idea. Don’t let how put together he is fool you."

Mark sighed from behind the counter.

"I’m literally standing right here."

Kaela laughed before slowly looking around the newly renovated bar once more.

"You know, I could actually live here."

She sounded completely serious.

"A bar upstairs, so infinite alcohol. And fun people to be around."

She nodded thoughtfully.

"Seems perfect."

Ethan responded jokingly, "If you’re fine with sleeping in a basement, the rent’s forty grand a month."

"Done."

She accepted without hesitation that Ethan almost wondered if she’d even heard the amount. Then again, money genuinely seemed meaningless to her, and she could make tens of times that amount each time she entered a gate.

Behind the counter, Mark subtly shook his head, as if to communicate to Ethan to refuse. There was no chance he wanted one of the country’s most unpredictable A Ranks living beneath his livelihood.

Ethan caught the tiny movement and couldn’t help smiling.

"We’ll... think about it."

The Riot Valkyrie had also noticed their silent communication and grinned.

"Don’t worry, I’m just joking. I gotta give these two their space so they can, you know."

Ethan laughed, and this time, so did Elara, though her face was still red.

’She really is an awesome wingwoman.’

But that still left him unsure what she was even doing here.

-

Ethan hadn’t expected to see Kaela again so soon.

Not that he was complaining.

Out of everyone he’d met since becoming a Titled, she was probably the easiest to be around. She matched his energy effortlessly, never cared about acting proper, and always seemed ready to either start a fight or laugh at one.

In a strange way, she almost felt like...

A friend.

’Yeah... I’m definitely not saying that out loud.’

But as chaotic as she was, Ethan had no doubt she hadn’t come here on her own initiative. There was always a reason whenever the Association’s Riot Valkyrie showed up, especially this early in the morning.

He folded his arms and looked at her.

"So, what did you actually come here for?"

Kaela finally stopped admiring the bottle she’d stolen from behind the bar and grinned.

"I’ve just been told to escort you to a meeting."

Ethan raised an eyebrow.

"What for?"

She shrugged so casually it was almost insulting.

"Honestly? I wasn’t really listening."

That earned her a deadpan stare, to which she just laughed.

"I zoned out after they started explaining."

Then she pointed at him.

"But I caught the important part... I think we’re gonna be working together more often from now on."

Ethan couldn’t help smiling.

It was almost impossible not to whenever she wore that slightly unhinged grin.

’That definitely sounds like fun.’

He honestly didn’t have anything planned anyway.

The Tower had drained him mentally, but he’d already spent the morning relaxing. Aside from wanting another cold shower before settling into whatever routine his new life had become, he didn’t have anything planned.

’I was just going to hit the gym and flirt with Elara all day, haha.’

He shrugged, quickly on board.

"Works for me."

That’s when a quiet voice interrupted them.

"What about me?"

Everyone turned towards Elara...